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near
Maryland Parkway. According to police, a neighbor heard a commotion around
eight o'clock this evening, and looked out his door to see a man in a leather
jacket running from her apartment. The neighbor then went in and found her
body. He could not provide any further description.
    "Police
say Dahlgren, originally from Bismarck, North Dakota, had a record of arrests
in Las Vegas for prostitution dating back to 1997. Police also speculate the
murder was the result of either a violent trick or a drug deal gone bad. There
are no suspects at this time."
    The
anchor turned to her right, pasting a big TV smile on her face. "So, Chip,
got any letup from this cold weather?"
    My heart
felt like it stopped. My insides suddenly turned to ice. I don't think I
breathed for a long time.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
9

 
    I stayed drunk for
two days, never leaving my apartment. Finally, on the second night, I felt I
could keep something in my stomach. I pulled myself together, then went out. I
decided to go downtown to Magnolia's, the coffee shop in the Four Queens.
    The meal
went down well. I needed it. After paying the check, I walked outside to
Fremont Street.
    It had
warmed up over the last couple of days, with the temperature now feeling almost
comfortable. The downtown light show was just beginning. Crowds of tourists
with cameras were furiously snapping pictures of the overhead spectacle, while
its thundering sound effects boomed through more speakers than you could count.
I sauntered over toward Binion's, knowing there would be a poker game.
    As I
crossed Fremont, I gathered my thoughts. Beck undoubtedly got to Patty, beating
her senseless to make her tell where Emily was, but, of course, she didn't
know. By the time Beck realized that, Patty was quite likely almost dead, so he
probably just finished her off out of principle. He'll get away with it, I'm
sure. Nobody cares when a hooker dies.
    Of
course, I hope she didn't tell him who killed Bobby and Clyde, but if she did,
I'm sure Beck will find me soon enough. And I'll be waiting for him.
    As for
Emily, who knows? I can only hope she stays safe. If she does, maybe Beck will
give up the chase and one day, she can be reunited with her family.
    I'm going to call Lansdorf in the morning. I don't
really know what I'm going to say, though, except I know I'm not taking the twenty-five
hundred he owes me.
    How do you tell a man you watched his daughter
disappear?
    How do you tell him another girl had to die so his
daughter could live?
    It's not right, it's just not right. And usually
there's not a goddamn thing we can do about it.
    But every so often, there is.
    Once inside Binion's, I headed for the front desk.
    "Can you mail this for me, please?" I
asked.
    The desk clerk nodded and I handed her the padded
envelope containing the videotape, addressed to Las Vegas Weekly.
    ABOUT
THE AUTHOR

 

 
    After thirty years as a professional
musician (piano), Mike Dennis left Key West  and moved to Las Vegas to
become a professional poker player. He turned to writing when his first novel, The
Take , was picked up by a publisher in 2009.
    His next book, Setup On Front Street, was the first in a series of Key West noir
novels. The series is called Key West Nocturnes, and it will lift the veil on
that town, revealing it as a true noir city, on a par with Los Angeles, New Orleans,
or Miami.
    The
Ghosts Of Havana , a tale of old vendettas that will not die,
is the second book in that series. The third novel, Man-Slaughter , is now available, and the fourth, The Guns Of Miami , will be coming in
2013.
    Temptation
Town is Mike's first novelette, and the first in the
Jack Barnett / Las Vegas series, centering around a reluctant ex-private
investigator. Drawn on Mike's years in Las Vegas, the tale takes the reader to
areas of Sin City that never appear in tourist guidebooks.
    The second entry in the series, Hard Cash , is now available, while a
full Barnett novel, The