Her Hidden Crowns (Suzanne and Austin) novel Chapter 254

Henry gritted his teeth, hesitation flickering in his eyes.

Ambrose smirked and continued his taunts. "Old man, if you're broke, why are you even at a casino? And you think you have the right to see my hand? If you're out of money, I might as well show you out of pity."

His grip on his cards tightened, but for a brief moment, a flicker of unease flashed across his eyes.

Henry caught it immediately. A surge of excitement shot through him. So, the brat didn't have a strong hand, after all!

With a triumphant wave of his hand, Henry roared, "Show me!" and slammed another ten million dollars into the pot.

Ambrose's momentary panic vanished in an instant. Smiling, he stood up and casually laid his cards on the table.

Straight flush—spades.

Henry's eyes widened in utter disbelief. "No, this is a trick!"

He was sure the spades were in his hand!

Ambrose raised his hands, his grin wide and mocking. "Come on, old man. Don't be a sore loser. Why don't you check your own cards?"

No, something wasn't right.

Henry fumbled with his hands, flipping the cards over in a rush—only to find one of his supposed spades had turned into a club.

How could this be?

His legs gave out, and he collapsed back into his chair as he stared at the cards in shock.

Had he misread them? That was impossible!

Frantically, his gaze snapped toward Cecilia, but she remained poised, standing calmly with a polite smile.

She was the only one who could have tampered with the cards.

His hand trembled as he pointed at her, his voice shaking with fury. "You wretched woman! You dare to set me up?"

Before he could move, security guards swiftly surrounded him, cutting off any chance of retaliation.

His entire body sagged, drained of all energy, as if he had aged a decade in mere minutes.

In his daze, he failed to notice that Cecilia, Atticus, and the others had quietly slipped out of the room. Only the security guards and one person, Frankie, remained.

The door slammed shut with a force that made Henry jump. His head snapped up, and the moment he saw Frankie's eerie smile, a shudder ran down his spine.

Wait… What was this?

Behind Frankie, his bodyguards stood, each gripping an electric baton.

At that moment, Henry panicked. Their last conversation had ended on very bad terms.

Forcing a smile, he stammered, "M-Mr. Lloyd, do you enjoy gambling too?"

Frankie stepped forward, casually picking up a chip from the table and rolling it between his fingers. His lips curled into a mocking grin. "I won your money, and that makes me happy."

Henry's pupils shrank. His voice quivered as he spat out, "Tonight was your setup?"