“Like what?”

“Like if I wanted to score ecstasy, would I go to Merrin?”

“I have no idea.” She faced him. “That’s the truth. I only know Merrin as a client.”

“Well, who would I go to?”

“I don’t know. I don’t do drugs.”

“What about some of the other girls? I know you have a few here who also work at Tattlers.” Decker took a stab in the dark. “I’ve heard you can get a variety of pharmaceuticals over there.”

“Plunkett, right?”

“Right,” Decker lied.

“Figures. He’s a real jerk, but he’s a good source for referrals.”

“So maybe those girls would know about scoring… the ones who work at Tattlers?”

“You’d have to ask them. We don’t have anything on the premises, that much I know.”

“Anyone here from Tattlers that I can talk to?”

“Maybe Angela. She’ll be free in a half hour or so.”

“Could you set that up without calling him first?” A smile. “Please, Jen?”

She looked at him and shrugged.

Decker didn’t push her. “So you know the people in these townships pretty well?”

Jen laughed softly and bitterly. “I know the horny ones.”

“What about the boys?”

“Lots of horny boys.”

“Ryan Anderson and Philip Caldwell.”

Her face darkened. “I know Caldwell. He came in about two months ago. Right when he turned eighteen. Rich threw him out.”

“Who’s Rich?”

“The bouncer.”

“The one who’s behind the paneling in the lobby.”

Her expression was stunned. “You don’t miss a trick—oh, that’s right. I went there to phone Mr. Donatti.”

“Yeah, but I figured it out before. You kept looking over your shoulder. So Rich threw Caldwell out. Why?”

“He was roughing up the girl. It was Angela, come to think of it. Rich got to her before the little prick could do real damage. All the rooms have video cameras.”

Decker laughed. “Oh really?”

She pointed to the crystal chandelier.

“Rich must like his job,” Decker said.

“He’s gay and all business.” She looked down. “Everything’s being recorded. Eventually, Mr. Donatti’s gonna see the video. He’s gonna hit the ceiling.”

Decker patted her knee. “Look, Jen. He wanted you to pump me for information using whatever means, right?”

She was quiet.

“He knows me. Sex wouldn’t be an option. That means he knows you’d have to feed me info to keep me talking. My questions will tell him a lot. Was he pissed, by the way… Donatti?”

“What do you mean?”

“That this punk Caldwell was roughing up one of his girls?”

“He didn’t find out about it until way later… when he reviewed the tapes. Mr. Donatti doesn’t like problems. That’s why we’re here. So he doesn’t have to deal with problems.”

“I see. What about Anderson? Ever come across him?”

She thought a moment. “If I did, I don’t remember. They’re all the same, these rich-kid brats. All swagger, all bravado. Each one thinking they’re the biggest, baddest dude on the block. They deal in drugs; they show off their guns and knives; they think they’re real tough. They think they know what it’s like on the streets, but they don’t know shit. They don’t know how good they have it. They don’t know what’s important. They have it all, and yet they have nothing.”