Beautiful Girls by Gary S. Griffin

clue.”
    â€œOh, I don’t know. You could be walking into a trap or he could be sending you on a wild goose chase.”
    â€œI know. I’m not sure what to think.”
    Lomita said, “Read me the clue again.”
    I did.
    He asked, “What’s a titian-haired maid mean?”
    â€œI think it means she’s a redhead.”
    â€œDo you know a redhead in Vegas?”
    â€œI don’t know anyone in Las Vegas.”
    Lomita said, “So what does he mean by the wet bar? Every bar is wet in Vegas.”
    â€œI’m not sure. Maybe it’s a play on words.”
    â€œWhat do you mean?”
    â€œMaybe there’s a bar with a name like wet or water or something like that.”
    â€œMaybe. I guess he does mean Vegas. Sodom could be Tahoe or Reno, too, or an Indian reservation.”
    I said, “True, but the other two towns are a long way from the desert and Tucson. I think Vegas works best with the Bible verses he selected. You know, that David went to the wilderness, which was the desert in the Holy Land.”
    â€œPerhaps. That stuff is weird.”
    â€œYeah, it is. It makes me think he doesn’t care about being caught or surviving. It’s like he wants to make a point, a final statement.”
    â€œMaybe. He’s playing a game, a potentially deadly game.”
    â€œSo, I’m heading there in the morning. I need to call Edie at 9 PM and check in. Have you heard anything from them?”
    â€œNo. But, I called Charlie and he’s keeping an eye on them. The ladies took a ride on the golf cart today and went to the library. They also went for a swim in Dot and Charlie’s pool.”
    â€œGood. I’ll give Edie the full update and ask her to do a search of Vegas hotels and casinos for anything that could be the ‘wet bar’.”
    â€œOK, let’s do this. You go on your chase and see if you can find his trail. I’ll call Las Vegas P.D. tomorrow and give them a heads up. When do you think you’ll get there?”
    â€œWell, not until tomorrow afternoon. It will probably take, what, six or seven hours to get to Vegas?”
    â€œIt’ll be longer that that. You won’t get there until after dark. I’ll tell them you might check in with them on Saturday morning if you find anything. I’ll give you a contact when we talk next. I guess that could be Saturday morning, too.”
    â€œOK. I’ll call then and tell you what I’ve found, if anything.”
    Lomita asked, “So, you’re headed to the mountain cabin now?”
    â€œYes, I need to check it out.”
    â€œTucson police did that, but you might notice something they didn’t.”
    â€œCould be, plus I plan to sleep there, too.”
    â€œDo you want a patrol car to meet you?”
    â€œNo, I don’t think Nealy’s there.”
    â€œAlright, Garrett, call me Saturday.”
    I ate my now room-temperature salad and melted-ice tea. I ordered a slice of carrot cake and coffee. It was 7:40. I probably wouldn’t be on the road until 8 PM, which meant I wouldn’t get to the cabin until a few minutes after nine; too late for my worrying fiancée.
    â€œHello, baby, how are you?”
    â€œOh, Stevie, it’s so good to hear your voice. Is something wrong? It’s not nine o’clock yet.”
    â€œNo, baby, nothing’s wrong.”
    I explained why I was calling early.
    She said, “I’m glad you called now. I would be worried. I got an email from Sister Carrie saying that she wanted to show you something.”
    â€œI know. She told me. I have a letter from your father.”
    â€œA letter?”
    â€œYes, a weird letter.”
    I read the contents of both the note and the Bible passage again.
    â€œOh, that is weird. Who is Nabal? I never heard of him.”
    â€œHe is an obscure person in the Bible, but the story shows David in a good light, and a special woman, too, named