Real Magic Read Free Page A

got an early day of work tomorrow."
    "See that, boys," the Boss said while stacking his chips. "That's what's wrong with this country. No sense of perspective. Worrying about work when they should be enjoying our hospitality."
    "Yeah," Pancake said, "we should stay. We don't want to be rude."
    Duncan froze. He didn't want to know what kind of hospitality the Boss had planned. "S-Sorry. We really do have to go. Maybe we can play again sometime."
    "Maybe we'll get all our money back someday, too," Pancake said.
    The Boss turned an eye on him, his face cold like the guns each man wore. "Nobody beats my boys. They're too damn good." Then his mouth opened into a wide grin. "You guys crack me up. Get the fuck out of here. You come back when you got more money to lose."
    Duncan didn't take the chance that things might change again. He pulled on Pancake's arm and got out of there as fast as they could move without looking too anxious. The alley reeked of trash and urine, but anything was more pleasant than another hour of that stifling, stinking room. Once they hit the street and headed towards Pancake's apartment, Duncan steadied himself for what he expected would come.
    Despite his lanky size, Pancake found enough strength to send Duncan to the ground with one punch. "What the fuck was that? You blew all our money!"
    Rubbing his chin, Duncan had to admit, he was impressed. Perhaps Pancake had outgrown his puppy dog admiration. Still, that didn't excuse any of what had happened. "First off, it was my money. And second, you nearly got us killed."
    "Oh, for crying out loud, is that what got you all pussying out on me? You were afraid of those guys? They're just small time scum and you know it. No different than any of the other jerks you cheat."
    "This was different." Duncan got back on his feet. "Very different. Everything was wrong about this set up and you were so careless, we're lucky we didn't get made."
    "I was smooth. They didn't see a thing."
    "Oh, now you're an expert?"
    "You're the one who taught me that cheats take skill and risk. I took the risk. Where were you with the skill?"
    "Look, sometimes you've got to trust your instincts. When the Boss came in, you should've known it was time to lose and leave. I mean, come on, that guy's probably killed more people than I've ever known."
    Pancake shook his head. "You're full of it, you know that? You act like you know it all but when your time came to prove it, you turned chickenshit."
    "Can we just forget it? I'll get you some money and we can —"
    "You got twenty bucks there, don't you?"
    Duncan pulled out the twenty in his pocket. "You want my last twenty?"
    Pancake swiped the bill and walked away. "Don't ever talk to me again, you lying sack of crap. And go find some other place to stay. You ain't welcome anymore."
    Standing alone on the street of a crime-ridden neighborhood was never a smart thing to do, but Duncan had nowhere to go. A surge of pride filled him — he had saved his friend's life, even if his friend didn't know it. But he had no money and no place to stay.
    That's not true. There's one door that's always open.
    He hated to call upon his great-grandfather, the man had been so good to him over the years, but he couldn't think of another option. Pappy would let him crash on the sofa for the night, offer up some breakfast, and even give a small bankroll to get Duncan started again. After all, Pappy was the one who taught him how to cheat in the first place.

Chapter 2
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    "No."
    Duncan stared at Pappy, waiting for the old man to crack a smile, but after a long moment of silence, nothing changed. Pappy had been losing it a bit lately, but this showed no signs of dementia. He simply had refused to help.
    "Listen," Pappy said and sat in a hardback chair. Despite his frail body losing weight every day and his skin loosening to the point of slipping off his face, he looked pretty good for a man over one hundred years old. He had a strong voice and a spark of