Chapter Five
Muerto leaned hischair back against the concrete wall as he watched his brothers sliding into their chairs. Steel had called church to address the issue of the new strip club, the Climax Lounge, off Ash and Cedar.
“Did Zach stay until closing last night?” Crow slipped into the chair next to his.
“Yeah. Jaime stayed extra to help wash the glasses.” He ran his hand over his five o’clock shadow. He had such a thick beard that if he wanted to stay clean-shaven, he had to shave a couple of times a day. The women seemed to like the roughness of his beard, so he usually left it for a few days.
“Jaime? She always seems like she can’t wait to haul ass outta there after her shift. Did some lucky guy pick up Brandy?” Crow took a gulp from his Dr. Pepper.
“You’ve got the hots bad for her, dude.”
“Wish the feeling was mutual. She’s into you. You should try her out sometime. I bet she’d show you all kinds of fun.” He raised his eyebrows.
Muerto laughed. “She’s an employee, so off-limits. Anyway, she doesn’t do it for me. I know she’s hot and all, but even if she didn’t work for the club, I wouldn’t be interested.”
“Are you fuckin’ nuts? If she offered her primo body to you, you’d turn it down?”
“I’m not saying that. I mean, if shegaveherself to me, I wouldn’t turn her down. I just wouldn’t pursue her. There’s a difference.” Muerto leaned forward on his chair and grabbed a beer that was in a cooler on top of the table. He twisted the top open and took a long pull.
“Well, I’d fuck her good and hard if she even looked at me. I know you got your eyes on that pool shark. What the fuck’s her deal? Did she come in last night after I left?”
Muerto’s jaw hardened. “No, and I definitely don’t have my eye onher.” The night before, he’d been hoping she’d drop by, but she didn’t, and it pissed him off to no end. But what really got him was that he even gave a shit whether she came in or not.She’s nothing to me. Why the fuck do I care if I ever see her again? She’s nothing but a mouthy pool hustler who happens to be my tenant. So what if she’s gorgeous and sexy? I can get gorgeous and sexy any day of the week.
“We ready to start here?” Steel’s deep voice filled the room, silencing the idle chatter. He raised his bent knee and rested his foot on a chair. “We’ve got a new strip club in town. It’s called the Climax Lounge.” Snickers circled around the room. “I know, fucking clever. Anyway, we don’t have a problem if another strip bar opens in Alina, but this one happens to be run by Jimmy Delarosa, and we know what a greasy fucker he is.” The brothers laughed as they voiced their agreement with their president.
“You think it’s a front for laundering? Remember the scam that asshole was doing a while back?” Goldie brought a can of Pepsi to his mouth.
“I thought the attorney general sent him to the pen for scamming all those old people,” Chains said.
Paco stood up, whistling loudly through his teeth. The members quieted down. “The slimebag did a two-year stint for screwing old people out of their money, but he’s back and running the strip club. Since he’s involved, we know it’s a slimy operation. The question is who the fuck is backing it?”
“Also, there’re rumors that he’s hiring underage girls, and that’s bullshit.” Steel’s green eyes flashed. “No way we’re gonna toleratethatin our county.”
“Where are the rumors coming from?” Muerto asked.
Steel leaned forward. “I bumped into Sheriff Wexler when I was coming out of the hardware store yesterday, and he casually mentioned it to me. He told me that he’d been in there but all the women had good IDs. Said a couple of parents have complained that their daughters got hired at the club to clean tables and sweep up.”
Muerto pushed his chair back roughly. “I’m so fuckin’ tired of the badges wanting us to do their goddamn jobs. Wexler’s got a few deputies. Why don’t they figure this shit out? They’re nothing but a bunch of inept dumbasses with handcuffs. Fuckin’ morons.” He shook his head as several of the brothers voiced their agreement with him.
“That may well be, and wedocount on their ineptness, but do I have to remind you that we were able to score a half-million dollars on our last gun run while Wexler and his deputies looked the other way?” Paco darted his eyes to each of the brothers. “We need the badges to stay the fuck outta our business.”
“Paco’s right,” Steel said. “We need to check this out. Delarosa’s gotta know we won’t tolerate that shit. When he got back in town a few months ago, Diablo and I went over and basically told him that if he wants to keep walking, he’ll respect our rules. And that means no scamming the old residents, no messing with girls under eighteen, and no drug dealing. Knowing him, he’s fucking up.”
“Where’d he get the money to start the club? He must’ve stashed a shitload of the dough he got from scamming. I heard he’d bilked millions. I thought the government got the bulk of it,” Sangre said.
“That’s what we gotta find out. You’re working on that, right, Chains?” Steel jerked his chin toward him.
“Yeah. So far it looks like Delarosa was a dumb fuck and didn’t even try to hide the dough. The state got whatever was left. They’ve been giving it back to the victims. He didn’t put the money into this club, not from what I can see.”
“He’s too stupid to have done it. He’s got backing,” Eagle said as he rolled a joint.
“I can snoop around and see about the underage girls. I gotta go in there and check some shit out for a family matter anyway,” Muerto said.
“Sounds good. Let me know what you think,” Steel replied. “Before we hear from Sangre about the various businesses and their income, I want to let you know that Breanna wants to get a lot more businesses involved in the October biker rally. She wants this year to be the biggest year for the amount of money we raise for Bikers Against Child Abuse. So if you know anyone who has a business and wants to rent a booth, hit me up, or have them call Breanna directly. Now let’s go over some routine business….”
Muerto tuned out the rest of the meeting. As long as he got his cut from the club’s businesses, he was good. The dispensary was booming in both medicinal and recreational marijuana sales, and the income from the club’s other dealings gave him more money than he ever dreamed he’d have. The good income enabled him to help out his mother and sisters, plus buy several properties in and around Alina. Each member had a share in the club’s profits, and the rest of the money was rolled back into the club.
Soon church was over and the brothers headed to the large room where the prospects had their drinks waiting for them, and the club girls had their warm bodies ready. The brothers milled around as Muerto went up to the bar and picked up the beer Ruger placed in front of him. Before he could bring it to his lips, Ruby came up next to him, her strong floral scent making his eyes water.
