Author's Note: Hi guys :) Yeah, I guess I'm back with a new chapter. I've been through a really tough time in my life recently, which would explain the delay in the update. I just feel so sick of everything and really felt like I've had more than enough with life.

I guess I am feeling a little better now and I just thought writing this would help take my mind off things for a bit. Anyway, thanks for all the reviews everyone. You guys are just stars :)

Hope that you enjoy this new chapter!

| ~ | ~ | B l u e . Ersatz| ~ | ~ |

16
"It's Time"

-SuzieQuaKes-

"I don't ever wanna let you down. I don't ever wanna leave this town, cause after all. This city never sleeps at night."

"More champagne?"

I tried to smile at the figure that I had obviously caught the interest of. The man was very tall, slightly lean with a sprinkle of grey in his otherwise neatly cropped dark chartreuse hair. His eyes gleamed over with a sparkle and a hint of lust as it studied my face before dropping the gaze down to my body. The thoughtless dark orbs paused for a second to admire the jewels on my neck. Of course, Drew was right. The necklace was definitely the last factor that added to my "allure" over this man. Despite the smile that was on his face, I could just sense a taste of evil coming off him. Nefarious.

"Certainly." I felt my voice catch into my throat but the man didn't seem to notice as he grasped the expensive crystal champagne glass from my hand and turned to pour more of the liquid from the dark green bottle. My palms sweated. I could not believe that I was in the same room as this man—alone. As he handed the filled glass back to me, I placed the same smile on my lips. "Thank you, Alistair."

Alistair . . . Alistair Hayden. Drew's infamous uncle. You would've thought that the old English name would be out of fashion by now. Yet, everything about the man facing me screamed of classiness. He was nothing like those evil villains that you would see in cartoons or movies. He was calm, calculated and seemed to have forethought every angle before making a move. He was a . . . predator and his cold dark eyes showed no mercy for his prey.

I took a deep intake of air before sipping at the champagne offered to me. I could only hope that I was able to play my role properly . . . I swear, once we were done with this heist, I would kill Drew for giving me—the most inexperienced one—such a role . . .

But how did I get here, in this private suite, with this vindictive man?

Let's back up a little . . .

"Calm down! I can hardly clip this on with all your shaking and if it falls out while you're with my uncle—then you're definitely screwed!"

Drew was exclaiming as he tried to place a tiny earphone inside my ear. The tiny microchip would be the means of communication between all of us, he had explained earlier. A microphone was attached to it and if I needed anything or was facing any sort of emergency, all I needed to do was to yell and they would immediately come to my rescue. I would also be hearing instructions from the crew, if they had any to give.

"You mean you're all screwed." I corrected him, matter-of-factly but truth was—I was definitely shaking. I couldn't help myself. We had dressed and our disguises were on to perfection but I just couldn't stop the nervous butterflies from flapping in the pit of my stomach. It didn't help knowing that I was to be having direct face-time with his uncle. Me! Could they not have thought of anybody else? Anybody with, say, more experience?! But of course, Drew had informed me that my looks were better suited for the job, as his uncle preferred dark-haired maidens. All the other girls in our gang were just not 'right looking'—as he put it. Yet I could swear, he just did it because he wanted to make me squirm.

"There." He ignored my last remark and stood back to take a look at the chip placed in my ear. "It's not magnetic and it's hidden by your earlobe so the securities won't be catching sight of it." He then turned to smirk at my distressed face. "You ready, scaredy-cat?"

I took a deep breath of air, before rolling my eyes at him. I could feel color rising to my cheeks a little at the way his eyes twinkled as they looked at me. Ever since our little confrontation, Drew had appeared a little . . . nicer—to say the least. A little glint was always present in his eyes whenever he looked at me, and I tried my best to ignore it. "No. But let's go before I change my mind about this entire thing!"

We made our way out of the hotel room and down to the lobby where the limo stood waiting for us. It was all preplanned, I knew. Molly had already left for the casino and the rest of the members were to be making their appearances after Drew and I had took our places. As the chauffeur helped me into the car, I pursed my lips together. Drew stepped into the limo beside me with a confident smile. The door was shut and the limo pulled off smoothly afterwards.

"You really think this will work?" I nervously turned towards my companion. He looked back at me charmingly, but I could see the tension drawing lines in his forehead. I was sure that he was anxious too, but he just chose not to show it—since he was Drew Hayden after all.

He smirked at me before reaching towards the mini bar situated in front of us. Unscrewing a bottle of vintage scotch, he poured the copper-colored liquid into two cups. Dropping an ice-cube into the drink, he handed it over to me. "That'll probably make you feel better. My uncle can tell when a person is worried so just try to appear confident and easy, all right?" A smile then graced his features. Despite the brown hair and the contacts, Drew looked handsome—I had to admit. "Everything will be fine, May. Trust me."

I took a deep breath and nodded, before sipping at the bitter liquid. I made a face as the whisky burned my tongue. I wasn't very used to drinking hard liquor. Drew laughed at my expression. "Just hold your breath and pour it down." He advised, gulping at his own cup. "It'll ease you up a bit."

I nodded again and followed his instructions, pouring down the burning liquid down my throat with a sudden movement. I winced as the burning escalated down my throat and into my stomach but in a minute, I felt a little better. My breathing began to steady a little. Drew, if he noticed, said nothing and just sipped on his drink thoughtfully as he stared out of the window. I didn't bother him, as I knew that he was probably just collecting his thoughts.

Before I knew it, we had reached Casino Valencia. As the limo lined up towards the big entrance of the casino, I noticed that we weren't the only pair pulling up in a fancy ride. It was like an exclusive Hollywood gala or something with all the limousines and the people in extravagant clothes. Two big security guards stood at the entrance, as another guard checked for IDs. I could feel the butterflies flap their wings even wilder in my stomach. This was it.

I heard a 'whoosh' as Drew exhaled—perhaps louder than he had intended to. I turned to look at him and realized that he was probably feeling even more nervous than I was, if that was possible. It was his plan after all. Of course, I had a chance of being thrown into prison if this all went wrong, but for Drew—this was his casino. Not only would he be failing himself and George, but he would be failing his father too.

With that sudden thought, I reached over to place a gentle hand on his lap. He looked towards me with a confused look in his eyes and I smiled sweetly at him. "Don't worry. We can do this."

"I thought I was the one reassuring you." Drew smirked at me before brushing his hair away from his forehead and nodding his head. A gracious look crossed his eyes. "Thanks, May."

I didn't have the chance to say anything more because our limo had already stopped in front of the entrance of Casino Valencia and the chauffeur pulled open the door. My heart almost skipped three beats as Drew stepped out of the vehicle and extended a hand for me to grasp as I made my way out. I couldn't believe this was actually happening . . . I was about to be entering a casino, which I was later going to help rob. This was like some freaky dream come true.

"Good evening sir, ma'am." The man in the tuxedo who was working at the door nodded to us. "May I request an ID?"

I reached to open the dark red clutch that I was holding and pulled out the card that Drew had given me with the fake photo. I handed it to the man, who was already taking a look at Drew's ID. A smile of familiarity crossed his face as he read Drew's card.

"Mr. Nathaniel Blue . . . of course! And this must be your lovely date." He didn't bother to look at my ID as he motioned towards the open glass doors. "Right this way, sir. Casino Valencia is pleased to have you."

As we stepped inside the casino and the man was surely out of sight, I turned to Drew with curious eyes. "What was that all about?"

He smirked back in return, as his eyes gleamed over towards the sights in front of him. "Let's just say I . . . borrowed the name of a rich-boy who had just recently gotten his inheritance. The name Bartholomew Blue ring a bell?" When I shook my head, Drew rolled his eyes at me. "A Forbes-listed real-estate and business tycoon. I just figured that the name should get us in easy without any strict security checkups."

I had to say; the lengths that Drew had gone in order to make this mission a success impressed me. I surveyed my surroundings as Drew held my waist and led me inside of the casino. If the exterior proved anything about the extravagance of this place—the interior didn't fail to compete. Giant chandeliers hung from the ceilings and spotless red carpets draped the floors. I spotted a marble stairway that led up to the second floor, at which a balcony protruded.

Very many people had already arrived; the men in the business suits lingering around the bar and the blackjack table. Women were decked in short, fashionable evening dresses and Drew informed me that most of them were high-end call girls who fed off of the wealthy men that visited the casino.

He led me towards the back of the casino, past the slot machines and towards a door—half-hidden by the giant indoor plant that was placed beside it. A guard stood at the door and looked at us with cold eyes as we approached him. I saw Drew confidently walk up to the man and whisper something into his ear. The man abruptly nodded before opening the door and Drew reached into his pocket, pulling a couple of hundreds and stuffing them into the hand of the guard.

Drew motioned for me to follow him as he entered the door, where a faint light revealed stairs spiraling downwards. We made our way down the staircase and entered a completely different world. Gone were the marble floors and the chandelier lighting. Here, dim lights were set up and the place was smoky and dark. Little rounds of tables were placed where men sat, some with a girl on their laps. I could see various drugs and substances placed onto the tables. There were private rooms to the left where anybody can go in with a girl and music was playing at a very soft yet enticing beat.

Drew had told me all about this place. This was the real essence of the casino. The "Underground" room as it was often called. The Vault. It was where the real high-end rollers came out to play. It was the place that the police could raid and most of the city's influential, richest and most successful members would leave in handcuffs. I tried not to look around at the people around me. We weren't there to gape at the illegal activity going on. We were there for another purpose.

Drew led the way towards the end of the hall where a table was set up. Five people sat around it and a dealer was distributing cards. The people turned to look at us as we approached them and I could see the sinister looks in their eyes. At the top of the table sat a man with a tattoo on the side of his neck. Beside him was a woman wearing a lot of green eye shadow and another man smoking a cigar. The other two were both young men.

"Any seats left at the table?" I heard Drew remark confidently and the man with the tattoo looked at him coldly before gazing over at me. I could feel the chill creep down my back. The poker table. So much money was made every night at this elite poker table. It was where Drew's uncle's attention was most. Drew had told me that he monitored this poker game twenty-four seven.

"Buy-in's at ten grand." The man with the cigar remarked coolly.

I took a deep breath and opened my clutch to take out the wad of hundred-dollar bills that Drew had given me. I threw it casually onto the poker table, as I was told to do. "Here's twenty."

A taunting grin took over the man's features as he gestured over to the empty seat at the table. "Let's play some cards."

I glanced nervously at the cards that were in Drew's fingers. An ace and a king—both spades. It was a pretty good hand, I knew. There were only two players left in the round, aside from Drew and I. The woman and the man with the cigar. The rest of the players had folded out and the pool was at fifty-grand. It was a lot at stake.

The dealer placed the first three cards on the table with a grim expression on his face. A thin man with a small mustache and graying brown hair. He didn't catch my eye as he distributed the cards: an eight of hearts, jack of spades and a three of spades. He then motioned his hand towards the woman, asking her what her next move was. She declared a raise, adding in more chips to the pot.

The man with the cigar took a deep puff out of his Cuban before grinning and calling. The pot now consisted of around fifty-five grand. It was our turn to make a move. Drew didn't bat an eye as he stated that he was all-in. The woman decided to put all her chips in as well and the man followed suit—the same grin playing with his lips.

The pool was now consisted of around a hundred grand. Big stakes for some poker game. I really hoped that the dealer wouldn't let us down . . .

The two remaining cards were dealt: a two of hearts and a seven of spades. He had done it. I couldn't help the small smile that toyed with my lips as each player revealed their cards. The woman had a pair of queens and the man with the cigar revealed double aces. Without a single display of emotion, Drew flicked his cards onto the table . . .

"A flush. The gentleman takes the chips."

"Damn it!" The woman pounded her fist on the table before standing up to leave the table angrily. "That was all the money I had!" The man with the cigar looked at us coldly, his dark green eyes sizing us up.

I could feel my heart beating faster in its cage, as my defining moment was about to come. Drew announced that expected friends of his had arrived and he was going to go and greet them at the entrance. He glanced at me with a serious expression in his eye as he stood up from the table. I returned it with a small smile.

I was stacking up the chips that we had won, when I heard the footsteps. All of the room seemed to hush down and even the music appeared to have softened. I could feel the presence in the room even before I turned my back around to look. He had arrived. He had taken the bait and had come to investigate this amateur young couple that had just won over a hundred grand at the poker table.

"My, my. What a winning."

The voice was cold and deep. It chilled me to the bone, but of course—I couldn't let that be shown. The rest of the people at the poker table had stood up, flashing each other tense looks before leaving the table quietly. I almost wished that I was one of them and could escape that easily. Yet of course, I had a job to do and I couldn't be running away. Collecting the last bit of nerves that I had, I turned around with a smile on my face.

"Why thank you. And you are . . .?"

"Alistair Hayden." The man smiled back at me, his eyes appreciatively drawn to my appearance. He was wearing a grey business suit with a crisp crease on the blazer. The man appeared to be about fifty in age, but his eyes were sharp as a wolf's. "That's a lot of cash for such a beautiful little vixen as yourself."

I reached out to whip away a curl from my face with the agility that Drew had repeatedly emphasized upon. The same smile remained on my face as I turned to look back at the chips. "Yes, I suppose so. But money is just that. Boring . . . inanimate." I turned my head back towards the man who was looking at me with glowing curiosity in his dark eyes. "It's not for the winnings that I play the game . . . It's for the thrill."

Drew's uncle threw his head back in a laugh. If I weren't caught up in the act of appearing seductive, calm and totally in control of myself—I would've been startled. His laugh was loud, forceful. He looked into my eyes afterwards.

"Then what do you say we play a game of our own?" His lips curved up into a slow smile. "Trust me, my dear. If it is thrill you are looking for, I can give you plenty."

Author's Note: Okay, so I guess I'm going to be a bit cruel and stop this right here! I know that there are too little CS moments in this update, but the next chapter will be plenty of it and more action too! :)

Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. Maybe the next time I update, I won't be feeling as terrible as I am now.

Please review!

-Suzie x