Page 10 of Vicious Little Games

The man snorts, making him look even more bullish. “I'm not asking my boss where the fuck he is.”

“Then tell him that I asked and that it's important to the penthouse’s security.”

With a huff, the bull starts texting with his sausage fingers. I stand around in the hall and wait with my hands in my jean pockets, refusing to walk away until he gets a response.

“I'll come get you when I hear back,” he eventually says. “It could take a while.”

Leaning against the hallway wall, I fold my arms over my chest and tell him, “I've got nothing but time.”

It's true. Without classes, or needing to earn cash to live on, I'm a free man living in Vegas for the next three months with only one thing hanging over my head. How the hell am I going to get my hands on twenty thousand dollars in one month’s time?

I could ask my mom, but we’re not exactly speaking at the moment. And she would only ask me what I need so much cash for and get suspicious. The reason I need the money is to make sure she never finds out what I did.

The ding of a new incoming message on the guard’s phone has me straightening. I give the bull a second to read it. Well, several seconds since he’s taking his time. “Titus said he's downstairs and will meet you in the lounge where your mom used to waitress.”

I grit my teeth, not liking the way he said that shit. Yes, it's true that my mother was a cocktail waitress for years in Dante's casino before they hooked up or whatever. I just don't like him implying that her prior occupation somehow makes her beneath him. “Yes, my mother preferred slinging drinks to drunk assholes rather than live with her insanely wealthy father while he ran the Russian mafia. Makes you think, right?”

The two guards trade a look with each other, but I've had enough of both of them. Maybe they are the ones screwing Cass and I can figure out a way to make them regret it. Not that I care. It's just...frustrating to think of random men hooking up with her right under her father's nose in his damn house. How has Dante not noticed? The man knew when my plane was arriving in the airport when I just bought the ticket this morning.

I take the elevator down to the main floor, then from there it's a short walk to the lounge. Titus is a big guy, Dante's second and best friend, the head of casino and hotel security. He's not easy to miss in his designer suit.

I slide into the booth with him and say, "Thanks for taking a minute to meet with me."

“No problem. What's up, kid?”

I don't care for the kid comment, but I let it slide since the man is old enough to be my father. For all I know he could be.

My mom has no idea who impregnated her during a one-night stand when she was a teenager. The only thing I know about my old man is that he was a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity at USC. Or he was at a fraternity party on a college campus one night. It could literally be anyone in the world.

“So, I've got a question for you,” I start. “And I don't think Dante needs to know we talked, at least not right now.”

Titus arches a thick dark eyebrow. “You want me to lie to my boss?” Again, he uses the term boss since that holds more weight than friend. I have the feeling that Dante Salvato doesn't have many friends he wouldn't shoot in the head if they stepped a toe out of line.

“I'm not asking you to lie to him, just not inform him of shit he doesn't ask you about directly.”

Titus takes a sip of his glass of amber liquid, then asks, “And what is the shit that you want to know that he wouldn't ask me about?”

“Just the names of the guards who have been on penthouse night shifts for the past few weeks. Oh, and the ones scheduled for the next several weeks.”

He grunts something unintelligible then drinks the rest of his liquor, slamming the empty glass down on the table. “Why?”

“Need to know basis,” I reply rather than rat out my suspicions about Cass to him. I’d rather be the only one who knows her secret.

And fuck me, I guess the two of us have a secret that needs to be kept quiet now too.

Why the hell did I kiss her and grab her ass after the crazy bitch tried to drown me?

“You want me to go through old schedules and tell you who will be working the penthouse shift at night?” Titus grumbles.

“Yes. And I also want to know if they come and go inside the penthouse during the day or night.”

“Well, yeah, they come and go, patrolling the interior of the house every two hours, the entire day and night. All except the third floor.”

“And Dante approved that, letting them in the penthouse every two hours as long as they stay off the third floor?”

“Of course, he did.”

“Are there any cameras in the penthouse?”

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