Playing With Fire (Games of Chance Series Book 2)

by T. L. Cannon

  Ethan straightened to his full height and stuffed the chips into the pocket of his dark trousers. “So you’re going to try to teach me how to play poker now?”

  Donovan leveled his gaze at Ethan. “I’m just reminding you that emotions are a liability in this game.”

  “Why do I get the feeling we’re not talking about poker anymore?”

  “Because we’re not,” Donovan replied tersely before pulling back the heavy black fabric of his suit jacket to look at the silver Omega Seamaster strapped to his wrist. “It’s time.”

  Without saying another word, Donovan headed towards one of the five private rooms located on the floor prompting Ethan to follow suit. Two intimidating looking guards wearing matching dark suits and opaque shades stood expressionlessly outside the door. Ethan took note of the tell-tale bulges of what appeared to be rather large hand guns not-so-discretely concealed beneath their jackets as they opened the double-doors to grant Ethan and Donovan entry into the private poker game scheduled to take place inside.

  Despite Donovan’s previous warning about tells, Ethan couldn't hide the mixture of shock and anger that flickered across his face the instant he locked eyes with Kira from across the smoke filled room.

  Seated at the black lacquered bar that had been stuffed into the already overcrowded room, Kira squirmed slightly in her seat next to her date for the evening. Channing Halworth had been a wealthy business associate of Yi’s who had displayed a keen interest in both Kira and high stakes gambling during the two years that she’d known him, making it easy enough to parlay those two interests into an all access pass into the VIP section. Kira had thought herself rather clever in finagling her way into the poker game after Ethan refused to bring her with him, but as she watched Ethan glowering at her, she rubbed her hand nervously over the satiny material of the copper-colored cocktail dress that tightly encased her thighs as she wondered if she had mistaken cleverness for foolishness.

  “Ms. St. James, we meet again. This time under less awkward circumstances,” Donovan said cheerily as he glanced from Ethan to Channing and then back again. “Or perhaps not.”

  “So you know each other then?” Channing directed his inquiry at Kira in a clipped British accent as he ran a pale hand through his russet colored curls.

  “Yes, we do,” Ethan interjected himself into the conversation, speaking to Channing but keeping the intensity of his laser-like gaze focused directly on Kira. Channing gave Ethan a visual once over that gave the distinct impression that he was checking out the competition. Clearly not liking what he saw, he draped an arm possessively around the back of Kira’s barstool.

  “We’re about to begin play,” the dealer announced as he took his position at the large, oblong poker table situated in the middle of the room.

  “How about a kiss for good luck?” Channing asked, planting a quick peck on Kira’s lips before she could stop him. Even from across the room she could see a tiny muscle in Ethan’s jaw flick angrily as he ground his teeth.

  Dragging his attention away from Kira, Ethan surveyed the other players as he took his seat at the table. A quick glance at the four men and two women that he and Donovan would be playing against told him that he was dealing with the usual suspects, a combination of Chinese businessmen and women with a few corrupt government officials, probably playing with misappropriated public funds, thrown into the mix for good measure. These high rollers had no doubt been flown in from mainland China on chartered jets by the junket operators who had arranged the game. In addition to paying upwards of a million dollars per month in fees for use of the VIP rooms, junket operators also facilitated lines of credit with the casinos on behalf of the players they brought in or, as was the case with this particular game, offered lines of credit themselves as a way of getting around Chinese law that severely limited the amount of money that its citizens could take out of the country. That’s where the triads came in. Since gambling debts can’t be legally enforced in mainland China many junket reps employed the highly specialized and typically violent services of triads. Between these lucrative loan sharking revenues and the opportunity for rampant money laundering that these unregulated games created, triad gang members tended to infest VIP rooms like cockroaches.

  Unfortunately, Ethan had yet to set eyes on the one particular machine gun-toting bug he was looking for and, at the moment, he was relieved by that fact. If and when Xiao’s killer showed his face, there was no way of knowing how he would react to seeing both of the people who had been with Xiao when he'd killed him which was why Ethan hadn’t wanted Kira at the game to begin with. Ethan being at the game could be dismissed as a coincidence but Kira being there as well made the situation look like the set up it was and there was no telling what kind of reaction that would elicit. Kira had potentially put herself in the line of fire with this little stunt and for that Ethan could have happily throttled her beautiful little neck. But since that wasn't an option, he settled into his seat with every intention of dispatching her date from the game as expediently as possible, thereby facilitating what he hoped would be a hasty exit for Kira. To his relief, it turned out that Channing wasn’t much of a poker player. While his face was blandly pretty under normal circumstances it became notably more animated while he played, giving away practically every hand dealt to him by the increased blinking of his eyes when he had a good hand and a subtle chewing of the inside of his cheek when he held a loser. After playing a half dozen or so hands, Ethan knew that he wouldn’t last long with this crowd and judging by the disappointed look on her face every time Channing tossed a losing hand onto the table, so did Kira.

  “Bloody hell!” Channing muttered with disgust as he threw in another losing hand.

  “I guess this isn’t your lucky night,” Ethan replied as he collected the pile of chips from the center of the table and began stacking them in neat rows in front of him. Although his words were directed at Channing his eyes were focused over his shoulder, locked on Kira.

  “The night’s not over,” Channing replied, following Ethan's gaze over to Kira pointedly. “I could still get lucky.”

  Ethan’s jaw tensed at Channing's insinuation as he fought off the urge to grind his fist into the other man’s mouth. “I wouldn’t push my luck if I were you,” he said as he rose from his seat.

  Kira visibly stiffened as Ethan joined her at the bar.

  “I’ll have a scotch, neat,” Ethan informed the bartender, waiting until he was out of earshot before addressing Kira under his breath. “Get your boyfriend out of here before he loses both his money and his teeth.”

  Kira resisted the urge to tell Ethan that Channing wasn’t her boyfriend, reminding herself that she didn’t owe him any explanations. “He has as much a right to be here as you do,” Kira pointed out in hushed tones.

  “You’re right. You’re the one who has no business being here which is why you are going to suddenly develop a headache and insist that Channing take you home. Given all the money he's already lost, he'll probably jump at the excuse to leave.”

  “I’m not going anywhere,” Kira snapped, her voice rising.

  “Oh, you’re leaving alright, even if I have to drag you out of here,” Ethan raised his voice as well, drawing a chastising look from Donovan but no longer caring whether or not he was being overheard.

  The brewing argument was interrupted by the door to the VIP room opening, prompting both Kira and Ethan to turn their attention to the new arrival. The man who walked through the door, though rather diminutive in stature, still somehow managed to convey a menacing aura as he crossed the room with the slow, ominous movements of a slithering snake. The black silk shirt he wore beneath his charcoal gray blazer was unbuttoned almost to his navel, revealing the mosaic of tattoos that crept up from his chest and wrapped around his neck. His soulless black eyes locked with Ethan’s in a moment of mutual recognition. The bemused sneer that spread across his lips as his gaze lingered on Kira immediately put Ethan on high alert.

  “Damn!�
�� Ethan muttered under his breath as he brought his scotch to his lips.

  Kira turned her back to the man. “Is that him?”

  Ethan responded to Kira with an angry glare. There was no doubt in his mind that the man who had just entered the room was both The Yellow Tiger Triad's enforcer and Xiao’s killer. His height and weight along with the almost mechanical way he moved were identical to that of the shooter. There was also no doubt in his mind that the killer had recognized him as well. Of much more concern was the fact that he clearly had also recognized Kira, putting her in danger that she never would have been in had she stayed away from the poker game like Ethan had told her to. He was contemplating how to handle the situation when the door to the VIP room opened once again.

  Both Ethan and Donovan’s eyes locked on Jared like the sights on a pair of high powered rifles as he sauntered up to the table with a confident stride, practically sucking all the air out of the room through the sheer power of his presence. Kira’s eyes flitted nervously between the two brothers as apprehension gripped her throat.

  If looks could kill, Jared Halifax would have been dead many times over.

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  “Well, look who’s here,” Jared said as he took a seat directly across from Donovan. “I was wondering when you would finally pop up in Hong Kong.”

  “I’m sorry I kept you waiting,” Donovan replied through clenched teeth.

  “You’re sorry alright. Always have been,” Jared replied with disgust as he nodded towards the pale faced lackey he’d brought with him who quickly came over and deposited the stacks of chips in front of him. His eyes turned towards Ethan maliciously. “That goes for both of you.”

  Ethan allowed his father’s insult to wash over him, letting it bolster the white-hot hatred he already felt towards the man. But despite the impressiveness of his poker face, he couldn’t keep his roiling emotions a secret from Kira. She could practically feel the animosity coursing dangerously through his veins.

  “I think you’re right. I should leave. Would you take me home?” Kira asked in a whispered tone, hoping to get Ethan away from his father before something bad happened.

  “I don’t think Channing would like that,” he countered, keeping his eyes fixed on Jared.

  “I don’t care,” Kira said as she gripped Ethan’s arm, looking up at him pleadingly. “Just take me home.”

  Ethan ignored the entreaty in her eyes as he pushed away from the bar and made his way back to his seat next to Donovan. Kira held her breath as she watched the two brother’s square off against their father.

  “Isn’t this nice,” Jared quipped. “It’s like a family reunion.”

  “Are we going to talk or are we going to play?” The pock faced Chinese gentleman seated next to Jared asked impatiently.

  “Eventually,” Jared replied, “First, my sons and I are going to play a few hands amongst ourselves.”

  “Like hell you are,” Channing countered angrily.

  “Why don’t we ask Gan about that?” Jared replied nonchalantly as he directed his eyes towards Xaio's killer.

  “Let them play,” Gan instructed the dealer, ending any more potential protests with a menacing glare directed at the other players.

  Donovan shifted his gaze from his brother to his father and then back again before suddenly sliding the stacks of chips in front of him over to Ethan. “I’ll sit this one out.”

  “Why am I not surprised?” Jared grumbled.

  Donovan ignored Jared’s dig as he leaned back in his chair to watch the showdown that he’d just deliberately set up between his brother and father play out.

  “So, it’s just you and me. Heads up,” Jared said to Ethan as he nodded to the dealer to begin play. “Let’s see what you've got, kid.”

  Ethan nodded slightly in response as the dealer dealt two cards a piece to him and Jared. Peeling the corners of the cards off the table, Ethan’s face remained impassive as he looked down at the pair of Kings he held and waited for Jared to make the opening bet, posting the small blind by tossing a hundred thousand dollar chip into the pot. Ethan then posted the big blind by betting the table minimum of two hundred thousand dollars. When Jared matched his bet, Ethan raised that bet by tossing five hundred thousand dollars worth of chips into the pot.

  “Aggressive move right off the bat,” Jared commented as he matched Ethan’s bet without so much as blinking an eye. “You must be pretty damned confident.”

  Ethan ignored Jared’s commentary as he called, prompting the dealer to deal the first three community cards face up, keeping his face unreadable as the flop revealed another King an a 5 and 8 of spades giving him three of a kind.

  “The thing about confidence is that you have to be wary of becoming over confident,” Jared continued on as he tossed another five hundred thousand dollars into the pot. “Take your mother for instance.”

  “What about my mother?” Ethan asked, his voice coming out low and deadly as he raised Jared’s bet by another five hundred thousand dollars.

  “As you and I both know she always had a problem with confidence,” Jared replied. “At first, her problem was that she had too little confidence. I mean, let’s face it, the woman was a total doormat.”

  From her seat at the bar, Kira gulped as she saw anger flash through Ethan’s eyes like gunfire. Even from across the room, she could see the emotions beginning to roil dangerously inside of him despite his attempts to maintain his poker face, just as Jared no doubt intended. She glanced up at Donovan, who was now standing next to her at the bar, to gauge his reaction. To her surprised he remained as cool as a cucumber, watching the interplay between Ethan and their father with the analytical air of a teacher observing a pupil taking an exam and instantly Kira realized that is exactly what he was. He had set up the showdown between Ethan and their father to test Ethan in someway. The realization made Kira even more nervous.

  Don’t let him bait you, she silently implored Ethan as she refocused her attention onto him.

  “More like a punching bag,” Ethan replied as he glared at Jared, his eyes practically clawing at the other man like talons even as his body remained perfectly still.

  Jared matched Ethan’s bet. “Use whatever metaphor you want, the point is that when it came to confidence, your mother ran on empty most of her life.”

  “Call,” Ethan said tersely, conceding Jared’s point while indicating to the dealer his desire to let the current bet stand. In response, the dealer dealt the fourth community card which turned out to be another King, giving Ethan four of a kind and causing the previously hardened angles of his face to soften slightly, a tell that didn’t go unnoticed by Jared.

  “But then one day she somehow got it into her head that fate had dealt her a winning hand,” Jared continued on in a mocking tone as he threw a cool million into the pot. “Like you, she thought that she could take me on and come out ahead.”

  Ethan inhaled deeply, ignoring the jabbing pain in his hand as he squeezed a chip tightly within his fist in an effort to keep himself from ripping Jared’s tongue out of his mouth, any and all semblance of a poker face vanishing. Looking over at Jared, he noted that his father’s face conveyed the cool, detached air of a cat toying with a mouse, dispassionately studying it’s reactions to being swatted around before going in for the kill. If he felt any uncertainty about the strength of the hand he held he was doing a hell of a job of not showing it.

  He’s bluffing, Ethan told himself as he took another peek at the two Kings he had been dealt and then at the two Kings on the board, You’ve got this bastard.

  Acting on blind belief in his hand, Ethan shoved all of his remaining chips, totaling two and a half million dollars, into the pot with both hands. “All in.”

  A nervous energy crackled in the air in response to Ethan's words. But it wasn’t the size of the pot that created the buzz of vicarious tension that vibrated through those watching the game. With the exception of Kira, all had seen far more money wagered on a single hand
of poker. It was the instinctual realization that far more was riding on the next turn of the cards than the millions of dollars stacked in the middle of the table that had everyone on the edge of their seats. Even without fully knowing Ethan and Jared’s backstory, there seemed to be a shared awareness that the emotional stakes of the outcome of this battle between father and son far exceeded the monetary ones and that the fallout could be explosive.

  No one was more aware of this than Kira as she stood motionless, her eyes zeroed in on Ethan. Like everyone else in the room, she could see the desperate need to best his father written all over his face. Unlike everyone else, she could also feel it. The mixture of pride and pain that churned violently in Ethan’s gut seemed to radiate across the room and penetrate Kira’s body by osmosis. Although beating Jared in a game of poker would hardly sate his desire for revenge against his father, doing nothing to deliver justice to Jared for the murder of his mother, it would be a symbolic victory proving to Ethan that both of those things could eventually be obtained.

  That Jared Halifax could be beaten.

  Sensing how invested Ethan was emotionally in what happened next, Kira literally held her breath as she waited for Jared’s next move.

  Jared rubbed his chin contemplatively as he eyed his son, a sneer slowly twisting his lips as he shoved all of his chips into the pot. “All in.”

  A grim smile slashed it’s way across Ethan’s hardened features as he rubbed his hands together in anticipation of the flip of the next and final card. With what seemed to be more than the usual fanfare, the dealer slid a five of spades next to the four other cards already on the table prompting Ethan to finally reveal his hand.

  “Four Kings,” the dealer announced as he joined the two Kings in Ethan’s hand with the two that had already been on the board.