Club Noire

Chapter1

“So, do I have to take off my clothes?” my last potential hire nervously asked.

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes and rub my aching temples. I hated this part of the job, but it was necessary to get a personal feel for all my employees. I could tell in a matter of minutes if someone was going to work out, whether it be as a featured entertainer or busboy. That was important in the successful running of an adult club that catered to the varied and rich clientele that mine did. The last thing I needed was rude or tardy staff or anyone that would entertain a client after hours (a strict no-no) or use/sell drugs in my place (a bigger no-no). I absolutely did not need to get shut down on a bulls*t charge because of horny or stupid workers.

My club was an upscale restaurant/bar, strip/b**m club, and entertainment venue. Each floor catered to different…tastes. I had one of the most lucrative clubs in the city’s neutral entertainment zone. We served weres, vamps, and other supernatural beings within our walls. They were welcome as long as they could afford the membership and behaved themselves. Many heads of the largest factions liked to enjoy a relaxed evening with us or even conduct business here because we guarantee everyone’s safety. No one was sure how I managed that, and I would never tell them. They also had no exact idea what I was, and I was definitely never telling them that. Only a handful of my closest friends knew; a couple were the same thing.

Club Noire was the hottest thing going, and I had worked my butt off in the first years of arriving in the city to get it to that point. When I started my club, the entertainment district had a wild West atmosphere. I couldn’t abide the chaos and decided to end that mess immediately. By greasing the correct palms and getting the heads of the largest factions to agree to my ideas, I could put myself on top from the start and keep anyone who thought of usurping my position.

One b*tch club owner had tried and discovered the hard way that I was more than a pretty face. She sent one of her workers to me in an attempt to have a mole reporting all my inside information. She didn’t realize I had established a decent network before I opened my doors, and someone from the largest vampire hive had already told me what she was trying to do. Also, the fool was so messy and lazy that she either didn’t know or cared that the girl she sent me had a twin sister working in MY club. It would have been laughable if it wasn’t for the potential to shut me down. The girl in question was known to sleep with clients on the regular, as well as being a junkie, and was in danger of getting her club shut down. She kept getting them busted because the owner didn’t have the same restrictions on her clientele that I did. Her underground gambling rooms were an open secret, and the authorities had been gunning for her for years. The owner was trying to kill two birds with one stone-get me closed down and get rid of her troublesome employee without any blowback. Getting the heat off her would be a bonus.

I let the girl come in for an interview. She was a strung-out mess and I wouldn’t have hired her even if I didn’t know about her boss’ plot. Nobody in my place would have glanced at her except maybe a lower-level vamp or one of the less picky were groups. Some other supernatural entities liked them dependent and loose. But I tended not to let them in because they often brought trouble, be it fights or causing the law to look too closely at my place. But I pretended to give the girl a chance until she was in my office and thought she was home free. Once I had her on camera, I let my professional demeanor slip.

“Look, I know who you are and why you’re really here, so let’s cut the sh*t,” I said conversationally. I watched her fidget and waited, steepling my fingers under my chin.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about! I just moved here, and I need a job, ma’am,” she stuttered. I just waited. She lifted her head defiantly and stared back at me. Okay, apparently, she was going to die with the lie. I pressed the intercom button on my desk phone. Phaedra, my second, answered immediately.

“What’s up, boss,” she said. She had already been privy to the news from the vamps as well and was ready for the sting.

“Can you bring in our friend, please?” I answered sweetly while watching my mole sweat.

“Be right in,” she replied with a snicker. I let that go for the moment, then returned to my mole.

“So, by any chance, do you have any family or close friends in the city?” I asked calmly.

“N-no,” she stuttered out. Hmm, okay. If I had any doubts before, they were now gone. I rose as Phaedra knocked and entered, bringing my mole’s twin with her, who looked confused until she looked at her sister. Then she bristled with fury. She would have taken the other girl down if Phaedra hadn’t restrained her.

“You stupid wh*re! How dare you come here and try to mess up my good gig! Ms. Magdalene is the best club owner out here. I know that skank you work for sent you because no way would you even think that any above-board place would even take a look at you otherwise! I hope you get what’s coming to you because Ms. M don’t play! Rot in hell, b***h!” she screamed.

I was very glad for the soundproof walls and immensely proud that my workers thought highly of me. I made a note to slip Sheba a little bonus at the end of the week. She had no way of knowing what her twin was up to, and I knew her sentiments came from the heart. Unlike her sister, Sheba was among my most popular and hardest-working girls. She raked in a ton, especially on the weekends and was the opposite of the trash currently shaking in the chair across from my desk. The twin, Lace, was frantically looking for some way out. I excused Sheba and let my gaze return to Lace.

“So, I’ll ask you again. Why are you really here? Lie to me again, and it will not go how you think it will,” I said coldly.

“Ms. Tee sent me. She said I could pay off my debt to her and get better clients by getting the dirt on you. She wanted to get you shut down by reporting that you were allowing hooking and drugs on your premises,” she blurted.

Well, luckily for you, that’s the truth. I already knew you were coming and will care for you and your boss. I have recorded this conversation and will forward it to the proper authorities. Your boss won’t want to see you again, so I’ll offer you some mercy. I will pay to send you to rehab, and if you stay there and complete treatment, I will resettle you somewhere where you won’t be found,” I said. “However, if you refuse, you can take chances with the law and Ms. Tee.

Lace nodded and started to cry. “I’ll take it! Thank you, ma’am!” I inclined my head at her and sighed.

“Phaedra will see you off, and I will expect regular positive reports from the facility or the deal is null. Don’t even think of contacting Ms. Tee or sneaking off because I will know,” I said blandly while looking in her eyes. Tears mean sh*t if someone doesn’t really act on them. Lace could actually become like her sister if she wanted to do it. I was willing to take a chance on potential. Like I said, I could read people very well and I knew with certainty that she would complete all my stipulations. Ms. Tee was about to be furious, and I was ready to drink her bitter tears.

Phaedra looked at me and, at my subtle nod, led Lace out of the room. I wished her luck, then picked up the phone to make some calls. Within hours, Ms. Tee was in a cell, and her little club was shut down for good. Word quickly spread to the other clubs about what would happen if they attempted to cross me. I accepted conciliatory calls from the other large club owners, who quickly agreed to run their operations as I did mine. It has been very smooth since that time.