Wanted by Kym Brunner

James Cagney.” I open the door, wanting to get out quick.
    â€œDon’t be gone long,” Curly yells. “Dad said he’s bringing a pizza home.”
    Looks like Curly is my new brother. He ain’t nothing like Buck though. Buck was smart and a true gentleman in every way, while Curly is just surly. Ha! Ain’t that a hoot. Surly Curly.
    â€œYup,” I tell him. “Shouldn’t take but half-hour to get my business done.”
    As I head out the door, I remember the first time I heard about pizza, from my wop friend, Gino. Said it had tomato sauce and cheese on a crispy bakery crust and was all the rage in New York. Now, while getting dinner in my empty belly sounds mighty tempting, I got me a job to do. I need cash so I can drive to West Dallas, my hometown in Texas. I want to see if one of my relatives still owns our filling station, maybe a niece or nephew. I need a place to hole up while I track down who set me up and got me kilt. Because if by some miracle he’s alive, he ain’t gonna be for long.
    When I step outside, saliva near falls out my mouth. There are big, fancy houses all in a row and cars in every color under the sun. Everyone has green grass and flowers are blooming everywhere, which means people around here have money to blow. Things have really changed since I been gone—changed for the better. I stroll over to the shiny blue car in the carport out front and run my hand along its side. I whistle in admiration. This is one gorgeous vehicle. By the sight of all the money all these folks got, the Ain’t-So-Great Depression is long gone.
    My hand is jiggly from excitement as I yank open the door and hop inside. Sweet Jesus! Looks like Jack Daniel is rolling in dough! Leather seats, gadgets and gears, fancy radio with lots of buttons. I feel the smooth leather on my palms and my heart starts racing. I can’t wait to see how much power this beauty has. Even my pecker is excited about driving this sweet ride. I spent the last two years of my life in cars so I love and respect Mr. Ford’s invention. Because of that, they love and respect me right back. After I search high and low for the ignition, I finally find it on the steering column. I slip the key into the slot and the engine roars into life.
    â€œI’m going to have me some fun tonight!” I don’t know how to work all these levers, but I’m sure I can figure it out. I peer over and under, studying the different parts and how they work, amazed at all the jazzy gizmos they got now. When I see there’s no clutch, I realize—it don’t need one! This car shifts by itself! And different speeds on the windscreen wipers? Talk about swanky. I take a deep breath and set the gear to “D” for “Drive.”
    Slick as rain, I maneuver this baby onto the street like I’ve been doing it my whole life. I drive slow at first, testing things out. It’s like a dream how easy it is to steer this thing. I cruise down the road, awed that there ain’t no wheel or carriage ruts to slow me down. As I get the hang of it, I press the accelerator and let this automobile zoom into high speed. “Yee-ha!” I shout, loud as I can. Even though the power of this auto ain’t nothing like the 12-cylinder Packards, it’s still mighty fine.
    A cad pushing a baby buggy shakes his fist at me from the sidewalk, but I don’t pay him no mind. He’s prolly jealous of my driving skills, like everyone else. Ain’t nothing new. I turn onto a big street choked with cars and people and trucks. I nearly ram the vehicle in front of me when it comes to a stop right in the middle of the road. I notice all the other cars stop too and traffic goes the other way. I’m confused, ’til I remember those new stop-and-go lights that started popping up in all the big towns right before I got smoked. Soon as I think about how I got tricked, I feel my face getting hot. When I