Scavengers Read Online Free PDF Page B

her, and Holly mouthed back, “Well, I would."

    Alison, heedless to the interruption, continued, “And you knew all along that is was a violet we were looking for? Is that what you're claiming?"

    "Not at first—no.” she conceded.

    "And when did it dawn on you, Lisa? Exactly when?"

    "You know when."

    "Tell us, then,” Alison furthered.

    "When we finally cheated and went to the goddamn library and looked it up! Happy?"

    "Not really."

    Thank God for efficient waitresses! She hoisted the Mad Cow to the mad/cow women, and both Holly and I slid back into our respective booths.

    After groaning and cussing and suddenly understanding the need for elastic waist pants, the six of us had finished. We congregated at the bar while waiting for our checks. Maggie suggested that perhaps we should all lend a hand (or another body part, specifically) and help Lisa and Alison finish up the task so that we'd all be back in the running again. Most of us thought that to be a fair idea, since this portion of the hunt seemed to put us all on the same team.

    Laura walked to their table and offered our help.

    Alison's jaw dropped, and she quickly responded, “That would be so—"

    Before she could finish, however, Lisa said, “We don't need your help. Thanks."

    "But, Lisa—” Alison pleaded.

    "I said we don't need their help.” She stared at Alison in a way that hobbled her.

    "Thanks anyway, guys.” she said apologetically.

    We quietly paid our tabs, and as we did so, I spied Holly jotting something on a napkin. She handed it to Laura and asked her to slip it to Alison, saying that it was their cell phone number,
    “in case she needs help."

    Laura did so, without getting caught, and then we all headed out the back door. There, I heard, but did not utter, the f-bomb. I heard, but did not utter—even though I felt desperate to—the b-word.

    "Okay, so what do we do now, girls?” Claudia asked. “About this game I mean. Do we all drive like maniacs and whoever gets there first is the winner?"

    "I have a better idea,” Maggie said. “You guys helped me—us—more than you will ever know.
    We joined forces, so here's what I think..."

    In a quiet, conspiratorial tone, the plan hatched itself.

    Several minutes later all of our cars met around the corner from Kris and Ginny's. Overstuffed bodies releasing groans of pain disembarked. Then, like the one team we suddenly felt like we were, we wove our arms around each others’ waists until we were one solid wall of women.
    Different colors, different heights, different sizes, but we were one solid wall of women off to display our solidarity, to declare each one of us winners to the meanies down the street.

    It did not take us long to figure out that six interwoven women were a tad wider than a sidewalk, horizontally, mind you. We maneuvered until we fit vertically. We must have looked rather silly like that, clumsily walking sideways down the block: the Dicey Dykettes.

    Once in the driveway of the old Victorian, we whooped and hollered until Kris and Ginny came out of the house.

    "Ah, do I sense defiance?” Ginny challenged.

    "Weall won this one,” several of us yelled.

    "We tied,” a couple others declared.

    "That's an extra two hundred points for each,” said Claudia.

    "And your tickets, ladies. Do you have your tickets to prove this remarkable feat?” Ginny asked.

    Three women stuck their hands into their pockets, retrieving the receipts that were then triumphantly waved in the air.

    "Well, let's see what we have here,” Ginny said as she began studying each receipt. “Did I tell you girls that I went to school with Molly?"

    Kris made some kind of snort noise, like she had consumed a Mad Cow too quickly, or maybe it was a maniacal laugh, as she already knew what was to befall us. I wanted to kick her, becauseI knew thatshe knew thatsomething had gone very wrong, that this mighty wall of women was about to crumble.

    "Yes, I did go to school with her,”