Page 40 of Back in Black

“Yeah. A good one, too.”

That made her thoughtful, and she said no more as they wended through the throng.

They got bottlenecked at the door as people insisted on wanting their jackets and wraps from the coat check. Idiots. Their jackets wouldn’t matter if they all got blown to bits. Two employees of Roger’s Rodeo continued to calmly and insistently move the patrons forward.

Finally Brett got them both through the door. Thick black clouds blocked the stars, and rain threatened. People milled about right outside the club, trying to find shelter beneath the overhang. If there was a bomb, how safe did they think they’d be standing so near the building?

For now, he left them to their own fates and started to lead Audrey across the street. Then, from behind them, he heard someone yell out her name.

For the first time, Audrey looked unsettled as she jerked around and searched the crowd. “Millie?”

She couldn’t see over the masses, but Brett spotted Millie’s red hair as she went on tiptoe, calling out to them again. Somehow she’d gotten hemmed into an alcove and the flow of human traffic wouldn’t allow her to get free.

“I heard Millie,” Audrey told him. She started to push past, to reenter the club.

“I see her,” Brett told Audrey. “She’s okay.” Now where to take Audrey? Across the street, beyond the parking lot would be his first choice. But a few unfamiliar men stood over there, and he wasn’t about to leave Audrey alone with men he didn’t know.

Brett was deciding what to do next when, beside them, a tall woman called out orders to the others. She had a fun, eclectic style that seemed at odds with her drill sergeant tone as she instructed people to clear the doorways, to distance themselves from the building, and to stop pushing and shoving.

Seeing that she held her own against the milling, panicked bystanders, Brett yelled to her, “Jacki?”

And she looked up.

Perfect. Audrey reluctantly allowed him to edge her in that direction. As soon as he reached Jacki, he said, “Gregor told me that I could count on you for some help.”

“Did he?” Jacki still looked pissed that she was outside and Gregor wasn’t. “Doing what?”

“If you and Audrey go across the street, at least to the other side of the cars parked there, then others will probably follow.”

“Brett, wait.” Audrey strained against him. “I can’t go without Millie.”

He caught her face. “I’m getting her, okay? But you need to get out of harm’s way first.”

She started to protest, and Brett’s temper kicked in.

“Damn it, Audrey, you’ll only get trampled, and I’d like to know how the hell that’s going to help Millie.”

As if they weren’t threatened by a bomb, Audrey scowled up at him. “I’m not stupid, Brett.”

“Then let me go get Millie.”

“Okay, but hurry it up. She’s uncomfortable with crowds.”

Which would have been a good reason for her not to dodge into a busy club. Brett looked at Jacki for assistance.

She rolled her eyes. “You guys are all such cavemen, I swear. But . . . I guess it is a good idea.”

Someone plowed into Jacki, almost knocking her off balance, and with a feral look she brought her elbow back, causing a guy to yelp. “Well, come on, Audrey. Let’s lead the pack.”

“Fine.” Beside Jacki, Audrey looked even more petite, but she had no problem snagging others along the way. Between the two women, they soon had a small contingent across the street.

With Audrey safe, Brett wedged back into the club, pushing against a slow-moving group of friends who’d had way too much to drink. He found Millie on the verge of tears. Stationing himself in front of her, he caused a block to the now dwindling swarm. Above the din of excited voices, he could hear Gregor issuing orders to some stragglers, and ahead of him, he saw Roger Sims, the owner of the club, double-checking down corridors and in closets.

Brett pulled Millie out in front of him. When she stumbled, he looped one arm around her and kept her on her feet. She was almost as short as Audrey, but not as slight of build. Once outside, he didn’t pause.

“Audrey’s across the street.”

Clinging to his arm, Millie nodded. “Thank you so much, Brett.”

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