The Lights in Vegas by Justin Kramasz

Author:Justin Kramasz [Kramasz, Justin]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781611870626
Publisher: Untreed Reads Publishing
Published: 2010-11-15T00:00:00+00:00

10: Licking Wounds

After a couple of painful and delirious days tucked away in this tiny hotel room, I am a ghost.

Barely breathing; almost alive. Anymore I have no idea where Benny is. Anymore, I am losing track of the whys and the whats and the hows. All I know is pain.

Why did I expect this to be a vacation?

What good, if any, could I do Benny in this strange and foreign city?

How have I fallen so far in such a short time?

Or had I been lying to myself, always standing on the edge, teetering, never realizing that the journey to the bottom was not that far from where I stood?

Benny had given me specific instructions, and a number, to call a local “pharmacist.”

The man who answered my call did not meet my expectations. His witless banter and complete lack of tact were not that of an educated and respected man. I knew at once he was a drug dealer likewise, I knew exactly what to ask of him…If I was to be self-medicating for upwards of a week, I figured I needed about an ounce of primo-ganja and a variety of painkillers. The man identified himself as Orad, saying that he knew Benny from “back home” and told me that I was taken care of, and that he had been expecting my call. He would meet me in the motel parking lot in twenty minutes.

The idea of a drug dealer knowing my exact location while my best friend is crusading against unknown gangsters and reprobates is not a settling one. But it is too late to argue.

I pass the ice machine on the way to the parking lot and I stop cold as I emerge from the hall. Over the balcony, in the motel parking lot is a black mustang with tinted windows. I have seen it before and It was a most alarming experience. Stepping back into the obscurity of the hall, I begin to go over my options. I had recently planned an escape route through the hotel’s back door. It is the obvious option, but will these stakeouteers have expected it?

Realizing that my only refuge was retreating through the back door, I hurry down the hall dialing Orad’s number to inform him not to meet me in the lot.

Emerging into an open field, I tell Orad to meet me at a nearby liquor store. Hanging up I quickly move toward the convenience store.

Had the people in the car seen me? I prayed they hadn’t. I glimpsed the face of a lisping Latino from the back of my mind.

In the alley behind the store, I wait for the dealer to arrive. He informs me again that I am taken care of and hands me a briefcase full of prescription painkillers and marijuana. He drives off without payment. I buy a handle of Jack Daniel’s and some rolling papers from the store before I leave for the motel.

I decide to make a run for it. I had parked my

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.