smile. Clearly, Bino ain’t getting any help from Sev.
With an open hand, I slap down hard into Bino’s plate of macaroni and cheese, sending the crap all over the guy. I know it’s more third grade than it is OK Corral, but fuck it. I’m gonna send a message that I can push back. Bino’s in a pretty bad spot. He should do something, but if he goes after me, he knows now that I’ll put the hurt on him.
Bino looks at himself wearing his lunch. He stands up and is trying to say something. The fucking guy is so embarrassed that his pale skin is turning red. Maybe I did him a favor here. Someone should screw around with him 24 hours a day; with the surge in blood flow to his face, he almost looks human. He finally blurts out, “Fuck you, man! Don’t think I can’t get you back.”
With that comment he storms out. The guys in the lounge egg him on, saying “Oooooooo” in unison.
When Bino is gone, practically the whole lounge is laughing. The guys who were sitting next to Bino scoot over a bit to make room for Felipe and me. I brush off some of the macaroni and cheese that landed on the long bench. I know the guys bitch about what an asshole Bino is. I have a hunch taking care of this will go a long way. Maybe it’s a stupid risk, but I think I just made life better. In any case, it feels real good.
I’ve just swallowed the first bite of my sandwich when Lily comes screaming into the lounge. She’s in a panic and wailing uncontrollably. Felipe turns to me and says, “Man, can she be dramatic.”
I can’t make out what she is trying to say but I’m sure it’s nothing good. Everyone is trying to go about their business rather than get involved with Lily. Finally Amy Horwitz from packaging tries to get her under control. Lily’s face is bright red and she’s breathing like a cow giving birth. I’ve never seen hysteria like this.
Finally Lily calms down enough to tell us what happened. She says she went to the women’s locker room to start her shift and opened up her locker. What she found was her boss Georgie and his hairy ears staring at her. The problem was, Georgie wasn’t all in one piece. His severed head was gazing at her from the top shelf. The rest of him was in her locker too. Apparently someone shot Georgie, hacked up his body, put him in garbage bags and stuffed him into Lily’s locker. They put his head in a clear plastic bag and left it on the top shelf of her locker for maximum effect.
It takes the police about 20 minutes to get here. They are taping off areas and questioning everyone. The police are amazed it took till noon to discover Georgie, as he’d been there overnight at least. The other women apparently smelled something rank in the locker room but just figured it was Lily being hygienically challenged. Kosher World is shut down for the day, but we all have to hang around in case the cops want to ask any questions.
The next day they get us working as soon as possible. Sev tells us, “Let the police do their job and you do yours.” It’s a surreal atmosphere. People are milling about like little kids at a party for adults. I stumble like a zombie to my spot in the Hotdog Room.
No one wants to talk about the murder. I’m getting the impression this didn’t come out of the blue. People are upset, but nobody’s shocked. No one will tell me anything, either. Just when I think Kosher World can’t get any weirder, it moves up a rung on the weird ladder. And while it was never really safe, it feels downright dangerous now.
So I just keep to myself and do my job, trying to pretend nothing awful has happened. People are doing their jobs and leaving me alone, so I can’t complain too much. Throughout the week some of the shifts are pretty thin as people go to Georgie’s funeral and pay their respects to his wife and two daughters. I am more relieved than ever as this week concludes.
CHAPTER 5
It’s only been a week since Georgie was
With an open hand, I slap down hard into Bino’s plate of macaroni and cheese, sending the crap all over the guy. I know it’s more third grade than it is OK Corral, but fuck it. I’m gonna send a message that I can push back. Bino’s in a pretty bad spot. He should do something, but if he goes after me, he knows now that I’ll put the hurt on him.
Bino looks at himself wearing his lunch. He stands up and is trying to say something. The fucking guy is so embarrassed that his pale skin is turning red. Maybe I did him a favor here. Someone should screw around with him 24 hours a day; with the surge in blood flow to his face, he almost looks human. He finally blurts out, “Fuck you, man! Don’t think I can’t get you back.”
With that comment he storms out. The guys in the lounge egg him on, saying “Oooooooo” in unison.
When Bino is gone, practically the whole lounge is laughing. The guys who were sitting next to Bino scoot over a bit to make room for Felipe and me. I brush off some of the macaroni and cheese that landed on the long bench. I know the guys bitch about what an asshole Bino is. I have a hunch taking care of this will go a long way. Maybe it’s a stupid risk, but I think I just made life better. In any case, it feels real good.
I’ve just swallowed the first bite of my sandwich when Lily comes screaming into the lounge. She’s in a panic and wailing uncontrollably. Felipe turns to me and says, “Man, can she be dramatic.”
I can’t make out what she is trying to say but I’m sure it’s nothing good. Everyone is trying to go about their business rather than get involved with Lily. Finally Amy Horwitz from packaging tries to get her under control. Lily’s face is bright red and she’s breathing like a cow giving birth. I’ve never seen hysteria like this.
Finally Lily calms down enough to tell us what happened. She says she went to the women’s locker room to start her shift and opened up her locker. What she found was her boss Georgie and his hairy ears staring at her. The problem was, Georgie wasn’t all in one piece. His severed head was gazing at her from the top shelf. The rest of him was in her locker too. Apparently someone shot Georgie, hacked up his body, put him in garbage bags and stuffed him into Lily’s locker. They put his head in a clear plastic bag and left it on the top shelf of her locker for maximum effect.
It takes the police about 20 minutes to get here. They are taping off areas and questioning everyone. The police are amazed it took till noon to discover Georgie, as he’d been there overnight at least. The other women apparently smelled something rank in the locker room but just figured it was Lily being hygienically challenged. Kosher World is shut down for the day, but we all have to hang around in case the cops want to ask any questions.
The next day they get us working as soon as possible. Sev tells us, “Let the police do their job and you do yours.” It’s a surreal atmosphere. People are milling about like little kids at a party for adults. I stumble like a zombie to my spot in the Hotdog Room.
No one wants to talk about the murder. I’m getting the impression this didn’t come out of the blue. People are upset, but nobody’s shocked. No one will tell me anything, either. Just when I think Kosher World can’t get any weirder, it moves up a rung on the weird ladder. And while it was never really safe, it feels downright dangerous now.
So I just keep to myself and do my job, trying to pretend nothing awful has happened. People are doing their jobs and leaving me alone, so I can’t complain too much. Throughout the week some of the shifts are pretty thin as people go to Georgie’s funeral and pay their respects to his wife and two daughters. I am more relieved than ever as this week concludes.
CHAPTER 5
It’s only been a week since Georgie was
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