by Kyra Davis
“Or maybe he’s holding a full flush,” I added quickly. “Hard to tell.”
“It always is with a good poker player. If he does have the evidence then the question is where’s it stashed?”
“Beats me.”
Alex studied me. “When I met you last night it was clear that you still cared about this guy. If you know where this information is you should get it because in the not too distant future you may need to trade it for his life.”
The mafia would do a trade? That didn’t sound likely. I glanced up at the clock. I had been here for too long. In a moment Mary Ann would call and when I didn’t answer she’d call the police.
“I gotta go.” I got to my feet and put the MacBook back in its case.
“Look, things are sketchy right now. You’re welcome to stay here.”
I laughed as I slung the carrying case over my shoulder. “Yeah, um, I’m gonna pass. But really, thanks for the offer.” I picked up my purse and walked out into the foyer where I immediately spotted the bag with my clothes and my phones on the key table.
“You’ll be safe here.”
“Bye-bye Alex.” I collected the rest of my things and walked briskly toward the door, my heels clinking against the hardwood floor.
“Sophie, wait.
I turned. “What?”
“If I’m wrong about your wanting to reconcile with Anatoly and you’re looking for someone to…distract you--”
“Fuck you.”
Alex smiled. “I was rather hoping you would after I bought you Marc Jacobs.”
I held out the strap of my tank top for his examination. “It’s Marc for Marc Jacobs. No one gets fucked for bridge-wear!” I whirled around but as I opened the door he reached over and closed it again. Keeping my eyes glued to the door, I growled, “I swear to God if you try to lock me in here—”
“Take my jacket.”
I turned slightly to see that he had taken off his blazer and was offering it to me.
“Why would I want to do that?”
“Because otherwise you can see your bra through your shirt.”
I thought about that for a moment and then pulled out my dirty messed up red tank from the shopping bag and put it over the tank I was already wearing. “There, problem solved. Keep the jacket.”
“I’ll call you a cab to take you back to the hotel.” He said as I started to open the door again.
“I got it, thanks.”
“One more thing?”
“Alex, I really have to go!”
He held up a hand, requesting one last moment. I watched impatiently as he went across the room and unlocked the drawer of a console by the stairs.
As he pulled a gun out I found myself really wishing I hadn’t waited.
“Listen,” I whispered, trying desperately to think of a way out of this.
Alex simply put his fingers to his lips. He moved across the room. I hadn’t noticed how graceful he was before. He should have been a dancer not a killer. It was probably a little late to suggest a career change, though.
He took my hand so that my palm was facing up. I held my breath not sure what his next move was going to be. Slowly, carefully, he put the gun in my hand.
“This one’s a little smaller than the one you tried to steal but it should be enough to keep the bad guys at bay. Protect yourself.” I stared down at the gun and watched as my fingers instinctively closed around the handle.
“Put it in your purse,” he instructed. “Concealed weapons are legal in Vegas and if you have it in your hand there’s a good chance the cab won’t stop.”
I smiled slightly at that and did as he suggested. “Thank you…but I won’t be back.”
“I don’t believe that for a second.”
I didn’t know how to respond so I simply turned and walked out.
The front gate opened for me automatically and I spotted a town car parked at the end of the block. Mary Ann got out of the back and waved me over.
“I was just about to call the police,” she admitted once I got within hearing range.
“I’m glad you didn’t.” I climbed into the backseat to find that Marcus was there too. Mary Ann got in beside me and asked the driver to take us to the Encore as I turned to him.
“I thought you were at Puppetry Of The Penis with Leah and Dena.”
“I was but I left after five minutes…and those five minutes will give me five years of nightmares. Your sister seemed to be enjoying it.”
“You’re joking, right?”
“Oh you think that’s odd? Because I think it’s odd that you would go to the private residence of a possible murderer.”
“But I always go to the homes of possible murderers,” I pointed out. “It’s kinda my thing.”
“Marcus tracked me down at the Hotel Noir,” Mary Ann explained.
Marcus held up Dena’s iPad. “I borrowed this and I’ve been using it to do some research on your new friend,” he said. “Do you have any idea who you were just talking to?”
“Of course I know. I was talking to Alex Kinsky.”
“Yes, Alex Kinsky…general manager of The Hotel Noir, well known philanthropist and half brother to a woman who legally changed her name from Fedora to Fawn.”
I froze in my seat and Mary Ann grabbed my arm, squeezing it so hard I actually winced.
“Ewwy Fawn?” Mary Ann asked.
“The Fawn who called me collect from prison to tell me that Anatoly was married? That Fawn?” I added before Mary Ann chimed in again.
“The Fawn who slept with my creepy ex-boyfriend…back when he was still my boyfriend and not so creepy?”
Marcus nodded. “That’s the one…but honey,” he locked eyes with Mary Ann, “that boy was always creepy.”
“Are you sure it’s the same person?” My voice was shaking now.
“Sweetie, how many convicted felons do you know named Fawn?”
“But what does it mean?” I whispered.
“It means he’s fucking with you.” His eyes dropped to my outfit. “Two tanks on top of each other?” he asked with traces of horror coloring his tone. “Two tanks that aren’t even well color-blocked? And that top tank has a hole in it! Dear God, Sophie, what did those drugs do to your brain? You’ve forgotten how to layer!”
“I know how to layer,” I snapped. I pulled up one of the tanks to show him how the other was too sheer for my bra. “This is why I’m wearing two mismatched tanks!”
“Right,” Marcus said slowly. “Obviously you couldn’t wear a shirt that showed the outline of your bra because nobody dresses promiscuously in Vegas.”
“This isn’t that kind of vacation,” I retorted.
“No, this is a working vacation. Spend an afternoon or two at a sex toy trade show and then put in a few hours toward defeating the mafia. Why didn’t you match your tank to your bra if it was a problem for you…wait, are those new shorts too?”
“Alex bought them for me.”
“They’re lovely,” Mary Ann said distractedly. Her mind was clearly still on Fawn.
“It’s Marc by Marc Jacobs.”
Marcus looked at me blankly. “Sophie, this isn’t the red carpet. I didn’t ask you who you were wearing. I just want to know why you’re wearing it.”
“Well, um…” I ran my hands over the tan silk of the shorts “I actually tore my clothes while trying to break into Alex’s backyard.”
Marcus’s mouth dropped open.
“But it’s okay, he didn’t mind!”
“He didn’t mind your trying to break in,” he repeated flatly.
“Not so much. He bought me this outfit to replace my clothes…although he then insinuated that I should repay him with sexual favors.”
Marcus balked. “For bridge-wear?”
“I know!” I threw my hands up in disgust.
“Did you at least learn anything useful?”
“As a matter of fact, I did. Alex tells me that the Russian mafia thinks Anatoly helped an FBI agent infiltr
ate their operations.”
Marcus took a while to digest this. “If he has to go into Witness Protection he should tell them not to relocate him to Wyoming. He’ll stand out in Wyoming.”
“He also knows that Anatoly has some incriminating evidence that could get the top people in this particular mob family into a lot of trouble.”
“Minnesota might not be that bad,” Mary Ann speculated. “They have the Mall Of America. I’ve always wanted to see that.”
“It won’t come to that. Alex says Anatoly has proof of some of the mob’s illegal activity. That evidence is Anatoly’s protection…assuming Alex is telling me the truth.”
“Which is doubtful considering his family’s track record,” Marcus reminded me.
“Yeah,” I admitted softly. I shifted my position so that I could look out the window at the starless sky. If Alex was on the up and up why hadn’t he mentioned Fawn?
But then again, I hadn’t mentioned Fawn either. I had barely given her a second thought since she called to tell me Anatoly was married. Was she even relevant at this point in the game?
“He gave me more than information and a new outfit,” I whispered.
“What else did he give you?” Marcus asked. “A migraine?”
I glanced up at the driver. He seemed to be completely uninterested in us as he tapped his fingers in time to the Top 40 tune playing on the radio. I took a deep breath and opened my bag so my friends could see the gun. They gasped simultaneously and I snapped my purse shut.
No one said anything for the rest of the ride to the Encore. When we arrived I paid the driver (picking up the tab was the least I could do) and we all piled out of the car. Marcus dragged me to the fountain with Mary Ann close on our heels. I noticed that his jaw was set and his shoulders were tense. For a full minute we all just stood there, Mary Ann and I looking at Marcus expectantly. But he just stared silently at the fountain as it shot up toward the heavens like an aquatic version of the northern lights.
“Why do you think he gave you that, Sophie?” he finally asked, his voice icy and controlled.
“Because he wants me to be able to protect myself,” I said. “What other reason could there be?”
“Do you know if that gun has been recently used?” he asked. “Like maybe on someone named Tanya? Do you think that maybe the reason Alex booked a room under your name and gave you that gun is because he’s helping his sister get revenge?”
The question froze me in place. I tried to come up with a reason his theory was ridiculous. I couldn’t.
Now I was the one staring at the fountain. It really did remind me of a smaller version of the northern lights and the building behind it looked like it was made of solid gold. But it wasn’t. It was an illusion. Nothing in this town was what it seemed to be. It was designed to entrance. Its goal was to make you throw caution to the wind. It wanted you to lose track of your own common sense.
“I’ll get rid of the gun,” I whispered.
“Where?” Marcus snapped. “You can’t just throw it in a trash can.”
“She could bury it in the desert?” Mary Ann suggested. “In those mobster movies they’re always burying things in the Vegas desert.”
“There you go then,” I said hopefully. “I’ll…I’ll bury it in the desert first thing tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow might be too late,” Marcus pointed out. “As far as you know the police might be coming for you right now.”
With effort I swallowed down my rising panic. “I don’t think Alex wants to draw the police’s attention to this whole thing any more than I do. If he’s setting me up he’s setting me up so that he can point the finger at me if and when things go sour, and we have no reason to believe that’s going to happen tonight. Tomorrow we’ll figure out what to do with the gun. One step at a time.”
Marcus tapped the tip of his shoe against the pavement. “Anatoly…your hot little Russkie? He drugged you.”
“Yes, he did.”
I could see little stray drops of water from the fountain settle onto Marcus’ hair. “He lied to you too, Sophie.”
“I know,” I said softly.
“You’re risking that adorable little neck of yours for an asshole.”
“I am,” I admitted. The fountain was now a blur as the wind played with the carefully structured pattern of the water. “But here’s the thing…he’s my asshole.”
“Is this about ownership?” Marcus asked incredulously, “Or is it about love?”
“It’s about love,” I whispered. “Marcus I…I love my asshole, okay? I love him so much.”
“That’s almost as romantic as it is disturbing,” Marcus sighed. “So I guess we’ll just focus on the basics. Try to find Anatoly, try not to get implicated in any crime and try not to die.”
I bit my lower lip. One of those things should have sounded easy.
CHAPTER 14
“I rarely play by the rules. Unfortunately the rules I break most frequently are the ones I set up for myself.”
--Death Of The Party
We got back to the hotel room right around the same time Dena and Leah were returning from Puppetry Of The Penis. Leah had apparently been traumatized and had gone directly to her room. The rest of us were in Dena and Marcus’ room. Dena had bags full of goodies from the trade show and she and I were sorting through them while Marcus continued to Google information on Dena’s iPad. I hadn’t owned up to going to Alex’s house but we did tell her about what Marcus had found out. Once Marcus got to the part about Alex being Fawn’s brother Dena got up and left the rest of the sorting to me.
“Okay,” Marcus said, a vodka tonic in one hand and the iPad in another, “here’s the results of the forty dollar background check. Fawny-Dearest changed her name four years ago and she has one half-brother, Alexander Kinsky. Then there’s a list of a whole bunch of people she may or may not have a connection to…people with crazy names like Inno...Innokenty? Whatever, that part’s not all that reliable but she’s definitely Alex’s sister.”
“Maybe she’s estranged from him?” I offered. “Maybe that’s why he never showed up at her trial.”
“I think it’s possible,” Mary Ann said.
“If I had a sister like Fawn I wouldn’t want anything to do with her,” Dena whispered. She was leaning her weight against the desk and staring out at a night that had been made grey by the neon lights of the strip.
Marcus turned to me. “Do you really think it’s a coincidence that you met Alex a week after his sister called to tell you about Anatoly? Seriously?”
“Maybe Fawn wanted out of the mafia world and she cut off contact with Alex because he wouldn’t get out too,” I offered. I examined a package of dog-bone shaped paperclips that Dena had in one of her bags. “I don’t get it. What’s dirty about these?”
Dena walked back over to me and put one of the paperclips on the strap of my MacBook carrying case. When in use the “bone” looked a hell of a lot like an erect penis with two balls. Dena shrugged unenthusiastically and went back to the window. “What part of the mafia do you think Fawn objected to?” she asked. “She’s in jail for attempted murder so obviously it wasn’t the violence.”
“Maybe she didn’t like working with other people?” Mary Ann offered. “She does seem to have some social issues.”
“Yeah,” Dena replied, “maybe she just didn’t like the corporate culture. She’s an individualist. Like Ayn Rand with a Quentin Tarantino edge.”
“Oh come on, guys. So they share a parent, that doesn’t automatically make them coconspirators.”
Marcus was studying me intently but I couldn’t figure out what he was thinking so I plowed ahead.
“He wasn’t at the trial. When she was arrested, no one posted her bail. She had to go with a public defender because she couldn’t afford a lawyer. Does that sound like a woman who has a close relationship with her wealthy brother?”
Marcus was still staring at me. “You like him.”
The comment was jus
t shocking enough to shut me up. Both Dena and Mary Ann froze in place.
“I what?”
“You like him. You don’t want him to be in league with Fawn…”
“Of course I don’t want him to be in league with Fawn! He’s offering to help me—”
“Yeah, but you’re pissed at Anatoly. And what better way to get back at him then—”
“There is no way Sophie would ever even think of touching Fawn’s brother,” Dena said, her voice as cold as ice.
“Of course not!” Mary Ann crossed her arms over her chest. “Sophie is madly in love with Anatoly!”
“All right,” Marcus said, holding up his hands in a request for calm. “I’m not implying that you’re going to sleep with him, but you’re not looking at this objectively—”
“I’m looking at the evidence!” I yelled. I threw Dena’s jar of nipple warming cream at his head. “Your problem is that you have trust issues.”
“I agree!” Mary Ann said. “Alex is the only one who has given Sophie any information at all. You think that just because someone works with the mafia they’re a criminal!”
Marcus stayed mute and let the awkward moment do his talking for him.
I leaned my head back against the wall. “I’m angry with Anatoly. I have the right to be. And I know Alex is totally ruthless and I would be stupid to trust him but…”
“But?”
I walked over to Marcus and sat down next to him. “I don’t think he’s petty. Evil? Maybe. But not petty. And what you’re suggesting…that he would set up an elaborate plot just to give his sister an eye for an eye…I know that’s beneath him.”
Dena raised her thick Sicilian eyebrows. “You got all that from your one meeting with him at his office?”
“Um…I might have been in contact with him tonight too.”
“You might have?”
“You know,” I said, crossing back to her bag of goodies and holding up some of the lingerie, “this leather bra and panties set is actually kinda cute.”
“What’s going on, Sophie?”
“Nothing! It’s been a while since we’ve heard from Leah. I think I’ll go check on her.”
Mary Ann silently handed me the room key and I hurried out before Dena could ask any more questions although undoubtedly Mary Ann and Marcus would break under her interrogation.