Monday, December 16, 2013

Magic World (working title): Chapter 10 part 9

Of course he couldn't let it go at that. He was basically stealing somebody's lunch. He didn't mind stealing from greedy bastards who deserved it from time to time, but stealing food from Average Hard-Working Joe, was something else entirely.

So, he hacked the Pizzaria's computer system, which was terrifyingly easy, found the original order, duplicated it, upgraded it with breadsticks, and a desert pizza, and paid for it with one of his "clean" pre-paid cards.

Then he drove off toward Heavenly Ham.

Or at least the place where he thought it was supposed to be. It turned out to be one of those places that you can drive right past about three or four times and not realize it's right in front of you. Finally he realized that the little shop with no signage except for a neon sign in the window that spelled "Honeybaked, Heavenly Ham," in a kind of cursive script. He parked his van, this time with no logo on the side, and cursed all businesses that had no signage.

He trotted across the parking lot, and pushed open the door. The first thing that hit him about the place, even before the decor, or the sound of the meat slicer slicing, was the smell. First the smell of the ham, which was a rich, salty smell. But then right on top of that was the bread, which was one of those universal things that everyone recognized almost right away.

As he stood there for a few moments with his eyes closed, the sound of the meat slicer stopped.

"Can I help you young man?"

Gary's eyes snapped open and his head spun around to face the older lady, probably around mid-50s to mid-60s, plump, yet beefy, like someone who ate well, but worked hard too. She looked like she could bench press a small Volkswagon.

He blinked his eyes and shook his head to get that image out of his mind's eye, and said, "Um... yes. I'm looking for someone... meeting someone here really, Um... " He could feel his social anxiety sneaking up on him, and forced himself to stop, take a deep breath, and relax, though he could feel his heart pounding.

Meanwhile, the lady looked patiently at him, one eyebrow slightly raised.

"I'm meeting someone here named Jackie. I just got into town, and this was where we were supposed to meet."

She nodded at him through narrowed eyes, her mouth in a silent "Ah" position.

"Well, my name ain't Jacquie, and I'm the only lady in the place at the moment."

This was true. There were a few men, workers by the look of most of them, probably in on an early lunch. Also a guy in a tweed suit and tie, with a very neatly trimmed beard, a guy in a leather jacket with cropped hair, and a square jaw sitting in the corner, and a guy that Gary couldn't see clearly because he was reading an honest-to-god newspaper. With newsprint and everything. It made Gary feel like he was back in the twentieth century.

He looked back at the lady, and smirked a little. "I never said it was a 'she.'" He smiled at her and turned to the group, assessing which one was most likely to be his contact....

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