Jackpot

“Yes, Karen, I do.”

“I hope you’re right. Things haven’t been going so hot for me lately.”

She said it without bitterness, and a wave of sadness overcame him. Not a bad kid at all, he thought. He thanked her for her help, and put his chair back against the wall. He started to leave, then went back to her bed. “I’ll also tell the governor.”

“You trying to be fu

“No. I’m doing this job for him.”

“Seriously?”

“Yes. I’ll ask him to go light on you.”

She thanked him with her eyes. Valentine had no idea what Bo Farmer was like, yet could imagine him wanting to spend the rest of his life with this young woman.

“Sorry about the gum,” she said.

“Don’t worry about it,” he told her.

Chapter 16

Bronco got a cell mate right after di

Bronco was standing against the concrete wall opposite the bunk beds, sizing Joh

Joh

“What you looking at, buddy?”

“What the hell else is there to look at?” Bronco said.

“You got something on your mind?”

“Maybe. You been in this joint before?”

Joh

“What for?”

“I scammed some old geezers.”

Robbing the elderly. That qualified Joh

“You know the layout?”

“I can find the front door. You thinking of taking a walk?”

Bronco nodded that he was. “I’ve figured out how to get out of the cellblock, and down the hall to the booking area, but from there I’m lost. Interested?”

Joh

But he couldn’t tell Joh

“What are you in for?” Joh

“First degree murder and ripping off a casino,” Bronco replied.

Joh

“That’s right. What about you?”

“I told you, I got arrested for passing bad checks.”

“Is that why you want to break out?”

Joh

“You’d better not be an undercover cop,” Joh

“Is that what I look like?”

“You’re trying to trick me, that’s what it is.”

In the light, Joh

Bronco said, “I think we’d make a good team. I just want to know what your deal is, that’s all.”

“You’re not a cop?”

“I sweat on my mother’s grave.”

“You really want to know what I did?”

“Yeah.”

Joh

“I picked up a woman in a bar and slept with her,” Joh

“Dead?”

“Uh-huh. Satisfied?”

“You bet.”

Joh

“Soon. Just be patient.”

“Whatever you say.”

And with that, Joh

Bronco went to the cell door and grasped the bars. It occurred to him that he hadn’t heard from his crummy attorney since that morning. Something didn’t feel right, and after a few moments of hard thinking, he realized what it was.

Garrow had turned on him. There could be no other explanation. He’d given Garrow the secret to the gaming agent’s slot machine scam for safe-keeping. That had seemed the smart thing to do at the time. He’d also told Garrow how he pla

Garrow was going to cut him out. There could be no other explanation for him not making contact. Garrow knew the details, and was going to go solo. Right now, sitting in a seedy motel room in downtown Reno, was a member of the Triad who’d traveled all the way from China to exchange secrets. All Garrow had to do was call the Triad, and do the deal himself. Then, Garrow could take the Pai Gow scam, and make his fortune. He didn’t need Bronco anymore.

Bronco started to sweat. He had trusted his attorney, and that was always a mistake. He needed to break out of here, and set things right. He had thought Tony Valentine was his biggest problem, but in fact it was his own attorney who was the problem.

He stared at the chairs where the guards sat. Karl Klinghoffer would be starting his next shift in a few hours. Bronco couldn’t escape without Klinghoffer’s help, and he waited nervously for the guard’s return.

Chapter 17

Xing Han Wong lay on an unmade bed, staring at the dirty popcorn ceiling. He’d been cooped up in a seedy Reno motel for two days, watching stupid sitcoms and eating greasy take-out food while waiting for the phone to ring. He hadn’t shaved, combed his hair, or bathed, and was bored out of his mind.

The Asian hit man removed a pair of Pai Gow dominos from his shirt pocket. They were made out of thick plastic, and had red and white dots on one side. He’d been given the dominos by his Triad boss before coming to the United States, and been told to give the dominos to a criminal named Bronco Marchese, then say three words:

“Red, not black.”

This was the secret to the devious Pai Gow scam, even though Xing had no idea what it meant. His Triad boss had said that Bronco would understand, and in return, would give Xing the secret to rigging slot machines.

“A secret for a secret,” his Triad boss had explained.

Xing had traveled seven thousand miles to Reno, expecting to hook up with Bronco, and do the exchange. Then he’d turned on the TV in his motel room, and learned that Bronco was cooling his heels in a Reno jail. He’d called his Triad boss, and explained the problem.

“You wait,” his boss had said.

“For how long?” Xing had replied.