The Second Mouse - Archer Mayor [28]
Ellis had opened her eyes. Never before had she been so catered to. He’d not only worked hard to build her excitement and bring her to climax, but when he’d finally joined her, he’d made his own enjoyment enthusiastically clear, bringing her own satisfaction to a new height. Sex had always been something she’d assumed she was there to provide—not a feast two people could share.
The very thought of their time together made her squirm slightly in her chair. Now that they’d done this once, nervously and spontaneously, she couldn’t wait to try it again with more forethought and planning. She was going to make sure Ellis had never had anyone better.
The last game wrapped up close to when their neighbor had said it would. The three of them stood in line along with the hundred-plus other people in the hall and began shuffling toward the door. Ellis made sure he was last in line behind Nancy and Mel so he could occasionally brush her butt with his hand, pretending he was being jostled. Mel couldn’t figure out why his wife was so cheerful.
In the back of her mind, however, was still the question about what they were doing here. Playing bingo was hardly one of Mel’s enthusiasms, and his manner during the event notwithstanding, he’d even made an effort to change his appearance, if only slightly, by wearing a collared shirt and tying his long hair back with a rubber band. He was up to something. The question was, now that they were filing out into the parking lot, what?
The answer wasn’t forthcoming as they fit into the pickup but remained parked. Mel stayed quiet, his hands on the steering wheel and his eyes on the crowd still streaming from the firehouse doors. His mood had improved, however, and there was a gleam to his eye that he got as every raid began gathering steam.
Ellis had noticed the same thing. He sat motionless beside Nancy, attuned to her presence but with his fingers interlaced in his lap, working to keep his focus on Mel’s lead. He knew from long experience that anything could happen from this point on, and probably would, and that his own survival would depend on thinking clearly. Because one thing was consistent with Mel—he never had your safety in mind when he acted.
The parking lot was thinning out. Mel lit a cigarette and watched meditatively as car after car slowly filed onto the road. His companions knew better than to ask questions. There was a balancing act to observe here, after all. Something between showing trust and getting enough information to stay alive.
Ellis made a small reconnaissance into this minefield. “Lot of money changes hands at these things.”
Mel nodded, his eyes on the string of flaring taillights. “That it does.”
“Kinda makes the mind work.”
Mel let out a short, quiet laugh. “Can’t talk for you, Ellis, but it did get me going.”
The subject now seemed officially open for discussion. Nancy spoke softly. “That is something you know how to do.”
Mel reached out and patted her knee. “Well, somebody’s got to keep us fed. Christ knows, you two can’t. What did you see tonight?”
Neither of them could go too far wrong at this point. “A bingo game,” Nancy said.
“Money,” Ellis contributed. “Like I said.”
“Yeah,” Mel drawled, leaning forward slightly to turn the ignition key, bringing the truck noisily alive. “Money coming in from a whole bunch of pockets and ending up in one.”
He pulled the truck forward and slipped into the line of departing vehicles.
“Right,” Ellis said appreciatively. “Kind of like a bank.”
Mel cut him a look and a quick smile. “For a dumb drunk, you do get lucky every once in a while.” He pointed at the building they were passing on their way out of the lot. “Exactly like a bank, without all the inconveniences.”
Nancy was staring straight ahead, feeling the tingle of apprehension she’d last experienced outside the armory, during the theft of the two guns. Thus far, she didn’t know what to do with it. Was