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“That is what gives
gambling its fascination for me. However, as I have been so lucky
all evening, I’m sure my good fortune will last a little longer and
I hope you won’t object to me leaving a winner?”
    “ Certainly not,” Chauvelin
lied, considering such a contingency was non-existent. “The chance
of winning, or even losing, is what gives gambling its fascination
for me also. By the way, Mr. Driberg, are you acquainted with
Captain Fog?”
    “ I’ve bought cattle from
him,” the stocky and hard featured man replied, guessing what was
expected of him. “Now there’s a feller who enjoys a game of poker.
I’ll say one thing about him, though. He surely hates a poor loser
and’s told me more than once he wouldn’t do business with one under
no circumstances.”
    “ How interesting,” the
‘Duke’ declared, hoping the point would be taken by ‘Donna Maria
Constanza del Santa Rosa’ and prevent her from complaining about
her losses to the Texan when they met the following
morning.
    “ Hey, ‘Mrs. Duke’, ma’am,”
Thomas Driberg went on, knowing what was required of him at this
point in the proceedings. “Would there be any chance of me and the
boys getting drinks before the next pot?”
    “ Verily,” supported
‘Reverend’ Leslie Huckfield. “For does it not say in the Good Book,
‘Take a little wine for your stomach’?”
    “ Of course,” Emily
Chauvelin assented. “If you will tell me what drinks you want, I
will go and start preparing them right away. Perhaps, Donna Maria,
as you are to leave us so soon, we might persuade you and your
husband to join us this time?”
    “ But of course,” the lady
outlaw replied, with the air of one so satisfied by the way things
were going she could afford to be magnanimous. However, she had
fully intended to request that she and the Ysabel Kid were included
if the invitation had not been forthcoming. “We certainly will and,
as it will be only the one, ‘Manuel’ will only be affected properly
by it.” Directing a knowing glance at the ‘Duchess’ as she was
making the last part of the statement, she went on, “We will each
have a glass of wine, please.”
    As she had on other occasions when a ‘guest’
had made a similar request for liquid refreshment, Emily
disappeared into the kitchen. She had already explained to Belle
that the servants had all been given the evening off to avoid
embarrassment for ‘Reverend’ Huckfield whose congregation, it was
claimed, would not approve of him playing poker for any kind of
stakes even in a ‘scrupulously honest’ game. Having established
that her lack of experience in carrying out such a mental task did
not make her an efficient and speedy ‘bar lady’, she had no fear
that her delay in returning would arouse the suspicions of their
intended victim.
    Working swiftly and yet carefully, the
‘Duchess’ arranged a deck of cards, identical to the one in use, so
the hands would fall as they had on other occasions after a dupe
had been primed and was ready for plucking. However, the task could
not be performed until the seating arrangements around the table
were settled, due to a mark being rendered less suspicious by being
allowed to select whatever position he desired. The sequence she
was setting out was such that, even if the victim elected to draw
one card to replace the ace with the four jacks, the straight flush
would still be made by Huckfield.
    Having made everything ready, keeping a
watch upon what was going on in the dining room through the
partially open serving hatch, Emily poured the drinks for the
‘guests’. Placing them on the tray she had used previously when
supplying liquid refreshment, she held the prepared deck underneath
it and timed her arrival to coincide with her husband completing
the shuffling of the cards already in use.
    Waiting until ‘Donna Maria’ had cut the
original deck, which would strengthen the belief that nothing
untowards had taken place, the