Page 109 of Close Pursuit

* * *

Katie waited until the last minute before the train pulled out of the station to jump off. She raced for the exit and didn’t see anyone hurrying after her. As far as her limited spy craft could tell, she hadn’t been followed.

She’d jumped off the train on impulse. An advertising poster mounted near the train’s ceiling had touted the new and improved Atlantic City, and it made her recall Alex’s reference once o a hooker there he’d particularly liked.

What was her name? Natasha Gudenov. Surely, the name was fake. For a hooker name, though, it wasn’t as obnoxious as it could have been. Not like some of the Bond girl names, for example.

“Cab, lady?”

Katie started. “Umm. Yes.” She named the casino Alex said Natasha had operated out of. The first casino he’d ripped off for a lot of money before it kicked him out. Natasha had saved his hide. Maybe she would do the same for Katie and Dawn.

Atlantic City at night reminded her of a miniature Las Vegas. Which was the point, she supposed. The cab deposited her in front of a big, flashy hotel and casino. She paid the guy cash and headed inside. So. How did a girl go about finding a hooker in a big hotel?

She headed for the casino and spotted a guy with a prominent earpiece soon enough. Hotel security. He was big and beefy but looked friendly enough.

“Excuse me,” she said politely, “I have a stupid question for you.”

“No question is stupid, ma’am,” the guy responded.

“I’m looking for someone who might be in the hotel, but I don’t know exactly how to find her. I was hoping you could help me.”

“”Your best bet would be to have the concierge look up the guest’s room number or have the front desk page your party.”

“You don’t understand. I’m not looking for just any guest. I’m looking for Natasha Gudenov.”

The guy’s eyes opened wide and his gaze involuntarily skimmed down her body. Checking to see if she was the new talent, was he? Based on that reaction, she was sure the guy knew Natasha.

“I don’t work with her. I just need a favor from her. She’s a friend of a friend.”

The guy frowned dubiously.

“Thing is, I’ve never met her and I don’t know what she looks like. If she’s here, could you maybe point her out to me? Or at least tell me what she looks like?”

“She looks like, umm, a movie star.”

Guys. What kind of description was that? “What color is her hair?”

“Blonde.”

“Light or dark? How long is it straight or curly?”

“Light. Umm. Bleached blonde. And it goes to her shoulder blades. She curls it if it’s not pulled back in a high ponytail.”

Kaite gathered from the move star description and the job description that the woman must have a great body and be pretty. “How tall is she? Does she wear a lot of make-up? Distinctive jewelry?”

“She’s real tall. Rumor has it she was a showgirl in Las Vegas before she got into…her current line of work. She wears dark eye-make-up. Lots of it. And she wears a lot of diamonds.”

“Where can I find her?” Katie prompted.

“She usually doesn’t come in till around midnight. Usually gets a martini and heads for the high roller’s area.”

It was nearly midnight, now. “Where’s this high roller’s area?”

“Children aren’t allowed on the casino floor, ma’am.”

Katie glanced down at the infant sleeping in her shoulder sling. “Good. Because this isn’t a child. It’s a sleeping baby. And I’ll leave as soon as I talk with Natasha. Scout’s honor.”

The guy frowned but pointed over his shoulder. “You’ll need a gold chip to get in.” He fished in his jacket pocket and held his hand out. A gold plastic poker chip lay in his palm. “Make it quick, okay?”

---