Chapter Five – Twinlight

In all honesty, Hudson had been expecting that call. He picked up, pretending that he didn’t know who was calling, although he had saved that number in his phone the moment he had received the card from those gloved hands.

“Mr. Vegas,” Watkins called from the other end. Not a question, not a greeting.

“Yes, this is he. Who’s calling?” Hudson asked.

“I paid a visit to you the other day. You were unhappy with my appraising your merchandise.”

Hudson moved his phone from one ear to the other, to gain time – and pretend that he still couldn’t place the man calling. So, the asshole hadn’t forgotten about seeing Otis at his place. “Merchandise?” he asked. “Oh, Mr. Watkins. I apologize. I should have saved your number. Business has been crazy lately.”

“I can tell,” Watkins said dryly. “Your website is booming with newcomers. And yet, you’ve sent not one our way.”

Our way. Of course. Just as he had thought, Watkins was an underling, one with some leeway, without a doubt, but still a subordinate. “What can I tell you? It seems like only college kids with a sense of adventure drop by. They’re not exactly your type, if I recall correctly.”

“But you did have a few of those,” Watkins said airily. “A young man. Jasper, I think his name is.”

Hudson frowned. He hadn’t published the photos he had taken of Jasper and his other friend at The Bouncing Bunny. What was Watkins playing at? And had Jasper already found his way into that cold man’s clutches? Hmm, his moves at that seedy club must have been watched and reported.

“He’s not particularly attractive,” Hudson argued, without asking how Watkins knew about the boy. He had to pretend to be pretty stupid, too, or at least too full of himself to take a moment to think things through. “I thought your standards would be higher.”

“Oh, he’ll do,” Watkins said airily. “For what we have in mind for him.”

“And what might that be?” Hudson asked, pretending that he wasn’t really interested and was just asking out of politeness.

“How about you pay a visit to our select club?” Watkins proposed.

Something was fishy. Watkins either suspected him or wanted something else from him. It didn’t matter. He intended very strongly to pay a visit to that select club, whatever hellhole it would be. “I’m busy… and it looks like our businesses don’t really align,” he said, the opposite of what Watkins was expecting from a babbling fool like him.

“Oh, but I do think they could align very well,” Watkins insisted. Hudson could easily imagine the cruel smile at the other end of the conversation. “If you saw what kind of entertainment we offer, you’d definitely be more able to select the proper candidates for us. Consider it a business proposal, one in the making, Mr. Vegas.”

“Of course. If you put it like that, I feel very much obliged.”

“You know,” Watkins said after a short, measured silence, “you intrigue me, Mr. Vegas. At first glance, I’d say you’re from the rougher part of town. Any town. But upon closer inspection, you strike me as someone with an education.”

Of course. A shmuck. Someone who put on a few tattoos and tried to make it big in the porn industry, while having not a clue about the real players. Hudson very much liked to believe that his assumed persona had already fooled a shark like Watkins. However, he wasn’t willing to walk blindly into this. Or to trust Watkins in everything he said, for that matter.

“I went to college. However, accounting felt too boring for me. Plus, I have the inclination to make bigger bucks than I would just working my ass off nine to five every day,” he offered the explanation Watkins was looking for.

That appeared to satisfy the man on the other end. “That’s refreshing, Mr. Vegas. It’s not often that we meet your kind in this line of business. I look forward to getting to know you better.”

Hudson was counting on that ‘we’. If there was someone above Watkins who wanted to know him, he was ready for it. “Same here, Mr. Watkins. Send me the details, and I’ll pay you a visit at the soonest.”

“How about tonight?”

Things were moving. Hopefully, not fast enough that he didn’t get to get Jasper out of some terrible situation. However, he doubted Watkins was willing to show him their most dangerous type of entertainment from the get-go, provided that his business was part of the human trafficking ring. He was, after all, someone to be known and weighed for the moment.

***

Hudson had called him beautiful. Otis still turned that simple word over and over in his mind, while going about his cleaning duties. The shift would soon change, and he would be on the floor, waiting on customers, but, for now, for the extra cash Mr. Smith was giving him, he did some other chores. All in all, life felt pretty good. So, when his shift truly started, he brushed the hair out of his smaller eye without being reminded by the manager or Missy.

He saw Jackie at his usual place and walked toward his table with confidence. He had let Missy know that he didn’t want to hide from such a loyal customer anymore and promised that he would always split the tips he got from the young man with her. Missy had patted his cheek in a motherly gesture and told him that, as far as that table was concerned, the tips would be all his, since it was because of him that the guy was dining there so often.

Jackie’s face lit up as he walked over with the menu in his hands.

“Good evening, sir,” Otis said pleasantly. “We are happy to see you again.”

Jackie grinned and batted his long, curly eyelashes. “For real? And don’t call me ‘sir’. Weren’t you saying I was too young for you?”

“I apologize for that. I shouldn’t have insulted you.”

Jackie waved. “Water under the bridge. Hey, what would you say about a little bit of dancing?”

“Dancing? Here?” Otis looked around. The restaurant owner took great pride in offering a pleasant quiet atmosphere, a reason for which the establishment catered mostly to seniors, and all that, without putting obscene prices on the menu.

“No, not here obviously,” Jackie said and laughed. “Although, I wouldn’t mind waltzing you all over the place.”

Otis was impressed. He offered the menu he was still holding. “Do you know how to do that? Waltz?”

Jackie laughed again. He seemed like a very happy fellow. “I like it more when hip action is involved.”

“So you prefer Latin American dances?” Otis asked, more and more intrigued by Jackie’s abilities.

“You bet. But I don’t mean just that. So, what do you say? Once you finish your shift, of course. I’m taking you out to the Twinlight. Do you know it?”

“No, I cannot say that I know of such a place.”

“I work for the big boss there,” Jackie said while nodding, although Otis hadn’t asked anything else. “So, getting in is no problem at all.” He flattened the air with one palm to make a point.

A night of fun and dances? Otis had never had such a thing before, but it sounded exciting, and he had always wanted to try it, at least once. However, was what Jackie proposing an invitation to a date?

He sighed. “I cannot go on dates.”

“Hey, who said anything about a date? It’s just friends having fun,” Jackie said.

Oh, so it wasn’t a date. Otis felt relieved. “If it’s about fun between friends, can Missy come, too?”

Jackie seemed to ponder for a bit, his eyes blinking a few times. “Yeah, sure, why not? Although, you know, it’s that kind of place. She might get hit on by some sisters.”

Otis puzzled over what Jackie was saying. Why would Missy be courted by some nuns? And then, slowly, he remembered some of the things he had read on the internet. “I will ask her if she’d be bothered by that. But first, please let me know what you would like tonight.”

Jackie offered him another big smile and began ordering.

***