The Case of the Sin City Sister

by Lynne Hinton

  He glanced above her. “How much did you win?”

  She spun back around. “I don’t know,” she replied. “It appears as if the princess and the prince with the blond hair and tight red leotard ended up on the same line. A dragon was apparently slain and the treasure box was opened, with all the gold and rubies and diamonds falling out. I think it’s twenty-five cents.”

  “How do you know he’s a prince?” he asked, studying the images on the screen in front of them.

  “I don’t know,” she answered. “Just figured that’s how it works. A princess ends up with a prince.” She elbowed him in the side. “Maybe he’s not her prince in shining armor; maybe he’s a cop following her. You own a leotard?”

  He shook his head. “Not a red one,” he replied, dropping down on the stool beside her.

  She turned to him. “How did you know where to find me?” she asked.

  “I didn’t know where to find you,” he responded. “I thought you were sound asleep in your bed at the hotel, where you’re supposed to be.”

  “Then what are you doing here?”

  “Great drinks?” he answered.

  She studied him, waiting for the truth.

  “I recognized Pauline’s uniform,” he confessed. “Figured she’d be working tonight and thought I’d come chat her up.”

  He waited. “Now, your turn?”

  She shrugged. “Same thing,” she answered.

  “You knew she was wearing a Caesar’s uniform?”

  “I put it together when I was talking to that woman at the diner. She had on the same one and she told me where she worked.”

  “Two plus two,” he responded.

  “That’s four,” she played along.

  “I should have known you’d be somewhere you’re not supposed to be.”

  “Why should you have known that?”

  “Have you forgotten that I worked with your father for almost twenty years?” he answered. “That Divine fruit doesn’t fall far from the tree.”

  “Divine,” she corrected him. “Don’t call me that.”

  “Just as touchy about the name as he is too.” He laughed. “Your dad used to hate when somebody mispronounced the name.”

  “We all hate it,” Eve said.

  “I would think it would be an asset in your line of work,” he teased her.

  She rolled her eyes but didn’t respond.

  “So, did you find Pauline?”

  She nodded, reached for her bottle of water and took a sip. She held it out for Daniel to see. “She works the slots,” she noted.

  Daniel smiled. “You’re a smart nun.”

  “Apparently not smart enough to figure out these machines. I still don’t understand how I won, or what I won, for that matter.” She was studying the screen again. “Where did the money go?”

  He leaned over to take a closer look. “It’s there.” He pointed to a number on the screen. “It’s points now. They don’t spit out the money unless you ask for it. This keeps you playing a little longer. And it’s twenty-five dollars not twenty-five cents.”

  Eve felt a bit of pride, but for what? She’d only pushed a button. There was no pride in that. It was such a strange business.

  “Pauline?” he asked again.

  “Oh, right,” she said. “She has a key to Dorisanne’s apartment. She’s going to let me in tomorrow after Steve goes to work.”

  Daniel nodded.

  “She says there were two men that came by once before, and she figures that is who Dorisanne and Robbie are hiding from.”

  “She get a look at them?” Daniel asked.

  “I think so,” Eve replied. “I didn’t really ask about that.” She wondered what other questions she had failed to ask.

  Daniel stretched his back, raised his arms above his head, and yawned.

  “Couldn’t you sleep?” Eve asked.

  “I did for a couple of hours and then when I woke up, I couldn’t get back.” He turned to her. “You?”

  “Never could drop off,” she answered.

  “How did you get here?”

  “Taxi,” she replied. “The guy at the hotel called one for me.”

  She noticed him staring at her.

  “What?” she asked.

  He shrugged, took out a couple of dollar bills, and put them in the machine in front of him. “You’re just more resourceful than I thought.”

  “I’ve been in a convent, Daniel, not a cave.”

  He laughed, pushed the button, and waited.

  “Pauline also told me that the night manager at the apartments was snooping around Dorisanne’s place. She thought he might be connected with the guys trying to find them.” She pushed the button on the princess machine. It was another win. She raised her hands at Daniel, demonstrating that she didn’t know how it was happening.

  “Is it luck or are you invoking some saint?” He pushed his button, using the last bit of his money. He spun around on his stool. “I got nothing.”

  “Maybe I should try it for you,” Eve suggested.

  “Let’s get out of here,” he said, watching as Eve pushed the button on her machine once again.

  “Oh, look, I opened another treasure box!” She clapped her hands.

  Daniel shook his head, waiting for Eve to close out of her machine. He stood up behind her as the two of them waited to grab the winning ticket. He followed her as she threaded her way through the slots, making her way to the old woman still sitting at one of the machines. Clara turned around as they approached. “Well, it looks like the princess was a winner.” She grinned. “You hit the jackpot, sissy.” She eyed Daniel. “Tall, dark, and following you like a puppy.”

  “Here.” Eve handed the older woman her winning ticket. “It was loose, just like you said, although I still don’t know what that means.”

  Clara looked at the ticket, then back at Eve, then over to Daniel. “Well, what it means is that it appears to be a lucky day for us both.” She took the piece of paper and winked at Eve. “Glad it’s worked out for you.”

  Eve patted the woman on the shoulder and started to walk away.

  “Check his wallet before you name your price,” Clara called out behind them. “He’s true blue if I ever saw one.”

  Daniel laughed as they walked away. “I don’t even want to know about that,” he commented. “And how did she know I’m a cop?”

  As they headed toward the front doors, laughing, Eve caught a glimpse of the man sitting at a high-end slot machine, the one with slicked-back hair and a dark mustache, waiting for the waitress to return with his drink.

  THIRTY

  When Eve woke up, the sun was full and shining through the window by her bed. She looked over at the clock, reading the time to be eleven o’clock, realizing that she had slept for almost seven hours straight. She rubbed her eyes and sat up, recalling coming in from Caesar’s and falling into bed. She looked down and realized she hadn’t even put on her pajamas. She was still in the clothes she had worn the previous night.

  She wondered if Daniel was awake or if he had managed to sleep throughout the entire morning as well. She thought about banging on the wall behind her to get his attention, but then thought better of it. The red light on the bedside phone blinked insistently. She studied it for a few minutes and then understood that a message was waiting for her. Maybe Daniel had called, was up, and wanted to tell her where he was. She picked up the receiver and dialed the front desk and was told that a message had been left in a voice-mail box.

  She followed the instructions given, waited for the message to begin, and was surprised to hear the Captain’s voice:

  “Evangeline, Daniel said you were up late last night and told me just to leave you a message. He’s apparently gone out to talk to his friend on the force out there. He said you got a couple of leads yesterday and he thinks it’s time to include Las Vegas’s finest. He’s probably right.” He cleared his throat. “Look, I think your sister tried to call me again.” There was a pause. “
I don’t recognize the number. It’s not one I have for her, but it’s a Las Vegas area code. I think it must be her. The call came this morning, about four. I think she’s trying to get hold of us.” Another clearing of the throat. “I didn’t talk to her. It was a missed call,” he repeated himself. “Just call me when you get this.”

  And he murmured something about stupid machines, coughed a few times, and was cut off. Eve put down the receiver and then picked it back up. She dialed his cell phone number. The Captain picked up on the third ring.

  “I just got your message,” she said after a gruff greeting.

  “Where you been all morning?” he asked.

  She waited. She wasn’t sure she wanted to say she was still in bed.

  “Never mind,” he groused. “Daniel called and said you were out late, searching for clues, but he didn’t fill me in.” He coughed. “What have you found out?”

  “Just that she’s not in the apartment,” she replied. “She and Robbie apparently left a few days ago. We’ve talked to the neighbor.”

  He coughed again.

  “You think she tried to call you this morning?” Eve asked.

  “It’s a Las Vegas number on the screen. I didn’t hear it when she called. I think I turned the phone off before I went to bed.” He cleared his throat.

  “Are you all right?” Eve thought his voice sounded ragged and harsh.

  “Allergies,” he informed her. “Junipers blooming everywhere.”

  She knew he fought allergies all year: pines in the fall, cottonwoods in the summer, and now, apparently, junipers in the spring. He made a loud hacking noise.

  “Maybe you should try something to help clear out the congestion,” she suggested.

  “I don’t need anything,” he replied. “I checked and there’s no message in my mailbox,” he added.

  “What’s the number?” Eve asked, swinging her legs over the side of the bed and reaching for a pen and paper.

  He called out the number and Eve wrote it down but didn’t recognize it. The Captain was right—it was the Vegas area code. “Did you dial the number?” she asked.

  “Did I dial the number?” he repeated sarcastically. “Of course I dialed the number.”

  “And?” She chose not to react to the tone of his voice.

  “And nobody answered,” he replied.

  He coughed.

  Eve waited.

  “You still there?” he asked.

  “Yes,” she replied.

  “I don’t figure it helps anything, but I just wanted you to know,” he said, his voice a bit softer.

  “Thanks, I’m glad you called.”

  There was a pause.

  “What else is going on?” she asked.

  “Been out to Salazar’s place. He wants me to pick the spot to dig.” More coughing.

  Eve didn’t respond.

  “Oh, and that Alford fellow thinks he found a picture of his great-grandfather.”

  “Where?”

  “He was looking around at the What Not Shop, found some old mining pictures. There was a shot of a man holding up a set of beads like the one he got in the mail a few years ago. He’s certain it’s his kin.”

  “Does he know about the marriage license?” She recalled the latest information on their client and that the Captain had wanted her to break the news when she returned.

  “Nah, he doesn’t know about that.” The Captain blew his nose.

  Eve thought about the man’s find. The What Not Shop was on the main drag of Cerrillos and carried a lot of old paraphernalia from the mining days. She had gone through a stack of old photographs herself since she’d returned home from the convent. It had not occurred to her that information about the missing miner might be found at the local shop.

  “Anyway, I don’t know why I’m going on about that. I just wanted to tell you about the phone call this morning.”

  “Okay, thanks,” she responded. “I’ll keep calling the number and maybe she’ll answer. It would be great to hear her voice and know that she’s okay.”

  Eve could hear him breathing on the other end of the phone. She waited to see what he wanted to say, wondered if he wanted to confess his fear or worry about his youngest daughter.

  “I’m glad Daniel’s going to the police,” he finally said, breaking the silence.

  “I think they’ll help us a lot,” she responded.

  “Okay.” He coughed. “Be careful,” he said, clicking off before Eve could reply.

  “Right,” she said to the line gone dead. She put down the receiver and fell back on the bed.

  Eve went over what she had just learned, naming the details out loud: “Dorisanne calls home at four o’clock in the morning. She has a Las Vegas number, not her old one, dials our father’s cell phone, but doesn’t leave a message and doesn’t pick up when he calls her.”

  She ran her fingers through her hair.

  “Dorisanne, where are you?”

  THIRTY-ONE

  By the time Eve had showered and gotten dressed for the day, Daniel had returned from his visit to the Las Vegas Police Department. They were both starving and decided to grab a bite of lunch before heading over to the apartment building. They found a Chinese restaurant close to the location where they were heading and ate quickly. It was 1:45 when they arrived at the building, and they both agreed they should wait until after two o’clock to make sure Steve had left and gone to work, keeping things as easy as possible for Pauline.

  “So we can’t file a missing person report because both Dorisanne and Robbie are missing, and there doesn’t appear to be any trouble at their apartment.” Eve was recounting what Daniel had already told her. “What did your friend at the department say about Robbie?” she asked as they sat in the parking lot. It was hot and she lowered the window. They had spoken about a few other events of the morning, but they had not discussed Dorisanne’s husband and whether or not there was any suspicion from the police cast in his direction.

  “Like I’ve told you before, he’s had a little trouble in the past,” Daniel answered.

  Eve waited. This wasn’t late-breaking news, she knew.

  A few cars came and went from the parking lot. They both watched them, knowing that they wouldn’t really be able to tell if Steve was in one of them or not since neither of them had seen him during their first visit.

  “Possession of stolen property, a few forged checks.” Daniel placed his hands on the steering wheel in front of him.

  Eve could see he wasn’t finished. She remained patient.

  “There’s talk,” he finally said.

  “Talk?” Eve asked.

  “My friend James Drennan thinks he’s involved in a credit card theft ring, stolen identities racket.”

  “But no arrests?”

  Daniel shook his head. “They’ve never really caught him in the act. Not enough evidence.”

  “So when you told James who Robbie was, he knew about him.” She glanced ahead, watching the sights through the windshield.

  “I told you I had him checked out when they first got married, so my friend was already alerted to Mr. Robert Miller.”

  Eve recalled Daniel’s earlier trips to Vegas, the Captain’s confession about the background checks on Robbie. She didn’t realize, however, that one of them had talked to police officers about her brother-in-law.

  “Was this credit card thing something from before they got married or is it recent?”

  “A few months ago,” he replied.

  Eve sighed, leaned her head back against the car seat. She had been hoping the best about her sister’s husband, hoping that this incident was only a bad debt that could be quickly remedied. But things were sounding a bit more complicated.

  “James thinks Robbie was on the ground floor, a Dumpster diver, somebody who finds the numbers and passes them along to the smarter guys.”

  “So he sorts through trash for credit card vouchers?”

  “Maybe.”

  “I thought most
of that kind of theft happened because of computer transactions. I was going to do the banking online for the office, but the Captain was convinced the account could be hacked. He doesn’t trust computers.”

  Daniel laughed. “A lot of folks don’t. But it’s actually not as risky as it was once thought to be. Most of the banking stuff is pretty secure. The truth is that the top methods identity thieves use to steal personal data are still pretty low-tech. These guys simply steal mail and try to get information from phone conversations. Stolen wallets, checkbooks, and credit and debit cards make up almost half of the reported incidents of identity theft.”

  “Robbie was going around stealing from mailboxes?” Eve asked. “That doesn’t sound very lucrative, and it seems pretty stupid, actually.”

  “Yeah, well, that’s why it’s the ground floor. But he was most likely not going around looking in mailboxes. He was probably going into hotels and casinos, hanging out around ATMs. There are usually a lot of drunks getting cash to gamble, and they tend to be a little sloppy with how they do things.”

  “Easy targets,” Eve added, with a new understanding of credit card theft and her brother-in-law’s possible extracurricular activities.

  They were quiet for a bit. Eve glanced at the clock on the dashboard. It was now fifteen minutes after two. She tried to push a thought out of her mind but finally had to ask Daniel’s opinion.

  “Do you think that’s the trouble Dorisanne had gotten into at the lounge, why she was fired? Do you think she’s involved somehow with Robbie?”

  Daniel turned to Eve. “I don’t want to think that about Dorisanne.” He turned back to look ahead. “But Robbie may have told her they didn’t have any options, told her she only needed to do a few hits, watch the ATM near the lounge, get a few numbers, and then they’d be out.” He drew in a breath. “You never know.” He shook his head. “There’s nothing predictable about your sister.”

  Eve watched a motorcycle make an exit from the parking lot, wondered if the driver was Steve, Pauline’s boyfriend, but she had no way to know. She leaned back again and closed her eyes. Could Dorisanne actually be deep into this mess too? Could she be involved in a theft ring? These were thoughts Eve didn’t want to consider.