Fever

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“No, that’s not true. At first I thought you were a professional hustler trying to run your game in my casino. Now I know that you are just a pawn in the Sanchezes’ little scheme. Overall, I think it has been a very productive evening.”

She folded her arms across her chest. “Do you?”

He nodded in ignorant bliss, never sensing the growing anger boiling inside her chest. “Yup. But it’s okay. I’m sure once you explain to them what happened last night, they will confess all and we can put this whole little incident behind us.” He considered something else. “How about we go back to the casino and you can talk to Bobby yourself?”

“I considered that, but when the police wouldn’t even believe me, I knew it was pointless. Your reaction only confirms that.”

“But if you talk to him—”

“What do you think? He’s just going to confess? ‘Sorry, you tried to take my money, but I forgive you. Okay, here’s your money back’,” she said in a mocking voice. “No, talking to him won’t solve anything.”

He just looked at her, and knew she believed what she was saying. He laughed at Roxie’s naiveté. She didn’t realize the money she was winning at the poker table wasn’t even Bobby’s. She wasn’t stealing from him at all.

“What?” Roxie asked, her eyes narrowing on him.

He explained to her the flaw on her scheme at the poker table. “You should’ve played blackjack or roulette if you wanted to take Bobby’s money. The casino has nothing invested in the poker tables. It’s just a bunch of customers exchanging money around. We don’t see a dime of that.”

Roxie’s face flushed a deep shade of embarrassment. After several moments, she laughed, too, at her own silly error. She really should have thought of her plan better before storming into the casino. She’d been out of the game too long.

“Look, I’ll talk to Bobby,” he said finally, when Roxie had recovered.

“Please, Ike.” Roxie reached across the table and grabbed both his hands in a death grip. “Don’t tell Bobby Kincaid about them. I only told you because…just please, Ike. If he found out we went to the police, I don’t know what he might do.” She knew that if Ike told Bobby even half of what they’d shared this evening, then matters would be out of both their hands.

Ike was staring at her in confusion. There was no faking the kind of fear he was seeing in her eyes. She was a woman truly terrified. The Bobby she was describing, and the Bobby he knew were so different he couldn’t reconcile the images in his head. Just what had those old swindlers told her?

Whatever her parents were working at, there was no doubt they’d sold Roxie a bill of goods and she’d bought it all. Unless she was in on it with them, and this was her attempt to keep Bobby from learning the truth about them. Maybe, Ike thought, she believed she could convince him to help her with her scheme.