Chapter 1

Christina picked up her 9mm Beretta from the glove department, put it in her pocket, slammed the Chevrolet's door, and left the parking lot. Down the street, a black pyramid decorated the casino's roof. And Neon lamps flashed its name in red: Lucky.

The glass door slid open and let her in. A wave of warm air hit her in the face, and the door closed, sealing the inside from the chilly November night. A bouncer had crossed his thick arms on his chest and stood to her left. She smiled at him, and he nodded.

It was a busy night, and the casino was packed. She shoved her card into an ATM and tapped the pad code. After a brief pause, the machine spat out five one hundred dollar bills; six dollars twenty-five cents remained in her account.

She sighed and pulled out the card. Those five bills were one week worth of twelve hours shifts.

She put the money into her pocket, and her fingers touched the pistol. Her gaze turned toward the bouncer but he was chatting with a customer and didn't pay any attention to her. The casino didn't have metal detectors, and the security padded down people when they became suspicious. She was a regular here and so far had managed to look harmless.

But cameras were everywhere, and one was above the ATM. Looking into its lens, she wondered if someone was watching her. She winked at the glass and turned around.

A couple of seats at a poker table were vacant, and the game hadn't started yet. She sat down and put two hundred dollars on the table.

"Hi, Malcolm." She said and flashed a smile at the dealer.

"You sure you wanna sit here?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Why not?

Two men- she knew neither- sat at the table. And someone had left a large purse on the last chair. The dealer tilted his head toward the empty seat.

"What is it?" Her gaze went back and forth between him and the vacant chair.

Malcolm sighed, took the money, and slid the chips in front of her.

"What are you trying to say?" She asked.

He shrugged and shook his head. She looked at her opponents to see what the problem was. One of them, a young man in his late twenties, was busy sliding photos on his phone. He had hung his jacket from the back of his chair. And his T-shirt declared that you suck!

The other was in his mid-forties, and his plaid shirt didn't have a message for the public. His massive hands that rested on the table reminded her of two shovels. Those fists could deliver a knockout punch. Their eyes met; he smiled, and she turned her gaze.

A small woman was striding toward the table, and her short blonde hair swung left and right as she moved.

"Hell no!" Christina said.

The dealer had an 'I told you so' look on his face.

"You can't talk? You give me riddles?!" She snapped.

He shrugged and busied himself with the chips.

Her hand sank into her pocket and grabbed the Beretta; the feel of the cold steel was reassuring. The woman's name was Jenny. A few months back Christina had played with her and her boyfriend and won. That night they jumped her in the parking lot, beat her, and took her money.

Jenny saw her and paused for a second. Then a big smile covered her face and sat down.

" Long time no see, freak." Her eyes sparkled in delight.

"I can give you your money back if you want." Malcolm offered.

"Yeah, take your money and leave," Jenny nodded.

After that night, when Christina came to gamble, she carried a gun. Once she had too much to drink and told Malcolm about what had happened. He recognised them; a couple of petty thieves that occasionally played at the casino.

Christina pursed her lips and raised her chin. "Deal."

She wasn't going to run from her.

"You sure?" Malcolm asked.

"Yes, I am. Deal."

"Great idea. I'm in the mood for some serious winning tonight." Jenny said.

Tom, her boyfriend, came from the bar with a shot of bourbon in his hand and stood behind her.

"Oh look who's here." Staring at Christina, he took a sip and smirked.

"Yeah she can't take her eyes off me. I think she likes me." Jenny said.

"How about a threesome? Huh? Oh wait, I think we had one of those in the parking lot. Remember?" He winked at Christina and laughed.

"OK enough. You wanna play or not?" Malcolm dealt the cards.

Christina glanced at a large clock on the wall in front of her; it was half-past nine.

Two hours later, only she and Jenny still played. The 'you suck!' T-shirt had left, but the man with large hands remained and watched the game. He didn't seem upset about a grand he had lost.

Tom whispered something in Jenny's ear, looked at Christina, and both laughed.

But she didn't care. She was going to win back the money they had stolen from her and then some.

"Flush." Jenny put her cards on the table and looked defiantly at her.

"I knew you had this babe." Tom put his arm around her neck and gave her a noisy kiss on the cheek. A lot of spit was involved in that and his stare didn't leave Christina's eyes.

Christina grinned, paused a couple of seconds, and then put down her cards. "Full house! Who is the freak now, bitch?"

She raised her arms in the air and danced a little in her seat.

Her win for the night was almost five grand, and thirty-five hundred of it belonged to the couple.

The two watched her dance, whispered something to one another, and left.

Her smile faded, and her wary gaze followed them out of the casino. They weren't the kind to just accept their loss and walk away. The last time Jenny lost to her; she threw a fit and accused her of cheating. And later that night, they attacked her.

Her fingers caressed the pistol's smooth barrel in her pocket.

I will shoot them both dead if they touch me again…

She shook her head and made a column out of her chips, and then collapsed it. Her eyes caught up with the blonde guy, and he smiled at her.

"Can I help you?" She asked.

"Let me buy you a drink."

"Drinks are free here."

"Not the good ones."

She built another pillar from her pieces.

"Name's Jack. You're a good player. You can make a lot of money."

"You need money to make money." She picked up one of the chips and put it back on top of the column.

"You already got some." He pointed at her wins.

This guy wants to get laid by complimenting me on my game. Nice approach!

Then her mind drifted from the charming man, and her gaze wandered around. The image of Tom and Jenny, whispering and sneering at her, lingered in her mind.

They're waiting for me in the parking lot, but I won't be there. I leave the old Chevy here and take a taxi.

A hand moved in front of her face, and she looked up; it was Jack. She knew the look in his eyes. He had talked to her; she didn't respond, and he had guessed why.

"Yes, I'm deaf. I should look at people's faces to read their lips. This is why that woman keeps calling me a freak." She said.

"I know a way you can get the money for your future games." He said after a brief pause.

"You mean you know a loan shark who can give me the money."

"Yes." He nodded.

"And if I can't pay you back you remove my knee caps?" She raised an eyebrow.

"Uh, those are just the movies. "He shook his hand dismissively, "We're doing business here."

"And what do you get? A cut from him?"

"Nope."

"You want a cut from me?"

"How much did you win tonight?"

"About five G and a grand of it used to be yours by the way." She winked at him and caressed her chips.

"Five grand. Hmm. How about a hundred grand or two hundred? How about half a million?"

She sat straight and looked at him for a few seconds. Half a million dollars! He knew his audience.

"Your cut will be…?" She asked.

"Ten percent."

"And if I lose?"

"Well, then that's just back luck, isn't it?" He shrugged.

His mouth-watering offer came with a catch. She had to go into business with a loan shark. If she lost, these people didn't forget about their money. The charming attitude would go out of the window, and they came after her.

"I have to cash these out." She stood up and collected her tokens.

He slid his card in front of her. "Give me a call if you were interested."

"I can only read messages. Deaf, remember? "

"Then I'll make sure to check my messages." He left the table.

She picked up the card and flipped it over. His name_ Jack_ and a phone number were on one side. And the other side was plain white.

A woman sat behind the glass at the cage; her silver hair framed her face, and a stub of cigarette smoked between her fingers.

Christina put the chips and her credit card in the drawer and pushed them to the other side. The rusty thing clanged as it moved.

"Good night?" The cashier counted the tokens with her yellow-tinged fingers.

"Great night!"

"Forty-nine hundred dollars. Yes, it looks like you had a nice time." She punched the credit card information onto the computer.

Half a million dollars.

Christina flipped over Jack's card and looked at it again.

With that sort of money, I can have whatever I want.

"It takes two business days to show up in your account." The woman put her card in the drawer and shoved it to her side.

" Wait I wanted some of it in cash." She put the business card back in her pocket.

"Sorry. No can do. Already pressed send."

"But you didn't ask me. You should ask the customer how much they want to deposit."

The woman shrugged." What? You don't have enough money to survive the next couple of days? I didn't think you wanted to go around at night with five thousand dollars in your purse mademoiselle."

Christina didn't see any point in arguing with her; it was done.

When She stepped outside. The night had grown colder, and a blanket of thick clouds was rolling in from the ocean. She looked at the ATM, where her balance was a few dollars, then at the cage where she had dumped all of her chips.

Calling a taxi was not an option anymore, and she had to take her car.

The parking lot was two hundred yards down the street, and she was sure they were there, waiting for her in the dark. Her hands felt clammy.

She pressed her lips together, and her fingers sank into her pocket and grabbed the Beretta.

Suck it up; those two you can handle.

She walked toward the glimmering neon lights that arched above the parking entrance.

Someone had removed the doors from the gate, and the large hinges that remained on the brick walls had turned brown with rust. A bunch of cars was parked inside the lot, but no one was around.

A line of trees and shuttered-down buildings with broken windows ringed the place. Once she had peeked inside one of them and saw little red eyes staring back at her. It was a rat and wasn't happy at all to meet her. A few lights installed high on the walls, provided enough illumination for cars to get in and out. But they were few and far between and left many dark corners; perfect for an ambush.

She peered into the shadows but saw nothing.

Maybe they're gone… Right! Fat chance!

She put her hands inside her pockets and strode toward her car. Her steps echoed on the pavement. Halfway to the Chevrolet, she still saw nobody; maybe they were gone after all. Perhaps tonight was different. Just a few more steps and she could get in her car and go home…

A bottle whooshed in the air, exploded in front of her, and sprayed Christina with foaming beverage. Glass shards scattered around; their jagged edges shined in the light.

She froze and grabbed her pistol but didn't draw. Her gaze darted around to locate the couple. The nearest wall was twenty yards away, and its shadow shrouded anyone who wanted a hiding place.

Two figures separated from the dark. Jenny was drinking from a bottle, and Tom had an L-shaped lug wrench in his hand.

"I wanted to offer you some beer," he said," but well you're you. And there was no point in shouting. So sent you one airlifted."

Jenny giggled.

Christina relaxed her squeeze on the gun's handle to give her hand a better grip and flicked the safety off. "I don't have any money on me. I deposited everything at the cage."

"We can't just take your word for it now, can we?" He said.

Jenny shook her head. "No, we can't trust a freak."

Christina looked at her row of yellow teeth.

If things go south, tonight I'll get even with you. I'll show you what a freak can really do.

Tom grabbed Jenny's drink, took a sip, and threw the bottle away. It crashed against a car's tire.

"Okay go on. Give me your purse." He said.

Christina took a step back.

"Do I have to teach you another lesson?" He rested the bent end of the wrench on his shoulder.

"Yeah, show her hon. Show her who's the boss ." Jenny bounced around and threw a couple of punches in the air.

"Shut your mouth," Christina told her and looked at Tom." There is no money. Everything is in the bank. I got nothing on me." She took another step back.

" Where are you going? Are you scared?" He stepped forward and sneered.

"Yeah, freak. You scared? There is nowhere to run." Jenny punched the air again.

"Stay where you are." Christina's finger slid on the trigger but still didn't draw.

"Or what?" Tom advanced." Just give me the money you stole from us, and we're good."

Christina knew if she showed him her purse and he didn't find any money, he'd beat her with the wrench. Break a bone or two or maybe force her to take them to her home. So he could come back later and collect the money. And once he knew her address, she was his. After that, she had to play for him.

"Give me the damn purse!" He raised the lug in the air.

For months, she had fantasied about revenge. Shooting them and dropping their bodies at her feet. But now that the moment had come, crossing that line wasn't easy. Pulling the trigger and taking a life wasn't as pleasant as she had imagined.

What if she was wrong? Maybe if he saw the empty bag, he backed off. It was worth a shot.

She threw her purse in front of him and jumped back a couple of steps. Jenny pounced on the handbag, but Tom kicked her aside. She fell on her back and glared at him. He searched inside the purse. And when he didn't find the money, emptied its contents on the ground and kicked her stuff around. "Get your things and get in the car." He told Christina. "We go to your home, and a few days from now, I come by and collect the money. Don't worry, I only take what's ours. You can keep the rest."

"Like hell, we give her the rest. Didn't you say we make her work for us? When we were waiting for her over there?" Jenny pointed at the wall.

"Shut the hell up. We've practically become friends now." He said," Friends know where the other one lives and don't steal from each other…"

Christina drew the Beretta and pointed it at his chest. "Put my things in my purse and kick it over."

When he saw the gun, he was taken back but controlled himself.

"Can you believe this?" He pointed at her and looked at his girlfriend.

"Let's just leave. She's not worth it." Jenny's voice shook.

"Not calling me a freak anymore? No?" Christina pointed the pistol at her." No?"

Jenny screamed and covered her face with her hands. "No, no, I'm sorry. Don't shoot..."

Tom used her distraction and launched the wrench at Christina; the steel whooshed in the air. She turned to the right to stay out of its trajectory, but the iron grazed her arm, then smashed into a car window.

Her torn flesh throbbing, she straightened up. The pain had cleared up her mind and removed her doubts. She raised the gun and punched two slugs into Tom's chest. The shots resonated in the empty parking lot, and blood gushed out of the holes.

With widened eyes, he looked at his wounds, then at her, and gasped for air. But the bullets had paralysed his lungs. He fell on his face, and the impact of his bulk raised some dust. His body twitched a few times and then stopped motionless.

Jenny shrieked and ran toward the gate. Christina aimed between her shoulder blades and fired; she fell. She went forward and looked at the body. The bullet had passed through Jenny's heart and instantly killed her.

Her gaze bounced around. Someone could show up at any moment, and she couldn't leave any traces of herself behind. She ran toward Tom's body, grabbed her stuff off the ground, and shoved them in her purse. Blood had spilled around and smeared most of them.

She got in her Chevrolet, threw her bag on the passenger seat, and accelerated toward the gate. Drove through the entrance and turned the wheel to head down the block when she saw an SUV parked across the street. Its driver window was halfway rolled down. If someone was in the car, he had seen everything. She slowed down and glanced inside the vehicle; it was empty.

She sped down the street.