‘If you’ve played baccarat,’ Susie said, ‘you’ll know the basics. The main difference with chemin de fer is that the house doesn’t act as banker. A player has the bank. The bank starts with the player on the croupier’s right; so it would have started with whoever that is on Jean-Pascal’s right – looks familiar but I can’t quite place him – and as you see, it’s already made its way down to Dai Llewellyn. A player keeps the bank as long as he’s winning, but once he loses, the bank passes to the player to his right. That’s where the name comes from. “Chemin de Fer” is French for “railway”. The bank goes round like a train.’
‘But if the house isn’t the banker, how does the house get its cut?’ Conrad asked.
‘These days there’s a standard table charge. In the old days, the house took 20 per cent of the amount wagered in each round, and Jean-Pascal would have raked if off into the Cagnotte before the cards were turned over. But that’s not legal now. John still does all right out of the game, though, believe me.’
‘I’m sure. Does the bank play against all the other players?’
‘Yes.’
‘That must mean that the bank stands to lose quite a bit on each hand? Can the banker give up and pass the bank to the next player?’
‘Yes, but there’s a certain etiquette involved. You can lose a lot as the banker, but you can also win a lot, and it’s not the done thing to pass as soon as you’re ahead.’
‘You have to give the others a sporting chance to recover?’
‘Yes. Two or three hands is usually enough to keep everyone happy. But remember, the banker is either winning from, or losing to, every player who places a wager.’
‘But not every player receives cards – otherwise the bank would be outnumbered.’
‘That’s right. One player represents all the others, however many there may be, and everyone lives and dies by the two cards the representative is dealt. So it’s two cards against two.’
They were standing close enough to the table to see, but far enough away not to interfere.
‘The bank wagers £300,’ Dai Llewellyn was saying.
‘Now the others have to decide whether to match the bank,’ Susie was whispering. ‘The player to his right – that’s Henry Vyner, I think, I’ve only met him once – has first call. If he calls “Banco prime”, the bank is covered and Jean-Pascal will announce no more bets. It’s French again of course. What he says is, “Rien ne va plus”.’
‘What if Vyner doesn’t cover the bank?’
‘Then, any other player can cover the bank. If no one does, each player can wager at his discretion up to the amount wagered by the bank; and if the bank agrees, the amount can be increased, but the bank sets the limit. You see those two squares on the table? The first one, the Banque, is where the croupier places the amount covered, and the second one, the Reliquat, is for any uncovered amount.’
‘Banco,’ Ian called.
‘There you go,’ Susie smiled. ‘Ian’s in the game. It never takes him long.’
‘So John was telling me.’
She smiled, but she seemed irritated.
‘John can be such a killjoy. It’s our money, for God’s sake. There are times when he needs to… well, don’t get me started on that. So now, Ian represents the players. If there had been a banco prime, he would represent; if not, it’s the first player to call banco; and failing that, it’s the player who lays the highest wager.’
Conrad’s drink arrived. He thanked the waiter, who left quietly.
‘Rien ne va plus,’ Jean-Pascal called.
‘Now we come to the cards,’ Susie said. ‘Always dealt from the shoe by the croupier, of course.’
‘Using several packs?’
‘Six to eight packs,’ she replied. ‘The house rule here is eight, or at least that’s what Jean-Pascal always uses.’
‘And the goal is nine points from two cards?’
‘Exactly. A total of nine or eight is called a “natural”. The nine is “La Grande” and the eight is “La Petite”, and any natural means that no more cards are drawn. Nine wins, and eight wins unless there’s a nine.’
‘What happens if it’s a tie?’
‘The croupier calls, “Égalité”, and rolls the wagers over to the next hand.’
They couldn’t see the faces of the cards, but Jean-Pascal was announcing that the bank had won by La Petite to zero.
‘Dai’s in form tonight, apparently,’ Susie said. ‘You can score zero in any number of ways. All the picture cards are worth zero, so if you have a jack and a queen you have zero, and if you have a four and a king, you have four.’
‘And there are several ways of making a natural.’
‘Yes. Aces count as one, so to get to nine you can have ace plus eight, two plus seven, three plus six, and so on.’
‘When can you draw an extra card?’
‘That varies a bit from house to house. Here, the rule is that the players can draw on zero to four, they stand on six or seven, and they can either stand or draw on five. If the players stand, the bank is allowed to draw on zero to five but stands on six or seven. If your score goes above nine, you deduct ten, or twenty, so it always comes down to something between zero and nine.’
Jean-Pascal had raked the used cards into the Panier, and a short break had been declared to allow the players time for a drink; the Clermont did not permit drinking at the table itself.
‘So, have you got the idea?’ she asked, as the players dispersed.
‘I think so. I’m going to watch tonight, and I’ll take a hand next time I come in.’
‘Very wise.’ She took his arm and walked him away from the table. ‘I haven’t even asked you how you’re doing, Conrad. How’s the practice going?’
‘Busy. Commercial stuff, frauds, you know. How are the children?’
‘Driving us mad as usual, but we can’t complain. I’m sure we drive them even more mad with the lifestyle we lead. How are things at home?’
‘Much the same, I’m afraid.’
‘Bible studies and no booze?’
‘That’s about it.’
‘How bloody for you, darling. I’m so sorry.’
She kissed him on the cheek. Ian was approaching.
‘Don’t forget to make the rounds, Conrad, will you?’ She tapped him on the chest with her forefinger for emphasis. ‘And don’t forget the Club Room.’
‘John told me to show my face everywhere.’
‘Yes, but now I’m telling you. And I’m telling you not to forget the Club Room.’
‘Why? Are there a lot of people down there?’
‘Sir Jack Bristow – you know, the property magnate – was there earlier.’
‘Is he someone I should meet?’
‘Not particularly, but he was with someone you should definitely meet,’ she smiled.
‘Oh?’
‘Yes. She struck me as someone who might be a bit of an antidote to the home situation, if you see what I mean.’
Conrad raised his eyebrows and returned her smile.
‘I’ll keep my eyes open.’
‘Yes,’ she said, ‘do.’