Deja Vu Read Free Page B

or less … and when I wasn’t overly enthusiastic, he said perhaps I should pick the place. He’s got that thick Scottish brogue, and it’s hard to follow him sometimes.”
    “Where did he suggest you go?” Kathryn asked.
    “Chick-fil-A. They have some kind of chicken he likes.” Annie’s voice was so defensive sounding, the girls went off into peals of laughter.
    Down below in the garden where the men were smoking their cigars, they stopped in mid-puff.
    “I feel sorry for old Fergus,” Jack said.
    “Maybe we should do a little discreet tailing the night of the date,” Bert suggested. “You know, just to keep up on what’s going on. We all know the girls don’t share everything, much as we lie to ourselves and say they do. It’s every man for himself when it comes to gathering information where they’re concerned.”
    “Who are you kidding?” Elias said. “Fergus Duffy travels with a security team just like our Secret Service, and you won’t get anywhere near him. Forget it! Then again, Annie might take it upon herself to shoot your dick off for interfering. I’m just saying,” Elias twinkled.
    “Point taken,” Bert said.
    “You think Annie will be packing some heat Tuesday night?” Ted asked with a straight face. “She’s been like a wet hornet since … you know … Fish, and how that all went down.”
    Harry barked a sound that was supposed to be a laugh. “Who do you think would have the guts to frisk Annie? A pat down? And get away with it?”
    Jack blew a perfect smoke ring. “As always, Mr. Wong, you are on the money.”
    Back up on the deck, the fashion discussion was winding down, with Annie saying she’d accept any and all offers even if she ended up looking like a rummage sale gone wild.
    “Anyone want more coffee?” Kathryn asked, getting up from the table.
    “Absolutely I would like more coffee; and bring that bottle of brandy in the cabinet. We need a little excitement here,” Annie replied.
    “I’ll help,” Yoko said, getting up to follow Kathryn into the kitchen.
    The minute the kitchen door closed, Annie leaned forward. “Listen up, girls. I have this fabulous idea. Kathryn’s upcoming fortieth birthday. Five weeks from today. I want to throw her a surprise birthday party at Babylon. I’ll close the joint, and we can have ourselves a real party. What do you think? Don’t let on; it has to be a surprise. I can have her haul our slots in for repair and bring a new batch. She’ll never be the wiser. Is this a plan or what?”
    “That’s right up there with going out to dinner with the head of Scotland Yard to Chick-fil-A,” Nikki observed, laughing. “Count me and Jack in.”
    “I’m going to invite everyone I can think of,” Annie said. “There’s Rena Gold out in the desert with Paula Woodley. Maggie, I’m sure you’d like to invite your new best friend Emma Doty and her friends and that person with the strange name, Abner Tookus. Then there’re Pearl and a few of her closest… allies. Lizzie and Cosmo, of course. We’ll make a real party of it. Maybe Joseph would like to bring his family. While the hotel has excellent security, I’m also thinking I’d like Mr. Snowden helping us out. As an added precaution.”
    “You’re willing to close the casino on a weekend?” Isabelle asked in awe. “You’ll lose a fortune, Annie.”
    “No, dear, I will be deducting it from Fish’s side of the ledger. I’m thinking I’ll even empty out the hotel. We’ll need the rooms. Not all of them, but why not? That way, we’ll have total privacy.”
    “I think it’s a wonderful idea, Annie. You can count on Charles and me. It will do him good to get away from here for a few days.”
    “The best part will be the whole strip wondering what I’m up to. We need a theme, though.”
    Alexis cleared her throat, a signal that Kathryn and Yoko were on the way with the coffee and brandy.
    The conversation quickly switched to other matters as Myra poured