$427,000 on the line... A call girl... And just ONE call to make... 😈
BEFORE READING, IMPORTANT NOTE:
This post doesn't contain many images. I thought I'd let the writing paint the images in your mind. Please, let me know how I did. Thanks!
$427,000...
It sat uncomfortably in flat, round chunks atop the soft, green baize table...
The multi-colored discs seemed to skitter and shake beneath the cold stares of the seven hardened sets of eyes around the table. They all peered, stiff and motionless across the void.
Especially, those Gray Eyes - covered in cataracts like a dead fish.
Thick, rolling smoke slowly cascaded and swirled beneath the low-hanging yellow light in the center of the dungeon-like basement where they sat. Its failing glow cast steep shadows across the faces of those gathered together.
The scene could have been pulled from a comic strip - and the dim fluorescent light transformed the cancerous clouds into a soft and "comforting" yellow haze.
Gray Eyes wrapped his lips around the lightly wettened end of a cigar and pulled in a deep puff. It lit up his face with a fiery orange, casting a shadow from his double chin to his neck.
The crackling blunt seemed to echo endlessly between the concrete walls of the silent room. It was heart-beat quiet.
Seven people sat at the table. And they scarcely took a breath.
Across from Gray Eyes was Mr. Gold Watch. His skin was like dark leather and had more potholes than an unkempt Los Angeles street after an earthquake.
Gold Watch gently reached for his glass of bourbon - giving it a gentle twirl in his hand and listening to the half-melted ice cubes "clink" before putting the rim to his lips and taking a drink.
He reached a sweaty hand to the table before him and thumbed up the edges of the two playing cards that were his - peering carefully at them before letting his thumb slip off. The cards slapped back on the table.
Time had slowed. Seconds were hours. Minutes were days. And every one of them was tormented with anxiety.
Finally, after glancing back at Gray Eyes with a wolf-like smile, Gold Watch spoke:
"I'll call..."
His voice was gruff and confident, with a slight Hispanic accent.
Gray Eyes tried to hide a flinch - before firing back another wolf-like smile to match his competitor.
"Now we have a game!" Gray Eyes cackled with laughter, as nervous sweat gently glided down from his temple to his neck. He quickly swallowed the rest of his whiskey. "Pour me another!"
The sound of Mr. Gold Watch's chips being added to the center of the table filled the empty spaces between Gray Eye's cackles. A half-naked call girl bent over to take the empty whiskey glass.
"The pot is $627,000," stated the dealer.
The dealer was a young man. His voice shook, and his knees felt like they were melting sticks of butter in a hot pan. He wished he could slide out the back door.
Something didn't feel right.
Four cards sat face up on the table as all the players silently ran mathematical functions in their minds.
There was only one, final card to be dealt.
"Here you are sir," smiled the call girl. Her strikingly Red Hair bounced flirtatiously, flickering in the light as she handed Gray Eyes his drink.
"That's a good girl..." said Gray Eyes with a satanic, half-drunk smile. He planted his hand on her backside with a heavy slap as she walked away. Her face turned flush and she forced an uncomfortable giggle.
For a moment, her eyes met with Mr. Gold Watch. He had become tense, and she seemed to give him a look as if to say, "It's okay... calm down..."
Looking to the young dealer, Gray Eyes began to speak. "You'd better deal in my favor, boy..."
The dealer's eyes remained facing downward.
"Look at me boy!" screamed Gray Eyes, as the young dealer glanced up, beat red. "Did you hear me? You'd better deal me right!"
"Yes... I h-e-e-ard you..." The dealer was struggling to slide the last card from the deck. But Gray Eyes wasn't finished...
"You remember what happened when your father did me wrong... don't you? And how your mother had to pay the difference... And I heard you've got yourself a pretty little wife..."
"I... I rem-em-ember..." stammered the dealer, trying to hide the embarrassment. The heat rose from his shirt collar like a hot oven.
Across the table, Mr. Gold Watch tried to hide his anger. But his hands were beginning to shake.
CLANK...
The call girl behind the bar dropped something hard as she gave Mr. Gold Watch another look. "Don't..." she seemed to beckon with her eyes.
Gold Watch took a breath and relaxed his hands again.
The dealer finally worked the card from the deck, flipped it, and put it on the table. Wincing, as if bracing for some unseen impact, he spoke:
"Four of hearts..."
Gray Eyes took in a breath. A smug smile began spreading across his face as he exhaled what seemed to be a sigh of relief.
"Well... I think you're about done..." said Gray Eyes as he flipped his two cards.
The other players at the table winced.
"Four-of-a-kind fours..." said the dealer. He smiled like someone who just found out they beat cancer. He was safe, he thought.
The air stood still. All eyes were on Mr. Gold Watch...
He glanced at the call girl and shook his head before looking down at his cards again. He thumbed them, once... twice... three times... waiting a few seconds in between.
He looked up once more at the Redhead - and then over to Gray Eyes.
"WHAT?!?" Gray Eyes said. "You're done! Just lay 'em down!" He sat back in his chair, laughing. "Hope you didn't need the cash! Hahahahaha...."
BANG!
Blood and chunks of brain matter sprayed across the player's faces as the top of Gray Eye's forehead exploded. Time froze as their eyes bulged in fear, and they began scrambling from their seats.
The dealer spotted the shooter first.
The call girl had quickly approached from the bar, raising a pistol and dismantling Gray Eye's cranium. The dealer looked for the door... it was just past Mr. Gold Watch...
But Gold Watch was now standing between him and the door and looking at him down the end of a barrel...
BANG! BANG!
The dealer slumped to the floor, choking on his own blood. He'd taken two to the chest from one of Mr. Gold Watch's two forty-fives.
BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!
Screams and cries for mercy erupted in the cold basement as Redhead and Gold Watch worked their way to each player at the table.
The room was mostly sound-proofed, but the two guards outside had heard the muffled gunshots. Opening the door, they came to investigate.
Both fell to the ground writhing as Mr. Gold Watch and Redhead cracked off a barrage of hot metal into their bodies.
The couple was smooth.
This wasn't their first time.
"Crack the safe..." said Gold Watch, as he stepped toward the staircase to check if anyone else had heard the commotion. The meeting was secret, but he could never be too sure.
Redhead went to the back.
After a few minutes, there was a controlled explosion. "Got it! You good?" yelled Redhead from the basement...
"Ya! We're good... Let's go!" Gold Watch yelled back.
Coming up the steps with a bag full of cash, Redhead stopped just in front of Gold Watch and dropped the bag.
They looked at one another. Their eyes were ablaze, adrenaline was coursing through their veins, and sweat lathered their bodies.
They kissed a fierce kiss before pulling away at the sound of sirens. Someone must have heard the gunshots after the guards had opened the door.
"Guess we don't have time..." Redhead said, teasingly. Her eyes were bright and her glistening lipstick was indistinguishable from the blood spatters on her face.
"I'll always wait for you..." Gold Watch replied, with more than lust in his eyes.
"Well... let's not wait until they hang us..." Redhead answered. She had a touch of worry in her expression as the sirens sounded closer and closer.
"Let's go..."
...and they swept out into the night...
Hope you loved this! What did you think? How was the ride?