us lunch earlier today.”
“Of course. How can I help you? And by that, I mean help Nadia.”
I chuckled. “I have a meeting with a potential investor. Mister M is a high nine player with a fifteen-million credit line, coming in from the UAE. I’d like to meet with his host to discuss what kind of gifts Mister M might appreciate. I was hoping you could tell me who I should speak with.”
“Nadia told you what to say, didn’t she?”
“One of our booth greeters, actually. She’s a local and knows the system. I’m not ashamed to rely on the kindness of strangers.” Well, I was, but no need to tell her that.
“Mister M likes racehorses. American Thoroughbreds as well as Arabians. He prefers small-breasted redheads and women covered with tattoos. What he wants above all is a cure for low sperm count, because he has three wives and no children. His weakness is gifts for his wives. He’s the kind of man who gives his wife a bowling ball for her birthday, after he’s had his name engraved on it and the holes sized for his fingers.”
“Even I’m smarter than that. What do his wives want?”
“What’s in it for me, David? I’m happy to whore my resources for you…if you can afford me.”
I pictured her with warty green skin and a long, pointed nose, saying, “Show me yer gold, chump”. Yeah. Definitely a goblin. “For some reason, I think you already have something in mind.”
“Miss Nadia’s parents. I want to know anything useful you learn about them. They aren’t your standard players. You hear that a lot, but…I’ll give you an example. Mrs. C has a pet mongoose she carries with her everywhere. Fifteen years ago, at another casino, a floor manager got in her face and demanded she cage her mongoose up or leave, despite her having just lost over two million playing roulette. Mrs. C’s response was, ‘Are you sure you want to piss me off?’ She put a million on double-zero. It pays thirty-five to one. She hit. She said, ‘Let it ride.’ She hit again , and again she let it ride. They closed the table, but she demanded they spin again anyway. She hit.
“The casino owed her one-and-a-quarter billion dollars from those first two spins. As security walked her off the floor, six other roulette players at different tables hit their numbers. All six were the largest bets on the table. It kept happening while she was in the security office. When the president of the casino heard what was happening, he came down himself, reprimanded everyone, and apologized for the manager’s actions. He asked what he could do to make up for the inconvenience and poor treatment.”
“Mrs. C said, ‘This is Riki. He’s a service mongoose. I keep him with me at all times because he helps me. If he’s not welcome in this casino, I’ll go somewhere he is.’ She tore up the marker for the billion she’d won, walked out, and went back to losing at roulette. Mrs. C ended the night down a million five and tipped her dealer a hundred grand in chips. I was that dealer. The next day I got fired for conspiring with her. She found out, ripped management a new one, and came to this casino on the condition they give me a job. I started in VIP services with Mrs. C as my first client. I owe her my career, and I’ll do anything to keep her happy.”
“Understandable.” I fell silent, weighing pros and cons of yet another Faustian bargain. Well, they can’t repossess my soul more than once, right? “I’ll tell you what I find out, provided the information doesn’t put anyone at risk or otherwise cause people harm.”
“Acceptable. Mister and Mrs. C have been great customers and I enjoy working with them. I want to keep them as customers, but I don’t know how to appeal to them. I’ll tell you what you need to know, and you get me something I can use.”
“All right, I agree. However, I would like to know how you got so much information on Mister M.”
“He used to own a partial stake in a private 747, kind of a
“Of course. How can I help you? And by that, I mean help Nadia.”
I chuckled. “I have a meeting with a potential investor. Mister M is a high nine player with a fifteen-million credit line, coming in from the UAE. I’d like to meet with his host to discuss what kind of gifts Mister M might appreciate. I was hoping you could tell me who I should speak with.”
“Nadia told you what to say, didn’t she?”
“One of our booth greeters, actually. She’s a local and knows the system. I’m not ashamed to rely on the kindness of strangers.” Well, I was, but no need to tell her that.
“Mister M likes racehorses. American Thoroughbreds as well as Arabians. He prefers small-breasted redheads and women covered with tattoos. What he wants above all is a cure for low sperm count, because he has three wives and no children. His weakness is gifts for his wives. He’s the kind of man who gives his wife a bowling ball for her birthday, after he’s had his name engraved on it and the holes sized for his fingers.”
“Even I’m smarter than that. What do his wives want?”
“What’s in it for me, David? I’m happy to whore my resources for you…if you can afford me.”
I pictured her with warty green skin and a long, pointed nose, saying, “Show me yer gold, chump”. Yeah. Definitely a goblin. “For some reason, I think you already have something in mind.”
“Miss Nadia’s parents. I want to know anything useful you learn about them. They aren’t your standard players. You hear that a lot, but…I’ll give you an example. Mrs. C has a pet mongoose she carries with her everywhere. Fifteen years ago, at another casino, a floor manager got in her face and demanded she cage her mongoose up or leave, despite her having just lost over two million playing roulette. Mrs. C’s response was, ‘Are you sure you want to piss me off?’ She put a million on double-zero. It pays thirty-five to one. She hit. She said, ‘Let it ride.’ She hit again , and again she let it ride. They closed the table, but she demanded they spin again anyway. She hit.
“The casino owed her one-and-a-quarter billion dollars from those first two spins. As security walked her off the floor, six other roulette players at different tables hit their numbers. All six were the largest bets on the table. It kept happening while she was in the security office. When the president of the casino heard what was happening, he came down himself, reprimanded everyone, and apologized for the manager’s actions. He asked what he could do to make up for the inconvenience and poor treatment.”
“Mrs. C said, ‘This is Riki. He’s a service mongoose. I keep him with me at all times because he helps me. If he’s not welcome in this casino, I’ll go somewhere he is.’ She tore up the marker for the billion she’d won, walked out, and went back to losing at roulette. Mrs. C ended the night down a million five and tipped her dealer a hundred grand in chips. I was that dealer. The next day I got fired for conspiring with her. She found out, ripped management a new one, and came to this casino on the condition they give me a job. I started in VIP services with Mrs. C as my first client. I owe her my career, and I’ll do anything to keep her happy.”
“Understandable.” I fell silent, weighing pros and cons of yet another Faustian bargain. Well, they can’t repossess my soul more than once, right? “I’ll tell you what I find out, provided the information doesn’t put anyone at risk or otherwise cause people harm.”
“Acceptable. Mister and Mrs. C have been great customers and I enjoy working with them. I want to keep them as customers, but I don’t know how to appeal to them. I’ll tell you what you need to know, and you get me something I can use.”
“All right, I agree. However, I would like to know how you got so much information on Mister M.”
“He used to own a partial stake in a private 747, kind of a
Similar Books
