Damien pursed his lips. “Around two years. Good gig. Main thing you have to watch for lately is drug deals in the parking lot and cheaters on the tables. Few drunks, but they’re easy to get rid of.”
“Gotcha. Tell me more about the drug deals. Is that happening now?” I quizzed.
“Ah, not so much. We had a spike of people trying to set up, but we got rid of them,” Damien explained.
“Good. Alright, I’m going to head down and walk the floor.” I was keen to get back out on the ground, and hoping to see the sassy hottie along the way.
“Okay, man.” He nodded at me.
“I’ll contact you on the walkie if anything’s up.” I moved down to the ground floor and started my rounds. I beganwith the slot machines. Older ladies sat there with their glassy eyes peeled, waiting for the machine to save them from their tired lives as the virtual wheels on the screen spun. I lingered as I saw two shifty guys hovering around the slot machine.
When they saw me looking at them, they quickly moved on. I chuckled internally. If they thought that was enough to get me off their tail, they had another think coming. I followed them slowly, not taking my eyes off them. Slot machines in the casino had a long history of thievery. I wanted to make sure they weren’t up to anything. I followed them to the food lounge and watched them order.
Another security guard was posted in the space.
I nodded my head to the men.
He pressed the button on his radio. “Got it. Copy.”
Satisfied that he would take care of them should anything arise, I moved through to the card tables. I wanted to see that ungrateful hot little number again. My eyes panned the room as I listened to the sound of balls rolling at the roulette tables. Chips clinked together as patrons tried their hands, hoping to win big. I stood for a couple of minutes at each table inconspicuously, far enough away, so players didn’t feel crowded. My size made it hard for me to glide through undetected being a big man with a bunch of tattoos and dark eyes. People got the wrong idea about me from the jump, which annoyed me. I was a pretty nice guy?if you were on the right side of me. On the wrong side?well, you’re going to get what’s coming to you.
Her shiny dark hair captivated me first, then my eyes gravitated downwards to her derriere. Yup…my mystery woman. I pulled back once I spotted her at the blackjack table. Wearing a long black maxi dress with a teal necklace and sandals. Elegant and sassy. I watched her as she slid her chips forward and the players beside her smiled.
The dealer turned the cards over and gestured to the players to either fold, hold or turn their cards over.
I found my eyes wanting to close as I kept watching the game. I was a poker man myself. Time permitting, the guys would get together and play a social game to blow off steam. I was a little rusty, but not bad.
I was only interested in watching this table because of the mystery woman with a chip on her shoulder?nothing on the table had roused my interest. I cracked the air out of my knuckles as the game progressed.
No. She didn’t just do what I thought she did. A slight of hand. Blink and you’d miss it. I could have sworn I saw her with 16 in her hand earlier. How did she get an ace? I spotted the devious grin on her face, but didn’t believe it. I ran my hand through my hair in irritation.
Ah, no way. I would need to check the security camera on that one.
She dragged her winning chips towards herself, then headed to the roulette table.
My eyes were quick when I needed them to be. My gut told me something had just happened, but I had to confirm it on one of the thirty surveillance cameras in the security room. They say the eye in the sky doesn’t lie. I knew there were cameras hidden above every table.
She hadn’t seen me watching her yet. I stood adjacent to her at the next table she went to as the croupier spun the roulette wheel. The table was crowded as a lot of people were playing. She tapped her foot as she smiled with the others waiting to get on the table. I frowned. It didn’t make sense for her to go to the crowded table when there were other free roulette tables. Now my radar was focused on her. She was up to something and I decided to put a stop to it.
I watched as she put a few chips down on a number and jostled for a seat. The gentleman next to her begrudgingly, shifted to the side. She flashed a sweet smile at him. My eyes were focused on her. Her hands were quick and her eyes were firmly fixated on the dealer. She tried to put her chips down on a number after the winning number was established. The croupier put up her palm to say no,and she slid her arm back. I saw the green chip under her arm slid right onto the diamond closest to her.
Damn. She was good. I couldn’t be sure if I saw what I thought I saw. Was it an illusion? Maybe I had it wrong.
“What the hell is she doing?” I muttered under my breath. I blinked rapidly. My eyes were stinging from concentrating so hard on her. By the time I’d blinked, she moved to another table. Shit. I’d lost her. She couldn’t have gone that far, but I frantically tried to find her.
She’d vanished like Houdini.
I wanted to locate her, but I also knew I had a job to do. I pocketed away what I saw for later and moved through the casino, scouting out for any more cheats. She’d woken up my suspicions along with Samantha.
Women.
The whir of the crowd, the tables, the scent of money to be made was all here in Red Stone. It wasn’t the biggest casino, but not the smallest either, considering it contained two levels. Upstairs was the Mahogany room, where the big dogs played. You needed $5,000 worth of chips to even get in on a game. If you wanted to rotate on security there, you had to put your name down for it. Your eyes had to be on the ball at all times. I hadn’t been up there yet, but I was keen to get a look at the place.
I pinched the radio transmitter on my shoulder. “Hey Damien, can you cover me for a break?”
“Sure, where are you rotating?” he asked.
“Roulette lounge,” I replied. “Anything?”