In Las Vegas, Dean is playing blackjack and winning consistently. The floor manager finally comes over and removes the dealer, Orlan, much to Dean's disappointment. As he protests, Sam comes in and says that they need to do what they came for. Before Dean can leave, a light falls from the ceiling, crushing Orlan. The Chinese coin that he has pinned to his lapel flies into the air and lands in Dean's pile of chips.
The Winchesters go to the bar and Dean spots an attractive woman nearby. As he goes over, Sam tells his brother that she was being questioned by the police about Orlan's death. They go over and the woman, Katty, explains that she's a croupier and never worked blackjack. She has heard that Orlan lost money and then cried that he was possessed. Katty dismisses it as the dealer making excuses for his bad luck and leaves for work. Dean offers to walk her back but Sam cuts him off.
As the brothers go to their room, Dean figures that Orlan was just having a losing streak. Sam isn't so sure and thinks that black magic might be involved. As Dean goes into the elevator, he steps on a roulette ball and trips. Sam finds it amusing and Dean trips again when he gets up and steps on the Chinese coin that fell out of his pocket.
Once they get back to their room, Dean figures that his winning streak is over. He looks in the mirror and sees a little Japanese man sitting on his shoulder, drinking tea and chuckling. Sam doesn't see anything and Dean sketches a picture. His brother looks it up on the Internet and confirms that the Poverty God feeds on people's luck. The Poverty God is still in the room, taking a nap on the bed. The website says that the Poverty God is tied to a coin, and Dean finds it in his pocket. He throws it off the balcony before Sam can stop him, but he figures that should do it.
In the street below, the coin rolls into the street and a car hits it. It goes flying into an alley where two pigeons fight over it. Up on the balcony, Sam wonders if throwing away the coin was enough to get rid of it. The pigeons fly up and drop the coin on Dean, hitting him in the head. He tries burning and salting the coin without success and then throws it into the lake. However, a fisherman snags it, pulls it up, and throws it into Dean's pocket. Next Dean buries it and drives away, only to find a cobra in his lap. It spits up the coin and Sam suggests they go back to the hotel. The sprinkler system goes off, destroying Sam's laptop computer. The manager comes in and explains that the fire they set earlier set off the sprinkler system, and tells them to pay for all the water damage.
Once the brothers pay for the damage with all of Dean's winnings, they drive out of town. A pipe falls off of the truck ahead of them and narrowly misses Dean as it smashes through the windshield.
The next morning, the Winchesters check into a motel and Sam goes to do some research while Dean cowers on the bed. At the library, Sam is forced to use books and finally discovers that the Poverty God never goes away.
Dean watches a news broadcast about four prisoners who escaped from prison. The TV short-circuits and bursts into flames, and Dean sees two thieves stealing the Impala. They drive away as he runs out and a taxi narrowly misses hitting Dean. He takes the taxi and drives after the Impala.
Sam leaves the library and calls Dean, just as the thieves drive by followed by Dean in the taxi. He crashes the taxi and is billed for the damages just as Sam arrives. When they go back to the motel, they discover that the fire from the television set the room on fire. As the fire department puts out the flames, the manager runs out and the Winchesters run off.
That night, the brothers camp outside of town and Sam tells Dean the bad news. Sam dozes off briefly but the noise from the highway wakes him up. He discovers that Dean is gone and finds his brother's sleeping bag on the road. Dean isn't in it and Sam realizes that his wallet is gone.
Dean goes back to the casino and is playing at Katty's table. She takes his last chip as Sam warns that the curse is getting worse. As they talk, an armored car slams through the front of the casino. Armed robbers break in and take the casino's money. One of the cashiers wheels the money cart to the vault and Katty tries to open the door without success. The head robber, Adoph, catches up to them, takes Katty hostage, and orders the cashier to hand over his keys.
Dean tries to leave the casino via the walkway but slams into a glass panel and almost falls to his death before Sam pulls him up. He spots Katty and drops on the robber, takes his gun, and tells Katty to call the police. However, she draws a gun on him and another robber captures Sam. Katty complains that Dean ruined her plan and tells her men to fire. Sam drops off the overhead walkway onto Katty and the coin jumps out of Dean's pocket. Sam catches it and forces Katty to swallow it. The police pull up and surround the robbers.
As the Winchesters leave, Dean assures Sam that he can't see the Poverty God anymore. He agrees to work on what they came there for and they walk off, arguing. Dean is soon back at the table, gambling Sam's money to win enough money to repair the Impala.
Written by Gadfly on Nov 19, 2015