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Now that Paulie, Sal, and Rudy are finally paying attention, Donzelli gives us a tight smile. “Last night we grabbed a girl off the floor for one of our VIP guests. He paid a pretty penny for her, and he’s planning to…introduce himself after he finishes at the craps tables this evening. It hasn’t been twenty-four hours yet since her disappearance, so the police won’t get involved until later tonight. But it appears she has friends and family who aren’t waiting. One of them is down there, stirring up trouble. I want you to find this woman and shut her up quickly.”
Sal and Rudy glance at her image on Donzelli’s phone. The big lug whistles. A dirty smile flits across the short man’s face. “She’s a looker. I’d fuck her. In fact, I think I will. C’mon, Rudy.”
Together they head out, taking the elevator with them.
Finally, the boss turns his phone around to show me a picture of a gorgeous redhead who flips every one of my switches at the same time the blood in my veins freezes.
Unfortunately, I don’t have to guess where Kristi Knolls is anymore. She came to Vegas—and fell pretty ass first into danger.
Fuck.
I go running.
Kristi
Worry gnaws my belly as I shoulder my way through the thick crowd of people, trying not to scream. Why is this casino so crowded? Granted, it’s a Saturday night, but I don’t understand the neon, get-rich-quick attraction. Then again, I’ve never liked gambling. But that doesn’t matter now. My cousin Sammie does. The girl is barely eighteen.
And she went missing last night.
Early this morning, my aunt Tammy called frantically and asked for my help in finding her daughter. Sammie disappeared here, at a concert she came to with friends. It should have been fine. She was in a group. They were in public. But she went to the restroom between bands…and never returned.
Worry knots me. Sammie is young and impulsive, but she’s never been the kind of kid who looks for trouble. Sure, it’s possible she saw another pal or met someone new. But it would be completely out of character for her to ditch her friends without a word. Even more unlike her not to call her mother all night long. When she left the house, her phone battery was full, so it shouldn’t have given out.
With every passing minute, I get more concerned. If I let myself imagine all the things that could befall her in Vegas, I’ll lose my shit. I can’t imagine what my aunt Tammy is going through. Sammie is her only daughter.
But at this point, I’m terrified the worst has happened.
I grab a passing employee’s sleeve, shoving my phone with a picture of Sammie in his face. “Excuse me. Were you working last night? Did you see this girl?”
He glances at the screen, then quickly shakes his head, avoiding my gaze. “Sorry.”
He pushes forward. The crowd swallows him up. I fight to keep my composure.
I’d follow the waiter and demand his help, but he’s the third employee I’ve questioned. Each dismissed—more like dodged—me when I asked about Sammie. What the heck is going on?
Hotel security wasn’t any more helpful. They said they would only work with me once the police deemed this a missing-persons case. Until then, they consider Sammie an adult, having adult fun in a haven built for just that purpose.
As I snake through the throng of people, pushing against the flow of bodies, I scan everywhere for my cousin’s long, dark waves and sunny smile. Nothing. Her last text to her mother said she was having a great time and that she and her friends planned to get some food after the concert. That was twenty-two hours ago. No one has heard from her since.
A few feet away, I spot a cluster of stairs that lead to some high-roller slots. I twist my way to them, climbing to the top for a better view, then turn to scan the vast expanse of the casino. My stare makes it halfway across the room before I feel eyes on me.
It’s ominous. A warning.
The unease rolling through my stomach turns to fear.
Is the someone who’s responsible for whatever happened to Sammie watching me, determined to make sure I don’t find her?
Quickly, I whip out my phone to text someone my location. But who? Aunt Tammy has enough on her plate. Most of my friends are back in Dallas. But I didn’t tell any of them that I hopped a last-minute flight to Vegas to help locate Sammie.
If I disappeared, too, no one would know where to start looking.
Those are crazy thoughts, right? I need to calm down. Sure, I came here alone, but who would really try to shut me up for asking a few questions about a missing girl?
Writing off my disquiet to paranoia seems logical…but I still feel eyes on me. Again, I skim the crowd. I don’t see anyone staring, but something tugs my gaze up, to a band of dark, mirrored glass that rims the edge of the dropped ceiling. Above it is clearly another level, one not open to the public.
