by Kathy Ivan
“Alright, you beautiful thing, who do you really belong to, and what am I going to do with you?”
Shrugging, she picked up her cell phone and dialed Lucas’ number. Maybe he’d know what she should do about her mysterious gift. When the call rolled over to voicemail, she hung up without leaving a message, and decided to call someone who could tell her what to do, because she didn’t feel safe having something this expensive laying around her apartment, especially since it was obviously a mistake, and had been delivered to the wrong address.
“Evening, Jill.” Rafe’s deep voice came through her phone. “What can I do for you?”
“Hi, Rafe. I’m hoping you can give me some advice, answer a question I’ve got.”
“I’d be happy to. What’s your question?”
“There was a knock on my door a few minutes ago. When I answered it, there wasn’t anybody there, but I did find a package on the floor in front of my door.”
“Was there a card or note, anything to indicate who might have left it?”
She shook her head before it sank in Rafe couldn’t see her, since it wasn’t a video call. “Not that I found. I checked the hallway again, and the floor around my apartment, but there wasn’t anything.”
“Did you open it?”
“Um, yeah. Rafe, it’s a diamond bracelet. At least, they look like real diamonds. But who’d send me something like that? And leave it out in the hall, where anybody could stumble upon it? It doesn’t make any sense.”
“You’re right, it doesn’t make sense. Has anything like this happened before, somebody leaving things for you?”
“Not that I remember…wait, somebody did leave a red rose once. But that’s not the same thing.”
She heard Rafe sigh. “It sounds like you’ve got an admirer, one who’s stepping up his game. Have you noticed anybody hanging around? Any calls where somebody doesn’t speak on the other end of the line?”
“No calls. I haven’t seen anybody hanging around.” She bit her lower lip, wondering if she should tell Rafe about thinking somebody was following her home from the bakery. She probably should, because if she didn’t, somebody else would. “I did have a weird feeling the other night, when I was walking home from the bakery. It was the night everybody came and helped with cleaning the place. Anyway, I was walking home and thought somebody was following me. You know that feeling you get when it seems like somebody’s watching you? It was like that, only I didn’t see anybody.”
“Has that happened before?”
“Not that I recall. It was probably nothing, except—”
“Except what, Jill?”
“There’s also two of my tires were flat this morning. I drove home from church, and stopped at home to change my clothes and pick up some food I was taking to the bakery. Everybody was going to be there, and we’d be painting all day, so I volunteered to bring food and drinks. I came out to the car and two tires were flat.”
“Yeah, I know about that. Dad mentioned it while we were at the bakery this afternoon. Said you thought you might have run over something on the way home from church.”
“Dante said they didn’t find any reason for the tires to go flat. Figured it was a slow leak or something. He put four brand new tires on my old junker.”
“It makes me wonder, because it’s a few too many coincidences in a relatively short time frame. Have you met any new people recently? Anybody make your internal radar go off?”
“Not that I can think of off the top of my head. Anyway, what should I do with this bracelet? If these are real diamonds, and they do look legit although I’m no expert, I don’t have a safe place to keep them.”
“I’m gonna stop by and pick it up. Did it come wrapped or anything?”
“There was a jeweler’s box inside of a plain white box. There was a pink ribbon.”
She could hear Rafe moving around, and she knew he was on his way. “Do me a favor. Put everything into a plastic bag, one of those zipper kind if you have it. I’ll be there in a few minutes.”
“Thanks, Rafe. I hated to bother you, but I wasn’t sure how to handle something like this. I tried to call Lucas, but got his voicemail.”
“It’s no problem. This is my job. We’ll figure out who might be leaving you tokens of their affection, and let them know to knock it off. Unless you want them to keep sending you stuff?”
She shuddered at his words. “Thanks, but no thanks.”
Rafe chuckled at her response. “Got it. See you in a few.”
She disconnected the call and got up to do what he’d asked. Of course, that took all of a minute. Now she had to wait for Rafe to show up and take the diamonds off her hands. Each tick of her kitchen clock seemed to reverberate throughout the apartment, the incessant sound echoing in her ears.
When the doorbell rang, she nearly jumped out of her skin, then called herself all kinds of an idiot, because she knew it was Rafe. Still, she checked the camera before opening the door. He stood on her doorstep, dressed in jeans and a button-front shirt with pearl snaps, and his ever-present cowboy hat. Grinning, he reached for the baggie she didn’t even realize she held in a stranglehold in her right hand.
Rafe whistled when he looked at the bracelet. “Those are some rocks. If they’re real, they cost somebody a good chunk of change.” Without waiting, he walked into her apartment and sat on the couch.
“I don’t understand any of this. I can’t think of anybody who’d send something like that. It’s over the top, and while it’s beautiful, I’d never wear anything like that.”
“Sit down, Jill.”
Uh oh. From his serious expression, she knew whatever he was going to tell her wasn’t good news. Her insides tightened, waiting for him to tell her she was in trouble. Wracking her brain, she couldn’t figure out a single thing she’d done or said that might cause Rafe to be upset.
“Rafe, what’s going on?”
“I talked with Dad a few minutes ago on my way here. Seems like your brother didn’t exactly tell you everything he found when he fixed your tires. Somebody tampered with the valves on two of them, letting out all the air. You wouldn’t have been able to drive on them, and with the valves damaged, they’d have to be replaced. Not an expensive fix, but I find it suspicious that you’d have two of them occur spontaneously. Plus, Dad said there was evidence of scratches around the valves.”
“What are you saying, Rafe? You think somebody deliberately flattened my tires? Why?”
“That’s what we’re going to figure out.”
Jill felt physically ill at Rafe’s implication. It couldn’t be possible. Nobody wanted to hurt her. There had to be another explanation.
“I’m going to take this in to the sheriff’s office and lock it in the safe. I’ll see if we can get some prints off of the box or ribbon in the morning. Can you stop by sometime and give me your prints, so we can eliminate yours from any we might get off the box?”
“Of course. I’ll stop by tomorrow afternoon, if that’s okay. I’ve got deliveries to the bakery in the morning.”
Rafe stood and held his hand out to Jill, helping her up. He squeezed it gently, his eyes filled with compassion and a touch of concern. “Lock up tight after I leave. I’ll have the on-duty deputy do a ride by a couple of times to keep an eye on things. If you need me for anything, you’ve got my number. Use it.”
“I will, I promise. Do me a favor? Don’t tell Lucas about this. He’s got enough on his plate right now, with this story he’s working on and trying to find his sister.”
Rafe studied her intently, and she barely resisted the urge to squirm under his perusal. Too bad she wasn’t great at hiding her emotions, and with his job Rafe was an expert at reading people.
“I won’t go out of my way to say anything—yet—but I’m not gonna lie to him if he asks.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome, Jill. Get some sleep.” Rafe pulled her close and gave her a hug, then headed for the door. “Lock this behind me.”
“After what you told me, I’m liable to stick a chair under the knob.” She gave him a cheeky grin, and he returned her smile.
She turned the deadbolt, made sure it engaged, then sank onto the couch with a pillow clutched to her chest. After finding out about the suspected deliberate damage to her tires, and the possibility somebody might actually be watching her, she doubted she’d get much sleep.
Too bad Lucas wasn’t around. He always made her feel safe, being by her side. Right now, she could use a little of his calming influence, because she had the feeling her life was about to become a roller coaster ride, and the bottom of her world was about to fall out from beneath her.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
“Luke, glad you made it.”
Lucas barely made it through the front door before Junior raced to his side, a big grin on his face, acting like they’d been friends for years, instead of meeting for the first time. The guy exuded a certain charisma, which probably smoothed the path for bringing in a patsy, and suckering them into gambling way more than they could afford. Lucas stuck out his hand.
“You must be Junior. Dante mentioned you’re the man I should talk to, that you’d show me the ropes.”
Junior looked around before asking, “I thought Dante was coming with you. When I talked to him yesterday, he said he’d be escorting you to our establishment.”
“He planned to come, but apparently there was some kind of problem with his sister, so he probably isn’t going to make it. Might be able to get here, but it’d be late if at all. His sister’s a bit of a prude, if you know what I mean. She’s putting on the pressure to keep Dante away from here.”
Saying the words left a bad taste in Lucas’ mouth, but he was playing a part, and needed to convince Junior he was a man on a mission, and that was to find a high stakes game.
Junior laughed and clapped Lucas on the back. “Yeah, I’ve met his big sister. She’s a real piece of work. She’s one of those butter-wouldn’t-melt-in-her mouth type broads. Always riding his case about spending time with us. Doesn’t seem to understand Dante and I have been friends for a long time.”
“Exactly. Women don’t get it. We need to be able to blow off a little steam now and then. It’s harmless fun, am I right?”
“That you are, dude. You ready to play? Hope you’re feeling lucky.”
Lucas rubbed his hands together, and gave Junior a cocky grin. “Lady Luck is gonna be on my side tonight, I can feel it.”
“There’s one thing you have to do before I let you through, dude. Follow me to the office.” Without another word, Junior turned and started walking toward a door to the right of the entrance. He followed, wondering what the other man was up to, and whether he’d be tossed out before he ever got started.
Once inside the office, Junior leaned against the desk, his arms folded across his chest. Standing there, dressed in dark jeans and a T-shirt, his dirty blond hair a little scraggly around the edges, he appeared your typical All-American boy next door type from a small town. Nothing about him gave away the fact he was running a small empire of illegal activities. His posture appeared relaxed, like he had all the time in the world, and wasn’t afraid of anybody or anything.
“So we’re clear from the start, I gotta ask. You wearing a wire?”
“A what?”
Junior shrugged. “Unfortunately, can’t trust anybody. You might have a referral from a regular, but I don’t know you. Too many people want to shut us down, or want a part of the business, so we can’t be too careful.”
“I’m not wearing a wire.”
“Open your shirt. Not that I don’t trust ya—but I don’t trust anybody.” Junior said this with a huge grin, and crossed his arms over his chest. That’s when Lucas spotted the gun tucked into his waistband. He wasn’t surprised; he figured the bodyguards and hierarchy would all be carrying. After all tens of thousands of dollars, maybe more, passed through the gaming club almost every night, and these men weren’t about to be caught by surprise.
“Guess you run a pretty strict place,” he muttered while unbuttoning his shirt. He held the flaps open wide, and turned in a circle, showing Junior that he didn’t have anything taped to his chest or back. He wasn’t stupid. Hopefully, he’d be able to turn on the recorder on his phone, if they didn’t confiscate it, which was a possibility. Lots of folks tried to cheat the system with any number of devices. He’d forgotten to ask Dante about whether they’d let him keep his phone.
“Alright, you’re clean. There’re a few rules you have to follow if you want to play here. First one, no phones or electronics allowed. You can turn it in to Rocky, he’s the tall dude at the door. He’ll give you a ticket, and you want to pick it up on your way out. You’re not wearing glasses, otherwise we’d have to check them out for cheats. Now, please turn your head.”
Lucas knew why—Junior was looking for listening devices, small hearing-aid type earbuds whereby a second party could feed information to the player. He’d done his homework, hopefully knew all the tricks and tells Junior and his boys might be looking for, and prepared for anything they might look at.
“Excellent. You got any questions?”
“I’m mostly looking for a good poker game. I’m not so much into the slots or electronic stuff. I like a good old face-to-face with your opponent, high stakes game. Did Dante tell you I’m from out of town? Since my sister’s living here now, I’ll probably be coming here several times during the year, and I’d like to establish someplace for a good game. Something similar to what I have at home.”
Junior nodded while Lucas spewed out the details of his fabricated story. “Dante mentioned you were from somewhere back east. If you’re wanting in on one of the high stakes games, that can be arranged if you can afford the buy in.”
“How much?”
“Three grand minimum.”
Lucas made a scoffing sound at the amount Junior mentioned, as if it were a piddling amount. “Not a problem, buddy. I spend more than that on a pair of shoes.”
He could almost see the avarice in Junior’s eyes, thinking he’d caught himself a big fish with deep pockets.
“Excellent. Let me take you to the back, and introduce you to the players at your table.”
“Can I say, I’m impressed with what I’ve seen so far. You run an efficient place, your staff has done everything exactly how we do it back east. As a matter of fact, I’m one of the owners of two gaming clubs in North Carolina. Do you own this club yourself, or are you part of the management team?”
Junior’s eyes opened wide when Lucas mentioned owning two clubs. Guess he hadn’t figured Lucas for having that kind of clout, and the corner of Lucas’ mouth kicked up. If only Junior knew he was spinning a tall tale, lying through his teeth. But he needed to get a stable foothold into this club, if he wanted to get all their dirty little secrets for his article, and maybe bring them down in the process.
“I’m senior management with a profit share in the business. The boss trusts me to keep everything running smoothly. Everyone knows you don’t cross the line here. If you rack up a debt, you’re encouraged to pay it as soon as possible.” Junior almost preened as he outlined his importance. Pretty much what Lucas expected: he was a blowhard who liked to brag about how he was a big wheel instead of a minor cog in the machinery.
Lucas’ smile was brittle, because Dante had told him how they’d strong-armed Jill into covering his debt. They hadn’t hesitated to beat the stuffing out of Dante, stopping short of doing any permanent damage. That was the good thing about gambling debts, rarely were they fatal. You can’t get money from a dead man.
“We’ve got the same policy. Like I said, I’m very impressed with what I’ve see. Any chance the owner’s here tonight? I’d love to meet him.”
“He may come by later tonight, depending on his schedule. The boss is a busy man, with fingers in lots of different pies around the area.”
“Understood. If he happens to drop by, and I’m still here, I’d like t
o meet him. Professional courtesy, you might say.”
“Sure. You ready to play? I’m assuming you’ve got the cash with you?”
Lucas pulled out the envelope containing the ten grand, and showed the contents to Junior. His eyes followed Lucas’ every movement, reminding Lucas of a cobra, mesmerized by the shiny object before him. Ah, the lure of temptation affected everyone, and Junior was no exception.
“If you’ll follow me, let’s get you set up. Do you prefer five card draw or Texas Hold ’Em? We also have a hot blackjack table, if you prefer.”
“Texas Hold ’Em is my game,” Lucas answered. Fortunately, he’d played enough games with his brothers and the guys on assignments he was pretty savvy.
Junior opened the door and led him to the guard by the front door, and had his cell phone confiscated. He was then directed through the center of the gaming club, past all the electronic machines with their bright flashing lights, vivid colors, and the jingle of coins. The whir of the electronic spins filled the air, along with the sounds of laughter from the patrons partaking of their games of chance. Too bad the house always won, and those machines were finessed to rarely pay out the big bucks.
Junior opened a door and the first thing that hit him was the overwhelming stench of cigarette smoke. He waved a hand in front of his face, his eyes watering from the fumes. It hadn’t occurred to him, being used to smokeless buildings, that nearly everybody inside the confined space would be puffing away.
“Gentlemen, we’ve got a new player, Luke. He’s not from around here, so take it easy on him,” Junior quipped. He turned to Luke, and pointed to the table. “This is the Texas Hold ’Em table. This here is Joey, Dennis, Two-Step, Weasel, and Pauly. Guys, try not to clean Luke out in one hand, okay?”
Two-Step gave a huge belly laugh at Junior’s warning. “Ain’t making no promises.” He studied Luke, his eyes squinted against the cigarette smoke. “You know how the game’s played?”