Double Down by Vicky De Leo

raced up the stairs.
    Now that the imminent threat was gone, my brain kicked in and I felt slightly dizzy. I held on to the banister, and slowly descended the stairs. Walking down the hallway to the cafeteria, I thought, “Now what do I do? Arnie Waters just threatened me.” I couldn’t even write him up for it because I couldn’t prove it. It would be my word against his. Was he really a murderer, or just a bully who liked threatening people? If he did kill Monica, why? Had she threatened to talk to his boss about the harassment claim?
    I got a Coke and sat down at a table. The lunch crowd was gone. Four or five dealers on a break sat at one of the tables playing hearts. That always amazed me. You’d think they wouldn’t even want to touch a deck of cards after dealing for several hours. I knew I should get something to eat, but my stomach was still churning. I sipped on my drink and stared off into space, trying to make some sense of what just happened.
    Alan sat down next to me. I hadn’t even seen him walk in. He put his hand on mine and said, “Hi, sexy, what’s got you so deep in thought?”
    I laughed. “You must have a really warped definition of sexy.” I couldn’t tell him about Arnie’s threat without revealing the sexual harassment complaint, and I’d promised not to talk about it until I could meet with Doris, so I told him about the break-in at my house last night.
    “ I hope you didn’t stay there.” His hand still covered mine.
    It felt warm and comforting, but after learning about Monica’s offers, I was uncomfortable with any show of affection in such a public place. I didn’t need any rumors circulating about me right now. I tried to gently withdraw my hand, but he held on. “No, I stayed with Charlene and Evan.”
    “ You think they were looking for something?” His thumb rubbed circles on the back of my hand.
    “ That’s what it looked like, and that’s what Delgado believed.”
    “ What was he doing there?” He released my hand.
    I put both of them in my lap. “He came with the police. I guess he was at the station when the call came in and thought it might have something to do with the investigation.” I sounded defensive even to me.
    He grunted his disbelief. “Probably just used it as an excuse to come see you.”
    “ What . . . no, you couldn’t be farther from the truth. Trust me. Delgado has absolutely no interest in me.” I said it with confidence.
    “ Val, you’re a smart lady, but when it comes to recognizing someone coming on to you, you’re a little dense. So forgive me if I don’t trust your instincts on this one.” He looked into my eyes.
    Okay, I got it. He was interested. I looked down. Even if I wanted to, I couldn’t change the fact that it was still against the rules. Because of that, I didn’t want to explore my feelings for him any further. I loved my job, not just what I did, but working here for Tony. I wasn’t ready to jeopardize that for a maybe. I got up to leave. “I have to get back to work.”
    He stood too. “Hey, I’m sorry. Let me walk you back. I have some things I’d like to discuss with you.”
    I wasn’t anxious to have another run in with Arnie, so I didn’t object. Once we were out of the cafeteria, we walked outside to escape the noise. The heat radiating off the sidewalk felt good compared to the frigid air inside. We stayed in the shadow of the building.
    “ Yesterday afternoon, one of my officers was seen going into an empty guest room and staying awhile. I’m pulling the security tapes of the hallway, and the room TV information. I suspect he was watching an adult channel.”
    I laughed. “It wouldn’t be the first time.” We’d just terminated two surveillance officers we’d caught watching porn videos instead of monitoring the casino floor.
    Then he asked, “What’s this about Monica and Rose’s husband?”
    While we walked back to my office, I told him the whole story about Rose catching them in her bed