Page 46 of His Last Gamble

She didn’t know. She couldn’t seem to think. She felt paralysed with uncertainty and torn in half.

And then suddenly, she heard Payne’s voice. ‘Ladies and gentlemen.’

He was obviously speaking over a microphone, and she half expected him to be stood on a dais somewhere, so she almost jumped when he appeared at her side. ‘I hope you’re all enjoying the evening’s entertainment.’

The crowds began to quieten, some coming in from the other gaming tables to listen to his speech, others too engrossed to care.

Without quite realising it, Payne put a hand on her back and began leading her to one of the roulette tables, still talking into the microphone in his other hand.

‘As you’re aware, there’s been some high-stakes gambling going on tonight, but so far, I think, the bank is safe.’

There were cheers and laughter at this, and a growing sense of anticipation. Clearly Payne Lacey was not the man to make announcements without reason. Something big was in the offing.

‘I want to thank you all for making this celebration of my ownership a night to remember. And, in honour of this occasion, I’d like to make a bet myself.’

Suddenly the air became filled with tension as people began to realise that something quite extraordinary was happening. It was common knowledge that Payne never gambled in his own casino. Charmaine felt her own heart begin to pound as she was swept along on the current of anticipation. Looking around she caught glimpses of faces in the crowd — Jo-Jo looking puzzled, Jinx looking angry. Fizz and Dee-Dee standing together looking intrigued. Everyone was wondering the same thing.

What was going on?

‘This bet is going to be the biggest gamble of my life. Who knows, depending on its outcome, maybe even the last,’ Payne said, and there were gasps all around. Because when a legendary gambler like Payne Lacey talked like this, everyone listened.

Someone had once said that the only time Payne Lacey bluffed was when he was playing poker. Never when he was playing for real.

‘Jack, clear the table and spin the wheel,’ Payne said to the roulette croupier, who quickly did as he was told. Those who’d been playing didn’t even look chagrined at having their game hijacked like this. They were too caught up in the unfolding drama.

‘The bet is a simple one,’ Payne continued, never raising his voice or sounding unduly excited, but dominating the room and everyone in it, nevertheless. ‘This incredibly beautiful young lady by my side is going to call it. Black or red.’

By now you could hear a pin drop. Even the hardened gamblers in the other rooms had sensed something spectacular going on and had come in to watch. For the first and last time in its history, not even the sound of a fruit machine broke the quiet of the Palace’s interior.

‘If she wins, the entire house is hers,’ Payne said, and there was a moment of stunned awe, followed by a whispering surge of disbelief.

Charmaine blinked. What? What was he saying? The house was probably worth tens of millions tonight! Was he mad? Was he . . . ?

‘And if I win,’ Payne said, suddenly turning from the amazed crowd and holding her eyes with his own, ‘then Miss Charmaine Reece will become Mrs Payne Lacey.’

Charmaine felt the room abruptly recede and sway around them, then come once more sharply back into focus.

‘No, Payne,’ she heard herself whisper. ‘You can’t. I can’t.’ It was madness. Insanity.

But Payne was already reaching for the white ball and with a simple toss of his fingers, threw it expertly into the spinning wheel.

‘Red or black?’ he said, looking at her calmly. And she felt an undeniable compulsion to go along with this. For the first time ever, she thought she understood his affinity for taking a chance.

And yet, she fought it. You couldn’t just decide the rest of your life like this. Could you? And yet — why not? Just a few minutes ago, she was torn by indecision, wracked with conflicting desires. Why not let Lady Luck decide for her?

‘Black,’ she heard someone say.

And since everybody else was holding their breath, it must have been herself.

Payne didn’t even turn to watch the roulette wheel, although everybody else watched it in fascination.

Lucy, who’d pushed her way to the front, stared first at her sister then at Payne then at the wheel in utter stupefaction.

But Charmaine couldn’t take her eyes from Payne. Could she really let fate decide for her? Could she really just volunteer her heart and the rest of her life on the whim of chance and expect . . .

‘It’s red!’

Jack, the croupier, called out the result, and from all around them came the sound of sudden thunderous applause.

Charmaine went hot, then cold. She felt him raise her hand and when she looked down, the beautiful sapphire and diamond ring was on her finger.

‘I never renege on a bet,’ Payne said, raising her hand to his lips and kissing her knuckles tenderly. But his eyes were like steel when they met hers. ‘And I won’t let you, either,’ he warned her silkily.

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