Chapter 8
Chapter Eight
Hayden
Ijam a handful of chocolate-covered peanuts in my mouth and eat through my stress. I’ve found jack after searching the casino, but scrolling through the online news releases on my laptop, my feet nestled in fuzzy socks, I’ve come across articles on Blackwell’s past that paint an interesting story.
Joseph Blackwell, heir to the Blackwell real estate fortune, uses his San Francisco connections to make a name for himself in Lake Tahoe real estate.—The Lake Tahoe Merchant
Joseph Blackwell, heir and owner of the Season Hotel in San Francisco, has lunch with his godfather and Mexican businessman Jose De la Cruz. De la Cruz has been linked to drug trafficking, but never convicted.—The San Francisco Tribune
Right, linked. That’s the media’s way of saying, We’re pretty sure he’s a psychotic drug lord, but since he’s so clever at not being caught, we have no hard evidence.
It’s not a direct hit, but then again, I didn’t think I’d find one, or Blackwell wouldn’t be our CEO.
Mira and the others are on their way over to talk about where to go from here, and this gives me something to show them.
Maybe Blackwell isn’t running some kind of drug and prostitute ring at Blue. Maybe it’s this De la Cruz guy? As I ponder the connection, a face appears on the other side of the window right next to my head.
“Helloooo,” Mira says through the screen, cackling.
I jump back, nearly falling off the couch. “Holy shit.” I hold my laptop precariously with the tips of my fingers as I brace myself between the couch and the coffee table, catching my breath.
I carefully set the computer on the table and scramble to open the front door.
Mira is bent over laughing and clinging to a large paper bag.
“Not funny,” I say. “You could have given me a heart attack. I should fire you for that.” There’s absolutely no truth to my words, but dammit, she gets me every time!
She straightens, a look of innocence on her face. “Hayden, you love me. You’d never fire me.”
Mira enters the house, followed by Gen, Lewis, and Tyler. “You do make life easier at Blue,” I agree. And she’s right; I love her like a sister.
When I returned to Lake Tahoe, the house I grew up in felt smaller, but with the guys filing in, it’s bursting at the seams. Lewis’s head is only a few inches below the low-beamed wood ceiling, and standing shoulder to shoulder, Lewis and Tyler might actually be able to touch the walls on either side.
My parents originally bought this place as a starter house.
After a few years, they loved it so much we stayed.
And with only one child, two bedrooms never became a problem.
But that’s not the case with two overgrown men and their girlfriends inside.
Any minute now, we’re going to be bouncing into each other like pinballs if I don’t put these guys somewhere.
“Have a seat.” I gesture to the small L-shaped sectional next to the wood-burning stove my dad installed when I was five.
Lewis and Tyler take up the couches, and Mira, who’s been here before, heads for the galley kitchen I remodeled six months ago.
I hear her clanking around in the refrigerator.
When she returns, she’s juggling cans of beer and handing them out.
I take a seat in the rocking chair across from the guys.
Gen pops the top of her can and sits on the arm of the couch Lewis’s large body is taking up.
“I spoke to my dad today.” Gen’s famous ex-quarterback dad was instrumental in getting Drake Peterson behind bars after her attack.
“His lawyers say that unless we have more evidence against the casino or Blackwell, we can’t do anything.
Which is pretty much what we already knew.
I can’t believe Blackwell has managed to keep the relocation of those suites a secret.
It’s been weeks since Drake’s conviction.
” She nudges Lewis with her elbow. “Can’t you tap into the security cameras while you’re working on electrical or something? ”
Lewis and his father own Sallee Construction and are often hired by the casino for construction jobs.
He frowns. “Illegal. I could lose my license, and you might not be able to use the footage. Pretty sure you need a warrant to get that sort of thing.”
Mira squeezes between Tyler’s legs on the other couch. “We could try to get in with the security guys who work the surveillance system. Like, oops, we just stumbled upon this here footage of an old guy paying the casino for drugs and kinky sex with a beautiful woman.”
“Already looked into that,” I say. “The surveillance guys signed confidentiality agreements. They could serve prison time for stealing surveillance footage. And like Lewis said, I don’t think it would count in court.”
“And they need a strong reason to order a warrant.” Gen sighs and slides down the arm of the couch until she’s sitting on one of Lewis’s legs.
He absently pulls her higher on his lap.
“According to my dad, as far as the police are concerned, Drake Peterson was the cause of the casino’s illegal activities, and he’s been taken care of. ”
“So we have nothing.” I tip my head back and stare at the planked wood ceiling. I love this ceiling, but right now I barely see it. “I work as a manager. It should be easy to find something to take to the police, if there’s really something going on.”
Have we been wrong?
Mira snarls. “Those sapphire ring guys are such bitches. How the hell are they hiding everything?”
I shake my head. “I wish I knew.”
“What about the background search? Did you find anything on Blackwell?”
Remembering the articles I found, I rock forward and stand. “I did, actually.”
I head into the spare bedroom and grab the printouts I made.
I hand one to Tyler and Mira, and the other to Gen and Lewis.
“Blackwell comes from money. And he has serious connections. His family started out in San Francisco real estate, made a fortune, then bought and ran several successful hotels. Check out the connection between him and a Mexican drug guy.”
Mira scans the article. “The suspected drug trafficker? There’s nothing to confirm it.” She pulls out her iPhone and starts searching.
“No proof, but come on, a major drug dealer? We know Blue stockpiled illegal drugs in the suite you and Tyler found. That can’t be a coincidence.”
Mira shakes her head as she reads from her phone. “One or two articles suggest a connection between him and that guy, but there’s not much.”
“I know,” I say, “but don’t you think it’s possible he’s Blackwell’s supplier?”
Tyler shifts behind Mira. “Kind of a stretch. Plenty of drugs in this town. If Blackwell wants connections to dealers, all he has to do is step outside his door.”
I bite the corner of my lip. “Am I the only one who thinks the link is suspicious?”
Mira sets down her phone. “We’re just playing devil’s advocate, Hayden. You could be right, but that’s not the point. We need evidence. Regardless of whether or not Blackwell is getting help from De la Cruz, everything is behind closed doors. We’ve got nothing to go on.”
Blackwell wouldn’t be able to get away with selling drugs and prostitution at one of his hotels in San Francisco.
But here? Nevada promotes gambling and sin.
It’s the perfect setup. On the other hand, Blue Casino isn’t some legal brothel off the beaten path.
If Blackwell is hiding illegal drugs, and what we suspect is a prostitution ring, it would be inside a conventional establishment.
“What about Adam?” Mira asks. “Did you take my suggestion?”
I roll my eyes. “I thought about it, and you’ll be proud. I actually smiled at him after we parted the other day after lunch.”
Mira shakes her head. “That’s a start, but you had better be prepared to make an about-face and kiss his ass.”
“Mira.”
“What? Work on that, will you? He’s our best lead.”
Lewis inches over, giving Gen more room to sit. He stares at Mira. “What does Adam have to do with this?”
Tyler tosses a chocolate-covered peanut in his mouth from the bowl of snacks I left out during my Blackwell research.
“Mira and Hayden think Adam’s getting involved with the Blue Stars.
” He chomps on the food and scratches his head.
“Adam and I were on the soccer team together in high school. He can be a jackass, but he’s a decent guy. I don’t think he’d do that.”
“That doesn’t sound like Adam,” Lewis agrees.
Tyler raises his brow at Mira as if to say, I told you so.
She crosses her arms. “Tyler, you saw the same thing I did.” She glares at Lewis. “And what happened to family loyalty?” Mira is like a little sister to Lewis. She’s clearly pulling the family card. “Something’s going on. We can’t just ignore this.”
“No,” Lewis says, “but I don’t think Adam is involved. Not to mention, his family is richer than this entire town. What would he get out of it?”
I scrunch my nose. I’d forgotten about Adam’s family. I mean, he walks around like a runway model for Armani. Even with his management salary, it’s nothing compared to the cash he must earn just by being a Cade.
So why would Adam risk everything to get involved with Blackwell? Lewis is right. It doesn’t make sense.
Have I been wrong about Adam working with the CEO? The guy is an opportunist, but maybe not as bad as I originally thought. He seemed sincerely upset when I told him I was the girl he’d told Jaeger to dump.
Tyler grabs another handful of candy. “I’ll talk to Adam. See how things are at work.”
Mira twists around and steals a chocolate-covered nut from him. “Would he tell you what they’re doing at Blue?”
Tyler shrugs. “Can’t hurt to ask.”
She looks back at me. “You need to try talking to him too. You work side by side with him now.”
I press my fingers to my forehead. “Don’t remind me.”
I forgive Adam for the past, but that doesn’t mean I trust him. Mira’s right, though. We need inside information, and I’m the best person to get close to him at work and check things out. And for the first time, I hope Lewis is correct and Adam isn’t involved in anything illegal.