"But ..."
"Thought you'd pull a little switcheroo, eh, sir?" The moustached guard smiled. "I think it's time you moved along ... if you'll follow me. No harm done, folks! Just keeping the Fat Chance tables honest. Reclaim your bets and pass the dice to the next shooter!"
Lucas barely noticed the shocked faces of the other team members as they faded back into the crowd. His entire attention was arrested by the firm hands gripping his arms as he was propelled gently but steadily toward the casino entrance.
"But I'm a guest at this hotel!" he managed at last, still trying to make sense of what had happened.
"Not anymore, you aren't, sir," the sergeant informed him. "You'll find your luggage waiting for you outside."
"But I didn't do anything! Honest!"
While he might have accepted the risks of his chosen profession, Lucas shared everyman's disbelief and indignation at being found guilty of a crime when he was, in fact, innocent.
"I know that, sir." The sergeant winked. "We just got tired of waiting for you is all. Now, if you'll step this way?"
Things suddenly snapped into focus in Lucas's mind.
"Wait a minute," he said. "If my luggage is waiting, then somebody had to have packed it before you ..."
Wrenching his arms free from his captors, he stopped dead in his tracks and pointed an accusing finger at the sergeant.
"You set me up!" he proclaimed. "There wasn't anything wrong with the dice I was holding! And he ... he planted that extra pair in my pocket!"
"Quite right, sir," Moustache said smoothly. "The dice were yours, though. We just took the liberty of moving them from your room into your pocket is all."
"My room?"
"Yes, sir. If I might suggest, sir, it's unwise to keep an extra couple dozen pairs of dice in your luggage when staying at a casino. It tends to make nasty blokes like us suspicious, and not everybody's as nice and understanding as we are."
"What ... you searched my luggage? Before I did anything?"
"Just looking out for the owner's interests, sir," the sergeant said.
"But that's ... that's ..."
"Illegal? Quite right, sir. It would seem that you're not the only crook on Lorelei, but, of course, you already knew that. The real trick, sir, is not getting caught. Now, if you'll step this way?"
Sprawled at a table near the open front of one of the casino's cocktail lounges, Doc and Tiffany watched the procession march past.
"You know," Doc said, "that actually looks like it would be fun. Maybe I should put in a request to stand regular duty once in a while. If nothing else, it would justify wearing these uniforms all the time."
The actress made a face as she sipped her drink.
"It's got to be more fun than troweling makeup onto Dee Dee the Dip five times a day," she said. "Wouldn't you know that, after making that big fuss about not wanting a live stage crew, now the computer's been dry-cleaned, she's insisting we keep working the shows?"
"All I have to do is work the curtains," Doc said, "but I know what you mean. Still, I suppose it's closer to show business than standing around watching drunks lose money day in and day out."
"Maybe for you, Doc, but you're used to working behind the scenes. For someone like me who's used to being in view in some capacity or other, working support is a real comedown. At least standing guard would be role-playing of sorts."
The stuntman cocked an eyebrow at her. "You sound kinda down, Tiff. Anything bothering you?"
"This just isn't what I expected when I signed on is all," she said with a grimace. "Or after our surprise briefing, either."
"I see," Doc said, then shifted in his seat to stare pointedly at the ceiling. "This wouldn't have anything to do with your efforts to charm our captain, would it?"
Tiffany glared at him for a moment, then broke into a rueful smile.
"Bingo." She laughed. "You know, when we were on the ship on the way here, I thought that he was just busy planning this operation, and that I'd see more of him once we got settled in. The way it's worked out, though, what with us working the showroom, I see even less of him than I did on shipboard."
Smiling, Doc signaled the bartender for another round.
"To be honest with you, Tiffany," he said, "I don't think it would make much difference. From all I can tell, our Fearless Leader is pretty much married to his work. Everyone I've talked to says pretty much the same thing-that they don't get as much time with the captain as they would like, while at the same time muttering that they're afraid he's pushing himself too hard. All in all, I don't figure him as being much for play, no matter how tempting the bait is or how often you wave it at him."
The actress smiled and laid a hand on his arm.
"Thanks, Doc," she said. "That helps a little. Maybe it's because I'm spending so much time in front of a makeup table these days, but more and more I catch myself staring in the mirror and wondering, `Have you lost it? Has time finally run out?' I guess a bit of insecurity goes with the job ... or with being a woman, for that matter."
"Well, for what it's worth, I don't think you've lost it," the stuntman said with a wink. "That's not just my opinion, either. In case you haven't noticed, Junior has a real thing for you."
"I know!" Tiffany exclaimed, rolling her eyes. "I'll tell you, Doc, I don't know what to do about him. It seems like every time I turn around he's there offering to run an errand for me or just staring at me like I just stepped off a half-shell or something. I mean, he's a nice enough kid and all that, but he's just that-a kid!"
Doc grinned. "He's not that young. You should talk to him sometime. He's really quite mature mentally. And it might help him see you more as a person than as a goddess."
"I might give that a try. You know, when it comes right down to it, he's really kind of ..."
"Excuse me?"
The two broke off their conversation as a young woman in a short, tight skirt, possibly one of the show girls, stepped up to their table.
"I thought you should know ... there's a man hurt outside."
"What?" Doc frowned, momentarily confused by the change in focus.
"In the alley beside the casino," the woman said, "there's a man lying on the ground."
"What makes you think he's hurt?"
"I don't know ... He's not moving. He may just be drunk. I didn't get that close. I just thought I should tell someone, and you're the first people I've seen in a uniform."
"Thanks," Doc said. "We'll look into it."
"We will?" Tiffany said, cocking her head as the woman marched away.
"Sure. Why not?" the stuntman said, rising to his feet and digging out some money for their bill. "Weren't we both just complaining about being stuck backstage? Besides, remember that as far as the guests are concerned, we're as much security guards as anyone else in a black uniform. It would be out of character for us to try to find someone else to send instead of going ourselves."
The actress glanced around the casino, but none of the regular troops were in sight.
"I suppose you're right," she said, gathering up her purse. "I guess we can handle it."
"Sure we can," Doc assured her. "There's two of us and only one of him, and it sounds like he's drunk, to boot. Besides, if he gives us any trouble, we're armed, remember?"
He patted the tranquilizer pistol in the holster at his hip.
Tiffany rolled her eyes.
"Please don't start going macho on me, Doc. One of the things I like about you is that you don't strut."
"Sorry," the stuntman apologized easily. "Hanging around with both actors and military types seems to bring out the melodramatic in me. Seriously, Tiff, I figure all we have to do is check to see what the problem is, then use our wrist radios to call for the appropriate help-if it's needed at all, that is. That much we should be able to do."