"Of course. I'll come with you. Isn't it up to me to press charges?" the old man asked, his eyes alight with excitement.

"Technically, yes, Homer," Cricket said. "But if they book those guys, it's going to be a lot of paperwork. You could call ahead and chop them off at the knees. Or, I should say, you call ahead and tell them it was all a big misunderstanding and to let everybody go. That way the guys won't be filing any lawsuits saying Owens's boys harassed them, and they were just defending themselves. What do you think, Elizabeth?"

Lizzie loved the way her name sounded on his lips. She smiled and nodded. As they walked out of the Rabbit Hole, she risked a quick glance to her left, where a striking blonde, who looked a little hard around the edges, was so intent on not paying attention to them that she stood out like stinkweed in a bouquet of roses.

Cricket picked up on the glance and gave a slight nod. That's good, Lizzie thought, we're on the same page. Cricket did make her feel. . .funny all over. Maybe she was just coming down with the flu.

Even at noon, the cars were bumper to bumper. Everyone in the limo was on their cell phones, and Ted was on his BlackBerry. Maggie was just going to love all this cloak-and-dagger stuff. Hell, he was loving it himself.

Ted inclined his head to the left, the better to hear the conversation between Homer Winters and Lizzie. He typed faster.

Winters is going to sell the Babylon. He's had enough of Vegas. He's going to look for a buyer. Lizzie says she knows someone who might be interested. Annie? That guy Fish? Maybe partners? Gotta go, babe. You taking good care of Minnie and Mickey?

Back at The Party Store van, Kathryn shifted gears and pulled out onto Las Vegas Boulevard. "Will someone tell me what the hell happened back there?" She blew her horn, yanked at the steering wheel, and skirted around a MINI Cooper full of lookie-loos.

The women all started to jabber at once, with Annie yapping about seeing a pair of white rhinestone boots in one of the boutiques. "I could see them clear as crystal from where I was sitting. I have to get those. I really do."

"Put a lid on it, Annie," Myra said as she yanked and pulled at the pearls around her neck.

"Who was that guy, Isabelle, and what did he say?" Nikki asked. "The minute I saw the look on your face, I knew something was up. It's a good thing we acted in sync, or we'd be on our way to the police station."