Dugan's Luck

  Part of the rules in this type of game is to exercise discretion, especially in unfamiliar territory. Consequently, Joey Hogan bypassed the valet and entered the parking garage. On the third level, they found an empty spot near the door to the elevator. Everyone exited the SUV. Within seconds the relative serenity of the garage, that had up until that point only been broken by the hum of row after row of fluorescent lighting, was transformed by the arrival of two large burly brothers in loud pin-striped suits and white ties, six young woman adorned in evening apparel offering the classic diminutive statement of their profession, and one more sensibly dressed orchestrator of tonight's festivities who held the duffel bag in one hand and the thus far empty briefcase in the other.

  A moment after pressing the button, causing the arrow indicating up to glow, the elevator door opened. An couple in their late sixties stood in the middle of the car. At the sight of the nine persons wishing to join them, the two stiffened as they cautiously moved to the back corner, eyes wide and filled with apprehension. The doors closed and the elevator began its ascent. The sensation of speed swiftly building initiated another wave of giddy response from the girls. Then the car just as quickly slowed to a stop and the doors opened once again. The party of nine exited the elevator leaving the gray haired couple in the back. As the doors closed, the gentleman wore a devilish grin and a set of attentive eyes that were glued along the line of sight of six receding and skimpily adorned rear ends. His wife wore an expression which only ratified her opinion, not only of the departing circus, but of the old fool still beside her.

  The twelfth floor held just two suites, one on either side of the hallway. At the moment, one side reflected the tranquil, eloquent serenity associated with the Ritz for those who afforded such luxurious accommodations. From the other, a rhythmic rumbling of bass and percussion could be faintly heard emanating from behind the wall. The group approached the near door of the suite in mass like a school of fish following each move of its leader.

  Benny Dugan knocked on the door. Voices bellowed from within blending with the music that was now almost discernible. But no one answered the door. Another knock, this time considerably more pronounced, resulted in a nearby voice calling for Dexter.

  When the door finally opened, it was as if a portal to a parallel universe suddenly opened up in the middle of the void of space. Where in one moment there was a comparable vacuum, life burst through the hallway atmosphere in a myriad of motion, light and sound. Front and center was Dexter Thornton, Benny's co-pilot in tonight's grand plan. He held a beer in one hand. A quick survey of the expected arrivals conjured an expression of shear exuberance. He eyed the bag that Benny carried. And the six seductively adorned ladies. The two brothers who stood behind them at first offered no such smile as they glared into the room. Their assessment however seemed to find the young drunken men on the other side of the door acceptably subdued, their level of alert placed at a comfortable yellow. The two broke with a smile as Dexter warmly waved them in.

  “Welcome, ladies and gentlemen” Dexter shouted over the music. “The bar is over there” he added pointing to the back wall of the main room that divided the bulk of the party from those in the kitchenette. The suite they had rented for the night was also comprised of two bedrooms, one on either end of the suite. “Ladies, please make yourselves at home.”

  One by one, the frat boys took courage from the elixirs they had been consuming for already an hour as the girls mingled among them.

  “Gentlemen,” Dexter said to the two in pin-stripe and ties, “please accept our hospitality.” Joey and Sammy Hogan accepted the freshly opened bottles of beer. Good beer. Imported, near as they could tell. Certainly a cut above their usual brand. To the brothers, it looked like a good start to a successful evening.

  To Dugan, Dexter said “so, I thought we'd set you up in the bedroom back there.” He pointed to a door at the far end of the suite. The plan was to do the individual deals from the separate room away from the watchful eyes of the revelers in mass. For security sake. There was a lot of blow, and there would be a lot of dough. And most importantly, Dugan counted on a little out of sight, out of mind for the Hogans as the party favors worked their distraction.

  Benny pointed behind the Hogans. “You boys make yourself comfortable” he told them. “Keep an eye on things out here for us.” A divan on the wall that separated the main room from the other bedroom awaited them. It appeared to be an appropriate vantage point and the brothers easily acquiesced. Benny and Dexter walked across the room toward the other side. Along the way, Dugan gave a nod to one of the girls, who responded in turn with acknowledgment.

  “So, how's it going, Dex?” Behind closed doors, Benny gave his young friend a firm, friendly embrace on the shoulder.

  “Looks like we're all set. Fifty guys waiting for you. Although with the girls out there, they probably won't be fighting over each other for their turn in here.”

  “And the other thing? It's ready to go?”

  “Yeah, and if I do say so myself, it looks perfect” Dexter boasted. “Once it's on the air, no one will question its authenticity.”

  “I hope you're right and my word will be as good as gold. Five grand worth.”

  “Not to worry, Benny. The piece is solid and the station will jump at the chance for the exclusive.”

  By midnight, fifty fraternity brothers had taken a turn at relieving themselves of no small part of their recently liberated trusts, bonds, or credit card cash advances. An average of five thousand dollars each. A mere pittance for the pleasures of the evening and the score that would fuel each man's euphoric desires for some time. The party droned on, yet the roar of voices subsided into the current hazy atmosphere that had transformed the group into a considerably more sedate gathering.

  Joey and Sammy Hogan had not budged from their seats. The bedroom behind them had seen a rhythmic flow of patrons of the erotic arts, just as the room on the opposite end of the suite had for its business. The Hogans had watched the comings and goings from those inter-sanctums most of the evening while one of the girls kept them from feeling left out. They fed the two goons' egos with erotic attention while keeping them in well spiked libations.

  By now, the six girls were in various states of undress, sprawled across the room, and intertwined with the rest of the subdued fraternity brothers. Not to mention Joey and Sammy. Unusual for the two, they had met their match when it came to holding liquor. Of course the liquor had a bit of help, a little something extra that had been added just for them. The Hogan brothers' snores were drowned out by the music which played on, although no sound seemed to register with the guests in various states of consciousness.

  Benny Dugan, with business concluded, had taken one last long look at the rows of beautifully stacked hundred dollar bills in the briefcase. The empty duffel bag lay like a deflated beach toy at the edge of the bed. Benny left it behind as he emerged into the hallway of the twelfth floor. He left through the back door to the suite, conveniently located in the bedroom where he spent the last three hours, a doorway totally unbeknownst to Benny's two chaperones.

  Soon, Dugan exited the elevator that opened onto the basement parking garage. It appeared relatively deserted except for a young couple that was walking towards him from a few rows back. Although walking would be a much more elegant description for how the two navigated the concrete structure that echoed the sounds of their adolescent inebriation. They sauntered most ungracefully, arms groping around one another as much out of necessity to hold each other upright as to the desires that would ultimately lead them to their room.

  Dugan never saw either of the Hogan brothers standing since early in the evening and only hoped that their inebriation mirrored that of the pair about to ascend the elevator. Even if those parties should meet along the way, he doubted the young couple's ability to offer any information as to his whereabouts. Besides, Dugan would only need a few minutes. His hotel waited merely a few blocks away.