Free The Scam by Janet Evanovich

said.
    “We
became
the jungle,” Kate corrected him in an accent as unrecognizable as Nick’s.
    “I’m certain that it will add enormous depth to your roles,” Nick said, then turned back to Mingus. “Sven and Gita are huge stars in Sweden, and their total dedication is the reason they are so popular. You could learn something from them. I want you to become the jungle, too.”
    The color drained from Mingus’s face. “Is that really necessary?”
    “It is if you want to achieve greatness as an actor. Think about it, because I love this location. This is where I’ll make my movie.”
    “Excellent,” Mingus said, his enthusiasm tempered by the terrifying prospect of having to become the jungle himself.
    Nick faced Kate and Jake. “You two must come back to Honolulu with me and tell me all about your experiences.”
    He put one arm around Jake and another around Kate, and led them back toward the chopper. Mingus and Kealoha lagged behind so they could confer in private.
    “Out of curiosity,” Nick whispered. “How many shooters are there?”
    “At least four,” Jake said. “With M16s.”
    “Poor guys,” Nick said. “They never stood a chance.”
    —
    Nick took Kate and Jake back to his two-bedroom suite at the historic Royal Hawaiian Hotel, on Waikiki Beach, so they could shower and change into clean clothes.
    Jake was happy to see a white polo shirt, khaki slacks, and a pair of leather loafers, all in his size, laid out on the bed. He was
ecstatic
to find the correct Dr. Scholl’s inserts in the shoes, because his feet were killing him.
    A luncheon buffet of fresh fruit, kalua pork, and an assortment of desserts that included lilikoi cheesecake and haupia cream pie was laid out on the dining table. The doors to the lanai were open, letting in a gentle breeze and offering a spectacular panoramic view of Diamond Head, Waikiki Beach, and the shimmering Pacific.
    “Feeling better?” Nick asked Jake.
    “I was feeling great before.” Jake took a plate and nodded in approval. “But this isn’t bad.”
    “We’ll have lunch, relax on the lanai for a bit, and then you and I will head back to Los Angeles by private jet. Kate will settle up with the local authorities and take a commercial flight home.”
    “I’m not going anywhere until I take down Lono Alika,” Jake said. “He destroyed Harlan’s food truck and shot up his house. I can’t let him get away with that.”
    “I met a local cop who I think is a good man,” Kate said. “I’ll have a talk with him and the agents in the FBI field office. They’ll make sure Alika knows that it would be a big mistake to give Harlan any trouble.”
    Jake shook his head. “That’s not good enough.”
    “I think it’s possible that we can take down Alika and Evan Trace at the same time,” Nick said. “Since we left Vegas, I’ve been noodling with an idea for a con to destroy Trace’s money laundering operation, but it wasn’t coming together. It was missing the key piece, the fulcrum, you might say.”
    “Fulcrum,” Jake said. “Like a seesaw?”
    “Like a tipping point,” Nick said. “We’re going to insinuate ourselves into the money laundering operation at Trace’s casino in Macau by becoming junket operators.”
    “I have no idea what that means,” Kate said.
    “Most of the major money laundering in Macau is done through junket operators. They are middlemen who bring high rollers to the casinos to gamble in private VIP rooms. The gamblers book their travel, rent their hotel rooms, and buy their chips through the junket operators, who are actually the ones on the hook with the casino for everything.”
    “So, technically, the players aren’t actually gambling in Macau with their own money,” Kate said. “They are playing with the junket’s money.”
    “That’s how the money gets laundered,” Nick said. “The cash the players use to buy their ‘vacations’ in Macau is dirty. But the money they get when they cash in their