The Honest Dealer

Chapter Twenty-One

The waiter brought up a chair for Halton and he sat down between Honsinger and Sam. Jane went to the bar and seated herself on a high stool. Johnny, looking up, suddenly caught her eyes fixed on him. She averted her glance.

Halton pulled out a thick roll of bills, mostly fives and tens and a few twenties. “This is my roll. Seven hundred...”

Chatsworth laughed. “There was ten thousand in the last pot.”

Halton blinked. “You’re kidding.” His eyes went quickly around the table, sizing up the money in front of the various players.

“Bring out your system,” Johnny urged.

“That’s a dice system,” Halton said stiffly. He ran his fingers under his collar.

Sam was dealing. “Stud,” he announced. “My favorite game.”

“Mine, too!” boomed Page. “These crooks won’t play it, but I love the game. Ha — I’m high, with a queen. Fifty dollars!”

Halton’s mouth opened and a startled expression came into his eyes. “Too steep for you?” Chatsworth asked.

Halton shook his head, but his tongue came out and moistened his lips. Johnny threw in two yellow checks. Brown put in a hundred dollar bill and drew out Page’s fifty for change. Honsinger turned down his card — a four. Halton had a ten, hesitated and stooping, peeked at his hole card. Finally he put in four ten-dollar bills and two fives. Sam, also with a queen, put in two checks.

“I raise it two hundred,” said Chatsworth. He had a five showing.

“Back to back?” asked Page.

“Right smack!”

Johnny had a jack up and an ace in the hole. He put up his money. So did Brown. Halton got his face down to the level of the table and again studied his hole card. Perspiration showed on his face as he straightened. He counted out two hundred dollars.

“I’m in for a hundred and fifty,” Sam announced. “My pile.”

Chatsworth laughed. “One down!”

Twelve hundred dollars were raked together and put to one side — which would be Sam’s if he were fortunate enough to win. What went into the pot from now on — plus what was left over, so far would go to the second winner.

Sam dealt another round of cards. Chatsworth paired up his five that had been showing. Page got a deuce and turned down his hand. Johnny got an ace, giving him a pair. Brown drew a ten to his nine. Halton got an ace and Johnny winced a little.

Since Page had dropped out, it was up to Johnny to bet. “Two hundred,” he said.

“Up two,” Brown said in a monotone.

A gasp came from Halton. He repeated his peeking process, as if to make sure he had made no mistake in his hole card. He looked around the table, then counted out his money and discovered that he would have fifty-five dollars left if he called and pulled the money back again. Then finally he groaned and shoved the four hundred into the pot.

“I’m in for the showdown,” Sam reminded.

Chatsworth smiled crookedly. “Fifty-five you’ve got left, Halton. That’s the amount I’m going to raise.”

Johnny called. “Here goes your system, Chuckie.”

“I’ll raise next time,” Brown said, putting out fifty-five dollars more.

Glumly, Halton put in his money.

Sam dealt the fourth card, an ace to Chatsworth — the last one a deuce to Johnny, a ten to Brown, giving him a pair, and a king to Halton. That give Halton a ten, an ace and a king in sight. Sam got a nine.

The last card around. Chatsworth matched up his five... which made it look like three fives, since he had raised on his first five. Johnny got a deuce, which gave him aces and deuces. Brown drew a trey.

Halton got a second king!

Chatsworth sized up the hands. “I think my three fives are going to stand up to the two pairs all around. So it’ll just cost those who have the money — two thousand apiece.”

Johnny threw in his hand. Brown followed. Chatsworth smiled thinly and turned up his third five. “I guess I win it...”

“Against three kings?” asked Halton, turning up his hole card.

The smile died from Chatsworth’s face. “You had a king in the hole and you stayed with your short roll?”

“Why not?” asked Halton. He reached to the table and shoved back Chatsworth’s two thousand dollars, which was void. He looked at Sam Cragg. “Okay?”

Sam nodded gloomily. “I’m out!”

Halton collected in the neighborhood of three thousand dollars. “I’m sorry,” Johnny apologized. “Your system is all right.”

Chatsworth dealt a hand of straight poker. Everybody passed and ante’d another twenty-five dollars.

Page dealt. “Queens or better opens this one.”

As it turned out he was the one who opened, but Brown was the only one who stayed and finally won the small pot with a pair of kings.

Then it was Johnny’s deal.

“Stud,” he announced.

He dealt rapidly, gave himself an ace in the hole and one up. He opened for fifty dollars and all stayed — even Honsinger.

Brown got a pair of tens showing on the second card and bet two hundred dollars, dropping out Honsinger and Page. Johnny got a four.

He matched the four on the fourth card, giving him aces and fours.

Brown bet two hundred on his pair of tens. Halton turned down his cards and Chatsworth raised Brown four hundred. Johnny called.

Brown called the raise and came back with five hundred. Chatsworth called.

Johnny dealt the last card — a third ten showing to Brown. Chatsworth paired up a queen and Johnny — Johnny got a third ace, giving him aces full.

Brown’s cold eyes studied Johnny’s hand. “Could be!”

He searched for the thousand dollar bill he had won in the opening pot. “We’ll see.”

“This is it,” Chatsworth exclaimed. Ignoring the money in front of him he reached into his pocket and brought out a thin sheaf of bills... all thousands. He counted out five, then added three more.

He sneered, “Poker’s going up.”

Johnny had a cinch on Chatsworth. And almost one on Brown — although the latter could have four tens.

He studied his hole card thoughtfully. And then... a sudden tremor ran through his body. There was a little nick in the edge of the hole card — on top. Just a tiny indentation made by a fingernail. He caressed the cards that were turned up. There were similar nicks in the two aces that were showing.

The cards were marked. Either previous to the opening of the game, or since it had progressed.

He fumbled with his money, pretending to count, the while he looked surreptitiously at Riley Brown’s cards. Yes... they were nicked — although nearer the center to distinguish from higher cards — like Johnny’s aces, marked at the edge. But Brown’s hole card was almost covered by the other cards. Was it marked?

He counted out eight thousand dollars, reached into his pocket and brought out Gilbert Honsinger’s check. He exhibited it to Honsinger. “It’s good, isn’t it?”

“Riley’ll take it.”

“If I win,” said Riley.

Deliberately, Johnny reached over and pawed out Brown’s cards. “Three tens and a king. Could be a full house... or four tens...”

“Or just three tens,” sneered Chats-worth. “And I’ve got that beat.”

Brown’s hole card was unmarked.

“After all,” said Johnny, “it’s only money.” He threw the check into the pot, followed with the eight thousand.

“You’re raising ten thousand?” Brown asked.

Johnny smiled.

Jane Langford came over from the bar, stood behind Sam Cragg, her eyes fixed on Johnny.

Honsinger laughed. “Easy come, easy go.”

But Chatsworth was suddenly worried now. “An eighty thousand dollar pot!”

“If you and Brown call,” Johnny reminded.

“Oh, I’m calling,” said Brown. “Not only that, but I’m raising...” He looked squarely at Johnny. “How much have you got left?”

Johnny got out his checks, counted the bills in front of him. “Twenty-one fifty...”

“That’s what I raise,” said Brown.

Chatsworth said slowly, “It costs me eleven thousand and fifty dollars then, to call...”

“Maybe you want to raise,” said Johnny.

“I’ve got three queens,” said Chats-worth slowly. “I guess you’ve got a full house; to me it doesn’t matter whether it’s three fours and two aces or two aces and three fours... It might make a difference to Riley...”

Riley Brown said nothing.

Chatsworth laughed. “All right, maybe I’m being bluffed...”

He picked up his cards, riffled them together and dropped them to the table, face down.

“I’ll call,” said Johnny, “and it’s aces full...”

“I think four tens beat that.” Riley Brown turned up a fourth ten... that hadn’t been nicked.

Sam Cragg groaned aloud. The faces of all the players were taut — with the exception of Riley Brown’s. He looked at Johnny. “All right?”

“All right,” said Johnny, “if you didn’t nick the cards...”

“I didn’t,” said Brown. “But a man has a right to take out nicks, hasn’t he?”

“I guess so,” Johnny conceded. “Well, it was fun while I had it.”

Brown began scooping in the pot.

He never quite got it all in. Carl Shinn came into the game room. With him was a sun-tanned man in cowboy work costume. Both had guns in their hands.

“Take it easy, everybody,” Carl Shinn said ominously.

Chatsworth cried out, “Piper!”

“Sorry, Boss,” grinned the cow-puncher.