What Happens in Vegas Stays in Vegas

Antonelli's Gulfstream G-4

By the time we are back on the strip we have emptied the skull of Muerte Verde and moved on to Scotch and Vodka from the limo bar. The events of the past couple of hours needed a little something to flush the horror from our short term memory. This is just one of about a dozen memories that I don't want invading my dreams. I feel like asking Lou how he keeps those wolves at bay... that conversation will have to happen another time in another place.

Right now we have two things that are our plates. Showing Chris a good time for saving our asses, and saving Mitch's ass up in Modoc. I also need to find a way to get a message to Jerry and let him know all that has happened. He is a tough hippie bastard, but he still worries. So I am thinking there must be some Ham radio geeks in this town that would be tickled pink to send a message out into the Guatemalan jungle.


Lou has quite a shiner where he caught that roundhouse kick. That and his torn and bloody shirt is a hell of a sight when we get out of the limousine at the Bellagio. There is an instant recognition when Chris Antonelli steps out of the back of the limousine... that an an unspoken rule of no questions asked. The less you see in Vegas the longer you live. I can't believe that he has made this big of an impression in the short time he has been out of that hospital in Belize. I can only assume that his arrival was foretold to these people by those who matter.

After watching his handywork in the desert I have to rethink our treatment of him at the Dominican's. I am thinking he was just as dangerous as those guys, but was feeling us out when we got there to make sure we weren't someone to watch our for as well. But we saved his life, delivered him to his father safely, killed just about everyone that had a hand in his and Bear's torture, and helped to avenge his father death.

And one question hangs in the air... Lou's comment on the diamonds. Chris seems patient and doesn't pursue an answer, not right now. He seems quite content on drinking with his buddies and so do we. I don't know a stronger bond of friendship that can be forged in this trial by fire, with the exception of those formed in battle.

Lou walks ahead of us, drawing looks from the blue bloods and gamblers, as though he were intruding on their lavish lifestyle... worse than the help, a bloody vagabond walking through "their" casino. He doesn't give a fuck. Let 'em look. He would probably wipe his ass with the lot of them if they said a word. Up to the front desk and right in the face of a rather pale looking black gentleman with a finely trimmed moustache and thin rimmed glasses.

"Can I help you?" No too snotty, but definitely an attitude. But there isn't much fight left in Lou tonight. Once you have seen the ass burned off of somebody you are done for the evening.

"I have an item in my safety deposit box."

"Your room number and the name on the box, sir?"
Lou gives him his name and our room number and the gentleman produces a signature card. He signs it and that is compared with the signature he made when he left the package.

"You gave me shit six ways to Sunday when I suggested you put those diamonds in a safety deposit box."
"Hey... it was a good idea after I gave it a little thought. So I took the diamonds out of the bag and put them in the box. Then after I got kicked out of that casino I had some time to pick out some perfect sized pebbles."

Pale face comes back with the box and sets it down on the counter. He offers Lou some privacy in a side office but he refuses.
"No, pal, I got it." He opens the box and pulls out an Altoids tin and then pushes the box back toward him.

We turn and walk toward the room. Antonelli smiles and gives Lou a bear sized paw on the shoulder.
"You put them in an Altoids tin?"
"No, your breath smells like a buffalo fart, so I thought I would grab these."
He pushes the tin into Antonelli's hand.

"Your dad went through hell for these. Agaki was killed for them. You were maimed for them. We lost Kozanostra for them. We almost drowned for them. A lot of people have died trying to possess them or just because of their existence. They are yours, Chris, yours and your father's. If it weren't for that fucking hostage trying to double dip on the deal everyone would be alive and well."

Chris opens the tin and stares into the handful of stars in the box. "This means a lot to me, guys. That you would save them for me, that you would give them to me. Anybody I have ever met... hell, including me, would have probably kept these a secret and cashed 'em in."
He snaps the lid closed and walks with us.

It is just the three of us. Antonelli shed his body guards back at the limousine and by the looks of that mean streak we saw back in the desert... he doesn't need one. We head into the elevator to go to our suite.
"Where are you staying, Chris?" I push the button and the doors close... Barry Manilow music is playing on the speakers as the lift rises.
"I haven't made any plans."

The doors open and we disembark and walk to the big double doors. We both feel in our pockets for the key card. Well, I feel in my pockets... Lou's are torn off.
"Hey Lou?"
He looks at me.
"Half your pants are gone."
He looks down and sees his thigh through the rip in the slacks. "Those were brand new."
I push the door bell button and the theme from the movie "Godfather" playing on chimes can be heard in the suite.
"Catchy tune." Chris remarks.
We can hear someone yell at us... but we can't hear what they say. I wait another ten seconds and then play the tune again.

Mike comes to the door, a towel wrapped around him like Gidget just got out of the shower.
"Well hey there, gents, where the heck were you off to?" He steps back and holds the door open as he drips on the imported Italian tile in the entry way.

"We had to deal with an old acquaintance."
"Well you had us worried half to death. Show was nice though." He gives Antonelli a friendly look and then holds out his hand.
"Greetings there, friend. Name's Mike... or Theo... but only Andy calls me Theo. Name's Mike then, I guess."
"Chris."
He gives Mike a hearty handshake and Mike loses his grip on the towel. Down it goes to the floor and Mike's face turns beet red. He jumps down and grabs it, quickly wrapping it around him.
"Mikee... are you naked under that towel?" I turn and look at Lou who is just as surprised as I am.
"Well, I, uh... we... she wanted to use the hot tub and we couldn't very well let her be in there naked by herself." He sees Lou's temperature rising. "That's not quite what I mean. What I mean is... "
"You are in that hot tub with my date, Mike?"
"Andy is in there right now with her. I am in here with you fellas."
Lou yanks his towel off and as Mike backs up trying to cover himself, Lou spins it up and snaps him with it before marching out onto the balcony where the spacious Jacuzzi spa is bubbling away.
Andy is on the far side of tub... as far away from Holly as he can get without climbing out. He looks uncomfortable, like he is sitting in a pile of Clydesdale shit. Holly on the other hand is standing, her ample breasts floating in the water ahead of her... nipples aimed at Andy like a couple of deck guns on the Battleship Missouri. I think she is having fun with Andy's comfort level.
"What is going on here?" Lou's voice makes Andy jolt and he slumps down so even his neck is under water.
"Nothing is going on. Where the hell have you been?"
"Are you naked in there, Andrew?" Lou is just having fun with him now.
"Why? You aren't one of those Navy boys, are you?"

Holly turns and gives Lou a big smile, then reaches out with her arms wide and grabs him around the neck for a big kiss. Seconds later he is in the Jacuzzi and Holly is stripping him.
"Oh, for Christ's sake." Andy turns away and looks at the view of the strip. He is trapped by his modesty.

I turn to Chris, "Drink?"
He nods and we walk over to the bar. Mike is shivering a bit, towel wrapped around his waist, standing by the bar.
"You might as well get back in there. Andy won't have anyone to talk to now."

An hour later the scene has completely changed. Holly called her friends at the Crazy Horse II and four of them showed up with very little clothing or inhibition. I called down to the front desk and inquired about a discrete person to come up and tend bar. They reassured me that our suite comes with a full staff and that they would have someone up there immediately.
Her name is Rachel, great smile and attitude. Doesn't seem to mind the nudity and sex going on, and she makes any drink you can think of, and a few that you can't.

The girls from the Crazy Horse are a fun bunch. As soon as they had stepped through the door their clothes were off and their little butts jiggled their way to the Jacuzzi and they stepped in, adding to Andy's embarrassment and the red in Mike's face. Lou was surrounded. The boy's stayed at the far end, trying to not look directly at the beautiful living nude sculptures writhing over Lou like Japanese Coi fish at feeding time. But it was too late. They spotted the boys and got a missle lock on the both of them.

"Hey... " I shout from the bar where Chris and I are finishing off a couple of "Widowmakers", a Rachel specialty.
"What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas."
"Amen to that, brother." Chris raises his glass and we both toast and guzzle down the blue beverage. Chris holds his glass up for another. "What's in this?"
Rachel grabs the hi-ball glass and gives it a quick wash and towel dry. "It's faster to tell you what isn't in it."

We end up in the bubbling, steamy water with the party. The girls show great interest in Antonelli's prosthetic lower leg and foot. It looks pretty real. Same size and girth of his other calf, ankle, and foot. He sits on the side of the Jacuzzi and lets the girls touch it. He even wiggles his toes for them.
"How fast can you do that, sailor?" One of them asks as she sinks his foot and straddles it.
"Twice as fast and all night long." Antonelli tells her, sinking down in the water.

Another round of drinks comes our way. Andy and Mike warm up to their respective lady friends. Mike makes the announcement that they are married. Then Andy makes the announcement that they aren't married to each other. The girls don't seem to mind. They know the code of the desert. But if these guys don't want to fuck, then they won't fuck. That is more like being at work anyway. I get the feeling by their attitudes that they are just happy to be at a party and on a balcony high up over the strip.

At one point in time I can see Lou wink at me through the steam. I have a girl in my lap... I don't know her name but she seems to respond to Sweetie just fine. She is locked onto me like a remora. Lou's Holly surfaces from under the water for a little air before returning to the depths.
Antonelli has a girl on each side of him. He alternates whispering in their ears, coaxing a giggle from one and then the other. Apparently they agree to his request and start in on a long kiss between them.
Mike and Andy have the last girl between them. I get the feeling that this girl is from Minnesota as well because she hasn't stopped talking to Mike since she got into the Jacuzzi. Andy has one arm resting on the edge of the pool, and the other hand is under the water. It isn't until little Miss Viking moves a little to give him better access that I gather what he is doing. To my amazement I see a nod of acknowledgment. What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.

A while later, when everyone is done playing we are out of the water and gazing at the view from the balcony. A couple of the girls are leaning on the rail, looking out over the lights below. Their perfect behinds a better view than what lies beyond.

"You missed a great show, fellas. That circus show was something else... like it was out of this world what they can do on those stages."
"Pretty amazing." Andy adds.
"Yeah, well... we didn't plan on missing it. We had no choice."
I go on to tell them the PG rated version of what happened. Since both Andy and Mike know who Justin is, I didn't tell him that his hams are now well done and that he would tip over if you stood him up. I just told them that there was a big fight out in the desert and that Antonelli came to our rescue.

"We had a little excitement here as well." Andy nudges Mike, "tell them what happened, Theo."
"Oh, some guy reached over while I was watching the show and took some of our caviar that Holly had ordered for us."
"Wow... that is exciting?" I don't get it.
"Well, it wasn't more than a minute later that the guy collapsed and they hauled him out of there."
"No shit."
"Yeah shit... he took one of the crackers off my plate and ate it. I had seasoned up those fish eggs just a little with just a little of this little vial of Asian spice I keep. I'm thinking that he might not have been expecting that. Hauled him out of there on a stretcher... stopped the show for a moment and everything."
"No shit."
"A hundred and fifty dollar an ounce Beluga Caviar and Theo isn't satisfied with the taste." Andy tisks.
"Now come on Andy, you know you liked it better after I spiced it up. You said so yourself."
"I didn't say it was bad... did I? I liked it. I don't think that other guy liked it."

And so the night progresses. The ladies stay over. Chris takes two of them and pushes the huge sectional sofas together and makes a play pen for himself. I take the one that has been with me all night long, and Lou takes Holly.
The boys are satisfied with the little grab and tickle they had with Miss Minnesota, and retire to their room in the suite. Now Miss Minnesota is all alone and we coax her into our room where she spends a little time on each mattress before the light of the new day shines through the draperies.

Today our adventure will continue. Chris has offered his father's private jet to take us where we want to go. We will get as close to Modoc as we can and get Mitch out of hot water. We will say goodbye to our new friends. Over breakfast we find out that the caviar thief had an allergic reaction to the stolen morsel. He was fine when he left the hospital but was hit buy a bus waiting for a cab. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
I make arrangements to pick up my motorcycle from the Bellagio when I return. Through the concierge I am put in contact with a local Ham radio club and give them a message and a frequency to send to the store in Nogales. I tell Jerry that we are alright, that Naomi is awaiting parts at Rocky Point on the Sea of Cortez. We should only be a couple of days in Modoc, then it's back to the jungle.