Dead Men's Dust

was still watching him. There was more than a little interest in her gaze. He waved again and she waved back, her face breaking into a wide smile. In true Astaire form he made a show of opening the door and pushing outside.

    But as he walked away, his smile turned to a frown, then a scowl. Achieving his objective of flushing out the thief was one thing, but there was no way he could act on it now. The receptionist was a bit dim, but she still had enough of her wits about her to remember the man who had lured the client outside before he was brutally butchered.

    Self-recrimination wasn't something he often indulged in, but even he could see that he'd made a mistake. I shouldn't have flirted with her, he thought. I should've simply gone in, given her the story, then got the hell back out again. By flirting with the bitch, I've forced her to take a good look at my face. Stupid, Cain, stupid. If I take the thief now, she could give a good description of me to the police. And that just will not do.

    He'd put his identity at risk for the sake of a minute or two of banter with a pretty girl. Not good when you are the United States' current most prolific and undetected serial murderer.

    Making matters worse, it wasn't even as if he needed to lure the thief outside. While the receptionist had checked the ledger, Cain had watched her fingers pointing out the room number of the owner of the SUV. Why bother ambushing him in the exposed parking lot when he could go on up, knock on his door, and call him by name?

    Time for plan B.

    Cain spun around, but all trace of Astaire was gone from his light

tread. Once more, he headed directly for the entrance door. Quick inhalation for effect, then he bustled into the hotel with feigned urgency. The woman was midway between closing the ledger and reaching for a telephone. Thankfully, she never reached the receiver. Her startled expression was a mixture of delight and regret as Cain jogged to the counter and slapped down the palms of his hands.

    'Hi,' he said. 'It's just me again.'

    The woman still wore the startled look. She visibly fought to regain her composure, achieving the fixed stare and open mouth of an inflatable sex toy. Not that Cain had any experience of those kinds of things.

    'You haven't called the SUV owner yet, have you?' Cain asked in breathless fashion. As the woman shook her head, he went on, 'Seems I might have been a little premature coming in about the lights. While I was inside, the owner must've come back out and turned them off.'

    'They're off now?' the woman echoed.

    'Yeah, I guess there must be another exit. I didn't see anyone leave while I was in here.'

    'There are a number of exits. I suppose he could've used one of them.' The ledger was still beside her, and she flipped it open with professional dexterity. She nodded confirmation. 'Yeah, he's got a room at the back, so he could've used the rear stairwell. I guess from his room he could see his car and noticed that his lights were still on.'

    'That's probably it,' Cain agreed.

    'Okay,' the woman said. Her face had regained its natural elasticity and a smile was beginning to bloom.

    'Okay,' Cain replied, giving her his version of a sheepish smile. 'I feel a complete idiot now.'

    The woman crinkled her nose at him. 'What for?'

    'I must look like the dead battery vigilante or something.' Cain laughed. 'I just thought I'd come back in and let you know everything's fine now. Save you the trouble of phoning.'

'It's not a problem,' she said.

    'Yeah, but the owner would've been wondering what the heck was going on.'

    'I'm sure he wouldn't have minded,' she said. 'In fact, I dare say he'd have told me he'd already been out and turned them off. That would've been that, I guess.'

    'Yeah, I suppose so.'

    'Anyway, thanks again for going to so much trouble.'

    'No problem. Just doing my bit.'

    'Dead battery vigilante.' The woman smiled at him, crooking a finger in his direction. 'Sounds like a superhero.'

    'You got it,' Cain said. A flippant gesture of his head and hands fisted on his hips made him more Boy Wonder than Man of Steel.

    They both laughed as he walked away the second time. Before he reached the door, she called to him.

    'Are you sticking around town for a while?'

    Cain looked back at her, feigning disappointment. 'No. Just passing through, I'm afraid. On my way to the East Coast. Have to be in Mississippi early next week for a sales convention.'

    Now it was the woman's turn to look dejected. 'That's a shame.'

    'It is,' Cain agreed. 'But hey, who knows what's around the corner? I might be back this way in a month or so.'

    She gave him a lopsided smile.

    'Well, if you're passing and you notice any lights on, give me a call, will you?'

    Cain lifted his fingers as if they were a gun and feigned shooting her. 'You got it, lady. If your battery is running down you can count on me.'