zipped forward, and Coop flashed onto the screen. He buzzed around the room. At one point he had the legendary, bronzed bingo dauber, tossing it back and forth from one hand to the other. Kinky appeared again, followed by a few moments of very animated discussion. Kinky’s arm went up, a finger pointing to the door. Coop set the dauber on the desk and exited.
“Man, that hurts almost as much the second time around,” Coop said with a grimace.
We’d been standing mesmerized in front of the monitor for several minutes. Suddenly, we were jolted back to reality by the loud sound of shattering glass.
I dove for the light switch. Coop hit the power on the TV and frantically jabbed at the eject button on the VCR. Eddy stood rooted to the floor. Her eyes went wide and round, the whites showing bright against her dark skin.
“What the hell?” Coop whispered. With a rattle and click of the VCR, Coop yanked the cassette out of the player.
It had sounded as if the crash came from the main bingo floor. I whispered, “Where does this hallway go?”
“Past the restrooms and break room. There’s an emergency exit at the end, but it’ll set off the alarm.”
I grabbed Eddy’s arm. “Come on.”
At the threshold, I stopped. Whoever broke in had to hear the hammering of our hearts. We were probably twenty feet away from the main bingo area, and I caught a brief flash of light. It blinked out as fast as it came on, followed by another loud bang.
“Shut the fuck up,” a man said in an ominous, low voice.
Cops wouldn’t break in, so who were these guys?
I dragged Eddy out the door, and Coop followed us. We hustled farther down the hall away from the bingo floor. A door was propped open, and I darted into the room as fast as one can dart with two people in tow.
Eddy flung herself against the wall. I knelt next to the doorframe, struggling to quiet my panicked breathing.
“Oh God,” Eddy whispered, realizing which room we’d landed in from the acrid odor heavy in the air. “I don’t want to die in the toilet. Is this the men’s toilet? I’d rather die in the women’s.”
“Hush!” I poked Eddy with my elbow. She fell silent. My breath stuck in my lungs as footsteps echoed nearer. The interlopers had entered the hallway.
“The office is somewhere here,” the low voice said.
“It damn well better be. Your directions are shit, Pudge,” said another voice, accented and not as deep. Brooklyn, or Jersey, maybe? “Christ. I can’t believe you did that, you dumbass.”
Another oath from the first man. “I said I was sorry. Bastard shouldn’t have done what he done. That’s serious shit, ya know?”
“Yeah, yeah, what-the-fuck-ever. There’s gotta be something here that’ll tell us where those fucking nuts went.” The footsteps stopped, fortunately not in front of our hideout. Probably at the office we’d vacated. “You should have at least made him tell you where the stupid truck is before you did him.”
Nuts? I pressed my head hard against the tile wall, praying they wouldn’t come closer, wondering what kind of nuts would have anything to do with the Bingo Barge and Kinky’s death.
“Here, Boss,” Pudge said.
I hazarded a quick peek around the doorframe. The light in Kinky’s office blinked on. I jerked my head out of the line of sight.
Eddy leaned toward me. “We need a diversion to get the hell off this tub.”
“What do you suggest?” Coop whispered.
“Shh.” I waved a hand at them as the strange voices carried down the hall to us.
“… the hell is this? Some kind of fucking VCR?” asked the Boss.
“I dunno, Boss.” Silence reigned momentarily, and then Pudge said, “What’s on that tape?” More silence. I imagined one of them starting the Lovin’ Lavonne cassette.
After what felt like a very long silence, Pudge said, “Holy shit, it’s Stanley and some ho.”
“And they’re getting it on,” the other man said. A pause, then, “Where’s the cam?”
“I think
“Man, that hurts almost as much the second time around,” Coop said with a grimace.
We’d been standing mesmerized in front of the monitor for several minutes. Suddenly, we were jolted back to reality by the loud sound of shattering glass.
I dove for the light switch. Coop hit the power on the TV and frantically jabbed at the eject button on the VCR. Eddy stood rooted to the floor. Her eyes went wide and round, the whites showing bright against her dark skin.
“What the hell?” Coop whispered. With a rattle and click of the VCR, Coop yanked the cassette out of the player.
It had sounded as if the crash came from the main bingo floor. I whispered, “Where does this hallway go?”
“Past the restrooms and break room. There’s an emergency exit at the end, but it’ll set off the alarm.”
I grabbed Eddy’s arm. “Come on.”
At the threshold, I stopped. Whoever broke in had to hear the hammering of our hearts. We were probably twenty feet away from the main bingo area, and I caught a brief flash of light. It blinked out as fast as it came on, followed by another loud bang.
“Shut the fuck up,” a man said in an ominous, low voice.
Cops wouldn’t break in, so who were these guys?
I dragged Eddy out the door, and Coop followed us. We hustled farther down the hall away from the bingo floor. A door was propped open, and I darted into the room as fast as one can dart with two people in tow.
Eddy flung herself against the wall. I knelt next to the doorframe, struggling to quiet my panicked breathing.
“Oh God,” Eddy whispered, realizing which room we’d landed in from the acrid odor heavy in the air. “I don’t want to die in the toilet. Is this the men’s toilet? I’d rather die in the women’s.”
“Hush!” I poked Eddy with my elbow. She fell silent. My breath stuck in my lungs as footsteps echoed nearer. The interlopers had entered the hallway.
“The office is somewhere here,” the low voice said.
“It damn well better be. Your directions are shit, Pudge,” said another voice, accented and not as deep. Brooklyn, or Jersey, maybe? “Christ. I can’t believe you did that, you dumbass.”
Another oath from the first man. “I said I was sorry. Bastard shouldn’t have done what he done. That’s serious shit, ya know?”
“Yeah, yeah, what-the-fuck-ever. There’s gotta be something here that’ll tell us where those fucking nuts went.” The footsteps stopped, fortunately not in front of our hideout. Probably at the office we’d vacated. “You should have at least made him tell you where the stupid truck is before you did him.”
Nuts? I pressed my head hard against the tile wall, praying they wouldn’t come closer, wondering what kind of nuts would have anything to do with the Bingo Barge and Kinky’s death.
“Here, Boss,” Pudge said.
I hazarded a quick peek around the doorframe. The light in Kinky’s office blinked on. I jerked my head out of the line of sight.
Eddy leaned toward me. “We need a diversion to get the hell off this tub.”
“What do you suggest?” Coop whispered.
“Shh.” I waved a hand at them as the strange voices carried down the hall to us.
“… the hell is this? Some kind of fucking VCR?” asked the Boss.
“I dunno, Boss.” Silence reigned momentarily, and then Pudge said, “What’s on that tape?” More silence. I imagined one of them starting the Lovin’ Lavonne cassette.
After what felt like a very long silence, Pudge said, “Holy shit, it’s Stanley and some ho.”
“And they’re getting it on,” the other man said. A pause, then, “Where’s the cam?”
“I think
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