All In (The Naturals, #3)(18)

“And there is a very good chance,” Michael added, “that I will be forced to accompany those musical numbers with a stunning display of interpretive dance.”

Judd must have decided that it was in the best interest of team harmony to avoid that performance at all cost. “One hour,” he told Michael and Lia. “Don’t leave the building. Don’t separate. Don’t approach anyone related to this case.”

“I’ll go with them,” I volunteered.

Judd eyed me for a moment. Then he gave a brisk nod. “Make sure they don’t burn the place down.”

It took exactly thirty seconds after we parted ways with the others for Michael to confirm my assumption that he hadn’t been overcome with a need to hit the shops. He came to a stop as we reached the edge of the casino floor. For several seconds, he stood there, his gaze moving methodically from one party of people to the next.

“What are you looking for?” I asked him.

“Curiosity. Irritation.” He zeroed in on a group of women coming toward us. “That mollified look people get when they’re offered free drinks in exchange for an inconvenience.” He hung a right. “This way.”

As Lia and I followed, Michael continued scanning faces. As we worked our way from the slots to the poker tables, I could sense an emotional shift in the air, even if I couldn’t pinpoint it the way Michael could.

“Incoming,” Michael murmured to Lia.

Seconds later, a bouncer was glaring down at us. “IDs, please,” the man said. “You have to be twenty-one or over to be in this area.”

“As luck would have it,” Lia told him, “it’s my twenty-first birthday.” She said those words with a coy smile and just the right level of underlying giddiness.

“And your friends?” the bouncer asked Lia.

Lia linked an arm through Michael’s. “We,” she said, “just met. And as for Miss Sweet-and-Innocent-Looking over there, I know for a fact that there are some pretty incriminating pictures of her twenty-first floating around on the interwebs, which is why my clothes will be staying on this evening.”

Did she just…My cheeks flushed scarlet as I processed the fact that, yes, Lia had really just implied that my fictional twenty-first birthday had taken a Girls Gone Wild turn.

The bouncer leaned to one side to get a better look at me. If anything, the mortified expression on my face seemed to sell Lia’s story.

“I’m going to hurt you,” I muttered in Lia’s general direction.

“You can’t hurt me,” she shot back brightly. “It’s my birthday.”

The bouncer grinned. “Happy birthday,” he told Lia.

Chalk one up for the professional liar.

“But I’m still going to need to see some ID.” The bouncer turned back to Michael. “Company policy.”

Michael shrugged. He reached into his back pocket and removed a wallet. He flashed an ID at the bouncer, who examined it carefully. It must have passed muster, because then he turned to Lia and me. “Ladies?”

Lia opened her purse and handed him not one, but two IDs. He glanced at them and raised an eyebrow at Lia.

“It’s not your birthday,” he said.

Lia executed a delicate shrug. “What’s the fun of only turning twenty-one once?”

With a snort, the bouncer handed the IDs back to her. “This area is closing,” he said. “For maintenance. If you’re looking for poker, you’ll want to hit the tables on the south side.”

When we were a good ten feet away, Michael turned to Lia. “Well?”

“Whatever this area’s closing for,” she replied, “it’s not maintenance.”

I tried to process the fact that Lia had fake IDs for both of us, then caught sight of something about a hundred yards away.

“There,” I told Michael. “By the sign that says restrooms.”

A half-dozen security personnel were directing patrons away.

“Come on,” Michael said, looping around to come at the blocked-off area from behind.

“Back at the restaurant, a man came to get the hotel owner,” I said, processing the situation as we walked. “I’d bet a thousand dollars that he’s in private security.”

There was a beat of silence during which I thought Michael might not reply. “Security was grim, but calm,” he said finally. “Shaw Senior, on the other hand, looked shaken, calculating, and like someone had just offered him a plate of rotting meat. In that order.”

We came out on the other side of the slot machines. From this angle, it was clear that they were redirecting foot traffic long before people could reach the area surrounding the bathroom.

January first, I thought suddenly. January second. January third.

“Three bodies at three different casinos in three days.” I didn’t realize I’d spoken the words out loud until I felt Michael and Lia staring at me. “Today’s day four.”

As if to mark my words, security parted to let Mr. Shaw past. He wasn’t alone. Even from a distance, I recognized the suit-clad pair with him.

Sterling and Briggs.





YOU

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You strip off your clothes and step into the shower, letting the scalding spray hit you in the chest. The water isn’t hot enough. It should hurt. It should burn.