Page 62 of Strip Search

“Zeke would know more. He brought them to me a few times.”

“Leonidas?”

“Once or twice, but mostly his lieutenants. They brag and talk.”

“Was Paulie selling?”

“No, but he talked a good game. He’s in love with Ginny. I think he pretended to sell to make himself look cool.” Dee rolled her eyes.

Grier might be able to get something helpful out of Dee. I’d have to suggest that he come up here to “talk” with her. “I’m sorry Liu was such a prick to you. You could have come to me and I would have ended it.”

“I was going to leave anyway as soon as one of the brothels picked me up. I was more sick of not being able to negotiate my own prices when Zeke set me up with dates.”

“Is the security tight here?”

She nodded. “They’re always on top of things. If you’re ever looking for a job, I’ll put in a good word for you.”

Jackie grabbed my hand and tugged. “He won’t be. We’ll leave you to it. If Lisa calls you, can you tell her to call me?”

“Sure,” Dee said. “And Miles, come back anytime.”

Ugh. She had to go there.

Jackie pulled me out of the room and didn’t say a word to me until we were in the car.

“Did you think Angelique was pretty?”

I shrugged. “I guess. The feathers were a bit distracting. You’re prettier.”

She smiled, linking her fingers through mine. I started the car and headed back to Vegas.

“I know we had plans tonight. Can we alter them?” Jackie asked.

I hid a sigh. “Of course.”

“How long is it to Carson City?”

“By car, about six hours. If you charter a plane, it’s about an hour. If you go the regular airport route, it’s cheaper but by the time you’re past security it’s about double that time.”

“You know I’ve got to go to Carson City, right?”

“Yeah,” I said slowly. I knew where this was going.

“How about you come with me? We’ll get dinner at the airport and skip the show. We’ll land too late for the winery to be open, but I figure we could have our evening in my hotel room in Carson City. The rest of the plan can stay the same.”

She surprised me. I’d figured she’d want to storm the winery.

“Sounds like a great plan. I especially like the part where the next day you confront Lisa and then get back to enjoying your vacation.”

“Me too. Okay. You drive us back to the Wynn and I’ll make all the arrangements.”

Jackie already had her phone out.

Chapter Sixteen

Jackie Mitchell

I was spending a lot more money than I had originally planned on. Yeah, I was sticking it to Lisa by staying at the Wynn, but the plane tickets and the bribes/tips I’d been paying out were starting to add up. I didn’t want to bankrupt Lisa, if she was even going to be able to pay me back from any residuals or royalties she was still getting from the odd commercial or television show. While my mother would probably cover anything Lisa couldn’t, she shouldn’t have to. This could have all been solved by a few simple phone calls.

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