A Short Story by Nancy Sack
Pull Back

Two weeks ago in a heightened, orange terror alert, Mary and her daughter, Grace, boarded a jet from O'Hare bound for Las Vegas for their yearly trip to see shows, to people watch, and to gamble. Prior to their excursion, Mary had been hospitalized due to her ongoing heart problems. Mary had had two previous heart procedures to attend to the blockage in her arteries. Although Mary had to use an oxygen device, she wasn't going to let this complication detain her from going to Vegas with her daughter during the holiday season.

As she sat next to her daughter, Mary wondered how many more Vegas trips she would be able to take with her daughter. She hoped many more. The dinners and the shows entertained her immensely. The glitter and the colorful array of outfits enchanted her. The clinking and ringing of the slots got her blood flowing. However, these pleasures were minor ones. Her greatest joy was being with her daughter, Grace-hearing her infectious laugh at the comedy shows, watching her green eyes crinkle with contentment over dinner, seeing her arms raised above her shoulders elated by her blackjack hand. Each year she loved spending five, uninterrupted days with her daughter, sharing their lives in simple joys unimpeded by work, volunteer responsibilities, and health issues.

This last time in the hospital, Mary was thankful she only had to stay a week, and surgery was unnecessary for the meantime. During her stay, her daughter had visited her every day telling her about the events of her teaching day. Mary was proud of her daughter. After twenty years of teaching Spanish, Grace had attained her ESL certification to venture on new territory, teaching immigrants English and the culture of the United States. Her mother knew Grace spent long hours preparing materials for her new classes. She knew how dedicated she was to her students. She wanted to teach them the language and the culture of the US so they could succeed. She wanted to teach them to read well, a life-long passion of hers. She took her students to restaurants so they could practice their English. She taught them the rules of baseball and football. She even taught them how to sing "Take Me out to the Ballgame" for the Seventh Inning Stretch. She had Halloween and Thanksgiving celebrations in her classroom. Mary was so proud when Grace took her students to the Chicago Art Institute where she volunteered as a docent. There she shared her love of art with her daughter's students, teaching them about Monet, Renoir, Degas, Van Gogh, Picasso, and O'Keefe.

Mary was proud of her daughter, Grace. She had had her heartbreaks, but she didn't close the door to new relationships. Mary liked her daughter's new boyfriend, Tony. They had been together a couple of years now, and her daughter was happy. Happiness is what she wanted for her. Mary took a deep breath. Breathing was more difficult for her these days. She hoped she wouldn't have to use her oxygen device on this trip.  Sometimes, the walk from one hotel to the next was arduous, but she could still manage. She had been managing for a long time.

Her mother smiled as she watched her daughter reading her novel beside her. Her daughter had a zest for life, for learning, for people, for joy. She was not afraid to take risks. Her daughter was not deterred by disappointment and catastrophe. Mary recalled last winter when three deer darted in front of Grace's brand new Camry, and one of them didn't make it, damaging Grace's car beyond repair. Grace was thankful none of her passengers or herself was hurt. She even expressed concerns to the police officer that she believed the injured deer had run off in the woods and would need immediate attention. Mary had remembered that Grace was unafraid by the deer experience, immediately getting back to driving and living, once again. Her daughter had turned a negative into a positive by expressing her good fortune of being alive. Mary also recalled Grace moving on after a relationship of fifteen years had ended. "His loss." Mary remembered her daughter's words without any bitterness or regret.

Mary felt the joy surge in her veins as the plane landed on the tarmac. She and Grace found their shuttle bus to the Flamingo Hotel, and their adventure was about to begin. They had a quick bite in their hotel, and they decided that they would play the slots in the Flamingo. After playing the slots for an hour and losing about thirty dollars between them, Grace suggested that they go over to the Mirage.

"Are you up for a walk?" Grace asked.

"Of course," Mary replied. "It's no problem. I'm feeling good."

Mary was feeling fatigued but she did not want the evening to end.

"Mom, we can call it a day and go to the Mirage tomorrow. We have five days."

Mary thought a minute about her daughter's suggestion. She remembered the first heart attack-the freight train in her chest, the sirens screaming to the hospital. She wasn't sure she would make it that day.

"Let's go now," she said.

Mary labored a bit on her walk to the Mirage. However, she knew she would be all right if she took her time. The warm breeze felt good against her face. Each year, she relished her temporary escape from the Chicago winter.

As they entered the Mirage, Grace directed her to the slot machines."I'll meet you back here, Mom. I'm going to look around and try something new," Grace said.

Her daughter knew Mary loved the slots. Sometimes, she won, but she didn't care too much about winning. She loved the atmosphere, the energy, the people. She felt alive in the lobby of the Mirage.

"Sure, honey. Have fun. I'll see you in a little while," Mary said.

Mary found a quarter slot machine and began feeding her coins into the machine. Life had been good to her. Yes, she had had her losses. Due to her husband's early death, she had to raise three children by herself. She remembered those days. She couldn't let herself be afraid. No, not for the children. She worked longer hours and then came home tired only to help with homework, make dinner, do laundry, and then fall into bed hoping morning wouldn't come too soon. The routine turned to years, to a decade. But, she had done a good job she reminded herself. A son and a daughter, both married, living in Atlanta.Now, she had a grandchild. And then, there was Grace-her daughter, her traveling companion, her nurse, her friend, and her soulmate. Yes, she was fortunate, a very lucky woman.

As she placed her tenth coin in the slot machine and pulled the lever, Mary heard a deafening cacophony in the distance. She wondered what had caused that loud commotion. Suddenly, her own machine began to clink and clang vigorously.She was startled to see all the coins continuously dropping in the bottom of her tray. Filling her bucket, she was elated to have won $250.00 in ten attempts. Deciding not to tempt fate, Mary set out to collect her winnings and quit for the evening. As she waited in line for the cashier, Mary heard someone call her name.

"Are you Mary?" a young-looking waitress asked her.

"Well, yes, I am," Mary said.

"Your daughter asked me to find you and bring you over to her," the waitress replied.

"Is anything the matter?" Mary asked.

"Please come," the waitress insisted.

Mary hurried over to the poker table where Grace was seated. Mary was worried, but she didn't know why. When she arrived, Grace told her to sit down next to her. Noticing the coins in her mother's bucket, Grace asked, "How much did you win?"

"Two hundred and fifty dollars," Mary said. "I was just going to
collect when this waitress called me over here. What's going on?"

"Well, I played this new game called Let It Ride," her daughter said. "You put three tens down and then you play Poker against the dealer. You get one card at a time. After each card, you get an opportunity to pull back one, two or three of your tens. However, if you like what you have, you can throw a bonus dollar round at any time before you receive your last card."

Mary could not contain her excitement. "So, what was your first card?"

"A King of Spades," Grace said.

"And your second?"

"A Jack of Spades," Grace said.

"What did you do?" Mary asked.

"I put down the bonus dollar," she said.

"Your third card?" Mary could feel a slight rush surge in her head.

"Ten of Spades," Grace said.

"Did you pull back?" Mary gasped.

"What do you think, Mom? Grace smiled.

"And the fourth card?" Mary could not bear to hear her daughter's answer.

"The Ace of Spades, Mom."

Mary's eyes filled with tears. "Your fifth card was the Queen of Spades," Mary said with certainty.

"Yes, Mom, the Queen. A Royal Flush. Fifty-thousand dollars on a thirty-one dollar bet."

Engulfing her daughter, Mary knew her daughter would never pull back.

And neither would she.