Sin City Homicide Read Online Free

You’re dismissed, Detective Stanton.”
    Stanton rose and began to walk out.
    Ho said, “And Jon? Keep your nose clean out there. We need this money. Your suit still ended up costing the county , and we got a budget shortfall now. If this falls through, it’s going to mean people’s jobs.”
    Stanton saw the Rolex watch on Chin’s wrist. “Nice watch.” He turned and walked out without looking back.

4
     
     
     
     
    Bill James stood on the balcony of the top-floor suite of the Havana Hotel. The casino was directly below him, covered with a transparent dome, and he watched the people at the tables, letting the dealers slowly suck the life out of them. He looked out at the strip and watched the crowded sidewalks filled with families. He was in his sixties now, and he remembered when Las Vegas was a place for men, where they came to get away from the family, the job, and life. Now it was a vacation spot accommodating the things men used to escape.
    “The times , they are a-changing,” he mumbled under his breath.
    “Sir?” said his assistant, Jaime.
    “Yeah?”
    “They’re ready for you.”
    “Thanks.”
    He straightened his silk Armani tie and checked the gold cufflinks on his shirt before walking back into the suite. The top three suites were reserved for him. He kept one for himself as his home, one for any dignitaries or celebrities he wished to shower with special treatment, and one—this one—he had turned into a boardroom.
    The board of directors for MJF Industries, the parent corporation of Havana Inc. and the true owners of the hotel and casino, had already gathered and were conversing quietly around the twenty-seat mahogany table. The twelve of them were all men of wealth and influence, and many of them—oddly enough, thought James—were extremely obese. With the kind of money they had, he figured they would have the best chefs and personal trainers.
    James took his spot at the head , in front of the nameplate marking it as the chairman’s seat. The CEO, Milton Henry, sat next to him, playing around on his iPhone, and the CFO, Raj Kamal, was on his other side. The board had asked that these two not be present, so James had made a point of having them here.
    Half-eaten Iranian caviar and freshly made pastries were spread out on the table like leftovers from McDonald’s. The board members began pulling out cigars and asking the assistants standing behind them for brandy.
    “I think we’re all accounted for,” James said . “Jaime, stop taking minutes, would you? Thank you. So, we all know what we’re here for. We’ve gone back and forth for the past three months, and it’s decision time.”
    Cal Robertson, an older man with thick glasses and a ridiculous polka -dot bowtie, leaned forward through his cigar smoke. “Bill, we all agreed that we would sleep on this for the next quarter. Calling this meeting was unnecessary. I was in Boca Raton on this fabulous—”
    “We can’t sleep till next quarter, Cal. We need to decide now. This merger is going to secure the future of this casino. It’s going to take us into the next century of entertainment.”
    “We’re making a boatload of money as it is,” Kevin Daugherty chimed in . “Why risk it on a venture that could go belly-up in weeks? Anyway, that’s the way I see it. It’s too much of a risk.”
    “We’re in the business of risk,” James said, “and we’re at the point where we need to bet the house or go home.” He turned to Raj. “What are the financials like?”
    Raj cleared his throat, and an obvious tremor shook his hands as he began to speak. “Um, well, we’ve been losing market share the past three quarters to the bigger casinos. The, ah, gambling demographic has been decreasing over time, as we predicted it would in a bad economy. So, people aren’t gambling as much, and the ones who are have been going to the casinos that give them better comps, like the Mirage and MGM.”
    “How much money did we lose?”