To Catch a Princess (8 page)

Chapter 10

From the corner of his eye, Peter caught sight of the same man for what must have been the third or fourth time.

This time he was near one of the entrances to the ballroom where the jewels and dresses would be on exhibition after the fashion show.

It wasn’t unusual for a guest to be in this area. The hallway was used to move from one of the smaller gambling salons to the largest part of the casino. But he didn’t care for the fact that this same man had been seen in one too many areas where the jewels had to pass as they went from the ballroom to the backstage area for the amphitheater. In Peter’s book, that was one of the two times when the jewels would be the most vulnerable. The other was when the jewels were taken out of their display cases and placed on the models to wear in the fashion show.

Tony was in the midst of explaining the steps for the transfer, but Peter was more interested in the guest. “If you’ll excuse me for a moment.”

He quickly marched in the direction of the man, who accelerated his leisurely pace, possibly recognizing that he’d been made.

Peter engaged the transmitter he wore and called the security area. “I’ve got a guest moving in the direction of the Tsarina Alexandra Salon. Caucasian, about five ten with longish blond hair and a goatee. Dark brown suit. I need someone to follow him and get some eyes on where he’s going.”

“Roger that,” said the security specialist who’d answered. The guest ducked into the salon and Peter detected one of the guards from the hallway already moving in that direction.

Hastening his pace, Peter arrived at the door at the same time the guard did, but there was no immediate sign of the man. “I’ve lost him. Do you have eyes on him?” he asked over his com.

“He’s at the far end of the salon by the elevators,” came the reply in his earbud. “He just hopped on one.”

“Can you tell what floor he punched?” Peter asked even as he and the guard were wending their way through the tables and patrons on the floor, hurrying toward the stairs adjacent to the elevators.

“Working on it, Detective,” the specialist responded, and a second later he added, “Looks like he’s headed to four.”

“Keep us posted,” Peter said, and they entered the stairwell and raced up the stairs, hoping to beat the elevator to the fourth floor.

They were almost to four when the specialist indicated, “He’s exiting the elevator and turning right toward the gaming salons.”

Away from the stairs, Peter thought. Seconds later they burst through the door to encounter an empty elevator lobby. They charged down to a hallway that led to the upstairs gaming salons, but there was no sight of the man.

“Report,” he commanded and they stood there, wondering in which direction to move.

“We’ve lost him,” said the specialist.

“What? How could you lose him?” Peter said, moving toward one salon entrance to peer inside while the guard did the same at the far entrance before they met in the middle and went into the larger of the three gaming salons on the floor.

No sign of the man anywhere.

Peter cursed beneath his breath. “Keep looking for him.”

He examined the length of the hall and realized the position of the cameras there and in the elevator lobby allowed for one small blind spot.

Just enough space for someone to possibly change a disguise. But there was nothing left behind in the area to confirm his hypothesis. Regardless, he instructed, “Look for a male Caucasian, five ten or so, any hair color, beard or no beard, in a dark brown suit. Possibly in shirtsleeves.”

“Roger that,” the specialist said. Peter returned to the ballroom area where a very pissed off Tony waited with Tatiana.

“Care to explain?” the security chief asked, an icy chill in his tones.

“Saw something I didn’t like, but we lost the man on the fourth floor.”

Tatiana laid a hand on his suit jacket sleeve. “Lost him? How’s that possible?”

“A disguise,” he answered curtly, bringing a twist of annoyance to her lips. “Sorry, Your Highness. No need to bark at you.” Turning to Tony, he said, “I’d like to see the video recordings of the first three floors for all of this morning. I’d also like to see everything on the fourth floor from about half an hour ago through the next two hours.”

“That’s a great deal of video,” Tony said with some bite.

“Don’t worry. It’s not like I’m asking you to review it with me. But you should think about putting some extra guards in this area and in the hallway from here to the amphitheater to keep people moving along.”

Tony clearly didn’t like taking orders from him, but at a look of command from Tatiana, he gave in. “Of course, Detective. Anything else you require?”

“As a matter of fact. I’d like you to walk me through the service halls between the ballroom and amphitheater. I saw on the blueprints that there is a corridor connecting all the areas so they can be serviced without disturbing the patrons.”

“Of course,” Tony agreed, and turned to Tatiana. “Your Highness, I don’t believe there’s any need for you to accompany us.”

…

Tatiana understood he was trying to be considerate, but if Peter thought it important, she intended to be part of the walk-through. Even if only to keep the two men from coming to blows, because she could smell the testosterone pouring off their bodies as they jockeyed for control of this assignment. She knew she was about to totally piss off her security chief, but it was the right thing to do.

She smiled. “That’s very thoughtful of you, Tony. But actually, I’d like to also see the area and familiarize myself with it. Just in case.”

Tony’s lips firmed with anger and a muscle ticked along the side of his jaw, but he was politely chilly as he said, “As you wish, Princess Tatiana.”

…

By the time they returned to the suite, Tatiana’s feet ached from all the walking they had done and her back was in knots from the tension of the day.

She pulled off her jacket and arched her back, trying to work out the kinks.

“Backache?” Peter asked and looked at her, his gaze way too intense.

“A little,” she said and kicked off her heels, regretting the immediate lack of height as he walked over and made her feel much too tiny. She was nearly five foot five, hardly short, but he was well over six foot and broad.

Oh, so broad
.

“Turn around,” he said, and she did, if only to give herself a break from the look of him in another killer suit. A black pinstripe this time. The stripes only served to accentuate his lean body and his height, while the black…sweet Lord, the black had brought out all the amazing shades of deep gold and brilliant green in his changeling eyes.

With one hand resting lightly on her shoulder, he spread the other one across the small of her back and massaged the tightness there, dragging a gasp from her.

He paused. “Did I hurt you?”

“Not at all. It felt good,” she said, and he poked and prodded again, relieving the tension and prompting a satisfied moan from her.

This time he broke away from her abruptly. She swung her gaze around to his and his need simmered there, way too alive.

“Sorry, Tatiana. That probably wasn’t a good idea.”

Since she was suddenly having thoughts of those hands kneading other parts of her body, she suspected he was probably right. “It’s almost time for dinner, but I know Tony was going to send the video files for you to watch.”

Peter nodded. “They should be here soon, but don’t let me keep you from getting something to eat. I can just order in.”

“
We
can order in, that is if you can wait until I take a quick shower?”

“Not a problem. I’d like to freshen up, too.”

After agreeing to meet back in the living room for dinner, Tatiana hurried into her room, but lingered in the shower, relishing the way the hot pulsing jets helped to relieve the tension and the lingering ache in her back from being on her feet all day. Not that it felt anywhere near as good as Peter’s hands on her.

Peter
. The thought of him had her quickly soaping up and finishing her shower.

He’d be waiting for her, and dinner, and she hated to keep him hanging for too long.

As she expected, he was already in the living room and sitting on the couch that faced a large screen TV. He was reviewing one of the video feeds when she came in and he popped off the sofa at her entrance.

“No need to be so formal, Peter.”

“
Solnyshko moyo
, a gentleman always stands for a lady,” he teased with a boyish gleam in his eyes.

She snatched the room service menu from the sofa table, slapped the menu against his chest, and plopped down on the sofa next to where he had been seated. “What are you in the mood for tonight?”

…

You
, Peter wanted to say, but bit his tongue. Her safety and the safety of the jewels had to take priority over his need for her, which meant that he had to review those videos to see if his concern about the man had been right earlier that day. Sitting back down, he opened the menu on the coffee table in front of them and they went back and forth on several things before finally ordering.

As they waited, he started the video again, searching for any sign of the man who had captured his attention. He fast-forwarded every now and then, prompting Tatiana to ask, “What or who are we looking for?”

“Dark brown suit. Blond hair and goatee. My general build, but shorter,” he said, and she leaned forward, watching the video intently. The action brought her thigh to rest against his, distracting him slightly.

She had changed out of the expensive businesslike suit into a T-shirt from OG Surf and Skate, a small Jersey Shore shop she had visited months earlier for a charity event, and faded well-worn jeans with a tear in the thigh which showed off the creamy skin beneath. He gulped at the thought of its silkiness, and drew in a deep breath to control the stirring of his erection.

She smelled like heaven. Some mix of roses and who-knew-what that perfumed the air around them as they sat there watching the video.

The meal finally arrived, providing a break. The waiter quickly set their dinner on the coffee table as they requested, then scurried out, leaving them alone once more. Thankfully, the tantalizing smell of the simple burgers and fries chased away her more enticing aroma.

He was halfway through his burger when he paused the video, got up, and moved closer to examine the image. “That’s him,” he said, pointing to the man on the screen. “Does he look familiar to you?”

Tatiana shook her head and laid down her burger. “Not at all.”

Peter returned to the sofa and the computer he had connected to the television to view the videos. With a few quick keystrokes, he did a screen shot of the man’s image and saved it to the disk.

They continued watching, capturing the suspect’s image a few more times before they were done viewing the first set of videos. By then they had finished their meals and Tatiana was slurping the last of her chocolate shake through a straw. Peter grinned at the noisiness of it, so normal in comparison to what they were doing, which was anything but routine.

“Are you sure you still have room for dessert?” he asked. He started the next set of videos.

“Probably not, but I’m sure you’ll manage to make room for mine as well as yours,” she said with a curve of her perfect lips.

“You’re probably right,” he acknowledged. They cleared away the plates and Tatiana brought over the desserts from the serving tray.

“Dig in,” she said with a wave of her hand, but he shook his head.

“I’d like to finish this video first and then map out where we’ve spotted this guy on the blueprints. Besides, even my bottomless pit needs a breather every now and then.”

She chuckled and sat back down next to him to finish the last video feed from the fourth floor. The man they had identified was clearly visible coming out of the elevator and turning toward the gaming salons, but as Peter had determined during his physical inspection, there was a gap in the camera views between that area and the hallway. The suspect seemed to disappear into thin air, only now they had the benefit of time to see that instead of a blond-haired, goateed man in a dark brown suit, it was a fresh-faced dark-haired man in shirtsleeves and brown pants moving down the hall into the largest gaming salon.

“He was wearing a disguise,” Tatiana said.

“He was, but who knows if this is his real face,” Peter advised. “He could still have on a prosthetic nose, chin, and ears. Possibly even contacts or make-up to change his skin and eye color. The only thing we can be sure of is his general build and height. Even then, he could be wearing heels or lifts to give him an extra inch or so of height.”

“So we’re back to square one,” she said, her voice filled with disappointment as Peter efficiently made another series of screen captures.

“Not at all. At least now we know there is definitely something going on. It may or may not be related to your charity event. But forewarned is forearmed.” He quickly attached the various images in an e-mail to Tony and asked him to distribute the information to the staff, as well as to Interpol to see what they might be able to add to the mix.

“Why do I feel not so forearmed?” She tucked her legs beneath her to sit cross-legged and faced him on the couch.

She looked so upset, he couldn’t control himself. He cradled her cheek and said, “We will get through this, Tatiana.
Nothing
is going to happen.”

“Why do I feel as if something will? Something major,” she said, rubbing her hands up and down her bare arms.

He got the sense this was about more than just the man in the video. He had an idea of what it could be. “You’re worried something serious will happen? Something like what happened to you three years ago?”

She had been so incredibly strong so far, so determined and businesslike, that the sight of the tears gathering in her eyes threw him. He reached out and in one smooth move hauled her off the sofa and into his lap. Wrapping his arms around her, he cradled her close and held her as the first shiver racked her body.