Like magic, the noise stopped and all eyes turned to the two of us again.
I found myself wishing I had accepted the drink.
Chapter Eighteen:
“Cast your fate to the winds.”
-L.BERNSTEIN
THE table was waiting for us. There were only two chairs with chips stacked neatly in front of them.
I had a sudden moment of panic when I realized I didn’t know which chair was facing south, but Aahz came to my rescue. Darting out of the crowd, he pulled out one chair and held it for me to sit in. To the crowd it looked like a polite gesture, but my friends knew I had come dangerously close to changing the rules I had labored so hard to memorize.
“Cards!” the Kid ordered, holding out one hand as he eased into the chair facing me.
A new deck materialized in his hand. He examined it like a glass of fine wine, holding it up to the light to be sure the wrapping was intact and even sniffing the seal to be sure the factory glue was the same.
Satisfied, he offered the deck to me. I smiled and spread my hands to show I was satisfied. I mean, heck!
If he hadn’t found anything wrong, it was a cinch that I wouldn’t be able to detect any foul play.
The gesture seemed to impress him though, and he gave me a small bow before opening the deck. Once the cards were out of the box, his pudgy fingers seemed to take on a life of their own. Moving swiftly, they removed the jokers and cast them aside, then began peeling cards off the deck two at a time, one from the top and one from the bottom.
Watching the process, I began to realize why his handshake had been so gentle. Large as they were, this fingers were graceful, delicate, and sensitive as they went about their task. These were not the hands of a rough laborer, or even a fighter. They existed to do one thing: to handle a deck of cards.