Ashes to Dust (Las Vegas Mystery)

asked.
    “Twenty bucks a game?”
    “Fifty.”
    “Let’s do it,” Snow said.

“What the hell has been going on out there?” He stood in the open doorway, his face looking like a thinner version of the clown from Jack in the Box. Holding his shotgun at his side, Kevin Miller was livid.
    “I’ve been losing my ass,” Snow muttered.
    He and Alice came in, went to the living room, and sat down. Snow noticed the patio door was wide open, letting in the warm September air through the screen. Must be feeling more secure with the Duke Ellis team guarding the house, Snow thought. That was a positive sign.
    “He was out there again,” Miller said. “I saw him drive up from the upstairs window. I saw your car pull into my driveway, so I came downstairs. But you never came to the door. So I went back upstairs to see what happened to you, and you were gone. Then Jack drove up, so I ran back down here and got my shotgun ready.”
    “We were inside the camper,” Alice said. “When Jack drove up, we had to stay in there until he left.”
    “What were you doing in Duke’s camper?”
    “Checking his surveillance equipment,” Snow said.
    “Have you been getting enough sleep?” Alice asked Miller.
    “More than I was before,” he said. “It’s a comfort to me to know there are two experienced detectives guarding my house twenty-four hours a day. But I forgot to ask them—they are armed, aren’t they?”
    “At all times,” Alice said. “Both of them.”
    “But I didn’t see any sidearms when they were here. Where do they keep their guns?”
    “Ankle holsters, I expect,” Alice said. “It’s not a good idea to have your weapon exposed. It can alarm people.”
    “Tyson Dole can testify to that,” Snow muttered.
    Alice gave Snow a look, shook her head, and rolled her eyes.
    “Testify to what?” Miller asked. “What’s going on with Tyson Dole?”
    “Nothing,” Alice said. “We’ve investigated him. His neighbors verified that he was home the night of the murder. We’ve eliminated him as a suspect.”
    “Who does that leave?” he asked.
    Alice interlaced her fingers and placed her hands in her lap. “A lot of people,” she replied. “Probably some we don’t even know about yet.”
    “Then this could go on for some time.”
    Alice nodded. “It could.”
    “And who’s on the rotisserie today? Me?”
    Alice shifted her gaze to the coffee table, gathering her thoughts. Then she brought it back up to Miller, her expression unaffected. “Kevin, we talked to Erin Potter, and she told us she wasn’t aware of any fight between Crystal and Laura. That Crystal never struck Laura—but that you did.”
    Miller’s eyes lit up. “That’s bullshit. She’s lying. She’s a lying bitch.”
    “Why would she lie about that?”
    Miller shrugged. “Because that’s what she does. Who knows what her reasons are? Maybe she’s protecting Crystal or someone else. Maybe Laura lied to Erin. I know she doesn’t like me—she may be lying to cause trouble for me.”
    “Why doesn’t she like you?”
    “I think mainly because I’m a man. Another reason may be jealousy.”
    “Jealousy? Why?”
    “Because she wanted Laura and couldn’t get her.”
    “But they were close friends.”
    “Erin wanted more—she’s a lesbian.”
    Alice considered that. “What gives you that idea?”
    “I don’t believe she’s ever had a date with a guy her entire life.”
    “Is there someone she’s involved with now?”
    “I don’t think she’s had a steady girlfriend. She has a lot of issues. I get the impression she must have been overloaded with sexual abuse as a kid. Now she hates men. I could be wrong, but that’s the feeling I get.”
    Snow leaned forward, folded his hands together, and rested his elbows on his knees. He appeared to be speaking into an imaginary microphone. “You and Laura broke up the first time eight months ago?”
    “That’s right,” Miller said.
    “What caused that breakup?”
    Miller spread his hands. “A lot of things. I wanted marriage and children. Laura just wanted to have fun. She would never agree to marriage. In fact, our relationship got to the point where she was no longer interested in me.”
    “What makes you think that?”
    “She told me. She said she was only with me until she could find somebody else. She told me she knew I wasn’t the one for her, and if I wanted to leave I could. Otherwise she would only stay with me until the right guy came