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Vic grinned. “That’s the idea. It’s called red bronze. Clint’s wife, Sandra, put it on me. She did my hands, too.”
“It’s a perfect job. Natural. Hey—take a look at the leather jacket.” The guys whistled. “Nice. Expensive. The turquoise beading gives it an authentic air.”
“It is an authentic Lipan design. One of my relatives lent it to me.”
“The fit of the shoulders makes you appear bigger.”
“He weighs fifty pounds more than I do. It’s a good thing, considering I’m wearing a bulletproof vest underneath my plaid shirt.”
“You’re taller, too.”
“I’ve got lifts in my cowboy boots.”
“With that long black wig you closely resemble your Apache ancestor, minus the bandana. The touch of gray at the temples has aged you ten years.”
“Sandra does a good job, don’t you think?”
“I think you look scary as hell, in a classy, modern way. Claire and Jeremy need to see a picture of you dressed like this.”
Before Vic could stop him, Kit took a couple of pictures with his camera phone. “I gotta tell you I wouldn’t want to meet up with you in the dark. Do you know that spray tan makes your black eyes glitter?”
“Hopefully I look like a tribal elder from across the state line with means, ready to make some money at the roulette table and maybe something more.” The casino came fully packed: slots, bingo, Texas Hold’em poker, blackjack, roulette, craps, baccarat. “From there I’ll graduate to the backroom poker game. I’ve got my small dagger in case there’s any trouble.” He pulled it out from a sheath beneath his turquoise belt to show them, then put it back.
Kit squinted. “Like I said, I’m glad I’m on your side. Have you picked out a name?”
“Clint helped me. It’s Eskaminzim. Don’t worry about trying to pronounce it.”
“I won’t.”
“It’s authentic, but I go by the translation.”
“Which is?”
“Big Mouth.”
The guys chuckled.
“The Lipans speak English and Spanish now. I know enough to get by.”
“I like your ring.”
“Clint lent me all this ancestral turquoise jewelry. The listening/recording device is hidden in the necklace I’m wearing. You can’t buy stuff like it nowadays.”
“I believe you’re having fun, Ranger Malone!”
“Aren’t you?”
Kit nodded. “The top man needs to pay after kidnapping your son. Here’s the cell phone you’ll be using inside. It’s programmed to reach us. That’s it.”
Vic put it in the front pocket of his jeans. “Well, gentlemen, I’m going hunting. See you later.”
“Watch your back, Vic.”
“Always.”
He stepped down from the van and headed for the entrance to the casino. His plan was to get cozy with the management. Vic needed to mix with the casino personnel to find the man who’d been tapped to take over the money laundering scheme since Quarls’s imprisonment. Given time, that man would divulge the author of the multimillion-dollar scam.
Vic had a hunch the corruption had been coming from the deputy secretary of the Department of the Interior, Fred Waters. He’d been overseeing Indian casino gaming interests throughout the United States for a long time. Waters had to be the one who’d orchestrated everything.
