Page 59 of Twice
“What did they talk about?”
“I don’t know. I leave the room. I don’t want to get in trouble. But...”
“But what?”
“When my friend come out, he is hiding something in his hand.”
“Did you see what it was?”
“A ball.”
“What kind of ball?”
Toussaint shrugged as if it were obvious.
“A roulette ball,” he said.
?
Twenty minutes later, the dealer was on his way to police headquarters while LaPorta and Sampson drove to TheOcean Club Resort, where Gianna Rule was registered as a guest. The downtown traffic was thick with jitneys and rental cars. LaPorta, riding in the passenger seat, stared at the sherbet-colored buildings dotting the crowded streets. He remembered when he first arrived in the Bahamas, being told the color scheme was intentional.Pink is government, yellow is schools, and green is for police.
He lowered a window and inhaled the humid air. A clearer picture was beginning to form. Alfie had recruited a croupier. The phony ball was rigged. At a prearranged time, the croupier slipped it into the roulette wheel, and Alfie knew when to put his money down.
There were likely others involved, too. These schemes usually required a lookout, a person to distract security, maybe additional bettors to make the illegal move less obvious. LaPorta had requested video of the roulette table from an hour before Alfie sat down. The faces of everyone who even momentarily stopped there would be run through their system. If anyone else helped pull off this swindle, it would be caught on tape.
Still, one thought nagged at the detective. How did Alfie know exactly which number to play? A rigged ball might fall heavily to one side of the wheel, but to an individual number? That would require some truly advanced level of technology.
“Hey, Vincent?” Sampson said, interrupting his thought.
“Yeah?”
“This woman we’re going to see. Who is she?”
“The suspect’s wife. Ex-wife, actually.”
“What does she have to do with it?”
“Well, he sent her the money. We need to find out if she—”
Sampson slammed his horn at a jitney that had cut in front of him.
“Look at this fool!”
LaPorta blew out air and shifted in his seat. In his briefcase was Alfie’s notebook. At the right moment, he planned to reveal it to Gianna Rule, but not until she tried to deny her part, or maybe even knowing Alfie. That was usually how it went.I never heard of the guy. I don’t know what you’re talking about.
Deep down he was curious about meeting this Gianna, seeing if she matched Alfie’s glowing description, and what it was about her that was so captivating. He thought about his own wife. He took out his phone and dialed her number in Miami.
“Hey, Vince,” she said, answering.
“How’s it going?”
“OK. I’m seeing my mom this afternoon.”
“Uh-huh.”
“And you? Chasing any bad guys?”
“One.”
