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Chapter 6.

Paul's stood between a hair salon and another casino. Flashing banners in neon red and neon blue were switching colors to view the name of the decorous venue of uninhibited sundried castes. A sentinel dressed in a red satin suit, let us in. We passed those damned machines were you needed to get the shapes in the same - shape? And all you end up getting is one lemon and three stacks of dollars. Rum fluck of a hoodoo. We took the hallway on our right and walked on the marbled floor carpeted with a velvet red. Diego opened a door and we both stepped in. Around a table, sat the most contaminated four men. They poach themselves as the 'King B's' for all of their initials start with the letter B. On the table; were cards and chips of Blackjack, bottles of beer and four ashtrays with six cigarette heads mashed inside.
"Diego, my amigo," Said Bernard, one of the men who never got bored with the rhyme of this phrase. All of the rest stood up and shook hands warmly with Diego. Where did all the regard and reverence come from - I wondered?
"Who's this young man?" Asked a man named Benjamin.
I stepped closer immediately, showing the same morals.
"Cameron Lockwood," I answered him, reaching my hand for him then the rest.
"What is a guy of - sixteen doing-"
"Eighteen. Came to win some bets." I said.
"And what is mister Lockwood demanding to play?" Barton asked, smoking a cigarette and gave me the desire to smoke one of my own. I took it out and lit it up, holding it between my index finger and thumb and pressing it to my lips.
"Roulette. For four - hundred." I demanded as he phrased it. He looked in astonishment.
"This is a game for pros, son. You can lose a lot of money-" Bernard started.
"And so can you, mates." I said in a nasty tone and Diego shot me a look while he laughed nervously.
"Excuse me gentlemen until I have a word with this young man outside. Just a minute please," He apologized and grabbed my arm, pulling me out of the room. When we were outside, he closed the doors and shoved me against the wall.
"Are you mad, Cameron?!" He yelled.
"Yes," I said tenaciously.
"For devil's sake, I know you are but not - that mad!"
I took a breath of my cigarette.
"What's cracked you up now, St. Hill?"
"Four hundred dollars! My God what were you thinking? We barely got Giles to accept three fifty and now-"
"You should be thanking God that I didn't go for four thousand dollars, Diego. Stop being a lady."
"Do you know who you're dealing with? For hell, Cameron, Bernard has a Mauser in his left pocket!"
"Right,"
"I'm serious."
"No, I mean it's in the right pocket. Not the left." I explained holding my inclination to laugh.
"Oh.Well anyway, you'll piss them off if you don't pay the money and you don't even have the cash,Lockwood." Diego said.
"I'll only have to pay if - and only if- I lose. And I'm not going to lose, that's one. As for two, I'm betting on four hundred and I am not going back. Three fifty for Giles, the remaining fifty adds up to thirty from me and twenty from you."
"That makes them a hundred. Why?" He asked.
"For Vanessa. I owe her," I replied.
"You know you shouldn't be so sure about winning, Cameron. No one walks in, playing with dignity and wins with these kind of men." Diego said.
"Who said anything about playing with dignity?" I asked.
"You're a dog, you know that?"
"No, mate. I'm a gambler." I gave him a slow smile and entered the room back again.
"Well, mister Lockwood.. we've got your cards and your chips." Benson said, holding back sarcasm while adjusting his stupid tie. Last time I saw one with those hideous colors were in a garbage bag of rotten candy Nerd stones.
"Bloody fantastic. I'm ready to play," I announced. I sat down along with them, between Bernard and Benjamin. The latter took his beer in a hast gulp and asked for another. Bernard took out a dollar denomination. He bought his chips. I sat still for a moment assuming my stacks are the chips and I took out twenty dollars. The man responsible for dividing the chips nodded and handed me over twenty chips. Bernard was busy checking his cards.
"You'll play with me first," He said. "If you lose, you'll face Ben." He added. I pretended to be listening but in fact I was busy checking my own cards as well. I slowly broke my chips to five stacks of four chips each. The Roullete started and Bernard began. It was then my turn to play the five of six-line bets. Bernard looked at me with a slight contemptuous look. I moved hastily and spread my cards, placing two bets over one number. He raised an eyebrow. He certainly expected me to double the bet. (Which I didn't.)
"Flip them," I said.
He glared, held the cards and flipped them to the other side. My numbers came out clean. I won the first bet.
"That was a good start for you." He murmured. I shrugged. Diego was startled and the rest were impressed - I had guessed. I applied the same method on the next bet and the next. I won them all.
"That'll make them five hundred, sir." Said the chip man.
"But he only bet on four hundred," Bernard said with annoyance.
"Let's say it was a last minute call." I told him.
"You little-"
"I won't advise you, mate. I played you out."
He took out his gun and slammed it against the green table.
"You know what do you deserve right now?" He asked.
I shook my head carelessly.
"A glass of champagne for heaven's sake, you totally played me! Welcome to the club." He welcomed me in, laughing out loud. Diego sighed, probably out of relief that Bernard didn't put a bullet into my head.
"The money?"
"Oh yes, yes." He said, then he brought a stack of five hundred dollars and handed them to me. I stuffed them in the inside pocket of my black leather jacket.
"Hate to disappoint you mate but I've got to get going now. I'll make sure to visit and do your crappy buinsess again. Farewell gentlemen." We all shook hands and then Diego and I headed out of Paul's. As we got in my car he turned to me.
"So why five hundred?"
"I decided I didn't want you to scold me over twenty that you paid for lying to my girlfriend." I said.
"Hm. Good point, I guess."
"Put Giles on the phone for me. He'd better start with the treatment,"
"Are you sure that it's going to work? It might cure you?"
"If it's going to be like that hypodermic piece of garbage then no."
"But.. how are you feeling now, Cameron?"
I looked at the empty, dark street ahead of me.
"Sleepy," I answered, before I hit the fuel pedal and drove away from this street.

It was eleven thirty. The night was cold and dark. I dialed Cameron's number over and over until he finally picked up. I sat on the edge of my bed and heard his voice from the far end of the line.
"Where the hell have you been, Cameron?"
"Delightful hello, love. I missed you too." He said.
"It's not the time to be a riot." I said, my voice cracking as I remembered the talk I had with Dr. Giles and the truth that Cameron was ill -way too bad.
"Are you alright?" He asked, this time his tone changed and became something that it never was. Serious.
"Why didn't you tell me, Cameron?"
"Tell you what, Vanessa?"
"That - I just.. I can't do this over the phone. When can I see you?"
"Now would've been alright if I wasn't so damn sleepy, love."
"Alright then, I'll see you tomorrow?"
"Only if you're willing to," He said.
"Good night, Cameron."
"You too, McAllen."
I was about to hang up when I heard him speak again.
"Vanessa?"
"Yes?"
"I admire you," He said.
"Um, thank you."
"You can thank me tomorrow in your own way. Fifteen cans of coffee would do well."
"You're that sleepy?"
"You've no idea,"
"Okay. Stay till tomorrow."
"What was that?"
"Nothing," I said and I hung up. I pulled the blanket away and hopped inside my bed. Pulling my blanket back on me, I rested my head on my floral patterned pillow; thinking to myself how much I missed hearing his voice through the phone already. And I knew it would be a disaster for me if I get to fail at not making this love between us last.