“You bastard,” I cried.
Okay, probably not my smartest move, but it had to be said.
“Now now, Tate, flattery will get you nowhere. Anyhow, I was looking forward to taking your money. That would’ve improved my spirits, somewhat. But now that you haven’t paid, I’m feeling less charitable. So I guess I’ll just have to take my jollies where I can, so to speak. Shutting down Dazzlers will be a good start. Did you like that little piece in the news? I know Kiki hated seeing that tidbit — she took a job with us so immediately thereafter.”
“You’ve had your fun, you’ve slandered Dazzlers, and Kiki hates my guts. It’s over, Mac. Let her go.”
“No, I don’t think it is. You’re right, it has been entertaining, robbing you of the only thing you seemed to care for. That part was great. But there’s still the small matter of my fee.”
This made me snort. Of course Mac was hung up on the cash. I suppose you don’t make it this far in Vegas without being pretty attached to your coin purse, even if it was a minor amount of money. Besides, he knew that forcing me to pay, after my continual refusal to do so, would just be the final nail in my coffin.
What could I do? Even though it went against every fiber of my being, I had to give Mac the cash. Kiki’s life was now at stake, and I couldn’t let her come to harm just because of my stubbornness. This had gone on long enough. I would humble myself and pay Mac money he wasn’t due, just to save her. I’d pay the man who had conspired to ruin my casino, and by extension, my father’s legacy.
“In cash, if you don’t mind,” he added.
“I’ll be there in less than an hour,” I told him, every word like a knife in my throat. “And you touch a hair on her head before I get there, there’ll be hell to pay. Understood?”
“Don’t make threats, Tate. You’re no good at it. My guard will meet you at the door. If you’re not here by then, I’ll… hm, let’s see… I suppose I’ll start undressing her. She is so very scrumptious. How does that sound?”
Click.
Mac had hung up, and I lowered the phone from my ear, my hand shaking with rage. Kiki was in danger, and it was all my fault. I was the worst kind of man — the kind who dragged others down with him.
There was no time for self-contempt.
I dropped into a dead sprint across the floor of the casino. Normally my progress would be hindered by the swarms of people, but thanks to Mac, there weren’t any bodies to push through, save one or two drunks who were firmly affixed to their seats. I made it to the elevator in no time, pounding the button over and over and silently begging the metal box to descend faster.
“Come on, come on,” I muttered under my breath.
At last, it dinged and the doors opened.
I raced inside and pressed the button for my penthouse suite.
The ride was one long minute. I paced the elevator to and fro, fretting for Kiki’s safety, cursing Mac and his mother and her mother before that. How had I gotten mixed up in this? All I wanted to do was stay far away from my father’s casino, let someone else take the reins so that I didn’t have to do the dirty work or become too involved with the sordid affair. Now, a woman I cared for was being ransomed by a fellow casino owner who hadn’t liked my attitude in those board meetings.
No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t wash myself clean of the stink of my father. Kiki had scented it on me, calling me a spoiled little rich boy. Was I forever bound to wallow in my father’s muck?
The doors opened. I’d reached the top floor.
I darted to my Dazzlers penthouse apartment, moving as fast as my legs would carry me, and fumbled with the key before at last swinging open the door.
Okay, okay, now all I had to do was get to the safe. It was inset beneath a faux piece of marble beneath my kitchen island, probably because my dad had been rather paranoid about people trying to steal his money. In retrospect, given the current situation, he might have had a point.
Kneeling onto the floor, I pried the cover off the safe. The combination was easy — my mother’s birthday. Prior to their divorce, my dad had been a sentimental man, I guess. Paranoid, but apparently not so paranoid as to pick anything but the most obvious combination key.
I tapped in the numbers and twisted the handle, laying the safe open. There were stacks and stacks of cash filling the two-foot-deep safe to the very brim, each stack worth ten thousand.