bugging me and I want the answer before this mystery man disappears. I doubt I’ll see him again.
“Yes, Lilly?” Hearing him say my gives me a start. I pause in surprise before I go on.
“How did you know I needed help? I mean, you weren’t even standing at the table when that guy started talking to me. Sure, you said you’re like a ghost but…you can’t show up out of thin air.” I smirk at the last part, feeling sly.
“True. I haven’t mastered that trick yet.” He matches my smile with a wry grin of his own. “Like I told you, you caught my eye,” he pauses, registering my blank expression before going on, “the House has eyes everywhere. Even in the sky.” He raises an eyebrow and jerks his chin quickly upwards, his piercing gaze targeting the area above my head.
I crane my neck back, looking up to see a small black dome jutting out of the ceiling. Looking further, I see that these tiny, black half-spheres are all over the ceiling, evenly spaced throughout the entire place. Cameras. Everywhere. How did I miss that? I’d been so overwhelmed by the sights on the floor in front of me, I hadn’t looked up once since I’d set foot in the casino a couple of hours earlier.
I feel my mouth drop open in surprise and snap it quickly shut before looking back down. I don’t want him to see the shock on my face, giving away my utter naiveté. Stupidity, some might call it.
He’s looking at me with a sly smile. Before I can get out another word, he glides off, his broad back disappearing into the crowded sea of casino revelers. I watch him go. The pit boss. Invisible. A ghost. And with eyes everywhere.
Chapter Two
David
“Keep an eye on the group at table nineteen. That girl on the roulette table is running it up. The sister says her name is Deanna. Keep their drinks flowing.”
“Got it, boss.” Terry gives a curt nod.
“And get a still off the cameras of the gentleman we just 86’d. Make sure all security has a copy. We don’t want him back in here. Not tonight.”
“Temporary or permanent?”
“Temporary 86. Just for tonight. He can barely stand and he’s hassling other clientele. Too deep in his cups.”
“Of course.” Terry doesn’t miss a beat, he’s already making his way to the far side of the control room to consult with one of our security camera technicians. He’s the best floor manager in all of Las Vegas. That’s why I pay him double the average floor manager’s salary. Worth every fucking penny. He oversees a vast team of pit bosses. And each one of those pit bosses supervises a pool of floor personnel and dealers, ensuring gamers in their pit are happy. Happy people bet big. Our pit bosses also monitor credit markers and dispense comps…at their discretion. Terry compiles their end-of-shift reports and presents them all to me. I review every detail. Because I’m not technically a pit boss. I’m the boss.
I own Fortuna Hotel and Casino. And the establishment’s sister property, Destino. These aren’t low-roller spots. They’re both carpet joints, casinos that cater to high rollers. Between the two of them, billions of dollars come through every year. More than one man can track himself. That’s why I rely on trusted personnel, like Terry.
“Another win on Table nineteen’s up-and-up high roller, sir.” Paul, one of my security camera monitors remarks. I shift my eyes to the screen. Four images give me a view of everything I need to see. A top-down birds-eye-view of the table, including the croupier—the guy at the roulette table who gathers the chips and drops the ball on the wheel. Angled shots let me see people clustered around the table…including the girl in the flowered dress.
Lilly. Fitting. A floral name for the fresh-faced girl in her floral dress. Even the faint hint of perfume she was wearing had some kind of delicate, flowery aroma to it. Lilly. She’s a human flower from top to bottom, just as her name would suggest. I grin, watching her now. Uncomfortable as hell. A flower removed from its usual garden. We get all kinds of people here of course, from all over. But Lilly stands out like a sore thumb. More than usual. I watch her swirl her barely touched glass of champagne uncertainly. Her face is drawn tight with concern as she watches her sister on the table. She has good reason to be worried.