The offices to "The Frisky Vixen" were located in a small room at the back of the club. It had been a busy night out front, and a good one for the young women who made their living alternately hustling expensive drinks and dancing on stage, but the owner of the club was not happy. He picked up the telephone and dialed a familiar number. "Jimmy," he said, "Get a couple of the boys and get over to the Vixen right away. Come in the back door and don't make a big deal about it. Call me from the bar extension and lie low until I give you the signal. If I call you back, pick it up and do what I tell you."
"Got it, Boss, we'll be there in twenty minutes."
Then, opening the door to the hallway, he signaled for the bouncer, whose duties included watching over the office while the night's cash was being counted after closing, to come closer.
"Manny, tell Kiki, Doreen, and Lisa that I need to see them when they're done removing their make-up."
"Will do, Boss," said Manny as he left to deliver his message to the three dancers. "You gonna be OK with the cash?"
"Yeah, I'll be OK," said the boss as he waved his hand down the hall and shut the door.
In the dressing room the three dancers sat at their make-up mirrors, removing the make-up which had transformed them from good-looking women to "exotic dancers." The door cracked open and a disembodied voice said, "Ladies, the boss wants to see you in his office as soon as you're decent."
Doreen said, "Well, that's the first time he's ever wanted to see us 'decent' huh girls? They chuckled their agreement as Doreen said, "Got it, Manny. Thanks."
Once the door closed, Doreen turned to the other dancers and spoke in a hushed voice. "Well, girls, this is it. We need to be strong and stick together." The other two dancers nodded agreement and silently went about their business.
"The Vixen," like all of the strip clubs in this part of the tri-state area, was a mob-owned business. Its proprietor was Harry "The Blade" Torelli, a former mob enforcer and made man who had earned his "bones" removing opposition mobsters for the current crime family. He had done his job so well that the family decided to reward him with his two favorite things, money and tits, by making him "owner" of "The Frisky Vixen." All he had to do was give the family its monthly cut, and he was free to lead his life in retirement more or less any way he wanted.
The phone on Harry's desk lit up. It was Jimmy, calling from the bar. "All set, Boss," said the voice on the other end.
Harry said, "Tell Manny to go get the girls. Once they enter my office, you and the boys just stand around the bar until I give you the word. Nobody leaves my office unless I say so. Got it?"
"Got it, Boss."
After a few minutes, Jimmy saw the three dancers, who were in their "civvies" and carrying their pocketbooks, pass by the deserted bar and stroll down the hallway towards the boss's office. He strained to lean off the barstool as he watched the strippers' asses move back and forth as they headed down the hallway and paused to knock on Harry's office door. The door opened and the three women walked in. Manny closed the heavy steel door behind them. Jimmy signaled to his companions that it was time to assume their watch per the boss's instructions.
Harry looked up from his desk, smiling. "Come in ladies and have a seat. I'm just finishing up tonight's cut." The three women each took a seat in front of his desk. He put three envelopes, each with cash, flat on the desk which separated owner from employees. The girls reached out for their pay, but Harry spoke before they could actually get their hands on the envelopes. "Not quite yet, girls. I'm instituting a new "cash out" policy starting tonight. Put your pocketbooks up here on the desk."
Almost in unison the strippers said "What?"
"You heard me ladies. Put 'em right here." The three girls looked at each other, with shocked eyes. "NOW," Harry said as he brought down his massive right hand, slapping the desk with a "Thwak!"
Instantly, Harry's face went from welcoming and jovial to stern and menacing as he put on his "game face" from his days as an everyday enforcer. He stood up and tapped the desk again. "Right fuckin' here, girls." Doreen started to rise in response. "Sit the fuck down!" he bellowed. Doreen sat.
"Hey, Harry," Doreen said indignantly, "what's the deal?"
"We're about to find out, you bitch. Now put your pocketbook right here. Do it!" Doreen reached down and did as she was told. "Open it and then dump it out."
"Harry, what is going on?" she asked as she drew the zipper open. "What are you looking for?" the now-shaking stripper asked.