Against Reason
Then Bob starts winning. Not surviving. Winning.
Bill and Bob bought into the same tournament, which Bill had specifically said they should not do, and were seated at the same table, which Bill had specifically said could not happen in a field that size.
It happened on the main stage. It happened under the lights, in front of the cameras, with the big screen overhead showing the tournament logo on a loop.
The hand itself was simple. Bob moved all in. Bill, holding the eight and seven of hearts, looked across at the man who has been trying to trap him for years without success, concluded that this was obviously one more attempt, and called.
Bob turned over the ace of spades and the ace of diamonds.
Bill's reaction was captured by at least two cameras. His mouth opened wide enough that one of the floor staff briefly checked whether he was all right. Bob sat across from him with one hand held out toward his cards, palm up, in the manner of a man presenting a dish at a restaurant.
It was the first time in the history of their friendship that one of Bob's traps had worked. Bob maintains that he had been playing a long game. Bill maintains that Bob picked up aces and could not believe his luck either, and points to the fact that Bob looked just as startled as he did.
From there the run began. For a brief and unstable stretch, Bob's incompetence started passing for destiny, and people who did not know him began to treat him accordingly. Bill did not trust any of it. That was the correct instinct.
All of Chapter 1: The Vegas Trip →