by Dobbs, L. A.
“Hey, wait a minute.” Owen came around the desk, but they were already at the door. “Where are you going?”
Alison opened the door and shoved Faye out into the hallway then turned back to Owen. “Let me be clear. Anywhere you’re not.”
The tough guy’s deep chuckle chased them both out into the hallway.
“Al, what’s going on?”
Faye tried to stop, but Alison tugged her forward toward the casino floor. “Not here.”
They walked out the front entrance and into the pandemonium that was the Fremont Street Experience. Once they’d taken a seat on a deserted bench, Alison turned to Faye. “Tell me exactly what happened.”
“I don’t know.” Faye’s pale complexion and shaking hands said otherwise. “They pulled me into the office and interrogated me about the whole cheating thing. I swear, Al, I don’t know anything about it.”
“I know.” She took her friend’s hand, hoping to calm her. “But why do they think you do?”
“Owen said my table gets an unusually high number of wins.”
Because of me.
Guilt mingled with the tension already eating a whole in Alison’s gut. “Did they threaten you at all?”
“No. Of course not.” Faye took a deep breath and stared at the ground. “Owen’s really nice, contrary to what you may think. So are Shelby and Chase. They just asked me a lot of questions and I guess I freaked out a little bit.”
“Freaked out how?”
“They asked me about the players at the tables, if I noticed anything odd or had seen anything going on. I told them some of the players did win more often than others…” She winced. “That’s when they said they had figures, video footage.”
“Figures.” She chuckled. “After talking to him last night, Owen Rockford wouldn’t know how to interpret figures if his life depended on it. He goes with is gut, so from that aspect, you’re fine.”
Faye didn’t look convinced. “I don’t know. I mean, there’s obviously someone cheating, right? Otherwise they wouldn’t keep pursuing this.”
For a brief second, Alison wished she could see those ledgers. If anyone could find the real culprit, it would be her. Chances of her getting her hands on Owen’s data, or anything else after her little showdown in his office, however, were now slim to none. “C’mon.” She stood and waited for Faye to do the same. “I need to check something.”
It had been a few days since she’d last gotten a drop off, so another was due. She led Faye to the back of the casino building, through the parking lot and out to the bus hut. A quick search under the bench seat revealed another envelope taped in place, just like before. Alison tore it from its spot and opened it quickly, scanning the letter inside for clues.
“What’s that?” Faye asked, holding a hand over her eyes. “I really need to get back inside. I’ve still got six hours left on my shift.”
“Nothing.” Alison tucked the letter inside her duffle then sighed, glad not to have found the code words that meant her cover had been blown. “It just means I have time to help you find this cheater.”
“Oh.” Faye followed Alison back toward the Lucky Ace. “What are you, some kind of a spy?”
Alison snorted. “Yeah, I’m a real super sleuth. Can’t you tell? Too bad I’m not smooth or covert.”
“Nope. Definitely not.” Faye laughed and linked arms with her. “Did I mention I’m happy you’re staying? For a little bit longer, at least.”
“Thanks.” They walked back into the cool interior of the casino again, the happy jingle of the slots at odds with Alison’s solemn task ahead. “I need to convince your boss Owen to let me see those numbers he keeps talking about so I can find out who’s the real cheater.”
“Good luck with that.” Faye pulled Alison over toward her assigned table. “What should I do?”
“Talk to the other dealers. See if they’ve noticed anything suspicious You guys see and hear everything, right?”
“Will do.” Faye gave her a mock salute. “See you later?”
“Yep.” Alison headed off to find a quiet place to concoct a new plan of attack. She needed to figure out a way to get a look at those numbers so she could clear Faye. She wouldn’t be able to leave town until she knew the Rockfords no longer suspected that Faye had something to do with this cheater and it looked like the only way to do that was to find the person herself.
8
Back in his office, Owen continued to stare at the closed door. The girl had guts, he had to admit. No one waltzed into his office like that. No one.
“You really think she’s the cheater?” Shelby asked, jarring him from his thoughts.
“Makes sense.” He sat forward and folded his hands atop the desk. “She’s friends with Faye and her number of wins at Faye’s table are unusually high.”
“I don’t know.” Shelby frowned. “Maybe she’s just lucky. And Faye’s been with us forever. I can’t believe she’d do something like this.”
“There’s too much evidence to be pure coincidence.”
“Still, it was brave of her to crash in here to rescue her friend. And Peaches went right over to Alison too. That says something about her integrity.” Shelby scratched the dog behind the ears. “Doesn’t it, girl?”
Chase placed a hand on Shelby’s shoulder. “People get scared when they get caught and they do things they normally wouldn't, baby.”
“No. She wasn’t scared. Not about this, anyway.” Shelby chuckled as Peaches rolled over at her feet, exposing her belly for a rub. “I’d say Ms. James is more of a cat person though. Perhaps a rag doll or a Siamese…”
Owen shook his head. “Lord save us from pet matchmakers.”
Shelby looked up at him and grinned. “Never.”
Peaches bounded to her feet and loped over to Owen next, all goofy dog grin and wagging tail. Unfortunately, he couldn’t seem to resist her sweet canine charms and soon found himself petting her head while she rested her chin on his knee and gazed up and him with adoring eyes. He gave Shelby a critical look. “You’re a nuisance, you know that?”
The dog whined and they all laughed.
“And so are you.” His looked down at Peaches. After indulging in a few more doggy pats, he tried to steer the conversation back on track. “Look, this whole thing is too coincidental not to be true. Alison always plays at Faye’s table. Why would she do that if not for the advantage?”
“They’re friends,” Shelby said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.
“Yeah.” Owen ordered Peaches back to her towel and toy in the corner then leaned back in his chair and clasped his hands atop his flat stomach. “And maybe she’s taking advantage of that friendship.”
“Jeez. What is it with you always thinking the worst of people?” Shelby’s voice took on an uncharacteristic edge. “Seriously though, Owen. What real, concrete proof do you have that she’s our cheater, other than your hunch? I learned to be a pretty good read of people from my dad, and nothing about her strikes me as thief material.”
“Thief material? Do enlighten me.” Owen crossed his arms, more to block out his own doubts about Alison being the cheater than anything else. “What exactly does that look like?”
Shelby mimicked his movements, clearly without an answer. “Smartass.”
“Blake’s the one who pointed all this stuff out and his opinion is good enough for me.”
“Right,” Chase chimed him, crossing his arms too. “Because Blake never has ulterior motives for bringing people together.”
Owen scowled. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”
“Think about it, man. Jan and Dino, Laura and Mike, me and Shelby.” Chase placed his hand on her shoulder again and she took it, lacing their fingers together.
“Oh, God. Please tell me you’re not implying my cousin did all of this to hook Alison and me up.” He ignored the twinge of longing seeing Chase and Shelby so happy together created. He wasn’t looking for another relationship. Not now. Maybe
not ever. He’d been played one too many times. “Besides, Blake doesn’t even know Alison. You’re insane.”
Chase gave a one-shoulder shrug. “Whatever you say, man.”
“What I say is I’m not dating Alison or anyone else. Especially not while she’s a suspect. End of story.”
As if on cue, Peaches trotted over again and batted him on the leg with her paw.
“God, is everyone conspiring against me getting some actual work done today?” Owen reached down and scratched her behind the ears despite his harsh tone. “Can’t you take her for me, Shelby?”
“Nope. I told you I fostered her out to Liv.”
“How about finding her a better parent then, since my cousin doesn’t seem all that interested in picking her up?”
Shelby leaned forward and grinned. “Are you volunteering?”
“Yeah, I am, actually.” He grabbed the dog’s leash off the corner of his desk and stood. “Volunteering to take her straight over to Liv’s office. We’ll see how she likes having her workday interrupted.” Owen clipped the leash onto Peaches collar. “C’mon, girl. Let’s take a walk to your mommy’s office.”
“Fine.” Shelby sighed and sat back in her chair while Owen and Peaches walked toward the door. “But I’m sure if you change your mind, Liv would sign her over to you anytime. Peaches really likes you.”
“Right. And I’m sure the fact you keep foisting her off on me has nothing to do with it.” He opened the door and followed the dog out of the office. “Be back in a few.”
Twenty minutes and numerous potty pit-stops later, Owen walked into the Rockford Security offices with Peaches by his side. The guards looked at the pair askance but didn’t say a word. After all, they had to be too used to seeing Blake run around with a pet iguana on his shoulder to care.
He rode the elevator up to the executive suites with an antsy Peaches near his feet then made a beeline for Liv’s office, barging in without knocking. “You lost your dog.”
Olivia glanced up at him from over the top of a stack of paperwork and files, seemingly not at all surprised by his arrival. “I’ve got an idea. Why don’t you shut the door and let her go? You call her. I call her. We’ll see who she obeys.”
Jaw tight, Owen clutched the leash tighter. “I don’t have time for a pet right now. Not with my crazy work schedule.”
“Shelby said you can bring her with you to the casino.”
“And that sounds like a good idea to you?”
“No.” Liv sat back, her smile sly. “It sounds like a fabulous idea to me. You need a woman in your life.”
Dammit. Owen forced his tense shoulders to relax. “What I need are for people to mind their own damned business.”
“Why?” Liv perked up. “Got a hot date I don’t know about?”
“No.” He shoved the images of Alison from his mind. “Don’t be silly.”
“Whatever. Nothing silly about love.” Liv concentrated on her paperwork again. “Either take the dog or stop removing my decorations.”
“How about you stop making my apartment into a frigging scrapbook? How about that?”
“How about you start acting like a part of this family again, Owen?” She tossed her pen down and glared at him. “We’ve stood by you through everything. All that mess with your discharge and then getting you the job at the Lucky Ace. Or have you forgotten all that already?”
They stared each other down from across the room, Peaches dancing nervous figure eights around his ankles from the palpable tension in the air.
“Hey, what’s going on in here?” Blake poked his head through the open doorway, his voice hushed and his expression concerned. “Anything I can help with?”
“No.” Owen knelt to tie Peaches leash around the leg of one of Liv’s office chairs then straightened, stopping near Blake on his way out of the office. “Forget it. I was just leaving. Before somebody else tries to set me up on a date I don’t want.”
Blake looked from Owen to his sister, his tone droll. “Maybe you should take a look at your own life, sis, before you try your hand at matchmaking. You know, since you seem to have a lot of extra time to meddle in everyone else’s.” He stepped aside to avoid the crumpled up paper she hurled at his head. “Hey, you accuse me of doing the same thing all the time. I’m just sayin’.”
Owen got the hell out of there before their sibling nosiness turned in his direction once more, but Liv called out to him on his way to the exit, halting his steps. “We love you, you know. So does Peaches. We only want what’s best for you, Owen.”
He turned back one last time after punching the elevator button. “I can take care of myself, thanks.”
* * *
An hour later, Owen walked back into his office at the Lucky Ace. He’d stopped for lunch and even walked around the block a few times, all to clear his head and get back into the groove of a full work day.
Too bad none of it seemed to help.
He felt wrung out and fed up. So far, he’d looked into the background of any person on the casino’s surveillance videos who even sneezed the wrong way and hadn’t found diddly for proof of another cheater. Never mind Alison seemed a less likely candidate by the second. In all honestly, the only thing about her that still bothered him was that damned envelope he’d seen her take that night at the bus stop.
What the hell was in that thing? Money? Drugs? Worse?
Exhausted and frustrated, he stalked back toward his office only to be stopped by the guard on duty.
“Uh, sorry sir, but there’s someone waiting for you,” the guard said.
Owen gave him a dark stare. “There weren’t any appointments on my calendar.”
“Not a scheduled appointment, sir.” The guard cocked his head toward Owen’s door. “It’s a suspect. Caught her lurking in near the security office. Should we call the police?”
He asked the question, though he feared he already knew the answer. “Did you get a name?”
“Her license said Alison James, sir.”
Perfect. Stupendous.
Just what I need this afternoon. Another run-in with a prickly, pig-headed female.
He sighed loud and hard. “No police yet, Jeff. Thanks. I’ll handle it.”
“Yes, sir.”
Owen opened the door to his office only to find Alison held between two guards, one on each arm. She looked pissed enough to do them serious bodily harm. He took in her flushed cheeks and glittering green eyes before shifting his attention to the guards. “That isn’t necessary.”
“But sir, we caught her snooping in the security office. We didn’t want to risk her getting into your private things too.”
“Let her go.” Unfortunately, Alison James had gotten way more into his private things than he ever wanted or expected. She intrigued the hell out of him and infuriated him, all at the same time. Resigned to an afternoon of battle, he nodded. “It’s fine. Thanks, guys. You can go. Ms. James and I have some things to discuss.”
The guards left and Owen locked the door behind them, leaving him and Alison alone at last. He crossed his arms and leaned back against the wall. “So, you’re a thief now as well as a cheater, huh?”
Alison’s glare was cold enough to freeze mercury. “I wasn’t stealing anything. I was trying to help you figure out the identity of your cheater.”
“By sneaking into our private security office?”
“No. By watching the video footage.”
She gave him an annoyed look, like he was some naughty kid or something. The idea of her admonishing him when she was clearly at fault pissed him off. Just when he’d started to think she might be honest after all.
“Listen,” Alison continued. “I know a lot of players on the circuit—the ones who win and the ones who want to. But I can only see the action from my table. If I had access to the bird’s eye view, I might be able to see a pattern. Who wins at what table, what they do after they win, all that. Then I could use math to calculate the probability of who might be your cheater.�
�
Not the frigging math again.
Owen rubbed his eyes. “Remind me again why you want to help me?”
“Other than the fact you’re trying to frame my best friend?”
“No one’s trying to frame anyone. It’s my job to discover the truth.”
“Let me look at the surveillance footage.” She stepped closer, her auburn curls bouncing. “Better yet, let me see the account ledgers.”
“Sure. Right.” Owen scrunched his nose at her request. “And maybe I’ll let you into the vault too, help you pack up some more cash.”
“Funny. Look, you’ve already admitted you hate math and I love it. I bet if you let me see the ledgers, I can tell you exactly who’s swindling the casino.”
He pushed away from the door and stalked past her to his desk. “What assurance do I have you won’t point me in the wrong direction to keep yourself safe?”
She leaned her hands on one side of his desk and met his stare direct. “You’ll just have to trust me.”
“Trust you?” The words emerged harsher than he’d intended, but he was too tired to care. “Why should I trust you?”
“I’m not a cheater. I can show you that easily enough with a deck of cards, and if you let me see the footage and ledgers, I’ll prove that your cheater is someone else.”
Owen narrowed his gaze. For whatever reason, this woman pushed all of his buttons without effort. Showing her private casino records would be risky enough. Still, her stalwart insistence that she was innocent piqued his interest. Most people caught with their hand in the cookie jar took the easy way out—pay the fine, lose their playing privileges.
She stared him down with steely resolve and he couldn’t help but smile.
“Fine. I’ll let you prove it. But not here. If I get caught showing you private internal accounting records, I’ll be in even deeper shit with the owners. Meet me at my apartment at six tonight. I’ll bring what you need.” He jotted down the address and handed it to her. “Don’t be late.”