46
CASSIE heard the series of pops that she knew to be gunfire. It sent an electric chill down the muscles of her back.
'Cassie?'
It was Jodie's urgent whisper. Cassie looked toward the reflected glow from the penlight in the duct ahead. Jodie was scared. It was impossible to tell where the shots had come from. She crawled toward the light.
Jodie was huddled by the bars. She put the light on Cassie as she got closer.
'Cassie, I heard loud noises.'
'It's all right, Jodie. It's all right. I'm going to go around now and come get you. You wait right there, okay? You wait for me.'
'No! Don't – '
Cassie had to put her hand over her mouth. When she did it she felt tears on the girl's cheeks.
'It's okay, Jodie. We're almost done. You have to wait here. It's the only way. I will be coming around for you in five minutes. I promise. Look at that watch and see how short five minutes is, okay?'
'Okay,' she said in a small voice. 'I'll be here.'
This time Cassie just reached a hand through the bars that separated them and touched Jodie's cheek. She then started pushing herself backward through the duct toward suite 2001.
When she got to the vent she tapped it with her foot to push it out of its frame. It swung down the wall on the one screw still in place. She climbed out feet first and dropped down to the room service table, carrying her belt bag of tools with her. She took the fact that the table was still in place as a good sign. She went to the television console and was about to turn it off so she could hear better when a voice from behind stopped her.
'Nice move getting in here.'
She turned and Karch was standing in the alcove leading to the bathroom, which was blocked off by the room service table beneath the overhead vent. He held the gym bag down at his side with one hand and a gun pointed at her with the other. She saw the gun had the silencer attached. He pushed the room service table out of his way with a foot and stepped into the room. Cassie backed up against the television, which was showing another Road Runner cartoon.
Karch smiled but there was no warmth or humor in it.
'The Trojan horse,' he said. 'The enemy was inside and they rolled it right in. One of the best magic tricks ever.'
Cassie still didn't say anything. She stood perfectly still and just hoped the television noise was loud enough that Jodie didn't hear this.
'You know those bars you ran into up there in the duct?' Karch asked. 'They were put in after your little spree with Max seven years ago. All the hotels did it. I guess you could say you did your little part to help make Las Vegas what it is today. A safe place for the gambler and his family.'
He smiled again.
'Where's the girl?'
Cassie pointed to the bag in his hand.
'You have the money, Karch. You have me. Let her go.'
Karch frowned as if he was actually considering the suggestion. Then he shook his head.
'Can't do it. I hate loose ends.'
'She's not a loose end. She's not even six years old. What possible danger is she to you?'
Karch ignored the question and wagged the gun at her.
'Let's go into the other room. I like that window better. There's a symmetry to it. That was Max's window.'
Cassie turned and started to move slowly toward the door as she tried to consider options. She decided her only chance was at the door. She had to make a move there, even though he would be expecting it. She gripped the strap of the tool bag tighter and was a few steps from the door when again a voice stopped her. But this one wasn't Karch's.
'Don't you hurt her!'
As Cassie turned she saw that the voice had also caught Karch by surprise. He was instinctively turning, swinging his gun hand up toward the air vent behind him. Cassie's eyes followed the movement and saw Jodie crouched in the air duct, looking down on them.
Cassie acted instinctively, too. She moved toward Karch and swung the tool bag in a wide overhead arc at the same time she yelled to Jodie.
'Jodie, go back!'
The tool bag came down on the back of Karch's head, the steel tools impacting heavily and propelling Karch forward and downward. He fired a shot – which was still quite loud despite the silencer – but the aim was way low and the slug spiderwebbed a mirror in the bathroom alcove.
Cassie moved quickly into him while he was bent over and jerked his suit jacket up and over his head. She then brought her knee up into the tangle of the jacket and felt it connect solidly with Karch's face.
Karch desperately started turning and swinging his arms. A forearm caught Cassie across the side of the face and knocked her away. Karch turned in the direction of the impact and started firing the gun blindly. Stunned by the blow to the face, Cassie was still able to leap onto the bed and roll across it, coming down into a crouch on the floor behind Karch.
Karch continued to fire as he swung his arm right to left. The shots peppered the walls and hit the floor-to- ceiling window twice, causing twin spiderwebs to craze across the glass. He finally was able to straighten up and jerk his jacket back down over his head. He dropped the money bag to do so.
As the jacket came down off his head and his vision cleared, Karch was confused by his location. He was looking out at the Las Vegas night through a wall of shattered glass. There was no sign of Cassidy Black. He realized how vulnerable he was and started to turn just as something solid and hard crashed into the back of his thighs and he was propelled into the glass wall.
The weakened glass gave easily and he crashed through. As he went he let go of the gun and grabbed desperately with both hands for any purchase. His left hand found the curtain and he grabbed on as his upper body went through the glass into the chill night air.
As the glass fell away into the night Karch was momentarily poised on the precipice like a rappeller on a sheer cliff facing. Clinging now with both hands to the golden curtain, his body hung out into the night and was bolstered by his feet on the edge of the window sill.
His weight swung him gently to his left and the curtain started to close. He quickly spread his feet to stabilize himself and the curtain stopped at the halfway mark. He looked back into the room and saw Cassidy Black staring at him, both her hands flat on the room service cart she had hit him with. His eyes dropped to the floor and he saw the money bag and the gun. He reached one hand further up the curtain and started pulling himself back into the room.
With his first pull he heard a popping sound and the curtain gave way a few inches. He froze and waited. Nothing else happened. He looked in at the woman who had put him in this position and their eyes locked. Karch smiled and reached further up the curtain again.
This time the shifting of pressure and weight on the curtain brought a long ripping series of pops as one by one the curtain hooks gave way. The curtain started coming off its attachments and Karch started dropping. He kept his smile, looking at Cassidy Black until the curtain ripped completely free and he was falling through the night.
Karch did not yell. He did not close his eyes. To him his plummet seemed to be in slow motion. Above him he saw the golden curtain waving like a flag. The windows went by, some lighted and some not. Above the building he saw the moon in the blue-black sky.
The void moon, he realized.
His last thought was of the trick. The mail sack and the crate. The secret zipper and the false bottom. How he had to reach up and place the playing card – the Jack of Spades – in the right spot. He remembered how proud his father was. And the applause from the audience.
