Theo smiled winningly, quite willing to ignore his companion's clear reluctance. "That would be quite kind of you! I'm sure I can find my way back from there."
Then Theo had to force his grin not to widen in triumph as his new friend -- and new mark -- circled the hook he'd set, clearly intrigued. He sounded casual as he improvised: "Well, the fellow with the map is this old pirate, peg leg and everything, so he doesn't get around too well -- can't get out here on his own to grab the treasure. So instead he's selling the map. Gave me a little preview, but I clearly didn't memorize it as well as I'd hoped ... Sadly, I don't have the ready funds to grab it before someone else does."
Of course, if someone were so kind as to provide those ready funds ... Theo would disappear with them, but he'd be quite willing to offer a worthless piece of paper with intriguing scribbles in return.
Then Theo had to force his grin not to widen in triumph as his new friend -- and new mark -- circled the hook he'd set, clearly intrigued. He sounded casual as he improvised: "Well, the fellow with the map is this old pirate, peg leg and everything, so he doesn't get around too well -- can't get out here on his own to grab the treasure. So instead he's selling the map. Gave me a little preview, but I clearly didn't memorize it as well as I'd hoped ... Sadly, I don't have the ready funds to grab it before someone else does."
Of course, if someone were so kind as to provide those ready funds ... Theo would disappear with them, but he'd be quite willing to offer a worthless piece of paper with intriguing scribbles in return.
Theo
"Poker" by ND Strupler is licensed with CC BY 2.0.
