“That boy, Kenny Leung, he’s the smartest kid I’ve ever seen when it comes to computers,” Prince Hatfield said thoughtfully. “I don’t know if we ever would have known how Miller did it if you hadn’t brought him to us yesterday. What’s going on with Miller, Mrs. Reilly?”
“He’s still being held at the Douglas County jail while the Nevada D.A. drafts up the murder charges,” Nina said. “I wouldn’t be surprised if he tries for an insanity defense.”
“May we have a few minutes?” Munzinger said.
“We don’t need a few minutes,” Riesner said.
“Quiet, Jeff,” Munzinger said.
“Of course.” Nina got up. “Oh, one other thing,” she said. “Part of any settlement among us. You gentlemen know Marlis Djina, the attorney who has been working with the Nevada Empowered Women’s Project?”
John Jovanic said, “The Kiss My Foot campaign. The lawyer.”
“That’s right. You also agree to a one-inch-heel maximum for shoes for the cocktail waitresses at Prize’s. No higher, unless the waitress wants it higher. The rest of the casinos that haven’t already will fall in line.”
She glided out. In the outer office Sandy was pretending to do some word processing. She straightened up and waggled an eyebrow. Nina put her finger to her lips. Then she went over to the wall and put her ear to it. It was cheap, paper-thin Sheetrock, not thick insulated paneling like the expensive office walls of Riesner and Munzinger.
She could hear perfectly.
Sandy couldn’t stand it. She tiptoed over, as well as a person of her substance could tiptoe, and put her ear to the wall too.
“She’s a menace,” Riesner was telling the rest. “We need to teach her a lesson. She’s lying. She couldn’t hold on six months. I have a friend at her bank, and I happen to know she hasn’t got squat for a bank account. She couldn’t bankroll lunch at a deli.”
Nina’s eyes narrowed and she gritted her teeth. Sandy put a hand on her arm.
“The publicity could bring in federal regulators,” Munzinger said. “They don’t mind looking the other way as long as it stays quiet, but she’s got CNN, Fox News, coming over here in half an hour. I heard 20/20 wants to do a story.”
“No,” a masculine voice said in horrified tones.
“It’s all legal,” Riesner went on. “20/20 already did a story, you remember, couple of years ago. And nobody cared. Why all the panic? It’s all been legitimized in your own state supreme court, by your A.G.’s office. You’re not gonna panic, are you? You think anybody’s gonna care about this story? You think you’re gonna lose one dollar of business? Think again. I’ve seen Reilly herself down there at Prize’s tossing in the quarters, and she’ll be there again come Saturday night.”
“Maybe if you adjusted your fees some, Jeff, we could get her to cover them as part of the settlement,” someone said. “My boss wants this over, and he told me not to take her to the wall. His wife was a client of hers. He has a soft spot.” It was John Jovanic, so he must be talking about Steve Rossmoor, the manager of Prize’s.
Ah. Thank you, Steve, Nina thought. So she did have a friend in the castle.
“Not gonna happen,” Riesner said.
“You have the hots for this little gal, don’t you, Jeff?” said a rumbling voice that could only belong to Prince Hatfield. “Makes you stubborn. Can’t let her whup your ass. Will you take fifty thousand?”
“No!”
“And the continued association of Global Gaming with your partners for our business needs?” Munzinger said.
“Oh. Now I see it. You’re gonna sacrifice me. The fatted calf—”
“Pretty lean at the moment,” Prince Hatfield said. Nina and Sandy heard the jolly laughs in the background. “Fifty is better than nothing.”
“You’re making a big mistake,” Riesner said. “You give her this, she’s gonna think she can do anything in this town. You’ll see her again. She’ll sting you every time if you don’t deal with her now.”
“Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee,” someone said. More laughter.
“What about the cocktail waitresses, John?” Prince Hatfield said. “The heel height for the cocktail servers?”
“You think it’s a deal-breaker?” John Jovanic said. “ ’Cuz if it’s not legs, it’s got to be tits, no offense to you ass men.” More chuckles all around. Both Sandy and Nina gritted their teeth.
“I think we have about twenty minutes to get this contained,” somebody said.
“Well,” Jovanic said, “the club owners of the Northern Nevada Gambling Association have been discussing this at great length. And we already decided to let the girls lower the shoe height.”
“Yeah? We’re all gettin’ pussy-whipped today,” somebody said.
Jovanic said, “Uh huh. We’re going to give ’em the low heels, but we’re gonna lower the bustiers by an inch. All new costumes.” Nina was pretty sure she was hearing some high fives in the conference room amid the general hilarity. “An inch for an inch,” Jovanic said, all choked up with laughter.
“Okay, so we’re all set,” Prince Hatfield said.
“No way,” Riesner said. “I haven’t agreed to anything.”
“Shut up, Jeff. Or we reduce your take to twenty thousand,” Thomas Munzinger said. “Okay? We all set?” Murmurs of approbation. Nina and Sandy tiptoed quickly to the front of the office and Sandy slid into her seat. Nina looked over Sandy’s shoulder at what Sandy was writing.
“@#%KJHCV:<?>,” was all Sandy’s neat letterhead paper said. The door opened. Nina assumed a face of extreme gravity.
“Please.”
She followed the arm wave into the roomful of men, who seemed to her now like a bunch of the boys in high school she remembered. She sat down and folded her hands.
“In the interests of all of us getting back to work, we are going to accept your proposal,” Thomas Munzinger said.
“Good move,” Nina said.
“One caveat.”
“Yes?”
“Mr. Riesner has indicated his willingness to reduce his fee to one hundred thousand dollars as his part in settling this matter. Now, that’s very fair. Of course, the money would have to come from Mrs. Potter’s winnings.”
“Sorry,” Nina said. “No deal.”
“Seven million dollars and you’re kicking about a hundred grand?” Prince Hatfield said.
“Not one dime out of my client’s money for this asshole,” Nina said.
They looked at each other. Riesner was, well, she thought, there was only one way to describe it.
Riesner was bullshit.
Jovanic looked to Munzinger. Munzinger looked to Prince Hatfield.
“Okay,” Prince Hatfield said. “We’ll cover his fee.”
“I’ll prepare the waiver and the settlement agreement,” Nina said. “The documents will be faxed to you tomorrow.” She stood up. “Thank you, gentlemen and Mr. Riesner,” she said, and John Jovanic gave a hearty laugh.
“It’s been a pleasure,” he said.
The men filed out, shaking hands, except for Riesner, who gave an inarticulate growl and rushed out the door without talking to anybody.
They were gone. “Cancel the press conference, Sandy,” Nina said. “The American public doesn’t want to hear this anyway.”
Sandy looked at her, a glint in the obsidian eyes.
“Well?” Nina said.
“I always said you had potential,” Sandy said. “There were doubters, but I always thought you’d get good eventually.”
“And I was good today,” Nina said.
“Yeah, you were. You finally got good.” The corner of her lip rose slightly.
“We’ve got court in the afternoon. We’re going to get this case dismissed, so let’s eat early, Sandy. I’m buying, and I’m thinking Mexican.”
“You’re always thinking Mexican.” But she got up and picked up her purse and Nina grabbed her wallet. They walked across the street to the Mexican restaurant and Nina had a mar
garita. And she thought about all the misery of practicing law, but then she thought about the scene in her conference room that had just occurred, and it felt like this:
She had never had so much fun in her entire life. And she wasn’t going to quit, because she had been made for this.
32
KENNY ASKED JESSIE to come with him to meet his parents.
“I don’t want to meet them like this,” she said in the car on the way over. “Can’t we wait for a better time?”
“There’s no better time. The lunch crowd will be gone. They close for an hour about now to rest before the dinner rush. And don’t worry.” He patted her thigh. “They’ll love you, I promise.”
They parked close to the restaurant.
“Pink and red,” Jessie said. “Bright.”
“My mother’s idea to attract the eye. Some people in the neighborhood think it’s tacky, but Mom’s right. No chance this business will recede tastefully into the forest.”
A “closed” sign hung in the window. He used a key.
Waving at his sister, who was clearing some tables, he sat Jessie down at a large, curved red leatherette booth. Colleen came over to introduce herself, set cups around, and poured tea. A few minutes later, following further introductions, Kenny’s parents were seated beside them, his father’s face long, his mother’s slightly alarmed.
“Where’s Tan-Mo?” Kenny asked.
“Gone back to school. Oh,” his father said nervously. “We need to speak to you about that, son.”
“You need your money.”
His parents glanced at Jessie. They looked deeply embarrassed.
“Don’t worry. Jessie knows everything, all about how generous you’ve been. And I came here to pay you back today, with interest.”
His parents beamed.
He told them almost all that had happened. The story took shape in his own mind as he told it to them, and as he spoke, leaving out the Glock but thinking about it, he saw that he had been about to kill himself over a fantasy. He stopped and bowed his head. But Jessie was there, and his family. He straightened up and went on.
Matt and his family waited at the dock, Matt bobbing in his new speedboat, the motor running. Troy and Brianna ran up to Bob, saying, “You’re late!”
“My mom,” Bob said. “She was busy.”
It was the morning of the last day of July, full sun, the air thin and pure, the water calm, the mountains ringing the lake all blue. Overhead, lake gulls wheeled and dipped.
Andrea helped Nina sling the picnic basket into the boat. Nina took Matt’s hand and got in, and the kids jumped in and sat in back where they could take the full force of the wind. Andrea was about to cast off the line when a big black pickup roared into the Ski Run Marina lot and stopped, the motor still running. Jessie Potter was driving. Kenny Leung was in the passenger seat. He held up a small face in the open window, grinning toothlessly. Gabe.
“I wanted to give you the key to the trailer,” Jessie said, running up. “Glad I caught you.” She passed over the keys and Nina stuck them in her pocket.
“Nice truck,” Matt said. “I’m jealous.”
“You like it? A Ford One-Fifty. Bought it yesterday.
I’m going to use it in my gardening business.” She grinned. “It’s what I always wanted. Somehow, compared to trying to do something new and brilliant like Kenny did, or going back to college, it seemed like a tiny dream to start my own landscape design and contracting business. But Kenny and I talked, and he’s right about something. It’s all about taking risks, and dreaming dreams and making them real and to hell with logic! Kenny and I have so much to do. He’s going to set up a Web site for me, a place where my clients can see their own properties come to life in 3-D. Right now, we’re going to Reno to buy tools and some computer stuff.”
“That’s great,” Nina said. “So, uh, how’s it going with Kenny?”
“We’re looking for a place to live. Has to be around Reno. There’s some nice country out past Sparks along the river.”
“You and Kenny?” Nina said.
Her healthy brown cheeks colored. “Me and Kenny.” She nodded. “That’s right. We’re shooting for a real wedding someday. Soon, if Kenny gets his way, but we’ll see. I promise, you’ll be invited if that ever comes off. Meanwhile, we went and saw his parents last week, and he paid them back. Next week, he’s cleaning out his condo in Mountain View.”
“Congratulations,” Andrea said. Jessie looked so strong and beautiful in her blue-striped shirt and tan shorts and hiking boots, and Kenny was hanging out the window now, helping the baby wave.
“Oh, and you probably don’t know it yet.” She was breathless with news and radiating happiness. “Kenny got a call yesterday. He went to talk to some people while I was out buying the truck. He lined up a great job working with computers in Reno. Isn’t that great? Starts next week.”
“Wonderful,” Nina said.
“We owe it all to you,” Jessie said. “The money’s the smallest part of it. You gave me my integrity back and saved Gabe’s life, maybe. This is for you.” It was a small white box with a green ribbon around it. “Come on, the motor’s running, open it!” Jessie cried, laughing. Nina pried off the ribbon and opened the lid. Inside under fluffy cotton was a thin gold chain. A golden charm dangled from it. Nina held it away from the sun, trying to get a good look at the charm.
“Why, it’s a slot machine!” Andrea said. It was about an inch square, with a minuscule handle. Nina touched the handle with the tip of her finger and it clicked down. The reels moved and three gold stars popped up. A tiny bell jingled.
“It’s a scream,” Andrea said. “Look at this, kids!”
“It always comes up stars. You always win. It’s for good luck,” Jessie said.
“I love it,” Nina said. Andrea helped her put it around her neck.
“Well, gotta go. Hope you’re going to get a few days off. Coming!” she called to Gabe, who was starting to holler. She said, “Bye!” and ran back to the truck.
“Cast off, Andrea,” Matt said. “Sit down, Nina.”
“Just a second. Kenny! Hey!”
Kenny leaned back out the window.
“Good luck in your new job!”
“Thanks! Prince Hatfield said to say hello!” They were shouting to be heard over the motor.
“Who?”
“Prince Hatfield!”
“From the Gaming Control Board? When did you see him?”
“Yesterday! He’s my new boss!”
Nina cupped an ear. She had sat down and Matt was moving slowly out.
“My new boss!” Kenny yelled, but it was faint on the wind. “I’m taking Miller’s job!” He waved and the truck left.
“Uh oh, shoot,” Nina said, dropping Jessie’s gift box. The small carton disassembled. Below the cotton that had held the charm snuggled a folded piece of paper. “What’s this?” She unfolded it.
A great big bonus check from Jessie. “For everything, with my thanks,” said the memo line.
“Jackpot,” Andrea said, peering over her shoulder at the amount. “Nina, I’m so glad for you! You are going to keep it?”
Nina put the check into her jacket pocket and zipped it tightly. “I certainly will, at least until Sandy gets her hands on it. Oh, Andrea! I can finally give Sandy a bonus.”
Ahead of them, water and wind. Matt pushed forward on the throttle and they roared out. Hitchcock dove to the floor and seemed to put his paws over his ears. Nina made sure she held his leash tight.
“Maybe she’ll take a vacation,” Andrea yelled over the engine. “Which you might find very restful!”
Nina pulled down her hat and hunkered down with the dog, laughing helplessly.
Clouds lay docile behind the mountains surrounded in blue as they cruised all the way across Lake Tahoe. The lake was so transparent Nina felt she could see a hundred feet down. At King’s Beach they dropped anchor and laid out blankets on the beach for a picnic. Matt and the kids went
for a walk and Andrea went looking for birds to photograph. Nina pulled off her shirt and lay back in the sun, falling promptly into a doze. All the events of the past weeks rose around her like sand castles, the endless jackpot night, Atchison Potter holding the baby in her office, Dr. Jun’s testimony, the attack on Riesner at the casino, eavesdropping on the boys in the conference room . . .
She was sound asleep when Andrea tapped her shoulder and said, “Wake up, sleepyhead, time to go.”
Bob sat up front with Matt on the way back so Matt could show him how to drive the boat. He took the wheel as they got closer to the shore and treated them to some fast water.
Nina watched Bob from the seat behind. His hair had grown out from the last buzz cut and it streamed in the wind. He wore sunglasses and kept his hands on the wheel, talking with Matt as they went.
She thought of Alex, and Alex’s mother. Brave people.
I’m so lucky. So lucky to be here today with people I love, she thought.
They got in about five and tied up.
“Good work, lieutenant,” Matt told Bob, giving him a soft sock on the chin. They gathered up the gear and Nina stashed the basket on the floor in the back of the Bronco.
“Come on over later if you want,” Andrea called from their car. “It’s Jet Li night around the old DVD.”
“Can’t,” Nina said. “We’re taking off. We’ll be back in a few days. Or so.”
Andrea came over to the Bronco and her practiced eye took in the backpacks in the back seat, the thermos, and the extra jackets.
“You’re taking a vacation?” she said. “How’d you talk her into it, Bob?”
“It was her idea,” Bob said, wiping sand off his feet with a towel.
“Let’s roll,” Nina said. Hitchcock jumped in and Bob climbed aboard and shut the passenger door. Andrea’s eyebrows were up around her hairline.
“Where . . .” she began.
“I’ll call,” Nina said. She reversed, backed up, and bumped out of the lot, leaving Andrea staring after them.
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