“All right, can you please keep an eye on her until I get there? I’ll be there as soon as possible.”

“Of course, but be quick, miss. We’re about to close our bar for the night.”

“All right, thank you.” I put the phone in my purse.

“What is it? Who was that?” Concern latched in Tess’s eyes.

“It’s Beth. She needs me right now. I’ll tell you everything later. I’ve got to go now.” Grabbing my coat, I hurried out.

“Call me once you’re free. And stay safe!” she called as I shut the door behind me.

TWENTY-ONE: THE BOSS IS HERE

Taking a right, I drove through an almost empty street. My gaze continued their connection with the GPS tracker of my phone. I never heard of that bar’s name before, and after tracing Beth’s phone, I found it was at Northern Avenue. The street was infamous for old buildings, illegal casinos, small cafés, and bars. And most importantly, hundreds of alleys.

I’d no idea what the hell she was doing here this late at night. And seeing the eerie silence around, I felt people of this area called it a night much earlier than others.

Once I was finally at my destination, in the middle of a narrow road, I double checked the location and the bar’s name. A big ‘Dakota’s Bar’ sign was written above the building, red fairy lights lit around the edges. Two wobbly, rugged men stumbled out of the bar, raising the scale of my anxiety.

I’d just pick her up and flee out of this uncanny area.

When I was about to park my car in the small parking lot at the corner, I found it full. And the casino beside it explained the reason. I was about to park my car outside the bar, but a big no parking sign stopped me.

Sighing, I turned to another narrow road where I found a place to park. Taking my phone, I walked back to the bar.

Cold air pricked my skin as I walked along the side of the street. My brown locks swayed with the breeze. Distant music coming out from the casino’s closed doors was the only thing I could hear other than stray dogs barking from afar.

As soon as I entered the bar, her sprawled figure came into my view. With a large bottle in her hand, she sang something in her not so pleasant slurry voice. Her dark curly head rested on the round table in the corner. It was a small bar, so finding her wasn’t a hassle.

When I approached her, a man in a white shirt and red bow around his neck greeted me.

“I guess you’re the friend of hers I called, right?” he asked.