Kasey smiled, gently pulled her hand away.
Jay moved around the desk and joined Dianne. He closed the doors. “Kasey, it was Dianne’s idea to ask for your help.”
“Oh?”
“Guilty as charged,” Dianne said. “Jay and I discussed it, and you were the logical person,” she continued. “He prefers to run everything himself, doesn’t trust many people, but he’s been so busy lately with the plans for the expansion that he really doesn’t have the time to take on any additional tasks.” She linked his arm with hers. “I don’t see him enough as it is. You’ll be doing both of us a favor. Say you’ll do it, Kasey. Please?”
“Well, I do have several other commitments—Don’t blow this. Remember, the ol’ homestead is at stake.
“Dianne discussed the fee with you?” Jay asked.
“Yes. It’s a very generous offer. Much more than I’m used to getting.” Why don’t I just cut my own throat? she asked herself. “An offer I can’t refuse.”
“Good. You choose the hours,” Jay said. “Brad is flexible. Right, Brad?”
“I’m all yours. Whenever.”
Kasey turned to Brad. “Your uncle says you’re a quick study, so it shouldn’t take us too long. A couple of weeks, maybe. We’ll start with the day shift in the hotel. When you’re ready for the casino operation, we’ll switch to swing. That’s the busiest shift. You’ll see and learn more then.”
“I have a feeling I’m going to learn plenty,” Brad said, grinning.
Jay gave his nephew a long, cool look. A look that wiped the foolish smile from the young man’s face. Before anyone could fill the uncomfortable void, the phone rang.
Jay answered. He listened for several moments. His expression went from passive to grave. “Go ahead. Call the police. I’ll be there in ten minutes.” He hung up, quickly crossed to the chair, grabbed his jacket, and put it on.
“Oh, Jay,” Dianne said, “you’re not going to the club today of all days. What in God’s name could be that important?”
“That was Epson, the hotel manager. Housekeeping found a body in one of the rooms. They called me before the police. I should be there.”
“Natural causes, Jay?” Kasey asked.
“Sounds like it. Elderly woman found dead in bed, no sign of a struggle. It happens. And a little too frequently, if you ask me.”
Kasey had to agree. She’d seen her share. Mostly the elderly or the infirm, those with high blood pressure, diabetes, or heart problems. These people came from a lower elevation, sea level cities, to the high altitude of Reno and Tahoe. Aside from the climate change and thinner air, their daily routines were radically thrown out of kilter—long, late hours, crowded casinos, too much alcohol and too little food—adverse conditions which could unbalance even the hardiest of troopers.
“Let Epson handle it. That’s what he gets paid for.”
“Dianne, if it’s not handled right, the reputation of the hotel could suffer.”
Kasey saw a look pass between husband and wife. It was obvious this was an ongoing argument.
“Should I go with you?” Brad asked his uncle.
“No. Stay. Enjoy your sister’s big day.” Jay reached for his wife, but before he could touch her, she turned away. The hand dropped.
“We’ll talk Monday morning, Kasey. Nine, my office,” he said. Then he was gone.
“Brad, dear, would you excuse us, please. I’d like a word with Kasey in private.”
After Brad had gone, Dianne strode to a bar built into the bookshelves. “Drink?”
Kasey declined.
“Do you have a cigarette?” Dianne asked.
“Sorry, don’t smoke.”
“That’s right, you quit. Oh, it’s just as well. Jay hates when I stink up his study.” She fixed herself a scotch on the rocks, then sat on the arm of the wing chair. “Jay’s quite dedicated to the club.”
“I noticed.”
“He’d live there if I’d let him.”
Kasey watched Dianne’s frosted pink lips narrow to a hard line. Dianne’s dream had come true when she married Jay—the wife of a club owner, the big house and expensive cars. But at what price?
“What’s going on?” Kasey asked.
Dianne turned to look at Kasey. She raised a questioning eyebrow.
“Jay is hiring me to do a job any surveillance man can do. I can always use the work, but we both know the club has qualified personnel on staff for that sort of thing. So what’s going on?”
“You’re right, of course. You’re very perceptive, and that’s exactly why I suggested you to Jay. At this point, he’s only doing it to humor me.” Dianne stood. “Just what did he tell you?”
“Only that he wanted me to train Brad.”
“Nothing about threats or harassment?”
Kasey shook her head.
“Isn’t that just like a man.” She sipped her drink. “The past couple of weeks there’ve been some strange things going on at the club. Jay is concerned, but he won’t admit it. ‘Adverse publicity could hurt business,’ blah blah. Of course, with one of the biggest weeks of the year coming up, followed by the balloon and air races, he has good reason to be concerned.”
“What’s happened so far?”
Dianne went back to the bar, slid the mirrored panel to the side to reveal a wall safe, and opened it. She handed Kasey a business-size envelope with the King’s Club logo, stationery supplied by the hotel and found in every room. Inside was a yellowed photograph cut from a newspaper. Las Vegas, MGM Grand Hotel. Clouds of black, billowing smoke poured out of the windows of the super structure. Caption: MGM Grand Burns: Death toll mounts.
“Just the photo, no note or message?”
“No, but it’s certainly self-explanatory.”
“Are there others?”
“Yes and no. Others came before this one. However, Jay didn’t take them seriously and tossed them. This is the first one he saved. They were all news clippings and all had something to do with crime or violence. He took notice of this one because of the hotel. I suppose because it indirectly involved the love of his life.”
“Do the police know about any of this?”
“God, are you kidding? As I said. Jay is scared to death the media will get hold of this and turn it into a three-ring circus. Violence, especially threats of a hotel disaster, tend to be bad for business.”
“Threatening phone calls?”
“I don’t think so. At least Jay hasn’t said anything about it.”
“You want me to look around, see if I can find out anything?”
“If you would.”
“I’m not a private investigator, Dianne.”
“I know that. But you see things that others don’t. You have this built-in radar, this . .. this innate ability to uncover things. It may be nothing,” she added. “A sore loser. Someone Jay blackballed. I may bitch about Jay’s time spent at the club, but I wouldn’t want anything to happen to it. He’d be lost without that damn place. It’s like a mistress, taking all his time and energy.” She laughed sarcastically. “At times I wish it was a mistress. Another woman can be challenged. How does one challenge a dream?”
Both were silent for several long moments. Kasey sighed. “Okay. I’ll do what I can.”
“Thanks, you’re a true friend.” Dianne finished her drink, rose. “Well, I’d better get back to the guests. Even today, that flashy, concrete bitch has managed to lure my husband away.”
They returned outdoors to the reception. A five-piece band set up in the gazebo played rock music, and dancers filled the three-tiered deck.
At the edge of the pool. Brad King came up behind Kasey and pulled her into his arms. “You promised me a dance, remember?”
“I was about to leave.”
“Not until we have that dance.”
She gave in. “One, then I have to go.”
“Do you always play this hard-to-get?”
“I’m not playing anything, Brad.”
He press
ed his hand to her lower back. “C’mon, lighten up. It’s a party. You’re tighter than a clock mainspring. I get this feeling you’re going to just snap and go shooting off across the lawn.”
The image made her laugh softly. She forced herself to relax.
“Yeah, there, that’s much better. The armor is falling away, I can feel it.”
His fingers probed, massaged her lower back. It felt nice and she let him.
He pulled her close. “Ummm, you smell good. You know, Kasey, you’re just the kind of woman I’ve been looking for. Bright, attractive, mature. I’ve always had a thing for older women.”
“Really.” That morning her mother had read her horoscope from the newspaper. It said: “Keep an open mind for today true love is near.” As her young partner nuzzled her ear, she thought, Yeah. Right.
When his hand slid down to cup her buttock, she covered his hand with hers, pulled back, looked him in the eyes, and— with a sweet smile—said, “That was your token feel, Mr. King, from now on, especially on the job, don’t waste my time with this crap.” At which point she bent his pinkie finger back until his knees buckled. He groaned, then quickly released her.
She walked away. Before she rounded the corner of the house, she glanced back to see him standing on the deck, flexing his fingers and staring after her with that damn smile still in place. Great, she thought, he’s into pain.
Chapter Four
Jay King drove south on 1-80. He thought of his meeting with Kasey Atwood only minutes earlier and for some reason it gave him a good feeling. He had always liked Kasey. Of all of Dianne’s friends, Kasey had been the most down-to-earth, the most sincere. She was intelligent and very attractive, yet didn’t seem completely absorbed with herself like many of his wife’s current acquaintances. Until she had walked through the door of his den, he had forgotten just how disarming she could be.
Disarming? Odd choice of a word, he told himself. He had no time to dwell on it, however, for as he approached downtown Sparks, the sight of King’s Club straight ahead swept all else from his mind. The twelve-story structure never failed to fill him with pride and a sense of accomplishment.
Not a large establishment by Reno or Vegas standards, but one of the larger in Sparks. In two years, if everything went according to plan. King’s Club would be the biggest, finest hotel casino in the area. At present it had 750 rooms, four restaurants, an indoor pool, three cocktail lounges plus cabaret, convention, and banquet facilities. Much of its current technology was antiquated—the phone, computer, and surveillance systems in general—but with the completion of the approved expansion and renovation, it would rank up there with best.
In 1958 Jay’s father, Ralph King, opened the doors of a bar and grill on B Street—renamed Victorian Avenue in the early nineties. He began with limited gaming, a few payoff pinball machines, one-armed bandits, and a basement bingo parlor. Within ten years he was owner/operator of a full-facility gaming and hotel establishment to equal any in the Rail City of sixty thousand.
Jay exited the freeway, drove two blocks to the entrance to the club, parked his silver Lexus in his private parking space on the second floor of the garage, and entered the hotel through a private entrance. Minutes later, he was in the elevator on his way to the eighth floor and what he hoped to God was a routine death.
*
A uniformed officer stood outside the open door of 814. Jay King identified himself and warily stepped into the room. The coroner was bent over a body in the bed. Two attendants stood by with a gurney. Jay’s stomach knotted when he spotted his friend, Detective Frank Loweman, talking with the hotel manager, Mark Epson. The detective’s presence meant bad news.
Loweman nodded at Jay, moved away from Epson, and approached him. Loweman wore the darker of his two gray suits. He wore only gray. Someone had once told him gray brought out the blue-gray of his eyes. But the main reason, he said, was that it cut down on accessories. He needed only one pair of shoes—black—white shirts, and three neckties—a couple of blue ones for everyday and a red one for festive occasions. Today he wore the blue striped tie.
“Nice of you to dress for the occasion, Jay,” Loweman said of the tuxedo, “though somehow I think the gesture will be lost on our guest of honor.”
“Tell me it was natural causes. Tell me her last wish was to come to Sparks to die in bed in my hotel.”
“Her last wish was to die in bed at the King’s Club.”
“Thanks,” Jay said.
A passing couple slowed, craned their necks to see into the room. The uniformed cop waved them on. “Please move along, folks. Official business. Nothing that concerns you.”
Loweman buried his right hand into his pants pocket and jingled the change there. “The lady was seventy-something and had a heart condition. Died clutching her nitro. No one on either side heard anything, and nothing looks disturbed. She’s been dead awhile. Rigor mortis is complete and showing signs of resolving. Dr. Wing puts the estimated time of death around midnight or a little before.”
Although sorry the woman was dead, Jay felt tremendous relief. If Loweman were correct, her death was unavoidable, no blame could be placed on the hotel or its management. An elderly woman with a weak heart had died while on a weekend jaunt, doing what she liked to do.
“How long have you been here?” Jay asked.
“Since it came through on the radio. I was in the neighborhood. If there’s something going on at my good buddy’s place, I’m gonna look into it.”
“She have family?” Jay asked.
“Two daughters down in Southern California. The deceased…” He consulted his notes, “one Louise Steiner, came up on a bus, one of those golden tour packages. She left her friends around ten last night to turn in. The group had a sightseeing tour to Virginia City and Lake Tahoe planned, but she bowed out, saying she wanted to sleep late. According to the floor maid, the ‘Do not Disturb’ sign was on the door when she made up the other rooms this afternoon.”
“Who found her?” Jay asked.
“Mrs. Curtis, over there.” He nodded toward the door where an elderly woman stood in the corridor wringing her hands. “After the tour she returned to the hotel. Got concerned when she couldn’t get her friend to respond to calls and knocks, so she contacted the hotel manager. Together they went in. Manager said the rooms have memory locks. He’s gonna check it out.”
Jay and Loweman moved aside to allow the gurney through.
Dr. Wing, jacket open, sauntered toward them, pulling off surgical gloves. He nodded at Jay, turned to Loweman. “Happened pretty fast, I’d say. Doesn’t look like she had time to take a pill or make a call.” He stared at the sheet-shrouded form going by. “However, there’s a slight redness on her neck. It’s probably nothing, but I think it should be looked into.”
“You want us to treat this as a crime scene?” Loweman asked.
The doctor hesitated, glanced around. “Lock it up for now. We can always come back in. Like I said, it’s probably nothing.”
“I’ll alert the front desk, have them pin the room,” Jay said. “Nobody will disturb a thing.”
“Okay. That’ll do.” Loweman turned to the woman standing in the doorway. She had stopped wringing her hands and was now twisting a ring on her thin, bony finger. She looked lost, confused as to what she was to do now that the body was being taken away. “Mrs. Curtis?”
She turned quickly, eyebrows rising as she looked from Jay to Loweman.
“Mrs. Curtis, I’m Detective Loweman, Sparks Police. I understand the deceased was a good friend of yours.”
“Yes, yes of course. LuLu and me, we go way back. Oh dear…” Tears sprang to her eyes. Realization was overtaking the shock. “Oh, dear, poor Lu. I think it might be my fault.”
“Why is that?”
“She wanted to share a room. We always share a room. Besides saving money, we can look after each other—y’know, call for help if one of us takes ill. But this time my sister Evie came along, and she wanted me to s
hare with her. What could I say? Blood’s thicker than water. Right? And Evie has high blood pressure and—”
“I’m sure nothing could have been done to save her.” He patted her shoulder. “Mrs. Curtis, do you think you’d be able to tell if any of her belongings were missing?”
“Her belongings?”
“Money? Jewelry?”
“Well, maybe. She kept everything over there in that suitcase she called a purse.”
With a hand on her shoulder, Loweman guided her to the dresser where the imitation alligator bag was being dusted for prints by a crime scene investigator. He gestured for Jay to follow.
When the man was done, Loweman asked him to show the contents to Mrs. Curtis. With gloved fingers the investigator carefully revealed the contents of each compartment.
“Any drugs missing?” Loweman asked her when that compartment was reached.
“Oh, good heavens, I wouldn’t have an inkling. LuLu took pills for everything. She has—had one of those pill-pushing doctors. Y’know, she’d just give him a ring, tell him what ailed her, and, presto, another new pill.”
Jay and Loweman exchanged looks. Loweman jotted something on his notepad.
In the zipper section, they saw credit cards, traveler’s checks, cash, and finally the corduroy pouch. The investigator opened the pouch. Loweman listed each item of jewelry.
“I s’pose it’s all there,” she said. “If someone were going to rob her, wouldn’t he take everything that’s worth anything?”
At those words Jay felt a tightening in his chest. He wanted to say something yet thought better of it.
“Yes. Usually,” Loweman said. “Thank you, Mrs. Curtis. I have your number if I need anything more.”
“I intend to call her daughters and give them the news,” she said somewhat defiantly. “I think it should come from me and not the police.”
“That’s fine, Mrs. Curtis.”
Jay saw Epson standing in the hall. He joined him. “Pin the room until the police give you the okay. So far it looks routine, but just in case.” He started to walk away, turned back. “Oh, Mark, comp Mrs. Curtis and any guests of hers to dinner tonight, any restaurant. Flowers with condolences would be nice, too.”
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