章節 68: Chapter 68: No Way Out
The dealer revealed the fourth card: a nine.
Le Chiffre hesitated. He glanced at William, who had a nonchalant expression, and after a long pause, called the bet with $100,000 in chips.
Bond quickly followed suit, calling as well, bringing the decision back to William.
William pondered for a moment, thinking, "I have three nines now. Considering the four community cards, the best possible hand I can make is a full house with three nines and a pair of twos. Bond likely has a pair of threes, and Le Chiffre's pair of twos doesn't match the community cards. If I raise, they might fold."
"Check," William said.
"Mr. Devonshire has checked. It's your turn, Mr. Le Chiffre," the dealer prompted.
After some thought, Le Chiffre decided to bet. He could form a pair of nines and a pair of twos. "Bet, $200,000."
At that moment, Vesper entered, walking up to Bond and giving him a kiss on the cheek.
The other players observed Vesper. Dressed up, she looked stunning, though William knew she was a traitor. Seeing Bond pretend to be captivated by her beauty amused him. Bond, feeling the need to assess Le Chiffre's hand without scaring him off, used Vesper's distraction to make it seem like he hadn't thought much and simply called.
"Your turn, Mr. Devonshire," the dealer said.
"Call," William tossed $200,000 in chips onto the table.
With all three players having bet, the dealer dealt the fifth card: a two.
Le Chiffre immediately bet another $200,000, but Bond, realizing he was beaten with just a pair of threes, folded. Cursing silently, he thought about how Le Chiffre managed to hit his card with only a 3% chance.
William looked at Le Chiffre and smiled, "Call."
"Showdown, Mr. Le Chiffre," William said.
Le Chiffre revealed his pair of twos, and the dealer announced, "Full house, threes over nines. Mr. Devonshire, it's your turn."
With a hearty laugh, William said, "What luck I have! I can't believe I got this hand." He then revealed his cards.
The dealer took William's nine and two and said, "With the community cards showing a pair of nines and a pair of twos, Mr. Devonshire has a full house: nines over twos. Mr. Devonshire wins."
The large man sitting across from William remarked, "Hey, buddy, you're one lucky guy. No matter what cards Le Chiffre holds, he can't beat you. You're really fortunate."
"Thank you," William replied, snapping his fingers at the bar.
A waiter approached, and William ordered, "A dry martini, please. Three measures of gin, one measure of vodka, half a measure of Kina Lillet, shaken over ice, and garnished with a thin slice of lemon peel. Thank you."
The people at the table were intrigued by his drink order. Several others told the bartender they wanted the same.
Seeing that everyone's attention was on the drinks and not the game made Le Chiffre anxious. "Are we done ordering? Can we get back to the game?"
William, with a smirk, said, "It's only the beginning. Getting impatient already, Mr. Le Chiffre? This is just for fun; no need to be so serious."
A few others chimed in, "Yeah, it's just a fun time. Have a drink and relax, Mr. Le Chiffre."
Le Chiffre rolled his eyes and took out his asthma inhaler, giving himself a puff.
Watching Le Chiffre's action, the others around the table chuckled. It was clear Le Chiffre didn't drink or smoke, and they found it amusing that despite his wealth, he couldn't indulge in these pleasures.
Four hours later, the casino manager announced, "Ladies and gentlemen, we've been playing for four hours now. We'll take a one-hour break before continuing."
William got up and left the gambling hall. He didn't care about Le Chiffre's fate; he only cared about winning all the money. Besides, wasn't Bond here to handle Le Chiffre?
William walked into the hotel restaurant and treated himself to a hearty meal.
After the hour-long break, William returned to the table. The game resumed, and for the next few hours, William played conservatively, waiting for the others to wire in the remaining $10 million they had. He didn't want to scare them off too early by winning too quickly.
The game continued for another three hours until 2 a.m., when it was called for the night. The players agreed to resume the next evening.
The next day, William slept in until 11 a.m. After getting up and freshening up, he spent the afternoon wandering around the small town. He enjoyed a leisurely dinner and arrived at the casino on time for the game.
With the game resuming, William's strategy was to target whoever was winning the most. Once the players had wired in the remaining $10 million each, he unleashed his full poker prowess.
To the other players, William seemed almost divine. He was lucky enough to win even with seemingly weak hands, and he was fearless when betting on the final card. By 10 p.m., the table had been whittled down to just William and Le Chiffre.
Bond had fallen into one of Le Chiffre's traps and, after losing his $10 million, had decided not to return to the table. Realizing that William's poker skills were far superior, Bond had no idea how he would explain his loss.
Church, having quickly lost his $20 million, also left the table early and joined Bond for a chat. For both of them, as long as Le Chiffre didn't win, it was a success.
In the final hand, William held a straight flush from four to eight, beating Le Chiffre's four of a kind with fives.
Upon winning, William leapt to his feet with excitement. Aside from Bond and two female participants, the remaining seven players had wired in an additional $10 million each. This brought William's total winnings from the game to $170 million.
Le Chiffre sat at the table, staring blankly, eyes filled with hatred as he glared at William. He had never expected William to win so decisively.
With no other options left, Le Chiffre knew he was cornered. If he couldn't win the game, his only recourse was to take drastic measures and kidnap William.
Turning to his bald henchman, Le Chiffre asked, "Have you found the help I requested?"
"Yes, a team of over thirty mercenaries is on standby just outside the hotel," the bald man replied.
"Good. Inform them that the target is William Devonshire. I need him alive," Le Chiffre said, suppressing his anger.
"No problem. I'll notify them right away," the bald henchman responded and quickly left the hotel.
William stood up, shaking hands with those who congratulated him. His fellow players were surprised by his victory, impressed that this newly minted billionaire had managed to win.
After exchanging pleasantries, William's newfound poker friends left.
Church approached with a drink in hand, accompanied by Bond, and said, "That was impressive, William. I didn't expect your poker skills to be so exceptional. Is there anything you can't do?"
William took the offered drink from Church and shrugged, "Well, I can't have children."
They all laughed. Church then asked, "Now that the problem is solved, is Le Chiffre yours or mine?"
"Of course, he's ours. I promised Lady M, and besides, Church, you didn't contribute much today," William replied.
"Fair enough. So, it's up to whoever catches him first. You get him if you catch him; I get him if I do," Church said resignedly. He knew he had no leverage since he hadn't played a significant role today.
Shaking hands with William and Bond, Church then left to prepare for capturing Le Chiffre.
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