Landon was just about to type in "$500" when Maeve reached over and pressed his hand down, stopping him cold.
"Mr. Hart," she said brightly, "that makes it the twentieth round."
Landon's brows drew tight. "What are you talking about?"
Maeve tilted her head, all sweetness on the surface. "I told you—every twenty wins earns a reward."
Her smile didn't change. "And anyone who loses twenty rounds in a row has to accept a punishment… from the winner."
She pointed at the empty table piled high with used dice.
"Open your phone," Maeve said. "Scan that."
For a second, nobody understood what she meant.
Only Andres and Carson caught the point immediately—like a light snapping on.
After every round, Maeve had been placing the dice she'd used onto that empty table, arranging them according to the numbers that had come up. Different pips, different placement… and the pattern kept growing.
At first no one paid attention to the table. But as more and more dice accumulated, the shape became impossible to miss.
Carson was the first to blurt it out. "Holy—those dice… that's a QR code."
After he said it, everyone saw it at once.
Andres suddenly remembered what Maeve had said earlier—how she intended to kick Landon out of the circle tonight.
A strange anticipation stirred in his chest. He genuinely wanted to see how far she'd go, and what she'd use to bring Landon down.
Maeve's move hit Landon so hard he froze in place.
"Miss Vance," he said at last, "what kind of game are you playing now?"
Maeve offered a smile of pure, calculated innocence. "Mr. Hart, you've got two choices. Either you answer one question… or you scan the code."
Suspicion flickered in his eyes, but he forced calm into his voice. "What question?"

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