Agent of Influence: A Thriller by Russell Hamilton

that he already had withdrawn two hundred dollars on four different occasions. It was obvious he was either a poor gambler or in the middle of a string of horrendous luck. Considering he just arrived in Vegas the night before, Solomon guessed the former. He kept his distance as he saw the man’s lady friend stop and disappear into the restroom.
    Taking advantage of the opportunity, he placed a call to his men and gave quick instructions for them to find out which room Mr. Stevens was occupying. Mr. Steven’s significant other re-appeared from the bathroom just as Solomon pushed the “end” button on his phone. The couple continued their trek through the casino. They caught an escalator up to a second level gaming area where numerous video games kept children busy.
    The second floor also housed the entrance to the roller coaster. Solomon politely excused himself as he gently pushed his way through the crowded escalator. The couple stepped off at the second floor. Now only a few feet behind them, he began to visualize possible scenarios. Solomon’s years in the intelligence business could be noticed by no one. He looked like any other Las Vegas tourist, his eyes giving off the outward appearance of being awestruck by the gaudiness around him, hiding the analytical mind that was whirling away. The couple stopped again, and he meandered over to the railing, pretending to watch the action in the casino below. They were still fighting. He strained to hear them over the sounds of the casino.
                  “I can’t believe you lost your wallet. First you get drunk and gamble away a thousand dollars and now you lose your wallet with the hotel key and all your credit cards!” She glared at him while jamming her ATM card into the machine to withdraw some money.
    “I swear it had to have been stolen.” The husband’s face showed a mixture of exasperation and embarrassment.
                  “Yeah, honey. Whatever. Well, let’s forget about it for now. I have my debit card and one credit card, so that should be enough to get us through the next couple of days. Come on. We’re going to do something I want to for a change.”
    “Ma ry, I don’t think getting on that roller coaster is the best thing I can do for myself right now. I haven’t gotten all of those drinks from last night out of my system.”
                  “Stop whining. It’s your own fault you can’t control your drinking. Besides, this will be fun and it will be the first time you get something in return for your money.” The comment was accompanied by a smile. “You won’t even notice the headache as soon as we head down that first big hill.” She took him by the hand as if he were an uncooperative child, dragging him towards the ticket line.
    Solomon dialed the appropriate number on his cellular phone while continuing to follow them. His idea to get someone from his team working on the roller coaster full time looked like it was going to pay off.  He thought at the time he was probably being overly cautious, and would never have to use it for a job. His intuition was paying off now, and he was pleased that his paranoid tendencies had not been swallowed by the easy living of the past few years.  The cozy American lifestyle could quickly eat away at your discipline if you were not careful.              
                  The line rang once before being answered with a curt, “Here, sir.”
    “Augustine, I need to u se the coaster for a job. I’ll be sitting in the seat behind the subject to make sure everything goes smoothly. Follow our normal procedures.” Augustine was one of the few men Solomon trusted to do a job properly. The young man was lured away from another casino owner, and was not part of Aman’s little party of Middle Eastern malcontents. Solomon made one more quick call to one of the women in the organization before slipping the phone back into his pocket. He