Book excerpt: A gambler runs out of luck in this rousing Ralph Compton western. Mississippi charmer Abner Mason is a professional gambler and a regular on the Delta Jack, a luxurious riverboat. But things haven’t exactly been going Mason’s way. After a disastrous loss at the tables, he owes an impossible debt to the most powerful man on the ship: mysterious, ruthless Cam Greeley. And Greeley’s willing to do whatever it takes to get his fortune back—even threaten Mason’s life. Now Mason has a single night to raise all the funds to pay off his debt by completing whatever ominous jobs Greeley has waiting for him. He just has to make it through alive....