Chapter Four

Amanda arrived at the Belle of New Orleans for her audition fifteen minutes early. She wiped her sweaty palms on her tuxedo pants and straightened her white shirt. She was nervous. She remembered her instructor's words about paying the bets and collecting losing bets. Just be friendly and keep your eyes open, her instructor had told her. Funny, that's also what her boss, Agent Michael Ross, had told her when she reported to him about her audition. Agent Ross had Amanda specially wired today for her audition, just in case, he'd told her. Amanda liked Agent Ross from the moment she met him. Tall, with wavy brown hair and dark blue eyes, he was outgoing and friendly. He also took his job very seriously. He was determined to catch Andre Brousseau, head of the New Orleans crime syndicate and casino owner. Brousseau had ties to the Las Vegas mob and Agent Ross was trying to turn up the heat on Brousseau. Agent Ross had three members of Brousseau's entourage arrested earlier in the week for assault on two players of the casino. Brousseau had been in the newspapers, hinting at retaliation. Of course, in New Orleans, retaliation was the name of the game. Retaliation and dirty politics was what kept the politicians in business here. Amanda sighed against the sweltering heat of downtown New Orleans and strolled into the revolving doors of the casino. She was rewarded with a blast of cold air as a plainclothes security officer frisked her.

"I'm here for a Blackjack audition." Amanda said.

"Follow me. Mr. Brousseau's expecting you." the officer said.

Amanda followed the burly security officer to a roped-off area in the casino, spotlighted on a raised dais. The sign above the area read "High Limit Area, Table Limits Enforced". Amanda straightened her shoulders as she was brought to a table where a lone gentleman sat. He was about forty-five, with short dark hair threaded with gray. He looked to be about 6'2" with deep brown eyes and a commanding presence. He spoke with a slight Creole lilt to Amanda.

"Mrs. King, I am Andre Brousseau, owner of the Belle of New Orleans." Brousseau said. "Are you ready for your audition?"

"Yes, sir, I think I'm ready." Amanda replied.

"Good. Then let's get started." Brousseau replied.

Amanda began by checking the bank in the dealer's box. When she had verified it was correct, she fanned out the cards on the table and quickly counted all the decks. She then began to shuffle the decks into one another. After all the decks were mixed, she split the shuffled decks in half and butterfly shuffled them. She rolled all the decks into the shoe, burned the top card, and began to deal Blackjack. As she dealt, Brousseau asked her about the various payouts on different Blackjack amounts, and how she would deal with angry, hostile customers. Amanda answered each question effectively and accurately as she kept a close eye on the table. After about ten minutes of dealing to Brousseau, he asked her to be relieved off the table. She clapped her hands and revealed them to be empty, then excused herself off the table as another potential dealer came to the table to be auditioned. As she was leaving, Brousseau stopped her.

"Mrs. King, congratulations!" Brousseau exclaimed. "You've got the job."

"Really?" Amanda asked.

"Really, Mrs. King. You were excellent." Brousseau replied.

"Thank You, Mr. Rousseau." Amanda said.

"You're very welcome, Mrs. King. Now go and get your gaming license and we'll see you next week." Brousseau said.

Amanda left the casino elated. She knew that Agent Ross had overheard her audition and the fact she'd just been hired. She hurried to her car and headed to the Agency where she knew plans were being set in motion to bring Andre Brousseau down. ________________________________________________________________________