Zam the Hybrid

18. The Poker Cheat

Zam tried to avoid her gaze but it was near enough impossible. Every now and then his eyes would dart up from his laptop screen but they were met with the same scowl and he had no choice but to look away in an attempted escape. He tried looking at the scenery rushing past outside his window but the trees and hills were boring and he had work to do on his laptop and still, he could feel those eyes staring at him. Eventually, he caved in.

"I said I was sorry, what more do you want?" he asked, finally meeting Taylor's eyes. Her angered face was spoiling her good looks and he couldn't have that.

"You left me alone, with no word whatsoever for twelve weeks," she growled.

"I told you, it was a mistake!" Zam pleaded. Taylor was apparently still seething with rage. "I can't fix it now can I?"

"You could bloody well do a better job than you're doing right now," she huffed, folding her arms and turning away.

Zam sighed, not having any kind of clue as to how he should approach this. "You know I missed you too, right?"

"Sure you did."

"I did!" he insisted. "I had to put up with a load of big headed, egotistical idiots for twelve weeks. Do you have any idea what that's like?"

"You really don't want me to answer that."

"All I'm saying is that if you think I ran away to be on that show because it was what I wanted to do, then you're wrong," Zam tried to explain. "I'd have rather spent every day of it with you."

She turned to face him once again. Perhaps she had started to come round, but there was a long way to go. "I just can't believe you didn't tell me, but you did tell Tristan," she said in a harsh whisper.

"Well, I knew you could take care of yourself, didn't I? Tristan was the one I was worried about."

"Wha' was 'at?" Tristan said right on cue, popping up from behind the couple with a confused look on his face.

"Nothing Tristan, nothing," Zam smiled. They were currently on the Magnet Train which had just pulled out of Goldenrod Station and was heading for Saffron City which was the location of the high stakes poker match that Zam was due to compete in. This was going to be a very important night for Zam. Not only was he putting up two hundred and fifty thousand Poképounds in a game that wasn't entirely skill based but technically it wasn't even his money. Since he'd pulled out of his business deal with Lord Salt, that was money that he now owed back to the business tycoon and he probably only had a very small window before he needed to give the money back. If he lost, the consequences would be disastrous for him and he'd also fail his client. He had to win.

"Mate, she is fit!" Tristan exclaimed. He was peering over Zam's shoulder, as he was sitting in the row behind Zam and Taylor, looking at his laptop screen.

"I guess you could say that she's in shape," Zam remarked, giving the picture a second glance.

"What is this?" Taylor asked, signs of jealousy beginning to grow. Zam rolled his eyes.

"I'm researching the other competitors for tonight so that I know their game, their tells and how to beat them. I also need to learn how to actually play poker. I got in a bit of practice against some of the idiots at The Apprentice household but they weren't exactly competition."

"And why in all of that do you need to be looking at pictures of this woman?"

"She's the player who's going to be sitting to my left so it'll be very important to have a good read on her," Zam explained. "And from the sounds of things, I'm going to need to get her number for Tristan."