Tiff's Game (Perry County Frontier Series) Page 14

  Chip went right on. "No matter how I tried shaking you, you hung on like a burr. I always figured you'd go back to smuggling—seeing the slaving business went under."

  Carter got his bristling under control. He studied his friend as he might a strange bug. "Being a friend, I've never mentioned this, Chip, but your memory hasn't been too accurate since Jonathan Starling head-knocked you with his pistol bade there just after the war. And, seeing as we're talking about helping out, you'll recall it was me that saved you and Tinker, and Hannah that same day."

  "I had Starling whipped and out the door when you finally came strolling up, Roth."

  Tiff leaned close to his aunt's ear. "I'd like to get the real story of that fight sometime, Aunt Tinker. They twist it out of shape so badly I can't tell what really happened."

  Tinker laughed. "You are right, Tiff. I was part of it, but since then I've heard so many versions from those two that I have trouble remembering it right. The best way would be to get them apart and ask each one—only then, Chip would tell how Carter did it all, and Carter would claim Chip did the work while he just looked on. They are a pair, I'll tell you.

  Carter was right, they had started late. The evening was well along before their wagon rolled across the river bridge and into the square, but it was worth coming in for. The stores were busy and the streets were crowded. The ladies hurried to their shopping, and after sharp admonitions to stay out of trouble, the boys disappeared. The men drifted toward the gambling barge, again tied close and handy.

  The Newport crowd was more boisterous, and a dockside fist fight had just been broken up. A number of peddlers had set up shop and were selling wares of interest to men. A new fragrance to splash on after shaving was said to attract ladies like bees to sweetening. A bystander rudely suggested more like flies to manure, but the drummer was plying a brisk ten-cent-a-bottle business to hopeful younger men.

  Haycock sat on a caned chair before a portable table playing his three card game or switching to high card draw as players preferred. The gambler was colder and more business minded this evening, Tiff observed. Market Night would be the week's best moneymaker. Haycock would not waste it.

  The inside game had recently broken. Brown, the gambler's helper, spoke quietly with the small man who was again tugging at his shirt to let the air cool him. The barge's waiter was busily cleaning and straightening the gambling room. Tiff experienced a sudden hunger to sit in that game and test for himself just how good Haycock was.

  Tiff drew dollar bills from his pocket and edged through watchers until he was against Haycock's table. He said, "Cut for high card." Without looking up, Haycock shuffled and placed the deck in front of Tiff. The gambler's banker dropped a dollar on Tiff's.

  Tiff cut and showed his card, an eight. Haycock cut a face card, and the banker took the money.

  Tiff dropped two dollars, calling again for high card cut. Haycock won again, and Tiff immediately doubled his bet and called for the same game.

  Haycock shifted irritably. Cutting for high card was not a good game. If the cards were not shaved or otherwise manipulated, the odds were fifty to fifty. Even if a player lost each hand, if he could double each bet, he would eventually win and walk away a little ahead of the game. Unlike a player, Haycock could not just quit when he was ahead. The gambler preferred other games of chance.

  Tiff won his four dollar bet and was ahead a dollar. The banker wasted a moment pushing Tiff's money across, and Haycock shifted easily to another player. Skillfully done, Tiff recognized. Haycock had a knowledgeable team.

  A hand slid through his arm. Startled, Tiff found Lily beside him. The crowd had parted soundlessly to let her through. The bright of her skirt caught Haycock's eye, and he looked up, smiled briefly and returned to his game. From his post atop the barge cabin, Brown, the gambler's main helper, kept his eyes on them. Distrustful sort, Tiff supposed.

  "Get tired of shopping so soon?"

  "I wished to watch."

  "Not much doing."

  "Have you played?"

  Tiff held up his single dollar. I'm way out in front."

  Haycock was dealing Locate-the-Ace. Tiff turned his attention to the play. He felt his concentration focus on the movement of Haycock's hands, and he knew where the ace lay. The player did not and the banker took the coins.

  Haycock worked the cards, and Tiff followed the gambler's moves with heightened awareness. Again he knew. Fascinating. He had not expected any regularity with a gambler as skilled as Haycock.

  Lily said, "I can almost guess the right card, Tiff."

  "You can?"

  "I think you are helping me somehow. Could that be true?"

  The suggestion was exciting. Tiff said, "Look away and think about something else for a hand or two. I want to try something. Don't look back until I tell you."

  Tiff again watched Haycock's play, but he had only his normal familiarity with the techniques. Occasionally he was right, but not every time. "All right, Lily, now watch just like you did before."

  Power swelled. Windows of insight opened. Once again, Tiff saw through the shuffle. He knew the ace. "Holy smoke!"

  Lily stirred, feeling his excitement. "What is it, Tiff?"

  Almost afraid to speak aloud, Tiff whispered, "When we try together, I can follow the ace as easily as if the backs were marked."

  Lily was equally amazed. "How could that be? I know we share something strange, but how . . . ?"

  "Lily, I haven't the slightest idea, but it surely works."

  Brown dropped from the cabin top and spoke in Haycock's ear. After another hand or two the gambler stacked his cards and shook a few proffered hands. The inside players trooped back to the gambling room and chose seats. Haycock boarded and the poker game resumed. The galley door was open, and a cook and Brown talked idly together.

  Chip heaved alongside Tiff and Lily. "Damn it to hell. Carter dragged me over to look at a worn-out old barge of his, and Haycock got away. Dang it, we've wasted the whole trip."

  Carter Roth came even. "Don't blame me, Shatto. It was you stopped to jaw with that worthless Ruby bunch. We'd of been here waiting but for that."

  Lily edged Tiff away. "You could tell which card was the ace?"

  "Every time." They walked silently thinking about it

  Tiff wanted to say, "It's a sure sign, Lily. Somehow or other we were made to be together." He didn't quite dare.

  So he said, "I wonder if it would work with cards in a regular game?" Tiff considered the possibility. "Whew, if it would, I'd be hard to beat." His earlier vision of playing with Lily poised, hand on his shoulder, reappeared.

  Lily shivered a little. "This is scary, Tiff. Seeing something special once in a while is one thing. I've gotten used to it, but this?" Her voice died.

  Tiff wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "So far it seems a good thing, doesn't it?" He felt her shiver. "We'd best get you that sweater Aunt Tinker brought along."

  A thought struggled in the depth of his mind, and Tiff used walking time to let it surface. Almost to the square he stopped dead in his tracks, pulling Lily to a halt with him.

  "Holy jumpin' jehoshaphat!"

  "What, Tiff, what is it?"

  "So that's how it works!" Tiff began laughing aloud.

  Exasperated, Lily tugged at him. "What is so funny, Tiff. I want to know right now."

  Tiff's laughter died, but he still shook his head in amused wonderment. "Lily, I'll have to show you. My God, what gall the man's got."

  Tiff hurried her a little. "You won't believe what just came to me."

  When they returned to the docks, Tiff stayed beyond the light of the barge's lanterns. It was full dark and stores would begin to close. Already teams heading home rumbled the bridge planking. Chip and Carter would want to leave soon. A pack of boys including the Roths and George Shatto surged onto the dock, and Haycock's men moved to keep them from disturbing the card players.

  The night was chilling, and a crewman closed the dockside windows, hid
ing the game from observers. Some players might prefer the privacy, but Haycock, the professional, would not care either way.

  Tiff asked, "Did you ever notice a crewman who has a sweaty job on the barge?" Lily had not.

  "Well, no reason you should have. I just happened to see him off and on.

  "The fact is, something about the games on the barge have bothered me. I still don't know what it was. Maybe it was experience telling me hands went a bit too often to the wrong winner—perhaps it was something else.

  "Thinking on my own didn't do a lot of good, but Lily, just walking along with you made it all come clear as day. I swear, you light an extra burner in my brain." Tiff paused to hug her as naturally as if he had known her for years.

  "Anyway, this is what is happening. Haycock cheats, Lily. He's in there cheating right now, and I know how he does it"

  Tiff explained, and Lily's eyes kept getting wider.

  "So," Tiff concluded, "there are a number of things to do. When we get home, I'll tell Uncle Chip and the Captain. We don't want them to know now. We want time to plan out the best way to profit from what we've discovered.

  "The next thing will be for me to play some poker with you standing behind my chair with a hand on my shoulder. I saw you like that in my mind, and it might be the way to play the game."

  They turned toward the square, again hand in hand.

  Lily said, "I'll ride out in the morning and we can try."

  Tiff could feel the excitement of it. "My gosh, Lily. Suppose it works? Suppose I can read Haycock's cards." He sobered. "Suppose I can read anybody's cards? What do I do then, play them and take their money on a sure thing?"

  Lily was more pragmatic. "Wait and see if it is as real in the daylight, Tiff." She paused, weighing her own words. "If you can see special things because I am along, or because I am thinking about them as well, mightn't I see things too?"

  She shivered again, excited but unsure. "This is new for me, Tiff. Being called a witch and having a small gift is worrisome enough. This is way beyond anything I have ever heard about."

  Tiff said, his voice warm and a bit flirty, "If we each have a gift, as we seem to, Lily, just think what talent our children might inherit."

  Pretending shock, Lily Carver said, "Tiff Shatto, don't you get fresh with me." But her hand stayed tight in his.

  Chapter 14

  Soft morning sunlight flowed under the porch overhang and through the open door and windows. Chip's tenant farmer was plowing the close field, and the smell of newly turned earth came on a soft morning breeze. A cow mooed lustily from the pasture and most of the herd joined in.

  Carter remarked, "Sounds like the Presbyterian choir."

  "How would you know?" Chip answered. "You haven't been to church in the eighteen years I've known you."

  "I heard 'em wailing away when I stopped to use their facility one time. Sounded just like that only with a few high screechers stuck in."

  "Forget the cows and the choirs and listen to what Tiff is telling us. I don't want to have to explain it to you later on. I get tired of that."

  Tiff interrupted. "What I discovered last evening was that Haycock cheats at his table, and I know how he does it."

  Chip was first to respond. "By damn, then we've got him."

  Roth said, "Well, I'm not surprised he cheats. Any man who'd use Tiny like he's planning is rotten."

  Tinker asked, "But how does he cheat, Tiff? Can't he just deny it?"

  "Nope, we've got him.

  "I've got to admit I'm surprised he would take the chance. Out west, and I'm not joking about this, someone would shoot him. Or more likely, a whole bunch would drag him outside and hang him from the nearest limb. Gamblers cheat some everywhere, but they are usually careful not to leave evidence. A professional avoids marked cards, for instance. If they are discovered, he can't very well deny them."

  "So, how does Haycock cheat?" Captain Roth was impatient.

  Tiff continued. "Think about Haycock's barge for a minute. It's lit up better than daylight with lamps and that broken mirror ceiling reflecting light everywhere. That is unusual, but it is nice for playing and impressive to see.

  "Now see in your mind the cabin itself—darn it, this is hard to describe so I'll lay it out plain.

  "The cabin has a false ceiling. A small man lays up in there. He can see down onto each hand through some of the little glass bits in that fancy ceiling. He reads all the cards. Mostly that's all he does, but when a clear opportunity appears, he talks to the cook who passes the message to Haycock by simple signals or through Brown, Haycock's number one helper, who's always whispering into Haycock's ear.

  "They've covered pretty well by having Brown come in and out all the time, supposedly keeping Haycock abreast of other business. It's so accepted that his coming and going is hardly noticed and never questioned."

  His listeners sat silent, visualizing how it worked, so Tiff went on. "Haycock is wise enough to use his spy's information only a few times a night, but when he strikes, he takes a nice pot that gives a worthwhile payoff. The rest of the time Haycock just plays. He is good enough on his own to have a winning night, so the cheating is just making sure he gets rich."

  Roth was the questioner. "How come you discovered this cheating when it's probably been going on for over a year without anybody else finding out?"

  Tiff explained further. "Well, it gets hotter than the center of hell above that false ceiling, yet the spy working up there has to stay mouse quiet. I kept seeing one of Haycock's men sweat-soaked beyond normal. He was always out cooling himself when Haycock was on the dock playing high card or something. I think Haycock breaks his game to give his spy a rest.

  "It also seemed a little strange that Haycock sat all around his table. Most gamblers have a spot they like, not because they cheat, but because the light's good, or maybe distractions don't hit their eyes. Haycock sits anywhere because it helps show he hasn't got the game stacked. His ceiling man can see all the hands, so seating arrangements do not matter.

  "What happens is that just before the game starts, the cook closes the galley door so the spy can climb into the ceiling through a high cabinet. The cook takes the information by looking into the cabinet, and sometimes Brown gets it himself.

  "I imagine there's more to it, for example, the glass bits the spy looks through might be lenses that magnify so he can see more clearly. Maybe the waiter signals, too. He could do that by going first to a certain player or by filling glasses or performing some other service in a certain sequence. I looked for that, but I didn't see it. Haycock is probably content with just knowing his opponents' hands. I sure would be."

  Chip rocked back in his chair. "We've got him cold, Tiff."

  Carter suggested, "Let's get a bunch together and tar and feather him. Then we'll run him through town on a rail, like they did in the old days."

  Hannah Roth stayed reasonable. "Other professional gamblers have seen what you did, Tiff. Some almost professionals up and down the rivers play at his table every time the barge ties up. I wonder why they never noticed."

  Tiff confessed, "I couldn't put it together, either. Although something didn't smell just right, I couldn't find anything wrong. Then, when Lily and I were walking back to the square she shivered in the cool night. That made me think about the crewman I had seen fanning himself cool. I wondered sort of idly, for about the dozenth time, where he could work on that barge that got so hot.

  "That suddenly," Tiff snapped his fingers, "it came to me. Like solving a block puzzle, everything fell into place, and I knew how Haycock did it."

  Tiff paused to glance over at Lily. "I don't want any snickering at this, but when Lily's with me, I seem to have sharpened thinking."

  Carter snickered anyway. "Seems to me it's just the opposite; you go around half-dazed, about like you'd been knocked good between the eyes."

  Tiff grinned ruefully.

  Hannah put in fiercely, "Be quiet, Carter." Roth subsided.

  Chip s
aid, "I should have left your husband wandering along the Mississippi, Hannah. We'd all have been better off."

  They grouped around Tinker's kitchen table, poker hands held against chests so no one else could see. Lily sat off to a side.

  Tiff explained. "Lily and I want to try an experiment. Once we get it out of the way, we'll know more and maybe have another way to finish off Haycock.

  "Now you've all been dealt cards by Hannah. I'm going to try, hard and serious, to guess what you are holding. We'll take count, then we'll try again with Lily and I both concentrating on your cards. I think there might be a difference."

  Tiff gave it his best. Only rarely when playing did he really see cards or genuinely know another's play. As he expected, nothing special appeared in his mind, but he did guess a few correctly.

  Chip said, "I think I could do that good, Tiff."

  Carter snorted contemptuously. "I'd like to lay a little money against you, Chip. Ordinarily a man wouldn't get a card right. Hell, Tiff's recognized three of them. That's three out of twenty."

  Tiff nodded. "The trouble is that in a game I couldn't know for sure if any were right or not. You can't lay much money on pure guess work and come out ahead.

  "Now let's try with Lily helping."

  Hannah shuffled inexpertly, and Carter demanded a cut. Laughing, they all cut and shuffled. Tinker said, "You're up against some real cardsharps here, Tiff."

  Lily stood at Tiff's side and placed her hand on his shoulder. Tiff experienced a tingle of contentment that had nothing to do with the card game.

  They concentrated, and Tiff tried. Nothing seemed different. He guessed away, hoping for the best. Then, suddenly and clearly he knew. It happened to be Carter Roth's hand. Tiff said with certainty, "A two of clubs, a jack of spades, a ten of diamonds, a five of hearts," Lily interjected tentatively, "And a four of spades?"

  Carter exclaimed, "Holy hell!" and laid his cards out for viewing. The hand had been called correctly.

  Chip Shatto whistled in soft amazement.

  Hannah Roth shook her head. "I never seen the like."