Gulch notched it up one and this time the cameras flicked off and then back on again and if they weren’t scrambling before, those in the security office were now.
“Electricians dispatched,” Gulch told Regrette and began to guide him after them.
Regrette followed Gulch’s instructions and joined the group of four electricians, now dressed as they were. At this point Kaskey would have definitely given up asking how.
“I found you,” Regrette grinned.
“Who’re you?” an electrician asked as they jogged down the corridor.
“McQuarrie, you got the memo right?”
The lights dimmed and brightened. Security rained down expletives from the radios on their belts.
“Whatever, come on,” the harried electrician said.
They went up a flight of stairs, round a corner, up another and came out on one of the floors of the hotel. The lead electrician stopped at one of the rooms and fumbled for his key. Once inside Regrette realised this wasn’t a hotel room, but a room of fuse boxes and electrics disguised as one. Very cunning as these were the electrics that ran the tables, the important security cameras and the alarms. Each electrician went to a different cabernet of electrics to try and find the fault and Regrette went through the wires and whirring stuff before he found what he was looking for and planted his device.
“Got it,” Gulch said.
Regrette made some noise as the cameras fuzzed over and more expletives came across the radios. He made an ‘aha’ noise.
“Think I got it,” he declared as the radio agreed with him.
They stood and waited until they were happy that nothing else went wrong and then left, wiping their brows and happy not to lose their jobs. Or get shot.
***
Loveritto was nervous. He realised it had been a long time since he had done anything like this, if he ever had. His police career had lasted twenty years and he had little to nothing to show for it other than regret. He hoped that after all this was over he might talk to Grant about his time with the InterG and reason for leaving. But that was for later, now he had to focus.
Tsyrker was on the Rey’o floor and he and Tandish had made a show of how she wanted to play and he wanted to go upstairs to the more sedate Cannabact tables. She urged him to have a game, teased him even and then went off to play a game. He had to play it exactly right, had to kick up enough of a fuss to cause a distraction without getting taken through to a hustle room. If that happened he would have to convince them he was OK to go back on the floor, but even if they allowed it, he would be watched.
He got himself into a game and didn’t have to try too hard to be rubbish at it. He was a Merrick, they weren’t known for their speed or dexterity and the smug face of his opponent, knowing he had an easy win, annoyed him. He did have to appreciate the bet his opponent made after the first game. He knew he could easily win, but he didn’t bet so high that Loveritto would walk away.
Loveritto chugged his beer, waved at a waitress for another.
“Go on then, I think I’ve got my eye in now,” he said grumpily.
His opponent’s grin widened at the size of Loveritto’s bet before he tried to keep a neutral expression.
They played the game and of course Loveritto lost. The harder he tried the more he fumbled and at the end he was insistent they play again, that he got too heated and that he knew how to approach the game now.
“Only if you’re sure,” his opponent said.
“I’m sure,” Loveritto snapped. “Are you?”
“Yeah, man, of course.”
They played again and again Loveritto tried to win as he found that was the best way to lose. He let his frustration boil and as he lost his money he cursed loudly.
“Valkswagon,” he pushed his chair back forcefully as he stood and it crashed to the ground. “Stupid game. Racist game,” he shouted.
Security hadn’t had an issue for a while and they all leapt on it. Tandish got there first though, ready as she was, and started to cool him down. He watched Tsyrker out of the corner of his eye and when he saw her disappear through a door he let himself be cooled down.
By then he was surrounded and Tandish was trying to placate them.
“I’m OK, I’m OK,” he declared. “I’m sorry, sir, he apologised to his terrified opponent.
“It’s cool, man, it’s cool.”
“You should come with us, sir,” one of the security said.
“No, no, I’m fine. Embarrassed, but fine.”
They all looked at him and he really did seem fine. He had cooled off quickly and Tandish picked up his chair, still running off calming phrases.
“Cannabact is more my game,” Loveritto said.
“Then perhaps you should stick to that, sir,” the security officer said.
“No more Rey’o or we’ll evict you,” another warned him with menace.
“Don’t worry, officers, I’ll keep him clear,” Tandish assured them and began guiding him to the door.
***
“OK, I’m in,” Tsyrker said.
“Head left and up,” Gulch told her.
He skilfully guided her and worked the cameras so that she wouldn’t be seen in the security office.
“Come into my office,” Regrette grinned from a door and she nipped inside.
They were in a little storeroom of women’s clothing. All vacuum packed and stored on shelves.
“I got you something nice,” Regrette said.
“A room that’s obviously in regular use, good place to hide,” she sarcasticised.
“Well put this on and let’s go,” he said holding out a security uniform.
She didn’t bother to ask him to avert his eyes as she changed, they’d both seen the other naked; it happened in situations like this; you couldn’t be a prude when speed was of the essence or you had to do what you had to do to escape. It briefly struck her that with and without Grant, they had been through a lot together. In a lot of scrapes, the most recent being the Wotham situation.
Still, though he didn’t turn away, he didn’t look either. Should she be mad at that? That he didn’t look? Was she that uninteresting to him as a woman? It sometimes annoyed her that she had had to give up some of her birthright as a woman to succeed in a job. That she had become so focussed on it that she had become it. Not a person, just a job.
“What now?” she asked once changed.
“Now we find out how to get to the street. Well, I say now, but I mean later.”
“I’ll have to get to Grant.”
“First let’s look at what we’re dealing with,” Regrette said. “How many girls do they have here?”
“Harper said around twenty.”
“I think he’s underestimating.”
They walked out and down the corridor until they came to a flight of stairs.
“Up or down?” Regrette asked.
Tsyrker thought about what Harper had told them.
“Up, closer to the hotel rooms.”
They ascended the stairs and two floors up they heard voices. They walked out into the corridor to find a number of doors along one side. And a man opening one and guiding a scantily clad girl inside. As the door opened out came the waft of music and laughter and the clink of glasses.
“Private function rooms,” Tsyrker whispered.
The man walked back past them and they watched as he reached the stairwell and walked up. They continued along the corridor aware that Gulch could only manipulate cameras for so long. At the far end the corridor turned right and at the end was a door.
“That’s my exit,” Tsyrker said and Regrette nodded.
They turned around and walked back, doing their best to look like they were patrolling and hoping that security did that here as they did on the casino floors. Otherwise they’d look mighty suspicious in the security office.
They walked back to the stairs and up, moving quickly to try and catch the guy who had just gone up there. Each floor they came to became
a little more interesting. On one they found the money counting room. One big room filling this hidden area of the building. There had to be another ‘official’ area for anyone who checked, but this was where the money from the illegal activities was counted and laundered back through the casino. They walked around the room as if they were supposed to and none of the five people in there took any notice of them; far too busy feeding cash into counting machines and then taking out the bundles and sending them down shoots or into safes.
They walked out again.
“I wouldn’t mind doing something with that,” Regrette said.
Tsyrker shook her head.
“Think of the long game, we can’t flag ourselves up with the Desards.”
Regrette frowned, but knew she was right. They continued up the stairs and on the next floor found what they were looking for. A large open area of men and women of various races with open doors that led to rooms. There were security guards around as well as other men and women who would work in ‘entertainment’. Looking after the girls, getting the right ones to the right places. There looked to be twenty-five girls and ten men in there by Tsyrker’s quick count and that didn’t count any already out. They didn’t look unhappy, there as a lot of chatting and comparing clothes, people making the best of a bad situation, but a closer look at their worn faces and haggard eyes told you the real story.
They walked back to the stairs, not wanting to be spotted by the other security guards and questioned. They didn’t think the whole ‘I’m new here’ thing would stick when it came to harbouring slave labour.
“I need to get back,” Tsyrker said.
“I need one of those uniforms,” Regrette said.
“Because it brings out the colour in your eyes?”
“I’m going to find that exit, get Tandish and Loveritto down there and just lead people out.”
“We’ll need a bigger van,” Tsyrker said with a smile.
CHAPTER 22
“This is Koloskaine,” Grant grinned at Tsyrker. “A new friend, he’s going to come to the private room with us.”
“As you wish,” Tsyrker said. “Why don’t we go there now?”
They left the playing floor and Tsyrker led the way, filling them in as they went.
“No. No way, too risky,” Grant said. “They’ll catch on straight away.”
“What else are we going to do, Ben? Leave them here to their fate?”
“You want to go around to every casino in the city?” he shot back. “We can’t save everyone.”
“But we can save these,” she pushed.
They went quiet as they walked through groups of people and up a couple of flights of stairs until they reached the private rooms. Tsyrker opened the door to the one they had booked and pressed a button to call an events staff.
“That door goes out into the restricted area,” she rattled the handle. “One way opening, we can get out as they come in.”
“And then what? They’ll pick us up on the cameras; Gulch won’t be able to hide us all.”
“Kaskey?” she asked.
“I dunno, man. I just work here.”
“Lot of good you are.”
“Well I don’t get it, you two seem to have swapped,” Kaskey said. “I thought he was the nice one and you were the hardnosed one.”
“He is and I am and that’s why he’ll regret not getting the rest of them out,” she spoke to Kaskey, but stared at Grant.
He stared back with his best hard stare.
“I don’t need to tell Loveritto and Tandish, do I?”
“No,” she smiled. “They’re already procuring a bus.”
Grant shook his head.
“You in on this Gulch?”
“Regrette was already putting the plan in motion, I had to help.”
“Alright. OK. Let’s do this.”
“Hello, hello,” the Human male said as he opened the door. “Having fun are we? Not a big group.”
“Rey’o,” Grant said. “He’s going to teach me before we go back onto the floor. Have some fun while we’re here too.”
“Of Course, Mr. Charles. Mr. Koloskaine. What are you looking for?”
“Girls,” Kaskey grinned. “Three or four would be nice.”
“Nice, but expensive,” the events staffer smiled pleasantly.
“You worry about the nice, we’ll worry about the expense,” Grant said.
“Very good, sir. Some drinks as well, no doubt. Here is the bar. You have the Halim package which gives you a thousand space pounds worth of amenities, after that the expense will be added to your room.”
“Fine, fine,” Grant said sharply.
“I will call someone to set up your Rey’o table. Now what about girls?”
“Human,” Grant said. He gave a rough description of Veronica Miles as his type.
Kaskey said he was easy, just bring a variety. The staffer nodded and left.
“Gothra will come looking for us,” Grant warned.
“Aren’t we looking for her?” Tsyrker asked back.
“Not necessarily.”
Tsyrker just shook her head at him and let a smile flick across her face.
Someone came in and set up the table in the room with a game of Rey’o and then left. It would take a little longer to get the girls organised and Tsyrker went through what she and Regrette had seen. The room would of course be bugged, but Gulch would be messing with the signal, making it hard to hear whispers. It was Gulch that instructed them to play a game of Rey’o, guiding them through the actions he needed to record and feed the images back to the cameras in a loop.
“Here we are,” Regrette said coming through the door. “Come on, girls.”
He ushered four girls through, one of them being a tired and ragged looking Veronica Miles.
“To your taste?” he asked.
“Very much so,” Grant replied getting up from the table.
“Cameras are on loop,” Gulch told them.
“Don’t let the door close,” Tsyrker warned, but Regrette still had a hand on it.
“OK, girls,” Grant said. “We’re getting you out.”
They all stood there and looked at him blankly.
“We’re taking you home,” Kaskey said.
He could see a glimmer in their eyes, but they wouldn’t let it through, or perhaps couldn’t. Any idea of ever getting home had been crushed from them, it was unimaginable and thusly their words made no sense.
“Come on, just follow them,” Tsyrker said.
Grant opened the door back out into the casino and looked around. It was clear. He looked back into the room.
“How do we get back to you?”
“I’ll go down and open the door. There’s a little alley way alongside the casino, you can’t see the door from the outside, so just wait for me,” Regrette said.
“Alright. Kas?”
“I’m ready.”
“Get Loveritto up to Kas’ room,” he said to Tsyrker.
He looked back out of the door and then signalled to the girls. They were starting to come out of their torpor, or were, at least, used to being taken to men’s rooms.
“You do this much?” Grant asked Veronica, half dragging her along.
“What?”
“Go to rooms?”
“Sometimes. Not usually from private rooms though, just do it all there.”
“OK, well if anyone stops us we just want a little private time before heading back, OK?”
“If that’s what you want.”
“You need to snap out of it, OK?”
“If you say so.”
They managed to get to their rooms without anyone stopping them and Grant took two as Kaskey took the other two.
“OK, this is the deal. I’ve got clothes here for you. You’re both going to get changed and then we’re going out down stairs.”
“Oh, we’re not allowed on the gambling floors,” the other girl, also a Human, said.
“OK,” Grant said a little
crossly. “I need you to listen. We’re here to get you out, I was hired by Veronica’s parents, OK?”
Light began to come into Veronica’s eyes. The light of new hope.
“Mummy? Daddy?” she asked.
“Yes. But we’re not going to do this if you don’t play along. You need to be my escorts, maybe my daughters. You need to walk with me as if you are supposed to be on the gambling floors, act like a guest. Walk like you belong, can you do that?”
“Yes,” Veronica said.
“I think,” the other girl said.
“Don’t think, do. Here are your clothes and some jewellery. Get changed, quickly.”
They went into the bathroom and came out shortly looking transformed.
“Brilliant, you both look fantastic,” he smiled and they both beamed back at him. “Remember, act like a guest, like you belong. We’re just going to head to the exit. Calmly.”
The walked out of the room and he got them to put an arm each through his own and they strolled down the corridor. He got them talking about what they would do when they got home, things they liked about it; fun memories that got them relaxed and laughing. Just like people having a good time at the casino.
They avoided the lifts due to cameras and they only went as far as the gambling floors anyway. The Casino wanted you to have to walk past all the tables. They passed two security officers as they walked out onto the Cannabact floor and he felt both girls tense, but they were not stopped.
“Keep going,” he whispered.
On reaching ground level (which was nowhere near the actual ground) they had to go into the bar and order drinks. The girls were edgy now, so close to freedom, yet so far away, but they had to wait for Kaskey and Loveritto to come down with the other two girls. The wait seemed like forever before Grant spotted Loveritto and then they were moving again. The van couldn’t pull up outside, it would look weird and so as they hit the fresh air they continued to walk towards the road in a strung out group. This was the hardest part on Grant, it was unusual and anyone could stop them. They really were so close and that was usually when it all went wrong.
But it didn’t.
Gulch pulled up just as they arrived and they all bundled into the van as fast as they could and hoped no one of interest was watching. It was too late now if they were.