He pointed toward his office, “It’s in there. Close the door if you want.” He paused and said, “How’s Hondo? I figure you being here means he’s better.”
“Yeah, better but weak. He developed pneumonia. Almost didn’t make it through the night.”
Archie shook his head, “You need anything...” I nodded. He said, “Tell Hondo to get well, the power lifters want another shot at him on the bench press.” He patted me on the shoulder with affection, and it clicked my teeth together. Tough love.
I called the Caspian Diamond and said in my best redneck voice, “That little red-headed Mexican dancer y’all got gonna be dancing’ tonight?”
The voice said, “I’m sorry, Blanca doesn’t perform here anymore.”
“Oh yeah? What other club’d she go to?”
“I wouldn’t know that.”
“What was her last name anyway, case I see it somewhere at one a those other men’s clubs.”
“We don’t give out that information.”
“Okey-doke, then. Thankee.” I hung up. I had her first name, now to get the rest.
I knew the green Lexus Blanca drove and could go to Vick and get him to eventually run it down through DMV, but then there would be a ton of questions and I wasn’t sure I wanted to spill everything right then. I decided to unleash my secret weapon.
**
I walked into the empty lobby of the Camino Real and saw Loomis alone behind the reception desk. He recognized me and was looking somewhere between me and the wall when he winked in acknowledgment.
“Hey, Loomis. How’s it going?”
“Pretty good. Had some Venusians check in this morning, in case you want some pictures.”
“Venusians, huh?”
“Oh sure, I recognized ‘em right off. They have all that pale blond hair and those icy blue eyes. It’s a sure give-away, just like your paper showed in last October’s issue. Did you write that one?”
“No, it was another reporter.” I leaned my forearms on the counter, “Where are these Venusians saying they’re from?”
Loomis snorted, “Some made-up place, here let me look.” He punched some keys on the computer and said, “Here it is. Reykjavik. Like there’s a place named that.”
“Way to stay on your toes, Loomis.” I leaned closer, “Say, you get a lunch break around here?”
“Sure. It starts in about a half hour.”
“Can you go out to eat?”
“Yeah, but I brought a sandwich today.”
“Thing is,” I said in a low voice, “I need a little help on a case.”
“I thought that was just your cover.”
“It is, but to make it look legitimate we have to work a real case every once in a while.”
“Oh, sure. I knew that.”
“What I need is someone smart like you to go into a place and ask a few questions. I can’t go because they know me inside. You think you could help?”
“Well...”
“Loomis, you’d have to go to a gentlemen’s club and look at nude dancers and ask a few questions. I’ll give you money to spend and give you a hundred dollars to put in your pocket. What do you say?”