Welcome to the late '90's, where trust means hiring a knockout private investigator to test matrimonial ties. "Sometimes they're actually not interested," says Justine Ski, a 30 year old private eye and one of the female operatives for the Monte Investigation Group.

But plenty of times she's successfully accompanied an unsuspecting guy to a hotel room or apartment and -bingo- nailed him as a cheater, says Ski, who's been in the private eye biz for six years.

"I would make eye contact with him in a bar, get to talk to him and flirt a little," says Ski, describing her m.o. "If I leave the premises with him, usually we have someone taking photographs in the car. That sometimes is enough evidence for the wives."

Is decoying entrapment? Not at all, says Frank Monte, president of the Monte Investigations Group, which began using women undercover in the '70's.

"It's ensnarement," Monte says. It takes a long time to actually catch a man cheating - you have to follow him 24 hours a day and watch his every move which can cost a pretty penny at the rate of $75 to $150 an hour.

"If he's going to play around, let's send in a catalyst," Monte says, "this (referring to Ski) will move things on."

In addition to "matrimonial" work, Ski, a chameleon-like Australian native, also has infiltrated various businesses, including modeling agencies, working on the inside to uncover illicit activities, like theft.

It's not just fun and games, you know," Says Ski, the daughter of diplomats, who sometimes carries a gun while working. "We've a job to do. We go in because there's a problem."

Call these women the Samantha Spades of the business of intrigue. They're private eyes who make a living (about $50,000 to $85,000 a year) sleuthing. They interview witnesses for attorneys, locate assets of people who owe money, find kids who were abducted by parents, follow husbands or watch former wives.

Glam as it may sound, a private eye's work entails more tedious, exacting paper-trailing than it does Hollywood-style derring-do. Tracking people down through record searches, surveillance and writing up detailed reports isn't exactly what you've seen on an episode of Charlie's Angels.

In New York state, there are 2,500 licensed private investigators, with an estimated 10 to 15 percent women. There are an estimated 60,000 p.i.'s in the country. To become a p.i., one must work for three years in investigation, pass a test and criminal background check.
WHILE no one job is like any other in the private eye biz, there are some tricks of the trade that every savvy sleuth knows, like never ever use a cell phone to communicate.

"People think we all carry guns and have all this 'Mission Impossible' equipment," says glamour gumshoe Justine Ski, a private investigator for the Monte Investigation Group.

"You have ears and eyes. You're there to observe. A paper and a pencil are the best tools. Basically, it's a thinking job."

If she's infiltrating an office, a computer firm, or a factory, she has to get hired first. Sometimes that's a challenge, but usually, the company wants a hired mole and has called upon the investigative services.

Once inside, Ski's got to do the work that she's ostensibly hired to do - in addition to her spying.

One time, she recalls, she had to take a "crash course" in fabrics from a friend in the fashion industry when she got hired to do quality control at a fabrics factory that was having a theft problem.

"If I'm going to an office, I need to dress very conservatively. I'll put on a classic suit, Donna Karen or Jill Sander," says Ski. "If I'm going to decoy at a bar, I'll wear something short and show some cleavage. It might be Versace."

If she's checking out something in an office, Ski will first call in "always on a land line" to see if anything has changed. If not, she'll go to her phony job, work the day and observe, take notes, get into files, if necessary. She'll report to her own office later and write a detailed report.

When the job is to catch a suspected cheater, she's only got one shot. More often than not, Ski leaves with the man. "The fact that he's left with you at 2 in the morning says it all." At the critical moment, she'll "diffuse" the situation and get out in the nick of time.

"I've dabbled in acting," Ski adds. "It helps."

- Heidi Mae Bratt