“I’ll have everything you need in place. You’ll have to provide your own tools, but I doubt you’ll need them.”
Right. Because we’re just going to walk right in through the front door. Adriana knew it was better to be safe. She’d have to have a way to take in at least a small packet of things in case she ran into something unexpected.
“Oh,” Monique halted for a second and then spoke again, “Wear something nice. This is a high-end party, after all. Nothing from one of those department stores, either. If you need me to bring you a dress, I can…”
“I’ll be dressed to the nines. You just try to keep up.”
Adriana had plenty of expensive clothes. Keeping up with the latest and most luxurious fashions wasn’t really her thing. She’d happily trade a $4,000-dress for a pair of tight jeans and Converses any day. From time to time, however, her line of work and her social obligations required her to dress appropriately. She resented the fact that the other woman thought she might be too cheap to have anything nice. At the same time, Adriana resented having to wear such things.
“Good. See to it you are. Nothing too flashy, though. You should be gorgeous but not flashy. Don’t want too many people to look at you for too long.”
“Classy and subtle. I got it. Anything else?” Adriana crossed an intersection and continued past a bakery and a butcher shop. Her hotel was only a few blocks away now.
“That’s all for now. I’ll send you the location and time for our rendezvous as soon as I confirm it. It will likely be in thirty-six hours.”
“Perfect. See you then.”
Adriana didn’t wait for Monique to say goodbye. She ended the call, and when she reached the next street, ran across as soon as the walking sign signaled that it was safe. She waited for a few seconds on the other side and then cut left and crossed the perpendicular street.
When she arrived at the corner across from the hotel, she looked down the road in both directions, making sure there were no police around. There was a cop a few hundred yards away to the right, but he was walking in the other direction and didn’t seem to notice she was there amid the throngs of other people and cars.
The sign changed and signaled for the pedestrians to walk across. She tucked into the herd as they hurried through the crosswalk. The hotel was one of the older ones in the city. Newer, more up-to-date places had been built in some of the newer sections of town,but this one had a convenient location that was close to almost everything. The gray stone structure reminded her of old castles built hundreds of years ago. Of course, the gables on the highest windows mimicked the traditional Dutch style that seemed to pervade 85 percent of the city’s buildings. A narrow, single row of hedges wrapped around the outer wall and stretched down the length of the structure until it reached a side door a hundred feet away. The front of the building featured a red-and-blue-striped awning that almost appeared to be purple from a distance. Adriana wondered if that was the intention since the color purple had royal roots. A doorman in a uniform, white gloves, and matching hat stood just outside the entrance, welcoming new visitors and waving goodbye to those who were checking out. At this time of day, it was more of the latter.
Adriana continued walking toward the front entrance until something froze her in place. A siren blared from down the street ahead of her. She couldn’t see its source yet, but the vehicle was definitely coming her way. Her muscles tensed as she quickly considered what she should do. If she pushed forward, the police would certainly see her. Maybe that was why they were coming this way. Someone had recognized her despite her disguise. It was the only explanation. She huddled close to some of the other pedestrians until they reached the other side. The group split into four groups, all going in different directions. She made a quick decision and went left to the side of the building. Once she reached the corner, Adriana stopped and leaned against the wall as if she were waiting to meet someone.
The sirens closed in, their screaming whine piercing her ears as the vehicle approached. She took an unconcerned look around the corner and watched as two police cars stopped in front of the hotel, blocking in a gray luxury sedan. Another police car zipped by Adriana, surprising her momentarily. She’d not heard the third vehicle approaching. The car’s lights were flashing, but there were no accompanying sirens. That vehicle whipped around the corner, narrowly missing a few people walking across the street, and parked in front of one of the other vehicles. The three cops got out of their cars quickly and hurried to surround the gray sedan, pistols drawn as they did so. Another siren echoed through the canyons of old buildings, and within seconds, a high security police truck appeared on the scene, joining the other police vehicles in front of the hotel entrance.
Their focus seemed to be on whoever was in the sedan, and after waiting another hour-long minute, Adriana saw the man exit the vehicle with his hands on his head. He wore a silvery suit with a black tie. If she had to guess, she’d say he was from an Asian country, but it was hard to tell because of the distance and his sunglasses.
The police swarmed instantly. They spun the guy around and pressed him against his car windows, yanked his arms behind his back, and slapped handcuffs on his wrists. The entire ordeal took less than ten seconds. The authorities marched the man over to one of the police cars, stuffed him in the back seat, and then slammed the door shut.
Adriana had no idea who the man was, but she was thankful for the coincidence. A growing mob of onlookers gawked from the corner of the street, the stragglers of which were standing only ten feet away from her.
Two officers stayed at the entrance to the hotel, taking down notes as they spoke to the guy Adriana figured was the establishment’s manager. The assumption was based on the man’s blazer and pants, along with the way he appeared to be trying to defuse the situation. Having an arrest made on the premises of someone who was clearly a high-profile patron had to be bad for business.
“Who is the man they arrested?” she asked, careful not to make eye contact, instead watching as the police convoy sped away down the street.
A brunette with her hair in pigtails turned around. She had a star tattooed on her neck, and her lipstick was fire engine red. “Willie Tran,” she answered.
Adriana thought about asking another question, but she didn’t have to. The girl could see she didn’t know who that was.
“He runs illegal gambling operations all over Europe. They say he smuggles cocaine too.”
That explained the whole sting operation that just went down. The timing was perfect for Adriana — well, other than the fact that she’d just had the crap scared out of her. A major arrest for an international criminal would keep their guard down for at least a little while. Busy day for the local cops, she thought. It would only be a matter of time until the search for her and the other thief spread all over the city, which meant getting out within the next hour or so was paramount.
She took out her phone again and decided to enter the hotel through the side door rather than walking by all the commotion in the front. No need to give the police an easy two for one.
The phone rang twice before her pilot answered. She used her room key to open the side entrance and stepped into the air conditioned, clean-smelling air within the hotel’s corridor. Adriana explained to the pilot that they needed to leave within the next two hours and requested a flight plan for Las Vegas. Before heading to Mexico, she’d need to make a quick stop at her home in the desert mountains to pick up a few extra things. If Monique were true to her word, she’d send Adriana information about what kind of security system they’d be dealing with at Espinoza’s mansion. His setup would determine the kinds of tools and devices she’d need to take with her across the border.