Torn

​Johnny Seward was tired. His eyes hurt, his head throbbed, but he couldn't even think about sleeping yet. The reason for his lack of nocturnal rest? He'd been given the delightful job of going though the security tapes from several of the strip clubs that his gang of friends ran in the hope that he could maybe figure out just who the mysterious man who'd been frequenting them of late actually was.

Ever since Matt had been to the Santa Monica club to pick up their tapes, he'd received calls from three more all telling the same story. After many discussions with Jimmy, both he and Matt had concluded that maybe they needed to start making their presence felt at the various clubs, just to see if they could discover just what it was he was up to. They'd been around too long to be of the belief that he was just a man who enjoyed the occassional trip to watch girls remove their clothes.

There was something about the man that was unnerving Johnny, as though he should actually know who he was, but he just couldn't seem to pinpoint just what it was that was making him feel that way.

"Any luck yet?"

The question came from Zacky as he walked into the room, bringing with him yet another cup of caffeine laced wake up juice for his friend. Johnny shook his head.

"Nothing. There's something about him that comes across as familiar, but fucked if I know what," Johnny admitted, looking up from the screen as Matt joined them.

"You know who's really good at this shit. Brian." he pointed out.

Johnny just looked at Matt for a moment.

"Well if that's the case, why the fuck didn't you have him look at these in the first place!" Matt grinned.

"He's not exactly been in the best of moods these last couple of days, I figured that leaving him cooped up in a small room wouldn't be good for anyone's health."

"Where is Haner anyway?" Zacky asked "He was meant to make a pick up yesterday and called me to do his dirty work instead."

"Probably getting laid," Johnny huffed "Lucky bastard."

"What is the name of this week's conquest?" Zacky questioned.

"Baby," Matt replied

"No, that was last weeks," Johnny pointed out as he set about concentrating on the job at hand once more.

"Seward, they've all been called Baby for the last 2 years. It avoids confusion and the chance of him getting a swift kick in the balls from whatshername or whoever she maybe," Matt informed him. Johnny shook his head in disbelief.

"Want me to get him?" Zacky suggested. Matt pondered the idea.

"Yeah, bring him in, see if he can actually think with his brain instead of his dick for five minutes."
**********
Brian pretended to listen to the blonde stood in front of him, but feigning interest or even sympathy was not on his agenda. He'd heard the same rant every week for the past god knows how long when their use to him came to an end. Fuck, he could probably save them trouble and tell them what they were going to say before they even opened their mouths. He casually opened the front door and steered her towards the street, knowing full well that the neighbours were preparing themselves for the latest showdown in the soap opera that had become the life of Brian.

A car pulling up caught his attention, allowing him to tune out the monotonous drone that was being aimed at him. Brian smirked when he saw Zacky walking towards him, not even phased by the dishevelled woman who was dishing out the tongue lashing.

"Good morning sweetheart," Zacky threw at her ."Now if you don't mind, Brian and I have business to discuss," he added, following Brian back into the house, slamming the door shut.

"That wasn't the same one you were with on Monday night," Zacky pointed out.

"Wasn't the same one I was with Tuesday or Wednesday night either," Brian informed him.

Zacky laughed and shook his head. If ever there was a living, breathing advertisement for you to lock up your daughters, Brian was it.

"Anyway, why are you here?" Brian questioned.

"Matt wants you to take a look at those tapes Johnny's been going over. He said to bring you in."

"Since when did Sanders put himself in charge?"

Zacky sighed. He didn't need to be hearing about equal partnerships and shit again. There'd been a slight power struggle between Matt and Brian the past couple of years, and Zacky was getting a little sick of it.

"Haner, let's just go alright."

"This better not take long, I've got to get Emily this afternoon," Brian stated as he grabbed a jacket.

"Ah, so that explains why Blondie was getting her marching orders today and not tomorrow."

"Yep, because when my daughter's here, the only playthings in this house are the ones that belong to her," Brian told him "C'mon, let's get this over with."
**********

Johnny was right. There was something about this guy that was disturbingly familiar, yet he didn't look like anyone Brian knew. It was all about the way he moved and conducted himself, that's what was bugging Brian right now. He sat watching footage as the guy took a sip of his drink, and that's when Brian spotted something.

"Johnny, can you zoom in a little, concentrate on his hand with the glass," Brian ordered.

Johnny obliged, bringing the image in a little closer. Brian studied it carefully, running a hand over his face as he saw the one thing that told him exactly who it was. The silver and turquoise pinky ring was a dead giveaway.

"There's just no fucking way," he murmured.

"You got something?" Matt asked.

"It's Drummond," Brian stated quietly. Matt cocked an eyebrow, not quite sure if he'd heard Brian correctly.

"Drummond? As in Carlisle Drummond, the guy that ordered the hit on you and that we had disposed of whilst you were in hospital? That's fucking impossible."

"I know it sounds fucking crazy, but as soon as I saw the ring, I knew it was him."

Brian pushed the chair back and began pacing the room. This couldn't be real. Carlisle Drumomd had been the main man in Huntington Beach and it's surrounding area until Brian and his friends had started to make a name for themselves. They'd stolen his business, paid over the odds to buy clubs from under him, a lot of which had been Brian's doing. Drummond had taken it upon himself to try and infiltrate their gang, and had set up the drug deal that had eventually led to Brian being shot. If it really was him, supposedly back from the dead, then Brian knew they needed to act fast.

"We need to step up security at all the clubs, not just the ones he's been to. Those he's visited are all the ones we had before he 'disappeared', but there's no guarantees that he hasn't done his homework and knows of all the others we now have. We may need to call in some favors to make sure everywhere's covered."

"I'm on it," Zacky called out as he left the room, phone already in hand.

"What about Mezmer?" Johnny asked.

Brian looked at him. There was every chance that Drummond knew of Jimmy's involvement with the club, yet he probably wouldn't be aware that it now belonged solely to Cassandra.

"She's gonna fucking hate this," Brian said, more to himself than anyone.

If there was one thing Cassandra would despise it would be them trying to muscle in and protect her. Yet Brian knew that he couldn't just sit back and make her a possible target.

"I can deal with Cass if you want Brian," Matt offered "She might take it better coming from me than you."

Brian nodded, knowing that Matt was right.

"When though? We're all busy tonight."

"I'll make sure I fill her in tomorrow, as soon as possible," Matt reassured him.

Brian sighed. This was turning into the fucking worst week he'd had in a long time.