Page 90 of Stuart Woods' Smolder

He could do that much for his dead friend.

—

Stone, Monica, and Dino dined at Koi on La Cienega, then made their way to the Roosevelt, where a pair of valets opened the doors.

“Do me a favor,” Stone said to the one who took his keys. “Keep it close.” He slipped the man a hundred-dollar bill.

“No problem, sir.”

Stone joined Dino and Monica on the sidewalk.

“What time do you have?” she asked.

Stone checked his watch. “Ten to eight.”

“I doubt he’ll be here yet.”

“If he comes at all,” Dino said.

“I’ll go in first,” she said. “Wish me luck.”

“It’ll be fine,” Stone said.

She crossed her fingers, then walked into the hotel.

They gave her a five-minute head start, then went inside.

“Wow,” Dino said as they stepped into the chandelier-lit lobby. “Not bad. Reminds me of old Hollywood.”

“Thisisold Hollywood. The first Academy Awards were held here.”

“In this room?”

“In one of the ballrooms, I believe.”

“I guess that makes more sense. Be strange if someone was trying to check in while Clark Gable was getting an Oscar.”

“Your deductive reasoning never fails to amaze me.”

They made their way to the bar, took the table two away from Monica’s, and signaled for the waiter.

—

Phillip watched Tristan through the spy hole in the gallery’s rear door. As soon as the Prius pulled out of the lot, Phillip jogged outside. After seeing which way Tristan turned on Melrose, he hopped into the town car and took up pursuit.

Tristan headed east, but instead of continuing to his home in Echo Park, he stopped in Hollywood and parked down a side street near Grauman’s Chinese Theatre.

Phillip drove past him and found an empty spot half a block down. Watching through the rear window, he saw Tristan exithis car and start walking toward Hollywood Boulevard. He hopped out and followed.

Tristan was a half block from the boulevard when he turned into a parking lot, vanishing from sight. Phillip quickened his pace and caught a brief glimpse of Tristan right before he disappeared again, this time through the entrance of the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel.

Phillip could wait until the kid reemerged, but he needed to find out what Tristan was up to.

He entered the hotel and paused long enough to scan the lobby and determine Tristan wasn’t present. If he’d gone to one of the rooms, then Phillip wasn’t going to find him, but that wasn’t the only place Tristan could be.

Phillip approached one of the hotel employees. “Does this place have a bar?”

Chapter 28

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