Dead Man's Hand

by Steven Meehan

  Once Dempsey’s effects were collected, he stepped clear of the doorway and spoke with a booming voice that certainly carried to everyone in the room. He must have engineered the room so that his voice would carry from that spot. “Welcome to my tournament. It is good to see so many returning faces not to mention new ones. I hope you all have been enjoying my hospitality.”

  Clasping his hands together Dempsey smiled from ear to ear. “Now there is still time left before we begin so please mingle while we wait for the tournament to start. And make sure you enjoy the refreshments while the bars are still open. Thank you all for coming.”

  Wordlessly he dropped his hands to his sides and began to mingle with the crowd. For a couple of minutes I watched the man go from player to player. As he finished with one player he would leave to find another, even if the player had been part of a group. Since no one complained they must be used to the madness, but why… what was he doing? Then I realized, he was lacing the targets!

  I had been sure that Dempsey would have some of his own men posing here as players. And now his men had targets to go after. This was masterful, while he appeased the spoiled millionaires he also managed to mark the preferred order of their exit. But before I could think about anything else, Bella broke my concentration.

  “Marcus, are you there?” Bella asked gently as she waved her hand in front of me. When I looked back at her, her face was very intense and irritated, “I’m beginning to feel unappreciated here, Marcus. I mean we’ve had quite the conversation but as soon as Dempsey walks in I’m forgotten.”

  She threw her hand up against her forehead and formed a very playful pout with her mouth. It looked good on her, but before I could defend myself she elaborated. “Not only that but you also went on to say that I was beauty incarnate. I mean with flattery that thick, shouldn’t I rank higher on your list?”

  Based on her reactions, it was pretty clear that she didn’t care for the man. And I got the feeling that there was a reason behind it. But what could these two have in common? She was a professional card player and he was the head of a sophisticated criminal empire. What was the connection between them? She obviously knew he was going to be here so why did she come if she didn’t care for the host? But there was no way I was going to ask her about that, no way. I valued my life too much to so willingly commit suicide. And she was right about one thing, I had grown obsessed with the man since she said he would be here.

  Now I was letting his reputation fuel my own terror. Fear was something to be harnessed, but terror was fear that was simply allowed to flourish. I could accept fear of something, after all fear would keep me alive by ensuring that I kept my wits about me. But all terror would do was run me into an early grave. Bella had done just enough to help me transform the rolling terror into manageable fear.

  Averting my eyes from Dempsey I apologetically looked at Bella as I answered. “I’m sorry Bella that was rude of me.” I took in a deep breath and realized just how much I had honestly enjoyed our brief time together. This was one friendship that I would want to continue past the current moment. So I did the only thing I could think of and that was groveling, though somehow I managed to keep my dignity. “I do hope you will forgive the infraction. I’ll try not to let it happen again.”

  “You’re acting like you’ve never seen him before.” She asked.

  With a shrug I answered with as much of the truth as I dared. “I don’t keep up with current events outside of my influence. It’s easier on my body.”

  With a laugh she shook her head, “Every time I think I have a handle on you, you do something or say something that just throws what I have come up with out the window.”

  “Yes, I’m good at that.” I offered quickly. But after a moment of silence curiosity won out over reason. And I returned her question. “How many times have you meet Dempsey?”

  “More times than you have.” She replied with forced casualness.

  Something about that forced cheer got under my skin so, ignoring my little mental warning bell, I decided to do a bit more digging. I knew I was going to have to be more than a little obtuse, hopefully she would be forgiving of that as well. “So this isn’t your first time then?”

  As I watched her I had trouble gauging the reaction. From our conversation I knew she thought me intelligent or at least she respected my intelligence. Now that I had asked such an obviously dumb question, I could see doubt trickling through her mind. But at the same time she had seen me entrap Patrick with a few simple words. I could see the two warring thoughts battling in her eyes.

  Eventually she warily answered my question, “This is only the second time.”

  “How did you do?”

  “Well enough that I came back again this year.” She replied cautiously.

  “You’re not going to be any more specific are you?”

  “A girl needs to guard her secrets, Marcus.” And that was all she was going to say on the matter. It was the nicest denial I think I had ever received.

  I lifted my glass to my mouth to take another sip of my drink while I tried to think of a suitably clever response. Unfortunately I was unable to think of anything, so instead I ended up blurting out, “No, you don’t.” I flashed the biggest and friendliest smile I could, as I repeated my question. “How well did you do last year?”

  She sighed but she also leaned over the table and gestured for me to do the same. So I sat up straight as I leaned across the table so she could whisper in my ear. With a soft and sensual tone she cupped her right hand over her mouth as if she were trying to keep anyone from reading her lips. Once the scene was set she began to whisper her secret. “Maybe another time, Marcus. Just maybe, if you’re lucky.”

  I couldn’t help but laugh as I leaned back into my chair saying, “A woman of mystery indeed.”

  “And don’t you dare try and pretend that you’re not excited and thrilled by that fact.” She said with a rather enchanting wink.

  I took a small breath to steady myself before responding. “I wouldn’t dare argue with you, Bella.” I was trying to avoid thinking about Dempsey or even searching for him and of course that was when he flashed in front of my eyes. I could swear that Dempsey had just made eye contact with Patrick. Had he spoken with him already? I don’t think he had, but I could be wrong, it wouldn’t be the first time. Also it was not as if I was paying a lot of attention to either of them at the moment.

  From that look I knew that these two knew each other. It was a look of two friends with inherent understanding of each other might give. They would be able to have entire conversations without having to rely upon words. So what had those two friends talked about with that look? Of course I had no way to know. After all, those two were the friends, there was no way I was going to be able to decipher it.

  With thoughts of Dempsey on my mind I looked back to Bella as I asked a follow-up question. “I’m sorry to bring Dempsey back into our conversation, but since you’ve had the privilege of being here before, does he talk to everyone or just a select few?”

  As I waited for a reply I looked over her shoulder in time to see Dempsey walking away from Patrick’s general vicinity and towards yet another group of people. “Why are you so interested in Dempsey?”

  Even though I knew what she would say I voiced the question anyway. “I’m being rude again aren’t I?”

  Using her thumb and index finger she indicated just how rude she thought I was being as she answered, “Just a little.”

  I was mentally exhausted and I just needed answers. But my best source for the information I needed was growing more than a little irritated by my game of twenty questions, as long as the main topic was Dempsey. If there was anything I had learned during my life, it was when all else fails you have to go with the truth, or at least a piece of it.

  “I’m not trying to be rude, Bella. It’s just… it’s just a bad habit I’ve managed to pick up when I was younger. When I’m ignorant on a subject I physically cannot stop asking questions.�
�� Which was very true, it just wasn’t the whole truth. The whole truth was much simpler, I was just a curious man by nature. And it had nothing to do with how familiar I was with the subject. “And yes I do know that drives most people crazy.”

  While she was still hesitant to answer I desperately flashed her my most ingratiating smile. I guessed it helped, slightly at any rate, because while she folded her arms across her chest she did answer my question. “Last year he met with everyone before we started.”

  Without thought I blurted out the next question that had rolled into my mind. “And the years before that?”

  “You’re lucky I like you. But that’s not going to save you for much longer. I wasn’t at any of his tournaments before last year. So I don’t know what he did before that, but from what I gathered, that is the norm for him.”

  I also happened to notice just how irate she was growing every time Dempsey surfaced in our conversation. And since our conversation had taken quite a few twists and turns prior to Dempsey’s arrival I knew it wasn’t my curiosity that was causing her irritation. As I said I was a very curious person and I just had to get a clear picture of why she disliked him so much. Even though I didn’t want to ask the question, I needed to get the answer so I bit my lower lip and took the plunge. “Bella, why don’t you like Dempsey?”

  If anyone had been watching our conversation, and I was sure some were, they would have just thought I had punched her in the stomach or something. She tried to smooth it over but I could tell she was almost foaming at the mouth. When she had regained enough control not to verbally skin me alive she asked me a question in turn. “What makes you think I don’t like him?”

  “You mean apart from that reaction and the anger that’s radiating off of you?”

  For a long time she stared past me into nothing. So I kept my eyes on her, there was no way I was going to take my eyes off of her, not after that reaction. “I have my reasons and I’d rather not go into them. Now don’t ask me any more questions about him. If you have any other questions about the tournament feel free to ask. But you better think long and hard before you ask anything.” She pulled her eyes from the nothingness she had been studying and back to my own. I could see the steel determination around the edges. “If the question even remotely revolves around Dempsey you will regret it. Is that clear?”

  “Absolutely.” I stammered. I really wish I had been able to muster a better reply, but those eyes had creeped me out, there had been something there, something familiar behind that glare.

  “Good.”

  “I wasn’t trying…” I began, and I would like to think that I would have said something intelligible but at that moment a man came up from behind me and interrupted the thought.

  “Welcome back Bella.” I instantly recognized the voice without having to turn around. Dempsey had finally made his way to our table. I was too nervous to turn around so instead I focused all of my attention on Bella, leaving only just enough attention to keep listening to Dempsey. “I hope this gentleman isn’t bothering you.”

  I was able to see her face grow even harder, if that were possible, before she looked up and replied coldly. “Marcus has been a complete gentleman. In fact he has managed to keep me quite entertained as we waited for everyone’s arrival.” As she stood up she looked down at me and her voice warmed instantly, “Marcus that bartender’s name was Simon, correct?”

  With a nod from me she spoke with a mostly warm voice. “Well if you would excuse me I need a refill, and I think you’ll need one by the time I get back so I’ll get one for you.” With that she deftly snatched her empty glass off of the table and made her way to the nearest bar in search of Simon.

  With Bella’s chair now vacant Dempsey walked around the table and sat down. “I hope you don’t mind if I sit down and talk with you for a little while.”

  “Please do.” I mean what else was I going to say? I may have been willing to give Patrick some grief about what he did when he joined our table. But I mean it was one thing to do that with a man like Patrick, but with the man sitting at my table right now; well that would be a form of stupidity on an entirely new level.

  Sitting there, I could feel the stoic man weighing me up as he looked at me. A subjective eternity later he pulled his eyes from mine and spoke with quite the friendly voice. “Thank you for entertaining my niece.”

  Did he just say niece? Bella was Dempsey’s niece? What? No. That had to be wrong. As my stomach hit the floor, I began to think that luck had abandoned me right there. Of all the people here at this tournament how had I managed to spend all my time talking with Dempsey’s niece? There was nothing I could do to stop panic rising inside me. And to make matters worse I knew that he knew he had rattled me. I kept my eyes away from his, there was no reason I had to give him any more than necessary. I needed to reign in my panic. With a focus of will that I borrowed from somewhere I forced myself to speak in a clear voice. “Your niece is a wonderful woman, and she is one of the brightest people I’ve ever met.”

  Nodding Dempsey continued on in his emotionless voice, “She is a wonderful woman, but I believe my brother indulges her far too much.” The voice was not the creepy thing, the creepy thing was that Dempsey was acting like I was a lifelong confidant rather than a complete stranger.

  I made sure to keep our eyes from meeting while I answered as best as I could, “I wouldn’t be able to comment on that sir.”

  Rubbing the bottom of his chin Dempsey looked like he was deep in contemplation, and again that rattled my stomach. Without much of a pause he folded his hands together on the table before saying, “You’re a very careful man, Marcus. And I have to admit that is a good trait to flourish.”

  “Thank you, sir.”

  Dempsey let silence linger just long enough for it to become uncomfortable. “Is that normal for you?”

  I bit my lip on the initial response. Last time I checked my doctor told me that it was never a good idea to antagonize a man like Dempsey, something about it proving terminal. So instead I chose my words carefully, “With your reputation, I see that as a very good plan.”

  “If you didn’t have to worry about my reputation, where would that put us?”

  “What do you mean sir?” I asked, trying to keep my tone very formal and respectful.

  “Would you still keep your comments to yourself?”

  “I do try to be careful when it comes to people’s families. Simply because they’re family. And you never know how someone will react when family gets involved.”

  With another nod Dempsey seemed to approve of my response, or at least concur with his earlier measure of me. “Just between you and me Marcus,” Dempsey whispered to me, as he leaned in closer. “My niece already seems to be very infatuated with you.”

  “What do you mean? She couldn’t possibly be interested in me in that way.” I responded as soon as I registered his comment. “I’m sure I would have noticed that.”

  “No you wouldn’t.” Dempsey said with a shake of his head. “Trust me, men never see the signs that women shove into our faces. Which is entirely fair since they can’t seem to understand ours.” Then the man cracked a smile, a very amused smile.

  That smile was so eerie that I let my eyes catch his and before I could stop myself I asked, “So what makes you think that she is infatuated with me?”

  Resting his elbows on the table, Dempsey leaned forward slightly. “The only reason you don’t think that is because you don’t know her. The biggest challenge most men face with her is keeping her in one spot for any length of time. And remember the only reason my niece isn’t her right now is because I scared her off, not you. Though you’ve come close a couple of times from what I’ve heard.”

  Leaning back into his chair he kept his eyes on me but was no longer weighing me. Instead he seemed to relax. But that just made me even more confused. “There is a reason I came over when I did. I still have other people to meet, but I was told that my niece had been sitting with someone for
almost two hours and he was about to blow it.”

  Stunned by what Dempsey was saying I took a moment to order my thoughts. Which was rather hard since he had scattered most of them out of my reach. “So you came over here to save me from myself?”

  “No, I didn’t say that, what I said was I wanted to see the man who was skating on thin ice. Remember I’m not doing you any favors sitting here chatting with you. Now with that being said my niece is very picky with who she is willing to spend her time.” Dempsey turned around to face one of his attendants and once he had the man’s attention he snapped his fingers and pointed to the drink sitting on the table in front of me. The attendant took off to comply with Dempsey’s wordless command. “Despite her not liking what I do for a living, as you said, she’s family and I want what’s best for her, whatever that may be.”

  Leveling his grey eyes at me I could see the change from a benevolent uncle to those of the cold blooded murderer I knew him to be from all the stories. “But just be careful not to cross me here or anywhere. If you ever manage to accomplish that, then there is no hole small enough for you to hide in. My wrath will find you no matter how hard you try. Do you understand?”

  “Yes sir.”

  “Good.” The sheer terror inducing look vanished in an instant, once more leaving me to stare into the face of a kindly uncle. At that moment the attendant returned with Dempsey’s drink, placed it on the table, and quickly backed up, waiting for further instructions. Dempsey plucked it up and tasted the drink. “Ah, Simon is working his magic again I see.”