Chapter Eighteen: The Long Con (Part Three)

The Desert Hills Motel, Las Vegas, USA, Two Weeks Ago….

Darcy pulled the car into a fast food restaurant car park opposite the motel. He made no move to get out however. Checked 360 around him, careful to take note of every car, every number plate, every person, every building around him. He spotted the shadow of a figure in a car parked around fifty yards behind him. Tensed up slightly and waited. After five minutes however, the car pulled away, the occupant still chatting on their phone as they sped past him. He double checked again, but saw nothing out of the ordinary. Got out of the car and hurried quickly across the way to the motel, confident he was not being watched, climbing the stairs to room 45 and knocking on the door, two quick knocks, pause, then three more longer ones. The door opened quickly to reveal a furious Caroline. He quickly pushed past her and shut the door behind him.

"Welcome to Vegas." he smirked, knowing it would wind Caro up a treat.

"Oh, welcome to fucking Vegas indeed!" Caroline fumed. "Tell me, how the fuck is it fair that you and Richard get to swan around at The Bellagio, whereas we have to have a twin room five miles from the strip in this absolute shit hole!"

"You know why, Caro." Darcy grinned.

"This could very well be our last two weeks as free men and women, and you put me here? Here?" she continued. "They have rats, Will! Fucking rats!"

"It's only for a couple of weeks." Darcy held his hands up.

"A couple of weeks….." Caroline trailed off.

"Look, you are not here, ok?" Darcy explained patiently. "We cannot risk anyone seeing you. Catherine knows people in every casino and every decent hotel in this city, if you turn up then it'll get back to her. She cannot know you're here. Added to that, this whole Charlotte Lucas situation as well. If she sees you, then Catherine will also find out. No, you have to stay under the radar. That means you do not leave this motel unless necessary, and if you do, make sure to disguise yourself."

"Two fucking weeks. Jesus, prison is going to seem like a holiday compared to this. At least they've got showers that work."

"We're not going to prison." Darcy said, firmly.

"Of course not." Caroline snorted under her breath.

Darcy decided to ignore it. They weren't going to prison. They weren't going to prison….

Probably.

"Charlie, how are you?" Darcy asked cautiously, directing his attention to the bed where his friend was lying face up with his eyes staring at the ceiling.

"Fine, old boy." Charlie nodded unconvincingly, not making eye contact.

This was the first time Darcy had seen his friends in a couple of months, and he was worried. Charlie was thinner, his cheeks were drawn in slightly, the eyes had lost the sparkle and had dark rings around them. He'd taken it harder than Darcy had ever thought he would. They had sat down in Manchester, all four of them, a week after they had made their escape from London, and hit Charlie with all of it. Their concerns about Jane Bennet and her family, the photos showing her with the 'police', the fact that they thought she was running a game on him. Charlie had resisted for a long time, Darcy had had to go to even further extremes, claiming that this Detective Inspector Jane was talking to was part of the Interpol squad that had almost caught them one year ago. Of course, it was all lies. And eventually, they had worn him down, planted just enough seeds of doubt to persuade him to never see her again. Darcy hadn't expected to feel as guilty as he did, he hadn't expected to watch his friend completely crumble, the usually cheery smile replaced by a hollowness.

He'd done the right thing hadn't he?

Yes, he assured himself. He was saving Charlie from further pain down the line. And also, it wasn't just about him. Richard and Caroline did not deserve to have this hanging over them, the threat of exposure, the threat of prison, just because Charlie had stupidly fallen in love. No, he had done the right thing.

Unless he hadn't.

"Good to hear it. How was the flight?"

"Oh, great, so nice to be back in economy as well." Caroline said, sarcastically.

"Don't worry, Caro, you'll be sipping cocktails in the Swiss Alps this time next month."

"Or being felt up by some butch, tattooed, husband killer in the shower block….."

Darcy laughed loudly, pleased to be back in her company. He loved Richard like a brother, and was closer to him than anyone, but after a solid two months in the man's company, it was nice to see someone else. He didn't have many friends, shit, outside of these three he didn't have any really, so to see her again was good, despite her attitude. He had decided to be more like Richard when it came to her, find the funny side of what she was saying. She did have a dry wit that could make him roar with laughter at times, and he decided to embrace this side of her, as opposed to the snobbery.

"Well, I just wanted to check you were settling in. It starts tonight, me and Richard have a dinner set up with Catherine and Anne."

"I'm starting to seriously question the hierarchy in this crew," Caroline muttered. "You and Richard with your dinner parties, me and Charlie with the fucking rats and Burger King."

Again, Darcy laughed, giving them both a nod and exiting the room, moving back to his car and driving off. It begins tonight, the score of his life. He was going to take back what was his, and he was going to do it in style.

He couldn't have imagined that things were about to go so remarkably wrong.

The Penthouse, Rosings Park, Las Vegas USA, A Few Hours Later….

"You ready?"

"I think so."

"Let's….."

Richard was interrupted by Darcy's phone going off. Only four people in the world had this number and one of them was next to him. Looked at the screen. Withheld number.

Georgiana.

"I have to take this." Darcy said shortly.

"Really, Will? Right now?"

"Yes. Go on in, I'll be right behind you."

"Fine."

"Fucking hell! Fucking vines and fucking plants all over the fucking place!" Richard grumbled loudly as he struggled with the door.

"Fuck, fuck!" he cried as he almost toppled straight through it. Straightened up to see five pairs of eyes staring at him. Catherine and Anne, good, Billy Collins and Charlotte Lucas, not ideal but fine, and then…..

Oh shit.

What the hell was she doing here?

He was careful to mask his surprise, flitting his eyes over them without lingering at all. Pretending to seek something else out. But his mind was whirring at one hundred miles an hour. What the hell was going on? Why the fuck was Elizabeth Bennet sat in the Rosings Penthouse? He put his hand in his pocket, casually striding over to the drinks cabinet, chatting as he went. Made sure he was being himself, making inappropriate jokes and giving the air of total confidence. His fingers found his phone in his pocket and he began to text Darcy. All good grifters should know how to pocket dial or text, it was amazing how useful it was. Darcy had to be warned, Charlie and Caro had to be warned. This was bad, a potential disaster.

Finally, job done, he turned to the surprise guest and gave her a broad smile. She was pretty. Much better in the flesh than in the photographs. It was eyes that were the main draw, as well as the enigmatic smirk and teasing manner as she introduced herself. He could see why Darcy liked her….

"Richard Fitzwilliam," he spread his arms wide in introduction. "Long con artist, fixer, gambler, international lover and playboy, and finally, 2002 Edinburgh inter schools triple jump champion!"

"I'll be there, Georgie, alright? …. Yes, I know I've said that before, but this time I mean it!…. I'm sorry I haven't been up to see you as much as usual, but I've been working… No, of course you're more important than work but ….. I'm trying ok? I'm fucking trying to get it all back for us!…. What do you mean, you don't care? Georgie? Georgiana!"

She'd hung up. He almost threw the phone against the wall in frustration. He didn't need this right now. He didn't need to be reminded of what an awful brother and all round human being he was at this moment. He needed focus and clarity, needed to be ready. His phone buzzed against his hand and he rushed to look at it, hoping against hope it was Georgiana calling back.

A text from Richard?

Opened it up and his heart sped up before dropping down to his shoes.

Lzzy Bnnts hre.

What the fuck?

He quickly dialed Caro's number.

"Caro. Do not leave your motel. We have a problem."

Las Vegas, Nevada, USA, A Few Hours Later….

"I mean, what if….."

"Shut up and drive, Richard. I need to think."

If there was one thing he'd learnt in this game, it was not to trust a coincidence. They happened, of course they did, but they could never be dismissed. They had to be thoroughly checked, investigated, nothing left to chance. And this one? Elizabeth Bennet being here? It was too suspicious. The Charlotte Lucas thing had surprised them, but it had been an easy enough work around. They had checked it was all legit and made sure that Charlie and Caro kept out of the way so she didn't see them and get suspicious. But Lizzy was a whole different thing. They'd played her for God sake, worse, they'd played her sister. The honey trap was never a nice thing to do to someone and what if they'd found out, somehow worked it all out? She'd want revenge, no doubt. So was this what she was here for? Had he underestimated her? Surely not, she was a short con player with no connections, she was not capable of pulling something as big as this off. And at the danger of sounding arrogant, he was Will Darcy. Him, Richard, Charlie and Caro were the best.

God he was tired.

Tired of always having to think three steps ahead, tired of never being able to live in the moment, tired of who he was, the responsibilities he had, the responsibilities he shirked, the constant act that was his life. When he began to think along these lines, he always came back to the same question. Who was he? Who was Will Darcy? Truth was, he couldn't answer that question anymore. How scary was that? How could you not know who you were? It had all taken its toll. What he did was a mind fuck of a job. To live as a character, sometimes for months at a time, to make it so believable that you got lost in it. That was what being a con man was. And then the score was over, and you were supposed to just go back to the real you. Well, what was the real you anymore? Was Will Darcy Picasso? Was he the boy who'd been so determined to self-destruct? Was he the cold robot with no personality? Was he something else entirely?

Shut his eyes. He was tired.

Somewhere in the Mojave Desert, Nevada, USA, A Few Hours Later…..

He was woken by Richard shaking him.

"We're here."

Darcy rubbed the sleep from his eyes and glanced at the clock. 3am.

Stepped out of the car slowly. Looked around to see nothing but sand as far as the eye could see. It was a dark night, so vision was limited anyway. The slam of the car door sounded foreign against the silence. There was something unsettling about it. The stillness and the quiet were his usual go to, but this place was different. Thought he could hear the ghosts on the wind, those who had never made it out of the desert, who had been taken here to die.

The night was pierced my two specs of the light on the horizon, moving slowly towards them. Charlie and Caroline were here.

"Are you going to tell him?" Richard asked quietly.

"No." Darcy replied. "Not yet."

They watched in silence as the car drew closer, Darcy getting lost in his thoughts again, until the siblings finally emerged from the night.

"Ok, how bad is it?" were Caroline's first words.

"I don't know yet." Darcy sighed.

"Spit it out, Darcy." Charlie piped up, his face illuminated by the click of a lighter.

"Since when were you smoking again?" Darcy narrowed his eyes.

"Oh, you know, since I walked away from the woman I loved." Charlie shrugged, his voice bitter and resentful, a stream of smoke escaping from his lips.

Darcy shared an uneasy glance with Caro.

"It was your decision, Charlie," he said, firmly, doing everything he could to stop the voice screaming 'liar' in his head. "We didn't force you into it. We gave you our opinion and that's it."

"I know," Charlie sighed. "I'm sorry, Will ok? It's just been harder than I thought. I just keep seeing her in my head. Keeps popping up, just as I think I've managed to forget…."

"You'll be fine, Charlie," Caroline soothed, clutching his hand. "It'll fade, it always does."

"Maybe." he shrugged, unconvinced.

"Anyway, this problem? Must be bad if you've dragged us to the emergency point…"

"Lizzy Bennet's here." Richard burst out, unable to contain it.

His words had differing effects on the siblings. Caroline's eyes opened wide, a swear word escaping her lips, disappearing onto the wind, her body language screaming it though. Charlie on the other hand, looked almost hopeful.

For fuck sake Charlie.

"But it's just a coincidence right?" Caroline managed to recover quickly. "It has to be! Charlotte Lucas is her friend, she's visiting her, yeah?"

"That is what she says, yes." Darcy nodded.

"You don't think there's more to it, do you?" Charlie spoke up. "Surely she hasn't been running a game on us this whole time…."

"Don't be ridiculous," Caroline snapped. "It's not possible. I mean, come on! The Bennets? They're a bunch of small timers, short con players. No way they could get the jump on us."

"Lizzy Bennet's been working with Cyclops the last few months," Richard revealed. "He says she's good, sharp, a natural grifter, wants to be the best. We shouldn't underestimate her…."

"Caroline's right, there's no way," Darcy cut in, dismissing his cousin. "She may well be all those things, Richard, but she's still a cheechako. We're better. Besides, she doesn't have the resources for something like this. And this has been beyond secret, the only people who know the whole thing are standing right here….."

Darcy trailed off, a sudden thought penetrating his mind. Surely he hadn't? Richard and Caroline seemed to have the same thought, and all of their eyes turned to Charlie.

"Please tell me you didn't?" Caroline whispered, her voice conveying the anger.

"What?" Charlie looked at them confused. "Why are you…."

Then he realised what they were implying.

"No!" he exploded. "No, I fucking didn't! I chose you over her, you know that!"

"Maybe you let something slip by accident." Richard said, coldly.

"I can't believe this!" Charlie threw his hands up. "Do you have any idea the shit I've gone through for you three? I walked away from her despite every part of me screaming in protest. I listened to you, and I chose you! And now you're accusing me…"

"No-one is accusing you of anything, Charlie." Darcy attempted to backtrack. Charlie was telling the truth, no doubt.

"Well, it fucking sounds like you are!"

"We believe you, right everyone?" Darcy said, firmly, eyes on his friends, who muttered affirmatives sheepishly back.

"I can't believe you'd even think it." Charlie fumed.

"You haven't exactly been the most reliable in this score." Richard said, snidely.

"Don't fucking push me, Richard!" Charlie snarled, taking a few paces towards The Colonel, who stood his ground.

"ENOUGH!" Darcy shouted.

All fell silent. Darcy pinched the bridge of his nose. What had he done? Just look at them. His friends, his crew, at each other's throats, distrusting each other, mistrusting themselves. This score would be the death of them. He had to stop it. He just had to, for the sake of his friends.

"We're pulling out."

They were too shocked to speak, until Charlie stepped forward angrily.

"No, we're fucking not!" he almost screamed. "After all this, you expect us to just stop? After everything that's happened? My fucking heart gets broken and it's all for nothing? No way, not a chance, you are not doing that!"

"I agree with my brother." Caroline said after a while.

"Me too." Richard nodded.

"Look at us!" Darcy raised his voice. "Arguing and shouting, this isn't who we are! It's always been us against everybody else, and this score has turned that inward! I do not want to lose you over this, I will not lose you!"

He spun away from them, kicking the sand around him in childish anger. How had it all gone so wrong?

"We carry on," Charlie's voice drifted across to him. It was a voice of authority that he had rarely heard. "I'll hear no more of it. If you quit, then we'll carry it on anyway, so stop fucking whining."

"Are you sure?" Darcy asked, his back still to them all.

"Yes."

Darcy tipped his head back and shut his eyes. This was it now, the last chance to walk away was gone. From now on they had to be perfect, they had to play everything out to the end. No slip ups, no doubts, just grifting as it had never been done before.

"Ok…." he sighed, taking another brief moment.

He turned around to face them.

"Ok, here's what's going to happen. Charlie, Caro, I want you to reach out to all our contacts in England. Find out who's new on the block and running scams, find out if the Bennet's or Charlotte Lucas are in any way involved. Double and triple check those backgrounds. Drive to Boulder tonight, there's less chance you'll be spotted there. Richard, we need a bug in her hotel room. Tomorrow, turn up there unannounced. I want listening devices, cameras if you can manage it. We are going to know what she eats, drinks, who she fucks, all of it. Nothing left to chance. Then, when we've eliminated it all, we finish this. We take Catherine down, once and for all. Get to it."

They nodded. Nothing more needed to be said.

Room 2004, Rosings Park, Las Vegas, USA, The Next Day.

Richard Fitzwilliam paused at the door. He wasn't nervous, he'd done this sort of thing countless times. No, he was more curious. Despite his words last night, he was pretty certain that Lizzy Bennet was just here by coincidence, there was no other logical explanation. No, he was curious because of the woman herself, the woman who had caught the great Will Darcy's eye. It was obvious he liked her. Darcy probably thought he was being subtle, but he was constantly staring at her, even voluntarily entering conversations with her, something which was remarkably out of character. Richard had got a glimpse of what was special about her last night, but it still didn't make much sense to him. Sure she was good looking, sure she was funny, sure she was different to most other girls, but she wasn't really who he expected Darcy to fall for. In fact, he had pretty much given up on his cousin ever finding someone. He'd never pressed it though, it was Darcy's business. And besides, with what they did it was almost impossible to have any kind of relationship, that's why he himself preferred short term options.

Knock, knock, knock…

The door opened to reveal a bleary eyed Lizzy Bennet.

"Lizzy! May I come in?"

He pushed past her, not waiting for a response, eyes scanning the room straight away to look for possible concealment points. He had three pinhole mics in his pocket as well as three cameras. The cameras he would probably not bother with, they were too risky and would take too much effort to get into a decent enough position. No, he'd concentrate on the mics first. But he could feel her eyes on him the whole time, and as he turned to her, he caught the slight suspicion on her face before it was expertly masked.

Interesting.

He carried on, busying himself with the coffee pot. The way she made her way over to the kitchen and settled herself at the breakfast bar told him that this was where she sat most of the time. He needed a mic in the kitchen then. Kept the conversation going, something about sleeping with her (or not apparently), as his mind turned. Where to put it? Under the sink? No, too much interference. The fridge? The same. Was careful to keep his eyes on Lizzy the whole time, to appear fully engaged in the conversation. The take out boxes? No, this was a five star hotel, diamond class, rubbish would be taken away.

"Sorry, I just didn't sleep well last night." she was saying.

"Anything troubling you?"

He caught it. That slight slip in the mask. Yes, she was hiding something, she was suspicious of him. But that didn't mean anything, not yet.

He continued, attempting to put her at ease. This was one of his strong points, he could charm most people, he was pretty much the opposite of the stereotypical computer nerd. It certainly helped when he liked the other person. And he did like Lizzy Bennet, he realised. But he had a job to do. And the job came above everything else.

Glanced back at the take out boxes again and had a brainwave. So, these two didn't like to cook. Ok then, the pans. He carefully glanced at them as he continued to speak. Forget the frying pan, people who hated cooking loved to fry things and call it cooking. The heavy based ones were more promising, and he spied the rubber lid on one of them. But he needed to be alone, needed five minutes….

"You wanna get some lunch?"

"Sure," Lizzy replied. "Just let me get changed."

She finished her coffee and walked back to her room, only looking back once. He smiled at her. She disappeared and he heard the bedroom door close.

Five, four, three, two, one.

He moved quick as a panther. Lifted the pan from the shelf and began to work the rubber off. It took longer than he was anticipating, but he had soon removed it. Slipped the tiny mic into it and replaced it on the now bare metal handle. Looked at his handiwork. It would do. A tiny little bit stretching the rubber out, but no-one would notice. Put it back where he had found it and moved quickly to the living area. He was not going to bother even trying with the bedroom. If Darcy insisted, he could sneak in when she was out, but two would probably suffice. Scores were not planned in bedrooms. The living room was easier, open up a cushion, little cut in the filling, shove the mic in, zip back up and sorted. Straightened up and moved back to the kitchen.

When Lizzy Bennet came back out, he was sipping casually on his second cup of coffee, exactly where she had left him.

Roxy's Diner, The Strip, Las Vegas, USA, Two Hours Later….

"She knows something."

"Shit."

"Shit indeed. I need a cigarette."

They moved to a table outside with their coffees, careful to pick one that was in the middle of the throng. It was more suspicious if you were off to one side all alone. Darcy lit his cigarette, ignoring the tutting from a middle aged woman near them. He had other concerns.

"What do you think?" he asked Richard.

"I agree, she knows something. Or she thinks she does."

"What do you mean?"

"She's suspicious," Richard began slowly. "But I don't think it goes past that yet. She's not running a score, Darcy, that much is obvious. No, I think she's on her way to working out what we're doing. But she'll be too late if we do our jobs."

"Maybe. I agree with Cyclops, she's smart," Darcy praised, an admiration in his eyes. Richard held back a smirk. "She picked something up at the Poker game, I know that much. Collins was going to lose too quickly, I had to keep him in, so I folded when he was obviously bluffing. I thought I'd got away with it, but maybe not….."

"She can't have put it all together though."

"What about Wickham?" Darcy asked. "She went out with him a couple of times and you know how he likes to sing. I have no doubt he told her his version of our story. He could have mentioned Catherine….."

"Even if he did, it would be bloody hard to come up with the right conclusion from just that. It's a shadow in her mind. We need to sit tight and play it. See what Charlie and Caro come up with…."

"Nothing so far, I just spoke to Charlie. They haven't slept yet and nothing that's come up has been a red flag. No mention of the Bennet's anywhere at all really, not from anyone who matters."

"Good," Richard nodded. "We need to focus on the real goal now. Give Charlie and Caro another day on it, and then we crack on."

"Keep her close though," Darcy said quickly. "Be nice to her, invite her out…"

"Any reason?" Richard couldn't hold back the smirk any longer.

"To make sure she doesn't get any more suspicious than she already is. Become her friend, just be yourself, she'll like you."

Darcy knew he hadn't kept the bitterness out of his tone. That was confirmed when he saw Richard's grin.

"Do you like her, Will?"

Darcy paused, unsure over how to respond. Settled for noncommittal.

"Whether I do or not, it doesn't matter."

XS Las Vegas, Las Vegas, USA, Yesterday…..

He had to get Richard out of there. Tomorrow, they would play the biggest score of their lives, and Richard had to go and get battered didn't he? Already angry at his cousin's flirting with Lizzy, the image of him with his arm around her waist seared into his mind, he grew more annoyed as Richard began to apologise for something. Surely he wasn't about to blow it now, right at the last? Charlie and Caro's enquiries had turned up nothing, and Richard's surveillance had turned up even less. Lizzy Bennet had no idea what was going on. So he had to put a stop to it and draw the evening to a close, before Richard managed to undo all their work.

It felt right, her arm in his. Ok, so she was fucking smashed, as drunk as he used to get on a daily basis when he was younger. He didn't drink much anymore, he'd have a beer or single malt every now and then, but he didn't ever let himself go past three. He'd seen what happened when he did and he was keen to never let it happen again. These days, his only vice was the cigarettes, and the whole conning people out of their money he supposed. Lizzy leant in to him as he guided her out the club and he felt his heart swell. Shit, this was bad. How had he let it get this far? When he had first met her, he had been attracted to her, but it was tempered by the fact that he wasn't entirely sure if he actually liked her. He had found her to be too arrogant with not much to back it up, too judgemental and a little bitter. But now, those opinions had been changed. Whereas he had once seen a cocky, brash woman, he now saw a confident one, someone who was unwilling to settle in life. She reminded him of his friends, particularly of Caro, although both would undoubtedly balk at the comparison. The Caro of years gone by, the 'black woman in a white man's game', the woman who wasn't content to just be a footnote. But Lizzy was more than that too. He couldn't really explain it. He'd never felt guilty about his scores before, and he knew he shouldn't feel bad about this one. Lizzy and Jane Bennet were grifters, they took money from people, and they were less scrupulous about it than he was. They emptied wage packets on Friday night, they played the Badger on unsuspecting, unhappy men. How was that different to what Charlie had done to Jane? He shouldn't feel guilty, but he did.

She touched his face as she sat in the taxi, her big eyes looking up at him with a tenderness he thought he'd never see in them. Not directed towards him. His breath hitched, his heart jumped. Maybe, just maybe…..

"What is it?" she asked him, her voice melodic despite the slight slur. She was beautiful.

"I'm sor…..," he stopped himself. He couldn't. Whatever he felt, he couldn't. He was doing this for his sister, nothing could get in the way of that. "Nothing."

He shut the door of the taxi and watched as it disappeared. Brought a cigarette to his lips and sparked up, letting a thin stream of smoke into the air.

Regret and resolve.

Tomorrow, it all ends. Tomorrow it all begins. Tomorrow, this phase in his life, this awful, misjudged existence, would come to its conclusion. Ten years of it.

Ten years.

One day to go.

Room 1176, Rosings Park, Las Vegas, USA, One Hour Ago…..

Caroline rushed into the room, her blonde wig and sunglasses making her almost unrecognisable.

"Is it done?" Darcy asked.

"It's done," she affirmed. "That's the last of them. This better work, William…."

"When have I ever let you down?" he looked her in the eye, deadly serious.

"Never. Let's not make tonight the first time."

He nodded, understanding the tension. This was beyond risky. It was good to go, it was ready, but it was in no way a sure thing. Anything and everything could go wrong, and they could do little to control it. They had to rely on it now, had to rely on the plan, a plan that was based entirely on what they thought Catherine would do. Darcy liked to think that he knew her as well as anyone, liked to think that he could work out her every move before she played it, but the doubts were there. This was no ordinary mark. They were conning what most people would consider the unconnable mark, someone clued up and ruthless, someone who prided themselves on their knowledge. Catherine had not got here by accident. She was shrewder than anyone alive.

They were sitting in a hotel room in Rosings, a rare empty suite that they had broken their way into. They only needed it for a couple of hours. Caroline shimmied out of her dress and into her housemaids uniform. Darcy, Richard and Charlie were dressed similarly in their butlers outfits. If anyone came poking around, unlikely as it was, their disguise would buy them enough time to get out. But it wouldn't come to that, they would be left alone.

Richard was sitting in front of a vast array of computer screens, snuck in through the employees entrance three days ago and hidden. They were wired into various computer hacking software and Rosings CCTV, through a system that Darcy couldn't even begin to explain. Richard was a genius. Behind the easy smile, the womanising, the copious alcohol consumption, he was simply the best fixer to ever play the game.

He looked at his friends, and suddenly felt the urge to say something.

"I'm not going to ask you if you know what to do, it would be patronising and completely unnecessary," he began softly. "You are the best grifters in the world and you are the best friends I have ever had. You didn't need to do this, most would have laughed me out of the room. But you three didn't. That means everything to me. And I'm sorry if I've been short with you this last year. You do not deserve that. Everything we have done together, it has all led to this remarkably selfish act on my part, and to have you by my side despite it all is an absolute fucking blessing. I love you all, and one day I will repay this favour. Wherever, whenever, I will be there ok? Retirement or not. Thank you, that's all I have to say."

Charlie smiled at him, Caro nodded, her eyes betraying the warmth. Richard laughed at him of course.

"Fucking hell, Darcy, I haven't heard such sentimental shite since last years Oscar speeches….."

Darcy laughed and clapped his cousin on the back. He expected nothing less.

"Let's go."

Room 1176, Rosings Park, Las Vegas, USA, Fifteen Minutes Ago…..

"We're on," Richard broke the silence for the first time since Darcy's speech, causing the others to spring up. "Slots, machine number 221 is a go, paying out $67,000 now."

Darcy looked at the monitor and saw the woman who had won, the look of elation, of surprise.

"Go! Well done, Richard, good start," Darcy nodded. "Where's Catherine?"

"Roulette Wheel 19, talking to one Lizzy Bennet…"

Darcy put her out of his mind. No distractions, this was it.

"Ok, let's put it closer to home. Roulette Wheel 20, do your stuff."

They waited and watched, Richard tapping away at his computer. Watched the crowd gathered around the wheel, watched the spin, watched the shout of triumph from a sweaty man in an awful suit…..

"Yes!" Charlie hissed. "She's good…"

"Don't get ahead of yourself Charlie, still a long way to go. Rich, payout?"

"Half a million."

"It's working," Darcy nodded. "Again, where are we going next?"

"Blackjack," Richard said, his eyes flicking from screen to screen furiously. "Table 3."

"You hear that?"

"Ok then, Blackjack," Richard said, staring at his monitors. "Giving the signal now…"

They watched, the anticipation and adrenaline coursing through them.

"Make the call, Charlie." Darcy ordered.

Charlie took the offered phone from Richard's hand, it had been specially modified so it couldn't be traced back to them, to the location. It also had voice modification on it, making Charlie sound like Darth Vader. One of Richard's nerd jokes. Charlie pressed speed dial one and waited as it rang.

Darcy could barely bring himself to watch.

"Hello, is that the floor manager?" Charlie asked jovially as the line was evidently picked up. "I'd like to speak to Lady Catherine De Bourgh please….. Trust me, she's going to want to speak to me… Oh, you don't believe me. Ok, oh good, I can see you… Yes that's right, I see you. You're wearing a black suit with a yellow handkerchief in the top right pocket. Now, I'm sure you've already noticed that something's going on. Two big wins in two minutes? Slots and Roulette? Yeah, that was me. So I want you to look over at Blackjack table 3.… Are you looking? Good. Now, watch as I rob you."

"Go." Darcy hissed.

"Black fucking Jack!" Caroline whispered in excitement, as another winner was made.

"You'll see I just took you for….." Charlie looked at Richard.

"$100,000."

"$100,000," Charlie continued. "Which by my calculation puts you down $667,000 dollars right now. So, unless you want it to get much worse, I'd put Lady Catherine on right now. Yes, I thought you might. Oh no, I don't mind holding…."

Darcy smirked at the relish with which Charlie was playing this. It was good to see him back. There was nothing like a score…..

"She's on." Charlie whispered, covering the speaker with his hand.

Darcy paused for a split second. This was it.

"Do it."

"Hello, Lady Catherine!" Charlie greeted. "Who am I? I'm the one who's robbing you blind! No, stop. It's my turn to speak. So, as your floor manager has undoubtedly told you, you are already down $667,000. Not much in the grand scheme of things really is it? But you see, I've proven I've got control of everything, every system, every slot, every wheel, every table, everything. Hold on, look over at the Baccarat. Wait for it… Oh dear, another big win! Now, I could completely ruin you tonight, but you know what? I'm in a generous mood. So here's what we're going to do. I've got a friend, a friend who isn't at all happy with you. You took his casino away from him, you manipulated a boy who's parents weren't even cold in the grave, and you took everything from him. Now you're going to give it back. Yes, Will Darcy, of course ... What's stopping you from arresting everyone in here you ask? Well, firstly, good luck with that. There are by my count 22,000 people on your casino floor currently, and I can make a good deal of them rich beyond their wildest dreams before you can do anything. Controlling a crowd like that?... Ok, yes, so they won't get out with the money, that's a good point. But I don't need them to. Because this'll ruin you. Your reputation, Rosings reputation, will be in tatters when it spreads that your whole casino was rigged from the off. What will the Gambling Commission say? What will the board say? It's all about image in this city, is it not? Rosings will never recover from this embarrassment. You'll fade away like so many others have in this awful town, money eaten up by lawsuits and criminal investigations. But all is not lost! If you look in the bag just under the ladies chair next to you, you'll find a contract deed. Now, all you need to do is sign it, get one of your security guards to take it to the underground parking lot and place it in the red van on B1, registration 14A-345. Then, you let the van drive out. If I see a tail, and I will, if I see anything untoward, I'll flick the switch and the house comes down. Once the van is clear, I'll disappear, you have my word that I will not do anything else. So, it's your decision. You lose Pemberley, a casino with a turnover of around $1.2 billion a year, or you lose Rosings, a casino with a turnover of $30 billion. Simples, yeah?"

Darcy watched the monitor on which Richard had zoomed in on Catherine's face. She still gave nothing away. Let out a hiss of triumph as she signed…..

"Excellent!" Charlie grinned. "Glad you saw sense. It's just business isn't it? Good, now let's…."

Suddenly, the entire room went dark. The monitors went down, the lights turned off. Even from their room, they could hear the shouts of confusion from downstairs, from the casino floor.

"What's going on?" he heard Caro shout from somewhere on his left.

"They've cut the electrics!" Richard yelled, Darcy could see his dark mass moving around his equipment, frantically pulling plugs out.

"The laptop!" he shouted. "Get the laptop."

After a moment of shuffling, the room was illuminated by the blue glow.

"Lose it, all of it!" Darcy yelled desperately, and Richard began attempting to do whatever it was he could do.

He looked at Charlie, who was holding the phone out to him, his light brown face drained of most of its colour. He took the phone with shaky hands and held it up to his ear.

"Hello, William, my dear nephew," Catherine smirked down the phone. "I think it's time we put a stop to this nonsense, is it not?"

She'd beaten him.

The door banged open and they shielded their eyes from the torches that blinded their eyes.

"SECURITY! ARMED SECURITY! DOWN ON THE GROUND!"

Will Darcy, Richard Fitzwilliam, Caroline Bouzid and Charles Bouzid knelt on the ground, arms raised above their heads, a dozen guns pointed at their chests. After all these long years, they were finally caught.

"Let's face it," Caroline sighed as the handcuffs went on. "It was always going to end like this someday..."