Alaina was waiting her turn in line at the server’s area of the Center Bar, left of the main entrance to the casino. I waited until she was delivering drinks on the floor before Bailey and I took seats at two slot machines in her area.
“Cocktails.” She breezed by the banks of slot machines to cover her assigned area.
When she got to the machines where Bailey and I were sitting, I lifted a finger to stop her. “May we have two club sodas?” I pulled a twenty from my pocket and held it in my hand.
“Of course. Oh, uh, you’re that man who was looking for Maria. You said—”
“Yes, I told you she was dead. I have a few more questions, Alaina, if you don’t mind. Maria was pregnant. Did anyone here know that?”
Her mouth opened and snapped closed. “How do you know?”
“Coroner’s report. Who was the older Spanish man who used to drop by to visit her? I’m guessing it wasn’t her ex-husband, Pedro Vega, was it?”
“I don’t know his whole name. She called him Celo. I thought they were having an affair behind her husband’s back. He came in one night, asking for her, which was when I met him for the first time. He gave me a hundred dollars not to tell anyone that he’d come in looking—”
Bailey held out a hundred-dollar bill to her. “I’m giving you a hundred to tell us what he told you about Maria.”
I wanted to kiss Bailey. All I had in my pocket was sixty bucks.
“Okay. Uh, Celo used to drop off a duffel bag for Maria once a week, just before her shift began. She took it to her locker, and at the end of her shift, she took it home with her. I know because we walked out to the parking lot together.
“When Maria was scheduled to work, she shared an apartment here in town with someone I had never met. They’d been roommates for about a year, which is when the duffels began being dropped off here.
“I believe the roommate’s name was Paloma. Maria mentioned it a time or two, but she never said Paloma’s last name. I got the impression they hadn’t known each other before becoming roommates.” Alaina was careful to avoid my gaze.
“Why did Maria steal a Chimi purse from the resale shop down the street?” Bailey asked.
“Maria claimed she was picking it up for Paloma and that it was already paid for. When she got arrested and was bailed out, she called to ask for time off to deal with her legal matters. She said Paloma told her to pick up the purse because it had a key inside for a locker at the bus station that Maria was supposed to use to stash the duffel, instead of taking it home to give to Paloma.
“She also said Paloma threatened to have Ruiz harmed if she didn’t do as Paloma said. Unfortunately, Maria got arrested before she could get the bag to the bus station.” Alaina swallowed hard. She was definitely leaving something out.
“So, you know all this, and you haven’t told any of it to the police? Where’s the bag?” I asked.
“I don’t—”
Bailey stepped closer and gritted his teeth. “That bag is very important to someone, Alaina, and if they find you with it, it could cost your life. You’re dealing with some very dangerous people. Give it to me, and I’ll see that it gets to its rightful owner.”
I wasn’t sure what Bailey was thinking or how he jumped to the conclusion that Alaina had the bag, but I was grateful he’d thought of it. “Alaina, if you have the bag, you’d be smart to turn it over to us.”
She started nervously babbling. “I have it. I hoped someone would come looking for it and I could get a finder’s fee, you understand. I make decent money, but I’d like to go to LA to become an actress. The money would help me find a place to live.”
Her eyes were damp, but that didn’t matter to me. “If the Víbora Cartel finds out you took something that belongs to them, you won’t make it to Barstow, Alaina.”
“I… I’ll… It’s in my car. I’ll take you to it now.” She then turned to a bartender and smiled. “Javie, I need to run to my car. I forgot my phone.” He nodded, and we followed her to the elevator for the employee parking garage.
She was parked near the exit, so I followed her to a little red Mercedes convertible. Oh, she needs money to go to LA? Maybe for another Mercedes?
She opened the trunk and moved a winter coat out of the way, revealing a large black duffel bag used for traveling with golf clubs.
“Thank you for not being stupid, Alaina,” Bailey said as he snatched the duffel from the trunk.
Thankfully, I saw the gun under the duffel before Alaina could reach for it. I pulled my Sig from under my shirt and pushed it into her back. “I wouldn’t if I were you. That would be dumber than holding out on that bag.”
She held her hands up, and Bailey and I hurried out of the garage basement to one of the ramps leading to the second level, where I’d parked my truck.
“Fuck! This is...more of a mess...than I thought.” I was huffing and puffing so hard as we ran up the ramps, I was surprised I got that much out.
Bailey, who was ahead of me and carrying the heavy bag, turned and laughed. “We’ll work on your physical fitness when we get out of this shit storm, baby. Come on!”
