by Kathy Ivan
She belonged to him.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Lucas kept the recorder in his hand with ear buds in, listening as Dante was greeted by several people inside the old hardware store. Great location, but if people thought it was an actual hardware store, then he was Godzilla.
Most of them sounded genuinely glad to see him. The sounds in the background were muffled, almost unintelligible, the occasional whirring ring of slot machines or video poker blaring through the headphones. He shook his head, wondering why people would toss money into the electronic one-armed bandits. Sit there and plunk in coins, one after the next, hit the button and watch the wheels spin, hoping for a miracle.
It was a losing proposition, because anybody who’d done a lick of research knew they rarely paid out anything over small amounts. Enough to make the player feel like they’d hit a jackpot. Maybe it was the lure of the bright flashing lights, or the blaring winner’s siren song of the sound effects. Maybe it was all the people who’d quickly gather around, rush up to congratulate the man or woman who’d won fifty or a hundred bucks, after putting at least that much or more into the machine before the big payoff. Far as he knew, those machines never paid out the big prizes. Like everything else, they were rigged because the house always walked away with the lion’s share of the profits.
So far, he hadn’t heard Dante mention Junior’s name. Guess he hadn’t spotted the other man yet. Junior ran this particular enterprise on the outskirts of Shiloh Springs County. Dante had been quick to explain Junior operated this gaming club and one other, on the other side of Santa Lucia, but he wasn’t the head honcho. He didn’t have a clue what the big boss’ name was, though he’d had a couple of run-ins with his next in command. From the sound of it, Dante had been on the wrong side of this guy’s enforcers a time or two.
“Dante, long time no see. Heard you got banned, couldn’t come back to the club.”
“Junior!” Lucas heard the rustle of clothing, figured the men were doing that macho-hug thing guys did. At least the mic continued functioning, because the background sounds came through.
“Yeah, I had to play it cool for a while. My sister blew a gasket when she found out. But, it’s all good, coz she paid up, covered my debt. If I don’t get into the hole again, everything’s aces.”
“Boss wasn’t happy when you didn’t pay. Told me to turn you away if you showed your sorry behind around here. Orders are orders, man. You understand.”
“Wait, Junior! I figured the big guy wouldn’t want me hanging around, but I know how to make things better.”
“How’re you gonna do that, bro? It’s gotta be something huge, because you’re banned.”
“Look, there’s this guy I know, he’s new in town. Name’s Luke. He’s here visiting his sister. Guy’s from back east, North Carolina I think, but that’s not important. Anyway, his sister is friends with Jill, so I’ve seen him around a lot. Get this, dude. I overheard him asking Ike at the diner about finding a game. Ike practically laughed him out of the place, but I mentioned that I could maybe hook him up—for the right price. Junior, the dude’s got a wad of cash big enough to choke a mule. Says he doesn’t trust credit cards, and is paying for his trip with cash.”
There was a long moment of silence, and the knot in Lucas’ stomach seemed to double in size with every heartbeat. Dante had played his part perfectly, sounding eager, but not overplaying his hand. Would Junior take the bait?
“I don’t know. Sounds kind of sketchy. I’ve got enough problems with cops sniffing around. Probably have to relocate soon, too.”
“Man, I know his sister. She’s cool and squeaky clean. And Luke’s into real estate or something like that. He ain’t no cop.”
“Well, bringing in some new blood would make the boss man happy, that’s for sure. How long’s your friend sticking around town?”
“Couple of weeks at least. He’s here celebrating his sister’s engagement. I think all the wedding foo-foo stuff is driving him over the edge, and he needs something to kill time until the official engagement party or something.”
Lucas shook his head. Dante was going off script, and making stuff up. Good thing this was being recorded, so he didn’t screw up all Dante’s hard work when Junior called. Sounded like Junior might be interested, which was a step in the right direction.
“You gonna vouch for him? Boss will hold you responsible if the dude welshes.”
“I’m telling ya, Luke’s got deep pockets and he’s itching to play. You want to check him out? I got his phone number.”
This was it. Either Junior took the dangled bait or Lucas would have to figure out another way, another angle, to get into the gaming club. He could probably find a dozen or more places like this in Dallas-Fort Worth, but his gut told him it was important to gear his story here in Shiloh Springs.
“Yeah, gimme this Luke’s number, and I’ll call him.”
“Cool.” Dante rattled off the number for Lucas’ burner phone.
Okay, Dante, you’ve done your job, now get out of there.
“If the big boss gives the okay, are you playing tonight?” Junior’s voice crackled through the mic, a bit of static obscuring the sound. Lucas kept sending mental pushes at Dante to get the heck outta Dodge.
“Can’t tonight. I wanted to tell you about Luke, and make sure I’m still welcome here. Tomorrow’s payday, so I’ll be here. Did I tell you I got a job?”
Lucas heard laughter at Dante’s words, and closed his eyes, hoping the kid wasn’t overplaying his hand. He wasn’t ready to have to ride to the rescue if things got ugly.
“Tell you what, Dante, you show up tomorrow and bring your friend. What’s his name again—Luke?”
“Yeah. I can do that.”
“Good, good. I have to get back to the paying customers.” There was a moment of silence, before Lucas heard the other man’s whisper. “Don’t screw this up, man. Boss won’t stop at beating you half to death next time, you hear me?”
Lucas could practically hear Dante swallow. “I hear ya. See you tomorrow, dude.”
After that, all Lucas heard were the sounds of the makeshift casino, the bells and whistles of the slots, and a raft of voices, garbled and muffled in the earbuds. It took a few interminably long minutes before Dante finally walked out the front door, and headed straight for him. He slowed perceptibly when he reached the bumper of his pickup, parked next to Lucas, and whispered, “I’m getting in my truck. Meet me in the parking lot at Juanita’s.”
Lucas watched the taillights of Dante’s truck until they disappeared from view, and then waited another three minutes before heading out of the parking lot, toward his meetup with Dante. He double checked, making sure nobody tailed Dante.
Less than twenty minutes later, he pulled into Juanita’s parking lot. Dante’s pickup sat at the back of the lot when Lucas arrived. He climbed from his truck, and walked over to lean beside Lucas’ open window.
“Looks like you’re in.”
“You did good, Dante. Even when you improvised, you thought fast on your feet. Story is plausible, especially since you didn’t give Junior a last name, so he can’t really check up on me.” Lucas watched the young man’s chest puff up at his words of praise, and wondered if he’d ever been that young.
“You want to go in, grab a beer?”
“I can’t tonight. I want to get some notes down while it’s still fresh in my head. Rain check?” Lucas was itching to get back home, and make plans for the next evening. The thrill of investigating, delving into the story, rode him hard.
“No problem.”
“Dante, are you sure you can handle this? I can head over there tomorrow on my own. You’ve laid the groundwork, and Junior knows I’m coming. If you want to step back—”
“I can do it. I won’t take more than fifty bucks with me, that way I can’t get in over my head.” Dante’s eyes met Lucas’ directly. “This is my personal demon, and I’m dealing with it every day. Jill’s counting on me to keep things t
ogether, and I’m not going to let her down.”
“I’ll front you the money; it’ll come out of my expenses. And I’ll explain everything to Jill. I’m serious, man, you feel the slightest bit of pressure, or think you’re being pulled back in, you’re out of there. Immediately.”
“Can I tell you something? You gotta swear not to tell anybody, not even Jilly.”
Something in the younger man’s voice had Lucas straightening in his seat. Whatever he was about to say might change everything.
“You’ve got my word.”
Dante kind of shuffled his feet, almost like a little kid, and Lucas was again reminded of how young he really was. Barely twenty-one, but sometimes he seemed a lot younger. Was he wrong for dragging Dante into this?
“I’ve been going to Gamblers Anonymous meetings.” He held up his hand when Lucas started to interrupt. “I had to, because I never want my sister to deal with the backlash of my problem ever again. She gave up everything she had to dig me out of the bottomless pit I’d crawled into, and I will never—never—put her through that again. I may be stupid, but I’m not a big enough idiot I don’t realize I’m not the only person who’s affected by my actions.”
“I’m glad you decided to get help. Even more reason to step back. You’re not going tomorrow, I’ll handle this.”
“Nope. One thing the meetings taught me about is honesty and taking responsibility for my own actions. I’ve learned there are no shortcuts. First thing I had to do was admit I have a problem. Trust me, there’s nothing easy about doing that, especially when you’ve got illusions of grandeur, thinking about all the things you’ll do once you’ve hit that big jackpot. It’s like an alluring whisper in the back of my mind, a promise of so many good things I could do if I played one more hand. Bought one more lottery ticket. With that kind of money, I could change my world.”
Lucas heard what Dante said, but more importantly what he wasn’t saying. He’d acknowledged he had a problem, which was a huge first step. He was being honest with himself about the hold gambling had on him, on his life. Opening his mouth, Dante cut him off again.
“Recovery isn’t a fast process. There’s no magic bullet. I realize I’m going to be dealing with this for the rest of my life. Have to be alert for any backsliding, because it could spell disaster for my recovery. But I can and will do this, because there’s too much at stake. My parents—Jill doesn’t have a clue how many times I’ve hit them up for money.” Dante grimaced and took a deep breath. “I’m ashamed. Ashamed of what I’ve become. I almost cost Jilly her dream. Now, she’s got a second chance, and I can’t let myself fall into the abyss again.”
“Which is why you’re out now. I swear, if you’d told me this before, I’d never have asked you to head back into that hellhole. Tomorrow night, I’ll go to the club alone. We’ll work it where you call Junior, let him know something came up and you can’t make it, but you’ve given me directions. That’ll get me in the door. I’ll do the rest.”
Dante scrubbed his hands across his face, before leaning further in Lucas’s window. “I feel like I’m letting you down, too. It’s like being caught with one foot on either side of a giant divide; one step either way and I’m going to fall.”
“You’re not letting me down. I’m still going to need a ton of information for this story. You’re the main focus. We’ll expose illegal gambling for what it is, the dirty little secret that’s a multi-billion dollar industry hurting those who can least afford it. All the while, cartels and mobsters and wannabe thugs are lining their pockets with the money hardworking people risk every day. You don’t have to actually go back underground to tell this story. Man, you are the story.”
Dante scrubbed a hand over his eyes, and Lucas had the sneaky suspicion he was holding back a bellyful of emotion. No way was he letting Dante risk his newfound recovery. The plan should still work, and if it didn’t, they’d come up with something else, because Dante was officially out.
“People need to know how easy it is to get sucked in. It doesn’t take much, because it’s so easy. I even won a few times. Nothing huge, but when you’ve got nothing to begin with, a couple grand makes you feel like a king.”
“I’m still going to hit you up for information. All the personal stuff, how you found out about the gaming, the different levels of people, leading all the way to the top. Everything you tell me will be confidential, I swear. Nobody will know who you are, or where you live. I’m not going to mention Shiloh Springs by name. There’ll be no way for anybody to identify you. I’m going in alone tomorrow. Your physical part in this is done. Over.”
Dante’s whole body seemed to wilt, and Lucas finally understood how stressful this had been on him. There weren’t many men who’d step forward and risk a lot to expose corruption. Especially when it meant admitting his addiction, his shame, to have it splashed across headlines nationally. Lucas was positive this story would be picked up. The expose would resonate with readers and hopefully with those who could make changes.
“What if Junior gives you a hard time?”
“Let me handle Junior. I know his type; I’ve dealt with them before. You leave him to me, and I’ll get him to lead me to the big boss.”
“Be careful, Lucas. These guys play dirty, in more ways than one. If you cross them, they won’t let you walk away unscathed.”
Lucas turned on the ignition, then reached through the window and grabbed Dante’s forearm in a firm but gentle grip. “Watch your back. And take care of Jill.”
Dante drew in a deep, ragged breath. “I will. Can you call me tomorrow, so I know everything goes okay? Otherwise, I’m gonna freak.”
“I’ll call.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a couple of twenties and handed them to Dante. “Go have that beer, it’s on me.”
Dante gave him a quick grin and grabbed the money. “That I can do. Talk to you mañana.”
Lucas watched long enough to see Dante enter Juanita’s place before he pulled out onto the road and headed toward home. Between the recording and what Dante had admitted to about Gamblers Anonymous, he had a lot to think about.
Tomorrow night was the first step. If he was smart, careful, and a little bit lucky, he’d get enough evidence not only for his story, but for Rafe and the district attorney to close the places down. While it was a mere drop in the bucket when it came to illegal activities, at least he’d feel good about getting it out of his home town.
But first, he had plans that had nothing to do with games of chance, and everything to do with a pretty baker name Jill.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Jill double checked the deadbolt on her door for the fifth or sixth time. She lost count, but her heart rate had finally slowed down enough she could catch her breath. Tossing her purse on the console table by the front door, she walked over and plopped down on the sofa, and did a few deep breathing exercises.
I’m being paranoid. Nobody was following me. It’s my imagination playing tricks, that’s all.
When her cell phone rang, she gave a little yelp, her hand against her heart, then laughed at her reaction. “Great, now I’m jumping at the phone.”
She walked over and dug her phone out of her purse, smiling when she spotted Lucas’ name on the screen.
“Hi.”
“I’m driving home, and thinking about you. I needed to hear your voice.”
Curling back up on the corner of the couch, she snuggled against the cushions. “I’m glad you called. Helps take my mind off other things.”
He must have heard something in her voice, or maybe her tone, because when he spoke it was all gruff and serious sounding. “What other things? Is anything wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong. At least, I don’t think anything’s wrong.”
“What’s that mean exactly?”
“It’s probably nothing. I got a little spooked walking home from the bakery. You know that feeling you get when it seems like somebody’s watching you? Only I didn’t see anybody.”
“You’re okay?”
“I’m fine. The deadbolt’s on the door. Although I swear I’m driving to the bakery tomorrow.”
“I’m coming over.”
Her eyes widened, and she blinked a couple of times before she managed to sputter out a reply. “Why? I mean, that’s very sweet, but unnecessary. It was dark and my imagination played tricks on me. Nobody followed me home. Why would they?”
Lucas sighed. “I forget sometimes how things are different here than where I live. In the city, you never walk anywhere at night. Nine-one-one is your friend, and you’d probably have it on speed dial.”
Jill chuckled. “If I called 911 here, Sally Anne would never let me live it down. I guess I was a little jumpy because Dusty stopped by the bakery and startled me. He saw the lights on and was double checking that everything seemed okay. I didn’t hear him at first, so I’m guessing my nerves were still a little rattled, and made me jump at shadows.”
“If you’re sure, because I can be there in less than five minutes.”
“That’s sweet, Lucas, but really, I’m fine. Are you coming by tomorrow after church?”
“Absolutely. Momma’s rounding up everything, and we’ll knock out the rest of the cleanup and painting in no time.”
Jill looked down and saw her free hand still trembled, and balled it into a fist. Everything she’d told Lucas was the truth; she probably was jumping at shadows, but the adrenaline high still rode her. What she needed was a hot bath and a good night’s sleep, and she’d forget all about boogeymen stalking her through the streets of Shiloh Springs.
“Good. Monday they’re going to be delivering the glass-fronted display cases, and Harper is working on the store’s sign. It’s going to be amazing. Wait until you see it.”