Zo?’s heart fluttered when Las Vegas appeared small on the horizon. It glowed in the night, thanks to a million lights and miles and miles of neon. The sight of the city at the end of the freeway announced her task was just beginning. Until now, she had just been driving, a passive pursuit, just travel. Her destination was now within arm’s length. It signaled the true beginning of this trip. The prospect of what she’d discover both exhilarated and frightened her. Jarocki was on speed dial, in case events overwhelmed her.
At least she’d gotten farther than she had last year. Once she’d left San Francisco city limits, her bravado had waned, but the real test had come when she’d reached Livermore. The invincibility she’d shown in Jarocki’s office had seemed to desert her as she’d reached the stretch of road she hadn’t managed to broach last time—her palms had been damp and butterflies had swarmed in her stomach. She’d breathed deeply, pushed down on the accelerator, and blew past the spot, trying not to think about it. As soon as she’d made it past that point, her confidence had risen. Breaking that barrier told her she wasn’t the same person she’d been last year. She was better. Stronger. With purpose. That monster who’d driven her life, hopes, and dreams onto the rocks no longer controlled her life. She couldn’t completely move on until he was in jail, but this was the tipping point, the moment where she started taking back her life.
“Your days are numbered, Tally Man,” she murmured to herself.
When she reached the outskirts of Las Vegas, she eyed the clock on the rental car’s dashboard. It was close to 11:00 p.m. The drive had taken her close to ten hours. She’d learned all over again how dull six hundred miles of road was. At least before, she and Holli had had each other to talk to when they’d done it. This time, she was alone with her thoughts. Memories of that previous trip seeped into her mind—the conversations, the gambling, the nightclubs, and the drinking. She teared up when she hit the black spot where the memories dissolved and the nightmare took over. The wounds were still raw. If she let them bleed before she was ready to face them, she’d never reach Vegas. She put the car on cruise control and did the same with her thoughts. She focused on the road and the changing scenery, listened to the radio and sung along with the songs. She forced herself to live in the moment and not the past. And it worked. She was here—the halfway point.
She navigated her way onto the Strip, and pulled into the parking garage for Caesar’s Palace, where they’d stayed before. If she was replicating her movements, it meant overnighting at the same hotel.
“We have you for just the one night,” the desk clerk said.
Mall management had given her the week off after taking down Brad Ellis’s iPhone thief, but a single night was all she needed for this excursion.
“That’s barely enough time to have fun here in beautiful Lost Wages,” he said with a smile and a wink.
Zo? bit back the urge to tell him she wasn’t here for fun. That would have been an impulsive response, and Jarocki wouldn’t have liked that. “I’m just passing through on my way home.”
The clerk smiled. “Then you’ve picked a good pit stop. One night is plenty of time to get into trouble.”
“I don’t want trouble.”
The clerk’s gaze lingered on the bruising on her face. Zo? watched potential story lines play across his expression. Abused wife on the run, maybe? Hooker escaping her pimp? She almost smiled at the thought. His jovial demeanor collapsed, and he turned businesslike. He handed her two card keys and told her the room number before wishing her a good stay.
Her room was small, and cramped by the presence of two beds. It was the same configuration as last time. She looked out the window at the view, which consisted of the parking structure with the Palms and Rio in the distance. Out there, thousands of people were having fun. The thought depressed her.
“Shake it off, Zo?.”
She felt bad for throwing a barb at the desk clerk. Maybe she should have fun. She deserved to celebrate. Jarocki liked to talk of breakthroughs and how she wouldn’t necessarily recognize them until they struck. This was striking time. She was claiming her life back.