Vampire Beach: High Stakes (6 page)

‘Don’t knock it till you’ve tried it,’ Adam said.

‘This city is insane,’ Jason decided. ‘There’s a little Egypt, a little Paris, a little New York – and they’re all just hotels!’

‘There’s also one that’s like Venice and one that’s like ancient Rome …’ Sienna told him.

‘Which one are we staying in?’ Jason asked.

‘The best one of all,’ Paige replied. ‘Zach made the arrangements – and there’s no charge for any of us either.’

‘No way,’ Adam gasped a minute later, when Belle turned the Escalade into a wide circular driveway. ‘The Rouge et Noir?’

‘Let’s party,’ Paige said, giggling. She flung open her door and jumped out even before the black-uniformed valet could help her.

Jason let the guy open his door for him, then he turned to help Sienna out. ‘The Rouge et Noir Casino Hotel Resort,’ he read, staring at the tall neon sign on the Strip.

‘We’ll get the bags, sir,’ the valet told him. ‘You go on in.’

Paige and Belle were already on their way, with Adam ten steps behind, filming them. Jason took Sienna’s hand and they followed their friends. Behind the Escalade, he spotted Van Dyke’s Hummer with another valet unloading it.

As they stepped in to the hotel, Jason nearly gasped. The place was stunning. Jet-black shiny marble floors stretched as far as he could see. Heavy red drapes hugged the floor-to-ceiling windows, and red brocade ottomans with thick black fringe dotted the lobby. Off to one side, a scalloped entryway led to the casino. Jason caught a glimpse of gaming tables and slot machines. A cocktail waitress wearing a can-can skirt walked by.

‘Mr Lafrenière!’ called a thin man in a tuxedo. ‘Welcome!’ The guy rushed out from behind the huge obsidian reception desk, grabbed Zach’s hand, and pumped it enthusiastically. ‘We’re honored to have you back with us.’ His eyes traveled over the group. ‘And all of your party, of course. I’m Joseph Chalmers, the manager here.’

He shook everybody’s hands, then turned back to Zach. ‘So. What would you like from me?’

‘Just the six rooms we spoke about for now,’ Zach said, following Mr Chalmers over to the desk.

Adam came over to Jason. ‘Nice place, huh?’

‘I think that might be a Van Gogh on the wall,’ Jason said. ‘A real one.’

‘Probably. This is the most expensive resort on the Strip. They can afford the good art.’

‘Can I get you anything while you wait?’ another can-can waitress asked, appearing from nowhere. ‘If you’d like to take a seat in our VIP lounge, I’d be happy to bring in some drinks.’

‘That sounds wonderful,’ Paige told her. The waitress led the way over to a room hidden by a thick curtain. Inside were a bunch of overstuffed chairs and couches, and a huge window that looked out over the Strip. Paige hurled herself onto a chaise and grinned.

‘Are we seriously in a lounge while we wait for five minutes to check in?’ Jason asked. ‘Really? You need a lounge for that?’

‘Sure,’ Adam said. ‘Maybe you should install a lounge like this in your house. You know, for when you have to wait for your sister to get out of the bathroom in the morning.’

‘That takes a lot longer than five minutes,’ Jason told him.

The waitress came in and set down a heavy gold tray. On it were tall glasses and sparkling crystal-studded bottles of mineral water.

The others gathered around, grabbing drinks.

‘Cool. Bling H
₂
O,’ Brad remarked.

‘What else would you expect in Vegas?’ Erin laughed.

Jason hung back.

‘Having some culture shock?’ Adam asked quietly, sitting next to him.

‘A little,’ Jason admitted. ‘I kinda figured we’d be staying at a cheap motel five miles off the Strip. But the way the hotel manager greeted Zach, it was like he’s royalty or something. I mean, he’s still just a high-school kid.’

‘With a seat on the DeVere Heights Vampire Council,’ Adam reminded him.

Jason was surprised. ‘You think that matters? We’re nowhere near Malibu.’

Adam shrugged. ‘My guess? Zach’s family knows the owners of this hotel. For all I know, they may
be
the owners of this hotel. Look, Paige said he’d sorted out the rooms so there’s gotta be some kinda connection. Anyway, our friends are international jet-setters, my man. Enjoy it.’

‘I’ve got our room keys,’ Zach announced, stepping through the curtain. ‘Paige, you and I have the two penthouse suites. The rest of you are on the 17th floor, just below us. Brad and Van Dyke, you’re in 1701. Erin and Maggie, 02. Sienna, are you with Jason or Belle?’

‘Belle,’ Sienna replied, shooting Jason an apologetic look. She leant forward to whisper in his ear, ‘Otherwise it would be Belle and Adam, and Belle’s just not up for a male roommate right now.’

Jason nodded.

‘But you know I’d rather be in a room with you,’ she added, her breath hot on his neck.

Adam cleared his throat loudly. ‘So it’s me and Freeman. Excellent.’

Sienna pulled away from Jason, smiling. ‘What’s our room number, Zach?’

‘1703.’ He handed her a key card, then gave the last one to Adam. ‘I say we get settled in and meet in the hotel restaurant for dinner in an hour. Sound good?’

‘Sounds perfect,’ Paige replied.

‘Just so I know, in a hotel where the manager wears a tux, is there a dress code for this restaurant?’ Adam asked.

‘Of course,’ Zach replied. ‘Didn’t you bring your tux?’

‘Uh …’ Adam looked panicked.

‘Just kidding,’ Zach told him. ‘Whatever you have is fine. They’re not going to expect us to play by their rules.’

‘This is so much fun,’ Paige squealed. She grabbed Zach and kissed him on the cheek. ‘Thank you for arranging it.’

‘Not a problem.’ Zach pulled back the curtain and led them all toward an elevator marked ‘Private’. Inside, there was no control panel. Zach just pulled out his key card, waved it over the sensor, and the elevator shot up. ‘Brad, your key.’

‘Oh.’ Brad pulled out his key card and waved that over the sensor, too.

‘It knows which floor to stop on based on our keys,’ Zach explained. ‘You can also use the keys as money while you’re in the hotel.’

Everybody nodded, and Jason got the feeling that even the vampires were a little impressed with this place. The elevator glided to a stop on the 17th floor to let people out.

‘See you downstairs,’ Zach said as the doors shut on him and Paige.

The hallway was done in shades of red and black, just like the lobby. When they got to their rooms, Sienna gave Jason a lingering kiss.

‘Just to hold you until dinner,’ she murmured.

Adam was already sprawled on one of the two huge beds when Jason got into the room. ‘You know, this bed is bigger than my entire room,’ he commented.

Jason took a look around. To the right were the beds, each set on a raised dais of pale gray marble, and there was a huge bathroom with two sinks, a shower, and a gigantic tub. To the left was a living area with couches, a wide-screen TV on the wall, and a bar. The entire room bowed out in a big U shape, and the curve of the U was a bank of windows. Jason wandered over to take a look.

‘I think I can see every hotel on the Strip from here,’ he said.

Adam joined him at the window and let out a soft whistle. ‘If this is what the regular rooms are like, I can’t wait to see Zach’s penthouse suite. Speaking of which, maybe I should iron my T-shirt before dinner. I know Zach said it doesn’t matter, but …’

‘Did you even bring a jacket?’ Jason asked, amused.

‘I’m not really sure what I brought,’ Adam admitted. ‘We were at the party late last night, and then we left so early today that I kind of packed in my sleep.’ Adam went over to his suitcase, which the bellhops had placed on a stand at the foot of the bed. He opened it up and stared at the contents thoughtfully.

Jason peered over his shoulder. The suitcase
contained
a camcorder and all its various accoutrements, right down to a folded tripod. And a bunch of shirts crammed in around the lenses, wires, and other pieces of equipment. ‘You used your clothes for packing material,’ he said.

‘Well, I had to cushion the camera somehow,’ Adam said reasonably.

Jason reached in and pulled out a wadded-up cotton shirt. When he shook it out, it turned out to be a perfectly decent button-down, with about a million wrinkles.

‘See? Iron required.’ Adam began hunting through the closet. ‘There has to be an iron, right? Even millionaires get wrinkles, don’t they?’

Jason unzipped his own suitcase and pulled out his toiletries bag. ‘I’m going to take a shower. Good luck with the clothes.’

By the time he was clean and dressed, Adam had made himself presentable. He’d even scrounged up a tie – although it had a picture of E.T. on it.

‘Drink?’ Adam asked, checking out the minibar. ‘I’m feeling beer-ish. And a bottle only costs ten bucks.’

Before Jason could answer, there was a knock at the door. He went to get it, hoping to see Sienna. Instead, Zach stood in the hallway.

‘Are you heading down to dinner already?’ Jason asked.

‘In a few. I wanted to give you these first.’ Zach held out two Nevada drivers’ licenses. ‘Your ID for the week. Vegas is no fun if you’re not legal.’

‘Thanks.’ Jason took them and studied them as Zach headed off to Brad and Van Dyke’s room. ‘How’d he get our pictures?’ he asked Adam.

‘He has his methods,’ Adam replied in a fake-mysterious voice. He glanced at his ID, then took a closer look. ‘Dude. This is nice work. It looks real!’

‘I know. Although it will be weird if we’re all exactly twenty-one on our licenses.’

‘I’m twenty-two. Ha!’ Adam said. ‘It’s my real birthday, though. I only have to remember the fake year if some bouncer decides to quiz me. That Zach, he thinks of everything!’

Jason pocketed his ID. ‘I’m going to go get Sienna.’ He went over to her room, and she opened the door just as he was about to knock. She looked incredible, her hair done in loose waves for a change, tumbling down over her shoulders to the most amazing, strappy, clingy red dress Jason had ever seen.

‘That
is
a killer dress,’ he stammered.

‘I told you.’ Sienna leant in and brushed her lips against his.

‘Hey, Belle!’ Adam yelled over Jason’s shoulder. ‘Are you in there? I can’t see you over the lovebirds.’

Sienna rolled her eyes and laughed. ‘Geez, we can’t even get a single romantic moment? Tough crowd.’

‘You two get plenty of romance,’ Belle said from inside the room. She grabbed her purse and pulled the door shut behind her. ‘Let’s go.’

Down in the restaurant, they were ushered to a table in a roped off area of the dining room, separated from the noise and the crowd by a row of tall plants with exotic red flowers in bloom.

Zach and Paige were already there, sitting at the head and foot of the table like a king and queen. Paige took one look at Sienna and squealed with delight.

‘I knew that dress was perfect for you! You are the hottest babe in this entire town!’

‘I don’t know about that,’ Sienna said, but she smiled with delight.

Brad and Van Dyke showed up a minute later, and finally Maggie and Erin came in, giggling. ‘Erin just lost twenty dollars in a minute and a half,’ Maggie announced.

‘Serves me right for playing five dollar slots,’ Erin said.

‘I don’t play slots,’ Brad put in from across the table. ‘Roulette is my game.’

‘You have a
game?
’ Sienna teased.

‘I do now,’ Brad replied. ‘I’ve decided to focus on one thing for the whole week. You know, see if I can figure out a system.’

‘You can’t ever beat the house,’ Van Dyke said scornfully. ‘Everybody knows that.’

‘It’s still fun to try,’ Paige replied. ‘It’s always fun to see if you can find your way around the rules.’

A waiter in a black tux showed up with the wine list. While Zach was reading it, Paige beckoned him over. ‘What’s your name?’ she asked.

‘Max.’ The waiter looked her up and down and smiled.

‘Mmmmax,’ Paige murmured, her voice dropping an octave. ‘I love that name.’

Max smiled a little wider.

‘Tell you what, Max. Even if these unadventurous types just go for soft drinks or wine, I want something more exciting,’ Paige said. She put her hand lightly on his arm. ‘Can you take care of me?’

‘Sure. Yes. I’d be happy to,’ Max said. ‘I know just the thing.’ He practically ran toward the bar.

Erin chuckled. ‘Paige, you’re such a flirt.’

‘What? I would’ve said the same thing to a waitress,’ Paige replied with an innocent look. Then she burst out laughing.

‘You’re certainly in an outrageous mood tonight,’ Sienna commented. ‘Did you hit the bar before dinner?’

‘Nope, I hit the bubble bath whirlpool tub in my amazing penthouse suite,’ Paige replied. ‘Though I have to admit, I took the complimentary bottle of Bollinger into the tub with me.’

‘Bubbly in the bubble bath,’ Van Dyke said. ‘Sweet.’

‘It is. I’m jealous,’ Maggie put in. ‘We have the big bathtub, too, but we didn’t get any champagne.’