Chapter 12

The two girls sat in the back of the car. As Kyle drove, Ron turned to face them.

"What in the name of heaven were you two thinking about? Do you have any idea how dangerous this racket is? Thrills are not worth getting killed over. There are all kinds of stuff you've just danced with. AIDS, STDS, pregnancy, violence, and a thousand other ways that this shit can kill you. My God, the whole thing scares me to death.

"It's even worse when you deal with people who work in child porn. Those people violate some serious laws, so they wouldn't think twice about putting you six feet under to protect themselves."

"Well, Sissy feels that she needs to sock some money away because of what her father did to her and her mother," replied Sally. "They wouldn't take one of us without the other, so I told her I would help her."

Ron shook his head in disbelief. "Damn it girl, her stepfather is one of the richest men in the country. Country, shit, the world, but all the money in the world won't do you any good if you're dead.

"What in the world made you think you need money, anyway? Both of you have untouchable trust funds larger than some countries' net worth."

Sissy looked defiantly at Ron and said, "I've seen no trust funds. I'm not sure they're there. When my dad left Mother and I, he left us broke. Mom had to work her ass off. We lived in a slum in a run down piece of junk apartment. I would wake up in the middle of the night with rats running over me. I won't go through that again."

What makes you think you'll have to?"

"Mom signed a prenuptial agreement. If she leaves him, we're back in the same mess."

"That was your mother's idea, but Paul only agreed to it on one condition."

"Yeah, I bet. OK, I'll ask. What was the condition?"

"I'll tell you, but you have to promise that you won't tell anyone that you know about this because of me."

"Okay. I promise."

Sally added, "Me too."

"Paul insisted that he set up a trust fund for you and her. He did not want there to ever be a problem like you just mentioned."

"Sure, there's a trust fund. How do you know that?"

"Remember those physical exams you, Sally and your mom had before Paul and Jamie got married?"

"Yeah, so?"

"That was for the insurance that covers the money in your trust fund."

"Is there enough for me to go to college?"

"I don't know. Can you find a college that will let you in for a messily ten million dollars?"

"How much?"

"Ten million dollars. If you're smart, you could live off the interest for the rest of your life in comfort."

"Really?"

"That's right. You and Sally each get a trust of ten million each and Jamie gets twenty million. That is the only reason Paul agreed to the prenuptial agreement."

"Oh," replied the two girls together.

Sissy turned to Sally. "You known I really didn't mean it when I called you stupid. I was so confused and afraid of living with the rats again. Can we still be friends?"

"This thing got to both of us, Cus. Let's forget all about it."

Ron sighed and said, "I'm not sure we can forget this mess. What you two did was really wrong. I'm going to have to talk to your parents about it."

"You can't!" Both girls shouted in unison. "They'll kill us," continued Sally. "If I thought you were going to knife us in the back I wouldn't have called you. I thought I could trust you. You are a doctor."

"Doc," whispered Kyle. "This has been really hard on the girls. Why don't you guys sleep on whiter or not to tell their parents? If they trust you, and you can't fulfill that trust, you'll lose that trust. There's not enough trust in the world. Maybe you don't want to lose any more."

"OK, I'll think about it. I will make one commitment, though. If I decide to tell your folks, I will talk to you about it first."

"Thanks, Doctor Ron," said Sissy.

"Thank you, Kyle," said Sally.

Kyle said over his shoulder, "You guys ever do that again, not only will 'I' tell your parents, but I'll beat your asses until you have to stand the rest of your lives. I'm still having problems believing you were so stupid."

Ron added, "Kyle, you'll have to stand in line to bust their butts. I get first shot at it."

Rhonda looked at the security experts gathered to develop a plan to eliminate the loss problems Desert Properties was having. Jack Watson and Jeff Jefferson were in deep conversation in one corner of the room. Other teams were scattered about the room plotting strategies to find the money leaks and plug them.

Cy stood at Rhonda's side and announced, "Gentlemen. We are going to take a little break from our meeting. This is Rhonda Graves. She was due for an audition for our club room rotation, but I had to stand her up. She has graciously consented to entertain you as her audition. Who ever said I don't look out for my security people?

"Rhonda, this is the size of the rooms you will start out in. We expect you to play your own piano. It's over in the corner. It's all yours."

"Thank you Mr. Smithson. Hello everyone. My name is Rhonda. Thank you for allowing me to sing for you today. If you have anything you would like to hear, let me know."

One of the guys in the back of the room shouted out, "How about your phone number?"

Rhonda turned to look at the man in the back of the room. In her best Mae West voice, she cooed, "For a man sexy as you are how could I refuse? It's 1-800-328-7448. Call me anytime."

Jeff burst out laughing. Everyone in the room looked at the big man as if he had lost his senses. Jack looked at Jeff and asked, "What's so funny?"

"Look at the letters associated with those numbers."

Several people in the room pulled out their cell phones and the room began to break out in laughter. Cy asked, "OK what are the letters?"

Between tears of laughter, Jeff squeaked out, "1-800 EAT-SHIT."

Rhonda brought her hands together in front of her and moved the toe of one foot in lazy circles on the floor. Moving to a Betty Boop voice she whined, "Awe shucks. You found me out. I almost got away with that one."

One of the agents shouted across the room to the heckler. "Be careful, Jonesy. You just met your match."

Rhonda sat at the piano and ran a scale and looked at the man she just put down. "Jonesy, this is for you for being such a good sport. She took a deep breath and started to sing, "What good is setting alone in your room..."

When she finished the song the room burst into shouts of approval. Jonesy turned to his boss. "Cy, you got a winner here. Five will get you ten that she's headlining is six months."

"Jonesy, I never take a fools bet. You just may be right."

Cy turned to Rhonda. "Young lady, I would like for you to go to the personal office and get started on your paper work. It seems that Jonesy, here, just hired you."

"Why thank you Jonesy, looks like I owe you a drink for the endorsement."

"I'll hold you to that one, Kido. Now, about giving me that phone number?"

Rhonda looked at Jonesy. "Honey, the job ain't that good."

In Jeff's room, Jack, Jeff, Cy, and Rhonda compared notes.

Cy started the conversation. "These guys can be clowns when they're in meetings like this, but when they're on the job, I can't find anything wrong with their work. That's why I think I need your help. First, we've got a money leak somewhere. It looks like we're short about ... How much was that Jeff?"

"My best guess is about three hundred to nine hundred grand, but it could be more. We have tried to uncover all the standard scams, but we're at a dead end."

Jack looked at Cy. The people I'll have to call in are going to be expensive, but I don't know of anyone better at this than them."

"That's Okay. If word of this gets out, the gaming commission is going to run it right up my backside."

Rhonda suggested, "Mitchell and Bob?"

"You got it. I'll call them tonight and see how fast they can get out here. Paul just bought a company out of Seattle called 'Firewall Solutions.' We may have to call in their people too. What do you consider your number two problem, Cy."

"Well, you just can't have customers' throats cut very often and stay in business. It doesn't look like the LVPD is going to put much effort into that poor woman's death. Somehow that Bozo, Summers, has convinced the police that she got what she deserved. I just can't let that go. We have to find out who did this and why. Then we have to come up with a system that won't let it happen again.

"Another problem is that we are suddenly overrun with prostitutes. As soon as we throw out one group, another takes their place. We want to find out why this has started, and who is behind it. This could have legal ramifications for all our operations in Nevada.

"We are having vandal problems in some of our public areas, but the security cameras are not getting all of the acts. The damage is considerable. I don't know if it is employees or not. The fact that we can't catch anyone leads me to think that it could be employees or ex-employees with a grudge.

"If that were not enough, we are also blessed with a slew of pick pockets. Again, we usually catch them, but the police are not arresting them and they are back in here the next night.

"Am I paranoid about this?"

Jack replied, "Remember what Henry Kissinger once said, 'Even paranoids have enemies.' This may be connected. Do you have any state inspections coming up?"

"No, we just finished last month."

"Hum. How often do you get inspections?"

Cy eyed Jack carefully. "About every quarter. What are you thinking?"

"It's possible, just possible, that you could be getting set up. Have you seen any large purchase of stocks in Desert Industries or your competition?"

"No."

"Have you heard anything about these same things happening to other casinos?"

"No."

"What about operations in other parts of the state? How about Reno? Do you see anything there?"

"I don't think we have the money loss there, but we are seeing an increase in the rest."

"Do you have any openings or confidential purchases you are pursuing?"

"Well, now that you mentioned it, we are looking into an operation in Barbarous and one on the French Southern Coast."

"Who knows about these considerations?"

"The board, our accountants, and the company we are thinking of buying. We are looking at some good bargains, because they have had some management and control problems."

"Do you know of anyone else looking to buy these companies?"

"Not that we're aware of."

"Okay. Here's what we do. Rhonda is going to work from the inside. Jeff do you have any problem working with Rhonda and covering her back?"

"She's such a hag, but I may be able to force myself if there was a bonus involved. Got anything to offer Rhonda?"

An evil grin came over Rhonda's face. "I do fell sorry for those people who are so ugly they have to cover their mirrors to keep them form breaking. We can discuss this later. Of course it would have to be in a mirror-less room."

"Okay," continued Jack. I'll pick up Jen and head for France."

"Who's Jen?" asked Cy.

"She's Paul's sister. She also makes several trips a year to Europe for her clothing business. It is the perfect cover. I also think we should see if we could get Paul pulled away from his bride for a couple of days to go through your security hardware with his people from Seattle. He is the best there is."

"What about the prostitutes?"

"Let me talk to Callie about that. We have been trying to recruit one of her girls for field operations. This might be the time to cash in on some chips she owes me. Is there any thing noticeable about these working girls?"

"Yeah, that's another thing that I'm having personal problems with. These girls are not much more than children. In fact, some look to be preteens. I have a real problem with that."

Rhonda looked at Jack. "Muffin?"

"You know Rhonda, if you keep thinking like me, I'm gonna have to make you a partner. Do you have any place to start? Where are these kids approached for the business?"

"Best we can tell, they're from bus stations, train stations, or hitchhikers," offered Jeff. "We know that some of these kids are brought in from LA gangs. Chicanos and blacks make up the majority of the under-age, but they're always looking for Anglos. They get top dollars. There is also some kiddy porn going on here, but the police for some reason are turning their heads."

Rhonda shook her head. "And all they can do is hassle Cy."

Later that day

Bob and Shawn picked up their bags at the carousel and moved to the rental car counter. "Why didn't Paul and Jamie pick us up again?"

"We don't know anyone here. We are to go pick up our new daughter at the ranch, and then check into the Caesar. I am the out of town auditor for Desert Industries, and Mitchell is my associate. Our Seattle guy should be coming in later this week. They had to get him off of vacation. Michelle and Ron are coming along with Mitchell. Ron wants to marry us while he's visiting Rhonda."

"And when did marriage mean anything to you?"

Shawn and Bob turned to look at the blond who had just interrupted their conversation. Shawn saw a 30 something woman dressed in a Brittany outfit. The short skirt left little to the imagination and the short cut tee top barely contained her ample breasts. She stood steadily on 6-inch heals that extended her already long legs to a breathtaking display of womanhood. Her waist showed a hint of muscle beneath perfect skin. The expression of hate on her face ruined the woman's beauty.

"Fuck you Callie."

"Why do you say that, I'm not your sister or your mother? As far as I know, you only fuck relatives."

Shawn stepped between Callie and Bob. "For the record, Bitch, I'm not a relative, and he's the best fuck I've ever had."

"Then you must have only had one man."

"No, Cupcakes, I've had plenty of men. I'm just not a dyke."

"Listen, you tight assed piece of shit, I enjoy a real man, but I can't handle an incestuous flab bucket."

"You had a real man. You were just too queer to know it."

Callie moved closer to the redhead, put her hand on Shawn's chest, and pushed her back against Bob. 'You'll find out how stupid your choice of husbands is as soon as his mother and sister start coming, and I mean coming with a 'U', around."

"You ever push me again, and I'll take your arm off and shove it up your ass. If we weren't in an airport right now, I'd put you in a hospital."

"Don't let that stop you, Red. Talk is cheap. Come to think of it, so are strippers."

"You fucking whore. I'm gonna..."

Bob grabbed Shawn and pulled her away from Callie. "Callie, just leave us alone. I did not come here to fight with you. In fact, what in the hell are you doing here anyway?"

"Your brother asked me to drop off your brat kid before she gets our ranch closed down. She's around her someplace. I think she's at the video games. I'm sick of the little brat. Her libido is worse than yours when you're around female relatives."

Shawn reached for Callie's hair, but missed as Callie pulled back. "You can't talk about Bob's baby like that."

"Oh really? Take a look over there in the corner."

Bob and Shawn turned to look at the ten-year-old girl pushing an airman from the local air base into a corner. They smiled until they saw that her hand was massaging the man's crouch as he was trying to push her away.

Bob rushed to the couple and asked, "Baby, what are you doing to that poor man?"

The girl turned, saw Bob, and shouted, "Daddy!" She let go of the man she was mauling and jumped into Bob's arms. Her legs wrapped around Bob's waist. As her short skirt rose to her waist, it was apparent that she was not wearing underwear. The kiss she placed on his lips was anything but a father daughter kiss. After a few seconds, Shawn moved to the couple and said in a whisper, "Don't over do it, kid."

The girl disengaged from Bob and grabbed his hand. "I missed you so much. That woman," she continued as she pointed to Callie, "is a real bitch."

'You can say that again," echoed Bob and Shawn together.

"Let's get our car and get the hell out of here," said Bob.

Bob gave the bellman a $10.00 tip as he left the suite. "OK, Muffin. What in the hell were you doing to that poor airman?"

"I'm sorry, Bob. He pissed me off, and I just put him in his place. He pushed me away from a slot machine I was looking at and told me children weren't allowed to play with grown up toys. I told him that he had no right to talk to me that way, and he said something about I was his responsibility because he was a defender of our country. I told him that real men wore Marine Corp green, and that only pussies wore Air Force Blue. He told me to suck his dick. I grabbed it and told him I had to find it before I could suck it. That's what I was doing when you saw me."

"Honey, most men are asses," said Shawn, "But you just can't go off on them like that, especially when we're trying to pull a scam like this. Are you sure you want to go through with this?"

Muffin looked at Shawn and said, "I'm looking forward to this. Are you sure you won't hold it against me that I'm gonna fuck your man?"

"You're gonna do what?" exclaimed Bob.

Shawn frowned and said, "Muffin, maybe you ought to tell us what the current plan is. I think someone forgot to let us in on it."

Detective Jim Travis looked at the clean area of the dirty warehouse floor. "You're right, Kyle. There was something in here, but they sure cleared out in a hurry. I wish you had called me sooner. We may have been able to catch those perverts. You know, Ron, I can hold you and Kyle for withholding evidence don't you?"

Ron looked at his friend and replied, "If I thought you would do that, Jim, I would have never called you, and you would have no idea of what was going on here. Let's get out of here. This place makes me sick."

As they headed for their cars, Jim said, "Not knowing what's happening is not totally true. We had an idea something like this was going on, but we didn't know where. You could have saved us a lot of work if you had called the minute you knew what was going on."

"Jim," interrupted Kyle. "You are a good man, an honorable man, so you should understand. We had to wait until they were in the clear before we called you. We didn't think they could clear up this mess in two hours. We gave our word that we would do nothing to betray the identities of the two girls involved. I would go to jail before I break my word, and I think Ron would too."

Jim shook his head. "I know you both would. That's why our little trip here is not an official visit. I'm just offering investment advice to friends, but if you two ever put me in this kind of position again, I'll break your fucken balls."

Kyle put his hand on Jim's shoulder and whispered, "No you wouldn't."

"Alright, alright, but I'd sure as hell want to. You two get the hell out of here so I can call in this anonymous tip I got over the phone."

"Thanks Jim," said Ron. "You are a good cop."

"Go, before I change my mind. By the way, do those girls know what good friends you guys are?"

"I don't know, but they're scared as hell about this whole thing. I sure hope this wakes those two little shits up."

"Wait," said Jim. "We found this girl's body this morning in a drainage ditch in the valley. If this doesn't scare them straight, nothing will." Jim handed the doctor a packet of pictures. "I need these back, and don't let them out of your hands. While you're at it, Doc, explain to those two how much pain this girl went through before she finally died."

Doctor Ronald Graves opened the envelope and pulled out the pictures. "What are these," he got out before he turned pale. "Oh my dear God!"

Kyle looked over Ron's shoulder, "What is it? Holy Mother of God pray for us now and at the hour of our death!" Kyle crossed himself and ran to the edge of the loading dock and barely made it before he retched.

Ron went through the pictures in a shocked silence. Before him was what was a photograph of a 5-foot wide ditch that was about 3-feet deep. At the bottom of the ditch was a wooden "X" frame on that frame was all that was left of a very young black girl that appeared to be in her early teens. She was on her back. A rusty steel spike was hammered through the palm of each hand and the top of each foot fixing her body to the "X" ... The skin of her breasts had carefully been removed and was missing along with her nipples. Then her face had carefully, almost lovingly, been made up, and her hair had been cleaned and styled.

The skin and outer flesh of her abdomen was neatly pealed back and pined with very small dissecting needles to expose her intestines.

Protruding from her genitals, was a plastic dildo that had been impregnated with several of the dissecting needles pointed at a 30-degree angle to the base of the latex penis. The needles was positioned in such a way that they would bend when forced in to the girl, but would spread out once the dildo was pulled back out.

The girl's legs and stomach showed multiple small entry wounds about the size of an ice pick. Some of these wounds were partially healed indicating that the girl had been kept alive and abused for some time

"How can someone do this to a child?" asked Kyle after he had regained some degree of composure. "This is some sick-o, here."

Jim replied, "Kyle, this is not the first indication that something like this is going on. This is the first we have seen it in Northeast Ohio, but we've been hearing rumors about this set up for some months now. We thought we were going to be lucky for once and miss it all. Well, so much for thinking."

Ron asked, "Any idea who she is?"

"We're running everything we have through missing persons and the FBI's data base. Nothing yet, but it is still early. I'm still not optimistic about finding out who she was, though. You really can't tell anything about these things unless as a kid her parents had her finger printed in one of those child protection projects. Most likely she was a runaway who got in over her head. About the only thing we can do if we find out who she was is to provide some family closure.

"The thing that really sucks about this is that the coroner thinks she was exposed like this for about a day before she died. The kids that found her in the field took off a gag because they thought they might be able to help. All they did was screw up the evidence."

"Hard, isn't it," sympathized Ron.

"Yeah, sometimes this job just sucks."

"TC," said Ron. "Kyle and I have to go out to Paul's place anyway, so let us take the girls with us. You can spend some quality time with Harley before she grows up and finds out you're a bad influence."