“Some of what I saw that night.” He glanced at her pupils. They were normal. She noticed his scrutiny.
Lourdes said sharply, “When I work, I don’t play. And I worked today.”
“Okay. But you may get to the point where your body doesn’t give you a choice.”
Furrows covered her lovely brow. “Is that why you asked to meet with me? To lecture me? Because others have tried. And failed.”
“No, I said my piece the first night I saw you.”
“And I said my piece right back.”
“How well do you know Paley?”
“Pretty well, considering I was married to Darren for two years.”
Archer just sat there for a few moments. It had been a long time since he had been that stunned.
“Yeah, I didn’t think you knew about that. I was only seventeen.”
“Seventeen?”
“Really young and even more stupid. We didn’t meet out here. It was in Reno. I tried to make it as a dancer and singer there after escaping the farm. I met Darren. He was a lot older than me, an ex-con, all tough and smooth and dangerous and involved in some shady deals and with some seriously bad people, and he swept me right off my little naive farm girl feet. Then it became apparent we were not a good match and we got a quickie divorce; in that regard Reno was perfect. It was mutual, by the way. Darren had already moved on to another woman before we separated. And then the war started and he joined up. And I came out here and finally got the brass ring. When he got out of uniform I heard Darren went to Vegas and started working at the Flamingo.”
“Bugsy Siegel and those boys?”
She tapped her ash in the ashtray. “Yeah. He was their enforcer. And he was really, really good at it. He did a bunch of stuff for them and for himself. And then he came here.”
“I think he was pulling double duty between Vegas and LA during that time.”
“How do you mean?”
“He was operating a gambling ring for the mob out of Chinatown about five years ago. Cost a friend of mine the use of his legs. He blew town after that and then he came back to run the Jade. Maybe with the mob’s blessing and participation.”
“Nothing Darren did or will do would surprise me.”
“You said you were seventeen when you got married?”
“And nineteen when we got divorced. I’m thirty now. I’ve got maybe, maybe ten good years left for pictures. I’ve got to hoof it while the hoofing is good. And don’t worry. I invest my money in blue chip stocks and government bonds and prime real estate, and I have ownership pieces in some of the best restaurants and nightclubs in LA. I’ll be sitting pretty when I blow this joint and go wherever I go.”
“And when Darren got to town and found out you were a big star, what did he want?”
She finished off her Gibson and raised her hand for another. After it was delivered she said, “Why do you think I go to the Jade?”
“He’s blackmailing you. What with?”
“Let’s just say that while we were married I helped my husband with some of his business dealings and some people got hurt. I mean, really hurt. I knew nothing about any of it, of course. I was just a kid, but Darren doesn’t care. He could make my life miserable and my career would flame out just like that.” She snapped her fingers. “And if you repeat that to anybody I’ll sue your ass off and take everything you have.”
“I don’t repeat things and I don’t have much to take. But if he spills, he brings himself down.”
“I’ve got a lot more to lose than he does, Archer. And Darren always lands on his feet. Always. He’s the cat of all cats.”
“They’re filming you at the Jade.”
“I know they are. But only from the ceiling angle. They sell it to the Japs and the Chinese and the South Americans, and maybe here, too, who the hell knows? They just see the top of my platinum-blond head... and then the rest of me. Nobody knows it’s the wonderful Samantha Lourdes, of course. He makes money, and when Darren makes money he lays off me. And that makes it worth it.”
“And do you get others to go there, too? Your fellow stars?” She looked down into her glass, her expression flexing to despondency. “He wants me to. But I keep making excuses. I don’t want anyone I care about to get mixed up with that man. He was bad in Reno. Now he’s far worse. Maybe it was the war, or maybe it was the stuff he did for Bugsy and that crowd. Whatever, he really scares me. But I’m running out of excuses with him. And I’m not the only star there, I can tell you that.”
“And he got you hooked on drugs?”
She sat up. “No, in fairness, I can’t blame Darren for that — it was all my doing. I dabbled when I was married to him; Darren won’t touch the stuff. He doesn’t even drink booze. He has to always be in control. Me, I kept dabbling. Now the studio feeds it to me so I’ll keep working my cute little ass off for them. But I’m not hooked, not per se.”
“I don’t think there’s any per se when it comes to being an addict.”
“You might be surprised. I only take ten percent of the stuff they throw my way. Same at the Jade. It’s starting to bore me, actually. I might just chuck it all one day and be dry as a bone with pupils that don’t go pop anymore.” She shot him a curious glance. “So, is Darren coming for you?”
“At some point he will. For now, he’s lying low after his boys blew the hit on me. It was close. They were already digging the grave and about to drill a bullet into my skull when the cavalry arrived and saved my butt.”
She reached out and took his hand, her features now full of sincere concern. “Archer, don’t mess with that psycho. He won’t miss again.”
“I’m not sure I have much choice in the matter.”
“You could hop a train or a plane and head east. Far, far east.”
“I can do a lot of things. But then Paley will still be here doing what he does to people. Like you. How does that make the world a better place?”
She sat back and gazed at him in wonderment. “What are you, a preacher or an idiot or both? Or is that just a line you throw out like I do my movie look?”
He pulled his license and showed her. “None of the above. Like I told you before, I’m a private detective.”
She didn’t look impressed. “Darren eats cops for breakfast. PIs are just a hiccup to him.”
“He might have met his match this time. I’m not in the fight alone.”
Her expression quickly changed. “You really think you can take him down?”
Archer knew exactly why she was asking. “If you can help me, I might. I’m sure you can see the personal benefits.”
“Is that why you’d be doing it?”
“I could lie and say yes, but until you told me of your connection, I didn’t know you had skin in the game. But I guess, in a way, I did. If the Jade goes down, you don’t have to go there and play the bad girl anymore.”
“You’re not a preacher. You’re a Boy Scout.”
“People keep saying that, doesn’t make it true. But do I want to make the world a better place? Yeah, because I live in the world, too. As do people I care about. Like you.”
Her face flushed beautifully when he said this, and she gave his fingers a squeeze before draining her Gibson. He finished his scotch and both seemed now to hunker down to business.
“How can I help you?” she said.
“Do you know where he gets his supply of dope?”
“No, but sometimes I’ve nosed around and seen the stuff coming in late at night. It’s at least once a week. Comes by truck.”
“Surprised he lets you roam the halls.”
“Darren doesn’t think I’m a threat, you see, because he has dirt on me. They put the empty crates behind that room divider in the entranceway. When the next shipment comes, the truck takes the empty crates away.”