Chapter 40: A Dangerous Hand

The other two players pushed their chips toward Yunice. The liveliest one—Bale—slapped down a thick wad of cash in front of her, probably around thirty grand.

That’s when Wyatt finally sat up. He leaned his elbow against the armrest, tilted his head, and stared at the stack of cash in front of Yunice for a while.

As the others reshuffled the tiles, Yunice reached out to draw a new hand—but Wyatt tapped her hand twice. She looked at him. With a cigarette between his teeth, Wyatt leaned forward and drew the tiles himself, leaving her on the sidelines.

They started a new round. Before long, Wyatt had lost all the money Yunice had just won.

“Man, Wyatt’s luck is cursed today,” someone commented.

The other three raked in piles of winnings while Wyatt looked utterly unfazed.

After a few more rounds, one of them excused himself to use the bathroom. Bale seized the opportunity to pull Jordan aside.

In a quiet corner, Bale leaned in and asked, “Jordan, who the hell is that woman?”

Jordan played dumb. “What woman?”

“Oh, come on. Drop the act. That chick cheated—Wyatt caught it.”

Jordan blinked, clearly surprised.

Bale continued, “I had a tile down on the table. She dropped the same tile in her hand. Where’d hers come from?”

There was only one answer: Yunice had swapped tiles. And since she was playing for Wyatt, her cheating reflected on him. Bale had no choice but to swallow the loss and keep quiet.

That wasn’t the shocking part, though. What really blew his mind was that Wyatt noticed—and said nothing.

“She cheated right in front of him,” Bale said, “and all he did was tap her hand like a warning. That’s not normal!”

Anyone else pulling tricks at Wyatt’s table would’ve lost a few fingers by now.

The more Bale thought about it, the more suspicious it seemed. “Jordan, you’ve been with Wyatt the longest. So the rumor’s true, isn’t it?”

Jordan gave him a pat on the shoulder. “Don’t jump to conclusions.”

But Bale raised a brow. If Jordan wasn’t denying it, then it had to be true.

By the time they returned to the game room, both Wyatt and Yunice were gone.

Inside Wyatt’s RV, Yunice stood beside the sofa, taking in the luxe interior. Wyatt settled into the seat, set his cane aside, then finally glanced her way. “You really tried cheating at my table? Not afraid of losing your hands?”

Yunice clutched her bag strap. “I just wanted to win you a round.”

Chapter 40: A Dangerous Hand

Every time they met, she was either flattering someone or scheming something—thus, with a motive.

Yunice didn’t defend herself. Instead, she stepped forward and placed a bottle of pills on the table. “These are my modified Alphasirox pills. I’ve been testing them on myself for a week now. So far, no side effects. You can run a parallel trial if you want.”

Wyatt’s eyes changed. Human testing was no joke—new drugs were unpredictable, and the risks could be permanent, even fatal. In the pharmaceutical world, volunteers had to be paid big money to take that risk. For Yunice to try them herself, she was either overconfident or proving her loyalty.

Wyatt narrowed his eyes. “Risking this much?”

Yunice said evenly, “Wyatt, I cheated because I want a backer. Whether it’s you or Madam Johnson. I’m casting a wide net—someone’s bound to take me in, right?”

That was Yunice’s skill—she walked the line between clever and naive. Just smart enough but never too much. It gave the people in power the illusion that she was easy to control. The less they felt threatened, the less they kept their guard up. And cheating at the table? That had been a test—to see how much Wyatt would tolerate her.

Judging by the outcome, she had some value. And value meant survival.

Wyatt wasn’t surprised by her answer. Her ambition was practically written all over her face. He asked, “Why not go with Paul?”

Yunice replied, “Betray me once, I won’t trust you again. I’m not here to be someone’s pawn.” The Powell family had never wanted her. They’d made it clear she was disposable. So she had no reason to waste her time on them.

Wyatt raised an eyebrow, then made a decision. “Fine. From now on, you’re with me.”

Joy hit Yunice’s face. For the first time, she felt a flicker of belonging. It meant she wasn’t a stray anymore—no longer chasing dead-end favors.

She stood there frozen, until Wyatt reached out and pulled her down beside him. “You don’t understand what I meant…”

His eyes were sharp, predatory. Yunice stiffened under his gaze.

Then it clicked—he said she could follow him, not sleep with him. One word off, but a world of difference.