Lucky Flash: A Lucky O'Toole Novella (The Lucky O'Toole Vegas Adventure Series) Read Online Free PDF Page B

it you think you know?”   Romeo’s voice was flat, angry with a hint of exhausted.
    “The competitors were given a list of cool music shit.   Stuff that belonged to some of the greats.   The harder the stuff is to grab, the more points we earn.   The one with the most points wins.”
    “Wins what?”   I asked while Romeo scribbled in his notebook.
    The uniforms had secured the men in the back of the cruiser and now stood guard in a bored sort of way—this sort of thing was probably routine and therefore boring to them.   On the other hand, Flash seemed riveted as she too took notes in what I knew to be her own personal version of Sanskrit—illegible to most and unreadable to all unless they had access to her mental Rosetta Stone.
    “The winner gets a recording contract.   Dig Me O’Dell of Smooth Sound Downtown Records is offering a one-year contract, a shot at opening for one of their big acts, promotion…you know, the whole enchilada.”
    Scribbling stopped as all eyes landed on Johnny Pismo.   Unused to the scrutiny, he shrank into himself.
    “You mean we have a bunch half-crazed wanna-bes running all over town, taking things that don’t belong to them, to try to win a shot at the big time?”   Romeo sounded incredulous.
    Personally, even though the scheme sounded ill-advised, it didn’t seem all that far-fetched.   “You got a list of the icons you’re looking for?”
    “Not on me.”   Johnny patted his pockets.   “It’s like a treasure map; I’ve got it stashed where nobody can find it.”
    “I’ll take you to get it, then you’re coming downtown with me.”  
    Pismo didn’t argue.   Considering Busta’ Blue wanting to put a heap of hurt on him, jail probably seemed like a safe place to hide.
    “How many contestants are there?” I asked Johnny Pismo.
    The crooner shrugged.   “Who knows?”
    “What happens to the items that are stolen?”
    “Here’s the deal,” Johnny leaned in, lowering his voice.   “I can’t prove it or nothing, but the items get returned to their rightful owners—in theory.   But I’m thinking that’s how they pull the switch, giving the owners back the fakes.”
    I couldn’t shake the feeling that Pismo’s story held about as much water as a sieve.   Time to move up the food chain.   The Big Boss had some explaining to do.

CHAPTER THREE

    F LASH
    A big part of being an investigative reporter involved keeping my mouth shut and my ears open.   So I’d stayed in the background while all the excitement died down, letting Lucky and Romeo untangle Johnny Pismo’s story.   Romeo had tucked Pismo into the back of his unmarked—there still was that whole shooting into a crowd issue to be dealt with, along with the possession of stolen property thing.   Lucky had staggered home.   Between you and me, she needed less real world and more role play.  
    Bondage has been known to bring back the near-dead.  
    My friend Fabian would be just the man to whip her into shape.   His little House of Horrors was just what the sex doctor ordered.   Of course, talking Lucky into the fur-lined handcuffs would take some doing.   I wrote that onto my mental to-do list for tomorrow.   The handcuffs were essential.
    But right now I wasn’t thinking about sex, an unusual state. Well, okay, I was thinking about it, just not for me.   And I was thinking about Johnny Pismo’s tall tale.   Yeah, that’s right, I didn’t believe a word.   Okay, maybe under the stench of all that bullshit lingered a hint of the sweet smell of the truth, but I couldn’t shake the feeling Johnny Pismo had layered the compost on pretty dang thick.   Something was going on.   I could feel it.  
      Right now I needed more info—this whole scavenger hunt thing.   What could possibly be in it for Smooth Sound Downtown Records?   I’d leave the big shots to Lucky and Romeo.   After years on the streets combing through the trash for stories, I had my own strategy.   While