//------------------------------//
// ACT FIVE: A Deal 
// Story: Let The Chips Fall Where They May 
// by AliceSprings 
//------------------------------//

The large man, the employees with the bags, Micro and Aria went in.  The bags of chips were placed on the large desk and they employees left.
“These are the people, boss,” said the large man.
“Thanks, Big Joe,” said the boss.  “Why don’t you take the broad and make her ‘comfortable’.  I’ll call and tell you what needs to be done.  Make sure no one disturbs us.”
Aria and Micro didn’t like the way the man had said comfortable. 
“Yes boss,” said Big Joe.  He reached into his jacket and took out a hand gun, pointed it threateningly at Aria.  It was as much to force Aria as it was to intimidate Micro.
As Aria left the room, she looked at Micro with a look that said ‘don’t worry, I have this’.

Big Joe took Aria through a door to an open stairwell, obviously a fire escape.  It went down the 5 floors, you could look down and see that there was a clear square that the stairs went around.  There was no obstacle to stop a person if they went over the rail until they hit the floor, about 15 meters below them. 
Aria was sure that this was what Big Joe wanted her to see.  
“What are you going to do with me?” asked Aria.
“If’n yer partner doesn’t come clean, then you and I will have some fun.  Or at least I’ll have some fun.”
“You should put that gun away,” said Aria.  “You don’t need it with me.”
The man smirked.
“You don’t like it, eh?” said Big Joe menacing Aria with the gun.  “You don’t shut up, I’ll have no choice but to use it.  And no one can hear anything that goes on in here.  I know that for certain.”
“I asked you nicely,” said Aria with a fire in her eyes, “you don’t want to make me mad.”
“And what do you think you can do about it, little lady?”

What happened next, it took several days in the hospital for his memory to clear up enough to remember what transpired next.

Aria hissed at him, fangs bared.  
“What the fuck?” Said Big Joe.  He was startled enough that he couldn’t have defended himself, if he actually could.
Aria ripped the gun out of the man’s hand.  She held the barrel and grip, then twisted and bent the steel weapon.  It clattered harmlessly to the floor.
Fear showed on his brutish face.  Before he thought clear enough to run away, Aria had him by the throat and was holding him off the ground.
“I asked you nicely,” growled Aria, “you asked for this!  Like you said, good thing no one can hear us.”
Aria was able to lift the man over her head and walked him to the stair railings.  The man was in so much fear, he was wetting himself. 


Back in the office, the boss was tired of hearing what this geek had been spewing.
“Now tell me the truth Goddamn it!” Shouted the boss, slamming a fist on the desk.  “And none of that math probabilities mumbo-jumbo, You are gonna tell me how you were cheating and you will only be arrested.  If not, then Big Joe is gonna hurt your partner…  Badly!”
Micro didn’t look that concerned which confused the boss, the chuckle from him wasn’t what he expected.  Then, as if on cue, the office door opened.

“Big Joe, I said we weren’t to be disturbed…” His voice trailed off when he saw it was only the woman who walked in by herself.
“You?  Where’s Big Joe?”
“He couldn’t come.  He fell down 15 flights of stairs,” said Aria.  “He won’t be back to work until the broken bones heal.  Oh, and he won’t be needing this anymore.”
Aria put a twisted and bent handgun on the desk.
The boss looked amazed.  Then he realized something.
“There are only five floors.  How did he fall down fifteen?”
“He did it three times.” Said Aria, there wasn’t any jest in her eyes.

The boss looked down at the mangled pistol.  He was beginning to realize that he wasn’t in as much control as he assumed.  Then he sat quiet for a moment looking at the woman and the man.  Suddenly he let out a long, hard and honest laugh.  He respected people who could handle themselves and didn’t take shit off anyone.

“Okay, tell me this system of yours, and make it simple for me,” said the boss still chuckling.
“Only if we get to keep our winnings.” Said Aria resting her hand on Micro’s shoulder.
“If this is true and you can prove it, you’ll get that and more.  No more threats, I believe you.” 
Micro tried to explain his system again.  It all went over the boss’s head, but he’d heard the same exact thing each time so he was sure that the man wasn’t lying.  
“Listen,” said the boss, starting to sound less a thug and more a business man. “I need a mind like yours to help catch cheaters.  Believe it or not, that is more for employees than patrons.  
If you understand the gaming this much, you should be a whiz at detecting who is being dishonest.  I believe I could make the compensation package, worth your while.  It would mean the two of you couldn’t game here anymore.  But you won’t have to.”
“I need to talk to Aria about this,” said Micro, “I’ll be right back.”  


Aria was led to the front doors.  There was an ambulance carting off Big Joe.  She snickered at this.  Soon she was riding in the back of the casino’s limousine.  It was taking her to Micro’s home.  She was thinking of the proposal the casino had made Micro.  It was a great opportunity for him.  And maybe soon it could be for her, but she dared not think like that.  
They’d cashed out the chips Micro had won.  At this moment, she had in her purse a cheque for more money than she’d ever had in her possession now than all the money she’d ever had combined in all her long life.  
She knew in the past, she might have just taken the money and disappeared like she had many times.  But this time there was something stronger than iron binding her here, it was love.

Aria arrived at Micro’s home. The parents let her in and had her wait in the front sitting room.  Micro had called them and asked for Aria to stay there while he did something.  

It took a couple hours.  

The parents had left her alone, for the most part.  But Micro’s mother stopped by often to offer soft drinks, a snack and some occasional small talk.  
The parents had became fond of Micro’s girlfriend, and Aria was really liking them.  She’d never interacted with a real mother and father before.  She had been admonished to call them ‘mum' and ‘dad’.

But soon enough Micro walked through the door with a worried look on his face, the mother left the room.

“Well, did you take the job?” asked Aria excited.
“No, not yet at least.  I said I would under one condition. I’d have to talk to you first.”
“Me? About what?” Asked Aria.
Micro took out a small box, it had the logo of the casino jewelry shop on the top.  Micro knelt down in front of her.  He opened it to show a very large diamond ring. 

“I’ll take the job Aria, but only if you’ll marry me.”

Aria was stunned, in all her many relationships, this had never happened to her in her long life.

“Mike!” said Aria shocked, “we’ve only known each other for just over a couple of months.  Are you sure about it, this soon?”
Micro took the ring out and started to put it on Aria’s left hand.
“I’ve never been more sure about anything in my life.  Plus I figured that you gave your gem up to put us here, I should do something to replace it.”

Tears started to flow on Aria’s face.  She’d cried many times in the past with hurt, betrayal, hate and pain.  But never had she cried like this out of joy!
“Yes Mike,” said Aria, “oh yes!”
Micro finished putting it on Aria’s left ring finger.  Then Aria pulled him close and hugged him tightly.
“Too tight!” Squeaked Micro, “can’t breathe!”
Aria let him go but they both laughed.
There was laughing at the door.  Aria saw the parents peaking through a not quite closed door.  They came in and hugged the couple.  The father and mother kissed Aria on the cheek and welcomed her to the family.