Lightwood by Steph Post

Author:Steph Post [Post, Steph]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Polis Books
Published: 2016-12-16T05:00:00+00:00

Jack O’ Lantern banged the gavel down on the long plastic table. Back in Oren’s day, the table for church was a massive slab of oak that reportedly had been hewn and carved by Oren’s great-grandfather back when Bradford County was just being settled. It had been a beautiful piece, lacquered to a high shine and nearly indestructible. When Oren had died, his wife had been forced to sell the table to pay off his creditors who had begun firing shots into her kitchen at night. The table was sold, the harassment eventually stopped, but Jack never forgave his Aunt Belinda for selling off the most enduring piece of the Scorpions’ history. Now they were left with dwindling numbers and a table that could be folded up and jammed behind a couch.

Jack slammed the wooden gavel down once more and the flimsy table wobbled. It got everyone’s attention, though, and the men sitting before Jack turned away from their side conversations and focused on him. Because their numbers were so small and their decisions so few, church had become a rare occurrence. Usually Jack O’ Lantern only conferred with Slim Jim, on occasion with Legs or Long John, and then told everyone else what to do. But Jack knew that the situation with the Cannons was different. Something had to be done and he needed everyone on board.

Jack O’ Lantern surveyed the table. The men sat in their metal folding chairs and waited for Jack to speak. Slim Jim was at his left, hands flat out on the table, the puckered scars across his knuckles standing out pink against his taunt, sallow skin. Legs and Tiny sat opposite him, both fidgeting with lit cigarettes, and Long John occupied the seat to Jack’s right. Long John sat stolidly on his chair, his prosthetic leg straight out in front of him and his hands resting on his thick thighs. Toadie and Ratface weren’t allowed to sit at the table, but they were in the room, leaning up against the wall with arms crossed in posed nonchalance. Jack O’ Lantern rested the gavel in front of the large glass ashtray in the middle of the table and grunted.

“This everyone?”

A sarcastic smile came to Slim Jim’s face.

“Yep.”

“What about Grundy and Junior?”

“Still out in Phoenix, checking on their cousin in rehab. I tried calling em but I can’t get nothing.”

Jack frowned.

“And Kippy?”

Slim Jim shook his head.

“Still in the hospital with that gallbladder infection. Don’t know when they’ll set him free. His old lady wouldn’t even let me in the room to talk to him. Started raising hell, squealing like a stuck pig, so I left it alone. You want me to try again?”

“Don’t bother. His organs picked a helluva time to go out, but if they won’t let him outta the hospital then he ain’t no use to us right now.”

Jack O’ Lantern looked into the faces of his men. Long John couldn’t fight and after being shot, Tiny was pretty much useless. Toadie and

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