Gabby stepped closer to take a look. "What is it?"
"Something punctured the skin in these two spots."
"A needle?"
"Not unless it was one h.e.l.l of a big needle."
CHAPTER 11 - Tuesday, 1:50 a.m.
A beautiful young woman walked through Cafe Nue, and found Bobby Ballantini standing in the side archway that led to the restrooms. "Excuse me, Sir. I wonder if you can help me."
He smiled. "I"ll try my best."
"It"s about my application for employment. I"ve been waiting forever to hear something."
"It can take a while. You"ll have to meet with my boss: Mr. Ketrousie."
"Okay. Where can I find him?"
"No. You"ll need an appointment, Honey. You can"t do it tonight. We"re about to close. Come back tomorrow afternoon. Around two."
She stepped in closer, placed her hand on his arm, and looked deeply into his eyes with every ounce of her considerable s.e.x appeal. "Gee, I work afternoons and evenings, so you can imagine how hard it is," she pushed one of her thighs up against his, "for me to get here at that time. I was really hoping to talk to him tonight."
"Well...I guess we can give it a try. Come with me."
She followed him out of the dining room and down a hallway.
Bobby knocked on the door and stuck his head in. "Boss? I"ve got a young lady here who applied for a job a long time ago, and she"s wondering if-"
"-tell her to come back tomorrow."
"Aw, come on, Boss."
Joey hesitated. "Let me see her."
Bobby pushed the door wide open.
Joey smiled at what he saw. "Come on in, Sweetie."
She walked in. Bobby closed the door and walked away.
"You"re quite a babe."
"Thanks."
"What"s your name?"
"Megan."
"Well, Megan, as you know, this is a topless establishment. So, I"ll need to see your b.o.o.bs to find out if you meet our qualifications."
She began to take off her blouse. "You know, I already did this for Big Bill."
"I understand. But things have changed around here. Now I make all the hiring decisions."
"Okay." She took off her blouse, and her bra.
"Nice, Baby." He walked around to the front of his desk. "What did you say your name was?"
"Megan."
He walked toward her, eyes widening, about to take a feel of her young, plump b.r.e.a.s.t.s.
"Megan Cinaway."
Joey stopped cold in his tracks. "Put your clothes back on." He turned around and walked back to his desk and sat down.
She knew her mother had threatened Big Bill with rape charges. Did Joey know about it? She would never forgive her mother if she had destroyed her chances for a job at Cafe Nue. "What"s the matter? Are they not big enough? I could get a b.o.o.b job."
"No, it"s not that. If anything you"re too beautiful."
"Huh?"
"I think you"re ready for the majors, Baby."
"Majors?"
"Yeah. This minor league stuff is beneath you. Hiring you to work here would be a waste of your considerable talents and charm. I"m sending you to New York."
Megan bounced with excitement. "New York City?"
"That"s right, Baby. The Big Apple. You"re going to be a professional model. America is gonna be seeing your s.e.xy bod on the cover of all the top magazines."
"Wow. You could make that happen?" She slipped into her bra.
"Sure. Now, here"s what I want you to do." He reached into his pocket and took out his money clip. He put some bills on his desk. "Drive over to the Holiday Inn Express by the airport. Get yourself a good night"s sleep. I"ll book your flight for you. In the morning, you"ll go to the American Airlines ticket counter and tell them your name. They"ll give you the ticket."
Megan was nearly speechless. "Okay." She walked over to his desk and took the money.
"I make that trip a couple times a month. Your plane will leave at 11:45 and get to New York at around 4:30. There will be a guy from the modeling agency waiting for you at the airport. He"ll be holding up a sign with your name on it."
"Okay."
"Excited?"
"Yes, Sir. I"m so excited."
"Well, you should be. This is a great opportunity."
"Thank you. Thank you so much."
"Okay then. Get going. You"ll need your beauty sleep for that first photo shoot."
CHAPTER 12 - Tuesday, 2:25 a.m.
After hitting the ATM machine, Gabby and Rebecca had stopped by Wal-Mart to buy three changes of clothing each, not knowing how long they would be on the run. Their motel room smelled like smoke. Gabby had suggested that once they had taken their showers, they should throw their smoky clothes in the dumpster.
While she took a shower, he sent a text message to all of his employees, telling them about the fire. Then he did some research on his smartphone. He found the website for Smotherburn Technologies and located a page that listed their top executives, complete with photos.
At the top of the page was William Smotherburn, in all his pompous glory. "Okay, now which one of you wanted him dead?" The most obvious choice was Harvey Hamstel. He was the president of the company. So, he was probably in the best position to take over as CEO.
Rebecca walked out of the bathroom with a towel around her body and another one around her head. "Your turn."
He held up his phone. "I think I"ve found our prime suspect for Big Bill"s murder."
She took the phone. "Harvey Hamstel, President. Well, he does look guilty."
He walked toward the bathroom.
"Check this out." She turned the phone toward him.
Gabby walked back to look at it. "Phillipa Thagery, Vice President of Research and Development."
"It says she"s developing some cutting edge TENS unit that will put the company years ahead of their compet.i.tion."
"A TENS unit. Didn"t you wear one of those for a while in high school?"
"Yeah. For the pain in my back. So, what if the killer hooked a super-powerful unit up to Carly"s head and fried her brain?"
"You think this Phillipa Thagery did it?"
"Not necessarily," said Rebecca. "It could have been somebody else who had access to what she was developing."
Gabby walked toward the bathroom. "Killing Carly would have made Big Bill"s problem go away."
"But why kill Carly after Big Bill was already dead? Unless Carly"s killer didn"t know he was dead."
Gabby turned around in the bathroom doorway. "And why make plans to kill Carly knowing Big Bill was going to try to bribe you?"
"Maybe a few hours of sleep will clear our minds."
"I sure hope so." Gabby closed the bathroom door and started the shower.
Rebecca started to call Wendy and tell her to take another day off. But she didn"t want to chance waking up the baby and ruining Wendy"s night. She would call her first thing in the morning.
CHAPTER 13 - Tuesday, 2:31 a.m.
"Hey, Poppa, it"s me, Joey."
"Hey, Joey, it"s the middle of the night. Why are you waking me up?"
"Sorry, Poppa, but I need your help."
"Okay. But couldn"t it wait until morning?"
"No, Poppa. I"m sorry."
"Well, what is it? What do you need?"
"I"ve got a problem, and it"s headed your way. I sent you the details in an encrypted email. You"d better check it now."
"Okay, Son. I will. And whatever the problem is, I"ll put Cam on it right away."
"Oh, no. Not Cam. He"s a freak."
"Joey! He"s your brother. Don"t ever dishonor your own flesh and blood. And believe me, he"s working hard to be part of the family business now."
"I wish I could believe that."
"You can believe it because your father said it!"
"I"m sorry, Poppa. I meant no disrespect to you."
"Then don"t disrespect your brother."