back of my neck stood up and I thought I was going to vomit. I had never felt bad luck in my life, but if it existed, this must be what it felt like.
It terrified me.
“I don’t want the money,” I said. “I didn’t mean to win. I just sat down and played.”
As soon as the words left my mouth, the bad feeling disappeared. That confirmed it was the right decision.
“Well, here’s the thing,” McMatthews said with a sigh. “You won in front of a bunch of guests. Everyone took cell phone videos of it, to say nothing of our own internal footage. If we didn’t give you the prize money, the Nevada Gaming Commission would be all over us.”
The terrible feeling returned.
“Can I donate it to charity?” I asked.
“You can do whatever the hell you want with it,” he replied.
The awful feeling dimmed again.
“Rose…” Roman said. “Let’s hold on a minute. You don’t want to make a rash decision.”
“Ten million is a lot of money,” Danny added.
“It feels tainted,” I said. “I can’t explain it, but… I don’t think I can accept it.”
“Donate half,” Vic suggested. “Keep the rest. Win win.”
As soon as I entertained the idea, the sick, aching feeling returned. “Nope. I have to give all of it away.”
“This is nuts,” Danny said. “You’ve got enough money to last the rest of your life, and…”
“It’s her money,” Vic said bluntly. “She can do whatever the hell she wants with it.”
McMatthews typed on his keyboard. “We’ve got protocol for wins this big. There’s going to be a ceremony where you accept the money tomorrow night. After a security audit has been performed on the servers, to ensure the validity of the win. You’ll receive a giant check, we’ll take photographs. It’ll be a whole big thing. It’s good marketing for the casino.”
“Okay,” I said. “I’ll do whatever you want.”
He printed out a document and then had me sign it. He placed it in a folder and then steepled his fingers on the desk.
“I don’t understand how you can do what you do,” he said slowly. “Hell, I’m not sure I believe what I just saw with my own two eyes. But if there is something extraordinary going on, you should probably retire from gambling.”
“Oh,” I said.
“Stay off the main casino floor. Stick to the Sportsbook, or the public poker tournaments. Because if you show back up in the casino and start winning jackpots, it’s going to be awfully hard for me to explain to my boss why I let you go the first time. Understand what I’m saying?”
“I understand. I’ll stick to the Sportsbook.”
“We’re going to comp you a suite,” McMatthews went on. “Consider it an apology for the way Armando treated you. But it’s also a way to keep you close while we perform the security audit. You’re not under house arrest, because we can’t technically do that, but if you leave…”
He spread his hands.
“If the Microsoft engineers discover the server has been tampered with, I’ll turn everything over to the police.” He stood. “That should cover it. Let’s get you to your suite.”
On the way out of his office, Vic shook his hand. “I appreciate the help. This means a lot.”
“Consider us even,” McMatthews said. “That incident at Caesar’s Palace eight years ago? I don’t ever want to hear about it again.”
“Deal,” Vic said.
As we followed the head of security through the casino, I nudged Vic and asked, “What happened at Caesar’s Palace eight years ago?”
Vic got a funny look on his face. “Something embarrassing. He owed me a favor. Don’t worry about it, Shamrock. Cashing it in to get you out was an easy call.”
I breathed a sigh of relief as we exited into the main casino floor.
43
Rose
McMatthews escorted us to the front desk, where a bellhop was waiting with Roman’s luggage. We took the elevator to the forty-fifth floor. Roman made some calls to schedule the casino security audit.
“This is an urgent request,” he said to the engineer on the line. “I want three engineers on-site by noon tomorrow. I don’t care who’s on vacation. This is top priority.”
Our suite wasn’t the same one Danny and I had stayed in weeks ago, but it was nearly identical. Marble floors, several different rooms, a hot tub, and floor-to-ceiling windows giving a colorful view of the Las Vegas strip.
“Guess I’m staying in town a little longer,” Roman said. “I want to oversee the audit personally.”
Vic whistled while looking around. “Shit, Shamrock. This is nice.”
“It’s just like