I took a deep breath and blew it out before opening the door. Ramos spoke into his phone, but disconnected after telling Uncle Joey we were coming. “You look great. Ready?”
“Yes.”
Peering into the hallway, we found it empty, but Ramos wasn’t about to let his guard down. He kept me behind him as the elevator doors swished open. Our luck held to find it empty, and we stepped inside, pushing the button for the lobby.
“So who am I playing against? It’s not Ella’s boyfriend is it? She told me he was playing for Sonny.”
He pursed his lips. “I’m afraid so.” He met my gaze. “I know you might be tempted, but you can’t let him win.” He held up a hand before I could object, knowing I had a big heart and would want to do something. “Don’t worry. If he and Ella are in trouble, we’ll figure out another way to help.”
“Okay.”
The elevator doors opened, and Ramos waited for my nod before stepping out. We made our way through the lobby and into the crowded poker room. People parted as Ramos and I entered, like we were big-time celebrities, and I tried not to let it unnerve me.
Anticipation to see who would win the ten-million-dollar jackpot washed over me, and I realized most of the crowd was betting on me to win.
One poker table sat in the center of the room with chairs for the spectators surrounding it. A video camera was positioned above the table, transmitting the game to the big screen on the wall so everyone could see the action.
As I took it all in, a deep voice called my name. “Shelby!”
I turned to find the man who’d accused me of cheating pushing his way through the crowd to my side. How did he get back in? Sonny must have arranged it, since I picked up that the man was up to something. He came closer, but hesitated as Ramos moved to intercept him.
Turning his hopeful glance my way, he hunched his shoulders and lowered his head, glancing up at me with pleading eyes. “My dear lady, I’m so sorry for my terrible behavior earlier. I made a complete ass of myself. It was totally uncalled for, and I apologize. Will you please forgive me?”
He was lying through his teeth, but, before I could call his bluff, I picked up his intent to stab me with the knife he held hidden in his hand. As I stepped back, he lunged at me, but I easily spun out of his way. Acting fast, Ramos stepped between us, blocking the man’s assault with his arm.
He grabbed the man’s wrist and pivoted inside his reach so the blade pointed outward. With a sharp twist to the man’s wrist, the knife fell to the floor. Ramos continued the movement, pushing the man to the floor, face first, and pulling his arm behind his back.
The man screamed out in pain, but Ramos didn’t let up until a security guard slapped handcuffs on the attacker’s wrists. Amid his loud protests, the security guard hauled him to his feet and escorted him out of the room.
Relieved, I stepped to Ramos’s side, and panic clenched my stomach. A stream of red blood dripped from a long cut down his arm, and my breath whooshed out of me.
“You’re… you’re bleeding. We’ve got to stop it.” I glanced around the room and spotted Ella. I frantically called her over and pointed at Ramos’s bleeding arm. Feeling lightheaded and sick to my stomach, I couldn’t seem to get any words out.
She glanced at Ramos, but turned her focus back to me. “Shelby, sit down before you faint.” She motioned to someone behind me, and Uncle Joey came to my side. “Make her sit down with her head between her legs. I’ll take care of Ramos.”
Uncle Joey took one look at me and slipped his arm around my waist. He helped me to a chair, and I rested my head on my lap, hoping I wouldn’t faint. Uncle Joey sat beside me and rubbed my back. After a few minutes, the black spots fogging my brain cleared from my vision, and I slowly sat up.
“Better?” Uncle Joey asked, handing me a bottle of water. “Here. Drink this. It should help.”
I drank most of it down and sat back in my chair. “Where are Ramos and Ella?”
“She took him to the bathroom to clean the wound.”
My shoulders relaxed, and I nodded.
“So what was that all about? Was Sonny behind it?”
“Yes.” Anger tightened my stomach. “This has turned out to be quite the ordeal. I’ll be glad when it’s over, but now it looks like I have to play against someone else who’s working for Sonny, only… something about his situation is different.”
“Ramos told me about him and his girlfriend. What do you think’s going on?”
“I’m not sure, but I think he’s being coerced into playing.” I shrugged. “I’m sure I’ll pick up more, but I’d like to help them if we can.”
Uncle Joey narrowed his eyes. “Surely you’re not thinking of letting him win.”
“No… of course not. But we might be able to threaten Sonny somehow. You’ve got something on him, right? Once the game is over, maybe you could use it to persuade him to leave them alone?”
His brows drew together, but he gave me a reluctant nod. “I’ll think about it.”
Ramos and Ella came back into the room, and I stood, grateful my head didn’t spin. “Thanks. I’ll see what I can find out during the game.”
I stepped toward them, stopping to examine Ramos’s bandaged arm. “How is he?”
“Good,” Ella replied. “It wasn’t as bad as it looked.”
“Thank you Ella. I’m so glad you were here.”
“Yeah… me too. That guy who attacked you was so scary. But… you saw right through him and got out of the way. I would have been taken totally by surprise, especially with his apology. I never thought he’d try to hurt you.”
“I know… it was definitely a surprise. Listen…” I stepped closer to whisper. “Whatever the outcome, I’m here to help you.”
Her eyes widened, and she sighed with relief. “Thank you.”
I listened real close to her thoughts, but couldn’t pick up a thing, same as before. What made her so different? Before I could say another word, a wall of angry frustration from Sonny hit me like a ton of bricks. He was going to disqualify me if I didn’t sit down within the next thirty seconds.
I turned to glare at him. “Hold your horses. I’m coming.”
Sonny’s mouth dropped open, and satisfaction washed over me. I sent Ella an apologetic smile and quickly sat at the table, watching Sonny try and get under control.
Tugging at the collar of his shirt, he announced the final round, declaring the game underway. The dealer came forward, taking his place and opening a new deck of cards. After shuffling them, he dealt out our cards and looked to me for the big blind.
Grateful he wasn’t another plant for Sonny, I threw out the chips, and Creed followed with the small blind. After I looked at my cards, I doubled the bet. Creed called to stay in the game, and the dealer played the flop. With the cards played so far, my hand was better, so I continued to bet.
Creed took his time, analyzing me and watching for signs of a ‘tell.’ The game continued through to the river. Since I had the winning hand, I kept betting. He called, and we both showed our cards, with me taking the pot.
The play continued quickly after that. With just two of us at the table, there wasn’t a lot of wasted time. I decided to play aggressively, since I didn’t want the game to drag out, and I only folded when he had the better hand. I knew it wasn’t very sportsmanlike, but I’d had enough of playing poker to last me a lifetime.
My stack of chips steadily grew, and I could feel Creed’s mounting frustration. He wasn’t getting a single break, and guilt washed over me. I let him win the next game and caught a huff of displeasure from Uncle Joey. I glanced his way and winked, hoping he’d get the message.
After I won the next two games, Uncle Joey settled down, but that wasn’t the case for Sonny. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught him gesturing to Dom. After they spoke, Sonny called for a break in the play, and motioned the monitor to his side.
A low murmur filled the room as the monitor came back to our table. She dismissed the dealer
and asked us both to stand. The room went quiet while she checked the table where we sat. She slid a pole-like contraption, with a mirror on the end, to check the underside of the table, as well as under our chairs.
Satisfied, she declared the table clean, and we resumed our play. The dealer returned and opened a new deck of cards. Play resumed, and I won the next two rounds. Creed began to sweat, and I picked up the pressure he was under. He’d positioned a couple of cards up his sleeves, but, with so many eyes on the table, he knew he’d get caught if he tried anything.
Sonny expected him to win, and despair washed over him. If he lost, Sonny had threatened to kill Ella. But I was too good to beat. He only hoped he could bargain for Ella’s life, even if it meant he’d lose his own. Dom was his only hope. They’d been friends once, and he hoped he wouldn’t go through with killing Ella.
Holy hell. This was bad. His worry tightened my stomach, and I wished I could tell him that I was on his side, even though I planned to win. Instead, I just shook my head and vowed that I wouldn’t let Sonny kill either one of them.
Creed won the next hand, but that was because the river happened to be just the card he needed. That was his only lucky break, and my stack continued to grow. With his paltry amount of chips, I knew the next round would be the last.
After the river, Creed went all in, hoping I would fold and give him a chance to get back in the game, but I called instead. Creed turned over his cards, revealing two pair, kings over tens. I beat him with a straight, and the tournament was over.
Creed graciously shook my hand before the clapping spectators surrounded me, and I lost sight of him. Ramos came to my side and pulled me into a big hug. Not to be outdone, Uncle Joey did the same. Even Sebastian heartily patted my back, thinking I hadn’t let him down.
Once the congratulations were over, Sonny stepped to the podium, working hard to control his disappointment and anger. A staff member brought out a beautiful crystal trophy, featuring three stacks of poker chips in differing colors. The crystal chips balanced on each other with their edges touching, like they were falling from the sky. It was beautiful, and not something I’d expected.
Taking the trophy, Sonny glanced over the crowd and held it up for everyone to see. “The winning prize of this year’s Mojavi Casino Poker Tournament goes to Shelby Nichols.” He motioned me to the podium, so I joined him there. He handed me the trophy, but kept his hold on it and turned to smile at a photographer.
After several photos, he let me take the trophy and turned to another staff member waiting in the wings. At Sonny’s nod, the staffer brought out a big, cardboard money order prop with “ten-million-dollars” written on it.
Someone had filled in my name as the payee, and Sonny presented it to me. I set down the heavy trophy and took hold of the prop, once again posing for the photographer. I picked up Sonny’s thoughts that even though he hadn’t won, the tournament had still brought in a lot of money, so it wasn’t a total loss. But this had ruined his plans to pay off his debt.
With the ceremony over, Sonny smiled and told everyone to please stay and enjoy the rest of the night. As people began to leave, he turned to me with a fake smile plastered on his face. “I don’t know how you did it, but I’m never allowing you to play in my casino again.”
Before I could form any kind of a retort, Uncle Joey and Ramos came to my side. “What did you just say to her?” Uncle Joey asked.
Sonny pursed his lips. “Nothing. I imagine you want your money. Let’s go to my office.”
Uncle Joey didn’t want to let it go, but I set down the prop and took his arm, shaking my head. He pursed his lips, but stepped behind Sonny, following him down a hall and into a large office.
Sonny took his seat behind the desk, seething with disappointment. He hadn’t thought he’d lose, so he had to come up with a creative way to pay Uncle Joey the money. Too bad he couldn’t use Jackie against Manetto like he’d first thought, but every avenue leading to her had been a dead end. She’d become untouchable, and Sonny knew, from Manetto’s reputation, that Manetto wasn’t an enemy he could afford to make.
This whole thing stunk to high heaven, and now he had to give his money away. It went against everything in his nature, and going through with it was killing him. This wasn’t supposed to happen. Someone had to pay for this mess, so it might as well be Creed and his girlfriend. Maybe watching them die would make him feel better.
“The money?” Uncle Joey prompted. “Is there a problem?”
“No.” Sonny pursed his lips. “But, with such a large sum, I suggest we make a few non-traceable money transfers over several days. That way we can avoid paying taxes.”
“I have a better idea.” Uncle Joey’s dark tone, along with his cold stare, froze Sonny in place. “How about this? If you want to live, I suggest you transfer the whole amount into my off-shore bank account now.”
Sonny’s breath hitched, and his gaze darted to the door. He’d stupidly sent Dom after Creed, and Grant was running interference with his main financier, so Sonny had no one to watch his back. With the odds against him, he capitulated.
“Fine.” He opened his computer and pulled up his offshore bank account. Ten million would shrink his reserves a bit, but he’d find a way to make up for it. “I’m ready. What’s your account number?”
Uncle Joey took out his phone. After the transaction, he watched for the transfer to make sure it had gone through. Once the money showed up, he put his phone away and stood. “There’s something else you can do for me.”
Sonny’s eyes nearly popped out of his head. “Are you kidding me?”
Uncle Joey’s lips twisted into a sardonic smile. “That last poker player…” He glanced my way with raised brows.
“Creed and his girlfriend, Ella,” I said.
“Right… Creed and Ella. They’re friends of Shelby’s, and I want your guarantee that they won’t be harmed.”
Sonny’s eyes narrowed. “Why would I guarantee that?”
“Because if you don’t, I’ll shred your reputation. I’ll let it be known that you cheated to win your own tournament, and you’ll never be able to hold your head up in this town again.”
Sonny scoffed. “You have no proof. It would be your word against mine. Why would anyone believe you?”
“Because I have the names of all the people you hired, from the physicist to the magician, and even that last gentleman who tried to stab my niece. I’m certain I could persuade each and every one of them to talk. In fact… I was planning to expose you anyway, but now I’m willing to keep it to myself in return for the safety of Shelby’s friends.”
Sonny shrugged, thinking that he’d agree and then do as he damn well pleased. “Fine. I’ll let them go. But the deal’s off if you go back on your word.” Sonny could always say that Uncle Joey had broken the deal, and that’s why they were dead. After we left, there wasn’t a thing we could do about it anyway.
Uncle Joey glanced my way and raised his brow. “What do you say, Shelby?”
“That’s not good enough.” I caught Sonny’s gaze with a glare of my own. “I don’t trust you, so we need to see them. Bring them down, and they can leave with us now.”
“That’s not possible.” Sonny wasn’t ready to let them out of his grasp. Creed hadn’t learned his lesson, and he needed to be punished. If he let Creed walk away, it would send the wrong message.
“We can wait,” Uncle Joey said.
Sonny’s eyes cleared. That was the perfect solution. Any minute now, Grant would come walking through that door with several men from his security team. Once they arrived, we’d have to leave emptyhanded.
I glanced at Uncle Joey. “He’s not listening. I think we need to finish this conversation elsewhere.” I motioned with my head to the door.
Uncle Joey nodded with understanding. “Ramos, take him.”
Before he knew what hit him, Sonny was on his feet with his arm twisted behind his back, and Ramos’s knife pressed against his neck. “Let’s go
for a walk.”
Sonny’s surprise gave way to bitter anger. “You can’t just take me out of here. I have men everywhere.”
“But I think there’s another way out.” I motioned to a door at the back of the room where Sonny’s gaze had flicked. “That door perhaps?”
“No. There’s no other way but through the lobby.” Sonny pulled against Ramos’s hold, desperate and shocked. How did I know that door led down a corridor and directly to the parking lot? The tip of Ramos’s knife drew blood from Sonny’s neck, and he froze.
“Through there.” I stepped toward the door. “It leads to the parking lot. Can Ricky pick us up?”
“Yes,” Uncle Joey said, putting the call through to Ricky. “He’s already waiting outside in the limo.”
I opened the door and led the way down the hallway, with Ramos dragging Sonny along, and Uncle Joey following behind.
We reached the outside door to the parking lot and waited while Uncle Joey told Ricky where we were. Ricky pulled up just a minute later, and we all piled in. Uncle Joey told Ricky to take us to an all-night diner, just off the Strip, and we pulled into the parking lot a few minutes later.
At nearly two in the morning, and after a generous tip, we managed to get the back room to ourselves. At Uncle Joey’s insistence, Sonny put a call through to Dom, telling him there was a change of plans and he was letting Creed and Ella go. He also put another call to Grant to come pick him up.
Uncle Joey reminded Sonny that nothing had better happen to them on the way, or he wouldn’t be going back to his hotel alive. Sonny groveled just enough to satisfy Uncle Joey, and he sat down at the table.
I listened closely, just to make sure Sonny didn’t have any hidden weapons, but he’d come empty-handed. I also picked up that Dom had taken Ella and Creed from her home several hours away, and Sonny planned to tell Dom to drive them only a few miles out of town before kicking them out of the car. It wasn’t as good as killing them, but dropping them off in the middle of the desert might do the job.
Grant entered the room first, followed a few minutes later by Dom, with Creed and Ella in tow.
High Stakes Crime: A Paranormal Women's Fiction Novel (Shelby Nichols Adventure Book 15) Page 16
