All In - Short Story

Online gambling. That was the way to his fortune. Bitcoin, Ether, Steem, that was where it was at. He was on a bit of a losing streak. Down $200,000. It went like water. 10 grand here. 20 grand there. But then things started to change. Rob found a new app on his phone. It used its own currency but the company was buying it back with their own money. He put in a thousand at first to test it. On his first spin of a wheel he hit a jackpot and made $11,531.

Rob started to shake. He wanted to bet more but he had to make sure this was real. He put in his paypal address. Hit withdrawl and waited. In no time there was the money. $11,531. Rob smiled. Then he transfered the money back into the app.

It was time to make his millions.

The app had a few games and Rob moved through them all. There was roulette, blackjack, slots. No matter what he played, no matter what he bet, he won. 10 grand here. 20 grand there.

In the matter of hours he was back in the positive. But he was not going to stop there. He needed to go big. There was a high rollers area. He pushed the button. The app turned into a digital table. Behind it was a door that was labelled "Risk Takers Only". Rob ignored it and concentrated on the table.

The game was poker, 5 card. Not one of his favourites but he was hot right now. He could win at anything. Rob put $100,000 into the middle. He started to sweat as the cards were dealt to him. 10, J, Q, K, A. All of the same suit. Rob had never seen a royal flush before. He certainly never thought he would be the one holding one. But there it was. He raised to $200,000. The virtual dealer accpeted the call. They both showed their cards. The dealer had a pair of 2s.

Rob put another $100,000 in. And another. Every hand was in his favour. Even when he only had a high card, it was higher than the dealers. And an hour Rob was sitting on 15 million dollars. He almost fainted. All he had to do was leave. His finger hovered over the exit button. He was about to push it when there was the sound of a chime.

'You now qualify for the Risk Takers Only' the app said.

The door behind the table opened. This was beyond V.I.P. Rob had to see what it was. He could afford to lose a million or two. Maybe three. But he would stop at five. Rob touched the door that lead into the backroom.

The screen went dark. Then a scanner came up on the phone.

'Place your fingerprint here," the phone said.

Rob did what he was told. There was a quick scan. Then the game came up. It was a digital man with a mustache. He had a coin in his hand. The game was simple, heads or tails. Rob looked on the screen. There was his total amount, 15 million, and a button that said all-in. There was also an option to exit the room.

All-in. That was the only bet he could make. It was 15 million dollars. But what if it was 30. Rob had to go for it. With his thumb he pressed the button for all-in. The option came up to pick heads or tails. He went with heads. His heart banged in his chest. The man smiled and flipped the coined. It landed in his hand.

Tails.

Rob almost fainted. His 15 million changed to 0. He went to throw his phone in anger. But he wasn't feeling well. He felt like his body was being pulled towards the phone. Rob tried to sit but it was no use. His body moved forward. His head start to get pulled in towards. He tried to fight it. But it was no use. Rob screamed as his head entered the phone, then his body and then his leg. He lifted his arm to pull himself out but it slowly sunk into the screen.

"All-in," the man with the mustache said.

The phone lay motionless on the ground.