NANOVISION: What Would You Do With X-ray Vision? (14 page)

“You don’t play a
lot of Blackjack, do you?” she asked, when he went to hit his sixteen against
her four. “You do know you’re supposed to stay.”

“Yeah,” answered
Daniel, “but I’ve got a hunch.”

            “Hon, hunches don’t win at
Blackjack−believe me.”

“I’ve heard
that,” responded Daniel.

“Well, it’s your
money,” she answered, snapping a five atop his sixteen, giving him a total of
twenty-one. She then busted her hand with the ten that followed.

“See,” he said.

Paige smirked at
him. “You got lucky. But trust me, it won’t last. It never does.”

*    *    *    *

Over the course
of the next hour and several different dealers Daniel did pretty well. He had
amassed about four hundred dollars in winnings and was now playing twenty-five
dollar checks, and to his chagrin drawing a bit of a crowd. Everyone was amazed
at how well he was doing, considering the fact that he was playing like shit.
He even drew the attention of Jerry, the pit manager who appeared at the table
to introduce himself.

“Hey there, my
name’s Jerry. Welcome to the Club Cal Neva. What’s your name?”

“Daniel,” Daniel
answered, shaking his hand.

“Daniel, we’ve
been watching your play−you have a very unique style. You’ve done very
well for a twenty dollar buy in.”

Daniel smiled.
“I’ve never played before... it’s my first trip to Reno. I guess I’m having
beginner’s luck.”

“Well it’s always
nice to get new customers. Have you eaten?”  

            “Just a hotdog earlier.”

“Can we buy you
dinner? Where are you staying? Perhaps we can get you a room for the evening. I
believe there are several still available.”

“That would be
awesome,” responded Daniel, flattered by the offer.

“Great, I’ll tell
you what − let me get you into our player’s club. Do you have a driver’s
license?”

“Sure.” Daniel
reached for his wallet and pulled out his ID. He handed it to Jerry, who took
it to the podium in the middle of the pit.

Paige tapped back
into the game. 

“Hello again,”
said Daniel, grinning ear to ear.

“I see your luck
is continuing,” noted Paige as she dealt the next hand. She gave Daniel a
blackjack, but showed an ace as her hole card. She called for insurance, then
in a low voice whispered, “You know you can take even money.”

            “No, you don’t have it,” he replied.

“Okay, then,” she
retorted as she checked her hand in the peek window. The peek flashed
green−she didn’t have blackjack for the push. “Ya know...” she said, as
she paid him off. “... it’s the craziest thing, but I get the feeling you know
what cards are coming.

Daniel scoffed in
disbelief. “That’s impossible.”

“Yeah,” she
responded, eyeing him intently.

“So tell me,”
said Daniel, changing the subject. “Where’s a good place to eat here? It seems
they want to buy me dinner.”

“See if they’ll
comp you to the Steak House. It’s the best place − actually the only real
place to eat here.”

 It was at that
moment that Jerry returned to the table, a weird expression on his face. He
held up Daniel’s driver’s license. “Daniel, your license. Is this a mistake? It
states here that you’re blind.”

“What?” exclaimed
Paige, her mouth falling open.

“Yes, I am,”
responded Daniel.

Jerry was
speechless. “Uh, well, it’s − it’s just that I’ve never seen someone...
in your condition, I mean... your state... play like you do. You haven’t asked
any of the dealers what your cards are?”

Under normal
circumstances Daniel never took advantage of people. It was usually the other
way around, but somehow this situation was just too good to pass up. Pulling
off his sunglasses, he revealed his two opaque, milky-white eyes which sent
Jerry into a big time apology mode. “Oh, I’m so sorry,” he sputtered. “It’s
just that I couldn’t believe my eyes − oh shit − I mean...”

Daniel let him
off the hook. “It’s okay, Jerry, I’ve had to live with it for a while... it’s
mostly for ID anyhow. I can see things close up. Do you think I could get
dinner for two at the Steak House and maybe that room for the night?”

Embarrassed
beyond means, Jerry eagerly acquiesced−anything to make up for his
blunder. “Certainly! I’d be happy to see to it. Let me get the comp now.” He
returned immediately to his computer leaving Daniel and Paige alone. 

“Sure would be
nice to have dinner with someone tonight,” noted Daniel, harboring a school
yard fantasy. 

Paige smiled
weakly. “I’m sorry, Daniel, we’re not allowed to fraternize with our customers.
And honestly you do seem a little young...” 

“It’s okay, I
understand.”

Jerry returned to
the table with the food comp and a player’s card for Daniel.

“Here you go, Mr.
Lewis. Your player’s card and a comp for two at the Steak house. And I’ve
called the front desk; your suite is ready − just check in at the front
desk whenever you’re ready.”

“Thanks” said
Daniel, shaking the pit manager’s hand. He then turned to Paige. “Well, I think
it’s time to cash in.” He pushed his chips toward her. 

“Color!” Paige
called out.

“Color up,” came
the response from the floor-person behind her.

Paige ran down
Daniel’s chips, the total coming to five hundred and sixty-three dollars. She
tallied it up and called out the total before handing it off to Daniel.

“Here you go
hon−five sixty-three. The cage is right behind you over there.”

“Thanks,” said
Daniel. He threw her a hundred. “I had a blast.”

Standing up from
the game, Daniel gave Paige one last look, the clothes on her body melting
away, leaving her totally naked to his view once more. He sighed as he looked
her over.
Damn... she was pretty.

“Tell me,” he
inquired as he turned to leave. “I am curious...” 

            “About what?” she asked.

“Did it hurt? I
mean... getting those things put in there?” He gestured to his own pec muscles
as Paige’s mouth dropped.
Oh shit
, he thought.
He’d stepped in it now
.
“I’m sorry... excuse me,” he apologized, “... that was inappropriate.” With his
face beet red again he started to walk away.

Paige was utterly
stunned and she could feel her own face turning red.
How the hell did he
know that? He was blind for God’s sake... How could he know? Shit! That is so
weird... too damn weird...

Recovering from
her shock, Paige realized there was more to Daniel than what met the eye. He
had something, an ability... an ability that... Wow... could be put to good
use. She called to him as he rounded the end of the pit, pointing to her watch
with her finger. “I get off in twenty minutes. Meet me at the sports bar.”

*    *    *    *

Daniel and Paige
sat in the Steak House enjoying their prime rib dinner complete with a baked
potato, salad, and of course a rich dessert as everything was comped. Daniel
was famished anyway. He hadn’t really eaten in days and it showed, though he
did manage to maintain his manners in front of
his date
. His aunt would
have had his hide otherwise. Of course, his mind wasn’t really on the meal. It
was on Paige. He couldn’t believe he was having dinner with someone like her.
Sitting across from her over dinner was like taking the most beautiful girl in
the school to the prom. She was beautiful, sophisticated and alluring, and the
outfit she had changed into was more than becoming. Daniel’s head raced with
ludicrous ideas about where the evening might lead.

“So, that’s how I
got here,” he said, explaining to her how he arrived in Reno. 

“And the guy
trying to kill you was a mob hitman?”

“Yeah, so it
would seem. All I know is he was a crazed psycho.”

“Wow, that’s
really scary,” acknowledged Paige, as she took a sip of wine. She was
bewildered. The kid’s story was so incredulous that she wasn’t quite sure what
to make of it. And yet, he was so convincing, and look what he did on the Blackjack
table. “So, I’m really confused about something,” she added. 

“What?” 

“How come, when
you showed Jerry your eyes earlier, they were all white and stuff, but now they
look so normal?” 

Daniel smiled as
if revealing a big secret. “Contacts...” he confided.

“No???” She
peered hard at his eyes trying to see for herself. “They look so real. And
beautiful too.”

Daniel chuckled.
“Thanks, it makes people more comfortable. A doctor in California made them for
me.” 

“That is so cool.
Can I ask you something else?”

“Sure.” 

“How do you do
it? I mean on the Blackjack table−how did you know what cards were
coming? And how did you know my nipples were pierced?” 

Daniel blushed,
embarrassed by her last question. He lowered his eyes to the table. “It’s kind of
a mental thing,” he answered. “I get these pictures in my head. I sorta see
things...”

“Like a
psychic?” 

“Yeah, kinda.”

Paige slowly slid
a spoonful of ice cream into her mouth. She even made eating ice cream look
sexy. “Wow,” she remarked, “you should go to Vegas. You could make a killing.”

“Yeah, perhaps.
But right now I have to get back to Cal. I need to contact the police and
reconnect with my family.” 

“So, rent a car
− drive back. You have the money. Oh God, I’m sorry that was really
stupid of me...”

Daniel placed his
hand atop hers. “It’s okay. People say stuff like that all the time to me. They
don’t mean anything.”

Paige smiled.
Then suddenly her eyes went wide. “Hey, I have an idea − perhaps, I could
take you?”

“Really?” Daniel
exclaimed in surprise.

“Yeah − Why
not? I’m off tomorrow and I don’t have any plans. Of course, we’d need some
traveling money − for gas and stuff. I’m a little short right now. And
I’d probably have to take Tuesday off from work.”

“Are you sure?”

Paige gave
Daniel’s hand a little squeeze. “I’d really like to help you out.” 

Daniel’s spirit
soared over Paige’s offer. For the first time in all of this he felt like he
wasn’t totally alone. “I gotta admit,” he said. “Your help would make things a
whole lot easier.”

“Super. Okay,
then − first things first. I’ll need to grab a few things from my place
and then we can head up the mountain to Tahoe. 

Daniel was
confused. “Tahoe?”

“Yeah, I’ve got a
friend who’s got a condo there. I promised to look in on it while she’s away. I
was going to drive up there tomorrow, but we can do it tonight.” She grabbed
her purse, indicating she was ready to go. “Don’t worry,” she cautioned. “It’s
on the way. We can spend the night there and I’ll have you home first thing
tomorrow.”

Daniel’s reluctance
melted like an ice cube on a hot sidewalk. The thought of spending the night
with Paige was just too much to pass up, especially when she sealed the deal
with the biggest, sexiest smile ever.

“Yeah, okay, he
said, accepting her offer. “Paige, that’s really nice... thank you.”

After tipping the
waiter, Paige led Daniel into the parking garage of the Cal Neva where her car
was parked. As Daniel halfway expected, she owned a really cool, brand new,
bright-red Ford Mustang. Ironically, after unlocking the car, she opened the
door for him to get in−blindness did have its advantages. Daniel just had
to keep acting that way.

Sliding into the
front seat, Daniel tried to make himself comfortable, but his legs were cramped
by a large gym bag sitting on the floor. He gave the bag a shove.

“Here, let me get
that,” said Paige, reaching across him. The touch of her hand on his knee gave
him a hard-on.
It was going to be a great night
.

She tossed the
bag into the back seat, but not before Daniel scanned its contents. He couldn’t
help it. He was curious as to what a girl like her wore to the gym, imagining
some skimpy sexy outfit. He was disappointed. All he saw were the usual things,
workout sweats, a t-shirt, a towel, sneakers, a combination lock... and? What the
hell was that? She had a gun in her bag.
Holy crap!
Daniel was baffled.
Why would Paige have a gun in her gym bag? Though he was curious as hell,
Daniel said nothing. He figured she must have a good reason. Let’s face it. She
was a petite woman and really pretty. Daniel had to assume that she got hassled
from time to time.

The drive to Lake
Tahoe was rather uneventful, and Paige did most of the talking, filling Daniel
in on her personal life. She told him how she became a dealer, which wasn’t all
that long ago and how it had come about. According to her, it was all due to
her last boyfriend. He used her to finance his drug addiction, then stole
everything she had, leaving her broke. With what little she was able to scrape
up, she was able to pay for dealing school and find work. The last year had
been kinder. She managed to make enough money to get the Mustang and a half
decent apartment. Still, she had a lot of credit card debt thanks to her old
flame, but she was working it off.