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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Silver Moon" data-source="post: 523366" data-attributes="member: 8530">Promise City, ArizonaChapter 13, "Deal’em and weep.", April 21, 1881, 5:45 P.M. Arcade and Morgana walk arm-on-arm into the Lone Star Dance Hall and Saloon.   The three-story building is approximately thirty foot square, with a small dance stage on the side wall near a staircase leading to the second floor.    The bar is along the far wall, with two patrons sitting in bar stools.   There are also five tables, with a single man sitting at two of them, cards and poker chips on the table in front of each man.    Arcade heads straight towards the bar, ignoring the two gamblers.   All of the men in the building are almost mesmerized by the sight of Morgana in her high-class attire, as this town does not get many attractive female visitors of wealth.  The two reach the bar, and Arcade orders himself a whiskey, and a glass of wine “for the lady”.  The two nurse their drinks, and size up the two gamblers, attempted to evaluate which one is the one who called for them.   Morgana whispers to Arcade “You do gamble, right?”  He replies “I came here with you didn’t I?”   The better dressed of the two gamblers eventually speaks up, saying “You Mr. Arcade?”   He replies “Just Arcade, Mister is what I call my mother.”   The gambler answers “I read about you in the paper.”  “Must have missed that,” Arcade answers, the asks “Are you the Job Kane that invited me here”.   The gambler answers “I am.  The paper says you are ruthless.”   Arcade replies “Newspapers tend to be a bit jaundiced in their outlook.   I just do whatever needs to be done.”   “Care to play a hand of cards?” Kane asks.  “Sure,” replies Arcade, and he heads over to the table with Morgana.  She quietly tells Arcade “If you put me up as a stake in this game I will shoot you in the head.”Arcade buys $ 25.00 worth of chips.  The two begin the game, with each only putting a dollar chip into each hand.  Kane wins the 1st hand, Arcade the next three, and Kane the 5th.  Stakes do not raise until the 6th hand, where Kane wins the $ 12 pot.  The winning alternates sides for the next five hands, the 12th hand being rather juicy for both.    Arcade is confident with his full house, queens high, and the pot is raised up to $ 32.   Kane also has a full house, but only 10’s high, so Arcade wins.    Morgana realizes that Arcade is now $ 10 ahead of where he started, and wants to cash in that amount.   Kane hands Arcade the $ 10 bill, which is then passed directly to Morgana, Arcade telling her “Buy yourself something nice.”    Another ten hands of poker are played, at the end of which Arcade is only down $ 1 from his initial stake.    The game is then interrupted by the arrival of Sam, who charges into the building yelling “Louie is in trouble” to Arcade.  Both Arcade and Morgana give the youngster a dirty look.  Arcade tells Kane “Please excuse me a minute while I see what the kid wants.”   Morgana stays at the table, flirting with Kane.Arcade walks Sam over to the far wall by the dance floor, with Sam blurting out   “Louie is in Jail.”   “And…” Arcade asks, needing more information.   Sam states “You know that Chris Fargo who was after him…well, not anymore.”  “Louie shot him?” Arcade asks.  “Yeah,” Sam replies.   Arcade asks “What started it?  Louie wasn’t trying to buy rice again, was he?”  “No, the guy came looking for him,” Sam replies.  “So it was self defense.  Go bail him out,” Arcade answers.   Sam also tells them about Qualtaqa’s speech at the Long Branch Saloon, but Arcade is not overly concerned about that.  Arcade shoves Sam out the door, with Arcade yelling “And don’t interrupt me again".  Arcade returns to the table, Kane asking “What was that all about?”  Arcade replies “One of my companions got into some trouble?”  “What kind of trouble?” Kane asks.  “Shot and killed a guy,” Arcade replies.  “Is that all?” Kane answers as he starts to deal the next hand.   Morgana does not comment, continuing to play the part of the dumb girlfriend. They play another three hands, after which Arcade is still down only a dollar (and actually $9 ahead counting what Morgana took).   The tide of the game then shifts with the 26th hand, with Kane winning the next three hands, with Arcade loosing another $ 10, now being just below where he had started.   His luck then changes, with the 29th hand dealing Arcade a four-of-a-kind Jacks.   Kane also appears to have a very good hand, and both players keep raising the bet, not stopping until all of Arcade’s chips are in the pot.   Arcade considers buying more chips, but a stern look from Morgana convinces him to call the bet.   Kane then reveals a four-of-a-kind hand, Queens high, and takes the pot.   Kane thanks Arcade for a good game.  Arcade replies “Well, it was a learning experience….but it was an honest game.”   “We only play honest games under this roof,” Kane replies, a fact that does not agree with what they heard about the gambler at the other table, Tom Lucky.  Arcade answers “Glad to hear it, but my personal preference are honest games that I can also win.”  Arcade and Morgana then head back to the bar.She asks Arcade “Louie killed someone?”.  Arcade says “Louie shot a guy in self defense.  I assume the other guy is dead, since Louie is now in jail.”  “Is Louie hurt?” she asks.  “Sam didn’t say”, Arcade replies.   They then engage the barkeep in conversation, finding out that the ‘Law and Order’ faction of the town is headed up by the lumberyard owner Neil Cassidy, general store owner Zeb Cook, and town doctor James Eaton.   Morgana comments “I had better check to see if Louie needs some healing.  I wouldn’t trust him to that doctor.”  Tom Lucky then wanders over to the bar and  asks Arcade “Up for another game.”  Arcade replies “Not tonight.  The lady would prefer that I pay her some attention, if you know what I mean.   Being broke I can handle.  Being broke and lonely is another matter.”   “I understand” Lucky replies.  Arcade and Morgana then leave the Saloon.</blockquote>

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