Down On the Vegas Strip Page 2

  "I got a call from CJ. We're on the next flight out of Detroit Metro, so grab your stuff. We have to hustle if we're going to make the flight."

  "Well, why are you wasting my time with chit-chat?" Sady yelled. She jumped out of bed, and Matt smiled at her over-sized night shirt. It read, Life's too short to be kissing frogs. French fry the next hot guy you see.

  "I like that one," he said. "Care to give it a try?"

  "I will when I see a hot guy," she smirked.

  "Get packed, Morrow," he said with a sigh. "We're leaving in twenty minutes."

  They made their flight. Matt wished they hadn't. Sady frowned from her seat a few rows in front of him. She was in the kiddie section with screaming babies, tired parents, and out-of-control pre-school children. Matt smiled at her predicament and settled back in his seat. At least he tried to settle.

  A very large man in the window seat sprawled into Matt's space. Matt leaned toward the aisle, and the spinsterish looking bag of bones in the next seat looked at him like he was on the dessert menu. She smiled, baring her large yellow teeth. Matt tried to hunch into the center of his small seat. He shot a desperate look in Sady's direction and looked down quickly when he saw a baby spewing formula. He silently cursed CJ for putting them on a non-stop flight.

  Unending seemed more fitting, he thought when they finally arrived. Even as he made his way off the plane the woman with the yellow teeth seemed determined to stick with him. Out of desperation he grabbed Sady. "Blame it on yellow teeth," was all he said before he hastily gave her a world class kiss, ignoring comments from the other passengers.

  "Get a room."

  "John, cover the children's eyes!"

  "Buddy, just move it along, will you?"

  "That behavior shouldn't be allowed in public."

  "Way to go, dude!"

  “Is this the line for the kissing booth?”

  “You're a little too late to be reaching for the mile high club, fella.”

  The attendant wedged herself in between them. "You can exit now. The plane's empty," she said with a smirk. Embarrassed, Sady gave Matt a shove that almost sent him tumbling down the steps.

  "Finally," CJ greeted them with a huff in the terminal. "I thought you weren't on the flight."

  "I wish I hadn’t been," Matt snapped. "If you see that horsey looking woman with the yellow teeth let me know so I can run."

  "Enjoy the flight, Matt?" Harry asked with a smile.

  "I don't know why you're so happy. If I'm not mistaken you're the one in the hot seat... or should I say the hot bed?" Matt grinned at Harry, then looked at CJ from the corner of his eyes.

  "You'll be mistaken if you keep up that kind of talk," CJ warned.

  "Candy Jane, is the honeymoon over?" Matt foolishly asked. A second later he was begging CJ's forgiveness from his position on the floor. CJ planted her foot firmly on his chest.

  "Is there a problem here?" an airport security guard asked CJ.

  "Yes," Matt wheezed. CJ pushed her foot down and smiled at the guard.

  "No. I think he had a few too many on the flight. He fell down, and I stepped on him by accident. But he'll be fine once he comes to his senses. Isn't that right, Matt?"

  Matt nodded when CJ increased the pressure of her foot, and the security guard cautioned him about drinking during an airline flight. Sady turned to hide her laughter.

  Harry watched his wife with pride. If necessary, she could easily take out most of the terminal, including the guards, by herself. He could too, but it was more fun watching his wife in action.

  Once the security guard left CJ asked Matt if he would behave. He nodded, and she removed her foot after grinding it once more for good measure. Harry reached down and pulled Matt to his feet. "You're getting off to a bad start," Harry cautioned.

  Matt rubbed his chest with a glare at the women. "I'm getting off to a bad start?" CJ stepped toward him, and he apologized quickly. "Don't expect to see me at the pool," he told Harry. "Between the two of them I look like the victim of domestic violence."

  "You're not here for a vacation," CJ told him in a withering voice. "You're here to work. Now can we get on with it, or do you have any more foolish insults to get off your chest?"

  Matt shook his head. "I don't think there's much of my chest left. Let's go." CJ shoved them into a taxi and on to the hotel.

  Chapter 3

  "Who books a suite with three bedrooms for a second honeymoon?" Matt whispered to Sady. "Unless they are into something they don't want to admit. Ouch!"

  "Shame on you. You deserved that, and you know it! Harry told me they moved to this suite so we could work together without playing tag. Now get your mind out of the gutter, or I'm going to tell CJ. She's hopping mad that someone has messed with Harry. I wouldn't want to be that person when she finds them." Sady tapped her foot impatiently.

  "I guess this wouldn't be the right time to tell her it was me all along, and I just wanted a free trip to Vegas?" Matt asked.

  "Is it my imagination, or do you have some kind of death wish?" Sady replied. "I think for your sake I'd better intervene and go tell CJ your confession."

  Matt grabbed her arm. "Don't you dare," he breathed in her ear. "I'm not that desperate for a trip to Vegas. You know I'm just kidding... right?" Sady let him sweat for a minute before she relented with a smile.

  "Without Amanda here someone's got to keep you in line. Maybe I should have got a phone number from the woman with the yellow teeth," Sady suggested.

  "You win," he said with a shudder. "Just for that I get to pick which bedroom I want." He opened the doors to the available rooms and picked the nicer one. "Better view," he told her, pulling back the curtains to show her the street view with signs advertising showgirls.

  "Have you learned nothing from poor Harry?" Sady asked with a shake of her head. "For your own sake you get the other bedroom. The view is much safer."

  She picked up his bag and took it to the other room, dropping it on the bed. Pulling back the curtains she showed him the view- another high-rise hotel casino. "You'll thank me later," she promised.

  "When you are done admiring the view, I thought it would be nice if we could review the current situation. If you don't mind," CJ said sarcastically from the doorway. Sady gave her a hug which CJ accepted with a roll of her eyes. She wasn't a demonstrative woman, and right now she had someone to hunt down and hurt.

  "Is this group hug therapy?" Matt asked. "Because if so, there's a woman down in the lobby..." CJ gave him a smile as Sady released her and turned on Matt.

  "What's wrong with you? I really am sorry I didn't get that woman's phone number," she stated. "The one with the yellow teeth on the plane. She had the hots for Matt," Sady explained CJ. "If he keeps this up I'm calling Amanda for reinforcement."

  "I think we've jumped the track," Matt reminded Sady, grabbing her arm and pulling her to the common room of the suite. Harry sat with a folder and papers spread out across the table.

  "They were deciding on rooms," CJ said in a snippy voice. No one took offense. They all knew CJ's anger was directed at the person blackmailing her husband.

  Sady slipped into a chair with a smile of apology at Harry. He winked and passed around the papers he and CJ collected since the previous day's conference.

  "Since you're going to ask anyway, I'll tell you my side. What I can remember, anyway. The day before yesterday CJ went to bed early with a headache."

  Sady kicked Matt under the table when she saw his grin.

  Harry ignored them and continued, "I went to the show here at the hotel and sat with a guy who came in on the same flight. He wanted to go to another club for a drink. Let me tell you this is one of those times it doesn't pay to be the nice guy. We went to the Can-Can Club. The last thing I remember before waking up in a strange room was taking a drink of whatever that guy ordered for me."

  "Was the, uh, young woman still there when you woke up?" Matt asked. At the looks he got from Sady and CJ he said, "What? It's a guy thing
... Well, was she?"

  "Yeah," CJ thundered. "We all went out and had a nice breakfast after the blackmail photo session was over."

  "Here's where you apologize," Sady suggested to Matt.

  "For being an investigator? I don't think so," he told her. A growl from CJ brought them back to the present.

  Harry continued his story before the conversation went astray. "I grabbed a cab and came back here. I knew something wasn't right, but I wasn't robbed or assaulted. It wasn't until you let us know about the pictures that we realized what had happened. So then we checked the club. The security tape from that night had been accidentally erased, and no one knows the woman in the photos... they claim. It's obvious someone knows something, but they aren't talking to us... now. CJ may have been a little overzealous in her quest for answers," Harry said.

  “Aren't the police able to help?” Sady asked.

  Matt patted her on the head. “She's cute, but naïve.” He explained to Sady, “This doesn't even register on the crime scale in a city like this. Filing a police report would have been a waste of time and a dead end. The LVPD doesn't have the time or resources to pursue cases like this.”

  Sady frowned and asked, "So, where's the room?"

  "Next door to the club. It's the kind of place that rents by the hour. Their cameras were broken that night," Harry said with a sigh. "I can't track down the guy I was with either. We called in a few favors to check on him. The name he gave isn't showing up on the airline or hotel records. CJ and I have been reviewing possible motives. The only one that makes sense is that someone feels I wronged them. The threat isn't directed at the business or CJ."

  "Do you think it has anything to do with any work you did for Uncle John in the past?" Sady wondered.

  "Not likely. That was all a long time ago. If it was from that angle I'd have expected it years ago. I have Morrow checking a few things, just in case. But this seems more personal. The set up and photos suggest someone wants me to suffer."

  Sady shivered. She'd been in that position not so long ago. When she felt Matt's hand on the back of her neck, gently massaging, she jumped. They all looked at her skittish reaction. "Are you okay?" Matt asked.

  She smiled. "As long as no one sends blackmail pictures of me in bed with a strange woman." Matt's hand stilled, and she elbowed him. "That's not hot, Matt. It's sick." He grinned and continued the massage.

  "And here are the blackmail pictures of the woman," Harry said. "Again, no one seems to know who she is. She doesn't have a record, at least here in Vegas."

  "Are you sure?" Sady asked. "It looks like she has rug burn on her knees. I bet she's been around the block a time or ten. She's a lot older than she's pretending to be. Look at the bags under her eyes. And the lines around her mouth. Of course, she could be a heavy smoker, but that skin on her neck looks like it came off a chicken. Notice her sagging jawline. And that bra she's wearing is working overtime to hold up those droopy boobs. See how she keeps her thighs under the sheet? I bet she has varicose veins and cellulite that could get her arrested for ugly." She stopped and peeked up when the room got unusually quiet. "Sorry, occupational hazard," she smiled. "Shall I continue?"

  "As long as you don't critique my husband," CJ quipped.

  "There's nothing bad there, CJ, I assure you." Matt glared daggers, and Sady said hastily, "But, back to the subject at hand. I'm not seeing any pale skin where a wedding ring would be, so she's not currently married- no surprise there. Oops, did I say that out loud? Perhaps I should have mentioned occupational cattiness as well. But continuing on. The necklace she's wearing is expensive. From the looks of it, I'd say it's real and very new. Skin oils, makeup, and perfume can dull a piece of jewelry quickly. Those stones are blinding, and I doubt she took the time to shine her necklace for the picture."

  "Her overworked bra is from Victoria's Secret- don't ask how I know. Her hair roots are showing which means she probably has her hair done professionally. If she dyed her own she wouldn't go out of the house with roots like that. Same with the nails. That's a nice set of acrylics she's got, but they're chipping which means she probably can't afford to get them done regularly. I'd bet the necklace is her payment for this job."

  She turned to them and finished with, "She'll pawn that necklace. A woman who needs her hair and nails done isn't going to keep a pricey necklace at the expense of her personal looks. She won't be using a reputable place either. Not with the job she just pulled. The fewer questions, the better, even if it means less cash."

  They gazed at her in awe and admiration. Sady grinned. "And here you thought being a former beauty queen had no practical value. Oh, one other thing. See that stamp on her hand? I bet that came from the Can-Can Club. Harry has one as well- see? And if you put that woman in a lineup dressed as a man I could still identify her."

  "Give the lady a raise," Harry said appreciatively. "That gives us two angles to work. The pawn shops and the club. Since CJ got us banned from the club, we'll let you two work that angle. We'll look into the necklace/pawn shop connection."

  Harry and CJ got busy on the computer while Matt stared at Sady with a suspicious look. "What?" she asked.

  "Do you assess everyone you meet like that?" he asked.

  "Nope. Only potential rivals or threats. But, if you want a professional assessment I'd be happy to give you one," she offered.

  "I don't think my ego would survive," he muttered.

  She leaned close and whispered in his ear, "And you would be so wrong. But I guess your ego doesn't need any inflating, so it's a good thing you turned me down."

  "Can I change my mind?" he asked eagerly.

  "No. It's a once-in-a-lifetime offer," she teased. "Now, we have work to do. Get busy and find something we can use to get answers at that club."

  Chapter 4

  "No! Absolutely not," Sady said hotly. "I won't do it!"

  "It's for Harry," Matt reminded her. "And CJ... and your job."

  "You think this is funny, don't you?" she accused him.

  "No. Well, yes, actually I do. But don't blame me. You're the one who told me to find a way to get answers."

  "I didn't suggest you look for amateur night job openings at the club," she snapped. Matt poked her and pointed at Harry. He and CJ appeared somber, checking paperwork together.

  "That's not fair," Sady told him. He waited. "Okay, but for the record I don't like it."

  "You don't have to like it. As long as everyone else does," Matt leered.

  Two hours later Sady said, "I can't believe I'm doing this. I can't believe my life has descended to this level of depravity."

  "You're up next, honey," a buxom bleach blonde said to Sady with a look of pity. "Good luck."

  Matt was ogling the blonde. Sady hissed like a cat and bared her fangs from the doorway. Matt jumped up with a guilty look and followed her into the office of the Can-Can Club manager.

  He looked up from his desk. "Which one of you is auditioning?" he asked, making Sady snicker. Matt turned red and gave Sady a shove.

  "What's your name, darling? And who have brought along? I don't need any jealous boyfriends or husbands here for auditions."

  "I'm Sandy-Sue, and this is my manager, Matt."

  The manager gave her the same look of pity his assistant had. "Sweetie, I don't need another amateur melon shaker who shimmies up and down a pole." He took a closer look and suggested insultingly, "Why don't you come back after you get implants?"

  Sady bit her tongue and glared at Matt. "Harry," Matt mouthed silently, and Sady turned back to the manager with fire in her eyes.

  Seductively she purred, "Sweetie, I don't shimmy up and down a pole shaking fake melons."

  That got his interest. "Turn around," he demanded. Sady did so with a look that threatened she would kill Matt. "Nice," the manager said. "Maybe we can find something for you after all. Granted, you don't have much front page news, but some guys prefer the back page ads, if you know what I mean. After all, we are the Can-Can Club," he said w
ith a wink. "And you definitely have a nice one."

  Matt was trying not to laugh, and Sady was trying to keep her temper under control. "Well, thanks, but I have more than just a nice can to offer," she ground out.

  The manager scoped her again then asked, ”So what's your act?"

  "She juggles," Matt offered with a smirk.

  "That might be interesting," the manager said. "If you were a few cup sizes bigger. What else can you do? I need real entertainers, sweetie, someone who has an act."

  Sady rolled her eyes and asked, "Do you have a cowgirl?" Matt choked, and the manager lunged out of his seat.

  "Are you serious, honey? As in ride 'em cowboy? Because we have a mechanical bull, and if you can work that into an act you've got yourself a job. Provided you can really stay on the thing."

  "Yes, I'm serious, and it's not a ride 'em cowboy act," she said with a strained smile. "Would you settle for round up time with a lasso?"

  "Hell, yes! We'll have the best bachelor parties in town if you can deliver that, little lady. I need an audition first." He rushed to open the door.

  "Of course, you do," Sady said with a sigh. "I didn't bring my rope."

  "No problem. We have plenty on hand. You just follow me and pick your poison." He pointed to Matt. "You go take a seat out front."

  Sady followed the manager and kept thinking, "I'm doing this for Harry, I'm doing this for Harry." She found a suitable rope, and the manager took her to the side of the stage, where a mechanical bull waited for her humiliation to escalate.

  "Saddle up," the manager said lecherously. Sady took a minute to adjust her rope and obediently climbed on the bull. The manager started it up and Sady rode it, imagining all the ways she could kill Matt. "Is that all you have?" he asked, disappointed.

  "Speed it up," Sady snapped. "More." Matt watched in fascination as she rode with no hands. A few seconds later he jumped to his feet with a jerk. Sady had tossed the lasso around his chest and yanked him toward the stage. "Not one word," she threatened at his huge grin.