Undercover Lover

One Way or Another

You eventually pulled your hand away from Gerard, feeling a distinct tingling in your fingertips. You even felt yourself take a small step back, feeling almost a little suffocated. He had a lot of undeniable energy, and he was mysterious as hell. You started to wonder if you were ever going to catch this guy slip up. You needed to, though.

"Could you start tonight? You can shadow Jenna. She's been here for awhile and can get you squared away," Gerard asked, reaching into a small filing cabinet by his desk to pull out a sheet of paper.

"Yeah, that's no problem," you replied, wanting to start your investigation as soon as possible. The faster you took him down, the more people you could save.

"Fill this out so I can make sure you get paid," Gerard chuckled, passing the sheet and a black pen to you.

You filled out the sheet with your fake information, already knowing it like the back of your hand. Once you finished, you pushed the sheet back over to him and then offered the pen back, feeling the slightest brush of his fingers against yours as he took it. Damn.

"Come on," Gerard beckoned you to follow him, moving out from behind his desk to lead you out of his office, pitching a brief smile at you over his shoulder.

Mysterious. You almost felt like he was acting like this to throw you off or to trick you. Who could actually be this charming? You returned the smile faintly, trying to ground yourself.

"Jenna, this is Skylar. She's filling in the new waitress position. Be a doll and show her the ropes tonight, would you?" Gerard introduced you to a blonde carrying a round tray of empty glasses.

Jenna turned to you with a bright smile, the crisp blue of her eyes still coming out through the red glow of the room. "Hi! You're going to love it here," she told you, pulling you into a friendly side hug.

"It's nice to meet you," you told her warmly, accepting the hug and sinking into the fresh flowery smell of her perfume. You were surprised that so many kind people were working in a club that hosted so many illegal operations. Then again, they could be playing a character just like you.

"I'll take care of her, Mr. Way. Don't you worry," Jenna told Gerard, both of them sharing a smile with one another.

"I know you will. I'm counting on you, Skylar," Gerard told you, shooting you a playful wink before bidding the two of you goodbye and heading back to his office.

You watched him go, your heartbeat thumping heavily within your chest. You couldn't help but wonder what he would be up to now. Planning out his next hit? Arranging an alibi?

"Let's get you changed!" Jenna's voice broke into your thoughts, her hand grabbing hold of yours and leading you toward the bar. She placed the tray of empty glasses on the bar, her attention immediately switching to Tyler.

"Giving me more work to do I see," Tyler murmured, his tone playful as he took the glasses and smiled at Jenna warmly.

"I'll make it up to you," Jenna replied, her expression plainly coquettish.

You could tell something was going on between them, prompting a small smile to tug at your lips. You hadn't been in a relationship in what felt like forever. You had been so focused on your job that you hadn't really had time to date. Plus, some people saw you as too intimidating. You could be kind of a badass, but you had never thought it would actually be a problem.

"Welcome to the club, Skylar," Tyler eventually broke from his flirting to speak to you.

"Thanks. I'm excited," you replied, which was true. You were excited to take this place down piece by piece and every corrupt person inside of it. You felt Jenna tug you along again, leading you into a door to the left of the bar. You walked down a short hallway, normal lighting illuminating the space, into a back room, vanities bordering one wall and lockers on the other.

"Here you go," Jenna told you, offering a bundle of folded clothes to you.

You glanced at them and then at her, a little apprehensive at trying to pull off the uniform she wore. It was cute and fit the club's theme, but you hadn't worn anything like this in awhile. At work, you usually wore blazers, slacks, that sort of thing. You took the clothes and walked into a small bathroom connected to the room, shutting the door behind you before shedding your interview clothes. You pulled on the uniform piece by piece, black long sleeve first, red and black plaid skirt next, then thigh high black socks, and finally black boots.

Looking at yourself in the mirror, you had to admit you looked kind of good. It was different, but you were playing a different character. It would actually be kind of fun to try some new things as Skylar Davis. You folded up your interview clothes and then walked out into the back room, where Jenna was waiting eagerly.

"You look amazing! This is so you!" Jenna exclaimed, grabbing the sides of your arms excitedly.

"You think so?" You asked, glancing down at your new outfit.

"Hold on!" Jenna told you before rushing to her locker to pull out a black choker with a black moon charm. She clasped it to fit snugly around your neck, adding the final touch to your uniform. She faced you toward one of the vanity mirrors, her smile bright and expectant just beyond your shoulder in the reflection.

"Thank you," you told her sincerely, feeling as if she was actually just genuinely nice. You really hoped you wouldn't find any dirt on her.

"They're going to love you," she murmured, her gaze spacing out a little, like she was retreating into her thoughts for a second.

You wondered who exactly "they" were and why they would love you.

"Let's show you the ropes," Jenna spoke up, coming back out of her thoughts and leading you out of the room.

Your suspicion stayed with you.

~*~

The job wasn't as bad as you thought it would be. It helped that Tyler and Jenna were incredibly helpful and accomodating, guiding you through any situations you were unsure about. You mainly just carried drinks to the lounge and to the DJ performing, which wasn't all too bad. You weren't too keen on the flirty compliments from strangers and the various touches you felt on your hands or your back, but you knew you just had to push through. You had to fit in here, which meant playing your part.

You were serving a few businessmen their drinks when someone in the corner of your eye caught your attention. You looked toward the entrance of the club to see a man walk in, one you were actually familiar with. You saw him in Gerard's file.

Frank Iero headed toward the lounge, his cell phone being pressed to his ear as he spoke into the speaker.

You weren't exactly sure what his connection with Gerard and his family was, but you knew Frank was involved in some way. He had to be. Him and Gerard were spotted together constantly. Your eyes trailed him as he walked past you to enter the VIP lounge, encouraging you to slowly make your way toward the door. You were so curious to find out what the VIP lounge was really like and what went on in there. Before you could reach the door, you felt a hand on your wrist.

"Oh, no, hon, we don't go in there," Jenna told you as she pulled you away from the door.

"Oh, sorry, is it private?" You asked her.

Jenna paused a moment before answering. "Yeah, it's only for Gerard and his business partners. They use it for meetings."

You could only wonder what was discussed at these meetings. Your curiosity only increased, but you didn't want her to wonder why you were so intent on going inside. You decided to wait and sneak into the VIP lounge another day, perhaps when you got a better idea of everyone's schedule and when people were more likely to not be around. You were going to find out what was going on one way or another.