I got back to The Lucky Smile in pretty poor condition, the place seemed to fall apart in the few days I was gone. Apparently some fight went on, with a man calling out one of our dealers for cheating. He beat the shit out of the dealer, breaking a table in the process. It was still broken when I came back, because I guess I need to do everything around here. That's not the most noteworthy part of my return however, as I found a small gold trinket in one of the tip jars. It called to me, and so I took it into my office.
It appeared to be some sort of veneer, or a grill for a single tooth. It had an amethyst gem implanted right on the front. I've never been one for the typical gangster aesthetic, I don't find it too classy as a businessman, but I decided to try it on. This alone felt better than anything I've felt in my life. Better than Oxy, this shot endorphins into my brain for a solid minute and a half, screaming to me that it loves me. And to be honest, I loved it too. The effect finished, but I have no desire to remove it. I could feel what it's power was. It truly was on all accounts "Irresistible".
I didn't notice until a few hours later that it burned a mark into my neck, probably happened during that rush of endorphins. It was an Ace of Hearts, which seemed fitting enough. I didn't mind it too bad until I started dealing a table. There were three businessmen, drunk out of their minds, betting like wild at our blackjack table. A golden opportunity. After luring them in with a few wins, I showed them my stunning new smile and convinced them to bet it all on one last game. I felt around for the stacked deck under the table when my neck started burning, searing with pain. I had to have one of my ladies take over in dealing while I tried to calm this burn.
Thankfully she was charming enough to convince them to stay, and managed to make us a few thousand extra. She didn't even cheat, these guys were just drunk and stupid. I made sure to give her a bonus for her work. Most of that money went back into the Casino, as we don't usually make this much of a profit especially when most seasoned gamblers know not to trust a sketchy place like this. With the last bit of it however, I decided to invest it in a bit of self protection. I got myself a new suit, reinforced with some extra padding just in case I run into any more armed assholes. Hopefully I'll be a bit more prepared next time life deals me a shit hand.
A new veneer popped up in my tip jar the other day. Embedded with a Ruby this time, quite dazzling honestly. I placed it on and decided to test out its strength among some of the gamblers at The Lucky Smile. It was much more effective than anticipated, clearing out the entire area instead of just the table I was at. I learned to tame it a bit, able to specify my intentions a bit more, and it seems to work flawlessly now.
I need to get this Casino in better shape, asap. My empty pockets are starting to get to me, hurting my chances of properly supplying both myself and my staff. Keeping up with these contracts are well worth it, but I'm feeling the costs. From hospital visits to upping my gear, I am BROKE broke. Maybe I need to take a trip out soon, to collect some real money.
I'm hurt pretty badly here. I don't know what else to say besides that. I'm not very happy with the things I had to do, and I don't even know if the payment was worth it at this point. I'm sorry but I wouldn't really like to say much more than that. Things are just... rough now. It's hard to be alive. I haven't left my office since I've gotten back, the pain is just too much to deal with. I haven't even looked outside. Some of the girls have brought me some food which is very kind of them, but morale at the Lucky Smile is really low now because of this. It's kind of cool how I have people dropping off food for me too now. Helps me relate to you a little more. I hate that I can't tell them about what happened. I hate that I don't have the strength to tell you. Maybe I'll have to make that trip out to Reno earlier than I thought. If this is the end of me, I want to see you again before I go. There are more jobs to be done, and... I'm not sure if they will be. I'm not sure I can. Please tape this note on your front door so you remember that I will be coming by. I know it's getting harder to remember certain things, and you haven't messaged back in a while, so just... Please don't be scared if a man shows up with keys to the house. It's your son. I probably won't be very pretty, but I hope you'll remember me anyhow. I love you and hope things are well on your end. I've heard that the neighbors have had some problems during checkups, please do not be scared of them, they want to help you. I'm going to try and make some money real soon so I can get you someplace with proper help.
Love you, Danny
Well, no use sitting on my ass any longer. Feels like shit to do anything now but I may as well try. I went to see my mom. She recognized me immediately, even in the fucked up state I was in. It made me cry. I almost didn't want her to recognize me, I'm not the same boy she raised. I'm glad I went to see her though, she needed someone there for her, at least for a little while. I made sure to pin photos of the neighbors to the fridge so she knows who's supposed to be there. Apparently some dipshit kids have been harassing her door the past week, scaring the hell out of her. I made sure to talk to Jen and Don, they'll keep an eye out if they come back.
Tried taking walks when I got back to Las Vegas. The lights do help distract from the pain, it really is such a pretty city. I think I've been getting better, I can actually wear my suit out now and function as a person for the most part. A bit worried about how many of these damn pills I've been taking, but I don't think I have much of a choice now. I can walk. I can even jog a bit. Any progress is good progress. Nathan has been good to me, keeping my pills supplied and not bothering me too much with work while I try to heal up. Jogging is good, running is even better. I feel like I'm at my worst, but surprisingly in the best shape of my life now. Gained a lot of weight, the good kind. Anything helps, any progress is good progress. I still don't know how the next job will go, but I need to make money yesterday, otherwise this would have all been for nothing.
Not much going on from day to day. Everything is gone. The highlight of my week is when Kate came to visit me. She wasn't too surprised to see the situation I ended up in, but I could tell she didn't like it anyhow. It was the first time I ever saw her cry. I'm happy things ended the way they did, otherwise there's a good chance she'd be in here with me. She told me she'd travel up to Reno and check on my mother once a month, god knows she needs it, and I know Kate is happy to get out of that damn city every once in a while. Made some friends in here though, which is nice. At least these people wont be the death of me, but the chair... I'm having nightmares about it already. We'll see what happens, I guess. I just have to keep living until I'm not.
I hate it hear, but at least things are going by fast enough. Im barely awake most of the time. I showed up back in prison with some interesting new clothing, the guards definitely didn't like that. They took me aside and questioned me for hours, I didn't know what to say. Even if I told them what really happened, it's not like they'd believe a liar like me anyways.
Thankfully, like most days, I slept through most of the questioning. I've heard talks of a netflix special being made about me, that is quite interesting. Hopefully I can get them to tie in The Lucky Smile at some point. I havent gotten a chance to call them yet, my access to phones have been... very limited. They're probably packing up shop, they've got no paycheck anymore after all. Of course I get it, I'm not there providing for them anymore. Hopefully if I make it out of here I can wrangle my guys and gals back together, make something new, something better, a much grander casino that ISN'T tucked underneath a Dragon Noodles chinese takeout spot.
Im feeling a little hopeful. I have an appeal coming soon, which could turn out favorably for me if things go well. Im going to wish myself luck and see what's in store for my future.
I've gotten a phone, thank heavens! It's only a burner, and I can not charge it unfortunately, but it is a phone nonetheless. A connection. A link to help, to problem solvers, and to money. I of course had to contact some of my old friends, letting them know I was fine and dandy in prison here. Well, they do want to kill me, but that's not for a while. I've got time to develop my plans. It won't be too hard to get out of prison, that's for sure. My main issue is STAYING out of prison once I'm out. I can't be trapped here any longer than I need to be, and I know if I make it out then they're going to try and kill me even faster. Thank bureaucracy it's still an ongoing process.
Here are my current ideas:
- Use money to hire the most exquisite attorney I can afford
- Launch campaign through social media condemning the death penalty
- Appeal my sentence, and extend the process through dazzling jurors into my corner
- If all else fails, I will simply slip out in the night like the money of a rich tourist on vacation
Of course I'd love to collect my veneers, they mean the world to me, they got me to the point where I felt as if I didn't need to watch my back quite as much anymore. However I'm not too sure how I can easily recollect them... I'm sure evidence is not something they keep behind an unlocked door. I will continue thinking on that front, but until then I will fight this sentence with everything I've got.