Chapter Three

Ed pulled his cherry red Hummer in the employee parking lot of the Montecito and cut the engine. As he got out, he noticed some guests walking into the main lobby. Ed smiled softly and waved, calling out the obligatory, "Welcome to Vegas" and walked around to the passenger side. Letting out a deep sigh, Ed opened the passenger side door and held his hand out to his wife. Smiling softly at her husband, Jillian accepted his offered hand and got out of the car. Ed steadied his wife as she stumbled some from the drop.

"I wish you'd get something a little more practical, Eddie. I'm sick of twisting my ankle every time I get out of this thing."

Chuckling softly, Ed wrapped an arm around her and clicked his alarm on and pocketed the keys. "None of the other ladies have a problem getting out of it."

Jillian stopped and looked at her husband, a delicate brow arched, "Which other ladies, Edward?"

Ed gulped... She used his full first name... That was never a good sign... "You know... The ladies... Delinda... Nessa... I give Mary and Sam lifts to and from places at times when their cars are in the shop..."

"Mm-hmm..." Jillian gave her husband a subtle grin that let him know that he was off the hook. Never in thirty years has she ever had to worry about Ed slipping off into a room with a dancer, entertainer, or fellow employee. There are just some things that Ed Deline didn't do and cheating on his wife was number one. It was the foundation of trust, honesty and loyalty that kept him and his wife together for so long.

"Well, if it isn't the most gorgeous girl in all of Vegas... On the arm of an old fart. Now where's the fairness in that?"

Jillian laughed and shook her head as Ed rolled his eyes when they approached Mike. "Hello, Mike, you are always good for a girl's ego."

Mike just grinned as he leaned in and kissed her cheek. When he pulled back, his eyes were sparkling mischievously as they always do when he teases the people he calls friend. "When are you going to drop this old guy and get yourself some young stud?" As the words left his mouth, Mike just grinned and nudged Jillian gently, indicating that he was the aforementioned stud.

Ed narrowed his eyes and simply said, "Well seeing as how there aren't any young studs in Vegas, merely pretty boys and smart assed engineers, I don't think it's likely that she's gonna ditch me and head to Reno or Tahoe anytime soon."

Jillian laughed as Mike feigned a wounded look, "Mr. D, I'm hurt."

"Yeah, I'll show you how badly you can hurt if you ever look at my wife like that again, pal."

The two men laughed as Mike opened the door for them, "Have a good day, guys."

Jillian was still chuckling as they walked through the lobby and then she quickly sobered up. "He's a good man, Eddie."

Ed smiled as he nodded, "Yeah, he is. He's been a lot of help to me and my guys lately."

Slipping her hand in her husband's, Ed lead them behind a large potted palm. Concealed by the plant was another elevator with a keycard slot. Ed slipped his card in and the doors opened and the two stepped on. The Montecito had special elevators throughout for employees and VIPs only. The regular guest elevators were plush and always kept very nice, but the employee and VIP elevators were faster, getting the car up to the desired floor quicker than the rest of the elevators. Ed had them installed after the blackout. He didn't like knowing that his employees could be stranded in elevators when they should be able to walk free throughout the hotel, calming the fears of guests. Therefore instead of running on electricity as the other elevators ran on, blasts of air ran up and down the shafts and it was the air that pushed the car up and down throughout the hotel. It was actually a very impressive set up. The blasts of air were caused by a pump that had cables attached that ran up to the hotel and sat in boxes that were solar powered. The sun basically ran the elevators. Unfortunately this plan had it's downfalls as well, such as cloudy days when there isn't much sun and night when the elevators didn't work. As long as there wasn't a black out at night, they were fine, Ed told Danny when he pointed out that little detail.

The silence in the elevator car thickened to the point where Ed thought he could cut it with a knife. He wanted to talk to Jillian about her appointment and discuss her surgery the following Wednesday, but he didn't want to pressure her. The ding signifying that they were at the floor they wanted to go to broke his thoughts and soon the doors opened.

Jillian and Ed stepped out of the elevator and walked to the security and surveillance offices. As they walked, Ed lagged behind and noticed that his wife's bag was slipping off her shoulder... Carefully he walked up behind her and slipped the strap back up and smiled at her, looking at the purse, "This the Prada you bought in Venice?"

Jillian smiled quietly and nodded, "Yeah."

He kissed her cheek, "It's very nice."

Ed kicked himself. For some reason he was starting to feel awkward and he hated that feeling. Thankfully they reached the offices and Ed opened the door and the two made their way up the small flight of steps into Ed's office.

Jillian sat down on his leather couch with a loud sigh. Ed regarded her carefully, "You hungry, honey?" He picked up the telephone receiver, "I can order you a bite to eat, or something to drink..."

Jillian shook her head no, "No thanks... Delinda down in Mystique?"

"Yeah... I'll call her now." Ed dialed a three digit extension and was soon transferred to Mystique and within seconds he was talking to his daughter, telling her to come up to his office.

"Just please come up, Delinda, okay? Mom's here and we need to talk to you..." He smiled softly and bid his farewell and hung up. "She's coming up now."

Jillian stood up and looked out the windows, softly, "I'm scared, Eddie..."

Ed let out a quiet sigh as he punched some buttons on his phone and soon his blinds came up. Walking over to his wife, he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "I know, honey, so am I..."

Seconds later there was a knock on the door and Delinda popped her head in, smiling at her parents. "Hey guys." She walked over and kissed her father's cheek and then hugged her mother, "Mom, you look beautiful."

Jillian merely smiled, knowing that she'd cry if she talked. Delinda looked at her mother's face and then at her father's and knew something was up... sitting down on Ed's desk she looked at them, softly, "What's going on?"

Ed took in a deep breath as he figured out what to say. He knew that Delinda wasn't a child anymore and she didn't like being treated as such so he just began to talk... "Well, mom had a doctor's appointment today, I'm not sure if you knew that or not..." Delinda glanced at her mother, who was uncommonly silent... she looked back at her father, her blue eyes questioning him, Ed continued, "We went to see her doctor, in fact, we just got back. Delinda, they found something in your mother's breast..."

Horrified, Delinda brought a hand up to her mouth, Jillian looked at her daughter, speaking softly, "They aren't sure what it is or how big it is right now. I have to have a biopsy on Wednesday morning. Honey, we didn't want to say anything until we were sure, but your dad talked me into letting you in on what's going on, you should know."

The woman's eyes welled up and she quickly went over and hugged her mother tightly. No matter how hard Jillian tried to keep her tears at bay, she failed and soon mother and daughter were locked in a tight embrace sobbing. Ed walked over to the two women in his life and placed his knee on the couch behind Jillian and rubbed both womens' backs in quietly. After a few moments, he softly cleared his throat, "Delinda, I can speak with your supervisor and get you Wednesday off if you'd like to come with us."

Delinda nodded as she broke away from her mother, wiping her tears, whispering, "Yeah. But I'll talk to Doug, Daddy, don't worry. I'll explain that it's a family emergency. We should tell Nessa... You guys are like parents to her."

Ed nodded quietly and sat down on the coffee table, "I'll talk to Nessa later on. I think her shift starts in a few hours so I'll grab her then." He sighed softly as he placed his hands on his knees, holding himself up, "You ladies hungry?"

Jillian reached down and rubbed her stomach and nodded, dabbing her eyes, "Yeah, I am a little."

Ed stood up wordlessly and picked the phone up and called down to Mystique and ordered two steaks and a cobb salad with some sodas. Delinda smiled quietly when he got off the phone, "Thanks for remembering..."

Ed shrugged, "Well I don't get this new fad you are doing about not eating meat, but whatever..."

Delinda laughed quietly, "Vegetarianism isn't a fad, Dad, it's been around for ages."

Ed merely winked at his daughter and the family fell into a comfortable silence as they waited for their dinners.

"Mike, will you please be kind enough to drive Mr. and Mrs. Cline to McCarran airport?"

Mike looked up at Sam and grinned, "Sure thing, Sam, let me grab the limo and pull it around."

Sam gave Mike a friendly smile and Mike stood up and walked out of the lobby. Douglas and Katherine Cline were one of the Montecito's favorite whales. It wasn't uncommon for them to drop $2 or 3 million dollars in a three day period so naturally the staff did everything they could to accommodate their smallest whim. When Mrs. Cline mentioned that she liked Alaskan lobster tails, Sam went to great lengths to have five fresh lobsters flown in from Alaska just for them. The seafood was so fresh that it was still swimming in the acrylic aquarium when it arrived.

Minutes after he left, Mike walked back into the lobby and smiled as he nodded to Kyle and Derek, two of the Montecito busboys, asking them to load the bags in the trunk. "Listen, Sam, can you do me a favor please and load Mr. and Mrs. Cline in the limo and I'll be right back? I need to grab a two-way."

Sam plastered on a false smile, loading guests in limos was not a part of the job description of a casino host. But not wanting to appear rude in front of the guests, she nodded, "You bet, Mike."

Mike gave her another grin, he knew he pissed her off by asking her that, but he loved screwing with her in that way. Walking into an office, he grabbed a two-way and made his way back out through the lobby and out to the waiting black stretch limousine bearing the logo of the Montecito in gold.

The sound of footsteps walking up the steps was unheard by Jillian and Delinda. Ed quietly stood up and walked over to the waiter from Mystique's and smiled at him, taking two of the covered dishes and setting them on his desk. Reaching into his pocket for his wallet, Ed asked in a soft voice, "Just put it on my tab, Rick, here's an extra something for bringing it all the way up here." Ed reached into his wallet and handed the waiter a $10 bill. The waiter smiled softly and pocketed the tip, "Thank you, Mr. Deline."

Ed nodded as he stepped out of the way, allowing the waiter to remove the covers over the dishes. As the waiter carefully placed each meal at a spot at the table, he placed the drinks on the table as well and stood up, looking at Ed, "Can I bring you or your family anything else, Mr. Deline?"

Ed shook his head no and smiled softly, "No thanks, Bo."

The waiter nodded silently as he headed down the stairs. Ed let out a deep breath slowly and looked towards his wife and daughter, "Girls, the food is here."

Delinda glanced at the table and stood up and slowly made her way over, followed by Jillian. The family sat down and Ed reached for Jillian and Delinda's hands and looked at both of them, softly, "Maybe... maybe one of us ought to say something..."

Delinda looked at her father, confusion on her face, "What? Like a prayer or something?"

Ed shrugged, softly, "Couldn't hurt..."

Jillian gave her husband a soft smile and leaned over and kissed his cheek. Reaching for her daughter's hand, the family bowed their heads. Ed spoke softly, "Father, please bless this food we are about to eat and bless those who made it for us. God, you are giving us a burden right now... Please help us see our way through it and come out on top... Bless this family... Amen."

Delinda couldn't look at anybody. She could never remember a time in her life when her father wanted to say a prayer willingly. She could remember times at holidays when her mother suggested it, but Ed would roll his eyes and give the traditional "God is good, God is great, Bless this food upon our plates, Yay God" prayer, but she never heard him pray from his heart. It touched her, but it also frightened her.

"What time does Nessa's shift start?"

The sound of her mother's voice jolted Delinda a bit. Ed responded quietly as he cut into his steak, "Half hour. I'm gonna go talk to her after we eat."

Jillian nodded quietly. Delinda regarded her parents in silence... Her father, always steadfast and strong, the rock of the family, the glue which held them all firmly in place... Her mother... the patron saint in both her father and her eyes... Her delicate and petite body possibly going to war with the most evil of diseases... Delinda felt as if she'd scream. She wanted to shake both of her parents until their heads rattled, demanding how they can be so silent, so unshaken, so strong. She wanted to know how she somehow missed the gene that would help her keep her cool. She didn't want to eat a cobb salad in her father's office. She wanted to know what was happening. Why it is happening.

She shoved a forkful of lettuce in her mouth and swallowed it down hard, both the food and her anguished questions.

"Alright, Mr. and Mrs. Cline, have a safe trip back to Baltimore and thank you both for staying in the Montecito. I can speak for everyone on staff when I say that I truly hope your experience was enjoyable."

Douglas and Katherine smiled at Mike as he stepped off the private Montecito jet. The limo ride had been quiet, which, to Mike, was rather unusual. Most of the time after a couple had spent an extended weekend in Vegas, at the Montecito of all places, his head would be pounding after listening to all of the talk about how great and wonderful their trip had been. In a way it was almost pleasant.

Getting back into the limo, Mike's cell phone rang, which he promptly answered. "Cannon."

"Mike, it's me, did you put the Clines on the plane yet?"

Mike rolled his eyes as he started the car, "Yes, Sam, I did."

Sam frantically stood at the front counter in the lobby of the hotel. "And has the plane taken off yet?"

"That it has..."

Sam sighed deeply, "Oh shit, they left something important."

Mike couldn't help but laugh softly, "Sam, put it in a FedEx box, slap their address on it and slip it in the mail. It'll get to them in a few days."

Sam bit her bottom lip, "That's the thing, Mike, I can't exactly FedEx this."

Mike's brow furrowed as he weaved in and out of traffic, "What do you mean? What is it?"

Samantha glanced down at the small child looking up at her, "Their daughter."