“Thanks for telling the truth.” She turned her head to scan the expansive theater as if danger lurked in the shadows.
His senses alert, Justin started when an air conditioner kicked on. Exhaling, he said, “Allie, tell me what’s going on.”
“I don’t want you to think I’m narking on them. I mean, this is bigger than telling tales out of school, right? Daddy could be in real danger.”
He nodded.
“Then I need to do everything I can to help him. And I think you stand a better chance of finding him then they do.”
“They who?”
“My sisters.”
Chapter Eight
Iris jumped back, barely avoiding the door as it slammed against the wall. A man roughly twice her size barreled in and grabbed her arm. She tried to scream, but he muffled her mouth, nose, and most of her eyes with his other hand.
A shadow entered behind him. “Gently, Pebbles. We may need answers from her.” A wiry guy stuck his ferret face into hers. “You Iris Fortune?”
She nodded, too scared to breathe.
“No screaming. We just have a couple questions for you.” He nodded to the big Pebbles guy, who removed his hand from her mouth.
“What do you want?” Iris whispered.
“We’re friends of Mickey’s,” Ferret Face said.
She wasn’t sure which troubled her more-the idea that he was lying, or the thought that he might be telling the truth. What if Mickey had sent them here to take care of her?
Pebbles gave a rumbling chuckle. “Hey, look, Jock, there’s the bunny.”
Edgar hopped from beneath the table right to Pebble’s size-eighteen Nikes. The big guy hunkered down to pet him.
“So Mickey brought you the bunny. Well, Miss Fortune, does that mean you already gave him the stones?”
Iris’s gaze swiveled from the rabbit to Pebbles to Jock. Would it be that easy to get rid of these guys? “Yes. You just missed him. Mickey left here about ten minutes ago with the, um, gems.” In case these two didn’t know about the alexandrite, she didn’t want to name what type of stone Mickey had.
“Smart girl. This will make things much easier.” Jock took her arm, none too gently. “Let’s get your things.”
Iris struggled. For his size, he had a heck of a grip. “I answered your questions.”
“Yes, you did. And if you keep cooperating, everything will be fine. If you don’t, someone’s gonna get hurt.”
Determined to escape, she balled her free hand into a fist, but her captor caught her wrist before she could strike him.
“Someone, meaning you.” His gold tooth flashed in what passed for a smile. “We’re going to take a little trip, Miss Fortune. Hey, I like that-Miss Fortune-sorta says it all.”
“Can we take the bunny this time?” Pebbles asked. He’d already picked the rabbit up and was cradling him like a baby in his arms. At the moment, the giant looked far less dangerous.
“He’ll be too much trouble.”
Watching Edgar, Iris swore he looked right at her, as if to remind her not to leave him behind. If nothing else, she wanted to keep a sharp eye on that collar. She sure didn’t need Edgar winding up in an animal shelter wearing ten million around his neck.
“There’s a box here for him,” she said. “If we leave him here, my assistant will know right away that something’s happened to me.”
Jock’s eyes narrowed on her as he considered her words. “Right. Get your purse and your keys. We’ll go out the service door.” He followed as she gathered her things with shaky fingers. “Pebbles, put the bunny in that box. I don’t want anyone seeing him. He’ll draw too much attention to us.”
Thank heavens. She didn’t need that collar changing colors in the bright sunlight outside.
She thought about making an escape attempt but knew she didn’t stand a chance against these two. Jock had a gun stuffed in the waistband of his slacks-something she’d learned to look for after being around Mickey for less than forty-eight hours.
“What are you going to do with me?” she asked as they stepped into the hallway. Maybe she could make a run for it in the parking lot.
“No worries,” Jock said. “You’ll be our guest until Mickey delivers the goods. Then we’ll arrange a little reunion for you and our friend Mickey boy.”
His snide laugh lit a fuse to sheer panic. Would anyone notice if she disappeared? Would it matter to them? She hadn’t made herself vital to Cosmo, and she’d held her new sisters at arms’ length. She’d given Mickey what he wanted. Even David would probably be better off without her. She was completely unimportant.
What a horrible revelation.
Cosmo pumped another nickel into the slot machine while he waited. He didn’t bother with the buttons, but used the lever on the side, even though the billowing caftan he wore made it awkward. He’d darkened his skin with stage makeup, so even the backs of his hands were an unfamiliar pale brown. His tongue rubbed at the fake gold cap he’d used to cover a front tooth.
Iris had noticed him peering at her jewelry displays, but she hadn’t consciously recognized him. As dangerous as it was to see her, he felt it was best if he reclaimed the alexandrites he’d dropped off here the other night.
He suspected she’d found them, but he knew in his heart she wouldn’t give them to Mickey. If she’d given him anything, it would be the imitations Irina’s family had sent years ago. They were good copies, but vanadium-treated corundum wouldn’t fool Donovan’s people for long.
Rooting out his wallet, he fed a five-dollar bill into the machine, prepared to play as long as necessary. Hopefully, Iris wasn’t planning on putting in a full day. He pulled the lever and watched the wheels again. An elderly lady in a bright pink rhinestone-studded jogging suit walked down the aisle of mostly empty machines then returned to sit beside him. She stuck her player’s card in the machine and fed it a twenty. Gardenia perfume mixed with the fog of cigarette smoke, making Cosmo long for a Coke and a little fresh air. But he didn’t want to risk missing Iris.
It was time he spoke to her. She deserved that and much more. If anything happened to him, he wanted her to know the truth.
After another half hour, Ginny, Iris’s young shop assistant, arrived and unlocked the door. She relocked the doors from the inside and disappeared into the back. He waited while the store’s bright lights lit up like the Strip. Ginny returned to prop open the big glass doors.
Still no Iris. Cosmo abandoned his machine and wandered over to the store. His late wife, Irina, had loved this shop more than home. Now, Iris had followed in her footsteps.
He nodded to Ginny when she greeted him in her chirpy voice. Methodically, he walked the entire store, perusing every case, listening for any sound of life from the back room. Within two minutes, his sixth sense told him no one else was here besides him and Ginny.
Iris had disappeared on him.
On her day off, the last thing Cory wanted to do was hang out at a casino, especially not the smaller, more claustrophobic ones up on Fremont Street. At least they wouldn’t be overcrowded in the middle of a Sunday afternoon. Even some of the street vendors had chosen not to open up during the hottest part of the day. The neighborhood was pretty empty, except for some tourists who hadn’t figured out the desert’s high heat and low humidity sucked the moisture right out of your body.
Cory looked up at the sign for the Four Queens, its colored light bulb garishness standing out even in the bright afternoon. Papa hadn’t pulled those queens out of her deck yesterday by chance. He’d shown her three, but she knew there was a fourth queen in his world.
A queen she’d hoped never to face again.
With a deep breath, she gripped the brass door handle, prepared to do what she must to help her father.