From the first, Leopold and the mystery woman were fairly evenly matched in terms of skill, and the favor of Lady Luck. It seemed that both of them were experts at counting cards, bluffing, and calling bluffs. Thirty minutes passed by without a hitch, and each of them had only lost about five imaginary dollars. The woman lit a cigarette, taking a drag before offering it to Leopold, who accepted it gratefully. He found himself admiring her skill, wondering how many card scams she must have run up to that point. She played with the calculated boldness of a long-time master, judging the playing field, watching him for subtle movements that might give him away, and successfully hiding the strength of her cards. She ordered more wine for them, and the bartender happily obliged.
"Anything, for such a lovely lady," he chuckled, giving her his best – yet admittedly awkward – suggestive grin. Leopold watched as he attempted to pour the wine in a smooth, practiced manner, winding up shaking and sloshing some over the side of the glass. The woman giggled and thanked him quietly, taking the wine and turning away from him. The bartender, a man far younger and – as Leopold thought – more attractive than himself, stared the Austrian down with a resentful jealousy, as though he'd won the lottery, then turned away, dejected. Several rounds later, the woman lowered her cards, and smiled at Leopold, piquing his interest.
"I'd like to raise the stakes, if you're interested," she hummed, touching her wine glass to her lips, and watching him closely.
"What did you have in mind?" He mirrored her movements, locking eyes with her as he sipped at his own glass.
"Whoever wins a hand gets to ask a question of the other, and the loser is obligated to answer honestly." She said it as though she'd been planning for it, and for all he knew, she may have been. "We can ask anything we want."
"Because information is so valuable?" Leopold mused, taking another sip, and beginning to feel slightly intoxicated.
"Exactly." She nodded, smiling at him. They locked eyes; Leopold shuddered, both put off and transfixed by her gaze. Something about her made him uneasy, and yet, drew him in. He considered the possibility of her being an undercover government agent, an ally of the Pinkertons, and needed a moment to think. Passing the cigarette back to her, he cleared his throat and turned his head.
"Why do you propose this?" Clasping his hands over the bar, he leaned forward, attempting to keep a neutral expression.
"Like I said," she smirked, taking another hit from the cigarette. She blew a smoke ring and watched it disappear, then shifted her eyes to meet his once more. There was a dangerous, but enticing gleam in them, and her lips curved into a playful grin. "I'm curious about you."
"In what way?" She didn't answer, merely grinned wider, and watched him over the rim of her glass. He leaned back, aware that he was quickly losing his hold on the situation. Maybe it was the wine, or perhaps the idea of getting to know her, or even just the way she looked at him, but he couldn't resist temptation for long. "Never mind. Very well. Are we still playing to decide course of the evening as well?"
"Oh, we most certainly are." She reshuffled the deck, then dealt. He had two face cards, a queen and a jack, and her face-up card was an ace. She peeked at her facedown card, then laughed, turning it over to reveal a ten, and gave him a sly grin. Leopold's face fell in disappointment, and his heart jumped into his throat as he anticipated the first question. "So, what's your name?"
His jaw nearly dropped, he was so taken aback by the unexpected simplicity of her question. She could easily have asked it when first initiating conversation with him, but for reasons unknown to him, she'd held off. "Tac-" His first instinct was to give her one of the gang's chosen fake names for receiving mail, "Tacitus Kilgore," but snapped his mouth shut and cleared his throat again, pretending to cough. Lying came easily to him, and he had to muster up the courage to be open and honest with a stranger. "Excuse me. I'm Leopold Strauss. And you?"
"Lovely to make your acquaintance, Leopold," she gave him a bright smile, then wagged her finger. "You've got to win a round to ask me something, remember?"
"A-ah, right," he sighed, momentarily dejected as she collected and discarded the last hand. Upon being dealt new cards, his eyes widened as he saw his first two were a natural blackjack. She flipped her facedown card over, showing him that her hand totaled up to only fifteen. "Okay, now tell me, what is your name?"
"Sarah Huang."
"Sarah Huang…" He liked how her name sounded rolling off his tongue, unable to help himself from smiling. "I promise, I mean nothing bad by this, but 'Huang' sounds rather Asian, and I can't figure out your nationality."
"Indeed…I'm not quite what one may expect. But, if I were you, Leopold," Sarah chuckled, raising her glass to him. "I'd be patient, and choose your questions carefully." She pursed her lips and took a sip of wine, making eye contact with him as she did so. He nearly bit his lip, tensing up and correcting his posture. "After all," she continued, reaching for the deck again. "We've no way of knowing how long this little game will last. So," she dealt the next hand. "Let's have fun, shall we?"
Leopold won the hand, and two imaginary dollars, bringing Sarah down to forty. "The game may not last long, but I am quite curious…where are you from?"
"The strange truth is, I don't know," she shrugged, offering a small, apologetic smile. "My earliest memories are of wandering, going wherever the road took me. I've seen many places, and met many unique people along the way."
"That's…actually rather fascinating." He meant it, too, beginning to wonder if they were kindred spirits, fortunate enough to find one another in their wanderings. He won the next hand, and asked, "what brought you here, to Saint Denis?"
"I've decided to visit the American Southwest, and see if it's somewhere I'd like to settle down. After so long of not having an actual home, I want one."
"I understand," Leopold nodded, sighing to himself. "More than you may think." She nodded back to him, her expression thoughtful and inquisitive. He watched her carefully, studying her features, and barely noticed when she won the next hand, and asked him a question. "I-I'm…sorry, what was that?" He shook his head, refocusing on the situation.
"Where are you from, Leopold?" Her smile had returned, bright and lovely. She was leaning on the bar, head held up on one hand, watching him closely.
"A-Australia, I mean Austria!" He could have crawled in a dark hole right then and there, just to hide his embarrassment. She laughed, reaching over and patting his arm. He knew it was meant to be a comforting gesture, but he couldn't help that it increased his chagrin. He tensed up further, and a hard shiver ran down his spine. Part of him wanted to run from her; she made him uneasy in ways he'd never experienced before, and he couldn't decide if he liked it or not. He looked instead at the cards, grimacing as she won another hand, and bit back a curse.
"Why did you come to America?" Another simple, disarming question. Although his suspicions hadn't completely vanished, he felt a little more at ease with her, beginning to trust that she wasn't a Pinkerton, or anything similar.
"When I was seventeen – not quite a boy, barely a man…" he looked on sadly at his near-empty glass of wine. It was so long ago, yet the memory remained fresh in his mind, as though it had been only a few days since he'd stepped off the boat. "My family fell apart, so I sailed to New York with my uncle, in hopes of a better life."
"That is, unfortunately, rather common." Sarah's smile had left her, and she looked at him with a sort of understanding sadness. Her hand found his, brushing it tentatively at first, then taking his fingers and giving them a light squeeze. "I'm sorry, Leopold." His heart leapt again, and he offered her a reassuring smile.
"It's okay. It's been, hmm, thirty-six years or so since then." He squeezed her fingers in return, then let go of her hand. Much to his dismay, she won yet another round of cards. He sighed, glowering at his cards – twenty-two – then finished off his glass of wine.
"If you're uncomfortable talking about it, you don't have to answer," she began, meeting his eyes once more. "But, what happened after you got here?"
"When my uncle and I arrived, the streets of Brooklyn were Hellish – war-torn. He died of a heart attack upon seeing it, and I was left alone." He glanced at her; she held a hand over her heart, watching him with a keen sadness, seeming as though she may cry for him. He couldn't stand it, not only because he resented being pitied, but because he would rather see her smiling, and enjoying her Time with him. "For a few years, I ran illegitimate scams, making enough money to scrape by, and also making many enemies along the way. I was fortunate enough to meet an outlaw who was able to protect me, in exchange for my skills."
"It sounds like you've had a rough life," Sarah muttered quietly, reshuffling the deck before dealing another hand. Once more, the cards turned up in her favor. "What sort of 'skills' did you have that the outlaw valued?"
"I used to be quite good at picking pockets, but I discovered that I have a gift with numbers, money, and finding desperate people." He paused, considering making her win another hand before he'd be willing to continue. After a moment, he conceded, deciding he'd already said enough, and may as well finish. "I became his gang's bookkeeper, and started running a moneylending operation." He gave her a broad grin as he at last won another round. "Finally! Tell me, Sarah…now that you know all about my questionable life choices, why did you really take an interest in me?"
"That's a rather loaded question, Leopold." She warned, finishing off her wine. "Are you sure you want an honest answer?"
"I am." He nodded, hoping he wouldn't regret his decision.
"How very bold of you," she smirked, eyeing him up and down. "I confess, I am attracted to handsome older men. And…I just had a good feeling about you."
"H-handsome…?" The heat rose to Leopold's face; he shifted uncomfortably, tugging at his collar, once more thinking of the possibility of getting her alone. He couldn't help himself as he imagined her naked, her face contorted with pleasure. She watched him with a knowing look, as though she knew exactly what was on his mind, and she approved of the idea. He stammered, losing his nerve and falling silent, turning away from her.
"I was thinking of one last way to raise the stakes of our game, Leopold," she hummed, cutting and bridging the cards idly. "Next hand, we go all-in. If I win, you'll owe me a dance, and you'll spend the evening with me, at least until the poker tournament begins."
"Okay," he nodded, folding his hands in his lap, trying to stop them from shaking. "And if I win, we'll spend the evening together, and not dance."
"Oh, alright," she chuckled, finishing the shuffling and dealing the cards. Leopold's totaled to sixteen; he hit, bringing himself up to twenty before staying. Sarah hit twice more, then laughed in spite of herself, shaking her head. "Wow, okay. Thirty. Looks like you win." She seemed rather pleased with this outcome, propping her head up on one hand, smiling warmly. "Do you have a question for me, or would you care to tell me what we're going to do next?" Leopold stared at her for a moment, considering exactly what he'd won: an opportunity to do anything he'd like with her. He knew she would follow if he asked her to find a private room with him – it was obvious to him that she always tried to keep her word to people, even strangers.
"Tell me…" he thought about it, watching her closely, appreciating her serene smile and exotic beauty. He was becoming further captivated by her mysterious nature. Sighing internally, he rejected the idea of flat out taking advantage of her, deciding instead that he wanted to get to know her more. "Would you like to chat over another drink, and then see where the evening takes us?"
"I'd Love to!" Her smile turned radiant, sending his heart aflutter once again. She flagged down the bartender once more, and the young man returned with a sullen look, clearly aware that he wouldn't win her favor.
