by Max Hudson
“What have you been up to lately?” Felix asked.
“We’ve been running the casino, as always. It is turning quite the profit,” Bertrand said as he stirred his soup with a look of deadly concentration.
“And you Claudia? Have you found something to do?”
“I work in guest services,” she said in a small voice. I had never seen Claudia so devoid of energy.
“Wonderful, I’m glad you could find a place in our casino.” The moment he said “our”, the whole atmosphere in the room shifted.
“Yes.” She bowed her head again and looked away, thankful she wasn’t being talked about anymore.
“And where have you been Felix?” Bertrand asked.
“I’ve been travelling. Seeing the world, learning and reading. I’ve been all over, Russia, Mali, Japan, and all over the US, New York, Chicago.” I felt his gaze slip over to me.
I started shoveling hot soup into my mouth to avoid speaking. He was in Chicago on New Year’s and he recognized me. I knew that now.
“Wonderful.” I almost flinched at the amount of disdain in Bertrand’s voice. What had made him so angry all of the sudden?
The next course was a salad filled with fresh fruit and a dressing I’d never heard of before. I barely tasted it.
“Gavin was it?”
I turned and tried to act like everything was normal. “That’s my name.”
“Interesting. It’s nice to meet you. My brother never tells me about the day to day life at the casino. I bet you know it even better than him.”
“I wouldn’t say that.”
“Why? You are always on the casino floor. You see hundreds of customers. Don't sell yourself short.”
“Oh well, I’ve only worked here for a few months, but the casino is full of life. Every time I see a wedding or flip over the card someone was hoping for, I feel like another story is added to the casino and to my life.”
“It’s like it’s all connected,” Felix said.
“Yeah. It makes every day new and yet you can feel the history everywhere.”
“That red carpet has seen a lot,” Felix said with a grin.
I laughed. Then I saw Bertrand’s expression. His mouth was a thin line but somehow, he looked like he was frowning despite that. Claudia also had sunk further away.
They must know something I didn’t. I was just trying to be friendly, and Felix and I were just on the same page. And if they weren’t going to explain, and continue to let him stay in their house, how else was I supposed to react? If it was something really bad, why not kick him out?
The next course was dinner. It was a lamb roast. Had I ever eaten lamb before this? It tasted great. I wished we could have shared it over a better evening.
“Gavin,” Felix said as he cut through the meat on his plate. “I was just curious, what drew you here, to Vegas, and to work at Green Chapel?”
My brain wanted to shout “you”! I was here because of him. I wanted to say so many things to him, ask him why did he choose me, why did you make me wait? This was my chance. But I looked at Bertrand who was focused on his dinner, obviously listening.
“That’s a secret.”
Felix nodded. “How intriguing. I understand why you’ve gotten so close to my dear siblings; they love a challenge.”
“And you?” I leaned forward.
“I like to play some games, it’s natural when you grow up in a casino. But I prefer subtler games, like chess. The games at the casino are more luck with a little bit of skill. I prefer that split to be more toward skill.”
“I don’t know,” I said. “I don’t know how to explain it but I’ve never found traditional games that exciting.”
“Because,” Bertrand spoke up, looking up from his meal. “if you know someone is a better chess player than you, you already think you’ve lost. When so much of it is out of your hands, it feels like anything can happen. Even miracles.” He looked at me as he said that last part. He said exactly what I was trying to say.
“And that’s why we are so different,” Felix said in a joking tone. “Your games depend too much on the best happening. You expect everything to work out. But it doesn’t. Just a warning for you, little brother.”
After dinner, dessert was served. “If you will excuse me.” Felix stood up leaving his plate of some decadent chocolate thing. “I have to leave, there’s some business I have to take care of; a meeting with my lawyer before you ask.”
“Goodbye Felix,” Bertrand said as he stood from his chair as Felix left. He was still acting like a gentleman even though he clearly hated him. What happened between these two brothers?
“Do you want to wish me luck?” Felix asked.
“May you get what you deserve.”
Felix smiled and looked at me. “It was good to meet you Gavin. I hope we can speak again some time.”
I put a hand up and waved hesitantly, I wasn’t sure how to take all of this. It seemed like Felix was some sort of bad guy but I needed to know why.
As he headed for the door he turned around suddenly. “Death?” That was his childhood nickname. “I intend to get what I deserve.” And then, he was gone again.
I didn’t know what else to do. I took a bite of cake.
Bertrand sat back down. “I apologize for this evening. I had no idea we would be having a guest,” he said without looking at me.
“It’s not a problem,” I said slowly.
“Do you want an explanation?”
“That would be nice.”
“He is our older half-brother, from my father’s first marriage. I was from his second wife. He was supposed to be given the casino but it was instead given to me. He has been jealous.”
“Why didn’t he get it?”
It was quiet. I glanced at Bertrand and then at Claudia.
“He was in charge for months and he started running the place into the ground.”
That made sense, and if he was still angry, then I understood the awkward mood.
I was startled by the creak of a chair. I looked up to see Claudia sitting up straighter and a hard look on her face. “He didn’t deserve it.”
Chapter Twelve
That night, after dinner, I laid in bed with my laptop on my chest and scrolled through the internet. It felt invasive, but I finally knew who my Green Man was and he turned out to be an asshole. That was just my luck. I hadn’t gotten the courage to tell Lance and Arthur what I found out and didn’t plan to for a long time. I was embarrassed. At New Year’s he was so charming. But I guess I shouldn’t have based my whole opinion of him on that brief moment we shared. But it was so magical!
Now I was stalking him on the internet.
After dessert, Bertrand had brought me home, mostly silent in the car but occasionally he would apologize to me for the evening being ruined. I tried to assure him that it was fine but he wasn’t hearing it. Once I was home, I didn’t start researching right away, but I might as well have.
I found the jackpot in an article written only one year ago. It was called “The Knight Brothers Protect Their Castle”. I scrolled through it hungrily. It was an interview about the brother’s taking over the casino together. My eyebrows raised. The way Bertrand told it, it seemed like Felix inherited it and then it was given to Bertrand later. But this article, which was in both of the brother’s own words, was all about them being given the casino jointly. It was an even 50/50 split. Did Bertrand lie to me? I knew he was a tricky man. But for some reason I didn’t think Bertrand, or Claudia for that matter, would ever lie to me.
One quote from the article stood out to me the most. The interviewer asked, “Is it difficult working with your brother?”
Apparently, Bertrand laughed. “I actually see it as a blessing. We finish each other’s thoughts. I trust him more than anyone.”
“He’s my best friend,” Felix added in there. “I was more afraid of running this place alone. I don’t know how our father did it for so long.”
I sat up in bed a
nd set my computer aside. Now I was even more confused. I thought I understood it all. I was sure that Felix was Bertrand’s evil brother who was furious the casino was taken from his unworthy hands. This article made it sound like they were the closest people in the world and that was only a year ago. It went from “best friends” to “mortal enemies” awful quick.
I shut my laptop and laid back down. What was I supposed to believe? When I asked for excitement, I forgot to think about all the complicated parts. But how was I supposed to know I was in the middle of a family drama?
I decided there that it was only fair if I got Felix’s side of the story too. Then I would be able to decide who was really at fault here. My only problem was that I didn’t know how I would see him again. All of his social media accounts were locked and I didn’t exactly get to exchange contact info at the casino. I guess I would have to hope he’d show up again even though it made both Claudia and Bertrand upset. But I had to know. Was my Green Man the prince I imagined or the villain?
***
I would get a chance to find that answer a week later. I was finishing up a rather quick shift on a Tuesday that was winding down as it got slower at my table. Over time I was getting a more consistent amount of people at my table. People had the habit of picking a favorite lucky table or even a lucky dealer. I was slowly becoming a few people’s lucky dealer. But still, I wasn’t exactly the most popular one. I was able to get my table taken over by the next dealer with little fuss. I was going to head home as I didn’t have any plans. I’d had a few more lunches with Bertrand and sometimes Claudia, but the dinner had really soured both of their moods. It was exhausting trying to keep the mood at the table resembling anything pleasant.
I was on my way out of the employee entrance, headed for the bus stop when I saw Felix. He was wearing a plain navy suit and his neat auburn hair was styled.
“Hello Gavin.”
“Hello Felix?” I was wary. If what Bertrand said was true, this man wasn’t to be trusted.
“I was actually looking for you inside but gave up hope. It’s fate that I ran into you.”
“Why were you looking for me?”
“I wanted to talk, without my brother and sister there. I think you could tell they aren’t my biggest fans.”
“Yeah.” I scratched the back of my neck and glanced back and forth.
“Have you been to any good restaurants since you moved here?”
“Actually, I don’t think I’ve gone to any,” I said, realizing it as I said it. When I ate out, it was at the restaurant in the casino or take out to my apartment.
“That’s a shame, I can’t believe Bertrand wouldn’t take you to see the sights. Well, I guess I can.”
“Why do you say that?”
“I’ll explain. I’ll take you to the place where you can get the best burgers in town, none of that too fancy stuff Bertrand is always getting at the Casino.”
“All right. But dinner only.”
“Did you think I was going to take you away like some kind of dragon?”
I felt my face grow hot. “No.”
He laughed and started walking. “It’s just nearby.”
After a moment, during which I looked back at the casino, I followed.
***
The burger place was styled like a retro joint. There were bright teal and pink neon lights and the waiters and waitresses wore roller skates. We sat down and ordered some waters and I got some burger that had both avocado and barbeque sauce. I wasn’t sure if it was going to be tasty or disgusting but I was willing to take the coin flip.
Once we were alone the Green Man, Felix, smiled at me. He had a good smile, but it was hard to read. It was like Bertrand’s; I had to learn how to read it but I felt like I could tell what his different smiles meant now.
“First I wanted to say it’s so good to see you again.”
“We just met a week ago.”
He sighed dramatically and smiled again. “You know what I mean. New Year’s Eve.”
“You remembered.”
“Of course I did. It was a memorable night. And I made that promise, didn’t I?”
I blushed. “You did.”
“I was surprised to see you at the dinner, but I decided not to bring it up because I didn’t want Bertrand to think any less of you because of me.”
“Why does he hate you. He told me—”
“That I was running the place into the ground? That the casino was given to him to “save it”. Something like that?”
I blinked. “Exactly that.”
“It’s his official story for everyone who doesn’t know what happened to me.”
“I read online that you two used to work together, is that true?” I asked.
“It is true. We were given the casino by our father before he got married to his latest wife and left us to our own devices. It was only a year and a half ago.”
“What happened?”
He sighed again. “We were the best of friends; we had been our whole lives. Neither of us cared that we had different mothers, we were brothers no matter what. But when we took over the casino, Bertrand changed.”
“He changed?”
“He started to question all of my ideas. He stopped listening to me. And eventually he couldn’t take that I had any control over the casino.”
“That doesn’t sound like him at all,” I said. I was basing it off how he treated Claudia, he wasn’t controlling. Maybe he was commanding, a leader, but a control freak, no.
“Why would he need to show that side of him? He has everything he wants.”
I didn’t want to believe Bertrand was so cruel. “How did he get the casino then?”
“Are you sure you want to know, you two seem...close. I don’t want to ruin your opinion of him.”
“I can take it.”
He took a deep breath. “He got me drunk and got me to agree to a deal. A deal where I gave him everything I received and he gave me everything he received.”
I gasped. That was nothing like what he told me at all and that deal was just like the ones he offered to me. Maybe Bertrand was the villain in this story.
Chapter Thirteen
“He got you drunk?” I realized how loud I was being and hunched back down. “That’s awful.”
“It’s true, I wasn’t in my right mind. He got me to sign a contract when I was too drunk to look it over properly. Apparently the day of the deal was the day the ownership of the casino was finally officially transferred over to me since I was going to be the one the deed was given to and Bertrand was going to get the position of head manager. Now he has both.”
“How did that hold up in court? And what did your dad say?”
“It doesn’t hold up in court, according to my lawyer. But the transfer went through anyway because of my father.”
“What?”
“I know you’ve never met him but trust me when I say he is a confounding man. When he heard about how Bertrand tricked me, he laughed. He told me if I could be tricked that easily that I didn’t deserve the casino and agreed to give the deed to Bertrand instead.”
I didn’t want to think this was true. The deal sounded like him but getting his brother into a state where he can’t really understand the deal was dirty, unforgivable even. Their two stories didn’t match and it was suspicious how wildly different they were. I was still missing something.
“What did he give you?” I asked.
He scoffed. “Someone bought him a drink that night so he bought me one. Not a fair trade huh? My inheritance for a beer?”
I was so sure that Bertrand was a nice man. All of our lunches together were fun and once I got used to his teasing and games, I felt comfortable around him. I felt like I belonged with Claudia and him. Was my judgement so off?”
“I know it’s hard to believe, and I understand if you can’t yet. But I just hope that you ask him about what I told you about. If he still denies it, it is up to who you trust more, but I don’t think, onc
e faced with the truth, he will lie since you already know too much.”
“You’re right,” I said, my thoughts racing. “I have to speak to Bertrand.”
He looked briefly annoyed. I couldn’t blame him. It was awful to not be trusted.
He slid me a business card across the table. “Since I forgot to give you my number last time.”
He flagged down a waitress, spoke to her and stood up, straightening his jacket.
“But we haven’t even eaten yet?”
“I have another meeting unfortunately. I regret that I can’t stay longer once again. But don’t worry about your bill, I took care of it already. I hope to hear from you soon.”
He left and moments later my burger arrived. After a few bites, I couldn’t stand to eat anymore.
***
The next day I planned to confront Bertrand. I had to know the truth. When my shift was over, I went to his office but he wasn’t there like he always was. I considered waiting for him, but I don’t know what came over me, I headed out and started looking all over the casino.
I had never really gone to the higher floors of the casino but it was more of the same, more tables and more slot machines. I didn’t see a speck of green. Maybe he wasn’t here. But still, I kept moving through the tipsy crowd. Eventually I made it to the very top of the casino.
I hated the phrase: it took my breath away, but was there any better way to say it?
The top of the casino, which was a platform accessed by a very large, winding spiral staircase was a seating area with a small cactus garden in the center. But that wasn’t the real sight, it was the large stained-glass window that the setting sun pierced through leaving drops of color all over the floor, the walls, and even on the cacti. I looked down at my hands and watched the colors dance on my skin. I’d never been up here before. I was so focused on my job, on searching for the Green Man, that I never thought to explore this place.