Bobby POV
"Bobby," Alex said when she came back to the room. She had gone to get us some sodas from the machine.
"Yeah?"
"You know Spanish, right?"
"Some. Why?"
"What does mas rapido mean?"
"Why?"
"I think they're still fighting. I'm pretty sure that's what Carolyn was yelling when I passed the room. It must get frustrating to fight with someone that resorts to another language."
I started laughing and pulled her into my arms.
"I don't think they're fighting anymore," I said.
"Why? What does that mean?"
I leaned down close so that I could whisper into her ear.
"Do it faster." I started kissing along her neck, moving her hair to give me better access. "How much longer before we have to meet them?"
"About twenty minutes. But I'm guessing they're going to be a little late."
"We can be late, too," I suggested, running my hand down her back and pulling her flush against me.
I hadn't really been in the mood when we first checked in. I mean, it's not that I wasn't in the mood, but rather that I just hadn't considered it. My brain was trying to wrap itself around this case, and I was also thinking about Logan and Barek.
And now that I was thinking about Logan and Barek in a completely different way, I'm embarrassed to admit that it had started my motor running.
I don't even want to stop and analyze that. It's probably just because it had been so long since Alex and I had been together. Work had completely taken over our lives and when we weren't working, we were sleeping.
So now it had been four days and that was just unacceptable. We had to learn how to take advantage of every moment of down time available to us.
"Well?" I asked as I worked my hands under her sweater. "Can I interest you in a quickie?"
Alex laughed. "I don't think you know to be quick, Bobby. You're much too…focused."
"Is that a complaint?"
"Absolutely not. It is the highest form of compliment," she said as she reached for my belt buckle. "And if you want to be focused for the next fifteen minutes, I'm all yours."
We hurried to undress, not wanting to waste a minute of precious time. I had thought she was in the mood for frantic and sweaty, because really, Alex usually is, but this time she pulled me down onto her and held me tight.
"Talk to me," she said as I ran my hands over her body.
See, Alex likes to yell a lot when we're having sex, but I'd learned that when we're making love, she likes me to talk.
She closed her eyes and I took a second just to look at her. She literally took my breath away.
"Je t'aime," I whispered as I entered her slowly. I moved leisurely, our time limit forgotten for the moment. She matched my pace and opened her eyes to look at me.
"Je t'adore," I continued. "Taim i'ngra leat. Ti amo."
I wasn't sure in how many languages I could say I love you, but there were quite a few. And thinking about that helped me make this a little less quick, because, well, it has been four days.
"Tangshin-i cho-a-yo."
"Korean?" she asked in a breathy voice. I could tell she was close. I nodded and picked up the pace.
"Mas rapido?" I asked with a grin.
"Oh yeah."
We didn't make it out into the hallway on time, but we were close. And we still beat Logan and Barek, so I wasn't too concerned. That is, until they opened their door and motioned us to come into their room.
"Another threat?" Alex asked as she looked at Carolyn's phone. "This is crazy. Who knows you're back?"
"You mean besides Quarles?" Logan asked. And he had a point. We weren't trying to keep a low profile here, but still…it wouldn't be common knowledge. Someone would've had to be watching for her. And watching what? The apartment?
"We need to track that phone," I said. Alex nodded and pulled out her phone.
"I'm going to call Ross."
"Why?" I asked. Every time we called him I felt like a high school kid going in front of the principal. And I hadn't done anything wrong this time.
"He'll help," Alex replied. "He can track the cell phone for us while we go to Harrah's. I think we all need to stay together."
"Good idea," Mike said. "We don't know what kind of loony toons we're dealing with."
Alex gave a quick call to Ross and from the look on her face, it was a painful conversation. She hung up and looked around with a tight smile.
"What did he say?" I asked.
"He'll check on the cell phone."
"And?"
"And he asked why we couldn't just stay at home on our days off like most normal couples."
"He said that?" I was blown away that Ross actually referred to us as a couple. He had never once mentioned it even though we knew he knew.
"I think he was a little frustrated," she admitted with a laugh. "He may have said something about how it's a damn good thing we have such a high solve rate…"
"And what did you say?"
"I told him that if he preferred, we could leave him out of the loop next time," she said with an impish grin. Logan burst out laughing.
"Oh, I bet he loved that," he said.
"So, we're heading to Harrah's?" I asked, bringing the conversation back to its focus.
"Yeah, but let's go in twos," Carolyn suggested. "Alex and I will go in together. We'll seem less threatening to the employees and if the person issuing the threats is there, he may make a move on us. You guys can come in after us. Play the slots a little, check out the place, but very low key. And don't let on that you're there with us."
"But we get to keep an eye on you two," Mike added.
"Right."
I had no interest in playing the slot machines. Between Frank and the man I believed was my father, gambling had lost all appeal. I liked playing cards. I liked the challenge of the game, but I never put money down.
"Do you see them?" Mike asked as we walked in the glitzy casino. We both stood still just inside the doors trying to adjust our eyes to the myriad of flashing lights.
"Not yet," I admitted. And I didn't like that. Alex and Carolyn had come in five minutes ahead of us. I told them to not move too far from the entrance until we came in and could make visual contact with them.
"There," Mike said suddenly, pointing to the far right side of the room. A large man, probably a security guard, had Alex by the arm and Carolyn was talking animatedly.
"What the hell?" Mike asked but I was already striding towards them.
Before I could get there, Alex jerked away from his grasp and Carolyn pinned the man up against the wall. He easily outweighed her by a hundred and fifty pounds, but she held him in place with her forearm across his windpipe.
"Whoa, hey, what's going on here?" Mike asked as we slowed to a halt in front of them.
"I asked him nicely to let her go," Carolyn explained.
"This jackass saw my piece, but he wouldn't let me show him my badge," Alex said angrily.
"You need to apologize," Carolyn said to the guard. The way she was holding him, I wasn't sure if he could speak at all.
"Ma'am, you need to let him go and step away," another man said as he approached the group. "I'm Richard Slater and I run this place."
Carolyn reluctantly took a step back. I watched her in amazement as she looked around casually as though nothing had just happened.
"This lady is armed," the guard said accusingly, pointing at Alex. She rolled her eyes and looked at me.
"Yes, I am, and I'm a New York police officer. I offered to show him my i.d. but he wouldn't give me the chance."
Alex pulled her badge and i.d. from her pocket and showed it to the manager.
"A courtesy heads up next time would be appreciated, ma'am."
"Well, let me give you one then," I said in a smartass tone that I'd learned from Alex. "I'm a New York police officer, and I'm armed." I showed my credentials, too, and then the manager looked at Mike and Carolyn.
"You two?"
"No."
"Any reason why NYPD is hanging out in my casino?"
"To gamble?" Alex replied sardonically.
He looked at us dubiously but gave a nod to the security guard and the two of them walked away.
"Great, Bobby," Carolyn said. "So much for coming in here on the sly."
"He had her by the arm," I argued, although I knew I was wrong. I should've waited and watched. Clearly the women had the situation under control.
"Hey guys," Mike interrupted. "Did anybody happen to notice that Lt. Quarles is here?"
"What?" I said, whipping my head around.
"Where?" Carolyn asked.
"He was in the back hall. I saw him when manager Dick opened the door to go back to his office."
"You sure it was him?"
"I can spot a sleaze ball a mile away. I'm sure."
"Did he see you?"
"I don't think so. But I'm sure there are cameras everywhere in this place."
I took a moment to absorb the room. There were a lot of people and money was flowing freely. There was no alcohol being served because the casino is on a dry Indian reservation, but that didn't stop people from acting like fools with their money.
"Check it out," I said to the others. "Lots of small bills floating around."
"Well, yeah. It's a casino," Logan said.
"I mean small bills. Fives, tens, some twenties. Not many fifties or hundreds."
"What did Pete Walker do here?" Alex asked. I caught her eye and we shared the moment. It was always so exhilarating when we reached a conclusion at roughly the same time.
"He was a server."
"So he worked on tips. And tips from non-alcoholic beverages are nowhere near as good."
"Right. So why did he have fifties crammed in his desk drawer?"
"Do you think he was skimming the till?"
"Let's go say hi to the Lieutenant," I said, changing the subject again. I didn't know if Walker was skimming or not, but I didn't like the idea that the Asheville cop was down here hobnobbing with the casino manager. Not when this was where the dead man had worked. And not when Quarles was already acting weird.
"Why?" Carolyn asked.
"I want him to twist a little. He's up to something."
"Hang on a second," Alex said, grabbing for her buzzing cell phone. "It's Ross."
"Yes, Captain," she answered. "Really?" She looked up at me quickly. "Thank you, sir. We will." She hung up.
"What is it?"
"The drop cell was part of a large order of cell phones, all purchased by Richard Slater."
"And the plot thickens," Logan said. "Let's go talk to Dick."
TBC...
