One Pair

By Beverly Starr

One Pair is the first novel in the series of mystery novels about the intriguing world of poker players, poker games, poker faces, and poker deaths.Laura-lee Livingston is the bored heiress of the Skip Jack Whiskey fortune. When her friend Jonathan Monahan invites her to the exclusive poker tournament in Las Vegas, she jumps at the opportunity to indulge her own gambling passion. In the midst of an exclusive annual poker game for the wealthy, the famous tycoon Johnny Reston dies. Now the mystery unfolds. Could one of his friends have committed such a heinous crime? Laura-lee’s immeasurable curiosity throws her into a world of murder and memories. She meets Garnet Munch, an unforgettable tough Las Vegas homicide detective. He shows her that no one is above reproach when it comes to murder.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Beverly Starr
• Release date: Sep 7, 2014
• ISBN: 9781311833273

Beverly Starr

BiographyBeverly Starr has authored several murder mysteries, humor venues, dark side biographies and now ventured into the personal side of requited love. After a thirty year gap, her resurgence into the world of writing lends spark and imagination to her world of words. Her passion for writing gave her the unexpected leap into the Indie authors area of expertise. As she says, "It takes a special person to tell a story but a creative person to write it!"

Book preview

Prologue

"Come on Johnny are you going to take all day? Are you going to raise or get out of the pot?" Milligan was visibly annoyed. He knew he won this hand.

These were the best cards he held all night. A chance to win back the five hundred thousand he lost earlier pushed his adrenaline rush higher. He chewed harder on his cigar impatiently waiting for Johnny to make his move.

"Hold your whiskey, I am thinking about what I am going to do. You are such a pain sometimes. How many years have we been playing this game? You know I always take my time." Johnny was methodical in his response.

Johnny Reston was the sort of man who weighed all his options before he made any decisions. He was one of those tycoons whose empire was built by his father who taught him shrewd business techniques . . . mainly never let your opponent see you sweat or give him any advantage. He took nothing for granted and worked hard to keep his fortune intact. Money to him was sacred. Johnny was the type of man who would gladly give you a loan based on a handshake on the front end and treachery on the backend. When it came to repayment, there was no flexibility. If one did not reimburse the expected payment on time, his tactics were pitiless.

In his sixty plus years, he remained a bachelor. He chose not to marry or raise a family. He did not regret his decision, but in the end, the rewards of his fortune outweighed some of the cold and calculating choices he made. Known on the other side of the coin for his philanthropic endeavors, his name was synonymous with almost every charity in the world. Outwardly, he appeared to be a warm-hearted man but inwardly he held many secrets and festered many resentments.

Milligan Monahan, on the other hand, was a wise cracking, cigar-smoking womanizer. Even though his three fine sons took over the family business, he never let them run it the way they wanted. Milligan considered his sons mere figureheads and he, the brains. He was shrewd, rude, and crude.

His wife, Alana, tolerated him. She gave up hope he would remain faithful. As long as she got her fair share of the fortune, she did not complain.

He loved to flaunt his money and women. In the world of business, he was not respected but rather tolerated. No one dare cross Milligan. This was a silent rule.

Evan Michaels was a bit younger than the rest of the poker friends. In his early fifties, he suffered a tragic accident that left him paralyzed. According to his family, he no longer fulfilled all their needs, so his wife took his two daughters and left him. Publicized in all the newspapers around the continent, the divorce was not only blatantly exposed but at that time, one of the most expensive in the world.

Since his primary interest was no longer his family, he delved further into his aeronautical business and made more money than he could conceivably spend in a lifetime. Evan was content to play poker, invent, drink whiskey, and live life as an invalid.

Carmen Degnostio, better known as the Parmigiano King was a fast talking uncouth figure of a man. He was one of those men who while looking you in the eye would steal your wallet from your back pocket. As a young boy with no parents to take care of him, he left the old country, and his grandmother took over the reins of raising him. By the time he was in his early teens, Carmen ran numbers and by the time he was in his early twenties, his name was connected to the Mob.

Carmen’s beautiful wife, Maria, and their five children adored him. He treated his family like gold. On the compound in New Jersey, they lived the life of luxury and wanted for nothing. No one ever questioned Carmen. They accepted his habits and admired his ingenious business savvy.

Thomas Paramour, the oldest man of the group, was nearing seventy-five. He amassed his fortune by living the golden rule. Here tell it . . . he won his lucky gold ingot in a poker game and that quickly turned into the world of investments. A fearless and ruthless businessman, he owned more brokerage firms across the world than could be counted.

Thomas took great pride in his fifth wife, Natalie. She was only twenty-five but to Thomas, he finally accumulated the trophy, which eluded him for many years. He knew Natalie only married him for his money but to him another envious possession was worth the price one must pay.

The men met purely by chance on the ski slopes in Schliersee, Bavaria Germany. After several nights of drinking and partying, they made formal introductions to each other. An instant bond formed between them. These men had several things in common - skiing, partying, drinking, making money, and playing poker. They all wanted to become multi-millionaire moguls. At that time, not all of them were wealthy but that was not a hindrance to their relationship. The long steadfast friendship would sustain them through many years.

Tonight in the suite at The Turrets on the top floor of the new H hotel in Las Vegas, they had gathered to celebrate the twenty- fifth year of playing poker.

Through the years, dropping everything to meet, share a few laughs, war stories, play poker, and try to take each other to the cleaners became a priority to their friendship. No matter where they were or what they were doing, they never missed the opportunity to be with each other. They knew every aspect of each other’s lives- perhaps there were some secrets they did not share with each other but it was not important to any of them.

"I fold." Johnny finally threw his cards on the table.

Milligan wanted desperately to show his hand but being the gentleman card player he also threw his cards face down on the table. He took the five hundred thousand dollars’ worth of chips and gathered them under fingers. For a change, winning felt good. Of late, Johnny had been far too lucky.

"Glad to see you saved some of your money Johnny."

"Remember the pact we made the first time we met . . . to save that exceptional bottle for this special day. Okay men let us get the bottle of 1995 Krug-Closd’Ambonnay popped open. We sure have come a long way since the Moet and Chandon days. You realize now we have been playing together for twenty-five years. So much has happened to us. We do have reason to celebrate . . . we are still alive."

Evan remembered their first meeting. At that time, his firm legs carried him everywhere and he was considered quite an athlete.

"Yeah boys, in all these years we have been around the world. Who would have thought this combination blended together so well?"

Carmen remembered the first night they met. Two days before, he made his first hit in The Springs. He was quite a sharpshooter in those days.

"We were a bunch of whiskey drinking men having a great time looking for a piece of tail." Milligan also thought about that first night. He scored with the little waitress at the lodge. Back in those days, he was quite the ladies’ man. He still was!

"I, for one, am glad that we shared many wonderful years together. The pleasure of taking and losing to a fine bunch of men is all mine." Thomas chuckled to himself as he recalled the first night they met. He barely had enough money to play in the game. Things definitely had changed since those days.

"Well gentlemen, may I raise my glass to yet another one of the best times we shared together. Let us hope we will still be around in another twenty five years, yes, Thomas, that includes you too."

"Here’s to our victories, blinds, and bluffs." Johnny raised his glass and slumped down on the table. The glass went tumbling out of his hand.

No one noticed the waiter leaving with the empty glasses on the tray. In the confusion, he quietly closed the door behind him.

Chapter One

Now that she officially inherited all the money her grandfather, Lewis J. Livingston Sr. left her, Laura-lee thought about what to do with her life. She wished she had received the money at an early age, perhaps twenty-one, but grandfather was a much wiser man and knew she probably would have squandered a great deal of it. Grandfather would have been right. At that time, she was not old enough to appreciate the value of anything.

Skip Jack Whiskey was one of the most prestigious companies in the world. Three generations of Livingston’s took pride in their fair and honest business practices. They maintained the direct and simplistic approach to their operation. This family was dedicated to not only giving jobs to thousands of employees but also helping the less fortunate.

When Laura-lee received the fortune her grandfather left her, she knew now she had chance and money to have more fun and indulge more of her passions and pleasures. Eager and ready to explore the unknown territories of life, she began her journey traveling around the world to the places of interest.

She is the thirty-year-old only daughter of Lewis J. Livingston Jr. and Marsha R. Livingston. She comes from one of the oldest families on The Island. She supposes they are one of the wealthiest. Her family heritage stems back through many generations.

She found out a rather interesting tidbit in her family lineage - her great great great great grandfather was actually an unsavory bootlegger. She loved that story! To say she is spoiled rich would truly be an understatement. She was and she is! Even though Laura-lee managed to learn many good values and morals in her years at boarding school and throughout college, these had absolutely nothing to do with her flamboyant lifestyle.

She truly has not worked a day in her life. She has neither reason nor desire to come into the family business. Since graduating from college Daddy asked her several times but all his requests were declined. She finds better things to do with her time than to sit at the end of the long table and make boring decisions about whiskey.

Personally, she would rather drink it than bottle it. Maybe one day she might surprise everyone and try the business thing. She does not want anyone to hold his breath on that one decision - it is not foremost on her list.

She is too busy roaming around the world looking for adventure. Laura-lee craves excitement! The multitude of fashion shows and assortment of parties have become boring. Lately most of the invitations to these events are declined. She no longer wants to gather her skirts and go flitting off to another party. She is not the least bit interested in maintaining this social stratum any longer.

Trying to get her head around something positive and exciting puzzles her. Being a chip off the old block and an only child affords her the opportunity to be a brat when she wants. She rather likes being the only child of a well-connected and massively rich family. She tends to get everything she wants. As far as she is concerned, there is nothing wrong her attitude.

At times, she can be the sweetest most good-natured woman but she constantly looks for the ulterior motive in people. She is sure all they want is material gain and want something her money will buy them. Usually she is right. She has an uncanny knack for reading people minds. Her tendency to be somewhat of a great observer of the little details makes her very inquisitive.

Grandfather used to say, Give them the benefit of one doubt dear. Not everyone is out for personal gain. You can do good things for people because the choice is yours not theirs.

Laura-lee remembered those words. All through the years, she carried them in her mind. One day she is sure she will be tested on the subject but for now, she does not pay attention to any of this.

Named after both of her grandmothers, Laura and Lee hence the name Laura-lee Livingston, she rather liked the hyphen in the name. While in attendance at boarding school years somewhere along the line the hyphen appeared. The new name stuck with her and legally it was changed. She asks people to use both names when addressing her. Of course, it brings consternation to her parents.

Laura-lee is a maverick of sorts and that keeps her in good spirits. Her parents are often disappointed with many of the choices she has made thus far but she lets them think what they want. She never considers whether these might be wrong or not.

Having all the money to do anything she desires has never changed her direction in life. Laura-lee wants the simple elegant material things that money can buy. She is more inclined to be the easygoing woman who merely points to an object and it becomes her possession.

She knows there are those who think she is, by any standard, a snob. She might be. She also is the woman who might surprise you. When one least expects, she will be waiting around the nearest corner with her hand to lend help . . . she expects nothing in return. She is, among everything else, a loyal and committed friend. Being an only child makes her grasp at friends and keep them close.

Laura-lee craves exploration. She loves the thrill of the hunt and the places in the dark corners of the world where the very wealthy explore. She often is misunderstood - not misguided, but seemingly at times headed off the wrong cliff. When the lure of the gambling world called to her from some unknown part of her destiny, with reckless abandon, Laura-lee responded.

Her grandfather was an avid poker player. He felt the games of chance belonged to men not women. He would never have exposed his darling granddaughter to the world of poker. For quite a while, Laura-lee remained sheltered from that arena. However when curiosity