He didn’t exactly have a plan at this moment, but he knew that he wasn’t done with Marlene tonight. A black Mercedes GLK pulled up next to him, stereo pounding hard enough that he felt the downbeat in his sternum. He glanced over as the door opened and the noise cut off. Mario from the dish room slid out of the SUV with his cell phone pressed to his ear. Through the open door, Joe saw Mikey, the new bartender, hop out of the other side. That was a pretty sweet ride for a couple of kitchen rats. How the hell could they have been talking on their cells with all that racket going on? Joe watched the two men, ready to give them a smile and a wave of recognition, but they didn’t look his way. Nice threads, he noticed, as they hurried away from the truck. Another door slammed. A familiar figure skulked away from the back of the SUV. The boy kept his head down as he headed for the casino, but Joe had seen him in just that posture everyday for a week now.
