Ch 2.74: Double

“Just ignore her,” Flora said, still pulling at Elaina. Tira still looked ready to pounce, but she was holding back, for the time being.

“I think you’ll find meeting with me worthwhile,” Shein added. “Come on, have drink with me, to dull the pain of the loss.”

“A drink?” Elaina said, snapping out of her stupor and pulling her wrist from Flora.

“Yes, if you want one. That’s half the point of coming to Mirage, after all.”

“Elaina, it’s not worth it,” Tira said. “Let’s just go figure out what—”

“You three go ahead,” Elaina said. “I’ll catch up later.”

“Very good,” Shein said with a smile. “Right this way, if you would.”

Elaina glanced back over her shoulder, nodding to her party. “It’ll be alright. Talk over whatever Flora’s plan B is.”

“I think it’s plan C at this point,” Carly said, lost in thought. Flora and Tira both seemed nervous, but she just seemed focused.

“Figure it out, see you later!” Elaina said, hurrying off to catch Shein.

“They care about you,” the woman said as they stepped back out into the main gambling hall, back into the raucous noise, though it had seemed to die down somewhat from when Elaina first walked through. “Sign of a strong leader.”

“We care about each other,” Elaina replied.

“Ah, sign of a weaker leader.”

“You just rule by fear then? I know a guy like that; even his ‘friends’ don’t like him.”

“Respect, I like to think of it,” Shein said when they reached the opposite back corner of the room, pulling a key ring up from the long chain of bracelets dangling from her side. “People respect me enough to know what I’m capable of, and treat me appropriately.”

“Sounds like fear to me.”

“No, but only because I return the favor. I fear none of my employees, but I respect them all, to some extent. Once that respect is gone, well, they’re no use then, of course.” Shein clicked the lock once she’d grabbed the right key, pushing forward into the room beyond.

Elaina had expected some sort of opulence for the room, and she was unprepared for the reality. It was nothing like Alonse’s or Tira’s offices, just small room with one simple desk at the end, large enough for maybe three people to sit opposite the main seat, but there were only two chairs at the moment. The floors were wood, walls wood, and the ceiling only boasted two crystal lights at each end to illuminate it.

If Elaina had been expecting Shein to relax, she was wrong. The woman maintained full decorum as she sauntered over to a shelf behind her desk, grabbing two small glass and a clear bottle before sitting down.

“What do you want from me now?” Elaina said as she took her seat. “I’m not exactly in a good mood, so get to it.”

“Patience, my friend,” Shein said as she poured into the glasses. It was a clear liquid, not brown like the brandy Elaina had drank in Alonse’s office. “Just relax for a moment.”

“Easy for you to say, I’m still busy” Elaina said as she took her glass, staring at the liquid inside. Poison? No, there wasn’t a need for that when Shein had an invisible assassin at her disposal.

“Busy? Funny, last I checked you were eliminated from the tournament, but I still have much work ahead of me tonight.”

“Hmm,” Elaina said, bringing the drink to her lips as Shein did the same. She still coughed, despite preparing herself for the taste. It was definitely worse than brandy, less earthy, more heart.

Maybe it was the booze, or more accurately, the [Pain Response], but Elaina couldn’t help but notice a certain level of mature beauty in Shein as she giggled then downed some of her own drink with no effort. “Not used to hard liquor?”

“I’ve had some,” Elaina coughed out. “That was worse.” Elaina set the glass down, clearing her throat before continuing. She wasn’t sure how long she had with Shein, but she needed to make the most of it. “So what are you doing tonight that you need to remain sober for?”

“Small talk, now? I thought you wanted to get down to business.”

“You’re not in a hurry,” Elaina said, taking another small sip, barely coughing this time “Despite having so much to do?”

Shein shrugged. “Not much to do till the end of the tournament, really.”

“Right,” Elaina said, playing with the bracelet in her hand.

“Anyway, I guess we should get down to business, since round one will be ending soon. I wanted to express my apologies that you were knocked out in such an unfortunate manner.”

Elaina had to hold back her strength as she gripped the glass, preventing herself from crushing it. “She cheated, and you know it.”

“Of course she did,” Sheins said, looking at Elaina like she was talking to a child. “Cheating without getting caught is the name of the game at Mirage. You think I don’t know the house is being cheated by half the people on the floor out there?”

“How does running a business like that even make sense?”

“Simple,” Shein said, taking another long swig and then pouring herself another drink. “When someone gets caught cheating against the house, they’re kicked out, less whatever money they brought in that night. It all evens out at close of business that way.”

“Must suck to be running a poker tournament then, for such a high value prize. No way to rig it to your advantage.”

“Oh, you’d be surprised.”

I don’t think I would, actually. “So, spit it out, what do you want?”

“Double or nothing,” Shein said. “I offer you a fair chance to get back into the tournament, one that won’t piss off my regulars of course, and you offer something up as a wager in exchange, your Temmie.”

Elaina froze, glass almost to her lips. She wasn’t sure what she’d expected, but it wasn’t that. “I can’t do that,” she said.

“It’s only if you lose. Come on, think about it. I don’t even know what to do with the damn things. What harm could it do?”

Elaina knew it was a bad idea. Shein had just admitted that she had the tournament rigged somehow, after all. But Elaina was also pretty sure she knew how the tournament was rigged, even if she didn’t know exactly what round two entailed. “What’s my chance to get back in?”

“There’s another player who felt cheated tonight, made a fuss about it while you were in deep concentration about your game. I felt less bad for them than I do you, but I can arrange a redemption match of sorts between you two, let the winner back in as a wild card.”

“And this is just a regular player? Not one of your employees?”

Shein grinned. “Why, you wound me, Miss Weaver. But no, I promise they are of no relation to me, just a random Endrin student I hadn’t met before tonight.”

Elaina knew it was a bad idea, knew things could end up going very south. “Show it to me,” she said. “Show me the Temmie. If I’m wagering mine, I need to know you can pay up.”

Shein’s face grew cold at that, squinting at Elaina with inquisitive intensity. “It’s not in this room, but I’ll be showing it off to the crowd before round two anyway. I suppose I could do so before your redemption match.”

“If I see it, then I’ll agree,” Elaina said. “But one more thing,” she added, reaching for her bracelet once more. ‘I want to trade again. I still don’t trust you.”

Shen raised an eyebrow, studying Elaina once more as the latch came undone. Everything returned to Elaina, [Restraint] flooding back into her like air after a held breath, coalescing in her palm. The freedom would only last for a few seconds, but that would be enough.

“I warned you against doing that again,” Shein said, but despite the protestation she undid hers as well, offering it across the table.

“Yeah, but you’re not going to kick me out now,” Elaina said as she reached over their drinks, trading the crystal-embedded jewelry and then staring back down at the new one. She braced herself as she strapped it back on, once again losing everything, [Restraint] and all her skills.

“See? Same bracelet as you, as before,” Shein said, downing the rest of her drink, coughing into her hand as she did. “Now, let’s get going. We have an exhibition match to arrange.”