I Know Your Name

TWO YEARS LATER

"Zoe, wake up! There's a VVIP guest. You take it!"

Zoe stood up from the sofa that served as her bed, looking at the person who had just woken her up with an annoyed expression, but then Zoe smiled. She recognized the person.

Tiana, a woman in her forties, was also the owner of the strip club where she currently worked.

Zoe reached for the string that was usually used to hang a name tag, but it wasn't a name tag hanging at the end of it. There was a stack of cards with various writings that could be chosen. But Tiana seemed impatient.

"Yes... yes. I know you'll thank me. But later. He's not a patient person and wants to have fun tonight."

Tiana took the greeting card from Zoe's hand and threw it onto the table. Zoe looked at it disappointedly, as she had just found a quicker way to communicate besides writing.

"Sorry, but not tonight. I'll see it tomorrow. I need to get you ready. Put this on."

Tiana wasn't usually rough, but her guest was a VVIP regular. In a hurry, Tiana handed Zoe a blue bikini model with white feathers on the edges.

While Zoe put on the bikini, Tiana touched up Zoe's face, fixing the makeup that was smudged from sleeping earlier. She combed Zoe's dark blonde hair to make her curly locks more pronounced and frame her face.

"That's enough. I think the guest will be satisfied." Tiana looked tense but smiled. Zoe also smiled in gratitude. Not all dancers received special treatment from Tiana.

"Put this on, and then I'll take you to him."

Zoe had finished putting on knee-high white boots, and the final piece of her outfit was a white fur-trimmed robe. The robe made her look like a cartoon character from a children's show—though she wasn't wearing just a bikini.

"Let's go!" Tiana opened the dressing room door, and Zoe's ears were hit by pounding music and cheers. After almost six months of working there, Zoe was used to it.

Zoe was no longer surprised to see, among the dim club lights, five or six people writhing on a stage that resembled a table among the club's patrons. Any fabric didn't cover the upper part of the dancer's body. There were stacks of money tucked into the edges of the minimal underwear, which consisted only of strings. Compared to them, Zoe's bikini seemed modest.

The patrons enjoyed the provocative movements. The money in the underwear served as both tips and income. Zoe had done it earlier, a session lasting about two hours, which had left her tired and asleep.

But if Tiana asked her to serve a VVIP guest who had booked the VIP room, Zoe wouldn't refuse. Their tips were substantial. Tiana often requested her to entertain VVIP guests because Zoe didn't talk much—more accurately, she couldn't speak. 

Zoe's ability to speak hadn't returned after the coma. But that became Zoe's advantage. VVIP guests liked strippers who didn't talk much. They came to enjoy naked bodies, and that was all.

"Remember, he's a regular here, don't cause any trouble," Tiana warned before opening the VIP room door.

Zoe nodded. She wasn't interested in causing trouble either. Zoe just wanted money.

"Mmm... It's only sometimes like this, but he usually wants full service. Are you up for it? The tips he gives are quite substantial. Megan once got five thousand dollars from him."

Zoe's eyes widened at hearing five thousand dollars, but she had never gone as far as providing full service. Going fully nude was expected, but not going as far as spending the night together.

"Come on, answer quickly." Tiana urged. She was already holding the door handle.

Zoe shook her head. The amount of money tempted her, but she wasn't ready to sell herself. Maybe later.

"Fine, okay. I'll tell the guest, but if he rejects you and asks for a replacement, you can't protest."

"Mmm..." Zoe regretted that and wished Tiana had waited for her to think, but the door was already open. Zoe's protests no longer matter.

The scent of cigars greeted Zoe. The room was filled with thick smoke that added to the dim atmosphere. The dim yellowish-blue lights barely illuminated the room, not even reaching its corners.

"I apologize... Have you been waiting long?" Tiana approached the man who was sitting with his legs crossed.

"It's fine, as long as what you bring me is excellent."

"Don't worry. Everything on Zoe's body is genuine. No implants or fat injections." Tiana smiled. She knew his preferences.

Zoe brushed the smoke away from her face, wanting to see the man with the husky voice. His voice sounded as if it came from the depths of a dark ocean.

The strand of silver hair near his left ear immediately caught Zoe's attention. Grey hair, yet his face was still relatively smooth. And not entirely grey, as the rest of his thick hair was still black.

He wasn't that old, but he was incredibly handsome. His body was sturdy, with his muscles visibly defined despite his arms being covered by a shirt.

Zoe couldn't see the colour of his eyes in the dim room, but she saw a row of sharply angled eyebrows, a prominent nose, tanned skin, a goatee, and sensual full lips, dark reddish-black.

"Decent." The deep voice sounded again. He's evaluating Zoe's body.

It wasn't just Zoe who was staring; the man had been staring at her all along and had given her a decent evaluation. 

Zoe was slightly offended by that. She had never been evaluated as "decent" before.

But Zoe wouldn't show her emotions. She just had to do her job.

"Mr Wolf, I assure you, she's in excellent condition. But she doesn't offer full..."

Tiana fell silent as Zoe pulled her hand away. Zoe gave a nod.

"I mean... She can also provide whatever you desire." Tiana corrected herself, glancing towards Zoe to ensure that Zoe had just agreed to sleep with him if he requested it.

Zoe nodded again, hiding her trembling hand. The decision came suddenly and boldly after Zoe heard the man's name.

Zoe might not recognize his face, but she knew that name. Wolf is the name of a very famous producer and the one who managed Iris White. The woman that ruins her life.