'They put a tail on me as soon as I started looking for Anthony.
They knew about me the day I started.'
Ventura's eyes were on me but they weren't seeing me. The tip of his tongue rested for a moment on his lower lip. He sat that way for a while.
Finally he said, 'I do some business with Gino.'
'Cash,' I said.
'Yeah, a course.' Ventura looked at me as if I questioned the law of gravity.
'And Anthony bagged the money back and forth.'
'Some,' Ventura said.
'Sometimes, for good faith, because he was, you know, family, he'd do some pick-up for Gino.'
I waited.
'You sure about this Las Vegas shit?'
'I talked to some people. I'm sure he gambles bad and loses worse. I'm told he had a plan for winning big in Vegas.'
'How come I don't know anything about it?' Shirley said. She was still looking at her fists in her lap. Her voice was still very small.
'If he was like that I'd know. We were closer than anything.'
Ventura ignored her.
'You don't say nothing about this. Especially you don't say nothing to Gino or Marty Anaheim.'
'Normally,' I said, 'I stay in business by being a blabbermouth, but since you asked so nice…'
'I don't want no talk about this anywhere,' Ventura said.
'That your son-in-law stole your partner's money?'
'You don't know what he did,' Ventura said.
'All you know is he's missing and you better find him.'
'He wouldn't steal anything,' Shirley murmured.
'So we're off to Vegas,' I said.
'Yeah, and right now. And don't stay in no fucking Caesars Palace, you unnerstan?'
'Probably just sleep in the airport,' I said.
CHAPTER 14
I always suspected that Las Vegas Airport was bigger than Las Vegas, but I'd never seen any hard stats on it. Hawk and I were carrying one shoulder bag each for our clothing and two suitcases each for Susan's clothing. Slot machines lined the concourse.
'You planning on changing clothes every hour?' Hawk said.
'You never know when I may meet Wayne Newton,' Susan said.
'I have to be ready.'
'Long as you don't have to carry it,' Hawk said.
'Jewish American princesses do not carry luggage,' Susan said.
'That's why there are goys.'
'I wonder if we could pick up a couple of little red caps,' I said.
Hawk shook his head.
'Don't issue them to white guys,' he said.
At the limousine pickup area there was only one other party, a man and a woman. Susan studied them for a moment and then made a covert head gesture to Hawk and me.
'Wayne?' Hawk said.
'Shh. No. That's Robert Goulet,' Susan whispered.
Hawk put down the suitcases.
'You need to change?' he said.
'No,' Susan said.
'What I'm wearing is fine for Robert Goulet.'
A slender light-skinned black man in a white suit came into the waiting area. He had short reddish hair. Inside the door, he took off his aviator sunglasses while his eyes adjusted.
Hawk said, 'Lester.'
'Hawk, my man,' Lester said.
