CHAPTER 35: JAMESON

Jameson breaks into Ian’s fourth-floor hotel room through the window after discovering that Ian is not actually living at the King’s Gate Terrace flat. When Ian arrives drunk or hungover, Jameson confronts him about the flat, Branford, and the fact that Branford is really Simon Johnstone-Jameson, Ian’s brother and a viscount.

Ian confirms that Simon is his brother and explains that Simon rarely appears at the Devil’s Mercy, meaning someone must have told Simon about Ian’s loss. Jameson concludes that Simon may be seeking an invitation to the Game, and Ian responds with unusual seriousness: Jameson cannot let Simon win Vantage. Ian compares his own position as a third-born son to Jameson’s place among the Hawthorne brothers, then reveals that Ian’s mother left Vantage to him and promises to leave it to Jameson someday if Jameson wins it back.

Jameson tells Ian that Avery has already received an invitation to the Game, but Jameson has not. Ian becomes focused and asks what Jameson has done to earn entry. Jameson first demands to know why Ian was banned from the Devil’s Mercy, and Ian admits that he lost too much, became desperate, and caused a scene, which made the Factotum distrust him.

Jameson then describes Rohan’s public handling of two members who had broken the club’s rules. Ian explains that exile is a lighter punishment than what those men likely face and reveals the secret behind the Devil’s Mercy’s levy: to join, members must contribute a terrible secret with proof to a club ledger. The Proprietor uses these secrets to control powerful men, and when a member is punished, that member’s ledger page can become a prize in the Game.

When Jameson remembers that one punished man was named Ainsley, Ian realizes that every member of the club will now want a Game invitation because Ainsley’s forfeited levy must be valuable. Ian warns Jameson that merely winning at the tables and provoking the Proprietor will not be enough. Jameson accepts the challenge and decides that the next night he will begin by winning in the ring.