Playing Games by Lawrence Block

Author:Lawrence Block
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Lawrence Block
Published: 2022-12-28T00:00:00+00:00

BABE SCOOCHED HER chair in closer. “It’s hot, huh? Should I turn on the air conditioning?”

“I think it’s nice,” Madge said.

Dolores exhaled. “We’re fine.” She pushed her hair back behind her ears. It was still brown except for some wiry gray streaks—she pulled it up in the back and clamped it with a couple of shiny gold clips she’d slid from her jeans pocket. Dolores’ jeans were not chic. If there was a way to buy jeans that still looked like you were spending the summer at your Uncle Pete’s cabin at the Lake of the Ozarks, Dolores found them. Probably at K-Mart, Babe said. One would never know Dolores was the famous Dolores James, a federal judge who had spent a good chunk of her life sending bad guys to the slammer. Dolores’ jeans weren’t chic and neither was her vocabulary. She loved the old words, she said. Gay as in gay at a cocktail party, slammer or clinker for jail—or the big house, which Geri thought was hilarious—calling people kiddo or cookie or jack. Dolores was a skinny brunette with sharp eyes and sharp bones, a big brain and a lot of . . . moxie. Which was probably still the right word.

Babe repositioned herself on the chair, adjusting her skirt so that it wouldn’t wrinkle. “I love fresh air. Joe always keeps it so cold in the house. He has a fit when I open the doors, says it’s not safe nowadays but I know it’s his fixation on regulating the air conditioning. He’s obsessed. Do you guys want more of the little sandwiches?”

“Honey, I can’t eat any more cucumbers,” Geraldine said. “They give me gas.”

Dolores gave Geri’s arm a little smack. “You’re a riot,” she said.

“I am indeed.”

“So, where are we?” Babe asked, taking a sip of vodka and studying the tiles in front of her.

“Well, we were talking about who you pray to,” Madge said.

“When?”

“You know. When you pray.”

Babe looked up. “What do you mean? Like Jesus?”

“Well, sure. I mean, if that’s who you pray to.”

“Well, sure. Uhhh . . .” She took a tile from the wall, slipped it between tiles on her rack and discarded a green dragon. She looked at Madge. “How do you picture him?”

“How do I picture Jesus?” Madge asked, taking the green dragon and discarding a west wind.

“Sean Connery,” Geri said. “Only thinner.”

Dolores let out a whoop of laughter. “You’re kidding.”

“Sean Connery?” Madge said. “With a beard?”

“Well, not when I was a kid,” Gerri said. “When I was a kid in Queens I pictured him more like that actor who died young . . . with the ice blue eyes and muscles . . . I can’t remember his name . . . Jeffrey something?” She shifted some tiles on her rack. “Of course we weren’t supposed to. If Sister Mary Annunciata had known we were picturing Jesus looking like a movie star she would have taken out her ruler.”

“Child abuse,” Dolores said.

“Well, I guess,” Geri said. “But then when I was older, I kind of pictured him like Sean Connery, but not when he was Bond.

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.