Before Another War

Some Weeks Ago

Matt stared at the cards in his hands. He could do this. He had to. His hands trembled with desperation. Two aces, the absolute best start to a game you could hope for. As he glanced around the table, none of the other players gave anything away. Not a single twitch or blink of an eye. Still, out of the six of them, Matt had the best shot. 

He watched as the small blind, and then the big blind were placed. It was a cheaper game for most of them, with just two-fifty as the starting bet. When it came to Matt, he matched it. For now, he wouldn't raise, not until he was confident. No one folded.

 Lately, he'd been playing it safe with his games. He didn't have much money left. However, this evening, something buoyed him with confidence. As the dealer set the next three cards on the table, he watched the other players react. At least two would fold here. Matt looked down at them — an Ace, a three and a six.  All hearts. Even better. One more Ace and he'd be almost unbeatable.

It was now time to raise the bet. When it reached him, Matt raised from a measly five-hundred to two grand. This was the game. The two thousand was a big chunk of his savings, but he had this in the bag. 

Three people folded, more than he had anticipated. No matter. It was nearing midnight now, but Matt didn't notice. In these places, you didn't feel the time, only the game. There were no clocks here, and that was no accident. 

 Matt had been playing in this casino for years, slowly working up to the bigger, more worthwhile tables. He knew the game well. Now, he just had two more people to beat. But first, he wanted to squeeze every penny he could out of them. 

They both matched his bet, and the dealer placed the next card down. Ten of hearts. Not useful to him, but not particularly valuable to anyone else either. To Matt's surprise, one of them raised. The man, almost too gleefully, shoved all of his chips into the centre. He played a lot here and was one of the casino's best customers. Matt assumed had to be a millionaire with the way he casually threw vast sums away on the table. He didn't look like one, though. He was about fifty, with wild, grey hair and unkempt clothing with a beer belly that hung onto his jeans. 

Matt had a difficult choice to make. He barely had two thousand in chips left — his life savings. Go all in, or fold. Predictably, the other remaining player folded, not willing to lose everything. But Matt knew he had a solid hand, and he wasn't going to let this chance go. 

Thinking of his mother, he pushed all of his chips straight to the centre of the table. The millionaire raised his eyebrows, having expected Matt to give in. The pair of them watched with bated breath as the dealer dealt the last card. A Jack of hearts. Okay, Matt thought, it's fine. But it wasn't. His head felt like water swirling down a drain as he waited. 

Chances are, he still had the better hand, but why was the millionaire so confident? 

Slowly, Matt revealed his cards, his heart leaping out of his chest. Everyone stared as the millionaire unveiled his with a guilty look in his eye. Matt soon saw why. The millionaire had been holding the king and queen of hearts. A royal flush. It was over. Everything. 

Matt couldn't bear to watch as his money was swept away. He stood up from the table, his chair scraping against the dirty floor. His head swam as he tried to walk, dizzy and unbalanced. As he stumbled out, Matt could feel everyone's eyes on him, boring a hole straight through the back of his head. He knew it was stupid to play with all his money, but then he could win more. And Matt had been so sure he was going to win.