_Suddenly, in this room, probabilities had gone mad._ He could feel the shifting instability of the atmosphere, as real and oppressive to him as if it were solid and he were attempting to wade through it. This was what had been bothering him, plaguing him. Quite suddenly and without explanation, something impossible had begun to happen. Cards had begun to fall in unbelievable sequences, repeating themselves with idiotic regularity; dice had defied the laws of gravity as they spun on the tables and floor. A hubbub filled the room as the players stopped and stared at each other, unable to comprehend the impossible that was happening before their eyes. And then Blackie was passing Jeff, her face flushed, a curious light of desperation in her eyes. An impulse passed through Jeff's mind. He reached out an arm, stopped the girl. "Game," he said sharply. Her eyes flashed at him. "What game?" "Anything." He held up his wrist before her eyes and showed her the gold watch. "We can play for this." Something flared in her eyes for a moment before she gained control. Then she was down on her knees, pushing her sleeves up, a tight look of fear and dread haunting her eyes as she looked up at Jeff. "Something's happening," she said softly. "The dice--they're not right." "I know it. Why not?" His voice was hoarse, his eyes hard on her face. She threw him a baffled look. "There isn't any reason. Nothing is different, but the dice don't fall right. That's all, they just don't." Jeff grinned tightly. "Go on, throw them." She threw the dice, saw them dance on the floor, caught her number. Jeff rolled them, beat her on it, picked up the money. He rolled again, then again. The tightness grew around the girl's eyes; little tense lines hardened near her mouth. Nervously, she fumbled a cigarette into her mouth, lit it, puffed as the dice rolled. She lost. She lost again. Side bets picked up around them, the people as they watched catching the tension that was building up. "What's happening?" "The dice--my God! They've gone crazy!" "Blackie's losing. What do you think--" "--losing? She never loses on dice. Who's the guy?" "Never saw him before. Look, he took another one! Those dice are hexed." "My cards were crazy too: king high full every time, a dozen hands in a row. How can you bet on something like that, I ask you." The Silly Giggins record screeched louder, then gave a squawk as the record suddenly shattered in a thousand pieces. Somebody cursed and threw a pack of cards on the floor, and a scream broke out across the room. One group came suddenly to blows; several dice games tightened down to bloody conflict between individuals. A man burst into tears, suddenly, and sat back on his haunches, his face stricken. "They can't act this way," he wailed. "They just _can't_--"