Vampire Beach: High Stakes (17 page)

‘OK, I’m going to need some commentary,’ Maggie said. ‘I’ve only played poker about twice, both times at a party.’

Van Dyke wrapped his arm around her. ‘Not a problem.’

A tall woman with wildly curling strawberry blond hair entered the room. She had to be a vampire. With her flawless ivory skin and glowing pale blue eyes, she couldn’t possibly be human. The neck of her ankle-length black gown was high, and the sleeves were long, but as she passed by on her way to the main table, Jason could see that the back of the dress was cut so low there was no way any underwear was going on.

‘She’s the dealer,’ Van Dyke said.

Several extremely clean-cut twenty-something guys followed her, carrying trays of chips. They distributed them to the players in silence.

‘Hard to believe those pieces of plastic represent more than a million bucks,’ Adam commented.

Another woman walked to the head of the table. She
had
light brown hair in a sleek bob. ‘Good evening, players and guests. My name is Hilary Mayer and I am the manager of the Bonheur. If there is anything my staff can do to make you more comfortable tonight, please don’t hesitate to ask.’ She smiled. ‘I know none of you have come here to listen to me. You all know the rules, and Mr Barstow, your director for the night, will be on hand if there are disputes of any kind.’ She nodded to the angular man standing several feet away from the table. He nodded back. ‘So, again, welcome, and good luck,’ Hilary concluded, then took a seat in the gallery.

The dealer placed a silver disc in front of Marc, who sat to her left. ‘That’s called the button,’ Van Dyke told Maggie. ‘It shows who the dealer is.’

‘I thought you just said that that woman is the dealer,’ Maggie answered.

‘She is,’ Adam put in. ‘In tournaments, there’s always a professional dealer. But usually each player takes a turn dealing, and that’s important in the rules. So, in terms of the rules, the person with the button counts as the dealer, even though they’re not actually dealing. Got it?’

‘Got it. It seems stupid, but I’ve got it,’ Maggie replied.

Yakamoto and Too Much Bling pushed chips in
front
of them. ‘The two players to the left of the dealer have to put in what’s called the “small blind” and the “big blind”. It’s a mandatory bet,’ Jason explained, doing his part of the commentary for Maggie. ‘It looks like the small is 1,000 bucks, and the big is 2,000. Those amounts will go up as the game goes on. It’s to keep the play aggressive. Bigger blinds mean players will risk more on less than great hands.’

‘The game is No-limit Texas Hold ’Em,’ the dealer announced in a throaty voice that easily carried to the gallery. A hush descended on the room as she began dealing two cards face down to each of the players.

Sexy Actress quickly checked her cards. ‘Raise 2,000 dollars.’ She slid the chips out in front of her. A monitor mounted in the center of Jason’s table showed a close-up as the dealer confirmed the bet.

‘Ooh,’ Adam observed. ‘She could have just called and put in the amount of the big blind – 2,000 dollars – but she chose to take it up a notch.’

‘Fold,’ Zach said.

‘That means he’s out for the rest of this hand,’ Van Dyke explained. ‘He can’t have any good cards; he didn’t even wait for the flop.’

‘I understood the “fold” part without the translation,’ Maggie said. ‘But “flop”? I’m lost again.’

‘The betting for this round is going to continue
until
everyone has either folded, gone all in – that means bet all their chips – or matched the highest bid,’ Van Dyke told her. ‘Then the dealer will turn over three cards. They’re called the “flop” and they are community cards. The players will use them with the two cards they already have – “hole” cards, they’re called – to come up with their poker hands. After the flop, there’s another round of betting.’

‘Right. So if you’re holding a pathetic little three and a six in your hole cards, but then two more sixes come up in the flop, suddenly you’re holding three of a kind!’ Belle added. ‘Not a fabulous hand, but a lot better than what you started with.’

‘So why did Zach fold without waiting for the flop?’ Maggie asked. ‘He can’t really know how good his hand is until he sees the three cards, right? Or am I missing something?’

‘It’s true that the flop can change your hand,’ Erin told her, ‘but there’s a round of betting before the flop. If Zach’s got really bad cards, and the betting gets high in that round, then he’d probably choose to fold instead of matching the bet.’

‘Yeah, he’s probably just playing a tight game, being cautious,’ Brad put in. ‘Don’t worry. I’m not even going to admit how much money Zach has taken off me playing Hold ’Em.’

Zach folded before the flop on the next hand too. A hand that Marc won. Jason’s gut clenched. ‘I hope he has a good enough hand to stay in – at least until the turn – soon,’ he murmured uneasily. Before Maggie could ask, he explained. ‘After the flop, there’s another round of betting. Then the dealer turns up one more card – that’s called the “turn”. Then there’s more betting. Another card goes face up – that’s the “river”. Those two cards are community cards too. The last round of betting comes after that.’

‘So then you can use any of the five cards on the table with either of your two hole cards for your hand?’ Maggie queried.

‘Yes, either or both,’ Adam clarified. ‘But Zach’s pulled out way before that point.’

Jason leant forward, all his attention on Zach as more hands were played. Zach folded often – and lost almost as frequently. He didn’t win a single hand.

In contrast, Marc played loose, betting on hands when the odds would have told a more cautious gambler to fold – and it was paying off.

About an hour into the tournament, Jason and Adam exchanged a what-in-the-freaking-hell look. Zach still hadn’t won a hand. Was it possible that their friend was simply outclassed?

‘
HE FOLDED AGAIN.
Unbelievable!’ a man at one of the other tables of observers said loudly enough for Jason – and probably Zach – to hear.

Adam covered his eyes with both hands. ‘That’s a lot of hands where Zach’s folded. And when he hasn’t folded, he’s lost!’

‘Thanks for the update,’ Brad snapped irritably.

Adam spread his fingers and peered at him. ‘Sorry. It’s just … I guess the pressure’s getting to me.’

Brad nodded. ‘To all of us.’

Jason tried to keep his impatience from getting totally out of control as the hand played out.

‘At least Marc didn’t win that last hand,’ Erin commented.

‘True,’ Maggie said, ‘but he already has about 43,000 dollars more than he started with.’

‘And Zach has 20,000 less,’ Van Dyke added.

‘That isn’t nearly as much as Yakamoto’s lost, though,’ Erin commented.

‘At least Yakamoto’s in the game. Zach, he’s … Well, it’s almost as if Zach doesn’t want to play,’ Jason said, frowning.

‘Look, Zach’s a great player, I’m telling you,’ Brad insisted.

‘I’ve played with him, too,’ Van Dyke put in. ‘And he whips my butt. Not playing like this, though. I’ve never seen Zach playing like this.’

Is Zach so freaked out about Sienna that he can’t concentrate?
Jason wondered. But that just didn’t seem like Zach. Jason had seen him under extreme pressure before, and Zach was the ice man.

The dealer was shuffling the cards. A new hand was about to begin.

‘Zach has to have a plan,’ Paige said. It was the first time she’d spoken since they’d entered the private room. It was like she thought that if she poured every ounce of concentration she possessed into watching the game, she could somehow make it turn out the way it had to in order to save her and Sienna.

The bidding started around the table. When it got to Zach, he said, ‘Raise 10,000 dollars.’ Jason heard Paige draw in a sharp breath.

‘Oh, yeah!’ Adam yelped loudly. Not exactly good tournament etiquette, but Jason was pretty sure everyone in the Malibu group was feeling the
same
way; Zach had finally made a decisive move.

‘He was just hanging back,’ Brad said, clearly relieved. ‘He probably has everyone’s tell nailed.’

‘OK, I thought I had all the vocabulary down. But “tell”?’ Maggie asked.

‘It’s something a player does, without realizing it, that tells what kind of hand he’s got going,’ Van Dyke explained. ‘Like an unconscious tick.’

‘John Malkovich had an awesome tell in
Rounders
,’ Adam joined in. ‘When he had a great hand, he’d pick up an Oreo cookie and twist it open right next to his ear, then eat each half.’

‘Never saw it,’ Van Dyke said.

‘No girls making out, I guess,’ Maggie teased.

‘Shut up, you guys. I want to watch Zach!’ Paige exclaimed.

The other players all called Zach’s bet.

‘If they “call”, it means they’re agreeing to match the highest bet of that round,’ Van Dyke whispered to Maggie. ‘At the end of the round of betting, they all have to have either called or folded.’

The dealer turned over the flop cards: queen of hearts, queen of clubs, eight of spades.

The pot was at $72,000 as the next round of bidding started. Marc bet $15,000. He must have liked what he saw in the flop. Yakamoto folded, as did Too Much Bling.

Sexy Actress called. Zach raised $15,000 without a moment’s hesitation, his eyes on Marc. Other Tuxedo Guy folded, but Marc saw Zach’s $15,000 raise, and raised another $15,000, answering Zach’s challenge.

‘Gotta say this for Marc, he has
cojones
,’ Van Dyke muttered.

Sexy Actress folded. Zach called.

‘Zach has
cojones
too. I’ve seen them,’ Paige answered. Now that Zach was clearly in the game, she’d gotten a little of her old sparkle back.

‘You’re bad,’ Erin told her.

Paige winked at her. Yeah, Paige was definitely feeling a little more hopeful.

When the round of betting ended, Zach, and Marc were the only ones still in. The pot was up to about $177,000.

The dealer flipped the turn card: jack of hearts.

‘A queen and a jack in the hole wouldn’t be bad,’ Brad observed.

Did Marc have those? Jason wondered, as he watched Marc bet 30 grand.

Zach, face expressionless, voice flat – the way they’d been the whole game – called. Marc looked surprised. Jason could tell he was trying to read Zach and failing.

The dealer flipped the river card: three of diamonds.

Marc eyeballed Zach, ‘Check.’

‘What’s he doing?’ Maggie asked.

‘He’s trying to figure out what Zach has, so he’s passed the betting to him,’ Van Dyke explained. ‘He still has the right to bet – or fold – after Zach bets.’

‘Raise 100,000 dollars,’ Zach said calmly. The crowd gasped.

‘That brings the pot up to about 337,000 dollars,’ Adam whispered. ‘They each have something like 90 grand of their own money on the line. That’s going to be a big bite for the loser.’

Now everything rested with Marc. Jason knew that Marc must be holding good cards to have played this far, but what did Zach have? And what would Marc do?

Marc watched Zach for a long time, but Zach’s face was expressionless. ‘Call,’ Marc said at last.

‘“Call” means matching the highest bet,’ Maggie muttered to herself, trying to keep all the info that had been thrown at her straight.

‘Since Marc called, Zach has to show his hand,’ Van Dyke told Maggie.

Zach flipped his cards face up on the table: eight of diamonds, eight of hearts.

‘Full house,’ Adam breathed happily. ‘Beat that, you freak.’

Marc shoved his cards into the center of the table without showing them, indicating that Zach had won.
He’d
just won a pot of – Jason did some quick math – something like $437,000. And Marc had just lost more than $180,000. He’d won a decent percentage of the earlier hands, but it still wasn’t going to be easy for Marc to recover from that.

‘Somebody get me some popcorn; I’m starting to enjoy the show,’ Adam said, when Zach won the next hand.

Jason started to feel like he was sucking in helium instead of air as the next two hands went to Zach too. He felt happy when Sexy Actress took one. Even Too Much Bling taking a pot felt kind of good. Money they got was money Marc didn’t have. They were helping to escort Marc right out of the game. Then he could take them to Sienna, and the Vegas trip would be back on track.

‘I know him,’ Paige mock bragged to the people sitting at the next table when Zach won another hand. ‘He took me to the prom. I’m serious.’

‘What’s Marc down to, anybody know?’ Brad asked. ‘He’s gotten a lot more cautious these last few rounds.’

‘He’s only got around 80,000 dollars left to play with,’ Erin answered.

‘Poor, poverty-stricken baby,’ Adam muttered as the dealer began to shuffle the cards.

‘It’s actually true,’ Jason said. ‘The bidding has been
getting
steep the last few hands. Marc could be out of the game soon.’

‘Ooh, then after we get Sienna back, can we go to the Star Trek Experience?’ Adam asked. ‘The Final Frontier Desserts at Quark’s Restaurant are supposed to be awesome.’