Stacked Deck

by Tracy Watkins

  “I see the desktop. Where’s the laptop?”

  “Top drawer.”

  She tried to open the top drawer of the desk. “It’s locked.”

  “Shit. That’s a problem. Hopefully what you’re looking for is on the desk. Maybe the laptop is just a backup.”

  She’d have to go with that theory for now. She set up her own laptop, then inserted the first flash drive in Giambi’s computer and went to work hacking in.

  “What kind of program is that?”

  “This is called a brute force attack. It’s very good and much faster than most programs out there. It can crack any encryption he might have. Still could take a while, though. What’s different about this particular program is that it not only locates every file and throws encryption breaks at them in the event they’re on multiple protection schemes, it compacts and prepares them for a rapid download. If he didn’t have the right firewalls set up, I could have everything sent directly to my laptop, but from the looks of things, he’s well protected.”

  “How long will it take?”

  “We’ll be in and out in a matter of minutes. I just need to get in, then insert some spyware. I’ll be able to access his files from my laptop.”

  Now, twenty minutes after the butler had left, Beth told JD to call him to add something to the list, delaying him from returning until she had gotten her programs running and, hopefully, some results.

  When JD hung up, he nodded to Beth. “He’s just pulling into the parking lot of the first market. The list will force him to go to at least three different places. It will keep him busy for an hour, maybe more.”

  With any luck Giambi was still dealing with the police out at his shop and would be there for a while longer.

  JD watched her work. She inserted a series of flash drives into one of the ports then booted up and began running a program.

  He had a lot going through his mind. What worried him most about her was, well, just about everything. He believed her Vegas story and knew enough about the place to know that anyone who grew up in Vegas knew the dark side of human nature and how to deal with it.

  And he liked her. Liked her a lot.

  He’d spent much of his life under the control of other people. But never women. This was the first time he’d ever experienced anything like what he felt for her and he didn’t know what to make of it. She had him by the short hairs in every way and not knowing what was really going on made him both vulnerable and pretty much tied to whatever she had in mind.

  Somehow, this agent, bent over the computer, working feverishly to break its codes, was a fast current that had caught him up and would dump him on the rocks whenever she chose.

  “I feel like I’m in a James Bond movie,” JD announced.

  She glanced up. “Which Bond is your favorite?”

  “The old Bond. Sean Connery. Which one do you like?”

  “Pierce Brosnan. Very sexy man.”

  “Nobody touches the original.”

  “Whatever you say, but Pierce is my hero.”

  He wandered around the office, gazing at photos, picking up artwork. He was getting bored, and a little worried about this taking so long. He really didn’t want to get caught.

  When his cell went off he thought it was Jason wanting to know about something on the list. It wasn’t.

  “It’s Giambi,” he whispered as if the man could hear and see him.

  “Better answer it. See what he wants.”

  “Hello.”

  “Where the hell are you?”

  JD’s throat tightened, and he coughed it clear. “I’m relaxing. Having a drink in my room. Are you at the shop?”

  “Anne Hurley’s there with you, isn’t she?”

  “Um, yes. She’s here.” He looked over at her and shrugged. “She’s decided to stay in my suite for a while. I assume that’s okay with you?”

  Silence.

  “We need to talk. I’m on my way up.”

  JD stood up straight. “Where are you?” He mouthed to Beth that Giambi was in the building.

  Beth’s heart raced, as she tried to hurry things up on the laptop. Shit! she mouthed back.

  “In the garage.”

  The phone went dead. JD turned to Beth. “Christ. He’s on his way up.”

  “Damn. I’m not done yet.”

  “Well, get done. We have to get out of here.”

  “It takes time. I need to set up a back door into his system and I need to break down his codes and that can take some time.”

  “Too late. We’ll have to break in again.”

  She closed out, gathered her things and they got out of there and ran to JD’s suite in time to open the door just as Giambi emerged from the elevator, her shoes in hand.

  “My shoes!” she said, making a beeline for Giambi. “You’re my hero.” He handed them to her. “I thought for sure we drove over them, but they’re perfect. Thank you.” She gave him a quick hug, but Giambi didn’t reciprocate. Instead, he looked at the two of them like they were a couple of escaped convicts with bad intentions, then turned and walked away.

  Beth knew she had her work cut out for her if she was ever going to win his favor back.

  Chapter 17

  B eth knew this would be a critical moment in her relationship with Giambi. She had to make him buy in to their story. She couldn’t let his suspicions get the best of him.

  “Let me handle him,” she said, as she and JD walked to Giambi’s suite later that evening. They were both dressed in their casual best, with Beth wearing the Jimmy Choos Giambi had rescued.

  “Believe me,” JD said, “you can have him. Good luck.”

  JD knocked on Giambi’s door, and Jason opened it, wearing a scowl. Apparently he still hadn’t recovered from the market-hopping trip they’d sent him on that afternoon.

  They walked in and were escorted to the living room.

  Giambi came in five minutes later looking angry, walking fast, a tight frown on his face, with two men who looked like a couple of well-trained bulldogs flanking his sides.

  “Vincenzio and Letta,” JD said under his breath.

  “His arm-breakers?”

  “Yep.” JD stretched his arms as if he was preparing for the worst.

  Beth immediately took control of the situation. “I want to thank you again for returning my shoes.” She twisted her left foot to let him see she was wearing them. Her right foot still ached, especially stuffed inside her shoe, but she was going for effect.

  “Yes. I’m happy I could return them to you.”

  His eyes were narrow, severe, his shoulders tight, lips pursed. She noticed for the first time, in the bright light of day, the liver spots, the loose neck skin, the excessive eyebrow hair. He was an aging man. Yet, for all of that, he was still elegant, still ramrod straight. Imposing.

  Giambi turned to JD as if he was going to start in on him, but Beth interrupted the onslaught. “I was frightened out of my mind,” she cooed, clasping her hands together for effect. “I thought for sure those men were going to kill us. I’ve never been shot at before. It’s just horrifying. You see it in movies and on TV, but you don’t have any idea how terrifying it can be.”

  “I’m sure it was pretty awful,” Giambi said, with just the slightest hint of concern.

  “Oh, you would not believe how scared I was.”

  “I can only imagine.”

  She caught the cynicism in his voice, but went right on as if he had said something kind. “And then we crashed down that mountain and the car was on its side, and JD knew just what to do, but those men were coming down to kill us. We had to get out. I thought I was going to die right there. But then when we crawled out of the wreckage, they were shooting at us again. I wanted to cry, but JD wouldn’t let me. He told me to be strong, so I was and fortunately we got away without any bloodshed. They hunted us in the woods for hours. It was horrible.” Beth sat down on a chair and covered her face with her hands.

  Then she grabbed JD’s arm, and looked
up at Giambi. “This Tennessee mountain boy here fooled them. Instead of running away, we circled back and hid. They walked right past us like revenuers walking past moonshiners.”

  She thought that was an apt bit of dramatic description, but Giambi’s frown remained. She’d have to work harder for his sympathy. “Would you mind telling your men to leave us. Some of this is a little embarrassing.”

  JD threw her a look, asking what’s this all about, but she never dropped her suffering character for a moment.

  Giambi waved off his men. They retreated into another part of the suite.

  She smiled, then, pulling out her best acting skills, made a little shake of her entire body, as if she’d been hit by a blast of cold air. “I was so scared I literally peed my pants,” she whispered.

  Giambi softened and said, “I’m sure it must have been a terrible experience.”

  “It was the worst moment of my life. I don’t know who they were or what they wanted. Do you?”

  “No, but we’ll find them, don’t worry about that. I have contacts all over Europe who know just how to find these people.”

  She told him how they hiked over all those hills, her bare feet getting cut up and sore. How JD made her a pair of moccasins using pieces of leather and his socks. “It was genius.”

  “He’s a man of many skills,” Giambi said, gazing over at JD, a touch of sarcasm on the edge of his words.

  Then she said, “I’m really sorry about the Bugatti. Such a beautiful car. So much power. Hopefully it can be restored to it’s original condition.”

  “I’m not so sure that’s possible,” Giambi muttered. She could tell that even the mere mention of his baby made him angry.

  “Will it be sent back to the factory, or can your shop handle it?”

  “We can build anything from top to bottom if we have to. They’ll do the best they can.” He looked down at her shoes. “They’re quality. I’m happy I could save them for you.” His tone was heavy.

  “I had to kick them off to run to the car when those men showed up at the shop,” she said. “I never ran so fast in my life. JD got us out of there in a hurry. It was like a scene right out of a movie. People shooting guns, bullets ricocheting off the containers.”

  Giambi lit a cigar and studied them intently before speaking. “JD did good. Real good. If you don’t mind, I’d like to have a word with him. The police will want to talk to him and we need to keep our stories tight. You won’t be mentioned at all.”

  “I appreciate that,” Beth said.

  He looked from her to JD, then back to her. “Jason said you moved into JD’s apartment.”

  “Yes. He has an extra bedroom and I thought it would be convenient. Hopefully, that’s okay with you.”

  “You make your moves quickly.”

  “It makes it much easier for us to discuss our business arrangements. And to be honest, I’d be too afraid to be anywhere else. This looks like the most secure place outside of the royal palace.”

  With a touch of understanding, Giambi said, “Your sense of safety, and the fact of it, is of course very important. If you’re considering investing in a team you might as well get to know the driver.”

  Beth smiled. “I owe JD my life. We’re going to get along fine. Just fine.” She smiled over at JD.

  Then Giambi got a call. “Excuse me, but I need to take this.” He turned to JD. “Meet me out on my patio in ten minutes.”

  Giambi started to leave, but hesitated. He said, “Jason was out doing some errands for you?”

  JD nodded. “Some things Anne needed.”

  Giambi nodded.

  Beth watched Giambi march off across his vast living room in the direction of the gourmet kitchen, speaking to somebody on his cell as he went.

  “You’re good,” JD said, once Giambi was out of earshot. “Hollywood’s really missing something.”

  “I don’t know that he bought it,” she said. “He’s got a look in his eye that tells me he’s not completely satisfied with the script.”

  “I’m going to find out.”

  “Just stick to the story. It’s true enough. Just leave out the rest of it.”

  “You don’t want me to tell him that you’re the hottest thing under the sun since Mount Vesuvius?”

  That got a chuckle from her.

  “I know how he works. He’s going to run a hard background on you for sure this time. Your cover won’t last long.”

  “That’s why I need to get back into his office.”

  “He’s throwing a huge Formula One party tomorrow tonight. Maybe there’ll be a chance then.”

  While he was talking to Jason, who had called him from the kitchen, Giambi was watching JD and Beth talk on the other side of the room. From where he stood on his patio he had a clear view of them. What the hell were they up to? He wasn’t buying her scared-little-girl routine.

  “So, what did they want you to pick up at the market?” Giambi asked.

  “She wanted salts for her foot, ointment for her bruises. She was very particular about brands. I had to go to three different shops.”

  “You could have sent somebody else.”

  “JD seemed to want me to go so no mistakes were made. He was in a hurry. I thought he was worried about her, that she was giving him a problem.”

  “How’d she look when she came in. Frightened or nervous or what?”

  “Not really either. Not that I could see. He had on messed-up clothes like he’d been dragged around in a ditch, but she was all cleaned up and looking just fine.”

  “Yeah, okay. You get everything she wanted?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Fine,” he said and disconnected.

  Giambi called Vincenzio and told him to deepen the background check on Anne Hurley. “Check her out thoroughly. Blanket coverage. Call people who would know her. Hire detective agencies every damn place we can find an address for her or an association of any kind. I want to know who the hell she really is. I want to know who deflowered her. Who her relatives are. What her grade school teacher thinks of her. Get on it and get me results. I want to know more about her than her own mother knows.”

  Giambi poured himself a drink from his bar on the patio. This girl was big trouble. The kind he didn’t know the origin of. If there was a hit out on him, that contract all by itself was big enough. But now this woman compounded his troubles.

  The problem with having many enemies was not knowing in which direction to look.

  He turned and stared out over his balcony. He had a view of the prince’s regal quarters on the hill. He fixed on it with malice. “Your royal high-ass, you better not be the one playing games.”

  He waved at JD to join him on the patio. His anger and blood pressure were spiking and he had to calm himself down.

  Damn human race, he thought. Liars, traitors, blackmailers, assassins. Who the hell could you trust in this world?

  Chapter 18

  “D o what you can to calm him down,” Beth told JD. “We have to get this guy focused on anyone but us.”

  “I’ll try. But when he gets excited it’s hard to have a conversation with him.”

  “How are we going to get the desk key?”

  “I don’t know,” JD said with a shrug. “He keeps his keys on the gold chain you see on his belt.”

  “He must have a spare.”

  “He’s one of those guys who knows where everything is. It goes missing—”

  “I don’t need the key, just an impression.” She opened her purse and pulled out a small plastic container. She snapped it open and showed him how to take a key mold.

  “You came prepared.”

  Giambi called him this time, on JD’s spare cell phone. “I gotta go. He’s on the warpath.”

  “Good luck. Stick to the story.”

  “Hey,” he said, putting a hand behind her neck. “It was a strange first date, but one I’m not going to forget anytime soon.”

  She kissed him and then pushed him in Giambi’s d
irection. “While you’re talking to him I’ll go in his room and see if I can find another set of keys,” she whispered.

  “Jason’s here, lurking around somewhere. Don’t let him catch you,” he warned.

  “Is there a way to know where he might be?”

  “No.”

  “Is there a way to lock down the elevator so he has to call?”

  “Yeah, but that’s also on Giambi’s key ring.”

  “Can you see the elevator from the balcony.”

  “Yes,” he muttered.

  “Then just warn me. Hit my cell phone number on your cell. I programmed it in this afternoon. Number five.”

  He nodded and squeezed her hand. “Be careful.”

  “You, too.”

  Beth gave him time to get past the grotto pool, then she headed for Giambi’s bedroom.

  JD crossed the twenty yards or so to the balcony. Giambi, when he was really pissed and paranoid, could get ugly and he needed to cool down the old man and occupy his attention to give Anne enough time.

  He walked out onto the balcony, glanced at Giambi, then went to the bar and poured himself a cup of coffee. He glanced back into the suite and saw Anne dart past the grotto and disappear down the hall toward Giambi’s room.

  “I sent you out there to find out about Anne Hurley and this is what happens?”

  “I did what you sent me out there to do. Somebody trying to kill us wasn’t part of the plan.”

  He sat down across from Giambi, swinging his chair so he had a view back inside.

  “Yeah, what you did was get laid and wreck my car. Maybe everything happened just the way you said, and maybe not.”

  “You think I’m lying to you?”

  “I don’t know anything. That’s the problem. Middle of the night somebody attacks you at the shop. Bullet casings all over the place. Shoes in the dirt. The car ends up wrecked miles away and you two show up the next day. Sounds like you had one hell of a night.” Giambi took a drag on his cigar and let the smoke out slowly, watching it as it swirled through the air and then vanished in the moonlight.