Sunset Over Misty Lake

by Margaret Standafer

  “And I know the studio is thriving, I’ve been checking in with Trina, but it’s still so new, I know there are questions that have come up that they haven’t bothered me with. I trust Trina, but I’m ready to get back and see for myself what’s happening.”

  “I’ve been able to communicate with clients via email, I’ve set up appointments for when I’m back.” Frank shrugged. “Aside from being there to snap the pictures, I can do my job on the road almost as easily as I can from my office. In fact, wandering around Vegas has given me a lot of new stock photos for my website.”

  “That’s the world we live in,” Cort said. “In person is nice and sometimes necessary, but I do my job from Misty Lake, from New York, from Las Vegas, from anywhere. This isn’t a huge sacrifice we’re regretting, Joe. We’ve told you before, we’ll tell you again, we want to be here.”

  From all sides of the table came murmurs of agreement. The pizzas arrived and saved Joe from having to try to come up with yet another way of saying thank you.

  Conversation while they devoured the pizzas was easy and covered every topic except the reason they were all at a pizzeria in Las Vegas. Except for Cort who fielded phone calls and texts all through the meal, everyone relaxed and enjoyed.

  “We talked about trying our luck in the casinos tonight. Anyone still up for that?” Riley asked.

  “I’ll watch,” Cassie said. “Or someone will have to teach me. I’ve never gambled.”

  “Never? Not even slot machines?” Jake asked.

  “Never.”

  “I’m game,” Shauna said. “I just have to decide how much money I’m willing to lose because I’ve never won a thing and I don’t expect that will change tonight.”

  Cort disconnected from his latest call and sat back down at the table. “I’m in. For a while.”

  “Not me,” Joe said. “I have to be online in the morning with my students. I think I’ll call it a night.”

  “You’re sure?” Frank asked. “It’s not late, you could hang around for a little while.”

  “No, but thanks.”

  “Then, Joe, I wonder if I can ask you to stop at the reception desk when you get back to the hotel,” Cort said. “I’m sorry to put you out, but I got a call from the hotel and they need to switch your room. I guess there’s someone checking in late tonight and he had put in a request for the room you’re in. He stayed there the last time he was in town, he won big, and now he’s superstitious, wants everything exactly the same as the last time. They’ll have a new room ready and a key card waiting for you.”

  “Oh, okay, no problem. I’ll grab our stuff from the other room and get us cleared out.”

  “Do me a favor. Check out the room first. I tried to be sure you’d get the same type of room, but I don’t know that I succeeded. Take a look and if the new room seems too small for the three of you, call me and I’ll take care of it.”

  “Don’t worry about it. We won’t be here much longer. I’m sure whatever sort of room it is, we’ll be perfectly comfortable.”

  Cort shook his head. “Look at the room before you move your things. Please. And I’m sorry for the mix-up.”

  Joe didn’t know why it mattered so much to Cort, but he agreed. He assured Jake and Riley he’d take care of moving their things. Neither one seemed too concerned when they parted ways on the sidewalk. Joe headed back to the hotel and the rest off to try their luck.

  The key was waiting, as Cort had said, when he got to the hotel. The manager greeted him personally, apologized for the inconvenience, and offered complimentary spa services to show his appreciation for Joe’s cooperation.

  As Joe rode the elevator to the thirtieth floor, all he could think was that everyone’s reaction was way over the top. He’d grab his suitcase and his toothbrush and carry them to another room. Done. He didn’t care where he slept.

  It wasn’t until he got off the elevator that he realized he was on the top floor. Cort’s floor. Weird.

  He walked down the long hall until he found his room. Correction, his suite. At least that’s how the plaque referred to it. He assumed it was a mistake, that he, Jake, and Riley weren’t supposed to have a suite, but couldn’t resist taking a peek. He didn’t expect the grandeur of Cort’s suite though given the opulence of the hotel in general, who knew?

  Joe held the card in front of the scanner, heard two quick beeps followed by the lock releasing, then pushed open the door. The sensation of being in a large space greeted him, but that was all he noticed.

  He didn’t notice the wall-sized mirror and the bar in the foyer, nor the plush décor in the living room ahead, nor the doors thrown open to the private balcony. No, he noticed nothing. Nothing, except Karen.

  His first thought was that she couldn’t possibly be real. Exhaustion did strange things to a person. But then she was moving, she was coming toward him, and she was in his arms.

  He felt her silky hair against his cheek. He smelled her apricot shampoo and a trace of baby lotion. He heard her voice.

  “Joe. Oh, Joe, I missed you so much.”

  All he could do was hold on, afraid if he let go, she’d disappear. So he held her, saying nothing, until she finally pulled away enough to look him in the eye.

  “Joe?”

  “You’re here? You’re really here?” He squeezed her arms again to be sure. “How?”

  “You really didn’t know? They told me you didn’t, but I didn’t believe them.”

  “Who? Who told you what?”

  “My parents, your parents, Susan, Sam, even Trina, they all came to the house today and told me I was getting on a plane, that everything was taken care of, that they had a schedule to care for the kids, that Cort’s plane was waiting. I’m not sure I quite believe I’m here either.”

  “Cort did this?”

  “Cort and Shauna, I guess. Cort arranged for the plane, Shauna called everyone at home, and…I don’t know, I guess it worked. Here I am.”

  Joe picked her up and spun her around until he got dizzy. When he set her down, he kissed her until he had to come up for breath.

  “Then I guess I don’t have to move Jake and Riley’s stuff.”

  “What?”

  Joe laughed. “That’s the story I got at dinner. Cort was sorry, but there was a mix-up and we had to switch rooms. I was supposed to get the key, make sure the room was okay, let him know if it wasn’t, and then move our things.” He laughed again and could barely stop. “What do you think? Is the room okay?”

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

  FOR THE SECOND time in as many days, Joe was pulled from a dream by pounding and the sound of his name. The dream this time was a good one and he resisted waking. Karen was in his arms, soft and warm, and they were in a suite the likes of which they’d never seen. He didn’t want it to end, but felt the bed shift next to him.

  “Someone’s at the door, Joe.”

  She was there. She was really there. Cuddled next to him, her voice hoarse from sleep, her hair tousled, and warmer and softer than seemed possible.

  But the knocking and the shouting were there too. Outside his door. Cort again, if he wasn’t mistaken. Joe scanned the room for a clock. He had no idea what time they’d gotten to sleep, whether it was morning or still night. Heavy drapes blocked the windows and doors and kept the sky from providing any clue.

  “Coming, coming,” he muttered. Joe searched for something to put on but remembered he had nothing but what he’d worn to the pizzeria. He found a robe inside a closet as big as Dylan’s bedroom, pulled it on, and cinched it tight.

  “This is getting old, Cort.”

  Cort didn’t bother with a greeting.

  “We have a problem.”

  Joe was no longer sleepy. “What.”

  He heard the light padding of Karen’s feet behind him. She slipped under his arm wearing a matching robe.

  “Cort.”

  “Karen. Welcome.” Cort smiled, but his face was etched with tension. “Opal called me. She got to work to start
her shift this morning, Joshua is there, their shifts overlap by a couple of hours. He caught her attention right away because she saw him with a phone. First time that’s happened. She stuck close, overheard bits of a conversation, and he’s leaving. Leaving Vegas today, after his shift.”

  “What? Why? Does he know?”

  “He must know something. Opal heard him tell the person on the phone that, and I quote, ‘he’ll need the usual.’”

  “The usual? Meaning a new identity.”

  Cort was still standing in the open doorway when Jake jogged up behind him.

  “I can’t reach Bud.”

  “You know?” Joe asked.

  “Cort called me two minutes ago. I left a message for Bud and sent a text.”

  Cassie, Frank, Riley, and Shauna were there before Jake finished speaking.

  “Inside. Everyone inside,” Karen said. She closed the door behind them. “Sit.”

  They did, a few giving Karen a quick hug and greeting on their way to a chair. Then the questions started flying.

  “Wait a minute,” Joe said. “We can’t all talk at the same time. Here’s what I know. Cort told me Opal called, she overheard Joshua say he’s leaving Vegas today after his shift, and that he told the person on the phone he needs the usual. What else?”

  “Like you,” Cort said, “I assume the usual means a new identity. He must have gotten wind that something’s up. Opal looked at his schedule, he has the next two days off, so the timing is in his favor. No one would know he’s gone until he missed his next shift. He’d have a two-day head start. And there’s more. Opal got close enough, finagled her way close enough to Joshua on the pretense of needing to reach for something over his head, that she was able to bump his arm, see his wrist. She said there’s something there. On his wrist, beneath his sleeve.”

  Joe’s heart rate accelerated. “And Jake can’t reach Bud.”

  “Not yet. He’ll call soon, I’m sure. I hope.”

  They looked at one another for a moment until Cassie jumped to her feet.

  “Then it’s time. Everyone knows what to do.”

  “What to do? I don’t know what to do,” Joe said.

  “No, because we didn’t tell you. Not yet.” Cassie said.

  She looked at Frank, Riley, Shauna, and Cort. They all nodded. Joe didn’t miss the fact that Jake was left out too.

  “I’m going to the bar. I’ll be a woman ditched by her boyfriend so he can hang out with his friends. I’ll make it clear that I’m hoping this trip is when he finally proposes, but I’m getting tired of him going off to golf and leaving me for hours at a time. I’ll tell Joshua I think I need a drink. What the guy next to me is having because it looks fun.”

  “I’ll be sitting next to her,” Riley said. “When Joshua mixes her drink and gives it to her, we’re assuming laced with something, Cass will drop an item behind the bar when she reaches for the drink. Joshua will pick it up and when he does, we’ll swap drinks.”

  “I’ll sip at it and keep talking. When I start getting sleepy, foggy, I’ll tell him I need to go up to my room, but can’t remember where the elevator is, can he show me? I’ll make it easy for him.”

  “Frank will be there with his camera,” Shauna said, “capturing evidence. Jake, this is where you come in. You need to get the police there as soon as you can and point them in the right direction. We’re hoping to have Cort in the security room with the team from Mystique, but this is happening fast, I’m not sure how soon Cort will be able to arrange that. I’ll be up in Cassie’s room on the off-chance things get that far and they make it upstairs. Karen, you can join me if you want.”

  Joe looked at Karen. She didn’t respond, just stared with her jaw hanging open and her eyes wide. When he looked at Jake, the reaction was identical.

  “I didn’t hear my name mentioned,” Joe said.

  “No, you didn’t,” Riley said. “We knew what you’d say.”

  “That it’s stupid? That it’s dangerous? That there’s no way I’m letting you do it?”

  Riley tsk-tsked and shook his head. “It’s cute when he tries to tell us what we can and can’t do, isn’t it?”

  Jake found his voice. “And me? What did you think I’d say?”

  Riley wasn’t as quick to answer this time. “We hoped you’d go along with it if it came to the point where it was our only option. We hoped you’d realize that we have to do what we can to make sure he doesn’t get away.”

  “Of course, I realize that, but there are other options.”

  “Ones that don’t waste what little time we have? Time that’s ticking as we stand here arguing?” Shauna asked.

  “There are cops other than Bud in Las Vegas. Let me call, find someone who can help, and take care of it that way.”

  “That’s exactly what your role was from the start,” Cort said. “Call the police, preferably Bud, but if not, someone else, and get them moving.”

  “And we have to move too,” Cassie said. “We are running out of time.”

  “There’s no guarantee Joshua will even try something with Cassie,” Joe said.

  “There’s no guarantee he won’t,” Riley said.

  Joe looked at Karen and she at him. He knew that look, he’d seen it once before. In his parents’ basement when she’d heard the whole story from Cort, when she’d dug in her heels ready for a fight. She was ready now.

  “Do it. Do what you have to do, but at the first sign of trouble, any sign whatsoever, get out of there. Nothing is more important than keeping everyone safe,” Karen said.

  There was some shock at her reaction, but it was short-lived. They jumped into action.

  “Love you, Karen. We’re going to get him,” Cassie said as she hugged Karen and ran out the door. Frank and Riley followed her.

  “Okay, those three have to hustle. Cassie has to get ready then they’ll head to Mystique and get into position. Cort knows the head of security here who knows the head of security there, and they’ve spoken, in vague terms, so hopefully they’ll be cooperative at Mystique when Cort approaches them today. Jake, you’ll keep trying Bud and if you can’t reach him, will call someone else in the department?”

  “My head is spinning right now, but yes, I will. I wish you’d told me about your plans. I could have prepared.”

  “I know, but I also know you would have tried to talk us out of it.”

  “True. Okay, if you’re going to—if we’re going to—make this work, we’ve got to get moving.”

  “I’m the main point of contact since I’ll be in Cassie’s hotel room. Call or text and I’ll relay messages to whomever needs them.”

  “Good plan. I may not like what you did, but I’m impressed.”

  Jake saluted and jogged out the door.

  “I’m going to go see if Will is here right now. I may have an easier time working with security at Mystique if he makes another call before I arrive,” Cort said. “I’ll head downstairs and check his schedule. Shauna, I’ll keep you posted. Joe, Karen, it’s going to work.”

  That left Shauna, Karen, and Joe. After the whirlwind of the past five minutes, it felt as though all the energy in the room had been sucked out leaving them in some strange void.

  “What do I do?” Joe asked.

  “You need to stay away from the bar while Cassie and Riley are there. It’s possible he’ll recognize some faces, especially of those who talked to him. If he notices too many at once, he could get suspicious. If you’re willing, you could wait outside the entrance closest to the bar on the off chance he does get suspicious and tries to make a break for it. It’s starting to sound like a spy movie, I know, but there’s that chance and until Jake can get the police there, I don’t know how else we’d have any hope of knowing where he goes if he bolts.”

  “To echo Jake, I’m impressed. You’re all crazy, but I’m impressed. You put a lot of thought into this.”

  “Of course, we did. What do you think we’ve been doing for the past five days?” Shauna winked at
him. “Karen, do you want to come to the hotel room with me?”

  “You better believe I do.”

  “All right. You two get dressed and I’ll meet you downstairs in ten minutes.”

  Once Shauna was gone, Joe and Karen were left staring at each other.

  “Did that just happen?” Karen asked.

  “I’m not sure. I was in the middle of a pretty sweet dream before Cort started pounding on the door. Maybe it took a crazy turn.”

  “Here’s hoping it has a good ending. Go find some clothes and saddle your horse, baby.”

  Karen kissed him and ducked into the bathroom. Joe cocked his head and wondered at her newfound fondness for horse references, but just called to her through the door.

  “My stuff is still in the other room. I’ll meet you in the lobby.”

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

  “GOOD MORNING, MR. Mackenzie. I trust the suite was acceptable and your friends were comfortable last night?”

  Cort figured the stress must be showing on his face because despite the hotel manager’s attempt at a cool professionalism, Cort spotted the barely veiled concern, fear even, in the man’s eyes and heard it in the tremor of his voice.

  “It was perfect. They are very pleased. Thank you for pulling it together on such short notice.”

  “No problem whatsoever. Is there anything else I can do for you?”

  “I need to speak with Will. Is he in?”

  “Yes, sir, he’s in his office.”

  “Thank you.” Cort started down the hall but stopped and turned back. “You’re doing an excellent job here, Kent. I appreciate your dedication.”

  “Thank you, sir, and you’re welcome. It’s a wonderful place to work.”

  Cort nodded and continued down the hall. He knocked once on Will’s partially open door before pushing it all the way open. Will sat leaned back in his chair, feet on his desk, and a file open in front of him.

  “Cort. Good morning.”

  “Good morning, Will. I need your help. It’s rather urgent. You spoke with the security head at Mystique a few days ago. You gave him my name, said I might be getting in touch.”