“And ruin the surprise?” He placed his hand on the small of her back. “Oh, it looks like our table is ready. Shall we?”

“Tanner…”

But he was already moving her toward the cleared table. The players, obviously puzzled by their sudden eviction, stood to the side holding their chips and drinks. The croupier was hastily trying to move them out of the casino.

Volkov sat in the dealer’s chair and motioned for Tanner and Lara to sit across from him. As they took their seats, Lara glanced around to see that they were attracting a crowd. Several gamblers from neighboring tables had left their games and were taking positions nearby.

Tanner had also noticed. “It’s to be a private game, Volkov.”

Volkov shrugged. “I know. But I’m very good, and I don’t mind letting them watch me for a while. I’ll send both them and the croupiers out of the casino after a hand or two.”

“I’ve heard about your ego.” Tanner smiled. “Then let’s give them a good show.”

Volkov cut the seal on a deck of cards and moved to place it in an automatic shuffler.

Tanner raised his hands to stop him. “No. Hand shuffle only, please.”

“You don’t trust my machine?”

“I don’t trust anything I can’t see.”

“Very well. Do you have a preference? I can do overhand, Hindu, weave or faro, corgi, or a basic riffle.”

“Any of those is fine.”

“I’ll give you an assortment.”

Volkov showed himself to be astonishingly adept with the cards, manipulating them with a mastery that obviously impressed the crowd. Tanner watched the cards closely as the flourishes became increasingly elaborate. Volkov finally finished with a smooth fan on the table.

“Satisfied?”

“It’ll do.”

“Do you have the car title with you? You may throw it and the key into the pot. I’ll, of course, match it with cash. What amount do you think is fair?”

“Let’s start a bit smaller.” Tanner unzipped an inner pocket of his jacket and produced a thick stack of cash. “I’ll buy in for fifty thousand dollars.”

He frowned. “I agreed to play you for the car.”

“And I promise you we will. But it’s going to be a long night. We’ll begin this way.”

Volkov glared at him for a moment, but finally nodded toward a red-jacketed croupier standing nearby. The croupier took the cash from Tanner, speedily counted it, then placed a large stack of chips in front of him.

Tanner smiled. “Let’s begin. A thousand dollars a hand?”

“As you wish.” Volkov dealt seven cards each to himself and Tanner, then dealt a short stack of four cards to the side.