Author Anon

“Don’t like L.A. traffic, huh?” asks Gavin.

“I’ll admit to your male superiority in driving amongst the crazies,” says Belle. “You keep your eyes on the road while I watch our prey.”

“It’s getting dark. We can expect that whatever happens, will happen tonight.”

“And anything can happen in this city without anyone else ever knowing about it.”

“Nice neighborhood.”

“What did you expect?” asks Belle. “If you had shady doings, you wouldn’t meet in Beverly Hills.”

“I see some thugs who look like bodyguards. The place is going to be tight with security.”

“Then park up somewhere relatively safe and we’ll have to do some walking.”

“Lucky for us it’s a nice night.”

“Or unlucky. We don’t want to get spotted.”

Parking several blocks away, they retrace their steps to where they saw the Bandit’s car turn into a building. Several big guys are pacing around the entrance door.

“We’ll have to find another entry,” Belle whispers. She takes Gavin’s hand and he looks down at her, surprised. “Try not to look too suspicious.” He squeezes her hand as they pass the security guards and round the corner.

“Let’s see if there’s a back door,” says Gavin. They find a door on the opposite side of the building but it is locked. A set of stairs leads to several doors going up the side of the building. “What are the chances that any of those door will be unlocked?”

“Probably nil. But we have to try. If not, there are a few windows. If all the doors are locked, we should try to bust one of them.”

“Preferably the one farthest away so they can’t hear it.”

Running up the stairs, they try each door. At the top floor, the lock gives way. They enter a darkened room, moving slowly and silently. Belle pulls out her flashlight and turns it on. “It’s empty.” They exit through a door at the other end and enter a hallway. Quietly, they open several doors to find that most are empty but a few have what appears to be old office furniture.

“This may have been an office building at one time.”

Swiftly but noiselessly, they search the floor and find a stairwell. Descending one floor at a time, they perform a cursory inspection of each floor until they reach the second one. Hearing muffled voices, they proceed slowly. A ray of light shows at the end of the hall and they move towards it. Coming nearer, they discover that they are looking down into a storeroom where several people are meeting and talking. Belle recognizes Mr. Z and Justin, who is negotiating with an Hispanic man. Justin is speaking to him in Spanish. Justin nods to the briefcase in Mr. Z’s hands. The Latino hands a small packet of white powder to Justin, who takes a pinch and sniffs it, nodding. Mr. Z lays the briefcase on the table, opens it and turns it around to face the Latino, who fingers the money. He turns to his compatriots with an order and Mr. Z. opens the trunk of his car. Several men load packages of white powder into the car. Justin shakes hands with the Latino, then he and Mr. Z. drive off. The garage closes after them, and the men gather together, talking in Spanish.

Outside, Gavin says, “I’ll bet they’re headed back to Vegas.”

“I’ll call ahead and have them tagged. In the meantime, let’s go somewhere and discuss our strategy.”

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“Nicholas!” cries Ashley. “I’m so glad to see you. Where’s Belle?”

“Uh,” stammers Nicholas. “Ashley. What are you doing here?”

“Mark is starting his new evening entertainment and asked me to come by and rehearse.”

“You’re singing tonight?”

“I hoped to. So, where’s Belle? Where did you two go?”

“Uh. We went out of town for a bit. But, uh. We got into a little fight and, uh, split up. I headed back and I, uh, thought she’d be back already.”

“I haven’t seen her. Are you split-split or is it just a little argument?”

“Uh. I’ll have to discuss it with her when she returns.”

“Well, then, I guess I have you all to myself for a short while.”

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“Is something upsetting you?” asks William.

“I feel so alone,” says Melanie. “Not having the girls around and not quite belonging to your family yet.”

“You’ve got me.”

“You’re sweet,” says Melanie, smiling. “But it’s not enough. It’s uncomfortable having your whole family hate me.”

“Maybe I should have you get more involved with them. Then they’ll get to know what a wonderful person you are.”

“How are you going to do that?”

“I’ll talk to them about putting you on the board.”

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Filed under: All That Glitters