**The Keeper of the Win**
Halloween, 00:01. Stake Casino rises from fog—one door, one red carpet.
Inside: one table, one chair. No dealer, just a shaggy green monster with three eyes and the Stake logo branded on its chest.
“One spin,” it growls. “Win, you leave. Lose, you stay.”
I spin the wheel. **777**. Gold rains down.
The monster grins. “Win. But the exit is me.”
It swells, blocking the door, arms like tentacles.
I run. It laughs, voice like coins in a dryer.
The door opens only when I throw the winnings back—gold melts in its jaws.
I stumble out. The casino vanishes.
In my pocket: an empty pouch and one of the monster’s teeth.
ID: slarkdenraab