“That’s exactly what we need to find out.” Ares turned to Marta, who’d been watching this exchange with wide eyes. “Marta, we need you to talk to your mother and possibly her friends. See if you can find out what Henri Saltz was doing at that company picnic. Do you know the name of the company?”
Marta shook her head slowly. “No, but my mother would. She has a memory like a steel trap.” She looked around at the three men, understanding dawning on her face. “You mean, you want me to go back to New York and ask, don’t you?”
“Please,” Ares said, and I heard the urgency in his voice. “Whoever is doing this has ways of monitoring our communications here in the hotel. I have people looking at it?—”
“Had,” said Orion.
Ares shot him a sharp look. “Neville is solid. Besides, I can pay for his services out of my pocket. To continue—we don’t know the extent of the surveillance.”
Marta glanced around the room. “Here?”
Ares drew in a breath. “We aren’t sure. I’ve found nothing on the executive floor, but the surveillance is very sophisticated. And we need to know. If Henri was working in New York, why would he come out here?”
“Moving isn’t a crime,” I pointed out, still trying to wrap my mind around what they were suggesting.
“No, but people don’t move for no reason,” Ares countered. “And he had a significant amount of cash to invest in this casino. Judging by the clothes in that photo, he didn’t have two nickels to rub together in New York. So where did the money comefrom? And why did he choose Vegas, which is at the opposite end of the country?”
“And while you’re there,” Orion added, “you can gather a paper trail. This includes employment records, financial documents, and any other materials that indicate Henri’s activities at that time. I’ll send you a list of things to look for.”
“We’ll be glad to pay you for your time and expenses,” Leo said.
Marta waved him off. “You don’t need to pay me. If getting this information is for Tashi, I’ll do the work for free.”
“No,” Ares said. “We won’t have you absorb expenses we can easily deal with.”
“That’s right,” Orion agreed. “We may not be hotel management right now, but we have more than enough resources to take care of our end.”
Leo looked up from his phone, already typing. “I have you booked on the next flight. Leaves in two hours.”
“That’s fast. Tashi, I looked forward to more time with you,” Marta said.
“I know, honey. I did too. But you’re welcome back anytime.”
“We need to get you to the airport,” Ares said. “I called a limo for you. I’ll escort you. You don’t mind, do you?”
“Good thing I didn’t unpack yet.” Marta stood up, already moving toward her suitcases. Then she stopped and turned to me. “Tashi?—”
“I know.” I crossed to her and pulled her into a hug. “Thank you.”
“I’ll find out what he was doing there,” she whispered in my ear. “And if he hurt your mom, if he’s the reason she never talked about your father—” Her voice hardened. “I’ll make sure everyone knows.”
She pulled back, gave the brothers a nod, and Ares grabbed her bags.
“When I get you to the airport, I’ll put you in the VIP lounge while you wait for your flight.”
Marta tossed me a wink. “Are you sure you can’t spare at least one of them?”
I shook my head.
“Not even for a little while?” She tossed me a hopeful glance.
“Get out of here,” I said with a laugh.
Ares closed the door, leaving me with Orion and Leo, both of whom seemed lost in their thoughts, and the silence weighed heavily between us.
“You think Henri knew my mother,” I said quietly. It wasn’t a question.
“We think it’s possible,” Orion said carefully.
