Besides, all this proved was that Dempsey had stocked the warehouse well before I arrived in New Orleans. When did he stock it? And what did he stock it with? I shook my head as I silently berated myself, all these questions did me little good. Right now all that mattered was that the warehouse was already stocked with whatever it needed. I was sure that Dempsey probably hadn’t missed a single detail. This was not his first go around.
Of course I was never good at stopping myself from asking questions, but I kept beating them down every time one started form. Unfortunately there was only one way that I would be able to answer any of them. I looked down at my entrance fee, wrapped in its ungodly expensive briefcase. Hopefully I would never again have to pay more for a piece of luggage than I did for a suit. How did these people manage to hold on to any of their money? There was no reason for this kind of expense. At the same time I knew that I needed to get all of the little details right. Anybody can own a nice suit that’s not what makes the elite the elite. No what makes them distinct are all of their accessories. Those extra little pieces are what truly differentiate the social classes, which is why I had a ridiculously expensive briefcase. I hadn’t dared to make my case with a transformation as I just didn’t have the familiarity to pull it off, at least not with that piece.
Just thinking about all the money I had sunk into the thing was starting to depress me so I turned my attention back to the glass circle in my hand. Aside from the activity I had seen while eating breakfast, I had since witnessed about forty people enter the warehouse. And since none of them looked like they were employed by a kingpin, I knew the guests had started to arrive. True I had no way of identifying them or learning much of anything but I was still interested in watching the proceedings. Not that there was much to it. Each one handed their fee to a man just to the right of the door while they dealt with the man on the left. While they spoke with him they were searched, and from what I could tell, it was a very thorough search. After that, they were ushered into the warehouse with all due haste.
I knew I was stalling, there was no longer a reason to wait. None of what I could see was going to help me. I could sit here watching as all of the ninety-nine other guests entered or I could get out of the car and walk over there now. I was going to have to go into that warehouse at some point, so why put it off any longer? With that thought I reached over to the glove compartment and stashed the piece of glass inside it. With my surveillance equipment stowed I grabbed my entrance fee and got out of the car. As I walked the short distance to the game I reviewed the persona I had crafted, not that there was much to it, but I needed to get into character.
The best lies are always rooted in a seed of truth. That way they are anchored and much easier to keep straight. When your life depended on manipulating the truth to suit your needs, one little slip could prove fatal, especially when you were doing it to someone in Dempsey’s weight class, not that I would ever admit that to Matt. With that in mind I planned on keeping things ridiculously simple. I was going to be myself, with a few additional character traits. Granted I would normally call them character flaws but with the crowd I was joining, they would not be seen that way. After a few minutes the warehouse came into view and I clearly saw thugs at the door who were acting as doormen. They had clearly been chosen for their muscles and the intimidation factor.
I had been willing to give them the benefit of the doubt since, from the video stream, I had been able to tell that they were wearing suits. But even though each of them was dressed in a very high-quality tuxedo, they were obviously uncomfortable in the garb. They also lacked the added little extras they would have needed if they had wanted to blend in. As I got closer I realized just why they looked uncomfortable in their rented tuxedoes, every one of them would be capable—and probably willing—to rip my arms out of their sockets if I gave them a reason. Swallowing the lump, I decided I would just have to make sure that they never got a reason. Squaring my shoulders, I closed the distance between us and proffered my briefcase to the gentleman. . . . Should I call thugs like these gentlemen? Silently, the gentle-thug on my right relieved me of the outstretched case before quickly disappearing with it.
No sooner was my money gone than the gentle-thug on my left spoke with a voice that had an eerie blend of gentleness and firmness. “Sir, if you would spread your arms and legs… please?”
Shifting my gaze from the doorway to the man who spoke, I noticed the little hitch before he added the “please,” which made the man’s tone all the more unsettling. It was as if that little piece of courtesy was entirely foreign to him. As I looked, I started to examine him and instantly saw the headset resting on his left ear. I suppressed a grin as I realized that the little piece of plastic could have been the reason for the little hitch. The actual reason for the hitch didn’t matter all that much, since I wasn’t going to have to play against him. In the end, all that mattered were the players, not the thugs watching over us.
Now normally I would try—I mean I would really try—not to push other people’s buttons. I know just how bad things can get when you annoy an already short-tempered individual, and I could tell this guy was always a trifle testy. With that being said, on occasion I have been known to disregard my own sage advice and say something to really make someone upset. And that is what I fully intended to do right now to the gentle-thug on the left. “More than happy to oblige, my good man.” While the words may have been innocuous the tone I used was sure to get under the man’s skin.