Poker night

The last few bites of my apple were disappearing when Phil poked his head in the back door,
"Busy?" he asked.
I shook my head and swallowed. "Nope," I answered. "What's up?"
"I'm heading out to run some errands and wanted some company. You up for it?"
"Of course. Let me grab my keys."
Once we were in Phil's car, chatting and listening to the radio, I noticed the slight wrinkle in Phil's forehead.
"Okay, spill it," I said. "There's a reason you need company this afternoon, and I want to know what it is."
Phil was quiet for a moment, but his lack of denial was clear.
"I'm worried about Pete," he finally said.
My stomach clenched and my heart started pounding. "Oh?" I asked, trying to keep my voice even and calm.
"Yeah," Pete glanced over and I could tell I wasn't fooling him either, but he let it slide. "One of my errands happens to be withdrawing some cash for him. About $1,000."
"What!?" All attempts at calm and detached were gone as fast as a soap bubble in a hurricane. "Why in the world are you loaning him $1,000?"
Phil sighed. "Well, it's that or he loses his truck and then his job."
"Okay, that's the surface why, but I'm looking for a bigger picture here, Phil."
"When I asked him all he said was 'poker night.'"
My heart began to slow a bit. "So maybe he had a few bad nights, right?" I said.
The frown lines were back on Phil's forehead. "Maybe," he said without conviction. "But I've been noticing a...semi-return to Pete's former here then gone behavior. And after he said that I'm starting to wonder if he's got a problem."
"A gambling problem?" It seemed ludicrous.
"Well, that, and I think he's rolling in a crowd that's pretty out of his league," Phil continued. "I think he's in way over his head, and for more than just $1,000."
We sat in silence as Phil pulled into the bank parking lot. I stayed in the car as he went inside and tried to process what Phil had said. It made sense and would explain everything. But I couldn't shake images of various movies in which guys who couldn't pay their gambling debts got bones broken and appendages removed. I didn't want it to be true, but the more I thought about it the more possible it became.