Casinos are Fun… and Trouble

Posted on Sun Jun 21st, 2026 @ 12:53am by Station Services Mara Ricci & Black Market Arturo Rosso

Mission: Tis the Season...
Location: Lucky 38 Casino

Part of the reason Mara had wanted to take this position was because of the sheer size of the place. Exploration alone would take at least a month- maybe longer, if she did it properly. And today was the first day for seeing what was here.

She’d heard there was a casino. Mara loved Casinos. Not gambling- in fact, she didn’t often play the games- but just the atmosphere. She enjoyed watching Craps games most of all. It had taken her awhile to work out how the game was played, but once she’d figured it out, she had played a few times, when she had cash to spare. She also enjoyed Blackjack when she had a free half hour to waste.

But today was just to check it out. Some casinos were not safe and she intended to see how secure this one was before wasting any time in it.

At first glance, it was a typical casino- just a little too loud and a little too crowded and a little too dark. Perfect, in other words. So, she walked in and started looking around, careful not to let anyone get too close.

Arturo scanned the room with his eyes as he stood, relatively unobtrusively, off to the side. Many of the usuals for this hour were already here. The rest would probably come later. Regulars knew Arturo both as a helping hand if someone started trouble with them and as the consequences of starting trouble with someone else.

Arturo saw the newcomer enter. She wasn't someone he recognized. She was a bit older than him, from the way she carried herself, but from her looks that would have been harder to determine. He walked towards her, figuring he'd welcome her to the Lucky 38.

Of course Mara clocked the man approaching her almost at once and was instantly on guard. Who was he and what did he want? She hoped she didn’t have to use her self defense knowledge already. Calm down, Mara, she told herself. Maybe he’s a greeter or something. Don’t poke his eyeballs out before he offers you a drink.

"Buonasera, signorina," Arturo said, letting just enough of his Italian accent come out to be charming, without being corny or creepy. "To the Lucky 38. Please, feel free to eat, drink, gamble, and/or take in a show. My name is Arturo Rosso. I am on the security staff here. If you require any assistance, do not hesitate to seek me out."

The woman was very attractive, without being gaudy or flashy. Arturo liked it when patrons brought a little class to the place. The Lucky 38 did get some whales and other 'high net worth individuals' and they brought in a lot of money. But the everyday middle and lower income bracket folks who came in and blew money they should probably be spending on something else or saving, who paid a lot of the bills. The shear volume of people willing to waste what they have on the slimmest of chances at a great fortune was actually quite sad. This woman seemed nice. Hopefully, she wouldn't let Udinov's lichváři get their hooks into her. Borrowing money from the Bratva was upgrading a string of bad life decisions to the next level.

Mara relaxed slightly. See? He was just security. It was his job to check out everyone who came in here. "Thank you," she replied. "Just checking the place out today. Although I do have a little money to spare, as long as you have low stakes blackjack tables."

"We do," Arturo replied. Then he leaned in a little closer than one probably should with a stranger. "I shouldn't tell you this, but please be careful, even at the low stakes tables. It is very easy to slide in over your head and find yourself in debt with a lichvář, a money lender. Worse, the house may extend you credit and that can be even more trouble. Decide how much you are willing to lose. Only play with that money. Try to only bet your winnings after the first bet so even if the night doesn't go your way, you didn't lose much. If you want to be able to have even more fun, save your winnings and just play that money for a while. You won't win enough to retire on, not by a long shot. But if you're not a professional gambler, you're only doing this for fun, anyway. Right?"

“Yes,” Mara replied. “Black Jack is fun, but I always expect to lose everything I give to the dealer. I don’t always, of course, but if I go into it expecting to, I’m never disappointed.”

"An excellent plan," Arturo said. "I'm happy to learn that you may be as attractive on the inside as you are on the outside..." Arturo grinned. "And I don't mean that in the creepy serial killer sense."

Mara almost wished he had meant in the creepy serial killer sense; it would mean she could backhand him and not get in trouble for it. “Thanks,” she replied in slow, guarded tone. “I think."

Arturo shrugged. "My apologies if my humor and turn of phrase do not appeal to you," he said. "I meant no offense. Please enjoy your time at the Lucky 38." Arturo started walking away to get back to his rounds. He'd merely meant she was... what was the phrase... more than a pretty face. He frowned. He really didn't think that sounded any better. In fact, it sounded more chauvanistic and misogynistic than what he had said. To his ears anyway. But what did he know. He'd pretty much given up trying to figure out what women who had more than sex on their minds wanted. Now he just did his best to be polite and if a woman didn't seem interested in talking to him, and didn't want to bed him, he just put them behind him.

Mara frowned at his retreating form. Perhaps she had judged too quickly. Creeps never backed down like that. Con men did, though. Oh stop it, Mara, she told herself. Youre always looking for shadows. He was probably just trying to schmooze.

With a light sigh, she began wandering around, giving the place a once over. It seemed legit- or as legit as a casino could be. There were lots os sirens and bells indicating someone had won something, but she ignored them. She preferred to look at the patrons’ faces to don out the real measure of a place. If most of them appear neutral to happy, it was a decent place. If more appeared sad, angry, or worried, she would have to leave now while she was still alive.

She didn’t get far, though, when she was accosted by a man with the most obvious scam she had ever heard of. (Alliance-backed gambling? What did that even mean?) Still, she pretended to be interested. After all, if he wasted his time on her, he couldn’t bother someone more gullible. Where had that security guy gone, anyway? Mara was sure he wouldn’t want a scammer running around in here.

"Excuse me, Signore," came a voice from behind the scammer, the voice of Arturo Rosso. "You must be new. My name is Arturo Rosso. You have broken the rules of the Lucky 38. Prepare to be ejected from the premises. Permanently." When the man appeared to object, Arturo stepped back and flicked the switch on his sword can that released the blade and pulled just enough to expose about three inches of it. "This appears to be your first offense. Leave now. Quietly. If you attempt to harm me, this young lady, or anyone in this casino, I will kill you and suffer no legal consequence. If you do not die in your attempt to resist ejection, I will turn you over to Signore Udinov. He will certainly show less mercy than I am exhibiting in this tense moment, and the people Signore Udinov will hand you over to, even less. So," Arturo said, his voice hardening. "May I trouble you for your name before I run you through?"

"For our records, of course," said a woman from behind Mara. Her accent was Russian. She was wearing a suit and was another member of the security staff. "Artur Leonardovich." she said, in Russian, using Arturo's first name and the patrynomic for his father. The woman looked the scammer in the eye. "You heard my colleague. Your name. Now. Before this krasavchik {handsome devil} loses his patience and simply does you in."

"Irina Nikolaievna," Arturo said. "So good to see you." He looked at the scammer. "Name, now. Then you will leave. I will not ask again."

The scammer cringed and Mara felt certain he was going to run without giving his name, so she slide ever so slightly to her right, blocking him from leaving enough that she could put out an arm and clothesline him if he tried. Finally, he grumbled, “Peter Enis,” in a defeated tone.

Arturo blinked. Irina frowned.

"On ser'yozno?" Irina asked.

"Nyet," Arturo replied. "On ne mozhet byt'." He turned to the so-called 'Peter Enis'. "My colleague doesn't believe that could be your name. Did your parents not care for you? They couldn't have if they gave you any name that started with 'P' when your last name is Enis."

“Do you want ID?” replied Enis irritably. “I was named for my mother’s father and my parents didn’t think it through first, okay?”

Meanwhile, Mara was busy biting her cheeks to keep from smiling. P. Enis was just too funny. He’s a real dick, she thought, and had to fake cough to hide her giggle.

"Yes," Arturo said. "I think I will scan your ID... and mark you persona non grata. Come now. Hand it over."

"Yesli on rasstegnot shtany i pokazhet svoy chlen v kachestve udostovereniya lichnosti — ya uvol'nyayus," Irina said.

"Yesli on rasstegnot shtany i pokazhet svoy chlen v kachestve udostovereniya lichnosti, ya yego otrezhu," Arturo replied.

Peter Enis reluctantly produced his identification and handed it over to Arturo. “There, see?” he demanded. “Just like I said.”

Arturo took the card, shaking his head as he scanned it into a small pocket computer he carried with him, in part just for this reason.

"You've been entered into our system and listed as banned," Arturo said. "Word to the wise, my friend Irina doesn't like you." Irina scowled at Peter. "Our employer will like you less. Go. Do not return. If you are foolish enough to return, then I wish you a quick and easy passing. Of course, no one in a position to make your passing easy cares what I wish for, so... again, do not return."

“Yeah, yeah,” said Peter irritably as he turned to leave. “I’m going.”

Mara shook her head at his retreating form, but she could not woe the mischievous grin off her face. “I almost pity him for his name,” she commented. “But not quite.”

Arturo smiled slightly and shrugged. "Parents can be cruel, or simply foolish. For example, I once met a poor soul whose mother, at a loss for a name for her newborn, saw the word 'meconium' on her baby's medical chart and named her child that. Luckily, when she was little, none of her little friends knew that 'meconium' is the word for a newborn's first bowel movement. But her teachers could hardly keep a straight face. They ended up calling her 'Meeko' for short to make their lives easier. The name stuck... fortunately not to the bottom of anyone's shoe."

Irina looked at Arturo, then Mara, rolled her eyes, and wandered off muttering grumpily.

Mara nearly echoed the sentiment, but managed to keep her face passive. “Sometimes I feel like you should have to be able to pass a test to be allowed to name children,” she said. “Or at least that someone can say no to you.”

Arturo chuckled. "When I was young, my mother put an 'il' before 'Rosso', to tease me for playing at being a swashbuckler. So I became 'Arturo il Rosso', or in English, as you know, 'Arthur the Red'. It sounds much better in Italian. There are few swashbuckling heroes named Arthur."

“I certainly cannot think of any,” agreed Mara. “Probably at least one conqueror, though, and that’s almost as cool.”

"Hmmm...," Arturo said. "Grazie, Signorina. That actually makes me feel better. I should get back work. Perhaps I will see you again?"

“Probably,” she answered. “I like casinos.”

"Then I look forward to our next encounter," Arturo said, with a slight, gentlemanly bow. "Now, if you will please excuse me, there is a person at that roulette table about to cause a fuss. We don't mind him much, early in the evening, that is. He spends, and loses, an obscene amount of money. Unfortunately, he spends a great deal of it on alcohol and as the night progresses, he transforms into the definition of a drunken horse's ass. Seems he was really drinking hard this evening. I see the rear end of a horse is making an early appearance. Buonasera, Signorina... hmmm... it seems that you know my name and I have not learned yours. Shall we remedy that situation? Or perhaps you would prefer to remain to me a mystery to try and solve? Or perhaps you prefer to be a mystery I choose to leave unsolved, or at least uninvestigated? I mean, where would be the fun in a mystery that one solves too quickly? It is your choice. I leave it to you."

He seemed trustworthy, if a bit verbose. Mara saw no reason not to trust him with her name. After all, there wasn’t a lot one could do with just a name. “Mara Ricci,” she answered. “It was a pleasure to meet you.”

"I feel the same," Arturo said. He smiled slightly. "About meeting you, that is. I've already met myself. The jury is still out on the experience. Alla prossima, Signorina Ricci." And with that, Arturo moved onto his next problem to solve.