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“Minnie, I…” My words trickled off, and I wondered how much I should share. “I didn’t mean to kill him.” I wasn’t sure what I came here to do.
“Jasper, bring Duggy!” Minnie called, and a moment later, two of her bouncers came in. They dropped a tarp, put the dead body on top, and rolled him up like a burrito. Then he was gone. All that could be seen now was a puddle of blood on the floor. I knew that would soon vanish as well. I didn’t have time to appreciate just how fast it had all disappeared.
“Tracy,” she said into her radio, “go check the dancer for room three.” She looked over at me, and I took a moment to meet her eyes. “You want to tell me what that was about?”
“Nope.” I grabbed my bag that had been thrown across the room then marched up to her and took her hand. “Thank you for letting me know he was here.”
“Who is he, exactly?”
“I need you to do one more thing, Min. Take this to the grave.” I searched her eyes. “Not even Brick can know.”
“Kenna, this isn’t my first rodeo. Disposing of assholes may be a skill I have, but I deserve to know what’s going on.”
“Yeah, you do. I know you do, but for now—and I’m a shitty friend for asking this—but for now, I need you to trust that I got this.” She pursed her lips and slit her eyes as she studied me.
“Fine, I got you until you don’t.”
“Thanks. I love you.” I peeked out the door and hoped to hell his buddies were still enjoying the other rooms. Minnie’s club offered a lot of options. “Talk later.” I hurried away before she could ask any more questions.
I tried not to think about my tacky shoes as I rushed down the hall. I suddenly bumped shoulders with someone, I didn’t look up to see who it was. I turned my face away and was out the back door almost at a full run. A bouncer I recognized looked me up and down.
“You good?”
“I’m okay, Nate.” I hid my hands in my pockets. I walked around the corner and saw a town car with three huge men standing around it. One was bald, and he stroked his bushy mustache. I backed up then broke into a full sprint across the parking lot toward the lights of the Vegas strip. I felt weightless as my mind moved in slow motion as though it had to buffer what just happened. My mind might have been slow, but not my body, as everything around me blurred as I ran like the wind. My heels beat the pavement, cars zipped by me, until I came to the sign that read B&P’s Construction. I pivoted by the sign, through the giant piles of dirt, to the seven-foot chain link fence that separated me from my alibi. I pulled back the corner of the fence by the light post and slipped through. I gulped in a few breaths as a small sense of security washed over me.
“Oh, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus,” I repeated to myself as tears pricked my eyes. I felt the rush of what just happened slam into my body, the air squeezed out of my lungs with every beat of my heart. A roll of nausea broke over me, but I forced it back down with sheer will. Adrenaline and panic were a bad combination when you needed to think straight. I closed my eyes, but the moment I did, I began to relive it. “No!” I mentally kicked myself back in shape. I had no time to waste.
I pulled out my phone, took a deep breath, and with slippery fingers I called the one person I knew wouldn’t question my story. I really wished I could call Morgan, but I couldn’t, not for this. Deep breaths, Kenna.
“Ew!” In the low lighting I could see my blood-stained hands. I grabbed a couple tissues from my purse and did my best to wipe them as the phone rang.
“There she is,” he chuckled, “I know you hate the Dave Matthews Band, but they covered some KISS songs too.”
“Any band that covers those two bands in one set should be sold on the black market,” I joked as I tried like hell to conceal my heavy breathing. “Besides, I did tell you I wasn’t going to stay out late tonight.” I made my way toward the hotel as I prayed Bobby the security guard wasn’t doing his rounds.
“You just left so quickly. I thought something was wrong.”
“Nope.” I dodged the construction on the ground level. I had made it this far in my new shoes and didn’t want to break a heel at this point. I took a moment to pat myself on the back that I hadn’t put on my stilettos.
“You’re the only one I know who would leave a bar to go design.” I could sense Dale’s eyeroll through the phone.
“When inspiration hits, it hits.” I pushed the sheet of plastic back to step inside the soon-to-be hottest, most posh hotel on the Vegas Strip. I leaned my back against one of the walls and felt my heart pound against my chest. Focus. “Besides, I can’t be a hostess for the rest of my life.”
“You’re hella talented and drop dead frickin’ gorgeous. You can do both.”
“Says the guy who couldn’t stay faithful with me for three months.”
“I might be a hoe with shitty morals, but I can appreciate a fine-lookin’ woman when I see one.”
“Thanks.” I forced a chuckle as I hurried up the unfinished steps to the third floor. I stepped into the dining area that would look over the Strip. An unfinished structure such as Secrets Hotel was a happy place for me. As I spoke to Dale, I readjusted my focus and forced my head back on straight.
“You know Minnie’s going to want you.”
“Doesn’t mean I should automatically expect her to.” Minnie had told me to show her what I would do if she owned this hotel. She was considering an expansion to her club and maybe even to Trigger’s underground fight ring. This hotel only had some walls up. It was still very much a skeleton, and that meant a clean slate, no influence of any kind to mess with my head.
“Just be careful. I hate you going there alone.” I closed my eyes and fought off the shakes.
“You know I’m here, and Bobby, the head of security this month, will be doing his rounds soon, so I’ll touch base with him then.”
