He walked into the Mandalay Bay five minutes later, still feeling sick. He needed to lie down, and headed for the bank of elevators to go upstairs to his room. A brightly colored parrot in a cage in the lobby screeched at him. Someone said, “Mr. Pico?” and he went to the concierge desk where an attractive young woman stood.

“What’s up.”

She held a ticket in her hand. “The Loopers are playing in the House of Blues tonight. Front row ticket, compliments of the house.”

He waved her off. The image of the kid holding his dead father in his arms was stuck in his head like a bad dream. He couldn’t get rid of it, no matter how hard he tried. He went to the elevators and pulled out his room key. Across the way were a bank of glittering slot machines with yellow police tape stretched across several of the machines. A bellman walked by, and he stopped him.

“What’s wrong with those slot machines?”

“A group of gaming agents shut them down,” the bellman explained.

“Any idea why?

“I guess they’re not working right. Have a nice day.”

Bronco went over to check the slot machines out. The manufacturer’s plate was usually found on the left side. Kneeling, he stuck his head between two of the machines, and read the plate. It was made by Universal. Then he checked out the others. They were made by Universal as well.

Shit.

Going upstairs to his suite, he sat on the couch, and stared into space. The slot machine scam was worthless now that the police knew about it. He could only hope that Xing hadn’t heard, and that he’d be able to make the exchange before they found out.

If he didn’t get the Pai Gow scam, his cheating days were over. And then what was he going to do? Live a normal life? He didn’t know what that meant.

He went into the bathroom and washed his face, then stared into the mirror at the black hole that was his soul. He’d wanted to be normal once. Falling in love with Marie had done that to him, and having a kid. But it hadn’t lasted. His wife had gone to jail, and the court had thrown Mikey into a foster home. That was the extent of what he knew about the normal life. It didn’t last.

He needed the Pai Gow scam more than he’d realized. But what if Xing refused to hand it over? Then he’d have to take it, even if it meant killing him.

He went to the window, and stared down at the wave machine in the hotel pool. He’d never killed two men in one day, and supposed there was a first time for everything.

Chapter 51

Gerry walked out of the Acropolis into the blinding sunlight. He’d been inside the Acropolis less than an hour, yet had already lost track of the time. If casinos were good at anything, it was making a person forget the real world. He spotted his father parked next to the valet stand in the rental. He hopped into the passenger seat, and they peeled out with a rubbery squeal, and were soon heading north on the strip.

His father drove without speaking. There was a faraway look in his eyes, and Gerry assumed he’d retreated to that place that he went to when life got him down.

“Rough time at the prison?”

His father nodded. Lying on the seat was a snapshot of Lucy Price. The woman was a bad news buffet, yet his father still cared deeply for her. Gerry wasn’t surprised; his father hadn’t abandoned him, and he’d been screwing up his entire life.

“I’m sorry, Pop.”

“Thanks,” he mumbled.

They drove through the canyon of gigantic casinos that lined both sides of the strip. Gerry guessed they were going to meet up with Bill Higgins, who was with the police stake out team on Fremont Street in old downtown.

“Lucy identified the ringleader of the gang,” his father said, breaking the silence. “It’s Fred Friendly, the head of the Electronic Systems Division.”

“You sound surprised.”

“I am. Fred’s got twenty-five years on the clock, and is up for retirement in a few years. Why decide now to start stealing? It doesn’t make sense.”

“Yes, it does. Nick Nicocropolis told me.”

His father braked at a light. They had passed the Wynn and its sister property, Encore, and the strip had started to turn seedy. His father waited for him to continue.

“It isn’t pretty, Pop. Seems a casino in town called Diamond Dave’s got caught cheating their customers. Every single game in the joint was rigged. The Gaming Control Board shut the place down, and got the casino manager to confess. A few days later, the casino manager ended up with two bullets in his head.”

The light changed. His father pulled ahead, still staring at the busy road.

“Then a strange thing happened,” Gerry went on. “Diamond Dave, the owner of the casino, got hauled in. Dave claimed he didn’t know a thing, even though he was pocketing all the money. I’m talking millions, Pop. The GCB took his gaming license away, and shut the joint down. And that’s where the story ends.”

His father jerked his head sideways. “Say what?”

“They let him go. He’s in California now, selling real estate.”

“That’s impossible. He broke the god damn law. He’s also probably a murderer.”

“I know. I asked Nick how Diamond Dave got away with it. Nick said Diamond Dave had greased a lot of palms, and had friends in high places.”

“Nick wouldn’t tell you who sprung this crook?”

“No. I asked but he wouldn’t give it up.”

“And Nick thinks this is why Fred Friendly and the rest of his group went bad.”

“Yeah. Nick said the gaming agents that worked on the case were given counseling to make sure it didn’t affect their work. I remember seeing that in the files. Fred Friendly and the rest of ESD all took extended leaves three years ago.”

“I guess it didn’t work.”

“Guess not.”

The rental picked up speed. Gerry saw his old man talking to himself, trying to fit the pieces of the puzzle together. It was a lot of information to absorb, but that was what made his father the world heavyweight champ at catching cheaters and crooks. Several blocks later, his father punched the dashboard with his fist.

“Son-of-a-bitch.”

“You figured it out,” Gerry said.

“Damn right I did.”

His father pulled up a number on his cell phone. Gerry stole a glance, and saw that it was Bill Higgins he was calling. This was going to be good.

The call went through. His old man didn’t mince words.

“You and I need to talk,” his father barked into the phone.

They met up with Bill at a dive motel on Fremont Street. Fremont had once been a cool place to hang out, with a number of old casinos and funky restaurants. Those days were long gone, and today it was a human cesspool, the sidewalks filled with strung-out hookers, runaways, and street people who didn’t have two nickels to rub together.

Bill greeted them at the door. His necktie was pulled to one side, and he wore the haggard look of a man who hadn’t gotten enough sleep in the past few days. The stakeout team was in the room, and consisted of four members of the Metro Las Vegas Police Department. The team had placed sensitive eavesdropping equipment against the wall, and were listening to the activity of the room next door.

Valentine and his son entered, and Bill shut the door. Bill put his finger to his lips, and pulled them into a small kitchenette.

“You figure out which one of the agents is our crook?” Bill asked.

“They’re all crooks,” Valentine said.

Bill appeared too stunned to speak.

“The motive was Diamond Dave’s,” Valentine said.

Bill blinked. “Who told you about Diamond Dave’s?”

“It sure as hell wasn’t you.”

Bill ran his fingers through his thick head of hair. When he was a younger man, he’d worn his hair so it touched his collar, and impressed Valentine as a guy who marched to his own drummer. Time had obviously changed him. Bill looked at Gerry, who was leaning against the wall, then back at Valentine, who stood across from him.