PC History: Art Stevens et Cat Garfunkel

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Art Stevens, - in his younger years, spent time as a miner and prospector in partnership with his boyhood best friend Cat Garfunkel.  Their youthful exuberance and boundless optimism refused to be quelled by the first few years of dead ends and minimal returns. After a couple of years however, luck reared its leprechaunian head as the BFFs struck a substantial vein of yellow oil.
With the funds to do as they wished, Cats' predisposition towards a multitude of vices found him establishing a casino in a popular town. Presenting to the world a legitimate business, Cat had also quickly set up illegal betting activities, a drugs ring and a small sideline in slavery. In this busy period of building his business portfolio, he employed the services of his friend Art Stevens as an in-house Card Sharp. Art had learned cards in his free time, his travels in prospecting allowing him to meet a variety of people who had experience in making extra scratch from a good game.
Cat had always been the more confident, entrepreneurial one and the more dominant friend in the relationship. Arts' lack of confidence and quiet loyalty to Cat was admirable, but foolish. Under the pretense of needing Arts money to fund his businesses and of looking after his share safely for him, Art saw comparatively little of his jackpot. Card Sharping provided Art extra income, a way to stay in touch with his friend and the thrill of fleecing fools.
In the intervening years, the increasingly repugnant Cat settled into family life with a politicians daughter and their two girls. As Cats kaleidoscope of sinful enterprises expanded, Art grew increasingly vocally disappointed in his friend. A while into their fracturing relationship, disaster struck overnight as the casino was robbed and trashed by a gang of men who left a trail of dead guards sprinkled in gold-dust. With Cat increasingly paranoid and tired of Arts rows about money, Art was let go with a harsh warning to never bother him again. Several attempts on Arts life followed, until Art got the hint to leave town. Without much in the way of money and his reputation soiled as the suspected traitor of the insufferable Cat Garfunkel, Art was left to wander The West, trying not to make a name of himself.