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studied him, scrutinizing the way he held his shot glass to his thick lips and hoping that his movements would tell me he was the killer.
    “Why do you want to know about Larry?” the waitress asked, interrupting my thoughts.
    “No big deal,” Ray replied. “We just heard he’s the man to know around these parts. As far as what you can get us to drink, what do you recommend?”
    Larry took a drag from his cigar and blew smoke circles in the blonde’s direction. They floated to her vanilla breasts and dissolved at her brown nipples. Her long cornrows swung from side to side as she moved her curvaceous body like a snake. I fixed my eyes on the cigar, remembering the habbie’s report about Carmen being filled with cigars.
    “Ogun’s Hunt is a popular drink here,” the waitress said.
    “What’s in it?” Ray put his hand into his pockets and pulled out a wallet.
    “Basil, sugarcane syrup, and rum.”
    “I’ll take two of them.” Ray handed her a stack of bills. “And could you give me some change, so I can tip the girls?”
    “Sure.” She grabbed the money. “Anything else?”
    “Is Larry a regular here?” Ray asked, and I looked up at the waitress.
    She leaned her head to the side and glanced at both of us for a few seconds. Ray took out more bills and handed them to her. “Oh, I forgot to give you your tip for all of your helpful information.”
    “Thank you. My name’s Roxy, by the way.” She grabbed the bills and stuffed them into her cleavage. “Yes. Larry is a regular.”
    “Was he dating Carmen?” I asked.
    She laughed and shook her head.
    Ray flashed a fake smile and pushed another bill toward her.
    “Larry does many things, but he doesn’t date.” Roxy leaned back on the table. “Iron Dove, or Carmen as you like to call her, was one of his favorites. He likes Star, too. That’s who’s dancing with him now.”
    “Does he like Candy?” I asked, remembering the first victim’s stage name.
    “Sure,” Roxy said. “But then, everybody liked Candy. I’ll be back with your drinks.”
    “Thanks.” Ray smiled as she stood up, towering over us.
    She headed to the bar.
    I spied Ray from the corner of my eyes. He gazed at her long black legs, his eyes glowing violet.
    “Should I set something up between you two?” I nudged him with my elbow. He put his sunglasses back on and shook his head. Being a Pureblood, Ray’s vision was probably better than mine, but I still found it ridiculous to wear sunglasses in a dark club.
    “No, just looking. No touching for me. And you just focus on getting whatever information you want, so we can get out of here.” Ray glanced over his shoulder and then rubbed his hands over his bald head. “My wife finds out I was in here, she’ll kill me.”
    “Just tell her it was a part of the job.”
    “She won’t believe me.” He tapped his fingers on the table to the beat. “Like I said, I have a lot of bad history with strip clubs.”
    I monitored Larry’s every movement as he enjoyed his lap dance. He was my top suspect. There were just too many coincidences. He was a regular at Goldie’s. He knew Carmen and hung out with her. He even smoked cigars.
    Gotcha, psycho. Adrenaline rushed through me.
    “Well, we won’t be here long. Larry is the killer,” I said more sure than I’d ever been in my life. I sat upright in my chair, tapping both hands on my knees, just itching to go over to Larry and confront him.
    I imagined the shock that would cover his face. Would he run in fear like I did last night? One thing was for sure; he’d burn by my fire.
    No, Motherpounder! I see you!
    Heat increased and soared inside of me, begging to taste Larry’s flesh. I grinned.
    “Calm down.” Ray raised one eyebrow. “You’ve been here for a few seconds, got a couple tendrils of information, and now you think you solved the mystery. We need actual proof that it’s him.”
    “Grab a dancer! Two lap dances for the price of one,” the DJ yelled over the