Page 25 of Ace of Hearts

Levi

June

Las Vegas, USA

“ They’re gone.”

Thomas looks at me and frowns. I keep my expression calm and relaxed, not taking my hands out of my pockets as other players file past us to their tables.

“What do you mean, gone?”

I can guess at the questions in his eyes, but I don’t have answers that will satisfy him. Yesterday, the proof was there on my USB key. This morning, it’s not.

“I had it on me the whole day.”

“Really?” he insists, and I sense a hint of mistrust in his voice. “Even when you went off with Rose?”

I stiffen and raise my eyes to look at him. I don’t like the question, even though it’s not unreasonable.

“I know you don’t want to hear this, but ...”

“It wasn’t Rose. I didn’t take my eyes off her all day.”

Thomas is silent. I can hear his thoughts, though. He’s never trusted Rose. I tell him to relax and put my hand on his arm.

“We’ve made copies. Nothing’s lost. And even if it was, it’s not a problem. This is only plan B. We’ve got the whole alphabet ahead of us.”

I don’t give him time to reply. I sit down at my place, pull out my sunglasses, and greet Li Mei with a nod as she sits down next to me.

“Fancy meeting you here.” She smiles. “Things are heating up, aren’t they?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m bored to death.”

She bursts out laughing. But she’s not wrong. The games are getting harder. The ordinary players are making way for the more experienced ones. No one I haven’t beaten before, though.

“Arrogant as always. Your fiancée doesn’t seem to have cured you of that unattractive fault.”

“My fiancée must like it,” I say, getting out my chips.

Just then, Rose walks past us, dressed as a massage therapist, and gives a tiny wave. I struggle not to smile. I’m pleasantly surprised to see her being friendly, given yesterday’s events. Can she have forgiven me already?

She wouldn’t say a word to me this morning. I guess I deserved that. The fact is, I should never have kissed her in the first place. It was stupid. But the way she arranged the afternoon, the concerned way she took care of me—it all lowered my defenses ...

Her first thought after discovering my weakness was to take me painting; to share her passion with me. Who else would have done that? She’s ... surprising. Rose walks a tightrope between good and bad. She’s too broken to be an angel and too good to be a demon.

Despite all her faults, I’m attracted to her in a way I’ve never been attracted to anyone before.

I don’t know what it is yet: obsession, admiration, curiosity, or just plain physical attraction?

Whatever it is, I have to keep on pushing her away.

Rose was meant to be my secret weapon. But the more time passes, the more I worry that she’ll become my one and only vulnerability.

“You’ll be my weakness,” I said to her on the very first day. I must have jinxed myself.

“I meant to tell you—a journalist friend of mine heard that you and I are friends ...,” Li Mei says.

“We’re not friends.”

“She’s interested in you,” she continues, ignoring me. “She wants to do a profile of you and Rose.”

“No thanks.”

“It would be good for your image.”

I don’t answer for a long time. A profile of us is a terrible idea. The farther away from the public gaze we are, the better. Anyone who looked closely would see that Rose and I aren’t in love.

“I don’t need to work on my image.”

“It would be a video interview for the Glamour YouTube channel.”

I make a face, finally giving her my full attention. Isn’t that a women’s fashion magazine?

“ Glamour ? Since when have they been interested in us?”

Let’s face it: poker only interests poker players.

This isn’t the Olympic Games or the Oscars, or even the Grammys.

The world of poker tournaments is a lot less sexy than people think.

The only reason things have been a bit different over the last few years is Tito.

Love him or loathe him, he’s well-known and very influential, so journalists follow him wherever he goes.

Happy to have piqued my curiosity, Li Mei smiles and smooths her skirt over her knees. She lowers her voice as she sees the croupier taking her seat, a sign that we’re about to start.

“Poker is super fashionable right now. Haven’t you seen the series Cards on the Table with Anya Taylor-Joy? It was a huge hit.”

“I don’t watch television.”

“Of course you don’t.” She sighs and hands me a business card. “Look; these are the journalist’s details. You might attract some sponsors.”

“I’m already sponsored. Forget about it, Li Mei; it’s a no.”

She knew it would be and only shrugs. Not only are my tournaments all-expenses-paid; I also get a monthly income for allowing my sponsor to use my image.

I put the business card into the inner pocket of my jacket and promptly forget about it.

I have other things on my mind. I need to focus, but I can’t help thinking about it all: the missing files, Thomas’s suspicions about Rose, Tito’s provocations, and the sham fiancée who haunts my nights.

I can’t even control myself; I had to finish myself off like a horny teenager after our kiss. I don’t like what’s happening to me.

“What’s up?” I ask Rose when she joins me for lunch in our usual spot next to the pool.

She’s seemed preoccupied since we left the gaming room. I noticed her staring at Li Mei. I ask if she’s noticed something about her.

“I don’t get it.”

“What?”

“Her mouth. Her eyebrows. She was showing signs of anger during your game. But ... I don’t think she was angry.”

I watch her carefully, intrigued and quite impressed, I must admit. “What do you mean?”

She looks into the distance, and shakes her head a little. “She wanted people to think she was angry.”

“Why?”

“No idea. To tell you the truth ... I still can’t figure her out. Lucky’s the same. He tries to come across as naive and uncool, but there’s something not quite right. The effort isn’t always natural.”

I allow myself a little smile. She’s good, very good; there’s no denying it. She promises to keep an eye on them, and we eat and play cards. She congratulates me when I beat her twice.

Meanwhile, I can’t stop thinking about my conversation with Thomas earlier regarding the USB key.

I wonder, could the disappearance of those files have some larger significance than I’ve acknowledged?

Maybe it’s a sign. After all, who am I to judge?

I’m playing God, trying to punish Tito for his sins, but maybe it’s not my place. I should mind my own business.

I’m no better a man than Tito .

“Do you think people are born good or bad?” I ask.

Rose looks up from her plate, one eyebrow raised in silent interrogation. “They say it’s society that corrupts people,” she says thoughtfully, “and that there’s no such thing as original sin.” I like that she answers naturally and doesn’t find my change of subject absurd.

“But society was created a long time after humans appeared on the scene. People created it, didn’t they?”

She tilts her head to one side, chewing slowly. Today she’s wearing cropped jeans and a flannel shirt open over a white crop top. I love it.

“So you think people have it in their nature to be bad?” she says.

I sigh. “I think they’re capable of terrible atrocities. They use war to win their arguments. And then there’s slavery, rape ... murder.”

“And yet,” she says with a shrug, “people are still capable of doing good things. Some spend their lives helping others. Some who find themselves in the most dangerous situations manage to find a path to solidarity, even sacrifice. Most people would die for someone they love.”

“Or kill.” I said it quietly, but her glance shows me she heard. My face doesn’t give anything away. My chest hurts. I think of my mother, my father, and the terrible evening I can’t manage to put behind me.

Rose gazes at me for longer than I’d like. Finally, she puts down her plate and wipes her mouth with her napkin.

“I think the binary opposites of good and evil are too extreme a way to look at it,” she says.

“Nothing is black and white. People are capable of both. And still ... I do think we have more good than bad in us. In general, people don’t want to kill, do they?

And even when someone does, they usually feel guilt and regret. ”

She’s right. It’s a question with no answer. The greatest philosophers are still working on it. I smile at Rose, suddenly feeling very tired.

“I wouldn’t have taken you for such an optimist.”

She stands up and holds out a hand to help me up too. I take it, and she rolls her eyes as she answers me.

“What can I do? We all have our faults.”

Rose still isn’t back when I come out of the shower. That’s not unusual; she often disappears for a few hours without my knowing where she’s gone. But she always returns.

I pull on a T-shirt and black joggers, and sit down on the sofa with a glass of red wine. I leaf through a book about poker, underlining parts that interest me. The silence does me good. It doesn’t last long, unfortunately.

“Levi.”

I keep reading as Thomas comes into the room. He repeats my name, and this time I look up. I’m surprised to see Li Mei with him. Her expression is reserved.

Something’s wrong .

“What’s going on?”

“Where’s Rose?” asks Thomas irritably.

“Interesting question. Why do you ask?”

He glances at Li Mei, who is uncharacteristically silent.

“I already thought it was weird the way she kept on disappearing without telling us where she was. But since this morning, I’ve been paying more attention.”

“Tommy,” I groan. I get up, anger beginning to worm its way into my heart. “I told you not to do anything. You need to trust me.”

There isn’t a flicker of regret or remorse on his face. I’d forgotten that regardless of how much he respects me, Thomas does whatever he likes and always thinks he’s in the right.

“I’m not sorry. Because the verdict is in: I’ve been searching for her for two hours with no success.”

“OK. And?”