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Denny sighed. “I took some merch from a supplier and then the bar was robbed. All of it gone. Now he wants payment.” He held his hands up. “I don’t have it, man.”
“How much?”
“Five hundred thousand dollars.”
I let out a gasp. “I don’t have a spare half a million bucks under the bed to pay for your drugs.”
“Well, I think you do, and anyhow there’s an easier way.”
I pushed back my chair and stood up. “You’re out of your mind, Denny. You need to find another way to pay your debt. This doesn’t involve me.”
“Yeah? I think you need to watch this video.” Denny lowered his hand to underneath his desk and the television on the wall behind me flickered to life. I turned to stare at the screen.
The video showed a thin man with greasy brown hair and dark circles under his eyes, sitting in
the chair I had just vacated. I took my eyes off the screen to look back at Denny, who pointed to what looked like an ordinary wall light behind him. Surveillance. Made sense he’d have it in his line of work.
“Take a seat. Smith.”
I retook the chair repositioning it to face the television.
I heard Denny whisper. “Run along, Harlow. Us men need to talk business. I’ll see you tonight. I promise things are about to change.” He didn’t know I was a vampire, that I could hear his every tiny whisper.
The man on the screen began to speak. “I need a fix, man. But I don’t have any money right now. I need to put it on account, like we used to.” I realized the man on screen was Rob Delaware. He was barely recognizable from the last time I saw him; his face ravaged by the mask of an addict.
Denny’s voice joined the recording.
“But you began to not settle your bar tab on time, didn’t you?” The emphasis on ‘bar tab’ let me know Denny was covering his back, but the bill was not from a couple drinks at the bar.
“I can pay you with information? I know something about one of your regulars. Some shit went down between him and my sister when he was drunk. I found photos on her cell, forwarded them to myself. I don’t wanna drop my sister in it but I could give you my cell until I have your money?”
I sat upright in my chair. Alerted at ‘regular’ and ‘drunk’. With my presence this could only be me.
The video ended, and I swiveled my chair back around to Denny.
“Thing is. I saw the photos and I turned him down. I don’t give the likes of him free merch. But then I found the place robbed. And not long after that, Rob went to ‘rehab’ God knows where. Coincidence? I think not.”
“What were the photos?
“They were really interesting. You and Cynthia. Making out in a room here in my club. In the photo you have fangs and she has two bite marks on her neck.”
I kept my face calm and rolled my eyes. “You gotta be kidding. I’ve never heard anything so crazy. I’ve never done anything with Cynthia Delaware and I’m just a regular guy.”
“Save it, Smith. You’re not the only vampire frequents my club. I have Shifters come too, the Fae sometimes. It was a shock when I saw the photo but I knew it was genuine. All these years, Smith. You knew I went over to the dark side but you never said you were a vampire. It cuts deep, man. Deep.”
I sighed. “I have my reasons. No one knows. You understand? No one outside my very tight circle. You were just outside that, dude. Close but that information is dangerous. I didn’t tell you to protect you.”
“If that’s what you need to tell yourself…” He stared at me, waiting.
“So this photo’s on Cynthia’s phone? Shit.”
“It’s on both these phones. Cynthia’s and Rob’s.” Denny went in his drawer and pulled out two cells. “Rob’s not the only one who can steal.”
And now we got down to the truth. To the actual business at hand. Blackmail. “Let me get this straight. You want me to pay five hundred thousand dollars for you to keep your silence? Then we’re done, right?”
“If you want us done, then you clear my debt and get me access to a regular line of supply for a very good price.”
“Who is the person you owe money to? If you give me their name and contact information, I will ensure that they do not remember your debt, but I’m not sorting out your future supply. We’re done after this, Denny. You went too far when you chose blackmail over asking a friend. I’d have helped you anyhow, that’s the sad truth in all this.”
