I kept walking because I somehow knew that running would not get me there any faster. It was small at first, but as I got closer it grew, until finall... it stood before me, towering over my head. It was a castle.I knew this castle; long ago I had watched it grow out of the horizon in a dream. This time the gates were open and no one was in sight so I just walked in. Eventually I found my way to the steps of the palace and I climbed until I stood before the massive oak doors. As I reached to open. ............ Crack!............. Crack!......Fuck he didn't hold back! Six good solid strikes! My cheeks burned red hot! I knew I was going to be wearing the bruises for a couple of days at least!I was breathing hard, feeling the heat sink in."Six more?" He asked. The edge of concern and hint he was liking this!I opened the poppers and took a few big sniffs! "Yes sir!"The second six landed one after another, hard and we'll placed. Maybe a week of bruises, I thought as I blinked the tears that. He lifted the phone back to his ear. “We are on our way, Janie. Thanks for the heads up. If you don’t hear from us in thirty minutes, wrap everyone up at the plant and put them one ice and then come get us in Bensonhurst because we will probably have run into whatever got Eddie.”“What got Eddie?” she asked, worried.He snorted. “I don’t know that anything did, but you were right. He should at least have called by now. Talk to you in thirty.”“We hope,” she said before he hung up.“Pick it up a. Steve struggled to keep the tray upright as the beer sloshed in themugs. Steve tried to keep the tray straight before he reached thetable.Stopping, Steve took a deep breath before he began to place the beersdown in front of the people that ordered them. The older couples tookthem with a word of thanks before Steve took their lunch orders."It's nice to see a good girl," one of the older women said."We're all good girls," Steve countered."No, there's not a lot of good, young girls these days,".