by Keira Beck
“You probably considered our last meeting a good day, too.”
“Hell, yeah.” He started to waggle his eyebrows, but it hurt his head too much.
She sighed and fell back against a poker table, like her legs couldn’t support her any longer. “You should probably get checked out. You took a few good shots today.”
“I think you should. You might be in shock.”
“I’m not in shock. I’m in… hell.” Tears welled in her eyes, and she lowered her voice to a whisper. “I might have killed someone.”
“He’s alive, Daphne. The EMTs have him, and they’re taking good care of him.”
“You don’t know that.”
“I do. I saw them take him out. He was starting to come to.”
Her face lit with hope, then it fell. “He could have brain damage.”
“Or he could be perfectly fine.”
She shook her head, and a tear spilled down her cheek.
He pulled her into an embrace. “Daphne, it’s okay. You did what you had to do. You saved me, maybe everyone in this place. You’re a hero.”
“Then why don’t I feel good?”
“I’d tell you not to think about it, but I know you will. Will you at least have the EMTs look at you? I think you really are in shock.”
“Will you get checked out?”
“Not until this is resolved.”
“What?” She stepped out of the hug and held him at arm’s length. “This is resolved.”
“No. Not yet. I just came over to be sure you were okay. Now I need to finish this. Make sure it doesn’t happen again.”
She grasped his hand. “Noah, just let the police handle this.”
He kissed her on the forehead, but then he walked away. When he made eye-contact with Danny, he tipped his head to the side. Danny said something to Ethan and Mac, then the four of them met in a corner. Police and security were meeting with other hostages, and no one noticed them break away from the pack.
“This isn’t over,” Noah said. “And I don’t want to go until we get everyone. That could leave the casino vulnerable to retaliation. People could get hurt.”
“You sure it’s not one particular person you’re worried about?” Danny asked.
Noah’s eyebrow shot up. He winced and looked away. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Isn’t that Little Miss One Night Stand over there?”
“Her name’s Daphne.” His words came out in a growl.
“At least you finally got that out of her.”
He shot his boss a hard look.
“Hey, I’m glad you found her. You’ve been a miserable SOB since last week. But before I go searching the casino for bad guys—without a weapon, I might add—I want to be sure it’s for the right reasons. Because the cops can take it from here.”
“And if they don’t do their jobs right? Because I know for a fact they had at least one inside man on the job. Probably more.”
“Someone in the surveillance room, I’m guessing?” Ethan said.
“Yeah. That’s the only way I can explain no one coming to our rescue. One of the guys—Ace, I think he was in charge—took a picture of me and sent it to a guy he called Trey. Wanted him to check the security feeds to see if I came in with anybody.”
“You sure caused these guys a lot of grief,” Mac said.
Noah shrugged. “Someone up there diverted attention from the poker room.”
“Probably created a video loop,” Ethan said. “Didn’t even have to be today. In fact, I wouldn’t use today’s feed. Too few people in here. I’d use footage from when this room was hopping. It would be harder to notice a repeat.”
“Still doesn’t explain the guards outside the door,” Danny said. “They could be fake guards, because a real guard would notice.”
“So, not an inside man,” Noah said, “but inside men. One surveillance person plus two guards.”
“We need a way to flush them out,” Mac said.
“Hell, if I was them, I’d already be gone.” Ethan ran his hand through his hair. “Cops are all over this place. No reason to stick around.”
“We don’t know that,” Noah said.
“Would you still be here?” Ethan asked.
“I wouldn’t have done something this stupid to begin with. And I definitely wouldn’t have stuck around when it all went south. But if they didn’t finish what they came to do? I don’t know.”
“But it’s damn near impossible to rob a casino,” Danny said. “Why would someone even try?”
“That’s my whole point,” Noah said. “I don’t think they did rob the casino.”
“Then what the hell was this all about?” Mac asked.
“When I was planning my second attack—”
“Your second attack?” Danny said. “How many times did you try to subdue these guys?”
Noah ignored him. “When I was planning my second attack, one of the hostages started explaining house rules to me. Helping me understand the motivation behind all this. He was going on and on about the amount of money the casino had to have on hand, and how it was greatly increased because of the activity with the sportsbook.”
“So?” Mac said.
“He was one of the inside guys. I thought he was trying to help, but then he turned the tables on me.”
“What’s this have to do with them robbing or not robbing the casino?” Ethan asked.
“He wouldn’t have given me all that information about why robbing the place today made sense if that was really what they were doing. It would practically be a confession.”
“Go on,” Danny said.
“They didn’t take any of the money from the lockboxes. No chips. Hell, when they asked us for our phones and wallets, they didn’t take any money from anyone. Didn’t ask for any jewelry, either.”
“If they weren’t there to rob the place, then what did they want?” Mac asked.
“I don’t know. I think this has something to do with one of the gamblers. After they corralled us against the wall, they started going through our things, looking at all our IDs. When they found who they were looking for, they made the guy leave with them. His escort, too.”
“He was here with an escort?” Danny said. “Was she in on it?”
“I don’t think so. But neither of them came back.”
“Who was he?” Mac asked.
“I don’t know.”
“Let’s check the wallets,” Danny said. “Find his ID.”
Noah shook his head. “Don’t bother. Ace pocketed it, and he’s changed clothes since then.”
“He might still have it on him.” Mac shrugged.
“Would you keep incriminating evidence on you?” Ethan asked.
“We could try to interrogate him before the cops take him away,” Danny said.
Noah sighed. “He’s gone. He’s the one Daphne cracked in the head with the lockbox.”
“Maybe we can have a few minutes with the other guy,” Mac said.
Danny glanced at the cops. They’d surrounded Joker, who looked mutinous and wasn’t talking. “They’ll never let us near him.”
“If we can get into the surveillance room, we can scan the security feeds,” Ethan said. “When you see the guy they were interested in, we can run facial recognition on him.”
“Where are we going to get the tech to do that?”
“Ye of little faith, Noah. I don’t even have to tap into a police database. Casinos have facial rec software to look for cheaters and addicts.”
“But if the guy isn’t a cheater or addict, what good does that do us? We won’t have a name.”
“Doesn’t matter. You point out the guy. I check the databases. If he’s not there, we can scan the door for footage of when he entered and follow him to a money changer. Might get lucky there. Or we can check against the hotel records and see if he’s a guest. We’ll figure it out. There’s always a way.”
“Assuming they let us in there,” Mac said. “
Casinos aren’t famous for their transparency. Especially when it comes to their surveillance systems.”
“We explain that we can find the breakdown in their system,” Ethan said. “They should be grateful.”
“That’s not how it works, E,” Danny said.
Noah looked across the room. “I think I know how we can get access.”
Chapter Eight
Noah walked over to Daphne. She had finished with the police and was standing alone, staring at the floor. There was a smattering of blood on the carpeting, and the lockbox she’d hit Ace with had been left there, a stark reminder of what had happened.
He stepped in front of her, blocking her view, and bent down so she had to meet his gaze. “Hey. Don’t do this.”
“Don’t do what?” she whispered.
“Come on, Daphne. We’ve been through this.” He spun her around and walked her away from that section of the room. “How would you like to help us get the rest of the crew?”
She shook her head. “I can’t.”
“You don’t even know what I’m asking you to do. I promise, it doesn’t involve fighting.”
“Most people would have made the same promise regarding an evening at the casino.”
“Please, Daphne. We need your help.”
She pressed her hand to the side of her head. After a deep breath, she murmured, “What do you need?”
Noah started walking her away from the bloody box. He guided her toward his friends. “I need to get into the surveillance room.”
“What?” She snorted. “It’s like Fort Knox up there. I can’t get you in.”
“Do you have any friends in there? Can you call in a favor? It’s really important.”
She bit her lip. “Well, there’s Simon, but I don’t know if we’re in a favor-exchanging place right now.”
“If there’s even a chance, can you try? Please. I won’t be able to relax knowing you work here and one or more of these guys got away.”
Daphne’s jaw went slack, and she stared at him, wide-eyed, barely blinking.
“Daphne?”
She shook her head slightly. Then she sighed. “Come on.”
“I need to bring my friends.” Noah nodded toward Ethan, Danny, and Mac.
“I can’t drag all you guys up there. It’s already a long shot, but Simon would never go for this.”
“We at least need Ethan. He’s a computer genius.”
“Simon’s not going to let anyone anywhere near the computers.”
“Let us worry about that.”
She sighed. “I make no promises.”
“I can live with that.” He approached the group. “Daphne, this is my boss, Dan Caruso and friends of ours, Ethan Morrison and Callum MacNeil.”
“Everyone calls me Mac.” He shook her hand. The others did the same.
“Nice to meet you. I mean, other circumstances, and all that, but…”
“Daphne is going to take me and E up to the surveillance room. Maybe you two could snoop around here, see if the police got any info from Joker.”
“Let us know as soon as you have something,” Danny said.
“Come on.” Noah hurried out of the room, Daphne and Ethan following him. Then he stopped short. “Sorry, Daphne. You’re going to have to lead the way. I don’t know where I’m going.”
“Follow me.” She took them through an ‘Employees Only’ door then navigated a labyrinth of hallways.
“I’ve got a great sense of direction,” Ethan said, “but I have to admit, I’m kind of turned around.”
“That’s the point,” she said. “If someone manages to get back here undetected, the casino doesn’t want to make it easy for them.”
Soon they reached an unmarked door. She took a deep breath, raised her hand to knock, but just stood there.
“Daphne, I hate to rush you, but every second we delay, those guys get closer and closer to getting away.”
She knocked. “If you knew what I was about to face, you’d understand.”
“What are you about to face?”
The door swung open, and the expression of the guy who opened it went from harried and curious to angry and vengeful in a flash. “What do you want? We’re a little busy in here.”
“Simon, this is Noah and Ethan. I think they can help.”
He crossed his arms over his chest. “How the hell can two meatheads help me? I’ve got local and state police crawling all over this place, the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board has agents en route, and the PR guy from the holding group is about fifteen minutes out.”
Noah bristled. “Did he just call us meatheads?”
Ethan tipped his head side-to-side, cracking his neck, then rolled his shoulders. “I believe so.”
Daphne put her hand on Noah’s arm but spoke to Simon. “I know this is highly unusual, but Noah saw the suspects and Ethan thinks he can track them. Wouldn’t it be a boon if you were responsible for helping to track down the people who did this?”
“It’ll be the end of my career if I let them in here.”
She let go of Noah’s arm and placed her hand on Simon’s. “Not if you deliver the rest of the people responsible. Let us help you.”
Simon glanced at her hand then smiled. “You know I can’t deny you anything. Not even after you—”
“Thank you, Simon.” Daphne’s cheeks were a violent shade of red. “Clock’s ticking. How about you let them in now?”
“You, too, right? You’re coming, too?”
“Yes. I’m coming, too.”
Simon grinned and opened the door wide for her. Including her guests didn’t seem to mean much to him.
Noah lunged, but Ethan held him back. He whispered in his ear before they followed. “Easy, buddy. If I have to pull you off him, we’ll both end up in jail.”
Funny, he hadn’t realized he’d reacted to the putz at all. But Ethan clearly saw something that concerned him, and Noah’s hands and jaw hurt from how hard he clenched them. He made a deliberate effort to relax, then entered the room.
It was bigger than he’d expected. Full of computers and monitors, which he did expect. A few guys were scattered around the room at work stations, and only one bothered to look up. “They have clearance, Simon? Because I’m not taking responsibility for them being in here.”
“Just shut your trap, Byron, and mind your own business. You were given a job to do, if I recall. PR and the Gaming Board will be here soon. I want everything ready when they show up.” He turned to Daphne, gentled his demeanor, and lowered his tone. “Can you believe this guy? Acting like he’s where the buck stops?”
“No one would ever think you weren’t in charge here, Simon. You wear your authority well. Now, can you get Ethan set up?”
Simon scrutinized Ethan. “And what exactly do you think you’re going to do?”
“Noah’s going to go through the footage with me. When he picks out the guys we’re interested in, I’ll run their photos through facial recognition, see if I can get IDs and locations on them. Then I want to look at your code.”
“Code’s off limits, man.”
“Someone ran a looped video feed. It had to come through here. I’m assuming this is a closed system.”
“Obviously.”
“Then whoever spliced in the loop had to do it from here or had to breech your system. Either way, there’s a trail. And I’m going to follow it.”
Simon’s gaze raked across Ethan’s broad shoulders. “You know computers?”
Noah rolled his eyes. “We’re wasting time.”
“Just show me where to work,” Ethan said. “And stay out of my way.”
Simon sneered, disbelief evident on his soft features. “You better not be shitting me. If this is a waste of my time, I’ll make you regret it.”
The image of Simon trying to somehow inflict pain on Ethan had Noah struggling to keep his composure. If E hadn’t stepped on his foot, he might have laughed in the guy’s face. Instead, he kept his trap shut, followed th
em to a computer station, then looked over Ethan’s shoulder.
“Around what time did you go in the poker room?” Ethan asked.
“I don’t know,” Noah said. “Seven-thirty?”
“And were all the guys already in there?”
“Let’s see. The guy and girl they abducted were in the middle of a game. Jack was already in there. The other three stepped in about ten or fifteen minutes after I entered.”
“All right. So let’s go through the feed starting about half an hour before you entered.”
“But it’s on a loop,” Noah said.
“I’m looking at the cameras outside the room. I want to catch them in the main casino. There was no evidence of tampering there, right?”
Simon shook his head.
“Great. Might as well start here. Daphne, who are these guys?” The screen showed two security guards standing in front of the poker room doors.
“That’s Keith Conway.” She pointed at the screen. “And the other is Gary Fox.”
Ethan removed his cellphone from his pocket, took pictures of the screen, and texted the photos and names to Danny and Mac.
“And just what makes you think those guys are in on this caper?” Simon said.
“Because when me and the boys tried to go in there looking for Noah, those were the two who sent us away with a bogus story about the room being closed for cleaning.”
Simon scowled but didn’t protest.
“Okay, Noah, we’re going to start looking at the people entering the room. Stop me when you see the missing couple, Jack, or… what was the other guy’s codename? Trey?”
“Deuce.”
They started going through the footage. Several camera angles at all the doors. It was hard to keep track of them all. But something caught Noah’s attention and he pointed at a monitor. “There. Go back… right there.”
Ethan stopped the replay.
“That’s when Ace, Joker, and Deuce entered.”
With a few keystrokes, Ethan began the facial recognition process on a different monitor. “Okay. Let’s keep going back.”
“I need a coffee,” Byron said. “Anyone else want some?”
“Just be quick about it,” Simon said.
Byron left the room, muttering under his breath.