All In
by
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It has been a rather sleepless night, the stench of the alley below the fire escape window has helped to make it so. The police sirens and the "L" train did the hangover he has no justice either, but none of that competes with breakfast. A glock 45 shoved into his mouth. "What the hell is going on?!" he utters. Hardly audible thanks to the hunk of fiberglass he’s gnawing on. There are three rather well dressed characters lingering around the room, all with faces of stone. "Hey Ray, welcome home," says one of the men as they grab him out of bed. He is no stranger to sleeping in his clothes, so the fact that he is fully dressed is a good thing. They escort him down some stairs to a luxury four door parked just up the alleyway, next to the dumpster which gave off an aroma, that made sleeping such a pleasure the previous night. They pull out of the alleyway and are observed by two men sitting in a car, one white and one black. "Hey that’s Ray Howell they just picked up," says the burly black man. "Who the hell is Ray Howell?" says the smaller white man. "He was a big time bank robber and all around thief some years ago," says the former. "He looks like more of a kidnap victim today," says the latter as he starts the car and follows at a safe distance. They get about a block with no words spoken until the before mentioned kidnapee asks, "I don’t suppose we could stop by I-hop and get a short stack could we?" They don’t answer him only the driver glances at him through the rear view mirror and makes eye contact with him. They move swiftly through traffic seemingly heading out of town. Now partially awake he reaches in his jacket pocket for a smoke which given the manner by which he does one could assume that this is part of his morning regiment. Just as he gets the Newport lit the husky passenger reaches over the front seat and punches him square in the face crushing the cigarette and busting his lip.
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About the Book
All In centers on the experiences of an ex-convict names Ray Howell as he engages a group of friends to help him accomplish a rather daunting robbery, which he is compelled to undertake as a result of a debt he owes to the Luchassi family. The narrative commences by portraying Howell’s abduction and meeting with Theo and Monica Luchassi, who accuse the main character of reneging on a deal that he had with their late father. Offering Howell an opportunity to clear the slate while also making some money for himself, the Luchassi’s present a new arrangement. The thief will steal a painting owned by the elder Luchassi estate, but not available to his choice in the matter, Howell decided the endeavor will be his last illegal act and begins to assemble a team to help him--including a boxer and a police officer who has been looking after Howell’s niece during his prison stint. As the work progresses, Howell and his companions plan to implement the operation while attempting to avoid capture and the wrath of the Luchassi’s.
About the Author
Born to a financially challenged family of limited means, I was commonly amused by my valued imagination. Over the years, I have created many short stories detailing other worlds, alternate realities, and alien races. Coming up, I met friends who shared in the worlds I created using roll playing games as an instrument of transformation to those worlds. As time went on, I seldom put these stories to script in any form other than in short stories or as roll playing notes to be read to them to enhance the detail of the places their characters would act through. It remained that way, until my best friend happened across one and asked for the rest of that story. When it was explained to her that the story was not complete and probably would not be. She explained that the characters were very likable and that the story line seemed to warrant completion. At her request, I continued to write page after page to entertain her until the story reached a conclusion and All In was born. It is my fondest hope that, whomever partakes into this one of my many stories, enjoys the journey as much as I enjoyed creating it.