a pallbearer. A stand-in for Ben.”
He nodded, but left his arm where it was, blocking me from the hallway. His other hand came up and went to my throat. He turned over my twisted pendant, patted it to my skin, much like the way I do when I’m watching a game or playing poker.
“Horseshoe. For luck,” he said softly. It wasn’t a question, so I said nothing. “Does it work?”
I thought of all the money I’d won over the last ten years. More money than my parents had made in their whole careers.
And then I remembered Vince; out there, probably cursing himself for giving me a week interest-free.
“Not often enough,” I said.
He looked from the pendant to my eyes. “I hear that,” he said and dropped his arm away from the wall, though he kept his hand on my necklace. On my skin.
“Will you tell me if you think of anything that might help in the case? So far, we’ve got nothing.”
“Is that why you told me about Danny’s death? So I would help?” The thought didn’t really bother me; I just wanted to know up front what Jack’s motives were.
Though something told me one never knew what Jack Schiller’s true motives were.
He shrugged. “Does it matter?”
“Yes.”
“From what I understand, you know Vegas well, know a lot of players. I just thought you might hear something from somebody that could shed some light on this.”
Like Danny was a degenerate gambler? That he owed someone not-so-nice a lot of money? That the life he led outwardly to his friends and family was a sham?
Those thoughts ran through my mind so quickly that I didn’t even stop to wonder how—or from whom—Jack had found out I was in a position to possibly know something.
“Will you tell me if you hear anything? Anything at all,” he said.
If it would hurt Danny’s reputation, or destroy his family, and not even help solve the case? I couldn’t make that promise to him, and something told me not to lie to him. “I don’t know,” I said.
He looked away, took a breath, then looked back at me. “Fair enough,” he said.
He pulled his hand away from my neck and as he did I noticed the slightest tremble in his hand.
The weakness pissed me off. Unfair, yes, but it did. I didn’t want to think of Jack as human. I needed him to be more. I needed him to avenge Danny for us all.
As I brushed past him I said, “Need a drink?”
“Need a casino?” he zinged right back.
I studied him for a minute, recognizing a part of myself. Perhaps that’s what had pissed me off.
“Desperately,” I said softly, then turned to go bury my friend.
Chapter Nine
M y new phone rang two days later. “Dancing Queen” came on and I knew who it would be. I excused myself from the poker table. I hadn’t been in a hand in half an hour anyway.
I’d been trying to build the small amount of funds I had available to me into something I could parlay into enough to pay Vince back, but hadn’t had any luck. Hard to build something that big with just a few hundred dollars. And there was no way I could play at one of Vince’s games on marker while I still owed him so much.
I’d tried different casinos, looking for bad players with big wallets, but no fish swam today.
“Hey, Lor,” I said when I got to the small alcove that used to be used for payphones but was now only used by those needing to be heard on a cell. “You’re the inaugural call.” So wrapped up in my new gizmo that Lorelei had given me a crash course in yesterday, I’d forgotten that Lorelei rarely called me while I was playing cards. “What’s wrong?” I quickly asked.
“Nothing. Nothing. Sorry,” she said. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”
I exhaled, not realizing I’d been holding my breath. “That’s okay. You didn’t,” I lied.
“Ben and I are car shopping,” she said.
“Oh. That’s right.” I’d forgotten all about that. It seemed like years ago when I’d brought Ben home from the morgue. It’d only been a week.
He nodded, but left his arm where it was, blocking me from the hallway. His other hand came up and went to my throat. He turned over my twisted pendant, patted it to my skin, much like the way I do when I’m watching a game or playing poker.
“Horseshoe. For luck,” he said softly. It wasn’t a question, so I said nothing. “Does it work?”
I thought of all the money I’d won over the last ten years. More money than my parents had made in their whole careers.
And then I remembered Vince; out there, probably cursing himself for giving me a week interest-free.
“Not often enough,” I said.
He looked from the pendant to my eyes. “I hear that,” he said and dropped his arm away from the wall, though he kept his hand on my necklace. On my skin.
“Will you tell me if you think of anything that might help in the case? So far, we’ve got nothing.”
“Is that why you told me about Danny’s death? So I would help?” The thought didn’t really bother me; I just wanted to know up front what Jack’s motives were.
Though something told me one never knew what Jack Schiller’s true motives were.
He shrugged. “Does it matter?”
“Yes.”
“From what I understand, you know Vegas well, know a lot of players. I just thought you might hear something from somebody that could shed some light on this.”
Like Danny was a degenerate gambler? That he owed someone not-so-nice a lot of money? That the life he led outwardly to his friends and family was a sham?
Those thoughts ran through my mind so quickly that I didn’t even stop to wonder how—or from whom—Jack had found out I was in a position to possibly know something.
“Will you tell me if you hear anything? Anything at all,” he said.
If it would hurt Danny’s reputation, or destroy his family, and not even help solve the case? I couldn’t make that promise to him, and something told me not to lie to him. “I don’t know,” I said.
He looked away, took a breath, then looked back at me. “Fair enough,” he said.
He pulled his hand away from my neck and as he did I noticed the slightest tremble in his hand.
The weakness pissed me off. Unfair, yes, but it did. I didn’t want to think of Jack as human. I needed him to be more. I needed him to avenge Danny for us all.
As I brushed past him I said, “Need a drink?”
“Need a casino?” he zinged right back.
I studied him for a minute, recognizing a part of myself. Perhaps that’s what had pissed me off.
“Desperately,” I said softly, then turned to go bury my friend.
Chapter Nine
M y new phone rang two days later. “Dancing Queen” came on and I knew who it would be. I excused myself from the poker table. I hadn’t been in a hand in half an hour anyway.
I’d been trying to build the small amount of funds I had available to me into something I could parlay into enough to pay Vince back, but hadn’t had any luck. Hard to build something that big with just a few hundred dollars. And there was no way I could play at one of Vince’s games on marker while I still owed him so much.
I’d tried different casinos, looking for bad players with big wallets, but no fish swam today.
“Hey, Lor,” I said when I got to the small alcove that used to be used for payphones but was now only used by those needing to be heard on a cell. “You’re the inaugural call.” So wrapped up in my new gizmo that Lorelei had given me a crash course in yesterday, I’d forgotten that Lorelei rarely called me while I was playing cards. “What’s wrong?” I quickly asked.
“Nothing. Nothing. Sorry,” she said. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”
I exhaled, not realizing I’d been holding my breath. “That’s okay. You didn’t,” I lied.
“Ben and I are car shopping,” she said.
“Oh. That’s right.” I’d forgotten all about that. It seemed like years ago when I’d brought Ben home from the morgue. It’d only been a week.
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