Nigel nodded his head vigorously.
Teddy shrugged. “Too bad.” He gestured to the door. “You could have joined the mile-high club.”
22
Teddy dressed himself up as an asshole, a rich old guy trying to make himself look cool with long hair and casual clothes, but whose two-thousand-dollar corduroy jacket sort of gave the thing away. So did the Mercedes-Benz he borrowed off the Centurion back lot.
Teddy parked behind the noodle shop and rang the bell beside the battered iron door to the basement. Ringtone Lee’s bouncer pushed the door open a minute later. His look was not welcoming.
Teddy stuffed two hundreds into his hand and said, “Get me a seat at the table.”
The bouncer considered that. The money disappeared into his pocket. He turned Teddy around and patted him down for a weapon. Finding none, he said, “You got cash?”
Teddy jerked his thumb at the guy’s pocket. “That was sort of a hint.”
“If you’re a wise guy, we don’t want you.”
Teddy jerked a wad of cash out of his pants pocket. “You want me.”
There were seven guys already at the table. Teddy sat down and made eight. He began to lose, which wasn’t easy, as they weren’t very good.
Teddy called the pot with a hand he knew would lose and cursed his luck. “Not my night. I should have gone out instead—I could have gotten laid.”
“Yeah, sure,” the guy across the table from him said. He was a snotty son of a bitch, snide to everybody. Teddy would have loved to take him down. But he wasn’t Teddy’s target.
The guy he wanted was the little guy to his right whose ears pricked up when Teddy said, “You wouldn’t believe who I’m going out with.”
“She got two legs or four?” the snotty guy said.
Teddy didn’t answer, just let the matter drop.
The little man bit. “So who is it?”
“An absolute knockout. You might recognize her.”
“She’s famous?”
“She’s done lingerie ads.”
“Oh. So I wouldn’t recognize her name?”
“Maybe not.”
“You’re saying I might recognize her face?”
“Among other things,” the snotty guy said.
The little guy lost interest. He also lost money. Teddy busted him, which wasn’t hard. He sucked him in, set him up. The guy didn’t have much to begin with, but after Teddy began to work on him his pile went fast. He lost all his chips and cashed out.
So did Teddy. The other players couldn’t believe he was leaving. He hadn’t been there that long.
“You win one pot and walk away,” the snide guy said. “I can’t stand players like that. Quit as soon as they’re up, and say they won. You gonna go brag about it?”
Teddy wished he had time to knock him down a peg.
* * *
—
Teddy caught the little man in the parking lot. He was surprised to see Teddy. “You cashed out, too?”
“I came out to give you back your money.”
The little guy was dumbfounded. “What?”
“I felt bad taking it. You’re a terrible player, you must lose all the time. I figure you must have another source of income.”
“Now, see here—”
“Of course, if you’re too proud to accept the money, I quite understand, but you and I are going to have a little talk.”
“No, we’re not.”
“Oh yes, we are,” Teddy said. “Now, they patted me down for a weapon, but I don’t really need one, do I?”
The little man’s mind was totally blown. He blinked at Teddy.
“You perked up at my dating-a-celebrity story like you just caught aces in the hole. And your disappointment when it wasn’t worth shit was almost comical. You were hoping it was something you could turn a profit with. Like that British kid who once dated a movie star.”
Once again, the little guy’s face betrayed him.
“See, that’s why you’re such a bad player,” Teddy said. “You have a million tells. So who’d you sell the info to? And don’t be coy. One way or another, you’re going to tell me.”
“There’s a private eye I pass tips on to. If one pans out, he slips me money.”
“I thought there might be. What’s his name?”
“Ace Vargas.”
“Ace?” Teddy said. “Is his name really Ace?”
“Sure. Ace Detective Agency.”
“You told him about this kid?”
“That’s right.”
“You told him the kid’s name?”
“I didn’t have his name.”
“Remarkable. Another tell. You gave him the name of the movie star. Who was it?”
“Tessa Tweed.”
“Uh-huh. And why was this information worth so much money?”
“It just was.”
“Bullshit. That nugget isn’t worth a dime. What else did the kid tell you that made it worthwhile?”
“He said he filmed himself with her.”
“Having sex?”
“Yeah.”
“And that’s what you told your detective friend?”
“Yeah.”
“You didn’t see the tape?”
“No.”
“The kid wasn’t flashing around a copy?”
“He didn’t have it with him or he might have. It seemed important to him that we believe him.”
“You better be on the up-and-up about this Ace Vargas.”
“I swear.”
“If you’re not, believe me, I will find you.” Teddy shoved the money into his hands. “Go back, play cards, and forget you ever met me. You get a mulligan on the game. It’s not often you get a do-over on your whole day.”
Teddy figured it was a fifty-fifty chance the guy would tip Ace off, but it didn’t matter. A PI with an agency would have no place to hide.
Teddy went home and went to bed. They were filming the next day, and he had a six AM call.