Vegas Ch. 01

I have long wanted to write a storyline that is different to anything else that has been published on this site. This is it.

Although the central theme of the publication is poker, I have constructed the story so that it also works for those who have no interest in that subject and who wish to skip those sections. I believe your understanding will be the poorer for it, but that is your choice.

A number of the situations have been inspired by some of the small band of authors whose work I immensely admire. I have attempted to occasionally incorporate a flavour of their imagination in this story, in tribute to them. Without their inspiration, this story would not have been told.

This is my first attempt at writing and I know that having completed the novel, I have learnt so much more than I knew at the outset. Two areas of feedback are welcomed:

Encouragement that will inspire me to write more... and constructive criticisms that will help me improve.

Voting that will help me assess the enjoyment factor.... or otherwise.

CHAPTER ONE: BEGINNINGS

It was late that evening when Daniel returned from his day's work, wearily pulling into the loading dock and parking the truck. His internet poker game the previous night had seen him grab only a few, short hours sleep and he was feeling jaded. With another late night ahead due to Grace performing at a local club, he knew rest was some distance away, and that thought contributed to his state of mental and physical tiredness.

His young body ached as he alighted from the truck. Walking to the rear, he slowly pulled opened the back door for the part-time workers who at some stage would load it up again for the next batch of deliveries. But that was somebody else's problem, he thought, as he made his way inside the building.

He poured himself a small white plastic cup of water from the machine that looked close to falling off the wall. Even at that time of night, Slim was still there. He was a thin man, with a fearsome reputation. Despite his nickname his face was chubby, concealing the hard, dark eyes that led to his ever scheming brain. Although he and Slim got on well enough, Daniel was always on his guard.

He was aware that a few of his fellow delivery drivers did little side jobs for Slim after hours. From the stories he occasional overheard, he imagined that work included bodyguard protection, immigrant smuggling and breaking knee caps. If there was something dirty going on in this part of London, it seemed that Slim had something to do with it, or he knew someone who did.

Daniel was well aware that he could very easily have been drawn into helping out in a similar way. He had the build for it; his tall, solid frame was perfect for hauling heavy cardboard boxes around all day, a proclivity that kept him in shape. And there was no doubt that the money would have helped. But Daniel felt that he would have to be both silly and desperate to become involved and was careful to distance himself from such activities.

There had been one occasion when he had given some tentative consideration to becoming involved. Money had become a real problem and this seemed a way out of their temporary financial distress. But after discussing some of his suspicions and thoughts with Grace, she naturally enough was fiercely against any involvement. That came as a massive relief to Daniel, who knew in his heart that he would have been incapable of going through with it. He just wanted Grace's confirmation.

As Daniel drained the water and then refilled the plastic cup, he glanced over at Slim. What had led him to this position, he fleetingly wondered. In between playing poker whenever he could, he had further wasted his University education by taking this job, a driver for one of the local delivery companies. Much like Matt Damon in the movie, Rounders, he thought. Only in the movie, that was to earn back the money his character had lost playing poker. With Daniel, it was to earn money so that he could play poker.

In fact, it had not been Daniel's intention to work at all. His ambition was to become a poker professional and support himself, and Grace, that way. But Grace had soon explained the financial facts of life to him, although in truth they were staring him in the face. She pointed out that if they wanted to continue to afford to live in the cheap apartment they were already renting then Daniel's unimpressive internet poker winnings were unlikely to ever be enough.

He would have to get a real job, she insisted. And although he knew she was wrong and that one day he would earn enough from his poker, he had pleased her by taking a job for the Parcel Express business. And that was why he was here, right now, watching Slim amble over to him.

Slim's trademark loud blue suit and yellow shirt still looked newly pressed despite the lateness of the hour, and he greeted Daniel with his familiar lop-sided grin before shaking his hand, his gold bracelet falling coldly against Daniel's wrist.

"You make all your deliveries today?" he asked, raising an inquisitive eyebrow.

Daniel nodded wearily. Always the same question, he thought. It was known that Slim was a hard taskmaster and Daniel would never return to base without having carried out all his duties. He wanted to stay on the right side of Slim. He needed this job, for the time being at least, and in any case he certainly did not want the consequences of failure.

"You know me Slim, if I had not made my deliveries I wouldn't be back here," Daniel responded with a slow grin.

He glanced at his boss to make sure he had not relapsed into one of his notorious bad moods. But Slim seemed affable enough and Daniel poured himself yet another cup of the cold water that could have been colder. Today had been thirsty work.

"Ah, yes. We need more workers like you Daniel," said Slim, eyeing the younger man. "You know, if you ever want to increase your take, all you have to do is ask," he continued, his black eyes widening as he extended the invitation.

Slim did not provide that sort of opportunity to just anyone. It was only when he had full confidence in one of his employees, gained over a period of time. Daniel was fully aware of that and realised that he had to be careful, not just with his reply but also with the way in which he answered.

"Sorry Slim, I appreciate the invitation as I always have, but I don't have time to become involved here after hours. I'm a delivery man, plain and simple."

Something in the tone of Daniel's voice, or what he had said, must have been amusing to Slim, because he began to laugh loudly.

"And you are a very good one at that. You are a fine young man, Daniel. But one of these days, I will convince you, believe me!"

He leant over, conspiratorially adding, "And I promise you, you will make much more than you will ever do through your poker games."

Daniel nervously grinned back, feeling slightly uneasy but prepared to stand his ground. But Slim did not allow the subject to drop and he took Daniel's arm in his hard, calloused hand. The tightness of his grip belied his out of shape frame.

"In fact, tonight I have a job that would require your skills most definitely. Something a man of your build could handle with no problem."

Daniel smelt Slim's garlic flavoured breath as he spoke but despite the heavy odour, managed to keep a straight face.

"Thanks, Slim, but no. I have to go watch my girl tonight," he said, crumpling the cup up and throwing it into the dirty grey waste bin some ten feet away.

Slim's eyes followed the cup into the bin. "Good shot," he rather eerily whispered.

He looked directly into Daniel's eyes as he took a step back. He pulled a packet from his pocket and lit a cigarette with a rather gaudy lighter, blowing the thin stream of smoke directly upwards.

"Ah yes," he breathed. "The girlfriend! How is her singing going? Is she getting any better?" He laughed, "If she is booed off the stage and must run home to her mother, you can come by here tonight at ten and I'll make your night worthwhile," he said. "And afterwards, I have some lady friends coming by and..."

Daniel knew that although he would have a 'job' lined up this evening, this was Slim's sense of humour and that he was playing with him. Nevertheless, he felt an immediate irritation inside and cut him off with a forced smile.

"Thanks anyway, but she'll be fine. I better get going, see you tomorrow Slim."

With that, Daniel turned and covered the few paces to the door, praying that he would not hear Slim call him back. There was no response and it was with some relief that Daniel swung the door closed behind him. He silently cursed Slim for showing disrespect to Grace and her singing. He hated that.

He walked across the noisy cobbled stones to the dark blue car - a small, but serviceable vehicle he had bought with the first of his internet poker winnings. He started it up, the engine sputtering to life with an agonizing groan. Daniel pushed it into gear and exited into traffic, heading for their flat. By his reckoning he had around half an hour to get home and showered before departing for the Club.

*

It was more like an hour later when Daniel slowly circumnavigated the narrow streets searching for a parking place. His slow progress as he circled around proved an annoyance to several other cars, and they were not slow to use their horns to express their irritation. Eventually, he found a vacant spot a few streets away.

He squeezed the car into the limited space available and walked the few hundred yards to 'Joshua's Place'. In a doorway around twenty yards away was a homeless person, if the homemade sign around the scruffy looking dog's neck was to be believed. Daniel fumbled in his pocket and dropped a few coins into the dirty cap beside the man. He could hear the noise from the club from there.

He entered a place that was alive with people, drinking and talking. The atmosphere was vibrant and he made his way through the thong of people and up to the heaving bar. It appeared to him as if he had arrived just in time and that the evening's supporting acts had all finished. As he waited to be served by one of the over-made up girls behind the bar, a man was speaking on stage, setting the scene for Grace.

After a short wait to be served, he took his drink and brushed through the queue gathered around the bar. He headed towards the stage and once he had a little space of his own, he hesitated momentarily before looking over at the podium. A lone microphone stood in front of the empty platform and Daniel excused himself as he negotiated his way to the front. As he did, he sidestepped around the full tables of people, many of whom were now standing in conversation beside their seats.

When he reached the front he saw Grace off to the left of the stage, wiring up her small speaker and her electric guitar, making sure all the cords were plugged in correctly. She was wearing a plain green top with a knee length black skirt, and she looked incredibly sexy, he thought. For a moment, he sadly wondered why the spark that had ignited them only three years ago was dimming now.

He watched as her left hand ran through the shiny brown hair that framed her beautiful face and wished that at times like this, he could turn the clock back. She had not noticed him arrive, being too busy with her last minute adjustments, and he walked over to the reserved seat she had arranged for him at the table right in front of the small stage. He nodded to the two couples already occupying the other seats at the table but, engaged deep in conversation, they ignored him.

Almost unnoticed, Grace slid on stage and took a seat on the chair next to the speaker. A ripple of applause rang out as some of the audience realised she had taken to the stage, increasing in volume as the whole of the club joined in. As the applause died down and the background chatter became just that, Grace extended her slim, long arm, pulled the microphone down to her full lips and quietly spoke.

"Hi, my name is Grace and I'm here to play a few songs," she huskily said, evoking another prolonged round of applause.

The background lights faded, leaving Grace clearly lit up on the small, sparse, stage. If this is the reaction before she sings, thought Daniel as he eased back into his chair, she will bring the house down. As if hearing his thoughts, Grace glanced down at his table, and flashed him the kind of smile he remembered so well, but which had seemed to be becoming rarer with each passing month.

She then shuffled back ever so slightly on her thin chair, resettled her guitar on her lap as she looked out at the audience, and launched into her first number. Her usual repertoire was to sing the slower songs first and then build up the pace, finishing by getting the audience literally rocking in their seats. Tonight was no different and for an hour she played mostly her own songs, interspersed with several covers.

The audience sat quietly through each early rendition, entranced by the husky sound of her voice. And although Daniel clapped enthusiastically after each song, the patrons did not seem to need any sort of encouragement. They applauded and whistled after each performance, becoming louder and more vociferous in their approval as the evening wore on and the tempo increased.

Her singing was remarkable, and as he sipped away at his drink Daniel found himself wondering why she had not yet been 'discovered'. There was no doubt she had the talent, despite the fact that she always insisted she had a long way to go before she had any hope of reaching her dream of a record deal. But they both felt her voice was so good, so commercial, that all it needed was for them to be able to somehow source the right contacts.

When she completed her final song, she stood up and the club owner, Thomas, leapt across the small stage, microphone under his arm as he furiously led the applause. Daniel could see Grace blush a little as she gracefully took her bow, just ahead of Thomas softly taking her shapely arm and making a big show of kissing her hand.

He faced the enthusiastic audience again and pointed to Grace, and then led a fresh round of applause. Grace gave a final wave as she began to bashfully exit the stage, to the right of Daniel. Despite his instant and irrational dislike of this man, Daniel realised that Thomas was clearly a fan. It was clear that he was as entranced with Grace's stylish performance as the audience. Daniel drained the final drops from his glass and then slipped away to bring the car to the back of the club.

*

He carefully drove the car to the thick, back door of the club, negotiating between dustbins on either side. There was a rumbling of thunder in the distance as he switched off the engine. He sat back to await the large back door swinging back, which would signal Grace's arrival. Settling himself into the uncomfortable seat, his mind drifted back to the first time he and Grace had met, on a barmy summer evening at a charity barbeque.

They had watched one another from a distance for some time before they got talking. They made love later that night and first thing the next morning too. That was three years ago. Daniel had even wondered if she was the one he would marry and as it turned out, Grace also had the same thoughts. But it had never happened.

In the early days they had made a really good couple, enjoyed many of the same interests, and for a long period the sex was great. That seemed a long time ago, he ruefully thought, shuffling again in his seat, his tired eyes glancing again at the door at the rear of the club.

Daniel was not sure exactly what it was that had originally turned him on so much to Grace. Perhaps it was the regular sparkle in her bright, almond coloured eyes, or possibly it was her infectious laugh. He was also knocked over by her natural sexiness, never overt, but always there. More probably, he thought as he wound the window down to gain some air, it had been all of those things. Whatever the secret, both physically and personality wise he had immediately fallen for her.

It had been so spontaneous the way they had got together. So much so that shortly after their first meeting they had searched for a place to share. Money had been tight, so tight that they found that all their combined finances could afford was a tiny, one bedroom studio flat in London. They instantly secured the place for a small, but significant to them, deposit that made their dire financial situation even worse than previously. But they got by.

And as time went on, some key differences began to emerge that impacted on the equilibrium of their relationship. Daniel became an avid poker fan and would play as often as his free time allowed. Any yearnings he previously had for success in business were replaced by an overwhelming desire for fame at the poker tables. He dreamt of the World Poker Tour and World Series of Poker, and of rubbing shoulders with the greats – the Brunson's, Chan's, Hellmuth's and Ivey's of this world.

On the other hand, Grace lived for her music and had an insatiable yearning to make it into the big time. She had originally described herself to Daniel as a songwriter, and had passionately informed him that such a profession was the third most popular in Hollywood, behind actors and writers. Daniel had found the enthusiasm she had displayed that first evening to be a particularly attractive quality and even after a short conversation, he fully understood that her quest for fame was an overwhelming obsession.

He also quickly realised that if determination counted for anything, then this independent woman was destined to become a star. He soon discovered that she possessed an extraordinary voice, much more sultry than her sister, Lauren, although for a while the two sisters had formed a duo. Eventually, after some urging from Daniel, they agreed Lauren's voice was insufficiently different for them to become successful and Grace had turned solo. A small contribution, Daniel told himself, that he had made to Grace's future success.

Lauren had turned to modelling and Daniel knew that she had the same fierce determination to succeed as Grace. There was no doubting that once she had decided on her new career, she was totally committed. And she had all the attributes to succeed, with both a personality and a body that matched her impressive single minded obsession. Despite their different chosen professions, in so many ways she was so like her older sister.

It was the key differences in their drivers that led to the first cracks beginning to appear in Daniel and Grace's relationship. The carefree happiness of the early days had gradually changed to a simple acceptance that they were in a relationship. But neither had the time, or indeed the inclination, to give the full commitment to each other that was necessary.

They had begun to drift, and the spark that had once burned so brightly had begun to disappear as they both searched for success in their own different ways. Yes, they still made time to support each other where possible. But it had become more of a chore and that, combined with the continual tightness in terms of money, had both put pressure on their relationship.

If they were honest with themselves, it was probably nearing its end. Almost without noticing, the early glow had begun to wear off. Whilst on the surface they remained happy in each other's company, that indefinable bit of magic had begun to disappear and subconsciously they were both seeking a different way forward.

*

The depressing thoughts kept filtering through Daniel's head until, at the bottom of his vision, he caught sight of the back door to the club finally swinging open. He quickly exited the car, stepping out just in time to accept the equipment Grace handed him. He stored it safely in the small boot, grateful there was just sufficient space to accommodate it. After Grace said her goodnights they got into the car, but before firing the engine Daniel leant over to kiss her soft pliable lips.