170, swarthy skin with facial scars, probably acne. He was wearing a maroon shirt with long collar points, unbuttoned halfway down to expose his hairy chest and a gold chain with some kind of medal. He had on a pair of yellow pants and white patent-leather loafers with a chain across the instep. He had a gold wristwatch and a diamond ring on one hand, and a couple of gold bracelets around the wrist of the other.
He got out and looked around as if he had just bought the place, made a big deal of checking the time, so everybody would see the gold watch, and then waited for the limo driver to get his bags from the trunk. Cheap luggage. He waited until the guy had carried his bags to the American Airlines counter, then pulled out a thick wad of bills, hundreds outside, and then counted out four twenties.
'Here you go, my man,' the gonzo said.
A limo, no matter at what hotel you were staying, was no more than fifty bucks, so the last of the big spenders was laying a large tip on the driver. The gonzo had apparently done well at the tables.
The Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce, Oakes knew, would be happy. There was no better advertisement than some gonzo like this going home and telling the other gonzos what a killing he'd made in Vegas.
Officer Oakes's attention was diverted from the gonzo by the sound of a strident female voice, offering her anything but flattering opinion of the gentleman with her. Drunk probably, Oakes decided.
He stepped into a doorway, unzipped his Marina Hotel amp; Casino plastic bag and took out the radio and called for a uniformed officer to deal with the disturbance at American Airlines Arrival.
By the time the uniforms, two of them, got there, the female Caucasian, five-three, maybe 135,140, brown hair, had warmed to the subject of what a despicable, untrustworthy sonofabitch the gentleman with her was, and Officer Oakes put the blonde with the nice ass, the gonzo, and the good-looking young guy he was sure had made him as a cop from his mind.
Matt caught up with Penny as she marched through the airport and took her arm.
'Is that really necessary?'
'I've got to make a phone call,' he said.
He guided her to a row of pay telephones, took a dime from his pocket, dropped it in the slot, gave the operator a number, told her it was collect, that his name was Matthew Payne, and that he would speak with anyone.
'Who are you calling?' Penny asked, almost civilly.
'My father.'
'Why?'
'Because I was told to call when I was sure the plane was leaving on schedule,' Matt Payne replied, and then turned his attention to the telephone.
'Hello, Mrs. Craig. Would you please tell that slave driver you work for that American Airlines Flight 6766 is leaving on schedule?'
There was brief pause and then he went on:
'Everything's fine. Aside from the fact that I lost my car and next year's salary at the craps tables.'
There was a reply, and he chuckled and hung up.
'Why did you call your father?' Penny asked.
'Because I thought he would be better able to deal with a collect call than yours,' Matt Payne replied, then took her arm again. 'There' s what I have been looking for.'
He led her to a cocktail lounge and set her down at a tiny table in a relatively uncrowded part of the room.
A waitress almost immediately came to the table.
'Have you got any Tuborg?' Matt Payne asked.
The waitress nodded.
'Penny?' he asked.
'I think a 7UP, please.'
'Sprite okay?'
'Yes, thank you,' Penny said. Then, turning to Matt: 'You were kidding, right, about losing a lot of money gambling?'
'As a matter of fact, I made so much money, I don't believe it.'
'Really?'
He took the Flamingo's check for $3,700 from his pocket and showed it to her.
'My God!'
'And that's not all of it,' he said.
'What were you playing?'
'Roulette.'
'Roulette? What do you know about playing roulette?'
'Absolutely nothing, that's why I won,' Matt said.
She smiled. The anger seemed to be gone. He had a policeman's cynical thought.Is she charming me?
'When did you get here?' Penny asked.
'A little after ten yesterday morning.'
'Then why didn't you come get me yesterday?'
'Because I was told to get you this morning,' he said. 'Mine not to reason why, et cetera, et cetera.'
'So instead you went gambling.'
'Right. I quit half an hour before the limousine came back for me.' When he saw the look on her face, he went on solemnly, 'Las Vegas never sleeps, you know. They don't even have clocks.'
'I really wouldn't know. I didn't get to go to town.'
He did not respond.
'You really gambled all night?' she asked.
'I took a couple of naps and a shower, but yes, I guess I did.'
'Well, I'm glad you had fun.'
'Thank you.'
'You were the last person I expected to see,' Penny said.
'You could have been knocked over with a fender, right?'
She smiled dutifully.
'What are you doing out here, Matt? I mean, why you?'
The waitress appeared with their drinks. Matt handed her a credit card and waited for her to leave before replying.
'My father called me up and asked me to have a drink at the Rittenhouse. When I got there, Chief Coughlin was with him…'
'That's the man you call 'Uncle Denny'?'
'Right. My father told me it had been decided by your father and Amy that I was the obvious choice to come out here and bring you home. I told him that while the thought of being able to be of some small service to you naturally thrilled me, I would have to regretfully decline, as I had to work. Then Denny Coughlin told me your father had talked to the mayor, and that was no problem. So here I am.'
'You're still a:' Penny asked, stopped just in time from saying ' cop,' and finished, '…policeman?'
'No, Precious Penny,' Matt said. 'I am no longer a simple police officer. You have the great privilege of sitting here with one of Philadelphia's newest detectives. M. M. Payne, East Detective Division, at your service, ma'am. Just the facts, please.'
She smiled dutifully again.
He smiled back and took a healthy swallow of his beer.
Matt Payne felt nowhere near as bright and clever as he was trying to appear. As a matter of fact, he could recall few times in his twenty-two years when he had been more uncomfortable.
'Then congratulations, Matt,' Penny said.
'Thank you, ma'am,' he said.
