Page 116 - Where the Dream Ends ebook

Marc Erdrich

“Joey, how many times have you been in this house and you
don’t know where the radio is?” He walked over to the ancient
portable on the counter and switched it to an all news show.
The static from the AM broadcast pierced the air.

“You give us ten minutes, we’ll give you the world,” the an-
nouncer said, repeating a litany of reasons to stay tuned all day,
all the time, 24 hours a day. “The top story this hour: Amer-
ica’s newest billionaire is still missing. The details after this.”

“Here it is,” Larry said, adjusting the dial.

“And here’s the ticket,” Joey said, bending over and picking
it off the floor. Larry shook his head at Joey’s absentminded-
ness.

“They’ll probably announce the number after the commer-
cial,” Larry said.

“All right baby, come on,” Joey shouted, kissing the ticket.
“This is it! Our free ride.”

“What do you mean our free ride?” Larry asked.

“I know you’ll give me some if you win,” Joey answered,
shamelessly. “Not too much. A couple of hundred thou may-
be.”
“No problem,” Larry said.

The announcer returned.

“The top story this hour. The winner of Tuesday’s multi-
state lottery, with the largest prize in U.S. history — a billion
dollars — is still a mystery. The drawing Tuesday night pro-
duced a single winning ticket, according to gaming authorities

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