Chapter 10

LeavingTrent was the second hardest thing I’d ever had to do in my life, but he looked content as he sat on the bed eating pizza and watching TV. Or pretending to watch TV. I knew my brother well enough to know he was just going through the motions.

But he changed the channel a few times, so at least some of his attention was on it. That offered me some comfort in knowing that he was being somewhat distracted from our problems.

Alice had arrived like she said she would. She’d brought groceries with her and was unloading them. It brought me comfort to think Trent would have some company while I was gone, and enough food to last him.

“You’re coming back, right?” Trent called out when I got to the door of our bedroom.

I turned to him, my throat tight.

“Yeah. I promise.”

He gave me a tight nod and went back to the TV. It hurt my heart, but I forced myself out the door and into the car after telling Alice goodbye as she sat on her laptop in the sitting room. She’d smiled and waved me off, putting me at ease.

I put the address she’d given me into the phone’s GPS and followed the directions to Everett’s place. When I pulled up, I was surprised it was at a massive club in a not-so-nice part of the city.

The Underground.

I’d grown up here in this city mostly, and we’d been fortunate enough to live just on the outskirts of the pit of despair. Everyone knew you didn’t venture deep into the Underground. We were the surface dwellers, living on the edge of madness.

But times were tough, and I needed some money.

Worst thing that could be offered was that I’d sweep floors and scrape up the vomit from drunks after a night of clubbing in the darkest depths of the city.

There were worse things.

At least, that’s what I told myself.

I parked the car, went to the door, and knocked on it. It creaked open, and a large man peeked out at me.

“Name?” He grumbled.

“Uh, Anson Beyers. I’m here to see Everett about a job.”

The door swung open, and I stepped inside.

“Take the hall to the stairs. They’ll take you the rest of the way when you reach the bottom.”

“Uh, thanks,” I muttered, moving through the empty club.

Large dance floor. Cages. A stage. Two bars. The place was decked out for sure. I’d never been inside a club, though, to know if it was awesome or not. From my standpoint, it was.

I went to the stairs near the back of the hallway and went down them. I was met by two men at the bottom who let me pass without a word.

Stepping onto the next level, I looked around.

“Anson? Welcome.” A man in his mid- to late-thirties approached me and took my hand in his. “I’m Everett Church. I trust you found me without issue?”

“Yeah. It was good. Easy to find.”

He chuckled and led me to one of the tables in the downstairs club. This one was more intimate. Smaller. Stage. Cages. Bar. Booths with high-backed seating for privacy. It was dimly lit too. This had to be VIP.

I slid into the booth across from him. A woman who was barely dressed came to us and poured us each a drink.

Clearing my throat, I took a sip of the rich alcohol, trying not to cough and look like a complete pussy. I’d drunk before, but this shit burned going down.

“So. Alice tells me you’re looking for work.”

I nodded. “I am.”

He raked his penetrating gaze over me, making me feel uncomfortable. I tried to sit still and appear more adult than I was.

“Your age, Anson?”

“I’m sixteen. Seventeen soon.”

A tiny smile quirked his lips up. “What are you. . . good at? Anything. . . exciting?”

“I’m good at fighting. I’ve been taking martial arts since I was a kid. I-I can sing,” I said weakly. “I’m good with money and selling things.”

Everett nodded. “How are you with a broom?”

I shrugged. “I know how to use one.”

“Perfect. I need someone in here after we close to clean up. Think you can do that for me?”

“Yeah. Yeah, I can do that.” I paused. “What’s it pay?”

“I pay in cash. I’ll give you a hundred dollars a day. If you do really good, I’ll give you a bonus. How does that sound?”

“It sounds great. How many days?”

“We’re open seven days a week, three hundred and sixty-five days a year.”

It was better than I made at Twisty Cone.

“So, do you accept my offer?”

“Yes,” I said without missing a beat.

He gave me a toothy smile. “Excellent. Drink up, then. Let’s celebrate.”

“To my new job?” I raised my glass.

He let out a soft chuckle and clinked his glass against mine.

“Sure. Let’s start there. I think this is the beginning of something really, really fantastic, don’t you, Anson?”

I drank my drink in one go and placed the glass back onto the table, earning another smile from him.

“I do,” I said, really fucking hoping life was finally going to change for the better for me and Trent.

Please, god, let this work.

I sent the silent prayer up, hoping someone was listening.