Gareth Williams: A Dark, Distorted Mirror. Volume 5 : Among the Stars, like Giants. Part 1 : Learning How to Live

"You and the horse you rode in on, Allan," Smith replied genially. He took the seat that had been set aside for him and leaned back in the chair, looking around the table.

Security Chief Zack Allan, his assistant Jack, and Bo himself. A pack of playing cards was placed beside Bo, as was a pile of counters. Everyone had a drink of some kind in front of them. "Prepare to lose all that you own," Zack said. "For tonight is poker night at the Pit Trap ."

"I dunno," Jack said. "I think I've already lost all I own."

"The way you play I'm not surprised." Zack looked up at Dexter. "So?"

"So what? Bo's the dealer for the first hand. You know that."

Zack rolled his eyes. "Not that. The other thing."

"Uh.... what other thing?"

"Oh, for the love of.... Here, give a minute." Zack bent down and picked up a newspaper from the floor at his feet. It was the Proxima Yesterday . Dexter caught the front page headline, and immediately wished he hadn't.

"Here we are," Zack said. "'War hero Senator Dexter Smith was spotted leaving the Dome One-o-five apartment of Captain Bethany Tikopai late last Wednesday night, fuelling rumours of a romance between the two. We've been unable to get in touch with either to comment, but friends of Senator Smith, who wished to remain anonymous, stated that he was 'head over heels' with the Earthforce Captain. There have been rumours linking Smith, who was voted the seventh sexiest man alive in a survey by For Her magazine four years ago and is expected to rank even higher in this year's survey, with a number of women over the last year, but nothing has developed into anything permanent. Could this be love at last for the high-profile Senator? We'll have to see his reaction when Captain Tikopai returns from her tour of duty at Kazomi Seven next month. And if he's feeling lonely in the meantime, we know several woman who will only be too happy to keep him company.'"

"Give me that!" Dexter snapped, snatching the paper from Zack. It was open at the gossip page, unsurprisingly. "Oh, for the love of Gandhi. Mental note: Get that Media Bill passed as soon as possible."

"So?" Bo asked.

"So what?"

"Is it true?"

"No, it's not true. We're just friends, that's all. We had dinner together."

"Oh," Zack said. "I see. Just dinner. Right." He started nodding, knowingly.

"She's not bad looking," Jack said. "I hear Ladded asked her for a photo-shoot and she turned them down."

"Did you see that picture of her in Humanity when the new uniforms came out last year?" Bo asked.

"Oh, did I ever?" Jack added. "Mamma mia! I wonder if I can get the missus a uniform like that?"

"Uh, did we come here to play cards, or to talk about my non-existent love life?" Dexter asked. "'Cause I can hear all the gossip I like in the Senate."

"No, we want the juicy details," Zack said. "Come in, indulge all us poor working-class plebs here. We don't get to move in the celebrity circuits like you do."

"Zack, we start playing now, or I tell everyone about you and that doctor from the underground clinic. What was her name again? Something Rosen?"

Zack coughed. "Ahem. Come on, Bo. Get dealing."

The chips were soon piled up and counted, while Bo began to shuffle. "So," Jack said. "Explain that dealer chip again?"

Everyone groaned. "Jack, that joke stopped being funny two hundred and sixty-four years ago," Zack said.

"No, it was funny then."

"No, it really wasn't."

Half an hour later everyone had gone through several bottles of beer, Jack had gone through half his chips, Bo three-quarters of his, and Dexter three full houses and a straight flush. He had always been good at poker, but he largely played it because it was a break from everything else in his life. No squabbling Senators. No watching Alliance advisors. No gossip columns. No kiss-and-tell revelations from women he had dated fifteen years ago.

Slowly he fanned his cards out, and listened to Jack raving about how wonderful his hand was, which meant it was the biggest pile of rubbish since Sector 301 after the refuse collectors strike of 2251. Jack had never managed a good poker face.

Zack raised, Jack matched it, Bo folded, and Dexter looked at his cards again. He matched, and raised again.

"You haven't got the cards," Zack said.

"Yes, I have. They're right here, in my hand. See. Five of them."

"Ah, you've got rubbish. Here, I'll match you, and raise another.... fifty."

Jack matched, and Dexter. "Off you go, Zack. Let's see them."

"Read 'em and weep, boys. Straight flush. Seven, eight, nine, ten and.... hey, where did the bloody ten go?"

"That looks like a three to me," Dexter observed. "A three of hearts as well."

"There was a ten here. The bloody ten of clubs."

"What, the one that was a part of your drivel last hand?"

Zack took a moment's realisation and then started swearing.

"'Read 'em and weep,'" Dexter said, chuckling.

"And then, he did," Bo pronounced.

"Yeah, yeah, a mistake that could have happened to anyone."

"Anyone who can't tell the difference between a three and a ten. Bo, never let this guy behind your bar."

"Fine, fine. Let's all have a laugh. Jack, try and knock the smile off his face. Tell me you've got something."

"Two pairs," Jack announced, laying them down. "Aces and twos."

Dexter nodded. "Not bad. Not half bad. I've got two pairs myself. Kings." He laid down the Kings of Hearts and Spades. "And.... er, Kings." Followed by the Kings of Clubs and Diamonds.

Zack groaned. "Can I owe you?"

"Zack, you already owe me.... let's see. Seventeen jillion zillion credits, otherwise known as the Gross Planetary Product of Proxima for the next seven years."

"Only Proxima. Get back to me when it's the GPP of somewhere important."

"Where's important?" asked a new voice, and everyone stopped. Someone was interrupting their poker session. They'd all left standing orders never to be interrupted during a poker session. Dexter had told his assistants to contact him only if the Minbari invaded, and nothing else.

"Have the Minbari invaded?" he asked the newcomer. He supposed it would have to be something pretty important for Julia to come here. She knew the significance of Poker Night, even if she didn't claim to understand it. Even if she wasn't legally old enough to enter the bar, not yet. It would be her eighteenth birthday in a couple of months. Dexter had already picked out what he hoped was a good present. Bethany had confessed to having no idea what to get her daughter.

Legally, of course, she wasn't old enough to be in the Proxima Security Force either, but there were always exceptions in Sector 301.

"Not that I know of," she replied dubiously. "Who's winning?"

"Funny story," Dexter began. Zack looked at him and held up the newspaper, glaring dire threats. "But not that funny. What's up?"

"Something you're going to want to see. You too, Boss. It's.... strange. Very strange."

"Well, who am I to pass up the call of serious strangeness?" Zack replied. "Lucky for you, Smith. I was going to clean you out next round."

"I'm not worried. I'd see you counting on your fingers to work out which number is ten."

"Remind me why I don't play this again?" Julia said.

"Guy thing," Dexter replied.

"Oh, definitely," Zack added. "Guy thing."

"Yeah."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

It seemed that everywhere he turned, Londo saw a place where someone had died. That corner, where Malachi had breathed his last. That room, where Dugari had been murdered. That doorway, where the guardsman had fought off the Shadow Criers.

It was worst of all in the throne room. He could still see the patch of blood on the floor where Lyndisty's body had lain. He could still see the scuffs in the carpet where he and Cartagia had fought.