Chapter 52: Curtain Call at the Tampico

Chapter 52: Curtain Call at the Tampico

I got about halfway up the stairs before I came to a stop in front of the Vera hologram. She was standing in the center of the winding staircase with one hand on her hip, and one leg sticking out of the slit up her dress. The hologram was still and silent, the edges appearing to flicker slightly the closer I got.

This was, I think, the closest I'd been to any of the holograms here (without one trying to kill me, that is), and it was astounding the amount of detail I could actually see. When it stopped flickering, I could make out things like individual hairs on her head, pores on her skin, and small details embroidered on her dress. If she wasn't glowing blue and semi-transparent, I could've almost mistaken her for a real person.

"Hey, uh... thanks for the save... back... there..." I trailed off, realizing what I was doing. I tried to shake it off - or shake away my increasing delirium. Take your pick. "Right. Okay. So, I'm talking to holograms now. I guess it's no stranger than talking to ED-E and expecting a response..."

I smirked on the outside, but just mentioning ED-E got me thinking about my friends back in the Mojave. ED-E, Boone, Veronica, Arcade, Raul... Cass... my thoughts lingered on Cass for quite a while. I still had no real idea how long I'd been here. Did they even know I was gone? What had happened to Veronica after we got separated? What if I fucked up, and really did die here? Would they even notice? I'd been so busy just trying to survive this hellhole that I hadn't really had time to think...

While I was standing there, lost in thought, the hologram was silently staring at me with unblinking eyes. I shook my head, trying to get back to focusing on the task at hand. Eventually, I moved, and her head followed me with an unnatural precision that creeped me out to no end.

"Excuse me gorgeous," I said, trying to slide past the hologram; I had no idea if I could walk through it, and wasn't really willing to test the theory... I mean, hell, this thing is able to shoot lasers out of its face, so who the fuck knows what would happen if I tried to walk through it? "If you'll just let me slide on past here, I've got places to be. Keep watch on the door for me, make sure no more of the Ghost People get in, would you?"

The Vera hologram continued to stare at me, following me as I walked past... and then, very slowly, the hologram nodded.

"Yeah, that wasn't creepy or anything."

I stepped out of the elevator, and walked into the small lobby of the Tampico Theater. There was a counter right in front of me with a sign labeled "box office" and a pair of double doors next to it. There were about half a dozen posters hanging on the walls which at one point were probably lit up. Most of them were faded and nearly illegible, but two were still distinct enough: Vera Keyes and Dean Domino.

"Heh..." I smirked to myself as I walked past Dean's poster in the theater. "Guess Dean's mustache wasn't manly enough to survive ghoulification."

There were three ways to go from here: another set of double doors right in front of me, and two short hallways on either side. There was a glowing blue light down the right hallway - another vending machine. Maybe I'll -

Beep.

Okay, maybe I won't head down that way... there must be more of those static spewing speakers somewhere... I just hope they're the unshielded type. I didn't have the ammo to waste on speakers I couldn't blow up. I backed up until my collar stopped beeping, and tried the two large doors. I jiggled the handle - nothing. I threw my shoulder against the door, and it made a solid enough thud, but it still didn't budge.

"Hmph. Let's see what's behind door number three then." I said, walking down the last hallway. I came to a corner and... there was an open door. I started to feel a rumbling in the pit of my stomach... something wasn't right.

"This is a trap." I voiced out loud. "This is just... it's too easy. Too much like I'm being funneled this way. This has to be a trap."

So, what did I end up doing?

I walked through the open door anyway. It's not like I had anywhere else to go. And besides, if this really was a trap, best thing to do would be to spring it - find out exactly what was going on, and be proactive in dismantling it. Better than sitting around doing nothing.

Of course, when the door slammed shut behind me, I started to think that perhaps this hadn't been the best idea after all.

Okay, stay calm Sheason. Take stock of your surroundings, figure out what's going on. The interior of the Tampico theater was a lot like the Shark Club back in New Reno, where I'd seen Bruce Isaac that one time. Really high ceiling, a large stage dominating the center of the room small circular tables filling up the available floor space, half-moon booths lining the walls, and a bar in the back. The whole theater was dimly lit - except for a bit of blue underlighting from behind the bar, a "Dean Domino" sign in big neon letters hanging in front of the curtains on the stage... oh, and a whole load of red lights from shielded speakers lining the walls.

Right. Definitely being funneled somewhere.

It took a while, and a lot of experimentation to see exactly where I could go without the speakers setting off my collar, but I eventually found myself in the center of the room, right next to the stage. I hadn't noticed it on the way there (mostly because I was too busy looking at the position of the speakers on the wall), but there was a stand right next to the stage, and a few pages of paper sitting on it.

"Hmm..." I grabbed the sheets to get a closer look at them - and suddenly heard a clink of metal against tile. I looked down at my feet: there was a small key on the floor that had fallen out of the pages. I put the sheets back and knelt down to pick up the key.

"So..." I heard a smooth voice, amplified and echoing off the walls. "You showed." I got up and was completely unsurprised to see Dean. He'd pulled back one section of the red curtains, and was standing on a catwalk behind the stage.

"Dean," I growled, still clutching the key in my hand. I had no idea what it opened, but maybe if I got him to talk... "I thought you might be the one behind funneling me into this linear path." Dean smirked, and started chuckling to himself.

"Felt the collar start kicking again as soon as the elevator doors rattled open," Dean reached into his jacket, and pulled out a packet of cigarettes. "Think you're going to up-stage me, here at the Sierra Madre?" He shook his head, and lit his smoke, making 'tsk, tsk,' sounds. "I don't think so. Now that I'm inside... well... I suppose I don't need you anymore, do I?"

"So, stabbing me in the back for the Sierra Madre, then?" I looked around the room as I spoke. Was he stalling me, or was he just gloating?

"You think I'm the bad guy here?" Dean asked, his voice laced with faux-indignation. I shrugged.

"Well, you are monologuing at me. Isn't that what bad guys do?" I asked. Dean's smile evaporated, and he started scowling at me.

"You think you're so clever, don't you. But I'm not the one slapping bomb collars on innocent folks and flicking the switch. And I'm not stabbing you in the back. I was facing you the whole time."

"Yeah, because that makes it so much better," I muttered under my breath.

"This heist?" Dean pulled the cigarette out of his mouth and leaned on the railing. "I planned it lifetimes ago. You and that old man? You're nothing but tourists. So... it's time for a little show. I'll just grab a seat up here, and watch how this plays out from backstage. Security can handle it from here." So, he was stalling for time - he must have some way of activating the holographic security. Well, two can play that game.

"And the collars?" I rapped a knuckle against the bomb collar around my neck. "You sound awfully eager to kill someone whose life is tied to yours." That seemed to stagger him a bit, but not for long.

"No... no... the collars... I know what happened now. Sure, mine activated... but it feels different. The electronic tap-dance inside... I can kill you and make it out while security is busy frying you to a crisp. Hands are clean, then smooth sailing to the vaults of the Sierra Madre." Dean looked immensely smug... but if I could keep him talking, he'd probably spill his whole plan, and I could turn it on it's head.

"I'm that predictable, am I?" I said, nodding my head. "You're probably right..." That's when I saw where I needed to go: there was a door off to my right that, more likely than not, led backstage - and while there was a speaker on the wall, it was broken, with no light, and pieces hanging off the wall. that meant I'd be able to open the door without worrying about the speakers blowing my head off. Probably.

"I'm not a betting man. I've come too far to leave it to chance," Dean took a draw from his cigarette, and was clearly enjoying looking down on me from a quite literal sense. "Way I figure it, you'll try and run for the exit, and only I know where the key is - and where the safest place in the whole theater is: backstage. You?" Dean laughed a few times. "You're trapped down there, and you couldn't shut off the speakers, unlock the doors, or cancel security if you tried."

Jackpot.

"Alright... So as long as I make sure I don't run for the exit, I head backstage, disable every speaker, grab every key, then shut down security... yeah, that plan sounds pretty clear to me, Dean. Thanks."

I'm sure if Dean still had skin, he would have blanched.

"Wh- what now? Try and come back here? No..." Dean chuckled nervously. "No, you belong out in the audience... I mean, not like... uh... you even could get backstage. That key you snagged - it won't work!" I think this was the most nervous I'd ever seen Dean - barring, perhaps, our first meeting when I told him our collars were linked.

"I guess I'll just have to try the key and see." I said, holding it up to make sure he knew I still had it. Dean started looking around frantically - and, very slowly, the curtains started to close.

"Oh, of all the - where the hell are those stupid holograms already?" He was muttering to himself, but his voice still carried. What he said next, I knew he meant for me: "Even if you do get back here, you won't live long, trust me!"

As soon as Dean slipped out of sight, I made my move, vaulting over a nearby table and running for the backstage door. My collar started beeping at first - I must have slipped into the range of another speaker - but by the time I threw myself into the back wall, my collar had gone cold.

There was an electric fizzle in the air - and more of the holographic cube-scribbles were starting to coalesce into actual shapes all around the room. If the timing was the same as the Vera hologram in the lobby, I had maybe three seconds before they turned into security holograms and fried me to a crisp. Maybe. Given how unreliable my internal sense of time was being, it could have been more, or it could have been less.

I only really started to get worried when the key didn't turn. I glanced over my shoulder; there were three of the holograms in the room starting to take shape. I punched the door, right next to the lock to try and shake it loose - it felt like the lock was just stuck. The key turned, and I bolted in through the door - and not a second too soon. As I slammed the door shut behind me, I heard a crackle of electric fire in the air, and a laser blast hit the wall.

When I came to the door, part of me wanted to open the door slowly, try and take him down with stealth... but Dean was probably ready for me. He was probably watching the door with a gun drawn, and as soon as it started moving, he'd shoot through the door before I was finished. So instead I readied the rifle and kicked down the door. He was inside, standing at the top of some stairs, with his pistol drawn.

"Drop the gun, Dean," I gave him the same voice as I used on Dog to try and distract him, maybe give me an opening - or maybe get us both out of here alive. Who knows? "It's over."

"All right, you're resourceful, I'll give you that." Dean tried to maintain his composure as the two of us continued our Mexican standoff. "But it's going to take a lot more than juggling keys and shooting speakers to stop me. As I see it? All I need to do is kill you, then make a run for the exit. You do the same, you'll be clawing at the lock until your head blows off. So... maybe you and I should have a little chat - just like we did when you first waltzed into town."

"Alright..." I said, not even thinking of lowering the rifle. "Maybe we should start with that tape I found in your dressing room." Dean looked annoyed.

"You just don't stop robbing casinos, do you?" He shook his head at me, obviously unaware of the hypocrisy. "What about it? Do you want me to give you a standing ovation for being so... 'clever' then?"

"Why were you blackmailing Vera Keyes to break into the Sierra Madre?" I asked.

"Blackmail is such a strong word, isn't it? I asked her, and she said yes. But then... she started to get cold feet. Personally, I blame Sinclair... he was such a victim, that maybe she felt it would be too easy. It doesn't matter."

"But what did you want her to do?" I knew she was important, but I couldn't figure out exactly why...

"Sinclair built this whole town to accommodate her. Same with the casino's voice lock. He wanted to make sure she had access to everything. And since I already had access to Vera... well, that meant I had access to the vault, too."

Wait, hang on. Voice lock? Was that... I had to find out more. I'm just glad Dean loved to hear himself talk so much. Longer he talked, the more likely it was that he was going to say something I could use against him.

"So... what were you blackmailing her with?" Dean started laughing.

"What wasn't I blackmailing her with? Chem use, indiscretions, more chem use... the usual Hollywood tune. Like Sinclair, people are the architects of their own misfortunes. Leave themselves wide open for someone to waltz right in and take what they want... as long as they take a single step into the trap. Get a few pictures, get a little dirt... and that person's your piano. Vera? Med-X was her thing. Even superstimmed herself for the after-rush."

"So, why did you need her?"

"Because she could get closer to Sinclair than I ever could. He built this place for her... well, after the two 'chanced' to meet. Sinclair was already puppy-eyed, so all I had to do was the introductions. She smiled, fluttered her eyes, showed a little leg... and he built this place for her. Even made her the key to his vault, like a joke... because of her name." Dean voice went low, and he growled: "Her fake Hollywood name." He cleared his throat and continued. "Except Sinclair didn't know I'd been there first. I could twist her whatever direction I wanted. All she had to do was get inside the Sierra Madre for the Gala, then use her voice to open the door. After that... smooth sailing. Would have been the biggest heist in history. Sinclair left holding the bag."

"So what happened?" I asked. Dean scoffed.

"The Bomb. Vera got sealed in here. A few hundred years go by, give-or-take. Almost the end of the story... I waited an entire lifetime, sitting in that Villa, watching it fall apart. Sinclair's Sierra Madre towering over everything - untouched! Then you come along. You and the old man, thinking you can just take it all from me. I planned all this, I made it all happen - not you! Now, I'm going to finish the job. Rob the Sierra Madre, rip out it's heart... last chapter of Frederick Sinclair, close the book..."

"Why?" I asked. Dean seemed taken aback by the question.

"I'm sorry? What do you mean, why?"

"Why go to all this trouble? I mean... it's been centuries. What was your problem with Sinclair, anyway?"

"Problem?" Dean acted insulted. Honestly, I couldn't tell if he was being genuine or not. "All high-and-mighty, that was my problem. Lording it over everyone. Acting so self-righteous, like nothing could touch him. He was the one with the problem. Never got mad at anything. Nothing seemed to shake him. Even after..." Dean grimaced, like he was trying to keep from frothing with rage. "Even after his life kept getting dragged through the dirt! Always kept looking for the bright, shining future in everything! So... I decided to take everything from him."

"But... that doesn't... what did he even do to you?"

"Do to me? Weren't you listening? He thought he was better than me. Look around!" He started waving around with his free hand; I hoped that he would get carried away and point his gun away from me, but no such luck. "This big casino, this big colossal monument - do you really think it was for some woman? Some vacuous, leggy dame? No... no, this place is all ego, all self-righteous-in-lights, fit him perfect. Had to take him down a few pegs... bring him down to my level. 'Begin again?' Some things you don't get up from... and I was going to prove it."

"Look, forget Sinclair. Even if Vera was the key, she's dead." Maybe I could still convince him to back down... but no. Dean just smirked. He must have something else up his sleeve.

"I only saw her yesterday... well... a few yesterdays. I didn't get to where I am by not being prepared. The one who makes all the hand signs, a little tight around the corners of her mouth? I was the one who put her in the Clinic. Tuned her like an instrument. If she heals up, it's not going to be her voice speaking any more. That is... if the Sierra Madre didn't get to her. If it did, well... I'm sure there's more than enough of Vera around for me to spend a few years piecing a book together."

Son of a bitch. So that's why Elijah wants to unlock the sound archives - he's trying to rebuild Vera's voice to open the vault!

"And if she's alive?" I asked.

"Then she can make some beautiful music... but I'm not a betting man. So I'm not banking on it. The long and short of it - all I have to do is piece together little Miss Vera Keyes' song in the right order, and the Sierra Madre will open it's legs... and I'm in business."

"Yeah... you're right. You're not a betting man. But I am. And I'm betting you have the key to the exit on you. Am I right?" Dean frowned.

"Lucky guess... You sure are a piece of work, I'll give you that. Always asking questions when you should be shooting... Next time you get a chance to kill someone, don't hesi-"

CLUNK!

The holorifle cubes hit Dean square in the chest and knocked him back, launching him into the back wall with a crack and a thud. He was lying there at the top of the stairs, with blue holographic cubes coming off him like smoke.

"Good advice," I said, walking up the stairs. My collar hadn't started beeping yet. Was he still alive? When I got to the top of the stairs, the holographic cubes had disappeared. He was still holding onto his pistol, but just barely. I stepped on his wrist, and the gun fell to the ground with a clatter.

"Th-this... isn't..." Dean was having trouble talking, and frankly, I couldn't blame him - his chest looked like it had been hit with a sledgehammer, and blood was leaking out of every orifice on his face. "... how it's s...s...supposed to... e-end..."

I knelt down over him and punched him really hard in the middle of his face. I heard a sharp crack of bone under my knuckles, his sunglasses shattered, and his whole body went limp. I reached into his jacket, and there in the top pocket was the key.

Beep.

Right, time to go. I grabbed all I needed from the inside of his jacket, and started running. I practically vaulted down the stairs, and ran through the theater, trying to avoid all the holograms.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

I got to the door, twisted the key in the lock, and shoved the door open with my shoulder when the lock clicked. I kept running, jumping over the counter and practically launched myself at the elevator door.

When I hit the button, the beeping kept getting faster... the doors of the elevator opened agonizingly slow.

Beep-beep-beep-beep

"C'mon, c'mon, c'mon!" I said, grabbing at the doors and trying to get them open. When it was wide enough to slip through, I threw myself into the elevator, hit the button for the lobby, and held down the 'door close' button.

Beepbeepbeepbeepbe-

As soon as the doors shut, the beeping around my neck stopped... and thankfully, wasn't replaced with an explosion. I let out a sigh of relief, and leaned against the back wall of the elevator, sliding down until I was sitting on the floor.

I looked down at my hands. I'd left the key to open the door in the lock, but that wasn't the only thing I'd stolen from Dean's jacket: in my right hand, I had a packet of cigarettes, and in my left, his lighter. I opened the packet of smokes, grabbing one with my mouth, and flicking the zippo open.

"Guess that's your last curtain call, Dean." I said to myself, lighting the cigarette and snapping the lighter shut. "Hope it was worth it."