DISCLAIMERS: The M7 characters are owned by Trilogy, MGM and Mirisch, No copyright infringement was intended. For sheer entertainment

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT: Thanks to NotTasha for Betaing this. All further mistakes are my own.

COMMENTS: This is in response to NotTasha's Vegas Challenge. My first ATF story, hope everyone likes it. It was tough to write, had to start the dang thing twice (first time Chris was turning into a mean SOB).

It was late and Team 7 was relaxing in the Houdini Lounge at the Monte Carlo Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. They were in Vegas for an Inter-Agency Law Conference that had finally wrapped up earlier that evening.

The seven men had decided to eat dinner together and were just sitting around in a back booth enjoying a few drinks.

Chris Larabee had been pleasantly surprised that his team of misfits and troublemakers had behaved themselves for the entire five-day conference.

JD Dunne and Buck Wilmington had enjoyed the conference immensely. They were able to talk and exchange ideas with other computer and surveillance experts from other agencies and were eager to get back to Denver to implement them.

Nathan Jackson and Josiah Sanchez had both learned a great deal as well from the conference, and having spent time with other medics and profilers they were just as eager as JD and Buck to implement new ideas.

Chris and Vin Tanner were not so thrilled with the conference. They both had to deal with endless lectures about leadership skills and how to deal with bureaucrats. Chris had to be there by virtue of his being the leader of Team 7 and Vin was dragged there kicking and clawing because he was Chris' second in command. Both men were thoroughly bored and wanted to get back to Denver. Vin couldn't wait to leave the crowded city behind him.

Ezra Standish, Team 7's undercover agent, was disgusted with the whole proceeding. He had no choice but to attend the lectures and mock undercover scenarios. Standish was considered to be one of the best undercover men in law enforcement, despite rumors of his being on the take while he was with the FBI. He may be the best but he was still considered a maverick. Truth be told all of Team 7 were considered to be mavericks.

Standish couldn't understand how someone who had never worked undercover could give undercover agents lectures on procedure. Ezra never worked under the prescribed rules, and thought it was ridiculous that the "powers that be" thought they could create a manual for undercover work.

But now the conference was over and the men could start to unwind and relax. They were going home tomorrow on the noon flight so they were in no hurry to return to their rooms to pack and sleep.

Currently they were discussing what to do with the rest of their evening. JD and Buck wanted to take in show. Nathan and Josiah opted for some sightseeing and just wandering up and down the strip. Chris was just content to stay in the lounge and continue drinking and relaxing. Vin hadn't stated a preference and would probably end up just hanging out with Chris.

Ezra hadn't stated a preference either and it was the general consensus that he would end up gambling at one of the high stakes poker tables.

Vin noticed Ezra's silence and the little smile that lit up his face when Ez thought no one was looking. "Whatcha thinking, Ez?" he asked.

Ezra looked startled. He wasn't sure that he wanted to let his teammates know what he was thinking. He looked at Vin and then at the other men and slowly made up his mind. "I was thinking about the first time I came to Las Vegas."

"Oh yeah? Did you win a lot of money?" JD asked.

"You mean he probably cheated and was caught," came Nathan's snide reply.

Vin scowled and kicked Nathan under the table. Looking at Ezra he asked, "When was the first time you came to Vegas?"

Ezra gave Nathan a smirk and started up the tale of his first visit to Las Vegas...

It was the year 1971, and he was four years old. Maude was working to con a rich playboy into marrying her. Since her plans didn't include a child she had left him each evening in their hotel room.

"Wait a minute, you were only four years old. How could your ma leave you in your room alone every night?" JD questioned.

"Mr. Dunne, while I'm telling this tale are you going to be questioning everything I say?" Ezra queried with a raised eyebrow.

JD looked properly chastened and smiled apologetically at Ez.

Ezra nodded his head and smiled back at JD, settled back in his chair and continued...

One evening, the bored little southerner decided to go exploring. He left the room and wandered through the casino fascinated at all the people gambling. At one point he stopped by the blackjack table and became caught up in the game. Soon he was telling the patrons when they should hold and when they should request another card. It became quickly apparent that the child knew what he was doing and soon quite a crowd of people gathered around the table.

"Shit, only four and already fleecing unsuspecting public out of their hard earned cash." Buck snickered.

"Please Mr. Wilmington, do you mind?"

"Sorry, Ez."

It wasn't long until the pit boss was summoned over to the table. Upon seeing the young boy there playing blackjack like a seasoned pro he became angry and quickly put an end to the game. After he closed the table he dragged young Ezra to the manager and demanded to know who he was and what he was doing unescorted in the casino area.

By then Ezra was frightened. He knew that if he told them who he was Maude would be furious. So he lied to the manager and pit boss. He told them that he wandered off the street and that he lived off the strip. The manager looked at the child and ordered the pit boss to escort the boy out of the casino.

"Damn, that ain't no way to treat a kid," Vin grumbled.

"Gentlemen, please can we do without the editorials?" Ezra asked exasperated. He will never be able to continue his story if his friends continued to interrupt every time they heard something they didn't like.

"Sorry."

Ezra was quickly shown the door and found himself outside of the casino unsure what to do now. He started wandering around and before he knew it he was lost.

He no longer knew where his hotel was. He didn't like the area he was in and didn't feel comfortable asking for directions to his hotel. Mother always told him that he should be self-reliant and not to depend on anyone else for anything.

After another hour wandering around Ezra was starting to get tired, hungry and cold. He sat down on the curb and pondered his next move. As he was sitting there he noticed some activity across the street from him. Limos were continuously coming and going in front of a large elegant building. It wasn't like any other building on the strip. There were no bright lights or gaudy signs. In fact the only sign on the building was a large brass plaque next to two huge mahogany doors.

His hunger and tired feet forgotten in his curiosity he slowly walked towards the building. Now that he was closer he could read the sign by the doors. "The Ace of Spades Club" he read.

The boy stared at the sign a little longer working up the courage to sneak into the club. The perfect opportunity arose when a large limousine pulled to a stop in front of the doors.

The people who exited the limo were drunk and noisy and were causing a large commotion trying to get into the club. While the doormen were persuading the drunks that they were not welcome, Ezra saw this as his golden opportunity to sneak in. He had just entered the club when he was confronted by the most elegant casino he had ever seen. The Ace of Spades club was even nicer than any of the casinos in Monte Carlo let alone Las Vegas. He should know, Maude had dragged him there only last month.

The room was furnished in dark tones of brown, gold and red, nothing flashy or overdone. The waitresses were dressed in stylish suits in a deep wine color while the dealers and security people were dressed in tuxedos.

The young boy looked down at himself and attempted to straighten his clothing. At least he looked somewhat presentable, attired in dress slacks, dress shirt and sweater.

He crept about in the shadows for a few minutes until the found himself drawn to a poker table situated in a quiet corner away from the other gaming tables. He was quickly caught up in the caliber of playing that he was witnessing. There were three men and a woman playing at the table. The woman was controlling the cards and it was apparent that she was in charge of the table, if not the entire club. Ezra had witnessed the deference she was treated with by the pit boss and the other players at the table.

With his attention solely on the poker game he was slowly inching his way closer to the table. He must have stood beside the table for about five minutes before he felt someone looking at him. He looked up only to be confronted by the curious stare of the woman at the table.

"Hello there. Who are you and how did you get into the club?" she asked. She smiled at the boy and indicated that he was to answer her.

He was torn, his first instinct was to lie but something in her eyes stopped him. He told her his name, that his mother, Maude, was working on a con and that because he was bored he left his hotel room. He told the lady, who introduced herself as Miranda Dupree and asked Ezra to call her by her first name, about the evenings adventure. When he finished he waited to find out what was going to happen to him.

The other men at the table had been amused and upset over what the young boy had been through. They started arguing about what to do with the boy until Miranda sternly told the men to be quiet.

Miranda introduced the men to Ezra and asked if he knew how to play poker. Ezra looked at her and nodded his head. She directed one of the men to obtain another seat for the child, but before Ezra approached the chair he sat down on the floor and pulled off one of his loafers. He reached in and pulled out a folded bill and quickly put his shoe back on and scrambled onto the chair.

"At four years old you were hiding money in your shoes?" Vin chuckled at the image while giving Ez a nudge.

"Yes, Mr. Tanner. Maude always instilled that one should never keep ones currency in one place." Ezra smirked his dimples in full view. He had been caught up in his story and now took the time to look at his colleagues. He was pleased that they were taking his story at face value, not passing too many judgments and were listening with fairly open minds.

Ezra knew that his upbringing was unconventional to say the least, but it made him the man he was today and while there was much he would have liked to have changed, he didn't think that he turned out that badly.

"What happened next, Ez?" Chris asked. He had been enjoying listening to Ezra. The man could spin a story better than anyone he knew, his words could paint a picture in your mind. He also wanted to hear more about Ezra's past. The undercover man normally was very closed mouthed about his childhood and it was very rare to see him so relaxed and at ease.

Ezra took a sip of the brandy before him and cleared his throat.

Miss Dupree looked nonplussed at the little southern boy and took a sip of the drink that was placed beside her. The other men looked at the small boy with amazement.

Once settled comfortably on his chair, Ezra indicated that he was ready to start playing. Miranda requested a new deck and started shuffling. She noticed the little boy watching the play of the cards through her fingers raptly and with great concentration. She had a feeling that this was going to be an interesting game.

They had been playing for two hours when Miranda realized that it was midnight and the little boy was gamely trying to stay awake. At first she had been surprised that Ezra held his own against professional players, but her surprise quickly changed to satisfaction as she observed him to be bright and quick witted. Not to mention that Ezra had a poker face most men would give their eyeteeth for.

While they were playing she asked Ezra questions and was able to gather some information about the little gentleman. She was dismayed to learn about the boy's life. What kind of mother would teach her four-year-old son about gambling and conning people? It became apparent that the little boy's mother had taught him everything about gambling, and it was that skill along with the boy's natural ability (or what his mother had referred to as his "God given talent") that enabled him to hold his own with seasoned players and win at least half of the hands dealt that night.

She couldn't help but chuckle over the reactions the other men had towards the small poker maestro. At first they didn't take the young lad seriously until he won the first hand and continued to hold his own against them. Soon the child and amassed a tidy sum of money before him.

"Just how much money did you win that night?" Nathan asked. He was surprised that he was drawn into the story that Ezra was telling. It went a long way to explain why Ezra was the way he was.

"I started out with one hundred dollars and by the end of the evening I had close to one thousand," Ezra calmly replied, his eyes betraying the mirth he felt.

"What?! You won close to a thousand bucks?!" Buck spluttered.

"What's the problem, Bucklin? Ya knew Ez was a good poker player. To be as good as he is he would have to have started early," Vin drawled and winked at Ezra.

"Indeed, Mr. Wilmington. My skills being as they are, Ah always felt that Ah was born in the wrong time. If Ah had grown up during the 1800's Ah would have been a gambler, and quite a successful one too if Ah don't say so myself, instead of a federal agent," Ezra replied.

"I always thought that our brother would have made an admirable gambler or confidence man," Josiah fondly remarked while patting Ezra on the head.

"Mr. Sanchez, would you cease manhandling my person and let me continue?" Ezra batted Josiah's hand away from him while glaring at him, his glare ruined by the twinkle in his eye. "At this rate we may be here all night."

Miranda watched the boy who was gamely trying to keep his eyes from drooping shut and motioned to the men at the table that it was time to wrap up the game. They quickly finished the current hand and as they left the table, they shook Ezra's hand and wished him well. Miranda was pleased that there had been no altercations this evening. The gentlemen were old friends and good patrons of the club. She hadn't wanted to offend any of them by indulging in a whim. She knew she should have sent the boy back to his hotel or even have called the authorities to come and pick up the child, she just couldn't bring herself to. She knew that Child Welfare would get involved and take Ezra away from his mother, and while Maude wasn't what she would call a good mother, Ezra didn't look abused or completely unhappy.

Her other concern was that it was illegal to have a minor in the club but she never had any trouble with the law and was confident that none of her patrons would call the authorities.

"So young man what are we going to do with you?" Miss Miranda asked.

Ezra looked up at Miranda, "I suppose you could call me a cab so I could get back to my hotel, Miss Miranda."

Miranda had to smile at the little gentleman. Throughout the evening he had referred to her as 'Miss. Miranda' and no amount of cajoling could entice him to call her by her first name only. Her smile faded as she noticed the quick look of apprehension that flitted over Ezra's face. "That's probably a good idea, your mother will be worried that you aren't in your room."

Ezra looked down at his shoes and nodded his head. He knew that his mother wouldn't be in the room and that she probably forgot all about him for the time being.

"Why don't you wait in my office while I attend to some business and then I'll get one of my doormen to drive you back to your hotel." Miranda took the little southerner's hand and led him to her office. She set him down on the couch in the corner and left.

Ezra looked around the office, tucked his feet up on the couch and, before he knew it, he was fast asleep.

While Ezra snoozed, Miranda called over to Caesar's Palace, the hotel that Ezra's was staying at, to inquire of Ezra's mother. The owner of the hotel, Frank Lloyd, was an old friend and long time patron of the Ace of Spades Club, was pleased to be able to do Miranda a favor and tell her what he knew of Maude Standish. Since Frank was acquainted with Mrs. Standish he was able to inform Miranda that Maude had indicated that she was going out of town for a few days but that she was keeping her room. Miranda asked Frank if any arrangements had been made for Ezra's care for the time Maude was away. Frank responded that he didn't know who Ezra was and had no idea about any arrangements being made.

As she hung up the phone, Miranda had a hard time quelling the anger she felt towards absent mother. How could a woman do that to her child? More importantly, what was she going to do with the little southerner?

There were only a few options open to her: one, was to call the authorities to come and collect the boy; two, return Ezra to Caesar's Palace and forget about him; and three, to take care of the boy until Maude returned. The reality of the situation was that option number three was the only option.

"How long did you stay with Miss Miranda, Ez?" Tanner softly asked. He had long come to the realization that he and Ezra had much the same up bringing. They had both been shunted off to different homes, Vin with many foster families and Ezra by the whim of Maude.

"I spent five days at the club with Miss Miranda. She is one of the most fascinating women of my acquaintance," Ezra replied with a fond smile. "She had many interests and spent every day with me teaching me about art and literature and of course about gambling. I was truly saddened when Maude finally arrived to take me away with her."

"How did Maude find you if you weren't in the hotel?" Nathan asked.

"It seems that Miss Miranda left a message for Maude at the hotel. When Maude arrived to pick me up, Miss Miranda led mother into another room to 'talk'. Ah believe that Miss Miranda gave mother a 'talking too', for after we left the Club and Las Vegas Maude kept me with her for about one year before I was left with another aunt." Ezra smiled at the memory.

"Do you still keep in touch with her?" JD asked.

"With Maude? You do remember when last she waltzed into Denver, do you not?" Ezra asked innocently.

"No, damnit! Do you still keep in touch with Miss Miranda?" JD snarled in frustration.

"Yes indeed, Miss Miranda was always there when I needed a place to think." When I needed a place to hide, was what he really wanted to say. "I also spent my summer vacations working for Miss Miranda at the club as a dealer, whilst I was in college. It was a great way to earn my tuition and spending money for the year."

The seven men were silent for a while just enjoying each other's company, each man thinking about the story Ezra told them. They understood the enormity of what they just heard. Their brother was starting to trust them, and each one vowed never to be unworthy of that trust.

Just as they were getting ready to discuss what they were going to do for the rest of the night a tall man in a chauffeur's uniform came up to their table.

"Mr. Standish?" he asked looking around at the seven men.

"That would be me," Ezra replied.

"My name is Phillip. I have been sent to collect you, Sir," the chauffeur explained.

"A pleasure to meet you, Phillip. I will be with you in a moment," Ezra said while holding his hand out to shake Phillip's.

"Where are you going, Ez?" Buck asked with a frown.

"Well, gentlemen, as nice as this casino is, I have a longstanding appointment I must keep." Ezra stood up and straightened out the sleeves of his suit jacket. He indicated that Phillip should lead the way and started to follow him.

The other men just watched Ezra leave. They were too dumbfounded to try to stop him.

When he reached the exit of the lounge Ezra stopped and turned to his friends; "Well, gentlemen, are you not joining me? I do believe that Miss Miranda will be disappointed over not meeting y'all? You do know that it's not polite to keep a lady waiting, do you not?"

Vin and Josiah started chuckling and quickly threw some money on the table to cover their tabs and walked over to stand beside Ezra. Chris and Nathan just shook their heads and did the same.

Buck let out a whoop and smacked JD on the back of the head. "Well alright, Ez, let's get this show on the road!"

JD smacked Buck back and bounced over to where the others were waiting grinning from ear to ear.

They all knew that they were in for a special evening. A little piece of their reticent brother's past had been revealed to them tonight and each one of them hoped that this indicated that Ezra was starting to accept them as family.

Ezra looked at his teammates, his brothers, and was glad that he had told them about a bit about his childhood. He was looking forward to introducing them to Miss Miranda and showing them the place that meant a lot to him while growing up. At this moment in time, Ezra thought that life couldn't get any better. It was with a gladdened heart that he ushered his friends into the limo and towards an evening of gambling and laughter that was sure to follow.

END

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