Beautiful Girls

by Gary S. Griffin

  “My pleasure, Melody.”

  “Please call me Mel, all my friends do.”

  “OK, Mel.”

  “Stevie, I’ll be right back.”

  She turned and strutted like a model on a runway towards the kitchen. The little fitted dress highlighted her swaying curves.

  I’m not sure what Edie would think of that conversation. Mel seemed ready to talk. What was her connection to Rob Nealy? I hoped to find out.

  I took the time to scan Liquid. It was an impressive place, with millions spent on the pools, the electronics, the lighting and the décor. On this cool evening, steamy wisps rose from the surface of the pools. I was one of only two occupied tables. The other had a youngish couple focused on themselves. The other waitress served them. Three men sat at the open bar. The bar and tables where covered by the roof, while the pools were open to the sky above.

  What was I looking for? A clue, something physical, maybe there would be another letter from Rob. I did a double-take with one of the men at the bar. He had gray hair, was in his fifties and looked to be about Rob’s height. He turned to the side and his large nose, weak chin and hairy eyebrows proved him someone else.

  A minute later this fifty-something guy paid his tab, stood up and walked to another smoked-glass door at the far end of the lounge. When the door opened I caught a glimpse of a lighted hallway. This must be a second entrance. My guess is this door went right into Aria, the hotel attached to Liquid.

  Mel confirmed that when she returned to my table. My question made her curious.

  “Stevie, what do you want to do? Do you want to continue to wait?”

  “No, I might as well order. It doesn’t look like he’s showing.”

  I picked up the menu and asked, “What would you recommend?”

  She said, “The filet mignon is wonderful.”

  “That sounds good.”

  “How would you like it cooked?”

  “Medium rare.”

  “OK, it comes with green beans and a baked potato.”

  “That’s fine.”

  “Great, would you like another drink?”

  “I better not. I’ll have an iced tea. Once you place my order, can you come back? I’d like to talk to you.”

  She smiled. “I sure will.”

  She strutted off again, stopped at the cash register station, and talked to the other waitress. Mel pointed to me as she spoke. The blonde waitress turned to look at me, nodded and smiled. I would swear that she said, “Sure, go ahead.”

  Mel ordered my iced tea from the bartender. Her back was towards me. Mel’s dress had two cutout holes on the sides at her hips. It was also cut low in the front. As she waited, she adjusted her dress, making sure the side waist bands of her panty were covered and that her top revealed the correct amount of her breasts. She then reached down into the waitress stand and pulled out her lip gloss which she quickly reapplied.

  By then, the iced tea was ready. Mel picked it up and began her slow, practiced walk back to my table.

  “Mel, have a seat, please.”

  “Well, I’m not allowed to do that, but Frank, my boss, isn’t here and Susie told me to go ahead. She’ll watch out. She thinks you’re cute, by the way.”

  I looked back at the waitress stand and saw Susie smiling and looking our way.

  Then, Mel sat. She crossed her legs and half of her thighs were revealed. I maintained eye contact, mostly.

  “Mel, I need help.”

  “What kind of help?”

  “I’m trying to find someone; a man, an older white man with white hair.”

  She said, “There’re a lot of them in Las Vegas. Why is this one important?”

  “Let me explain. I’m a private investigator. I’m on a case now, a personal case. The man I’m looking for may have killed three people in Los Angeles…”

  Mel gasped.

  “You may have heard about them.”

  I briefly mentioned the names of the victims.

  “Oh, yeah, I did.”

  “The man I’m looking for is also my future father-in-law.”

  “Oh…”

  I was surprised that Mel had only that to say. She remained focused on my every word. Her reaction gave me a glimpse of her maturity. So, I continued, “My fiancée has asked me to find him before the police do. He’s on the run. It looks like he expected me to come after him because he left me this clue in Tucson, his home town.”

  I pulled out Rob’s message and showed it to Mel.

  “My fiancée and I guessed Sodom was Las Vegas and the wet bar was Liquid. Now that I found you, a titian-haired maid…”

  Mel stopped a moment to read the note and digest my information.

  “This is weird, Stevie.”

  “It is.”

  She said, “It could be some other bars. All the outdoor pools have bars. It could be Wet Republic, you know.”

  “We thought of that, too. I might have to check that out and the others. We thought the outdoors pools would be closed or a lot less crowded this time of year.”

  “That’s true. The season is pretty much over. We’re closing at the end of the month, and I’ll work inside Aria at the Sage or Union restaurants.”

  “I see.”

  Mel asked, “So, what would he do at Liquid or one of these bars?”

  “I don’t know. He could be waiting for me. But, I think he’d leave another clue.”

  “What kind of clue?”

  “I really don’t know, maybe it’s another letter.”

  Mel was interested. She put her right elbow on the table, placed her head in her hand and looked at me intently and said, “Hmmm…”

  “Do you know an older man that looks like that?”

  She answered, “No, I don’t.”

  “Have you seen something unusual, like an envelope, lying around somewhere?”

  “Not that I’ve noticed. We get lots of unusual people in here, but not too many older folks. Let me think for a minute.”

  While she did I took in Mel from up close. She was a beautiful young woman. Her shiny gold dress clung to her shapely body. I didn’t feel lust as much as pleasure in her company. I think the disclosure of my engagement took the tension out of our conversation. Mel was certainly relaxed. In a different time and place, we both might have acted differently.

  “Mel, I know this sounds weird. Unfortunately, it’s also tragic and scary. The sooner I find him the sooner everyone will be safe.”

  “Sure, I can see that. I just don’t remember him or seeing anything unusual.”

  “I understand. Can you help me in a different way?”

  “Sure, how?”

  “Can you tell the bartenders and the hostess and the other waitress my story and see if they’ve noticed anything?”

  “Sure, I will.”

  She began to stand.

  I quietly added, “Mel, is it OK if I look around, to see if I notice anything, too?”

  “Sure, but let me speak to Jim, he’s the assistant manager tonight.” She indicated one of the bartenders.

  Then, she said, “I’ll be right back. I’ll get your dinner, too.”

  Mel stood and walked straight to Jim. Over the next two minutes she relayed my story and my request. I saw Jim shake his head no. Then, Mel talked some more. She pleaded with her arms, moving them horizontally as she turned, in a sweeping movement pointing at the pools and bars. Jim stood with his arms folded on his chest. He showed no emotion during Mel’s plea. He looked over at me. Then, he said something.

  Mel pleaded her case one more time. I couldn’t hear any of their words due to the techno music filling the air.

  Finally, Jim raised both of his arms in a surrender position. Mel was happy. She gave Jim a hug. Then, she looked at me and gave me the thumbs up sign. Mel said something as Jim looked at me. Then, Mel walked into the kitchen.

  That’s how I got my Las Vegas helper. Perhaps it was because I was engaged to a successful Hollywood actress that impressed her
and raised her opinion of me. Perhaps it was how I looked; worried, focused and sincere in my undertaking. Perhaps it was her status in life in Las Vegas; vulnerable in some way. Perhaps it was all these things, that added up to her feeling safe with me, to being open and helpful, knowing I’d be kind and complimentary towards her, while allowing her to share in the kind of bold adventure she’d dreamed life would be all the time in Sin City.

  From the start, our relationship was a chaste friendship that we both knew could, would have been different if I was not engaged and a soon-to-be-father. As such, we were comfortable together and stayed focused on the case.

  Mel brought my salad and a roll, sat next to me and said, “We’re good. Jim will let me help you as long as we don’t disturb anyone.”

  “Hey, that’s great.”

  “Where do we start?”

  I said, “In all the obvious places. I don’t know what we’re looking for, but I need your eyes. Tell me if you see anything unusual sitting out in the open.”

  “OK, I will, Stevie. I’ll start while you’re eating.”

  She took her new job seriously. Mel walked slowly around the perimeter of the pools and tables and bars. She bent at the knees to look under lounge chairs and beds. She stood on her toes to see on top shelves. She felt under table tops and chairs; all without luck.

  Then, she stopped and walked back to the kitchen. She came out thirty seconds later with my steak and potatoes. She whisked away my salad bowl and roll plate. Then, she sat down and audibly exhaled.

  “I didn’t see anything that looks odd.”

  “Hang in there, Mel. It’s early.”

  “I will.”

  I said, “After I finish we’ll dig deeper.”

  My filet was very good. The baked potato had sat too long and was a little dry. The green beans were crisp – I liked them.

  I said to Mel, “Tell me your life story and I’ll tell you mine.”

  “OK, Stevie.”

  Melody Pima and her fraternal twin, Harmony, had been left for orphans at birth someplace in Arizona twenty-three years earlier. She wasn’t sure who gave them the musical names. She never knew her parents. They were never adopted. Instead, they lived in a series of foster homes and, finally, at an orphanage-like ranch near Phoenix. At eighteen, the twins “escaped” (Mel’s word) to Las Vegas and worked at odd jobs and lived in different, cheap apartments until they turned twenty-one. Those three years were hard, not as hard as some of their earlier years, but still hard. They started with no money, no credit, no car and no real skills. After reaching the age of maturity they would get better jobs in the casinos and lounges. That’s when they earned more money and saved for their condo, which they bought a year ago. The twins had lived in Las Vegas five years. It’s home and the most stable life they’ve ever had.

  The twins’ story touched me, and was surprised that I had to fight back tears. Somehow, I recovered and gave a quick review of my life, focusing on how I met and fell in love with Edie –that took enough time and certainly kept Mel’s attention. My meal was long finished at the end of the stories. So, we started looking for the clue again.

  Four minutes after I joined the search we found it. I was lucky. I noticed the lack of reflection or a different reflection in one spot at the bottom of the big pool. I stopped walking and looked close.

  From the other side of the pool Mel said, “What is it, Stevie?”

  A clear, round disk with a three-inch radius sat on the bottom of the pool. It looked like something was inside the disk; paper with letters on it. The disk was near the shallow end of the pool about three inches from the bottom step.

  Mel was at my side. I pointed at the disk.

  She asked, “What is that?”

  “I don’t know, but it could be what we’re looking for.”

  “I can get it. The water isn’t too deep here.”

  I said, “You’re not going in, are you? You’ll get soaked.”

  “I’ll lift my dress; just don’t look too closely at my butt. I’ll do it so quickly no one will notice.”

  Before I could say anything else, Mel stepped out of her big heels and started down the concrete stairway. The water looked to be about three feet deep. With each step, as the water level rose, Mel slowly lifted her dress higher and higher, keeping it dry. As she stood on the bottom of the pool, the water was above her waist. Her pink toe nail polish, the thin pink straps of her panties, and her bare legs and behind were only partially visible due to the movement of the water.

  On her second step away from the steps she put her right foot on top of the clear disc. Her toes grabbed it and she slid it along the bottom back to the steps. Her toes then lifted it up the vertical side onto the first step and pushed it across the horizontal side. She continued this process until she could reach into six inches of water and lift the disk off the top step.

  “That was easy.”

  I handed Mel her shoes and she handed me the disk. She said, “Thanks. I’ll be right back after I dry off. Don’t open this until I get back!”

  She turned, walked to a large wicker basket near the pool, pulled out a large white towel and headed to the women’s bathroom. I returned to my table and looked at the disk. It was waterproof since the folded paper within looked perfectly dry.

  Clue #2

  I used my waiting time to call Edie. She and Tawny were in the middle of watching a romantic movie so I kept my comments brief. I gave her an overview of my progress and described Melody Pima, my new helper.

  Edie said, “I’m OK with that, Stevie, because it will be a ‘no touch’ friendship, correct?”

  “Absolutely.”

  “Plus, you don’t know Las Vegas.”

  “That’s why I want her help.”

  The true excitement for Edie was the news that we had guessed correctly and found the second clue. Edie asked to be put on the cell phone’s speaker when Mel and I opened the plastic case. I agreed and told her we’d call back in a few minutes.

  Mel returned from the bathroom. She showed her open, honest personality when she said, “Sorry for the delay, Stevie. My panties took so long to dry with the blow dryer. It’s still a little damp, which is hard to believe given that it’s just a thong.”

  I smiled at that thought, and said, “No problem, Mel. I took the time to call my fiancée, Edie. She’s thrilled that we found the second clue. She’s glad you’re helping me.”

  “Really?”

  “Yes, she knows I could use an assistant.”

  “That’s great; I want to be your assistant, Stevie.”

  “Mel, I’m glad you’re here, too. You know Las Vegas and I don’t. But, I want you to be careful. You’ve got to listen to what I say, OK?”

  “Sure.”

  “My first rule is to be safe at all times.”

  “I agree.”

  “Edie wants us to call her as we open the clue.”

  “OK.”

  “Mel, I have no idea where this clue could lead us. It could be a long night.”

  “That’s fine. I don’t usually go to bed until sunrise when I’m working. Plus, this place is dead tonight. I’ll punch out early and save the company some money.”

  We dialed Edie, put her on speaker, introduced her to Mel and put the phone next to the clue on my table.

  I said, “It’s a clear plastic disk about three inches wide. There’s a folded paper inside and the seal is tight. The paper looks dry. I’ll open it now.”

  I pried it open with my fingers.

  “Edie, there are two pieces of paper inside, like those in the first clue’s envelope; a small piece of paper and a cutting from a bible. It looks like the next verses from 1 Samuel, Chapter 25.”

  I read the scripture out loud.

  When David heard that Nabal was shearing his sheep, he sent ten of his young men to Carmel with this message for Nabal: “Peace and prosperity to you, your family, and everything you own! I am told that it is sheep-shearing time. While your shepherds stayed amon
g us near Carmel, we never harmed them, and nothing was ever stolen from them. Ask your own men, and they will tell you this is true. So would you be kind to us, since we have come at a time of celebration? Please share any provisions you might have on hand with us and with your friend David.” David’s young men gave this message to Nabal in David’s name, and they waited for a reply.

  Edie said, “I’m following in the Bible and that is the correct next six verses of that chapter.”

  I said, “It looks like it came from the same bible, too.”

  Edie said, “There are some phrases that seem relevant to us, you know, time of celebration – our wedding, and how we’ve been kind to my father, but now need something from him, like David and Nabal.”

  I said, “True.”

  Then Edie said, “But, mostly it’s different from our life.”

  “Right.”

  Mel spoke up and asked, “The verses mention Carmel. Do you have any connection to that town or the Monterey Peninsula?”

  Edie answered, “No, not at all.”

  Mel then asked, “What did you want from your father?”

  Edie said, “All I wanted from him was to walk me down the aisle at our wedding like any other father would do.”

  Edie choked up as she finished that sentence.

  I said, “That’s true, baby, but, as you said, mostly this bible story doesn’t relate to us.”

  We heard Edie sniffling. Mel said, “Stevie, read the note.”

  “OK.”

  David,

  Welcome to Sodom. You have followed me so far. The path gets more difficult. The natives are always restless. That won’t stop you, will it?

  Go on to the circus of the sun. For the next clue, don’t get wet and look carefully where you sit.

  Nabal

  “Strange,” said Mel.

  “I agree,” said Edie.

  I asked, “What does he mean by ‘circus of the sun’?”

  Mel said, “It must be Cirque du Soleil – that means circus of the sun in French.”

  “Yes, of course,” said Edie.

  I said, “Where is Cirque du Soleil?”

  Mel said, “There’re two in town.”