Convergence - The Last Science #2.2 - Heroes and Villains

B2: Chapter 26 - Picking a Side - II

  The generosity of the Market gathering left something to be desired.

  Jeremy didn't have much to wager, and nothing at all to trade, since he barely carried any cash around with him. He was forced to play extremely cautious, lest he lose every penny in a bad bet and be stuck there bored for the whole damn night, or try hitchhiking and hope he didn't get murdered or run down in the middle of the night. Without his gun and stuck in the middle of the woods, looking like he did, Jeremy definitely didn't want to risk it.

  "Fold," Jeremy grunted, tossing his cards forward.

  "Again?" asked a twenty-something girl with way too much makeup on, and not nearly enough basic care applied to her hair. "Jeez, man, you fold every hand. How're you ever gonna win anything?"

  "Someday," he murmured.

  "More for the rest of us," piped up a middle-aged guy looking just as disproportionately disheveled as the girl. His teeth and hair were practically perfect, but his entire face was covered by the ugliest beard Jeremy had ever laid eyes on. "I call," he added, tossing a few bills in.

  "Call," echoed Kyle, the last of their four-person game. He was a short, curly brown-haired kid trying to look way tougher than he appeared with a leather jacket and skull t-shirt. In all honesty, though, Jeremy actually thought he looked great. Man, if I were still nineteen...

  "Hey, what the fuck!"

  Someone two tables down was shouting. They all looked over. Julian was already there, holding the guy's arm in midair. He'd been about to strike someone. The dealer said something calmly to Julian, and in a minute the offender had been escorted away.

  "What was that?" Jeremy asked, turning back to their game.

  "Probably tried to cheat," said the middle-aged guy, as their dealer flipped over the next card.

  The girl next to Jeremy whistled at the new draw. "Ah, fuck yeah."

  "How can you tell?" he asked the guy.

  "Well, I suck at it, but there's ways for you to feel out other people using magic nearby. All the dealers are trained at it, y'know?"

  The dealer nodded, holding a very professional air. Some kind of Market... more like a fuckin' casino. "Bid to the lady."

  "Thaaaaaank you," she said, glancing at her cards again briefly.

  She's full of it. Doesn't have a thing. Jeremy tried to keep from rolling his eyes, curious to see what sort of bids would come out now that he was actually playing with two awakened. He'd been relegated, either on purpose or by sheer chance, to only play with other 'normal' people until now.

  "You're full of it," said Kyle, glaring at her.

  "Am I, Kyle?" she asked, eyes glittering. "How much are you willing to put on it?"

  "Your bid," he reminded her.

  "Tell you what. Since I know you're broke as fuck, I'll put one thousand on the next hand if you bid your copy."

  "Done," Kyle snapped, even as the other guy leaned forward slightly to object.

  "Now hang on a second—"

  "Let's see it," said the girl.

  Kyle twisted around and pulled a plain white sheet of paper out of his bag. It looked totally unremarkable, except that it had some sort of writing that Jeremy couldn't make out even from only a few feet away.