by Ali Vali
“Thanks for everything.”
Reed headed for the bathroom with her clothes in her hands. She wanted to get dressed and get out of there as soon as she could. The lure of being at home with nothing to do or think about was the only thing on her mind now that Jayden had drained her. The girl was sweet, and that kind of sweetness didn’t belong in the world Reed lived in.
“Will you call me again?” Jayden asked when Reed stepped out of the bathroom and sat on the bed, about to put her shoes on.
“I’ve got your number, but you should think about doing something else. I could be way off, but you don’t seem cut out for this life. Quit before it sucks the good out of you,” she said and tolerated the kiss Jayden placed on her neck.
“Thanks for worrying about me, baby, but this is all I’ve got.” Jayden stood naked before her and was truly stunning. “There’s no other job I can get that’ll pay me enough to keep my car and condo.”
“Then keep my number in case you need something.” The comment came out before she could censor it.
“You’re sweet, but I’ll be okay. I’ve got someone watching out for me.” Jayden stopped her by claiming her shoe, then tugged her from the bed and back into the bathroom, where she started the shower. “Let’s enjoy ourselves a little more before you’ve got to go.”
“Sure,” Reed said, but she was anxious to leave. The good thing, though, was she was going to walk out of here without any extra baggage. Whatever possessed her to offer Jayden anything would go back in its box, and she’d go back to her unencumbered life.
After she dressed again, she put another five hundred by Jayden’s purse and left without saying good-bye. She could still sense Jayden on her skin and in her head, but they’d never see each other again. If Jayden really did stick with this, then hopefully there would only be boring accountants and the like in her future. No one deserved a life like Penny’s.
Chapter Five
“I’m so sorry,” Brinley said, mortified she was twenty minutes late on her first day. “I didn’t expect this much traffic on a Monday morning.”
“Don’t sweat it.” Naomi handed her a cup of coffee. “Usually Mondays are dead unless you take the Strip, that’s always a mess, but the cops are still next door jamming traffic. There’s enough rubbernecking out there to make you think this town is full of old gossip hounds.”
“Did something happen?” The kitchen was fully stocked so she dropped a bagel in the toaster before adding cream to her coffee.
“I forget you’re like me, and it’s cartoons in the morning instead of the news,” Naomi said and laughed. “The head guy next door was found dead in a private villa with a rubber dick in his ass, and his dick in a woman who wasn’t his wife. They got too carried away with their partying and OD’d by putting drugs where you really shouldn’t have any, not prescribed by a doctor.”
“That was on the news? The media here must be way more progressive if that’s how they reported the story.”
“The maid found them, called her supervisor, who called security, who called management.” Naomi ticked the list off on her fingers. “There’s no way it stays quiet after all those people got a peek at the dead pervert, which complicates things if the cops or the family want to keep it quiet.”
“I guess there really are no more secrets these days.” She spread cream cheese on her bagel and followed Naomi to their space. “I’ll be shocked if we don’t see pictures soon.”
“Victor Madison was the shit in this town, as in a big deal, but you’re right. Vegas—for some things, anyway—is still very much a small town. Rumors fly fast, especially about someone who liked to rub your face in the fact you weren’t him.” Naomi snapped her fingers and cocked her head. “Mr. I’m the shit couldn’t have picked a more humiliating way to die.”
“How old was the girl?” Brinley sat and started changing the passwords on the computer per IT’s instructions.
“Nineteen, but my contact over there said she could’ve passed for thirty. That’s probably what fooled Victor, but that’s still going to be a problem for the grieving Madison family.”
She’d done so much research before uprooting Finn and bringing him here, so this news on her first day of work wasn’t welcome. Not what she had in mind as a safe environment for him. Maybe she would feel safer outside the city, but a year’s lease would be hard to break now. Yet another thing to feel guilty about.
“Did he have kids?”
“Two boys, and the older one was about the same age as the dead girl.” Naomi sat across from her and started sorting the stack of receipts someone appeared to have dropped haphazardly on her desk. “We’ll finish our gossiping later. All these weekend deposits can’t wait.”
They worked for two hours, talking occasionally about their own kids and life in general, and finished entering deposits and footing the books from the weekend haul. Brinley found the numbers staggering but knew they also accounted for the reason the pay was so good, so she wasn’t complaining. Before lunch their boss, Dean, came in and sat in the only extra chair they had in the small space.
“Are you settling in okay?” he asked Brinley.
“Naomi’s been the best, and thanks again for this opportunity.” She meant it, but Dean appeared to be the kind of guy who thrived on a lot of compliments, so she wouldn’t scrimp on them.
“Just remember to make me look fabulous and we’ll be good,” he said, slapping his hands together. “The top guys want a complete audit of the books from our usual accountants, and I want you to make sure everything is in order before it goes to them. I’m going to hand off your day-to-day stuff for the next few weeks and give you two that responsibility. Do you think you can handle it?”
“Sure,” Naomi said, shooting Brinley a subtle warning look. “It’s been a while since I’ve done an audit, but I’m sure we can do it.”
“I did a couple at my last job.” Brinley tapped the eraser of her pencil against her thigh, already thinking of the work plan. “Are you sure you don’t want to bring someone from an outside firm in, even just for the pre-work? That’s what most folks like doing, especially in case you’re looking for wrongdoing.”
Dean raised his hands and laughed loudly, but it sounded forced. “Whoa, no one said anything about wrongdoing.”
His reaction made Brinley think he was hiding something, and it definitely didn’t answer the question about why they weren’t bringing in someone from the outside. She glanced at Naomi, interested in her reaction since she had more experience with Dean. Maybe this was his normal, but her gut said otherwise.
“We’ll gather the information and start today after lunch,” Naomi said, her voice steady. “Let us finish the weekend stuff since we’re already in the middle of it. Whoever you put on that will appreciate not having to backtrack.”
“Great. I’ve already gathered all the stuff you need to begin. I’m moving you to a larger space, and the faster you finish, the better.” Dean stood and made a rolling motion with his index finger. “Think two weeks is enough time?”
“If it’s just the two of us, it’ll be a stretch, but we should have some preliminary reports by then,” Brinley said, wanting him out of their office so she could talk to Naomi.
“And this audit,” Dean said with his hand on the doorknob, “is strictly need to know. You report to me and no one else.”
“You got it, boss,” Naomi said.
They were both quiet after the door closed, and as if by mutual consent, they waited to make sure Dean wasn’t outside listening in. She opened her mouth and Naomi shook her head and discreetly pointed at her ear. “Do you want to tackle the journal entries from Sunday? I’ve already started on Saturday.”
“Yeah, then let’s go to lunch before we have to move. Hopefully, wherever our new digs are, we’ll have a nice big window with a view.”
“Here’s hoping,” Naomi said.
Brinley wondered what the hell this was about. Had she made a terrible mistake in moving to Sin C
ity after all?
* * *
Caterina Terzo opened her eyes when she felt a shadow across her face. The early morning was the only time she indulged in some sunbathing, before her forty laps in the large family pool. Everyone on the staff knew better than to disturb her, and she held her hand over her brow when she saw her brother Lucan looming over her.
“Get out of my sun,” she said, not liking the expression on Lucan’s face. Her brother was quite the alarmist over things that always seemed to be her fault, and the habit sent her father into a lather at times.
“What the fuck were you thinking?” Lucan asked, not moving. “I haven’t gone to Papa yet, but you better come up with a good story if you don’t want him to slap you back down the ranks.”
“Am I supposed to know what the hell you’re talking about?” She sat up and put her shirt over her suit. The last few days had been busy, and she hadn’t heard from any of her crew that there was a problem big enough to warrant this kind of reaction.
“Victor Madison’s dead,” Lucan said, biting off each word like she’d shot the fucker on the Strip. “They found him in bed with some girl, and if it’s who I’m thinking, she’s yours. If that’s true, you better pray nothing they found with the stupid little bitch can be traced back to you.”
“She’s dead?” The young woman was one of many, but she needed her alive.
“Don’t give me that you don’t know shit. Dammit, Caterina, we needed Victor for the deal we’ve got going. Killing him is going to bring heat we don’t need while we’re trying to ramp up. If Papa gets blamed, he’s going to want to take it out on someone.”
“I’m not a fucking idiot. The girl, as you put it, had a job, and it wasn’t fucking dying. All I needed her to do was to get Victor to commit to offing Sofia, and then you could’ve named your price on what we’re after. Believe me, blackmail was the fastest and easiest way to get him to do whatever we wanted. There was no way he wanted to go down for Sofia’s murder, and if he’d used my guy with the help of my friend who died with him, that’s what we would’ve had.” She stood and went inside for her phone. “She had a date Friday night, and she said she was close.”
“That makes sense,” Lucan said as he followed her into her rooms. “Our contact with LVMPD said Victor’s dick was about to rot inside her. They had a bitch of a time getting them apart. You think Sofia offed him?”
“Sofia probably wanted to, but her father knows better. He’s got no muscle here, and he doesn’t need a war back home. She’s not stupid enough to go against her father.” She turned the TV on for him and headed for a shower. “Do you know anything about what happened?”
“All I know is he died with his dick in someone, and a fake one up his ass. Who knew Victor was so progressive.”
“Believe me, I’m sure he would’ve sucked his own dick to keep the girl interested.” She picked a suit and stopped before closing the door. “Wait for me?”
“Sure, but we have to break this to Papa. I’m going to have to go back and talk to Little Bobby. I’m positive whatever plan he had centered around Victor picking up some major slack.”
“This could be an opportunity for us.”
He sat on her bed and settled in front of the TV. “How do you figure?”
“If we can influence the selection of Victor’s replacement, we’ll be set for years.” She closed the door, positive Lucan would take credit for that brilliant idea, but it wasn’t worth the effort of getting mad, considering they had bigger issues. She’d have to pay her respects to the girl’s family. She wouldn’t have kept her around after they got what they wanted out of Victor, but the kid didn’t deserve this. Her death, though, brought about some new problems if her association with Victor could be traced to Caterina.
Lucan was half asleep by the time she was ready, and they headed for the other wing of the large house. Their parents had added it in an effort to keep them both at home. The slight separation gave them the privacy they wanted while still keeping them all under one roof.
The dining room overlooked the pool and the mountains, and there was always someone over for every meal, no matter the day. Francesco Terzo thought he’d earned the right not to have to go into the office every day, so the office came to him. He was an understanding man unless something—or someone—screwed with his plans.
“Good morning,” she said, kissing her mother’s cheek first, then her father’s.
“Do you want to explain what all this is about?” Francesco pointed at the television. Pictures of Victor at various events flashed across the screen. “Start talking, either of you.”
Caterina poured herself some coffee and sat next to him. “Give me an hour and I’ll be able to answer that, but I didn’t have anything to do with this. I know how important Victor was to us.” She knew his question was directed at her. Lucan never made a move without their father knowing first. He didn’t have the spine.
“The cops and the gaming commission are going to be all over this bastard and his associates. You all know how they like to run off the rails when an idiot gives them the chance,” Francesco said loudly, but nobody flinched. Timmy White, her father’s bodyguard and assistant, and Gino Roca, his top lieutenant, were common fixtures at this table and were used to her father’s rants.
“You know Victor’s reputation,” she said as a maid served her. “He fucked anyone with a pulse and a little interest. He could have pissed off any number of people who wanted him dead.”
“Caterina, please,” her mother, Serra, said, clucking her tongue. “Such language at my table.”
“Sorry, Mama, but this is important. I’m going to find out exactly what happened and take care of anything that needs taking care of. You can trust me, Papa.”
“I trust you both, but we need to work together,” Francesco said, stopping to finish his toast.
“I’ll send Timmy over there and he can ask questions.” Lucan finally spoke up now that he knew he was in the clear.
“Papa, I think I can handle that,” she said, stopping when Francesco put his hand up and glared at her.
“I know you can, but today you’re going to let Timmy do it. You’re going with Lucan to see Bobby one more time, and you’re going to explain the facts of his life like only you two can. I know he can’t handle the entire load, but he can start taking on more.” Francesco spread butter on his toast like he had all day to do it. “Until we know what this was about, you all lay off the Bellagio.” He pointed his knife at Gino and narrowed his eyes. “I mean lay off completely. You understand me?”
“Yes, sir,” Gino said, lowering his head. “I’ll talk with the guys and let them know.”
“Do you have plans for another site if we need to persuade whoever the new guy is at Bellagio?” Lucan asked.
“The Gemini would be my first stop, but we need something on that bitch Remi Jatibon and her father.” Francesco finished with the butter and started with the fig preserves.
Caterina shook her head at her father’s defiance of his doctor’s advice. The great Francesco Terzo wouldn’t die from an enemy’s bullet, but because of his diet. “Remi is in New Orleans, Papa. The Gemini is Mano’s operation.”
“You think I’m stupid? Mano might run the operation, but the right hand of God calls the shots. Her little brother is not the kind to make waves.” Francesco sounded like his patience was at an end.
“Should be easy then, if he’s that much of a pushover.” Lucan shoved a too big piece of sausage in his mouth.
“You try to browbeat Mano Jatibon, and his sister Remi will fly here and cut your balls off before I can do anything about it,” Francesco said, exhaling loudly. “Once she’s done, and you’re lucky enough to survive, their business partner Cain Casey will scoop your brains out with a spoon and force-feed them to your sister.”
“Let’s go, Lucan,” Caterina said, not wanting to aggravate her father any more. The Jatibons were a thorn in his side, and that wasn’t good breakfast conversation. “Let�
�s do what Papa said and go to the Moroccan.” That would appease the old man, but it wouldn’t hurt to ask some questions along the way.
Chapter Six
Mano Jatibon stood in his office and stared down at the Strip. His family’s casino was next to Caesars Palace, which gave them a good view of all the flashing lights in front of Bellagio. He’d never cared for Victor Madison, and while his death didn’t surprise him, it was time to shore up their operation just in case. At times like this, the authorities used the opportunity to dig where no one wanted them.
“Hey, brother. You’re up early,” Remi Jatibon said after answering on the first ring.
“I’d much rather be getting my kids off to school, but they found Victor Madison dead this morning. I don’t have all the details yet, but it sounds like a stupid accident.”
Remi whistled. “Did he shoot himself in the head cleaning his gun?”
That made him laugh. “It was more like he shoved a dildo with coke and fentanyl up his ass. From my contact’s initial report, he had traces of the same two things on his dick as well, and the girl he was with died along with him.” The coroner’s van drove slowly down the street between Caesars and Bellagio, and hopefully it meant the cops wouldn’t be much longer.
“What a fucking idiot—may he rest in peace.”
“The girl was nineteen, so maybe he should be glad that combo killed him. She’s young enough to make the media swarm like killer bees.” The lights on the cruisers out front went out as the police started to leave. “I just wanted to give you a heads-up.”
“Hang tight and let me know if we get any heat on this. We’re finally up and running at full steam after the storm, and we need the Gemini in Vegas and the casino in Biloxi so we don’t get a bottleneck of cash.” Their offices in New Orleans had been partially destroyed by Hurricane Katrina, and the rebuilding had taken what seemed like forever because of the Historic Society’s rules about anything in the French Quarter or near it.
