"Are we going all in on this?" Uriah leaned closer to Calliope, whispering, "What if you lose? Your emerald bracelet will be gone. How about I throw in something of mine for the bet? Ss can pay me backter."


    "No need," Calliope replied coldly.


    Uriah sighed, realizing Ss was right that she didn''t need his help. He might as well sit back and enjoy the show.


    "Anyone else wants to join in?" Yara scanned the room with a sly smile. "The stakes are high, so think it over!"


    "I''m in!" Mr. Hawthorne, a well-known trust-fund kid in their circle, stepped forward.


    "Maybe I should join too?" Uriah pondered aloud.


    "Sure," Yara nodded.


    The four of them took their seats at the poker table. Though more spots were open, the other partygoers were more interested in watching Calliope and her opponents than ying themselves.


    Onlookers gathered around as the game began, silently observing the intense match. The game Yara chose required more than luck. It was about strategy and quick calctions. Calliope, however, yed with uncanny speed. Before the spectators could even process the cards, she had made her move.


    "She calctes so fast!"


    "Geez, I can''t even figure it out, and she''s already yed her hand!"


    "Her speed is insane, but she''s spot-on every time. She''s got a knack for this!"


    Yara prided herself on being taught by a gambling legend, confident that few could outsmart her. Yet, she felt outmatched by Calliope''s relentless pace this time, barely able to keep herposure.


    Calliope remained serene and unflustered under the chandelier''s warm glow, looking as if she could read her opponents'' hands with a nce. Her every move was precise,


    catching the others each


    time.


    By the end of the round, beads of sweat dotted Yara''s forehead.


    Even Uriah, no stranger to


    high-stakes games with his brothers, felt unnerved. He always thought Ss was a tough opponent, but Calliope took it to another level. She yed effortlessly, with a speed that left him in the dust, all the while maintaining a calm, unbothered demeanor.


    "She''s incredible!"


    "She''s winning!"


    "She''s about to take it all!"


    "They can''t hold a candle to Calliope!"


    "That''s a cool three million!"


    "Seriously, who said Calliope was useless? She''s a jack-of-all-trades!"


    "Remember what the Jewell family said? That she was good for nothing, a total


    jinx. If she''s a jinx, what does that make me? A total disaster?"


    "The Jewell family lost a treasure there!"


    "No kidding. Calliope doesn''t even need to lift a finger-just a few


    rounds of cards, and she could


    make more in a day than the Jewell family earns in a year..."


    "Whoever started the rumor that she''s a nobody?"


    "If she''s a nobody, I''m just a pile of nothing!"