Chapter 30

It all seemed, at first, like a dream, Matthew couldn't believe his luck. Sometimes he had to pinch himself, in case he was dreaming about it all. He got trained right away, by Goddard himself and some of his dealers. He'd got quick hands, so it was no wonder that he mastered how to shuffle the cards in no time. But he surprised them all, as much as himself, with how quickly he grasped the concept of probability. For the first time in his life, he found fascination in what he learned, and in a very short time, he'd learned several gambling techniques. At first Matthew thought it was sheer luck when he beat one of Goddard's men in cribbage, but after he managed to win easy victories over some other dealers shortly afterwards, he started to realize that he had one extraordinary talent for numbers and rapid calculation of odds. However, it took a while before Goddard allowed him to plunge into the field.

Matthew experienced the same odd stirring the minute he set foot on the floor of the