Saturday, October 29, 2022

Foster ... Chapter 1, the adventure begins...

 

Trick or Treat

 

Gray pulled into the parking lot and skidded to a stop, the brakes on the old pickup screeching.

“Stay in the truck and keep the engine running,” Todd snapped. He slammed the door and headed for the liquor store entrance, his brother Tim close behind.

“Hey, wait, I gotta take a leak,” Gray shouted.

“Just stay there, damn it!” Todd barked over his shoulder as he and his brother barged through the front door, stumbling drunk.

It made sense for Gray to keep the motor running on the beat up ’51 Ford, twenty years old with a sticky float in the carburetor. Shut it down and he’d have a hassle getting it started again. That didn’t change the fact that he had to go—bad! There was a dumpster at the side of the building, just a few steps away. He opened the door and ran around the large metal box, unzipped his pants and let fly.

POP! POP! The sound came from inside the store. POP! Again. What in the hell? The bell attached to the door rang wildly, followed by Tim and Todd’s shouts.

“Come on, get in the damn truck!”

“Ow, my leg, Todd, he shot me in the leg!”

“Just get the hell in. Hey, where’s Gray? I told that sonofabitch to stay here.”

“Ow, my leg—”

“Did that bastard take off? I’ll kill him!”

Doors slammed, the engine roared, and wheels screamed as the Ford tore out of the parking lot. Gray zipped his pants and peered around the dumpster. Jeez, what just happened? He walked around the corner of the building, along the front of the store, the plate glass window full of old Nixon-Agnew stickers. He pulled the door open. Behind the counter, flat on his back, a man stared at the ceiling, a neat hole in his forehead, blood pooling on the dirty linoleum floor. Oh my God, they shot the clerk! Shot him dead. The man held a gun in his right hand. He’d fought back and lost. Gray recognized the dead man. Holy shit, it’s old man Antonelli. He couldn’t remember the man’s first name. Gray looked around. The store was empty, but it wouldn’t be long until somebody walked in, found the body, and called the cops. And who would believe Gray? A foster kid, no parents, no family. Just a foster kid—with a record. He had to get out of there…

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1 comment:

  1. Sometimes nature saves the day! Great idea posting chapters here. This one pulls you right in.

    ReplyDelete