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I practice my smiling and nodding in response, and he pats my hand. “Good girl. It was good fortune that George got the call to pilot your flight out of here. Otherwise, we wouldn’t be able to have this lovely evening together. I’m looking forward to it.”
The praise is revolting coming from him, but his words give me one more detail I didn’t have before. If it really was luck that my pilot was someone with ties to Pratchett, then whatever is happening, was planned at the last minute. Maybe they got sloppy. It also means they probably don’t have Luke. If he knows I didn’t make it to London, he might already be looking for me.
As we walk, I do my best to take in my surroundings and memorize the path we walk. A guard takes us onto an elevator, and we go to the fourth floor.
“Time to put on your cheerful face, Allison.”
“My name is Zara,” I say as I plaster on my fake smile.
“Your name is whatever I want it to be, sweetheart. Isn’t that how it works?”
I don’t answer, because the doors are open, and my senses are immediately overloaded. We step out of the elevator, into a lobby of sorts, and people are milling about with drinks while servers pass trays of appetizers. Music filters softly through the room, mingling with the dozens of conversations happening.
I recognize at least a dozen of the men I’ve spotted so far. Not all of them have been clients, but a few were, and they had their wives with them tonight.
Even if I weren’t here under duress, I would be in danger in a place like this. Movie premieres and private parties are one thing. This is a large crowd of powerful people. Many of whom have questionable ethics.
I spot Owen first, but he doesn’t see me because his back is turned. Of the other three, it makes the most sense for Matteo to be here since he works in VIP services for one of the nightclubs. I’m not sure if I should expect to see Luke or Victor.
We move through the room, and the senator makes small talk with a half a dozen people before we’re halfway across the expansive space. I can’t help but wonder what he’s hoping to accomplish by having me here tonight. The amount of security in this place is insane given that someone took out the mayor of New York City right under his bodyguards’ noses.
After a half hour of milling around the room, the door to the ballroom opens, and we’re let in. I spot Matteo instantly standing near the entrance talking to an employee. I raise my hand to wave at him, but Pratchett stops me. “Don’t even think about it.”
But Matteo spots me, and gives me a subtle nod, allowing the tension to flow out of my shoulders. It’s sad that I feel like I can trust a member of an Italian Mafia family more than I can trust a U.S. senator.
The senator stops us at a tall cocktail table, and he drapes an arm around me as we stand next to it. People approach to say hello, and he only introduces me if someone asks. He wised up after the first one and started calling me Zara because I once again corrected him when he used my birth name. No one calls me Allison. Not even deranged senators.
So far, I haven’t been recognized for my brief appearance on local television, but at least two clients have come to say hello and I saw the recognition in their eyes.
“Zara!” A familiar voice rings in my ears, and I turn to find Skylar racing toward me with her arms open.
“Careful,” Pratchett murmurs before she reaches us.
She jerks me into a hug, causing me to stumble a couple of feet away from the table.
“It’s so good to see you again,” she says loud enough for everyone to hear before she buries her face in my hair so she’s close to my ear.
“Something is about to happen, and you need to roll with it,” she whispers. Then she lets me go and I grin.
“Good to see you, too. We’ll have to catch up later.”
The senator grabs me and pulls me close to him again. “You’re lucky she didn’t try anything. Don’t think I don’t know she’s one of Luke Bowden’s buddies.”
I don’t say anything, simply nod and keep looking around the room for whatever Skylar says is going to happen.
Another half hour of talking and sipping a single glass of champagne passes, and I’m thinking I missed whatever Skylar was talking about.
Then the music gets quieter, and someone greets the crowd.
I turn to face the stage and see Hunter Novak. He’s a well-known casino owner and entertainment mogul who owns a slew of nightclubs, bars, and luxury restaurants around the world as well as three resorts right here on the strip.
“I wanted to take a minute and thank all of you for coming out tonight. It’s always a pleasure to host our public servants, including those who represent us in elected offices. I’ve got a special treat for you; Las Vegas’s own Skylar Cameron is with us tonight and has agreed to perform. So, give it up for her right now.”
Everyone cheers, and a curtain raises behind him to reveal a live band. One of Skylar’s popular up-tempo songs begins to play, and she bursts onto the stage.
The senator is huffing beside me, and I get the feeling he isn’t a Skylar Cameron fan.
When the first song in her set ends, the crowd erupts with applause once again, but Skylar shushes them.
