Chapter Thirteen

Part 4

After four hands of play, we aggregated our chips and compared the totals with Gray so we would all know where we stood for the fifth and final hand. Winter, Ian, and I were down. Not by much, but we were down. One of us had to win the fifth hand, or my life, basically, was over. Rick dealt the hole cards, and all the muscles in my shoulders coiled. I was afraid to look at them. This was it. The culmination of all the misery and tension and guilt and fear. It all came down to this one hand.

I took a deep breath, closed my eyes, and said a quick prayer. Then I checked my cards. An eight and a six, suited. Not horrible, but not the greatest draw in the world either.

Next to me, Winter shifted in her seat. Not a good sign. I glanced at Ian, and when he looked at me I knew he didn’t have the cards. Apparently, I was staying in no matter what. One of us had to pony up and play, or it would be over right here and now.

“Gray?” Rick said.

“I’m in,” Gray replied, tossing a couple of chips in the pot.

Ogre grunted and followed suit.

Ian sighed and shook his head. “Can’t do it, man,” he said, tossing his cards toward Rick. “I fold.”

“Tell me you have good cards,” Winter whispered to me. I subjugated my fear and remained expressionless. I knew Gray and Ogre were watching me closely. Winter sighed. “I fold.”

“And then there was one,” Gray said with an amused smirk.

I wanted to jump over the table and deck him. The compulsion was so great that I even came out of my seat a little bit. But Winter laid her hand on my arm, and I stayed in my chair. I had to maintain some kind of propriety. If I attacked Gray, I knew the deal would be off. Besides, if this hand went south for me, we were all going to be brawling soon enough. Why rush it?

“Mike? Your bet,” Rick said.

I stared Gray in the eye, picked up a couple of chips, and saw his bet. In a different situation I might have even raised him, but I was playing for my life here and needed to be a little bit stingy. But still, I was going to avenge my last loss. I was going to put this guy in his place. He and that cocky smile of his were going down.

I hoped.

“Dealing the flop,” Rick said.

He turned the three cards over. There were two eights and a ten.

Yes! Yes, yes, yes! I thought. Rick had given me a three of a kind. A great start. It took every ounce of willpower I had to keep from smiling.

I looked at Gray. He blew out a sigh and raised the bet. His cards weren’t great. I could tell. That sigh belied his confidence. He was only raising to try to throw me off. I wanted to look at Ian to see if he confirmed my suspicions, but I couldn’t look at anyone for fear of giving something away.

Ogre saw Gray’s bet, and I called. I didn’t want to throw more money in there than I needed to. At least not yet.

“Dealing the turn,” Rick said.

His hands were shaking as he turned the card over. The tension was even getting to him. I couldn’t believe it when I saw the card. The six of hearts. I had a full house, and the river hadn’t even been dealt yet.

Everyone looked at Gray. “I’ll raise,” he said, throwing in a few chips. My heart skipped a couple thousand beats. What the hell did he have in his hand? He put his elbow on the table and placed his fist to his mouth. These were all such obvious tells. Was it all an act? If it was and I fell for it, I would be vituperating myself for the rest of my life.

But my gut told me he was bluffing. I had to go with my gut. I knew I had been wrong in the past, but this was too important. I had to trust myself.

Ogre folded with a grunt and stared down at the table. Ian sighed and leaned forward, placing both hands over his face. One down, one to go. It was down to me and Gray.

I stared Gray in the eye. “I raise,” I said, throwing double the chips into the pot.

“Oh my God,” Winter said under her breath.

My stomach turned with doubt. What am I doing? What am I doing?

But I just kept staring at Gray. Give up, I willed him. Give up now.

“Fine,” he said. “I call.”

His chips clicked against the others. The pot had grown big enough that if I won the hand, I would get out of here scot-free.

“Okay. Dealing the river,” Rick said.

He slapped the card down. Another six. Gray didn’t move. He didn’t even blink. He just stared at the cards as if he could see through them. The six didn’t improve my hand, but did it improve his? Well, clearly. Because even if he had nothing before, he had a pair of sixes now. Not enough to beat me though.

“I check,” Gray said.

“I call,” I replied, my throat dry.

For a moment, no one moved. This was it. The moment that would decide the rest of my life.

Whatever happens, just be a man, I told myself. Take it like a man.

“Let’s see both hands,” Rick said.

Gray turned his cards over. A ten and a jack. “Two pair,” he said.

Quaking, I turned my own cards over. “Full house.”

“Yes!” Ian shouted, standing up so fast his chair fell over.

Winter squealed and threw herself into my arms as I stood. I hugged her tightly, reveling in the most sublime moment of my life. It was over. It was really and truly over.

“What happened?” Lenny demanded, running back into the room for the first time in an hour. Clearly he had been hovering outside, listening for our reactions. “What happened?”

“They won,” Gray said flatly. He looked disgusted. Clearly, losing was unpalatable to him. Not that I could blame him. No one liked to lose. Especially after being cheated. But we had made a deal and he had come up with the terms. He had to accept the loss.

“What? No way! When I left, you guys had a tenable lead!” Lenny shouted, growing red.

“Dude, calm down,” Gray told him. “They won and it was fair. We made a deal. It’s over.” Talk about taking it like a man.

“Yeah, it is!” Ian shouted, reaching out to slap my hand.

“No. No way,” Lenny said. “I’m not losing out on all that cash after he cheated. One more game, Gray,” he said. “I’ll go up against him one-on-one.”

Gray put his hand on Lenny’s shoulder and looked him in the eye. “When I say it’s over, it’s over,” he said. “It doesn’t matter what happened in the last game. This game, we lost. You’re not going to coerce me into changing my mind.”

Lenny stared me down for a long moment, and his severe aversion to me was clear. I had a feeling that if he ever saw me on the street, we would be in for the throw-down of our lives. But for now, he was going to back down. Because Gray was the man in charge. And I wasn’t important enough to merit a coup.

Gray walked around the table, and as he approached, Winter reached out and clutched my hand, as if she was afraid Gray might try something. Instead, he offered his own hand in congratulations.

“Nice game, man,” he said.

“Thanks.”

He gripped my palm and pulled me toward him. My heart swooped, but I looked him in the eye.

“You better never come near me again if you want to live, got me?” Gray said.

I swallowed hard. “Got it.”

Gray released me and turned toward the door. “Let’s get out of here. I need a beer.”

Ogre got up and loped off after Gray. Lenny also reluctantly followed. Rick, after looking at us uncertainly, finally scurried off as well. Apparently doing as Gray said was more important than leaving random people alone in his own house.

“Well. Guess we’ll be hanging out at your house from now on,” Winter said dryly.

I laughed and leaned down to give her a nice, long kiss. Then I looked at Ian and we both grinned. I was free. And I owed it all to them.