"Rick?" Laurie came out of the casino bathroom, then scanned the crowded floor for the sight of Rick's hat. A strange feeling seized her, then she heard Rick "call" to her "Laurie!"
"Rick!" she responded frantically, then felt him slip out of her mind.
Scanning the room, she didn't see him, so she rushed to the lobby, her upset stomach forgotten. As she entered the room, Laurie heard "Mom!"
Looking toward the front desk, she saw Ian coming toward her.
"Ian, something's happened to Rick. I need to find him." She told him, breathing heavily.
"Mom, are you all right, you look awful." Ian put a hand on her shoulder.
"I think, I think something was slipped to Rick and I. I just got sick to my stomach, then I heard him call out to me and now he's gone." Laurie said then gripped his arm.
"Honey, I need you to call Officer Jim Brass, he's with the Las Vegas PD. Tell him Rick's missing, that I'm going to check our room and then I'll come down to search for him in the rest of the hotel."
"Will do, Mom. Be careful." He replied, then fetched her suitcase and went to make the call.
A couple of hours later, Laurie collapsed on their hotel room bed and watched Jim Brass pace back and forth while speaking on his radio.
There was still no sign of her husband, leaving Brass frustrated and angry at the suddenness of Rick's abduction. There had been a telephoned message to Laurie on the room phone, warning her not to call the police.
After interviewing the casino employees in the vicinity of the photographers, Brass felt stonewalled. None of them admitted to handing Rick and Laurie the champaign, but the only real break was finding an empty glass near one of the slot machines. Brass sent it out to be analysed, hoping it would show what drug had been slipped to the two Simons.
Having requititioned the surveillance tapes of the area surrounding the elevators, the policeman was hopeful that one of them would show where Rick was taken after Laurie went to the restroom.
Abruptly the phone rang, and Jim indicated that Laurie should pick it up.
"Hello?"
"Mrs.Simon, I told you not to call the police."
Laurie winced at the metallic tone of the voice. "Who is this, where's my husband?"
"Get rid of the policeman, and I'll let you talk to him." A flat tone entered the machine-like response.
Covering the phone, Laurie told Brass, "He repeated what he said about not calling the police, now he says he'll let me talk to Rick if I get rid of you."
"Someone must be watching you, tell him I'm leaving and demand to talk to Rick. I'll leave then come up the fire escape." Brass explained, then exited the room.
As soon as the door closed, Laurie uncovered the receiver.
"He's gone, please let me talk to my husband."
Click.
Upset, Laurie rattled the receiver, then hung up the phone.
"Rick., where are you darling?" she pleaded silently.
Suddenly she heard Rick "call" to her.
"Laurie, are you all right? Call Jim, I'm in trouble…."
"I did, Rick. He's left the room, he thinks somebody is watching me as they knew I called Jim. Where are you?" Laurie asked, relieved she could at least hear him.
"In a hotel room, I don't know where.." There was a long pause, then Rick asked again, "Are you all right, darlin'? I 'm sorry, I shouldn't have let that blond talk to you like that."
Laurie was so relieved, she didn't care. "Rick, love, it's okay. I think you and I were slipped a mickey. You never would have acted like that, I know. I'll call Jim, maybe I can follow your thoughts. Are you by yourself?"
"No, there were three men holding me, but one just went to pay off a woman, maybe that blond. The boss of these people just left, so it's me and one of the security people here, the one they call Ross. Tell Jim that the boss is that white-haired guy who runs the casino floor, Mr. Sims." Rick warned her.
Just then there was a knock at the door, and Laurie "told" him, "Someone's at the door, I hope it's Jim."
"Be careful." He replied, as she got up and peered through the peephole.
"Who's there?" she asked, then saw a woman in a uniform, leaning over a cleaning cart.
"Excuse me, Mrs. Simon, it's housekeeping."
"Oh, come in." Laurie remembered the do not disturb had prevented the room from being cleaned.
Opening the door, she gasped as she recognized the woman as the blond who had flirted with Rick.
"You!"
At once Laurie went to close the door, only to have Sims push her back into the room, gun in hand.
"Not one sound, Mrs. Simon, if you want to see your husband. Marla?"
The blond pushed a laundry cart into the room, then took out a couple of pieces of cloth.
"Please, no, I'll go with you….." Laurie whispered, then the casino manager shook his head.
"I won't hurt you, we're just going to take you to your husband."
Immediately he handed the gun to the woman, then calmly bound her hands behind her back and tied a gag around Laurie's mouth. Picking her up, he gently placed her into the laundry cart, then put a couple of sheets on top of her and quickly wheeled it out of the room.
As they rolled through the hallway, Laurie fought hard not to panic. She managed to turn her watch on, then called to her husband.
Rick was watching the security guard pace, then "heard" Laurie cry out to him "Rick!"
"What is it, Laurie?" he responded, startled at her panic.
"Sims, he tricked me into opening the door, he forced me into a laundry cart and he's bringing me to you." He recognized the fear in her thoughts and tried to comfort her.
"I'm here, sweetheart. Don't be afraid, Jim will know something's wrong and find us. Can you turn on your watch?"
"I already did, Rick. " there was a moment, then he sensed her calming down.
"I love you, Rick. I'm just not too happy with being put in a cart like this, too claustrophobic." Her reply made him angry, and he must have betrayed that in his face, as suddenly Ross was looking at him.
"What's your problem, Simon?"
"Uh, nothing, just upset about what this must be doing to my wife." He replied truthfully.
In a few moments, there was a knock on the room door, and Rick's guard went and opened it, then stood back to let the traitorous blond and Sims in, pushing the laundry cart in front of them.
"I've brought an incentive for you to do as you are told, Mr. Simon." The casino host informed him, then pulled back the cover of the cart. Reaching in, he lifted Laurie out of the container, then pulled the gag from her mouth.
Relieved and angry all at once, Rick leaned forward as far as the ropes holding him would go.
"Laurie, are you all right?"
She nodded, "Yes, Rick." then quietly said, "Thank you." as Sims untied her. At once she had her arms around her husband, then Sims had Ross cut his bonds as well.
Managing to embrace Laurie, Rick held her tightly and whispered, "it's going to be okay, darlin'."
"I know, as long as I'm with you." She answered, burying her face in his chest.
"Now you know what's at stake for you and your wife, Mr. Simon. You will do exactly as I say, and your wife will be fine." The white-haired man motioned to the security guard, who grasped Laurie's arm and pushed her into the chair Rick had vacated.
"No, I won't let you keep her. My wife can cash the check, then you can let us both go." Rick argued, holding onto her hand.
"I'm afraid I'm the one calling the shots here, Mr. Simon." Sims calmly reminded him, then handed Rick his wallet.
"Inside your wallet is the cashiers check for $25,000. You will go downstairs to the casino cashier, cash that check and immediately put the money in an envelope and leave it on the dresser in your room. Then, Mr. Simon, you will return to the lobby downstairs and wait one hour."
Glancing at Laurie, Sims added, "If you are approached by the police, you will say that you and your wife had a mixup, that you are going to stay at your daughter's home. You will not alert them to any problem, or give any information, or you will never see your wife again. After one hour, you will return to your room where you will find Mrs. Simon unhurt, and you will instantly pack and leave the hotel."
Rick stared angrily at him, then felt Laurie squeeze his hand.
"I'll be all right, Rick, please hurry and do what he says." Laurie pleaded, then shook the security chief's hand off her arm. Reaching up for her husband, she kissed him as he stroked her hair, then murmured "I love you, darling."
"I love you too, Laurie. I'll be back." He promised, then was dragged away from her by Sims as Ross pulled her arms behind her and bound them with a rope.
"You have 30 minutes starting right now." Sims ordered, then Ross went and opened the door. Rick took one more look back at his wife's face, then went out of the room.
Immediately he raced to the elevator, then saw he was on the 10th floor. As he rode downstairs, a beeping on his watch alerted him that someone was trying to reach him.
"Who is this?" he turned on his send control.
"Rick, it's Oscar, what's happened? Who's holding Laurie hostage?"
Relieved, Rick filled him in, then was surprised to learn Oscar was on his way to Las Vegas and had already spoken with Jim Brass.
"Laurie had given him my number in case he needed to have your locators turned on. Once Sargeant Brass told me what was going on, I got the OSI to get me a ride. I've been listening on Laurie's transmission and relaying the information to the sergeant. I'll be at the Castle in 30 minutes." The older man explained.
"Thanks, Dad. I'm going to the casino cashier now." Rick walked quickly to the main cashier and requested that they cash his check.
After failing to talk him out of it, the manager released the funds to him, then Rick stuffed the money in an envelope and went upstairs.
Arriving at their room, Rick found a picture of Laurie on the dresser with a note. She was pale and unsmiling, and a gun was against her head. "Leave the money in front of the mirror and go back to the lobby. Wait one hour before coming up or your wife will be dead, " the paper said.
Furious, he took the note, then left the envelope with the money in front of the dresser mirror.
Exiting the room, he felt a hand grab on to him and he whirled around only to find Jim Brass waiting in the adjointing room.
"Are you all right? Where's Laurie?"
"Sims has her, he's the one in charge of the robberies. They'll kill her if I don't leave then come back in one hour." Rick told him, his voice hoarse with emotion.
"That explains how easily this crook could get away with not getting caught." Brass calmed him down, then looked at his watch.
"Okay, go sit downstairs, then at five minutes to the hour come back up here."
Nodding agreement, Rick hightailed it and found a secluded chair in the waiting area.
"Calling" to Laurie, he told her about her father coming and felt her trying to keep an even keel for his sake.
"Darling, I'm just fine. Tell Jim there are just two of them now, that Marla left for the airport."
Laurie relayed to Rick.
"I will, sweetheart. Now just do what they say, I'll be there earlier then they think and I'll get you to safety." He promised.
As he waited, Laurie cringed as Sims once again gagged her, then put her into the laundry cart.
"I know you're frightened, Mrs. Simon, but the wages of sin are often harsh." He told her sternly, then covered her with bed linens and wheeled her out of the room.
As she was pushed down the hall, she "told" Rick "He's taking me through the hallways now, but, something's weird. He's quoting Bible verses at me."
Worried, Rick went to the hotel phone and called Brass in the room next to theirs.
"Jim, don't say anything." He said quietly when the policeman answered.
"Sims is bringing Laurie to our room in a laundry cart now. She says he started quoting the Bible at her. I'm afraid he's going to kill her."
"That's it, Rick get up here now. There was a bible verse on the body at the King Hotel and one on the body in your room. This guy's not in it for the money, he's out to punish people!" Jim exclaimed, then fell silent as he heard the door open in the next room. "Hurry!" he whispered, then hung up.
Immediately Rick started toward the emergency stairs, only to hear his name "Rick!"
Turning, he saw Oscar Goldman come through the doors, and instantly he beckoned him over.
"We've got to get up to our room, they're going to kill Laurie!"
Both men stealthly made his way to the stairs, then went up 3 flights to the Simon's room.
Just as Rick was about to put his card in the lock, he heard Laurie scream "No!"