Calamity Jena (Invertary Book 4) (19 page)

“What did you find?” Matt sat on the old armchair that belonged to Betty McCloud—the town’s resident evil genius and Lake’s octogenarian mascot. “Where’s Betty?”

“Getting her hair done.” Lake flashed a rare smile.

Matt froze before grinning. “The whole three strands of it?”

“She said she wants it to look nice under her hairnet.”

They grinned at each other as Matt felt something prod into his backside. He fished around behind him and came out with a set of false teeth. With disgust he stood, threw them on the chair and marched to the sink to wash his hands.

“I think I’ll sit at the table,” he told a laughing Lake.

As Matt sat down, Harry looked up from his keyboard and seemed surprised to find his cousin in the room. “Hey,” he said again.

Matt rolled his eyes. “What have you got?”

Harry turned his lean body away from the desk he was working at and faced the other men. “Frank Di Marco is in it up to his neck.” He stretched his long, jean-clad legs out in front of him and crossed his arms over a
Big Bang Theory
T-shirt.

“Meaning?” Matt prompted before the laptop stole Harry’s attention again. Sometimes his genius cousin forgot the people around him couldn’t read his mind.

“He might be telling people he owns the strip club, but he only owns about twenty percent of it. The other eighty is owned by the Rizzoni family. I found some mumbling about what Frank did for the Rizzonis to get their backing—no one gave details, but it looks like he was involved in a couple of things. The most serious being a bank heist and a money-laundering scheme. He’s also been linked to the disappearance of a guy called Tony Markam.” Harry ran his fingers through his overly long hair. “I think it’s safe to say the disappearance is of the indefinite kind.”

Matt felt the blood leave his face. “He killed a guy?”

Harry shrugged. It was Lake who spoke. “We don’t know for sure. We don’t think so. He’s not known for being violent. All we know right now is he’s involved.”

“Very involved. As in up to his neck involved,” Harry added.

Lake nodded. “It’s possible he was dragged along as a witness to the act. It’s a standard way to gain loyalty. And to intimidate. There’s no doubt he’s in deeper with the mob than we first thought.”

Matt rubbed a hand over his face. He leaned forward and put his arms on the table.

“If he’s in that deep with the New Jersey mob, what’s he doing chasing down an ex-girlfriend in Scotland?”

Harry’s eyes went hard. “The rumour is the Rizzonis aren’t happy about the way Frank is running the club. Frank promised to turn the place around. Instead, after a year in charge, the club is losing more money than it was before Frank took over. He spent more time screwing the dancers than he did working. He’s on a deadline. As far as I can see, they need the club to be a huge success—there are rumours of commitments from the family to launder money through the club for partners elsewhere. If Frank can’t make it work, they’ll find someone who will.”

Lake cleared his throat. “If they don’t have a use for Frank, then they don’t need him around. He knows too much and he isn’t a family member. He’s a liability.”

“We think this is a do-or-die situation,” Harry said. “Literally.”

Matt spread his hands wide in exasperation. “Again, what has this to do with Jena? Shouldn’t Frank be in the States dealing with his problems?”

“He’s dealing with them here. He needs Jena to save the club,” Harry said. “If she dances, the crowds will come.” He thought about it. “Hopefully not literally, because that’s gross.”

Matt felt his eyes go wide. “She’s a stripper?” He knew she was a dancer of some sort, but hadn’t given it much thought.

“Nope, she isn’t stripper. She’s a go-go dancer. She’s famous in Atlantic City, a bit of an institution. She’s known nationally too. But that’s for her pole dancing. She’s won lots of competitions.” Harry blushed at the thought. “Not erotic pole dancing. I don’t think they have competitions for that. Do they?” He looked to Lake, who shook his head slowly, as if questioning Harry’s sanity.

Matt gave Lake a pleading look. “Help me out here. I’m missing something. I don’t see a connection, unless Frank plans to hold dance competitions.”

“Go-go dancers are hired by normal clubs to get the crowd going,” Harry said. “They get really popular, like DJs. They have their own following. Some of the more popular ones have fans and websites. Jena was huge. She was in demand. Made a bomb. Which, as far as we can gather, she spent propping up Frank. Strip clubs have been after Jena for years. The demand to see her dance while stripping is high. Any venue that has Jena stripping would be sold out. It would save Frank’s club to have her headline there. Probably save his life as well.”

There was silence for a minute.

“He can’t force her to leave with him,” Matt said.

“Physically removing her from Scotland is nigh impossible. But we don’t know what else he might try.” Lake folded his arms. He stood army straight, taking up more space than he should reasonably take. “Threaten her. Blackmail. Intimidate. Seduce. If I were in his position, I’d use it all. He needs Jena. He’s already told his partners he’s bringing her back to save the business. His reputation is on the line. He’s desperate. Desperate men are unpredictable.”

“Plus the guy isn’t known for his brain,” Harry said. “This is probably the only plan he’s come up with. All of his eggs are in one basket.”

“Jena,” Matt said on a sigh.

“Aye,” Harry said. “Jena.”

“We need to step up security at the hardware store.” Matt looked at Lake. “Gordon’s a great guy, but he’s hitting retirement and I don’t think he’d be much use against Frank and his two goons.”

“I called a guy. He’s on his way,” Lake said.

“I’ll stay with her until your guy gets here. I should probably tell her what Frank has in mind while I’m at it.”

“Take chocolate,” Harry said. “It always works with Magenta. Accidentally blow up the TV while making it more efficient—chocolate smooths it over. Back the car into the house while finishing a game of Angry Birds on your phone—chocolate takes the edge off. Seriously, there is nothing chocolate can’t fix. Ask Lake, he’s practically married.” He turned to Lake. “Tell him. I’m right. I know it. I keep a supply on hand wherever I am. It always works.”

Matt gaped at his cousin. “It’s a miracle you’re in a relationship.”

Harry sighed in disgust. “Fine, don’t take my advice, your loss.” He turned back to his laptop and Matt was instantly forgotten.

With a last worried glance at Lake, Matt went to inform his charge that her ex needed her to strip to save his worthless life.

19

Matt didn’t get a chance to tell Jena anything. When he slipped through the back door of the hardware store, he found her face to face with a woman who looked like she’d stepped out of the pages of
Rolling Stone
magazine. She was dressed in tight black leather trousers, a black leather form-fitting vest—with nothing underneath—and high black stiletto-heeled boots. She had a silver bag slung over her shoulder, about a million silver bangles and thick black eyeliner. Her dyed blonde hair was long, wavy and tousled—and she was obviously Jena’s mother.

The resemblance was startling—although the mother was a thinner, harder version of her daughter. Where Jena didn’t have to make any effort to look sexy, this woman worked hard at it. Where Jena’s eyes lit with kindness and mischief, her mother’s eyes were dull and calculating. After about two seconds assessing the woman, Matt decided he knew everything he wanted to know about her. And he didn’t like any of it.

“What do you mean you won’t take me to see Josh McInnes?” Jena’s mother was saying. “Isn’t that the whole point of your move here? To get close to him so you could introduce me.”

Matt clenched his teeth as he stood behind a shelf and watched.

“Mom.” Jena spoke with the tone of a person who had already answered the question. “I didn’t move here to meet Josh. I was joking earlier. I kind of moved here by accident. I was looking for houses on the web, somewhere far away from Atlantic City, and the name of this town stuck in my mind for some reason, so I ended up here.”

Her mother rolled her eyes. “It was in your mind because I’ve been talking about Josh’s move to Scotland for forever. When are you going to start paying attention, Jena? You didn’t even tell me you’d moved country. If Frank hadn’t called, I’d never have known.”

Jena rubbed her arms as though comforting herself. Matt took a step towards her before he felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up to find Gordon. The man shook his head. Matt didn’t like anyone telling him how to deal with Jena, but tightness in Gordon’s expression made Matt pause.

“I did tell you, Mom.” Jena’s voice brought Matt’s attention back to her. “Several times—including when I came to see you the night before I left.”

“Was that the night I played Caesars?”

“Yeah, that was the night I dropped by Caesars.”

“Jena, that was the night there were scouts in the audience. Record companies. I told you about them when you arrived. You distracted me and made me miss my chance with them.”

Jena winced as Matt stifled a growl.

“I’m sorry, Mom.”

What the hell? Why was she apologising? He shared a look with Gordon, who seemed equally surprised. This wasn’t the Jena he knew. Where was her smart mouth? Her sass?

“Yeah, well, you can make it up to me by taking me round to your friend Josh’s house. I’ve got a demo on me, my guitar in the car and I have a new song that’s perfect for him. Plus, I cleared my schedule for a few weeks before I left. I’m sure once he hears me, he’ll want to book me for his tour. I’d like to be his support act, but I’d settle for backing singer to get a foot in the door.”

“Mom.” Jena took a deep breath. “I live here now. I’m getting to know these people. They value their privacy. They came here to get away from everything. They don’t want to be pestered in their home.”

“Are you saying I’m a pest? You know better. Just because I know how to take advantage of every opportunity that comes my way, doesn’t mean I annoy people. I’m not one of those talentless wannabes you see on
American Idol
. I am gifted. All I need is a lucky break and I’d be as famous as Josh McInnes.”

Jena seemed to shrink in on herself. Her normal spark snuffed out by the one woman in the world who should be nurturing it. It made no sense to Matt. Where was the bubbly, crazy woman he’d come to know?

“Where’s Frank?” her mother said. “Frank said he’d introduce me to Josh. He knows the value of using your contacts. Of networking.”

Jena didn’t even look at her mother to reply. “We split up. I told you about that too.”

“Jena.” The disproval in that one word was massive. “What did you do? He’s a great guy. Good looking, charming, working hard to get ahead. How could you throw away a relationship with a guy like that? He’s going places.”

“Yeah,” Jena mumbled, “straight to jail.”

Matt grinned, but her mother frowned. “You need to get your act together, stop messing around over here and go back home with Frank.”

Jena’s head snapped up, and some of the fire in her eyes returned. “He asked you to talk me into going back with him, didn’t he? What did he promise you in return? No. Don’t answer. I know. He’s going to connect you with Josh.”

Her mother let out an exasperated sigh. “Why are you getting mad? This is win-win for everyone. You get to go home to a beautiful house and a man who loves you, and I get the break I need. Who suffers in this, Jena, huh?”

Jena put her hands on her hips as her cheeks flushed. “He cheated on me, Mom. A lot.”

“Men do that.” Her mom waved a hand dismissively, as though it was nothing. “You need to compromise in a relationship. You’re lucky you caught his eye in the first place. You’ll never get another man like Frank, one who’ll help you with your career. Who’ll make sure you never want for anything. Plus he’s hot. What else is there? If you keep being selfish like this, you’ll be alone forever.”

Matt had heard more than enough. He left Gordon shaking his head in disgust as he stepped out into the store. Jena’s mother’s eyes shot straight to his, and to his disgust, they showed interest. She batted her lashes, fluffed her hair and pushed her boobs out. The sight made him want to vomit. When Jena spotted him, she took a step towards him before stopping herself. For some reason, her hesitance annoyed him. She was damn well within her rights to lean on him. If she needed to be rescued, he could do that. Hell, he was great at rescuing women. He had a lifetime of experience.

“Hey, princess,” Matt said. “I brought lunch. Can’t have you wasting away.”

Her eyes widened at his tone, silently asking what he thought he was doing. Matt couldn’t have answered even if he wanted to. All he knew for sure was that he didn’t want her mother to think Jena was alone. She wasn’t alone. She had him.