Phule’s Paradise by Robert Asprin

“Hard to tell,” she said with a slight shrug, her eyes still moving across the casino. “It looks pretty normal … maybe a bit more flow to the customers than usual, but I’d have to watch for a while to get a real feel for it. Of course, you can’t say for sure without moving in close to see which chips are moving in which direction.”

What she was referring to was that experienced gamblers rarely settled for making the same bet over and over. If you did that, the house odds would catch up to you in the long run and you’d lose. Instead, they tended to stagger their bets, betting low for long stretches, then raising their bets dramatically when they felt the odds were in their favor or a run was in effect. As a result, a player could win and lose an equal number of hands, but end up ahead or behind depending on whether or not their larger bets paid off.

“So we really don’t know if this grand plan is working or not,” Stilman said crossly.

Surprised at the surliness in his tone, Maxine glanced at him and noticed for the first time that he was looking around nervously and fidgeting … something totally out of character from his normal aloof manner.

“You seem uneasy, Mr. Stilman,” she observed. “Is something bothering you?”

The muscleman glanced around again before answering.

“I’m just not sure how happy the staff is going to be to see me here is all,” he said. “After that fiasco on the loading dock, I wouldn’t be surprised if they tried to throw me out-tuxedo or no.”

“I think Mr. Phule’s security team has Stilman a bit spooked, Max,” Laverna said with a wink and a grin.