- Neon
10
Ne
Neon
氖
20.183
House Rules
赌场规矩
I met the Devil in Las Vegas. He lives there full-time now. He says the light is good for his skin. We walked down the Strip at midnight, the neon reflected in his wraparound shades, and as we walked, I saw how his people adored him. Hookers seized his hand and kissed it fervently. Croupiers genuflected as he passed.
我在拉斯维加斯与恶魔会了面。现在他整天都住在那里。他说灯光对他的皮肤有好处。在午夜我们并走在大街上，霓虹灯在他身上映出一圈光晕。当我们走过时，他的手纷纷纷纷向他致意。妓女们抓起他的手，热情地吻它。当他走过赌台的主持人时，他们一个个都单膝跪下。
“They called Elvis the King,” I remarked. “But really, the title belongs to you.”
“他们管猫王叫‘王’，”我和他说，“可真的，这个‘王’的称号应该给你才对。”
“Oh, pshaw!” the Devil said, pleased. “What a sycophantic little toady you are! You must be hoping to sell me your soul.”
“呵呵。”恶魔说，他挺高兴，“你还真会拍马屁！你肯定在想着出卖你的灵魂的。”
“Well …”
“呃……”
“I gave up on that. Got out of the direct sales end of the business entirely. Too much quibbling about clauses and legalisms. I was spending all my time with lawyers! That’s no way to live.”
“我已经不干那个了。已经完全不做这种买卖了。老是要为条款和法制辩来辩去，时间全耗在和律师们打交道上了！根本就顾不上生活。”
“You don’t collect souls anymore?”
“那你以后不收集灵魂了吗？”
“I didn’t say that. Here, let me show how it’s done now.”
“我可没这么说。来，我来给你看看现在我是怎么办事的。”
We went into a casino thronged with people playing the slots. Now and again, bells would ring and a player would scoop up coins and feed them back into the machine, emotionless as a robot.
我们进了一家赌场，里头人们正玩老虎机。时不时地，铃声会响起，而赌客们就会面无表情地把硬币捡起来塞回到机器里，就像个机器人一样。
“The machines are rigged to return a fixed percentage of the take.” The Devil gestured toward the roulette wheel. “There are thirty-eight numbers, including the zero and double-zero. If you win, we pay off thirty-six to one. In the long run, the house always wins. It’s like a tax on people who don’t understand mathematics.”
“这台机器被设置好了获奖机率，”恶魔向轮盘赌打了个手势，“上面有三十八个数字，包括0和00。如果你赢了，我们会把三十六个数字里的钱都赔给你。从长期来看，赌场永远是赢家。这就像对不懂数学的人征税一样。”
“Sometimes people hit the jackpot, though.”
“不过有时人们就是会交好运。”
“Yes, and they’re always welcome back. We’ll send a private jet for them, if that’s what it takes. They invariably end up broke and in hock to the IRS within the year.”
“对，然后我们永远欢迎他们回来。如果需要的话，我们会派出私人飞机把他们接来。他们总是会在一年内破产然后进了税务局的局子。”
“This is legal?”
“这合法吗？”
“Oh, yes. Let me show you.” He led me to the poker tables. I couldn’t help noticing how grim and joyless all the players looked. “Poker is one of those rare games where, if you keep track of what cards have been played and maintain a cool head, the odds favor a skilled player.”
“哦，当然了。我来给你看看。”他把我带到扑克牌桌前。我无法忽视牌手们那些冷酷无情的样子。“扑克牌这种游戏适合一些技巧类赌徒，只要他们能一直记着哪张牌已经出了，并且保持头脑冷静的话，他们一般都会来这里。”
He placed his hand on a card-player’s shoulder. “Excuse me, sir. You’ve been counting the cards. I’m afraid you’ll have to leave.”
他把手放在一个牌手的肩膀上：“抱歉，先生。您一直在记牌。恐怕你现在必须得走了。”
The man looked up belligerently. “Yeah, so what? I …”
那个男人一副跃跃欲试地样子：“对，那又怎么样？我……”
The Devil’s eyes glowed red. “Don’t make me call the police.”
恶魔的眼睛闪着红光：“别让我叫警察来。”
The man left quickly.
那个男人迅速离开了。
“And that’s all there is to it?” I asked, as we left the casino.
“那这些就是全部了吗？”当我们离开赌场时，我问。
“That’s all. Our clientele leave in despair—a sin in itself—and in order to get back into the game, they’ll commit any atrocity imaginable. The odds always favor the house.”
“这些就是全部了。我们的客户就这么离开，满怀绝望——这种罪全是因为自身——为了返回继续，他们会犯下你能想到的任何罪行。赔率永远在赌场这边。”
“And then you take their souls to Hell.”
“然后你就把他们的灵魂带到地狱里去了。”
“Oh, not any more. We’ve modernized.” The Devil indicated one of the neon signs. “Look inside the tube. See? Those are souls in torment. What a marvelous, jittery light they give off. It makes you subliminally nervous, and that in turn makes you more likely to gamble.”
“哦，现在不那么干了。我们干得更现代一些。”恶魔指了指其中一个霓虹招牌。“看看灯管里面。看到了吗？那些就是正被折磨的灵魂。他们散发的光是多少奇妙、紧张啊。它会让你不知不觉地紧张起来，然后就让你更加想来上一把，或几把。”
I don’t mind admitting that actually looking at the tormented souls made me a little nervous myself. Suddenly, this whole thing didn’t seem such a good idea after all. And since the Devil wasn’t buying … I figured I might as well cut my losses.
我得承认，看着那些被折磨的灵魂让我有一点紧张。突然，这一整件事看起来一点都不像是个好主意。既然这个恶魔已经不再出钱买……我算了下，我也许应该及时止损了。
“Well,” I said uneasily, “I’ll be seeing you.”
“好吧，”我努力说出自己的话，“我们之后再见。”
The Devil showed his teeth in a wide smile. “Oh, I’d bet money on it.”
恶魔大咧开嘴，给了我一个看得到牙齿的微笑：“哦，我敢赌上一块钱，我们会的。”