[ WP ] A man orders a `` cheese pizza with no crust '' from a local pizza delivery joint as a joke . Unbeknownst to him , that pizza joint is a drug front and he just placed an order for a kilo of cocaine .

( continued from previous post ) 
 TOMMY DELIVERS A PIE 
 
 More rapping. 
 
 The pizza! Shit, we forgot...And they actually sent the Damn things! My stomach growled in anticipation as I pulled the cabin door open. 
 
 Through the cloud of insects surrounding the porch light, i saw a tall, thin, fair man standing on my porch. He wore olive green board shirts and a green cotton tee, some sort of writing on the front. His feet were in ancient Chuck Taylors, green on white. He had a head full of amazing dreadlocks that fell all the way past his waist, lighter at the ends, where they were almost white, and darker near the scalp, where they went the dirty no-color of all dishwater blondes. Said scalp was obsured by a striped tam, maroon and yellow and white. He wore a massive beard, which also cascaded down to his waistline in a series of six tight dreadlocks. His eyes were the color of Nevada sky at noon. They took me in, then lit up even brighter. 
 
 `` Jess??!'' A giant grin split his face. 
 
 `` Tommy.'' I held my arms out to him, my eyes already prickling with emotion. He enveloped me in a massive bear hug. He smelled just like you'd think he would, like patchouli and sweat and garlic, like stale cotton. Like home. 
 
 We were seventeen, just heading into our senior year, when Tommy Jerkzyck's family moved away to Northern California. He'd been the other pea in our little pod, and we all grieved when he left. 
 I hugged him harder, closing my eyes against hot tears. 
 
 `` Tommy,'' i said, when we finally let go. `` Oh, Tommy, it's so good to see you. Come in, Bobby McGee is here, he'll be so happy to see you.'' I stepped back. 
 
 Tommy swiped at his moist eyes and grinned, stepping inside the cabin. `` Its so good to see you, too, Jess,'' he said. `` The first thing i did when I got back in town was to try and look you guys up, but your mom told me you split. Said Ol McGee was in Peace Corps and you took off to fuckin Maine, of all places, I was bummed, man. You guys back for good, then??'' 
 
 I shook my head. `` We came in for Frankie's graduation. God, its good to see you, man!'' 
 Impulsively, I hugged him again. He squeezed back. 
 
 I let go and looked him over. The writing on his shirt said `` Vai. Authentic Italian, 24/7. `` 
 
 I laughed, delighted. `` You're the pizza man??'' 
 
 He grinned and looked down, tented his shirt. 
 
 `` Yeah. The money, man got ta make that bread. Ca n't beat it. I'm looking to save up, get out of here for good. Maybe set up a little smoke shop somewhere west, you know?'' 
 
 `` Sure,'' I said, bemused. The money? He's delivering pizzas, how good could the money be? And speaking of... 
 
 `` Tommy?'' 
 
 `` Yeah?'' Big grin. 
 
 `` Where's the pizza, Tommy?'' 
 
 `` Oh! It's in the car. I leave it til I make sure.'' 
 
 `` Make sure of what, Tommy?'' 
 
 `` Well, make sure, that's all.'' He winked. `` That the customer is serious.'' 
 
 I laughed hard. `` Well, I'm serious, Tommy,'' I told him. `` I seriously want to scarf down every bit of pizza you brought for me. Right now.'' 
 
 He grinned at me, not moving. 
 `` Seriously, Tommy,'' I said. `` Lets have it.'' 
 
 He headed back to his car, laughing. `` All RIGHT, that's what I like to hear! You grab the cash, I'll get the pie. Smooooooth transaction.'' 
 
 I turned around and peered into the cabin. 
 `` Bobby?'' I called. `` Where the hell are you? The pizza's here, I need some cash to pay for it!'' I paused. `` And you'll never fucking believe this, but its Tommy Jerzyck that's delivering it! Come on out here and say hello!'' 
 
 Tommy was heading back my way, frowning a little. There was a small, rectangular package in his hands. It was wrapped in brown, like shipping paper. 
 
 I stared at the package in his hands, confused. 
 
 `` Tommy? What the fuck is that?'' 
 
 `` What do you mean?'' he said. His voice was loud and nervous. `` Its the pizza, what the FUCK do you think it is? Large cheese, no crust! `` 
 
 I looked at him, speechless. The package in his hands was not a pizza. Was he having a psychotic break or something? Ice bloomed suddenly in my stomach. 
 
 He stared at me, his pretty eyes suddenly gone hard and cold. `` Where's the money, Jess?'' 
 
 I swallowed hard. `` Bobby has it, he just --'' I swung around, called out again for Bobby. 
 
 `` Where's the fucking money, Jess?'' Tommy asked. His voice was harsh, dry as Nevada terrain. 
 I turned back to him. His ice chip eyes studied me closely. 
'' What the fuck is going on with you, Jess?'' 
 
 I cringed away from the frightening look on his normally kind face. 
 `` I do n't --'' 
 
 I stopped dead, baffled. 
 
 A small, neat hole had appeared in the center of Tommy Jerzyck's forehead. The cold light in his eyes whiffed out and was replaced by nothingness, an utter void. He went over like someone had cut his strings, clattering down noisily on the boards of the porch. It was only then that my brain processed the sound of the gunshot. I turned. 
 
 Bobby stood in the dimness just inside the doorway in a classic shooter's pose, arms braced, stance wide. A small gun glinted mellowly in his hand. His wide, blazing eyes fell on me. 
 
 `` Holy shit,'' he said hoarsely. `` Its actually true.'' 
 
 `` What? What?'' I said dumbly. My ears felt like they'd been stuffed with cotton, like I'd just come out of a Slayer show. 
 
 `` What they say about that Vai place. Its true,'' he said. He dropped his stance finally, looked at the gun in his hand in surprise, like it was the first time he'd ever seen it. 
 `` That's cocaine in that package, Jess,'' he continued in his hoarse voice. `` Tommy Jerzyck just delivered a kilo of coke.'' 
 
 I stood frozen in the doorway. I looked down at Tommy, sprawled out on the porch. His Converse pointed in opposite directions. He was limp and utterly slack, the complete stillness of death. 
 
 `` Bobby.'' 
 
 `` What.'' 
 
 `` You killed Tommy. Killed him. `` 
 
 `` Yeah.'' He wiped his face with his free hand, tucked the little gun into his waistband. His face looked white and ill. `` Goddamn, guess I did. I panicked, something like that.'' 
 
 `` He's dead. Tommy's dead.'' 
 
 `` Holy shit,'' Bobby said again. 
 
 `` Okay,'' I said. I gulped air. `` Okay.'' 
 
 Bobby went over and picked up the brown wrapped package from where it fell. He tore off the paper. Took a Buck knife from his pocket and slit open the cellophane beneath. He balanced a tiny white pile on the blade. Snorted deeply. 
 
 `` Holy FUCK! `` he said loudly. `` Holy shit, Jess.'' 
 
 I looked at him. I looked at Tommy, splayed out on the porch boards. I thought of the dented metal desk I rode most days, back north. 
 
 Then I reached down and grabbed Tommy's body by the legs. 
 
 `` Help me, Bobby. `` 
 
 `` What?'' 
 
 `` Help me get him to the bathtub.'' 
 
 `` WHAT?? Why?'' 
 
 `` Just do it!'' 
 
 He grabbed Tommy's legs and I let him take over. He was big and broad, accustomed to hard manual labor. He could handle it. 
 
 I ran across the porch and through the yard, heading for my father's shed. I heaved open the double doors and cast my gaze over the walls, where tools hung neatly on pegs. My father was an organized guy, and i saw what I needed almost immediately. The hacksaw gleamed wickedly, limned in a moonbeam. 
 
 I grabbed it and headed back to the cabin. Then I went to work. 
 
 The End
