Dealing From the Bottom of the Deck

"Heath, could step into my office for a minute?" The pit boss, Mason Knowles requested the dealer from Table Seven.

"Sure, boss." Heath was in a good mood, because he had four days vacation time coming for a getaway with Alicia to Tahoe for some skiing vacation. In his younger days, Heath had a tryout with the United States Olympic team. So, he was really looking forward for a getaway to shred some white powder with Alicia.

"Have a seat." Mason sat behind his desk as Heath sat in the chair facing Knowles. " I have been reviewing the numbers and find that you are below fifty percent. Our company requires at least a sixty percent take on the poker tables."

"Sir, I am aware of that." Heath folded his hands on his lap as his jubilant mood abruptly shifted to a more somber one.

"I also have customer complaints that you have been dealing from the bottom of the deck." Knowles flashed his famous look of death as he leaned forward to assume a position of power, " You are aware that if these alligators are true, this is cause for dismissal."

"Yes sir, I am. " He blinked several times as the sick feeling sank in his stomach.

"We are currently reviewing the surveillance recordings to find if these accusations hold any merit. If they do, we will notify you the your services at True Heart Casino will no longer be required."

Beth RodSkil rose to his feet without saying another word and walked out of Knowles' office at an accelerated pace. He knew the surveillance tape would show his sleight of hand pulling cards from the bottom of the deck, cards that he already knew the denomination. Even dealing these cards from the bottom, his take numbers sucked. How did this happen? When you cheat, you're supposed to win.

Suddenly his getaway weekend to Tahoe was not as thrilling as it had been a few hours ago. He would have to tell Alicia the bad news. To be honest, Heath knew things were not going well between them and he figured the getaway would put the on the right track. He screwed up. It was his fault. He had become distracted by another woman. He closed his eyes as he stopped at a red light SunValley Boulevard s his mind flashed to that miserable night when, as he put it, the "shit had hit the fan." It was not pretty. His smooth cavalier manner had failed him miserably and his insides were sliced to pieces by her accusations. No one was a winner. There was a thawing over the past few weeks, but the nerve endings were still raw.

Someone behind him honked as the traffic light was now green. From that intersection, Heath would be home in a few minutes as he pulled into the Tudor Arms where he lived in his over priced castle with his reigning queen, Alicia Mance.

A chilly wind blew in the crisp February night as he exited his compact Toyota with a bag treats from the kitchen that would become dinner. He would tell her after they ate. Keys in hand, he fumbled to open the door. Entering this dark living room, he was flummoxed that she was not watching her late night shows. No Jimmy Kimmel?

"Hello." He stumbled into the efficiency kitchen and turned on the light. He was greeted by a note stuck under a refrigerator magnet. His name was on it. The note was short from Alicia that she had moved in with her aunt until she could get her own place. Pulling out his cell phone, he dialed her number, but she had blocked him.

Flopping on the couch where she would normally be watching Kimmel, Heath was despondent wondering what he should do. He had mixed emotions of rage and crippling hopelessness that would put him in bed for days.

The rage won out. He would go to Tahoe unaccompanied, do the slopes and end the day at the cozy club where he could mingle with some snow bunnies over cocktails.

He grabbed the bags he packed and walked out to his car. Ten minutes later he was on his way, except his gas gauge was on E. He pulled into a Chevron to fill up for a trip that would take under an hour on Interstate 580. As he listened to the gas slosh into his tank, he saw a man get pushed to the ground.

"Be on your way, bum. This is a place of business, not a place to pan handle." The attendant shook his finger at the man lying on the concrete.

"I...i..i ...was jus..." He stammered. Heath felt sorry for the vagrant. There were lots of transients who moved through these corridors.

"Move out or I'll call the cops." The attendant turned away and went back into the booth.

"Are you alright?" Heath squatted down.

"Noooo." The man howled like a wolf.

"Easy, buddy, easy." I tried to calm him.

"How can I be easy when everybody is out to get me.+ He waved his hands in front of him as he kicked his feet like a toddler throwing a tantrum.

" My name is Heath Rodskil. Who are you?"

"Aaron." He managed to say. While his cloths were tattered and frayed in places, he appeared to be healthy and well fed. With dirt under his fingernails, his hands were soft and smooth.

"Aaron what?"

"Just Aaron." He batted his baby blues. He did have a heavy orbital ridge with a heavy black eyebrow and a long straight nose that curved where it had been broken at least once or twice.

"Aaron, where do you live?" Heath began helping Aaron to his feet.

"Kansas City, I think." He put a long finger to his chin.

"You don't know?" Heath was perplexed that a grown man had no idea where his home was. He figured Aaron was about fifty.

"I have trouble remembering things." On Aaron's first step, he nearly tripped over his won feet.

"Where are you, right now?" Heath asked, but Aaron just shrugged after looking in all four directions.

"You are in Reno." Heath put Aaron's arm on his to help guide him.

"Reno?" He blinked as if this was news to him.

"Nevada." Heath filled in the blank

"Never been there." Aaron said from the side of his mouth.

"It's hot." Aaron shivered.

"Not in February." Heath shook his head. Alicia hated the homeless. She called them lazy deadbeats, but he would tell her some of them were incapable of properly caring for themselves like Aaron appeared to be. There were others like him.

"Promise me you won't call the police. " He stopped walking as a patrol car drove by.

"Why? They can help you."

"Never have before." He blinked several times again. Heath wondered if this was a nervous habit or a sided effect from a medication or maybe a bit of both. He was a card dealer not a doctor, but he had dealt cards to all sorts of customer both well and unwell, often with very little difference between.either of them. Once seated at his table, they would exhibit savage and beastly behavior. Even the most demure lady and a gentleman can become wild animals when the cards hit the table.

"Do you have any family?" He asked, but Aaron shook his head with a blank expression on his face. "Nobody I can call who might be looking for you?"

"Not that I know." His voice sounded distant and forlorn.

Heath was becoming frustrated. This was turning to be one of the worst days of his life. What started out as promising bright spot on the horizon had quickly turned into a shit pie in the matter of a couple of hours. He called the hotel since it was check-in time, but was told it was too !ate to het a refund on his five hundred dollar deposit and he would also be responsible for the balance of the .other five hundred on the intimate chalet n the lake side.

"Aaron, I have to take care of some business." Heath told him.

"Just like all the others." Aaron griped hating his hand up in the air.

"I'm sorry, but I had plans before I saw you."

"I understand." He clearly did not understand as he shoved his hands in the pockets of his overcoat.

"What do you want from me?" Heath turned to face him in total frustration.

"I want you to understand." Aaron spoke through his clenched teeth.

"I do understand." Heath stomped his foot.

"What do you understand? Exactly." He gritted his teeth.

"That you need help."

"Sir, we all need help at times." He rocked on his heels, "You have lost someone in your life you loved very much."

Heath stood there, but Aaron could have knocked him over with a feather. After a moment from being awestruck, Heath spoke in a raspy voice, "How did you know?"

"I may not be the smartest person who ever walked these streets, but I've spent my life reading people's faces, because my life depended on it." Aaron removes his hands from his pockets, "if someone is having a shitty day, I might be the person to set him off. It's happened to me before, but I keep getting more observant, because my life depends on it."

"How come you were playing me?" Heath squinted.

"It's part of the deal. People tell you one thing and give you another." Aaron shrugs, "That attendant who knocked me down...didn't want to deal with me. To him i! Just another problem he had to take care of. He's a lazy oaf. It's easier to bully someone than to figure out what the problem is."

"So where are you from?.Really."

"I'd rather not say. "

"How come?"

"I don't want to go back to where I came from. Don't ask. I'd rather not say." Aaron chuckled, "I planned to hitchhike until I got to the ocean. I've never been."

"Then I'll take you."

"I thought you had business." Aaron raise a dubious eyebrow.

"What can I say, I lied." Heath opened the passenger door."Lying comes easy in my line of work. I mean my old line of work."

Heath hadn't seen the ocean in a while and he was getting tired of beige landscape the desert had to offer, so he got on Interstate 80 west and descended through the Sierra down to the Central Valley as Aaron spoke of his traumatic past. His life was filled with all kinds of twists and turns like a California coastal road. Heath had his share of jolts and bumps, but the more he talked to Aaron, the more pain seemed to be soothed, even old wounds he never thought.would fully heal.

Unable to put his finger on it, Heath sensed there was something about his companion that made him apprehensive as he spoke of his present circumstances. He sensed he may be an escapee from prison. If only he would speak about it, but then why should he and put himself in jeopardy. But then Heath thought it was he who was in jeopardy. If he could only get to law enforcement without giving himself away

"I cannot wait to see that ocean. How many times I've dreamed about it." Aaron put his hands behind his heads the air blew in from the open car windows.

"I can't wait either." Heath would locate law enforcement while Aaron was soaking in the scenery.

"I'll bet it's beautiful." Aaron sighed.

"The water is cold." Heath informed him.

"Oh, I doesn't matter." Aaron smile. Seeing him smile rattled Heath a bit, because it was the first time he could recall seeing Aaron smile and that grin seemed evil to Heath. Heat also noticed Aaron's voice seemed to be used a notch.Then Heath remembered the pistol he had stashed in the glove box when some of the customers got a little riled.

"Wanna stop for lunch?"? Heath asked.

" How much longer?"

"We just passed San Jose, so about an hour I'd say." Heath wanted to go to Monterey that would be crowded with tourists and plenty of distractions. Skating down Highway, the Pacific Ocean came into view.

"There it is!" He pointed at the soft blue horizon . if he could have stood up, he would have.

"It won't be long now." Heath laughed, but Aaron didn't Eve crack a smile. His somber expression alarmed Heath. The silence hung in the air like a death sentence. One way or another, Heath would be rid of Aaron. If only he had waited a few more extra minutes to get gas, Aaron would not be sitting next to him at this moment.

Heath pulled into the crowded parking lot with the showroom cars. As he got out of his car, he saw two security officers near a snack vendor.

"You go up ahead, I need to use the restroom." Heath pointed to the restroom near the officers.

"Sure." Aaron was as giddy as child. It was just what Heath had hoped for.

"Officers." Heath sauntered up to them.

"What can we do for you, sir?" One of them addressed him.

"I've got a guy with me who may be dangerous. His name is Aaron, but he won't tell me his last name." Heath explained, "He's right there."

"We'll checks it out." Both officers walked toward Aaron whose back was turned to them as they approached. Heath leaned over the railing staring down to a hundred foot when he heard someone shout, "Hey Roadkill!"

To his horror, Heath saw Aaron pitched on a rock out past the railing on the precipice of a deadly drop into the rocks and surf below.

"What a beautiful view I've got!" He shouted just before he leaped from the rock he was standing on free falling into the surf below.

After three grueling hours of police questioning, Heath Rodskil learned that Aaron Avery had escaped from a state psychiatric hospital three weeks before. According to psychiatric records, Aaron was highly intelligent as well as highly psychotic. In a hand written note he wrote before his leap, he said he could no longer operate in this world ending with thank you to Heath Rodskil.. When he returned to Reno, he was dismissed for dealing from the bottom of the deck. with all things considered, somehow that didn't seem so bad.