Author's POV
The darkness outside pressed against the windows of the VIP suite on the second floor of the club.
Down below, bass thundered through the building, bodies grinding together on the dance floor in time with the music.
Up here, the atmosphere couldn't have been more different.
Caesar sat hunched over the table, surrounded by empty bottles. Ice had long since melted in the abandoned glasses scattered across the polished surface.
He lifted one heavy hand, reaching for the ice bucket. His fingers fumbled with the tongs, trying to grasp a single ice sphere. It slipped free, rolled across the table, dropped to the floor.
He tried again. Same result.
Again. The ice ball skittered away from him like it had a mind of its own.
Hawkins couldn't take it anymore. He
