Cupid was dead.

A trickle of bright red blood still wound its way from the gunshot wound blackened by gunpowder just above his nose. His eyes held a startled expression, his face still held a half smile, as if he had been about to greet someone when he was shot.

Shell casings riddled the area around the body which was dressed in nothing but a white cloth diaper, a hint of white briefs peeking above the edge of the material. Two huge safety pins secured the diaper at the victim's hips. On his feet were a pair of white soft canvass slip-ons. Feathered wings lay smashed under the body. His bow and about six arrows were scattered around him, his quiver in his hand.

Detective Kaitlynn Cambridge stood over the body, careful to keep the tips of her well worn boots out of the bright red puddle that surrounded the victim. She wasn't worried about the blood, she just didn't want her foot prints to be scattered in the mix around them as she worked the scene. The coppery scent of blood in her nose, she crouched down and lifted one of the shell casings on the end of a ball point pen.

"9 mm. That's a big gun to bring into a party." She looked around at the guests that were still milling just outside the taped off area. "All these casings and only one hole in the victim. And no one saw a thing."

"They were all in the bathroom," a deep voice said and she saw another pair of shoes stop next to hers, shiny, black and expensive. She knew that voice and felt a thrill of pleasure shiver through her that she quickly shoved deep.

"Kai," she said in greeting as she stood to face the man her body craved. Detective Jacob Temple, the department's golden boy and the bane and reason for her existence, smiled down at her. "What are you doing here?"

Green eyes looked past her and at the ornate surroundings, the party decorations and glasses strewn around the room. Thick brown hair that was just a bit too long brushed the collar of his suit jacket and played over his wide forehead was scooped back by a long elegantly hand. "The brass thought you could use some extra help on this one, Krystal, nothing more. Don't get your knickers in a twist." He smiled, full lips quirking over impossibly white, impossibly perfect teeth.

"My knickers, twisted or not, are none of your concern, detective." She hissed the words, disgusted with herself for letting him get to her. "And I can handle this case."

"Valentine party at the Mayor's house and one of his guests turns up dead? The press will be all over this, Krystal. You need my help." He reached out a hand before he could stop himself, and pushed a lock of tawny blonde hair that had escaped the ponytail she habitually wore to work off her forehead.

She managed, barely, to keep from slapping his hand away, reminding herself that they were almost center stage right now in the public eye. The last thing she needed was a picture of that on the front page of the Times in the morning. She could see the head line now: Lover's Spat Over Cupid's Body.

"Fine," she growled. She pulled out her notebook, flipping it open to the page she'd been using for notes. "The victim's name is Reginald Holton, 32, single. Shot once, point blank range by a 9mm pistol. So far that's about all I know. I've got uniforms taking names and searching the property. It's a big party."

Kai's eyes slowly traversed the crime scene and then the assembled guests. All were in costume. He remember the invitation he had received a few weeks ago. A Valentine costume party, the theme, lover's throughout the centuries. He could see quite a few here, a crying Juliet being comforted by her hovering Romeo. Bonnie standing quietly next to Clyde, their Tommy guns laying on the floor in front of them. Next to them, a loincloth covered Tarzan, a stuffed monkey hanging from around his chest, had his arm around a leopard skin clad Jane. And that was only a few of the costumes he did recognize.

"Who was our victim with?"

"No one. I guess he's a friend of the Mayor's oldest daughter, Sarah. Maybe that's why the Cupid getup. He's here to spread love and joy."

Krystal stepped back when a man, dressed all in black, walked up. "Hey Doc. About time you guys showed. It can't be too busy down at the morgue tonight."

"Do you have any idea how many people committed suicide tonight?" Doc Weston, the county coroner, sat down his black bag and pulled out what looked to be a long meat thermometer. He slid it gently into Cupid's side and down into his liver. After reading the digital numbers in the front, he pulled it out and wiped it off with a sterile alcohol swab. "TOD is approximately 10:30. I'd say COD is pretty easy to establish."

"Well I don't think he was stabbed with an ice pick." Krystal stepped back in closer. "I need everything you can get and quick, Doc. This case is hot and the press is already outside. I especially want to see his blood tox screen."

"You'll get it as soon as I get it," Doc said, standing up. "Why aren't you off on some romantic dinner tonight, Krystal?"

"Doc, you know good homicide detectives don't have personal lives, or romantic dinners. Those are for normal people." She patted the man on the back. "Soon as you can, okay Doc?"

He waved his men in and the rest of the CSI crew as Krystal and Kai stepped back. "I want to interview Sarah tonight." She turned and looked at the tall man beside her. "I suppose you want in on that."

It was more a statement then a question, but he answered it anyway. "Yeah, I love watching you work, Krystal. You go straight for the jugular, take no prisoners. It's terrifying."

"Great," she rolled her eyes and started to walk away to where she could see the Mayor and his family standing, just outside the line of sight of the press. They stood huddled, the Mayor, a tall thin man dressed in a cutaway coat and breeches, a pristine white cravat tied around his throat, with his arm around his daughter, a petite blonde who's curves were threatening to burst free of the shimmery gown she was wearing. His other daughter, a mousy thing, wore a staid black dress with long sleeves and a tight collar, and stood behind the Mayor. His wife, a fabulous bustled ball gown sweeping the floor, stood off to the side, a disinterested party who seemed more taken with what one of the waiters was doing then the fact that someone was murdered in their home.

Kai stood and watched Krystal for a moment, wondering why the hell he couldn't get her out of his head. She was beautiful, yes, with long tawny hair that seemed to curl with a mind of it's own, defying rubber bands and bobby pins when it came to taming. Her eyes were strange, a hypnotic blending of greens and golds that seem to shift with the light and in the right one, just to the left of the pupil was a tiny brown spot, like a beauty mark. Her face was oval, high cheekbones, patrician nose, sweetly kissable lips. They all added up to top off a body that stirred a man no matter how many times he'd been stirred before.

And they'd had one incredible weekend, two unforgettable days and nights where he'd done his best to purge this need he had for her from his system.

It hadn't worked. He could still taste her on his tongue, feel her under his hands. He dreamed about her at night, waking with sweat beading on his forehead and her name on his lips. He'd catch a whiff of her scent, spicy and warm, and he couldn't help but look for her, watch her. He wanted her again, in his bed, under him, crying out his name in need and release.

He took a deep breath and lifted his hand amazed to see it shaking slightly. He had to get over this need for her. He could still remember dropping her off outside her apartment. She'd brushed a kiss across his lips, thanked him for the fun weekend and walked away without a second glance. As if it hadn't meant a thing to her. And she'd stayed away from him since, avoiding him as if he had the plague. Her attitude when forced to be with him was always antagonistic.

Krystal turned to look back at him and he quickly blanked his thoughts, hurrying to catch up with her. He could play the game just as well as she could.

~~~~~~~

"Sarah, how long did you know the victim?" Krystal asked, jumping right into the interview. They had borrowed the Mayor's study for the interview. Leather chairs and a long black leather couch grouped off to one side of the huge desk that otherwise dominated the room. Thousands of books graced the oak shelves. Expensive antique objects d'art were everywhere. The room reeked rich and made Krystal nervous.

Sarah, her mascara smeared, tears still flowing, her Tinkerbelle green sheathe glittering with dozens of sequins, sniffled and took the handkerchief Kai handed her. "Um, we met at Daddy's offices about six months ago. He works--worked there. Why would anyone want to kill my Reggie?"

"That's what we're trying to find out, Sarah. You two were close?"

"We were in love. We were going to be married." The tears started streaming again and Krystal flinched at the wail that came from the pretty blonde.

Kai picked up the glass of water he'd gotten her and handed it to her. "Then I'm sure Reggie would want you to do everything in your power to help us find his killer, don't you, Sarah?"

Sarah gulped audibly, wiping black mascara from under her eyes with the square of linen. She nodded as she swallowed again, visibly calming herself down.

"You and the vic...er...Reggie were engaged?"

"Oh, well, not officially yet. But it was only until he got the money thing straightened out. As soon as he did that, well, then he was going to get me a ring and make it official." Sarah folded the handkerchief into a tiny square, opened it and started again.

"Money thing?" Krystal asked, her eyes sharpening.

"He owed some guy some money, um, that guy that owns the Casino north of town. Bobby Barker, that's it, like in that old game show."

Robert Barker, big time hustler turned con artist turned Casino owner and all around scum bag. Krystal had had cause to invade Mr. Barker's privacy on more than one occasion and she by far wasn't his favorite person.

"Some money, Sarah? Or a lot of money?"

"Oh, um, Reggie didn't talk about those things with me." She sniffed and used the handkerchief again. "He always said I shouldn't worry my pretty head over things like that. That it would give me wrinkles." Huge tears glistened in her big blue eyes that she turned Kai's way batting eyelashes to let one tear slide down her pale cheek. "He's gone now, and I'm all alone."

"Uh, yeah, Sarah?" Krystal called the blonde's attention back to her. "Can you think of anyone who'd want to hurt Reggie? Anyone at all?"

"His ex-girlfriend. That . She didn't want to let go of my Reggie, said she'd get even with him for dumping her. Aurora Conway." She watched Krystal write the name in her notebook. "I bet she did it, she killed my Reggie."

Krystal almost groaned out loud as she saw the sobs starting to build in the blonde again. They weren't going to get much more out of her tonight. But she had one more question.

"Where were you when Reggie was shot, Sarah?"

"Reg..Reggie asked me to get him some water, said he wasn't feeling too well. I went to hunt down one of the servers. That's when I heard the shots."

"Okay, Sarah, and thank you. If we have any more questions, we'll be in touch."

"You'll get them, won't you, the person who killed my Reggie?" Sarah asked as she stood up to leave the room.

Kai stood with her and led her to the door. Krystal could hear him making all the right noises, saying all the right things. It was one of his best attributes, besides being a top detective, he always knew the right thing to say.

Unlike her. Damn. She didn't need the memories of that weekend in her head right now. That unforgettable, intensely passionate weekend. She hadn't known what to say to him when he dropped her off, had waited to hear him say he wanted to see her again, but he hadn't. He hadn't called, he hadn't come by her place. He hadn't done anything since that morning except be a thorn in her side.

But oh, for that one brief, beautiful weekend, she'd known passion and need and desire. She'd known what it felt like to have a man want you with everything in him, look at you with eyes that seemed to sear the skin and reach deep inside to send a girl's heart fluttering madly. She'd known the power of seeing a man bursting with need for her, of hearing him groan that need when she touched him, when she kissed him. The power of making him lose control with her hands, , bringing him pleasure so intense he'd turned almost wild, throwing her to the bed and taking her until her nails scoured his back.

Krystal felt the blush suffuse her face and cleared . This was work and she wasn't going to think of that weekend anymore. It was over and done, just as they were.

Kai turned, and for one second, he saw in her eyes the same thing he'd seen that weekend, the woman she kept hidden so well any other time. He took two steps forward and saw the blankness fall in front of her eyes like a shutter slamming shut.

"Well, I think we need to pay a call on a few people. That is if you plan on tagging along?" Her tone and face held no expression as she waited for an answer. He was a complication she couldn't afford but a part of her hoped that he'd say yes.

"Can't think of anything else I'd like to do at almost midnight on Valentine's Day but go and get people out of bed. After you?" He held open the door waiting until she left her card with the Mayor and checked in with the CSI's. She stopped and gave the officer in charge some instructions and then got in her car. Using her radio, she got addresses for both names that Sarah had given her.

Aurora Conway lived in the city and worked as a waitress down at a small dive close to the harbor. Bobby Barker had a swank joint outside of town where the rich folks with "new" money lived. But she had an idea she'd find him at his casino playing lord and master and keeping an eye on things.

"What's your gut say?" she asked Kai as she put the car in reverse to back out of the mess of cops vehicles and party vehicles still surrounding the huge home.

"Barker's going to be easy to find. His place don't close until it has to. I say we go with the ex girlfriend first."

"My thoughts exactly." She wheeled between two cars leaving about an inch of spare room on either side and made it through to the gates. Looking over at Kai, Krystal had to grin. He had his eyes closed and she swore she'd heard an amen coming from his side of the car just seconds ago. "You can look now," she said, putting it into drive.

Kai cautiously opened his eyes and then caught sight of the grin on her face. Her smile, the way it lit up her face, caught at his gut. "You know, that's a good look for you."

Krystal spared him a quick look before paying attention to her driving. "What's a good look?"

"Smiling. I don't think I've seen you do to much of it recently. Not since that..."

"I don't want to talk about that," Krystal jumped in, interrupting him. "It was a mistake. It shouldn't have happened but it did. And now it's over so we can just forget about it."

Kai saw the way her body tightened, the white knuckled grip she had on the steering wheel. Everything about her body language said the subject was off limits but he hadn't gotten to where he was by doing what he should do. "Why was it a mistake?"

"Jeez, Kai, can't you drop it. It's in the past, okay?" Krystal shrugged her shoulders to get rid of the stress that was starting to creep up into her neck.

"What if I don't want it in the past? Dammit, Krystal, I miss you, I miss the way we used to be. We were friends as well as co workers and we liked each other. That weekend was..." He stopped when she swerved off to the side of the road.

"Either you drop it or you can call a car to come and get you and I'll do this on my own." She didn't want to hear what he thought of their weekend, she didn't want to know if he regretted it. She didn't and couldn't regret it herself even though she now couldn't be in the same room with him without her hands going sweaty and her thigh muscles weakening as she remembered what he did to her.

"It's dropped," he said flatly, meeting her stare head on. For now, he thought, gazing into those bewitching eyes that narrowed with her glare.

They got to where Aurora Conway worked, a place that could only loosely be termed as a restaurant. It was a dive located off one of the main streets downtown. Just far enough off for visitors to not notice and strangers to be wary. They walked in the front door, noting right away how half of the very few patron there slunk down in their seats, making them as cops from the start.

"If you'd keep your face out of the media, maybe we wouldn't be so recognizable here," Krystal hissed at Kai as she made her way to a both.

"Hey, I can't help it if the press seems to like me."

"They just like your pretty boy looks and smooth smile," she tossed at him as she slid into a cracked leather booth seat. The table was slightly sticky and stained with rings from cups and glasses of old. She almost laughed as Kai gave the seat a disgusted look before slipping partway in and sitting gingerly.

Two menus were slapped down in front of them, two cups rattled in saucers and thumped on the table. "Coffee?"

Krystal looked up long legs encased in pantyhose under a pink polyester waitress uniform with a white frilly apron. Both were marked with unrecognizable stains. A name tag was pinned on the straining material across large s. The name tag read - Aurora. This was their girl.

Krystal took a second look when she got to the girl's face. She was gorgeous, deep red hair that flickered with fire from the light of the bug stained fixtures, misty gray eyes that held a hint of sadness and a whole barrel of streetwise, full lips painted red and a tiny indentation on her chin in an oval face with skin that was pale perfection. Krystal hated her on sight just out of principle.

"Is it drinkable?" Kai asked.

"About the only thing in this dive that's palatable." Aurora smiled at Kai as she filled his cup, keeping it at 100 watts as she slopped some coffee into Krystal's.

"Aurora Conway?" Krystal asked, moving the cup out of the small puddle of coffee on the table and getting out her badge. "We need to talk with you, take a break."

"Oh, !" Aurora banged the coffee pot down on the table hard enough it should have broken, making both Krystal and Kai flinch. "What'd that say I do this time?"

"Who would that be, Aurora?" Kai asked carefully, scooting further over in the booth.

Aurora plopped down in the empty space and snapped her gum angrily. "That Sarah, the Mayor's kid. She thinks I want that two timer back and keeps sending you guys out after me, trying to frame me for something. It ain't my fault he keeps sniffing back around here." She turned and looked at Kai, batting mile long eyelashes at him. "Can you blame him?"

"Are you talking about Reginald Holton, Aurora?" Krystal got out her notebook and pen.

"Yeah, Reggie. That no good scum. He weren't ever good enough for me. That jerk got himself in trouble and he wanted me to hook to get him out. I ain't never hooked and I won't start now."

"What kind of trouble was he in?"

Aurora looked at Krystal then back at Kai. She held up long hands tipped with lethal red painted nails. "What's this all about? What they saying I did?"

"Reggie Holton was shot tonight, Aurora. We need to know where you were at approximately 10 p.m."

"He's dead?" Those gray eyes glittered as she stared at Krystal.

"Yeah, he's dead."

"Oh," she said quietly, looked down at her lap, her fingers playing with a frayed hem on her apron. When she looked up, her eyes were hard. "I wish I could say I was sorry. I mean that's what you're supposed to say when someone dies. I'm sorry. But I'm not."

"We need to know where you were, Aurora," Kai urged quietly.

"Here." She ran one red tipped finger across the table, her eyes watching it. "I got on shift at 7 p.m. tonight. Had fifteen at around nine. My lunch breaks coming up. You can't think I had anything to do with it?"

"We have to ask," Krystal said.

Aurora looked over at Krystal and then back at Kai. "Reggie was a taker." Her hand closed into a tight fist and she dropped it into her lap. "He'd take until he took it all and then he'd move on to the next and the next. When I wouldn't hook for him, he dumped me. Said I didn't love him if I'd let some shark's guys rough him up over some money that I could get for him easily."

Kai patted the hand that she had fisted. "Who was the shark, Aurora?"

"Bobby Barker. Reggie liked to play poker, got himself enough cash somehow to get into one of the high stake games that they have up at the Rough Diamond, Bobby's casino." She smirked. "Reggie couldn't play poker worth a damn. Had too many of them...tells? Is that what they call it?"

Kai nodded.

"Anyway, he got wiped out and I guess Bobby realized what a er Reggie was and gave him some credit. Reggie lost it all." She shook her head, not in pity but in wonder at the stupidity of it all.

"And he couldn't pay it back." Krystal picked up her coffee and took a drink. "Do you know how much?"

"Fifty grand." Aurora smiled as Krystal almost choked. "Yeah, I did about the same thing when I found out. Couldn't believe that anyone could be such a schmuck to get that far into it."

"When was the last time you saw Reggie, Aurora?"

"Hmm, must've been about two weeks ago." She stood and took the rag off the side of her apron, wiping up the coffee spill and picking up the pot. "He came sneaking back here when the rich let him off his leash. Wanted a quickie for old time's sake. I told him what he could do with his old time and he left. I ain't seen him since."

Krystal took out her card and handed it to the beautiful redhead. "If you think of anything, anything at all, you can reach either myself or Detective Temple at that number."

The smile Aurora gave Kai was of the cat who ate the cream. "Detective Temple? I'll make sure I hold on to this card."

Krystal rolled her eyes behind the girl's back and watched as Kai preened in the attention, smiling and holding out his hand as he too rose. She took some money out of her coat pocket and threw it on the table, more than enough to cover the coffee and tip. And then ignoring the two, she started out of the diner.

Kai caught up before she got half way to the car. "Hey, wait up."

"I didn't want to interrupt your moment," she snarled at him, jealousy eating at her.

"Hey, just because you're not interested..." Before he could finish the sentence, she'd knocked him backwards and into an alley pushing him against the brick wall of a closed dry cleaner.

"We aren't talking about that," she growled at him, punching her finger into his chest. "Remember?"

"Fine," he growled right back, his tone matching hers. He knocked her finger away and grabbed her arms, twisting and pushing her against the wall he was just backed up against. "We won't talk about it." His lips came down, capturing hers before she could evade them.

For one instant, shock kept her still. And then all those feelings that she'd kept tamped down, passion, lust, pure heat, roared to the surface. didn't surrender under the rough attack of his, it provoked, biting and twisting, opening so that her tongue could duel with his.

He felt her response and it enflamed him even more. Kai grabbed her hard, dragging her against his body before slamming them both against the wall. He held her there, his hands groping under the leather jacket she wore, feeling the cool cotton of her shirt over the taut flesh beneath. His hands filled with the soft globes of her s, such a beautiful contrast to the rest of her. But it wasn't enough, he wanted to feel her hot skin in his hands.

Krystal felt his hands tugging at her shirt and in her stomach as it came untucked. Then his fingers were on her skin, moving over her ribs, the calloused tips rough against her sensitive flesh. Her bra was pushed up, the band at the bottom rubbing against s already hardened by his touch. She shivered, a little at the chill but more because of the need that pulsed through her, a need she hadn't felt since that weekend.

And when he finally captured the beauty of her s, she felt her knees give in pleasure, held up only by the pressure of his hips against her own. His hands were cold on her hot skin, as they molded and shaped her softness.

His lips tore from hers, his breathing harsh in the silence surrounding them. He stared down at her, taking in the picture of her eyes, green in passion, her lips swollen from his kisses. Her cheeks were flushed, her hair mussed and curling riotously around her face. Her head was thrown back, her back arched to push her sweet s further into his capturing hands.

He noticed the smell, not the intoxicating scent of her arousal he'd expected, but the harsh smell of rotting garbage that sat in the dumpster next to them. It penetrated the fog of need that had surrounded them. He couldn't do this here, tear at her clothing and rut with her like a dog in heat. He pulled her bra back down gently, stepping back as she looked at him in confusion.

The confusion didn't last, emotions swam across her face before finally the control that she used as a shield slammed down, shutting him out. He held out his hand, trying to stop her from moving after she'd pulled down her clothing.

"Wait, Krystal, it's not what you think. I want you. You don't know how much I want you," he said with a derisive laugh. "But we can't, not here..."

Krystal walked around his hand. Her posture stiff with a don't touch me attitude, she stalked to the car. How could she have let him do this to her again. He touched her and she melted. She'd have gone down in the muck in the alley and willingly allowed him, no she had to be honest at least with herself. She'd have taken him down into the filth in that alley and made love to him willingly.

What did that say about her? That he affected her so physically that she'd do anything to have his hands on her body. She cringed with shame inside. Outside, she was cool as she clicked off the locks on the car and opened her door. She stared at him across the roof of the car. "If you're going with me, get in the car."

There was an icy silence in the car on the drive to the casino, a silence that Kai wasn't sure how to break. She hadn't taken the time to fix her hair, hair mussed from his hands. It flowed around her face in tawny waves that brought back memories. Her hair seemed to have a life of its own, curling around her body, caressing his skin as she rode him or lay under him, her body straining against his own as they sought that same intense pleasure.

Now, her hair beckoned his hand and he found himself almost reaching out to her. The only thing stopping him was the knowledge that he'd probably pull back a stump in the mood she was in right now. And she'd be right. They had a case to finish. But when it was done, this time, he would find a way around that huge wall she'd built. Or he'd knock the damn thing down. There was something between them, something that he damn well wanted to explore, whether she was willing or not.

Krystal pulled into the casino parking lot, the neon lights coming from the building making her head lights superfluous. She pulled up close to the doors, ignoring the valet who came forward. Instead she turned to Kai. "This is my show."

He nodded. "No problem."

Her eyes narrowed for an instant as if she could bore her will into the man who seemed to be able to steal it at his own whim. Then she got out of the car. She flashed her badge at the valet, staring him down. "It stays right there," she said, indicating her car. "Or when I come out, I'll come looking for you."

The valet backed off, his hands out. He went back to his stand, mumbling under his breath words she couldn't hear. And for some reason, it made her feel better.

Opening the doors into the Rough Diamond Casino was like opening the doors into another world. A world full of lights and whistles, chimes and dings, shouts of triumph and moans of despair. There were people everywhere, some dressed to the nines, tuxes and floor length gowns that brushed against people dressed in jeans and tee shirts. People laughed and talked, cursed and cried.

Krystal walked in and ignored it all, seeking out the first person she could to get to what she wanted. She grabbed a man dressed in the Casino's uniform of black shirt and pants, a bright white nametag on his chest that read simply, Tony.

"Tony," she said softly, making him lean forward to be able to hear her. She flipped her badge out, keeping it low so that it remained between the two of them. "I need to speak to your boss, Bobby Barker. Get him for me and I won't have to flash this out for everyone to see."

Tony went to a phone against a wall and spoke into it briefly, looking nervously back at where Krystal waited, her eyes calm and steady as she looked around the casino. He was back quickly, standing at his post while a man in a black suit, his shirt and tie the same dapper shade of gray, hurried forward, his hand out.

"Detective, what can we here at the Rough Diamond do to help you?"

Krystal ignored the hand and stared up at the man. His suit fit well across broad shoulders, tapered down to slender hips. His hair was as black as the shirt, his eyes a bright and amazing blue.

"Where's your boss?"

"He's busy," he dropped his hand. "I am his personal assistant, James Dandridge. What can I do to help you, Detective?"

"I need to speak with your boss, Jimmy." Krystal watched as his eyes grew cold at the nickname. "Now, we can do this here, nice and civilized, or I can have him taken downtown and we can do it in a nice interrogation room. Either way, I will have a conversation with the man." Kai started to step forward and she turned hard eyes toward him, the hint of a warning clearly evident.

"I'm afraid, Detective, that..."

"It's okay, James." Bobby Barker said, stepping out of an elevator just behind the man. "I know Detective Cambridge, we're old friends. Ain't that right, Krystal?"

"Yeah, Bobby," Krystal said, stressing the familiarity. "See, Jimmy, it's okay." She smacked the man lightly on the cheek with her badge wallet, ignoring his scowl. "So, Bobby, where you want to do this, here or downtown?"

"My office?" he asked, maintaining the same light hearted repartee that they had started. He led the way to his private elevator and she watched as he hit the button. When the car came, she got in first, followed by Kai. Just as the doors closed, sirens went off, and a scream could be heard from the other side of the casino.

Bobby growled and grabbed a phone on the side of the car. He spoke into it rapidly and then hung up. "Damn slots are paying out left and right tonight. That's the sixth machine to go over."

"Life's rough all over, Bobby."

The doors opened into an office unlike anything she'd ever seen before. A glass wall that ran the entire length of the west side of the office overlooked the casino, giving them a bird's eye view of almost the entire establishment. The rest of the room was decorated befitting a man of his stature. Chrome and glass were predominant, and with black leather furniture and a desk the size of a lake, Krystal decided it was a room meant to impress.

Too bad the man wasn't. Short and with a figure that one could only describe as pear-like, Bobby Barker looked more like a skinnier Dom Deluise then a businessman. Thinning dark hair combed over a bald spot made him look older than Krystal knew he actually was. He was shrewd and he was cunning. But he was lazy and hated to get his hands dirty when someone else could so easily be paid to do it for him. Krystal knew if Bobby killed Reggie, the blood wasn't going to be on his hands but those of a flunky.

She sat in the chair she was waved to, declining his offer of refreshments. "This isn't a social call, Bobby. My partner and I are here about one Reginald Holton."

Bobby sat behind his desk, his fingers steepled and tapping against his chin, making the double chin under it wag slightly. "Reggie? What does that low life have to do with me?"

"We hear he owes you some money, Bobby. Quite a bit of money, actually." Krystal sat forward slightly, watching the man intently.

"Yeah. The idiot got himself involved in high stakes Texas Hold Em. He got cleaned out and wanted a line of credit. It was a business decision to grant him that credit. Can I help it if he can't play poker?" Bobby smiled easily. "He asked for some time to get the money together, with interest accrued of course. Again, a business decision to give him that time."

"Not a very smart one this time, Bobby." She watched the man as she spoke the words, watched his eyes for even a flicker that he knew. And saw nothing but confusion.

"What are you talking about, Krystal?"

"Reggie Holton was shot tonight," Kai said, speaking up for the first time.

"Shot? And you think I had something to do with it?"

"Did you?" Kai asked, intentionally baiting the man.

"Hell no. Is he dead?" Bobby looked from Krystal to Kai, his expression changing from irritation to annoyance to just plain pissed off.

"Yeah, Bobby, he's dead."

"And you think I did it? God, Krystal. You know me, all those times you run me in for something, was it ever violent? No, running drugs, shop lifting, maybe some B & E, but nothing heavy. I never carried. You know that or I couldn't run this place. Besides, him dead leaves me out a pile of money."

"Then play me straight here, Bobby. You knew Reggie, you knew who he was when he came in that night to play, didn't you?" Krystal pushed, she wanted to know exactly what Bobby knew. He'd had a reason for granting that credit and then for giving Bobby time to pay it back. She knew he did.

"Yeah, I remembered him from the streets. We didn't run together, but I'd seen him. He wanted in the game, asked me himself. He had the stake so I agreed."

"And when he lost all of it, the original stake? Why grant him credit, Bobby? That's not like you." Krystal watched the big man, trying to read him. His eyes were inscrutable, his hands still steepled but he no longer looked so cocky.

"He was a patron of my establishment. He asked for a line of credit. The run we did on him came back clear. It was a business decision." Bobby shrugged his shoulders. "A bad one, as it seems, but that's the breaks sometimes in business."

"Oh, come on, Bobby. Fifty thousand's not just a bad break. That's a huge sum of money," Kai said, his voice incredulous. "You can't tell me it didn't make you mad when he came whining to you, telling you he couldn't pay the money back."

"Fifty thousand may seem like a lot to a couple of cops, but that's won and lost here every night," Bobby shrugged again, a mean smile on his face.

"What do one of those quarter slot machines pay out? Five thousand? Ten? You were pissed off on the way up here because another paid out. And you're telling me that with Reggie, it was just bad business?" Krystal pushed, and she pushed hard. She didn't want to take him downtown. He'd lawyer up in a second if she tried it. This was there one shot to talk to him, to get information from him, without counsel ing up the works.

"Okay, so maybe he pissed me off some, but why'd I want to kill him. He said he was getting the money, plus the interest. He said he had something in the wind. Reggie, he always had some scheme. He told me I'd have it by next week."

"And you believed him, Bobby? Knowing Reggie from the streets, you knew what he was like and you actually believed him?"

"There are circumstances a person can get into where it isn't in their best interest to lie, if you know what I mean. He told me he was going to be sittin' pretty." Bobby put his hands down on his desk and leaned forward. "He knew the consequences of crossing me. I gave him til next week. I had no reason to kill him."

"He didn't tell you what it was?" Krystal sat back in her chair, seemingly at ease, but her eyes were trained on Bobby.

"If I know Reggie, it wasn't legal." Bobby stood, signaling an end to their conversation.

"One last question," Kai said, standing as well.

"Fine," Bobby said impatiently.

"You got a permit for that piece you slipped into your desk when you sat down?"

Krystal just smiled.

Bobby sank back down in his chair. "You know I can't carry a weapon in this state."

"Yeah, Bobby," Krystal said, "we do know that. So if I open that drawer, am I gonna find the piece my partner here mentioned?"

Bobby eyed them both, searching their faces. "Okay, listen. Reggie said he was going to be getting a pay off, something big. He said it was going to set him up for a long time, but he'd have to leave town for a while."

"From who?" Kai asked.

"He didn't say, only that this guy was a er. And that either way it went, he'd be rolling in the dough before long." Bobby looked up. "And that's all I know. Honest."

Krystal stared him down for a second and then rose. "Okay, Bobby. Ditch the piece. If I have to come back here and I see it, I'm running you in and closing you down. Got it?"

"Yeah, yeah, I got it. Now get out of my joint, you make the cliental nervous." He keyed the code into the elevator but didn't see them out. Instead he went back to his desk and sat, taking a big white handkerchief out of his pocket and wiping his face with it.

"ing cops," he muttered before picking up the phone to call down to make sure they left.

Krystal heard the wall phone ring as they walked away from the elevator and headed across the red and gold swirled carpet towards the wide front doors. To her left she could hear a croupier, his voice pitched high to be heard above the milling masses, "New shooter coming out, folks. Place your bets!"

To her right was the constant sound of coins clinking and rattling, slot machine handles being pulled. The chimes of the machines as they sang to the person using it was melodic and catchy. A roulette wheel spun, the ratcheting noise of the wheel spinning, the whirling of the ball as it made it's way around the wheel, the excited noises of the people who won and lost, all were lost on Krystal as she ran what they had learned through her head.

By the time they reached the car, she was smiling.

"Care to tell me what has you so happy all of a sudden?" Kai asked carefully.

"We need to check out Reggie's apartment. I'm betting we'll find out that Reggie was blackmailing someone." Krystal got in her car after giving the valet she'd bullied earlier a smile.

"Who?" Kai asked.

"We figure that out and I think we've got our murderer." She put the car in gear and they headed back across town towards the harbor. Reggie's apartment was in an older section of town, not dilapidated as yet, but slowly going to seed. Most of the people in Reggie's building were still up, after all, it was Valentine's Day.

Krystal got a hold of the super and they got into Reggie's apartment.

It was a pigsty. Half empty food containers littered the floor and coffee table, unopened mail spilled across the table and onto the floor. Ashtrays were full, the stale smell of cigarette smoke and rotten food pungent in the closed up rooms.

Krystal walked in, waving a hand in front of her face. "Geesh, Reggie, would it have killed you to clean up every once in a while." Her face twisted in a grimace, she grabbed a pair of latex gloves out of her pocket and pulled them on.

"I've seen you at a crime scene where the victim had his head bashed open and blood and brains were everywhere. You didn't even flinch. This bugs you?" Kai asked, amazed. He pulled on his own gloves and picked up the mail that was on the floor.

"Everybody's got a problem spot," she said, blowing out a long breath as she saw flies buzzing around on some of the uncovered food. "Places like this are mine."

"I can do this if you want," Kai offered.

"No. I'm fine." She swallowed audibly. "I'm going to check out the bedroom."

"Okay," Kai said, flipping through the stack of mail he'd picked up. He counted at least three unopened ph