Page 66 of Game of Love
I didn’t wait to hear what the prick was going to say next. I walked out but glanced back up the stairs to Jia’s bedroom before I went through the door.
Sleep didn’t take me away from her. It took her away from me.
I contacted Ethan and Wes and headed to the meet-up office near my apartment.
They were both there when I arrived.
Wes looked worried.
“You alright man?” he asked.
I tipped my head and sighed. “I’m good.”
“Good,” Ethan empathized.
I sat next to Wes and looked from him to Ethan.
“What the hell happened, son?” Ethan asked.
I pressed my lips together and thought of how I’d start. With him I’d always thought it best to lay out the cards on the table in an objective way so I wouldn’t show my true feelings.
In this instance my true feelings and instinct told me we needed the bigger picture.
I proceeded to tell them what happened and as expected when I got to The Chameleon, shock took them.
I ended my recount at that. They would have known I took Jia home and didn’t need to know what happened past that. They didn’t need to know that I’d just added to my list of things to worry about.
“Well there was nothing to report from the streets,” Ethan stated. “The team watching Giovanni reported that he was on the streets with his knights for the most part checking things out, then went home. That’s all. No secrets meetings with anybody. And, they never saw him meeting with anybody who looked like The Chameleon. So I think it’s safe to say he still has the prints.”
I sighed with relief. I knew if anything had happened I would have been told well before now but it was still good to hear it be confirmed.
It never meant, however, that the worry was over. Last night highlighted that we had a mountain load of shit to think about.
“Good, but Ethan last night was bad man.” I frowned.
“Look,” Wes cut in. “I know I’m not part of your secret tribe but this screams of shit to me. We need to know more.” He directed the comment to Ethan.
“We do need to know more, Ethan,” I added.
Ethan tensed. “We’re working on it.”
“That gives me fuck all man. If The Chameleon was there last night it suggests some important meeting should have taken place. It could have been the initiation to get the blueprints, or if not it could have been at the very least a meeting to touch base.” I truly doubted that The Chameleon would have just been there to play poker. “Ethan, the problem in this is that I don’t know what’s supposed to happen next. I don’t know what time I have.”
“Neither do we.” He sighed with exasperation opening out his palms . “I know that sounds quite unlike us but we don’t know any more than what I’ve said. sketchy
What worries me is that we never picked up on The Chameleon’s presence last night. No one someone saw him going into the hotel or leaving.”
That was absolutely something to be worried about. There would have been a conversation with Giovanni or something to make the arrangement for him to be there. It was The Chameleon though. I was used to hearing about his stealth abilities and covert actions. The worry of that was what made this so screwed up.
“Okay, let’s think pick apart the situation and get back on track. I think Giovanni still has the prints,” Wes said. “Intel says he was on the streets with his guys checking things out. And, I’m looking at everything in a logical manner. I take it The Chameleon gets gone after a job like this. I don’t think he would go to a poker game if he was there to pick up the prints. I feel more like he was there to touch base.”
I nodded agreeing. “I think you’re right. So… let’s brainstorm over what we do know. Last night theseotherpeople came into the casino. Putting The Chameleon aside, we’ve also got them to worry about.”
We could speculate on the other stuff, but the shootout was a rude awakening of the shit.
Wes nodded firmly. “Yes, we absolutely fucking do. How’d they get in? And with guns?”
“Exactly.”I straightened up and looked at them both. “All I know is that on my first meeting with Giovanni I was a search short of being stripped. Yet these guys came in and sat there, mingling like they were part of the crew. The only way they could have done that was if someone let them believe that.”
