26

Rita walked up to the security booth that sat outside the ship’s safe. “Good morning.”

The security guard, tucked away in a glass booth, looked up from reading a gaming magazine. He took her in all at once, his tongue slowly traveling over his lips.

Rita smiled.

“How can I help you this morning” He closed the magazine and focused on Rita.

“I wanted to get into my safe deposit box.” She looked at his name tag. “Vincent.”

His cheeks flushed. “I’ll have to see your identification.”

“Of course.” She opened her purse, careful not to dislodge the camera, and subtly took a picture of the interior of the booth. She pulled out her wallet and took out her driver’s license. She handed it to Vincent.

He looked it over, then gave back at her. “This picture does you no justice,” he said, his gaze doing another two-step all over her.

“Aren’t you sweet.”

“I aim to please.” He punched in a couple of keys on the computer, stared at the screen for a couple of minutes, then pressed another button. The printer next to him began to whirr, spitting out a blank signature card.

He pushed it through the slot in the glass booth along with a pen. “If you can just sign here.” He pointed to the line where her signature went.

Rita pulled the card toward her. Then acting very girly, she asked. “What is this for”

“I need to verify your signature against what’s on file, and it also gives you permission to enter the vault.”

“Oh, very thorough.” She signed her name.

“Can’t be too careful.”

“Is this where you’re stationed all the time” She kept her hand on the card and placed her purse on top of the counter, propping it up so that the camera had a perfect view of the interior of his glass booth. She set it to video.

“Yep, this is my post. Eight hours a day.”

“Get much business” she asked, her tone light and airy.

He shrugged. “Some days are more busy than others. Generally it’s the high rollers who come back and forth, especially at night.”

“Just how safe is my money with so much traffic I was a bit reluctant to leave it here. I thought it would be safer in my room.”

He looked appalled that she would think such a thing.

“The last place you want to leave anything truly valuable is in your room.” He lowered his voice to a whisper. “I mean, let’s face it—housekeeping has access to your room twenty-four–seven. Who’s to say they won’t get a case of the sticky fingers If you know what I mean.”

Her eyes widened, feigning alarm. “You mean the staff would actually steal from the guests”

“It’s been known to happen.”

“And you say the safe is really the best place.”

“Absolutely. We have complete video surveillance, state-of-the-art locks, and a foolproof system that prohibits anyone who is unauthorized inside the vault. I watch the camera right here whenever anyone goes inside.”

“I see.” She pressed her palm to her chest, drawing his attention to her cleavage. “I feel much better.” She frowned for a moment. “I just had a thought. You can see me when I take out my money or jewelry That’s a bit tempting, don’t you think”

“No, I can only see you when you go in. Once inside, you take out your box and go to a private area.”

“Oh.” She smiled brightly. “Not that I don’t trust you, but everyone who sits here is not you.”

He blushed. “Well, unless something happens to me, this is my spot for the duration of the trip. We’re kind of short-handed.”

“That’s wonderful. Now I know I’m in good hands.” She made sure she got a good image of the card she signed before giving it back.

He took the card and ran it through the scanner. He turned the computer monitor around to face her. “See, here’s the signature from the card.” He keyed in some code. Rita made sure to capture his every move. “And here is your signature when you signed up for your box in the vault.”

The screen flashed, showing that it was a match.

He turned to her, smiling with pride. “See, foolproof.”

“All this technology goes right over my head.” She laughed. “As long as it works. Right”

“It does, I can assure you.” He processed a card key and pushed it to her through the opening in the Plexiglas, then pressed a button, and the door to the right of him buzzed open. “Come through this door and walk straight down the corridor. Your box number is on the card, and all of the boxes are numbered. Use it the same way you would an ATM card. Once you insert it in your box slot, then it will open. You can take your box to the room that will be on your right.”

Rita took the card and stepped through the door. She gave him a finger wave as she passed his glass booth.

Inside the corridor, she held her purse against her chest, letting the camera roll to include each of the boxes that she passed, passing hers intentionally until she’d covered them all, then retraced her steps.

“Oh, here it is,” she murmured for his benefit, knowing that she was being watched. She inserted the card, and the door to the box popped open. She took out the metal box and proceeded to the room on her right. She stepped inside and drew the curtain.

She let the camera pan the room, paying special attention to the corners, where surveillance cameras could be hidden, even though Vincent said otherwise. One couldn’t be too careful. She opened her box and checked her winnings, staying a reasonable amount of time, and then left. The door buzzed again when she approached. She walked out to the other side.

“Thank you so much, Vincent. Quite impressive. I feel totally confident that my valuables are safe.”

“As long as I’m on duty, you have nothing to worry about.”

She smiled brightly. “Have a good day. Maybe I’ll see you again—off duty.” Her brow arched in invitation, matched by a slow smile.

He licked his lips and adjusted his tie. “I get off at ten.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.” She waved again and walked away, being sure to give him a good look at her swaying hips.

“Worked like a charm,” Jinx said as he and Jake watched the scenario unfold on their television monitor.

“I’ll download all the video and photographs onto the computer and analyze them. Make sure all the bases are covered, and see what flaws are in their system.”

“Doesn’t seem like there are any,” Jinx said.

“Every system has a flaw. It’s only a matter of finding it and manipulating it.”

“Well if Suarez’s stuff isn’t in his room, we better find that flaw.”

Jake studied the screen. “Yeah,” he muttered. “We’d better.”