I was driving down the highway thirty three past midnight. I was trying to go as fast as possible without breaking the speed limit. The last thing I needed was a cop following me when I was driving a stolen car, had a dead man in the trunk, two shotguns, a handgun in my strap and a bag full of cash in the passenger seat.
I was tired to say the least, my last and only meal had been a stale sandwich I got from a run down gas station around midday, thanks god it didn’t do anything funny to my stomach or would be in serious shit.
My burn phone was dead as dead can be; maybe that was for the better, by now the cops must be investigating everyone they could link to the rest of the band. I was thinking about how fucked up things got during that robbery when the exit to some place called Decoco caught my attention. Who the hell knew how far was the next town or gas station and I just had a quarter of a tank left. It was an easy choice, I turned right and took the exit six to Decoco.
The street was narrow, uneven and there was a few potholes now and then; to both sides of the road grass tall as a man was growing; on a curb to the left an old truck came in opposite direction at a ridiculous speed, to tell the truth I don’t even know how we didn’t crash into each other. I steered to the right to avoid the collision, though was gonna get out of the road, but the old truck tapped the left side of my trunk and the car drifted on top of the dead wet grass making me drift to the left in the curb. I hit the breaks and found my self in the center of the road while that old truck was honking and speeding away.
I sunk in the seat and breathed deeply, there was no helping it, it was over and I was okay, so I hit the gas and drove. Half an hour later I found the first sign, almost miss it, Decoco six kilometers away. I drove some more and finally found the damned place. It wasn’t much; a central street with few buildings to each side, a self serving gas station, a small hotel and two cafeterias one right next to the other near the end of the town.
‘First thing first’ I told to my self as I put the cash into the pump and filled up the tank.
Now was time to eat something, I was looking into the vending machine when I realized that one of the cafeterias was actually open, there was no neon sign or any signal, I just found out because someone opened the door for a moment and I saw the light and some guy inside.
I didn’t think twice, I crossed the street and opened the door; the place was dim-light and quiet, everyone froze and looked at me for a few seconds and then went back to normal. There was small quiet chat here and there and a pair of burly guys playing pool. I walked to the bar, the man there was maybe on his sixties, had white hair and a blind left eye.
‘Hello, what can I get you?’
‘A beer and maybe something to eat?’
‘At this time my friend all I can get you is coffee, bacon, some eggs and French toast’
‘Sounds great to me’
‘I must warn you, we only accept cash’
‘Not a problem’
He handed me a cold beer from the tap.
‘Sit wherever you like’
I took a sip of the beer, it tasted like piss; but at least it was so cold and refreshing I didn’t mind the taste. I sat at a table not too far from the door, just in case.
‘Number three on the middle left pocket’
‘Bullshit, you couldn’t make that shot even if aliens helped you out’
The guys playing pool were talking louder than before.
‘Wanna bet?’
‘Sure, I am on, a hundred bucks you can’t make it’
‘Deal’
The guy made his shot, like he said, the number three went into the left middle pocket’
‘You cheated!’
‘No I didn’t, now pay up’
‘Fuck you cheater, I ain’t paying you shit’
I still got no idea what happened. The guy accused of cheating broke his pool cue and stabbed the other guy in the neck.
‘Jimmy’
Someone screamed, I turned my head and saw two guys pulling out their guns and shooting the guy with the pool cue. The bartender rushed out the kitchen; pulled a shotgun from under the counter and shot, suddenly the ten people inside the place were shooting one another. I snapped out of it when two bullets hit my table, I hid behind it and shot back twice, then everything went silent.
I peeked from behind the table. Everyone was dead, I got up and walked to the middle of the room. The two guys playing pool were dead face to face over the pool table in a puddle of their own blood.
‘What the fuck is this shit?’
But everyone was dead, so there was no answer. I came to my senses and got out the building gun in hand and that is when you guys got me.
‘I swear, I did rob a bank, but I didn’t killed those guys’
The two cops looked at each other.
‘Listen, we don’t care what kind of hallucinations you had in there; if you sign a confession and pledge guilty, maybe the judge will be lenient with you’
‘I told you, I didn’t kill them’
‘Killed who?’
‘The guys in the cafeteria’
‘Mr. Parcel, there was no one in there. Just you. That place has been closed down for twenty five years’