Jingle of Coins (30 page)

“Now?”

“Why not? We’ve got a couple of hour to kill.” He planted several kisses down the nape of her neck and rubbed his hands across her rib cage.

She sighed and tucked the sheet under her arms as she turned on her side. “All right. But there’s something else we have to discuss first.”

“What?”

“Remember when you told me that the facial recognition system uses measurements of facial contours, like the distance between people’s eyes and noses?”

“Yeah.”

“What if Mike has somebody hack into the database after we go into the Witness Protection Program? Couldn’t he use that information to search the Department of Motor Vehicles files all over the United States? He might be able to find us.”

“You’ve got a point. I didn’t even think about that. Mike’s not stupid. Once he hires somebody to get inside the database, there’s no place we can hide.”

She chewed her thumbnail. “That's what I thought. I’m going to tell Dozer we want a plastic surgeon to change our facial structure so that the measurements are different. We don’t want anything major, just enough changes so that no facial recognition system can match up our new driver’s license pictures with what’s already in the database.”

“Plastic surgery? That’s too drastic.”

She patted his arm. “It wouldn’t take much. Believe me, I know about facial structures from being an artist. You simply tighten the muscle tone in various parts of your face, plus a few minor changes along the bridge of your nose. That alone would make a tremendous difference. And, if Mike does download the information, he’ll never match the facial calculations. What do you think?”

Glen scratched the side of his neck. “I hate to say it, but you might be right. We’ll need somebody who does reconstructive surgery for a living and not anybody from this town, either.” He paused for a moment. “Mike has too many connections in Vegas.”

“Look, it’s my life we’re dealing with, not yours. I’ll do whatever it takes to stay alive. The only other thing we want is to have our facial characteristics changed so that no facial recognition program can find us. It has to be a reconstructive surgeon from the Midwest. That’s it. There’s nothing else.”

“I’ll meet you at nine tomorrow morning in the Golden Temple’s Security office. Bring the paperwork.” She disconnected the call and glanced over at Glen. “Looks like we’re in.”

He rolled her over on her back and tugged at the sheet. “Not exactly, but give me a few minutes, and I will be.”

Chapter Thirty-Three

“Wake up, sleepyhead. It’s time to go back to work.”

Emily opened one eye, then the other. It took a moment to recognize her surroundings, and she was tempted to pinch herself to make sure she wasn’t dreaming. Not only was she in Reno, she even had the witness protection and plastic surgery paper signed by Dozer’s boss. She smiled and stretched. “How much are we ahead?”

“About twenty grand, but that’s nowhere near enough. I want a hell of a lot more money before we board that plane.”

She sighed. “I tried to tell you that sometimes the machines don’t change pitch. When that happens, there’s nothing I can do. We’re just lucky that woman got tired of playing the five dollar machine before it paid off.”

“I know. I wasn’t complaining.”

“Be glad we’re here at all. Did you see Dozer’s face when you told him we were going to Reno? I thought he was going to stick us in protective custody under the jail,” she commented as she slipped into a pair of cargo pants.

Glen’s smile widened. “He was pretty pissed. Guess he doesn’t like making his guys beat the bushes for exercise. But even he has to agree that as long as his men act like they’re still searching for the recording, Mike won’t know he has it.” He tossed a pillow her way and then ducked when it zoomed back toward him. “Hurry up. We only have about twenty-four hours left for you to find the machine that’s going to make us rich.”

“That was pretty smart of you to give Dozer the PO Box key as we got on the plane.”

“Yeah.” Glen rolled over onto his side and rested his head on one hand. “But I felt bad about making it so difficult for him to find, so I called and left a message telling him which post office had the recording. He should have it by now.”

“Well, at least he knows we’re not totally heartless.” She grabbed Glen’s cell phone and stuffed it into one of the pockets on her pants, then reached for a comb.

“What kind of business do you think they’ll set us up in after we get into the program?”

Emily perched on the edge of the bed and leaned over to tie her shoelaces. “I know what I’m going to do. Didn’t you hear me tell Dozer to give me my own flower shop?”

“Don’t you think that’s a little obvious? Mike knows you do floral designs. That’s the first place he’ll look.”

She shook her head. “He can look all he wants, but he won’t find me. That’s why we’re having plastic surgery. Besides, I don’t want a big shop, just something small and cozy.”

Glen looped his arm through Emily’s as he guided her through the throng of guests scurrying around the lobby. “Hang on. I’m going to buy a paper,” he said as they walked hand-in-hand toward the Grecian Garden restaurant. “You want anything?”

“No, thanks.” While he went inside, Emily amused herself by listening to people’s conversations. That was one of the few perks of having intensified hearing. Even with her hearing aids in, she could still hear what people said without seeming to eavesdrop.

Suddenly, a voice she’d never forget sounded among the din. She listened closer. It couldn’t be. Not here, not now. She swung around. Dear God, it was him! Frantic, she spun around and ducked into the gift shop.

She shook her head. “I don’t know. As soon as I recognized him, I ducked in here. I don’t think he saw me, but I can’t be sure.”

Glen hustled her into an empty elevator and pushed the button for the sixth floor. “Emily, it’s twenty thousand dollars. Besides, if Stu didn’t see you, he won’t be looking for us.”

“Yeah, right. But what if he did?”

“Then he still has to figure out which room we’re in. That’ll take him a few minutes. We’ll just run in and grab the money. It’ll take five, maybe six minutes max.”

They hurried down the corridor and slipped into the stairwell as the elevator bell chimed. Stu, accompanied by three men, stepped out as Emily closed the stairwell door. She peeped through the wire-enforced glass panel and watched them stick a key card into their door lock.

“That’s great. Just great. What are we going to do?” She poked him in the shoulder. “This is all your fault. We should’ve left right after I spotted Stu. But no, you just had to go back and get the money. I knew we should’ve stayed in Vegas where it was safe. Now look what you’ve got us into. How the hell are you going to get us out of here?” she demanded.

He ignored her jibes. “We’ll be fine. Just do what I tell you and don’t ask any questions. The pool’s on the second floor. There’s a small service platform behind the cabanas that leads down to the street. As soon as I make sure that nobody’s waiting for us, we’ll slip out that way. Wait here while I see if any of Mike’s goons are stationed in the hallway.”

Emily waited impatiently as Glen moved to the second-floor doorway. The sound of voices boomed above her, and she realized Stu and his guys were running down the stairs. She flattened her body against the platform wall, then descended to the second floor.

The pool was crowded, and nobody noticed as they slipped behind the row of cabanas stretched along one side. Glen paused as they reached the last one, located near the service platform.

Emily crept in beside him. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of three uniformed guards walking toward them, armed with guns and walkie-talkies.

“The guards are at the other end of the pool,” she whispered. “I don’t think they’ve seen us yet. What do you want to do?”

Glen grabbed her hand and dragged her to the top of the stairs. “Run,” he said as he nudged her down the first step. “Run as fast as you can.”

He watched the men disappear into the crowds that swarmed through the newly opened casino and wondered what the day would bring. With any luck, everything would go according to plan, and tomorrow he’d be back in Vegas.

The two cylinders of nerve gas were secured in a special storage unit in the basement. Three armed guards stood watch over the door, and he’d placed a man at every intersecting corridor. In addition, special cameras enabled his security team to watch the hallway that connected the basement to the hotel. Nothing would slip through their security net unnoticed.

He turned toward the Chief of Security’s office and paused when a familiar face caught his attention. Startled, he looked again, but she was gone.

Had he imagined it? Surely, Kate’s neighbor, the woman from the florist shop, wasn’t here. He hurried through the door. It was easy enough to check. All he had to do was replay the lobby tape.

Three minutes later, his worst fears were confirmed. She was here and so was the man she’d been staying with. Their appearance was too much of a coincidence; something must be going on. He checked the register for their room number, then called in three of his men. “Don’t kill them,” he said as they rode the elevator to the sixth floor. “We have to find out why they’re here and how much they know.”

Inside the hotel suite, Stu surveyed the signs of a hurried departure. “Spread out; they couldn’t have gone far,” he ordered as he walked back to the elevator. Moments later, he entered the security chief’s office. “Search every inch of this hotel until those two are found.”

One of the guards motioned him over. “I see them,” he whispered excitedly. “They just left the second-floor stairwell. Looks like they’re headed for the pool.”

Stu grabbed the console microphone. “The man and woman we’re looking for were last seen heading for the service stairwell behind the cabanas. Don’t let them leave. I repeat. Don’t let them leave. Bring them to the security office for questioning.”