Casino King's Daughter: Payback

Casino King's Daughter: Payback

Sophia Langley

5.0
Comment(s)
151
View
11
Chapters

I am Luna Croft. My boyfriend, Smith Caldwell, called himself a "casino master." Every time he went gambling, he came back loaded with winnings. It wasn't until later that I realized he always chose the same table. And the dealer at that table was his so-called untouchable dream girl, Alice Moore. "Luna, I'm a millionaire now. You're way out of your league-so let's call it quits. Alice is my true love. She gives me both fortune and pleasure," he added with smug certainty. I said yes, only to watch him lose every last dollar at the table moments later. He shoved me straight into the hands of the loan sharks who had come to collect his debt. "This is my girlfriend. I'm giving her up to settle my debt. She's an orphan. Even if you ruin her completely, no one will come after you!" The casino staff and the loan sharks closed in on me, but I couldn't help laughing. "Let your boss come out and talk to me," I demanded.

Chapter 1

I am Luna Croft. My boyfriend, Smith Caldwell, called himself a "casino master." Every time he went gambling, he came back loaded with winnings.

It wasn't until later that I realized he always chose the same table.

And the dealer at that table was his so-called untouchable dream girl, Alice Moore.

"Luna, I'm a millionaire now. You're way out of your league-so let's call it quits. Alice is my true love. She gives me both fortune and pleasure," he added with smug certainty.

I said yes, only to watch him lose every last dollar at the table moments later.

He shoved me straight into the hands of the loan sharks who had come to collect his debt.

"This is my girlfriend. I'm giving her up to settle my debt. She's an orphan. Even if you ruin her completely, no one will come after you!"

The casino staff and the loan sharks closed in on me, but I couldn't help laughing.

"Let your boss come out and talk to me," I demanded.

The moment those words left my lips, the entire casino went silent.

The loan shark leader froze, as if he hadn't heard me right.

Smith burst out laughing.

"Luna, are you crazy? Who the hell do you think you are, asking to see the boss?"

The face that had once captivated me was now twisted with disdain.

"Quit the act. Go with them, and maybe they'll go easy on you."

Beside him, Alice, the most beautiful dealer in the casino and his so-called true love, clung to his arm with the air of a victor.

Her bright red nails traced lazily across Smith's chest.

"Smith, stop wasting your breath on her. We should be celebrating," Alice cooed.

Her voice was soft and syrupy, dripping with practiced flirtation.

The gamblers around us looked at me with open glee, savoring my humiliation.

I ignored them, letting my gaze cut past the crowd and land on a figure hurrying from the far corner of the casino.

It was Hansen Doyle, the regional manager of the casino.

He was a man who had served under my father for twenty years.

The moment he saw me, his face drained of color, sweat beaded on his forehead, and he nearly stumbled to the floor.

"Miss... Miss Croft!" Hansen stammered.

Hansen nearly scrambled across the floor, shoving aside the loan sharks who tried to block his way.

His voice trembled with fear.

The crowd parted on its own, leaving a path before him.

Under the astonished gazes of everyone present, Hansen bent at a ninety-degree angle before me, his head nearly touching the floor.

"Miss Croft, what brings you here? This... this is my failure!" he stammered.

Smith's grin froze on his face.

Alice's hand slipped from his arm.

The loan sharks who had looked so vicious moments ago twitched nervously, exchanging bewildered glances as if they couldn't make sense of the situation.

"Mr. Doyle," I said calmly. "My boyfriend, Smith, owes money here."

I pointed first at Smith, then at the loan sharks.

"He planned to use me as payment."

Hansen's body trembled even harder.

He snapped his head around, his gaze as fierce as a predator's.

"Take the two of them down!" he barked, pointing at Smith and Alice.

The casino guards moved faster than I expected, rushing in at once and pinning Smith and Alice on either side before they even realized what was happening.

"What the hell are you doing? Hansen, have you lost your mind?"

Smith thrashed wildly, his face flushing from pale to crimson.

"What trick did you pull on Mr. Doyle? You bitch!"

I watched his frantic rage and found it nothing but laughable.

Hansen ignored him, turning instead to the loan sharks and speaking with icy authority.

"Smith's debt will be recorded under the casino for now. Now take your men and get out of here immediately. If I see you again within two minutes, you can forget about ever doing business in Las Verdan."

The loan shark leader wasn't stupid.

He looked at Hansen, then at me, forcing a smile uglier than a sob while nodding and bowing repeatedly.

"Yes, yes, we'll leave right away!" he babbled.

They scattered like frightened animals, bolting faster than rabbits.

Smith and Alice were pinned tightly by security, still spitting curses.

"Luna! Who the hell are you really? Let go of me!"

"Smith is mine! You crazy bitch!" Alice shrieked.

Watching them, I realized for the first time that the past two years of my relationship had been nothing but a joke.

I pulled out my phone and dialed a number.

"Dad, I'm at Paradise Palace Casino, Hall Three. Yeah, I've run into a bit of a mess."

Continue Reading

Other books by Sophia Langley

More
The Caged Canary's Spectacular Comeback

The Caged Canary's Spectacular Comeback

Mafia

5.0

For seven years, I was known as the "Caged Canary"—the orphan ward of the ruthless Don, Autry Villarreal. I wore his silver star necklace like a dog tag, mistaking his cold control for protection. Then came the breaking news alert that shattered my world: Autry was marrying Cassie Turner to end a decade-long turf war. He didn't just break my heart; he let her destroy my home. When Cassie ordered a bulldozer to rip up the rose garden my deceased father had planted, Autry stood on the patio and watched. He chose political strategy over my only living memory of my parents. "It is necessary," he told me, handing me a briefcase full of cash to disappear. "This saves lives." I realized then that he wasn't my protector; he was my jailer. I left the money, discarded his necklace, and vanished into the night. Five years later, I returned to New York not as his ward, but as J.B., a Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer with a diamond ring on my finger from a man who actually cherished me. Autry didn't handle my freedom well. He cornered me in a car, staging a paparazzi photo to look like a passionate embrace, desperate to ruin my engagement. "I destroyed Cassie for you," he claimed, revealing he had leaked his own ex-fiancée's crimes to clear my name. "I cleaned the slate. I can give you the world now." He expected gratitude. He expected me to fall back into his arms. I looked him dead in the eye and posted a selfie with my fiancé instead. "I don't want your world, Autry. I'm done living in the dark."

My Parents, Their Pet, My Hell

My Parents, Their Pet, My Hell

History

5.0

The Great Depression had gnawed away at everything, leaving my family-my parents, Mark and Susan, and me, Sarah-scrambling for survival in a city choked with despair. Then, they found Buddy, a stray golden retriever, shivering in an alley. Suddenly, my meager cannery wages, meant for rent and food, were funneled into premium dog food, toys, and vet visits for him. I worked myself to exhaustion, only to watch them hand-feed Buddy roasted chicken from our good plates while I got watery potato soup. He wasn't just a dog; a cold, malevolent intelligence lurked in his eyes, a mocking smirk reserved just for me. When I tried to evict him, he bit me, and my parents blamed me, tending to him while I bled, calling me a "jealous, worthless girl." My world shattered when I was laid off, and an eviction notice arrived. Our only hope was a government housing lottery. But when I announced it, my parents only saw three spots: one for them, and one for Buddy. "He's not a dog!" my mother screamed. "He's family! More family than you've ever been!" They raced off, dragging Buddy, leaving me, weakened by hunger and infection, to chase after them. I watched, horrified, as an official marked three names: my father, my mother, and the dog. They were ushered through the gate. They didn't look back as it locked, leaving me outside. Through the bars, Buddy looked at me and grinned. I died alone, freezing in an alley. Then, a sudden jolt. My eyes flew open. I was in my bed, the morning my parents found Buddy. My blood ran cold, hearing their cheerful voices. I was back. And this time, I wouldn't die in the cold. I would find out why they chose a dog over their own daughter. And they would pay.

Death's Embrace, Love's Aftermath

Death's Embrace, Love's Aftermath

Horror

5.0

The cold, sterile air in the office bit at my prison uniform, a cruel reminder of the past three years. I knelt on the polished floor, my gaze fixed on Daniel Miller' s expensive shoes, a man I once loved for five years. "A convicted felon, trying to seduce me?" his voice, low and laced with familiar cruelty, sent a shiver down my spine. He was now Detective Miller, a powerful figure in the new corporate order, and I was nothing, a "convicted felon" whose parents' assets were seized, their names tarnished. As if that wasn' t enough, he sneered, accusing me of sabotaging his family, ruining Chloe, and pushing her to the brink of suicide. Chloe, his fiancée, my cousin, the one he chose over me when my world crumbled, the one whose father rebuilt his career and became the new CEO. "Silence!" he roared, his fist slamming onto the desk when I tried to deny pushing Chloe. He declared me his personal assistant, more like a maid, even forcing me into a humiliating encounter that left me aching and defeated. Then came the true horror. My uncle, Chloe' s father, the new CEO, had me secretly poisoned, giving me just three months to live. Three months. My back, a roadmap of whip scars from prison, my body frail, I knew I had to survive, not just for revenge, but to reclaim what was mine. I bit my finger, signing my life away, a shaky, bloody promise to turn their world upside down. Now, as the poison courses through my veins, I refuse to be a quiet victim, a disgraced criminal. I will make them pay.

The Monster and His Mockery

The Monster and His Mockery

Modern

5.0

The club's bass vibrated through Mark' s bones as he showered the squalling women with champagne. His wife, Sarah, lay miles away in a hospital bed, kept alive by tubes after a hit-and-run, the money from their house sale meant for her treatment now being thrown away on a lavish display. Suddenly, Sarah' s parents, the Smiths, stood before him, their faces etched with grief. They watched in horror as he publically humiliated them, throwing crumpled bills at his kneeling mother-in-law, even striking the woman on his lap. "You bastard. That' s her money! That' s the money for her treatment!" Mr. Smith roared, his face red with fury. Then, with chilling indifference, Mark told them Sarah was a vegetable and would die soon, revealing an "inoperable tumor." Mrs. Smith collapsed, bleeding from her mouth. The city exploded with outrage as videos of "MarkTheMonster" went viral, but he reveled in the hatred, driving straight to the hospital. There, Mr. Smith launched himself at Mark, screaming, "You killed her! Sarah is dead! And it' s your fault!" But when the doctor confirmed Sarah's death, Mark threw his head back and laughed, "Oh, thank God! I'm free!" He celebrated, declaring himself released from the burden of his wife, a woman who, in her dying breath, had recorded a message forgiving him and telling him to be happy. Then, in an unthinkable act, Mark pulled back the sheet from Sarah' s gurney and slapped her lifeless face, hissing, "You were more than a burden. You were a leech." The crowd erupted, consuming Mark in a storm of vigilante justice. As police intervened, Mark, battered but lucid, dropped a bombshell on Captain Miller. "How can I have killed a woman who isn' t actually dead?" he asked, pointing a bloody finger at the doctor. He accused Dr. Evans of fraud and attempted murder, revealing Sarah' s "injuries" were a minor concussion. He then pulled out Sarah' s real medical records and a recording implicating Mrs. Smith in funding the hit-and-run, claiming the Smiths had already conspired to kill his first wife, Ava. Just as the Smiths and Dr. Evans were cuffed, Sarah sat up, confirming the elaborate charade.

His Trophy Wife, Her Secret Life

His Trophy Wife, Her Secret Life

Romance

5.0

My wife, Sophia Hayes, was beautiful, poised, and utterly detached. For five years, our marriage had been a bizarre, silent transaction: she'd disappear for days, even weeks, to "support" her childhood sweetheart and his failing tech startup. Each time she returned, a lavish "guilt offering" would appear – a vintage Patek, a signed first edition, a priceless Ming vase. Ninety-nine such gifts now filled our sterile mansion, each a screaming monument to her absence and my bitter complicity. I was no longer the man who' d clung to hope, who' d screamed and shattered expensive crystal. Today, as she fastened a diamond bracelet, preparing for her hundredth departure, she waved away my feigned concern for our anniversary, prioritizing his celebration. "I need you to sign this," I said, offering a document I' d subtly placed among her latest "gift." She signed, carelessly dismissing it as a prenup addendum, already thinking of David. She didn' t read the fine print. She never did. "PETITION FOR DISSOLUTION OF MARRIAGE" it read, the final decree awaiting its ironclad confirmation. The world saw her as a successful patron, supporting a talented founder, but at a glamorous gala, the veil slipped. A reporter, sensing blood, asked, "Are you two an item?" Panic flashed in Sophia' s eyes, and in her fear, she sought me out – her hidden husband – to rescue her public image. I stepped from the shadows, played my part, and then watched as she rushed not to me, but to him, murmuring reassurances. That night, she didn't come home; the next morning, she arrived, exhausted but triumphant, thanking me for "saving us." She dismissed my quiet anger as humility, oblivious. "You asked me to be there, Sophia," I said, watching her carefully curated world unravel. "I did? When?" she asked, genuinely bewildered. Her memory, a weapon of convenience, had erased my very existence. I nodded, utterly calm as she detailed her next trip with David, making another empty promise for "us" once she returned. That date was the day our divorce would be finalized. A cold, hard satisfaction settled in my gut; the world she had built was about to come crashing down. Just not in the way she expected.

You'll also like

Chapters
Read Now
Download Book