Chapter 3

I was about to accept when Stanley cut in sharply.

"Stop this nonsense. The bet doesn't work. We're a hundred nautical miles from the harbor. How is anyone supposed to swim back?"

"Stanley, relax. Of course we won't actually make her swim all the way."

Sophie hooked her little finger around his, then tilted her head toward me.

"We'll have a lifeguard follow alongside in a rescue boat the whole way. If she runs out of strength, she can climb in and ride back."

"Penelope, what do you say?"

I stood and looked at her, long and hard.

"I'll take the bet."

Sophie didn't know I came from a gambling dynasty. Rolling dice was child's play to me.

No one had ever beaten me at a table. Not one.

In the lounge I peeled off the bloodstained clothes without a flicker of expression and changed into something clean.

I would settle this account in full.

Ten minutes later everyone gathered on the deck again.

Two dice cups and twelve dice sat on the table.

Clark stepped up, inspected everything, then nodded to Stanley.

"All clean."

Stanley rapped two fingers on the table.

"It's only a game. Don't take it too seriously."

Sophie smiled, stepped forward, and picked up the cup on the right along with six dice.

"You don't mind if I choose my cup first, do you?"

I said nothing and took the remaining cup and dice.

The moment Clark called the start, Sophie and I began shaking our cups at the same time.

I kept my ear on the sound of the dice inside her cup, and a cold smile tugged at the corner of my mouth.

Cheap tricks.

Sophie slammed her cup down on the table first.

The dice settled.

I heard the numbers inside.

Five fives and a four.

She'd played that swindle carefully.

Sophie smiled at me.

"Penelope, still haven't rolled a number you like?"

The instant she said it, Clark and his crew burst out laughing.

"Sophie, that's harsh, showing his wife up like that, ha ha ha."

"If you ask me, she doesn't know the first thing about dice."

"Just concede now. With Stanley here, we're not really going to force you into the water to swim back."

Sophie turned to Stanley.

"Stanley, if Penelope concedes now and apologizes to me, we'll call the whole bet off."

Stanley looked at me.

I set my cup down.

"Concede isn't a word I know. And that fall earlier was your own little performance, so what exactly would I be apologizing for?"

Sophie lifted her cup, all confidence.

"Penelope, I gave you a way out. You're the one who wouldn't take it."

Clark pointed at the dice in front of her.

"Five fives and a four, twenty-nine points! Sophie's got this locked!"

Stanley came over and pressed my hand flat against my cup.

"Penelope, concede now and what I said still stands."

I shoved his hand off, hard.

Lifted the cup.

Everyone stared at the dice in front of me and drew a sharp breath.

"Six fives. Thirty points. Penelope wins."

Sophie's eyes went wide with disbelief.

"That's impossible."

"You did something to your cup!"

I ran a fingertip across the cup on the table.

"Clark inspected everything on this table in front of all of you. Are you saying he covered for me?"

"I did not!"

Clark burst in, agitated.

"I checked the cups and the dice carefully. There's nothing wrong with them."

I gestured toward the sea behind me.

"Sophie, you lost."

Sophie clenched her teeth, two flames of fury dancing in her eyes.

"One more round. I'm raising the stakes."

"The loser spends three days and three nights with Clark and his brothers on the yacht. They can do whatever they want."

I stared at her, then smiled.

"Fine. One more round."