God Is a Comedian

I wasn't sure how going out the back way would save us from the cops until I saw what was in the ally. A large white truck with 'Levine Instructive' written in blue ink printed on the side. Jimmy banged on the side of the truck, "C'mon. Pile in." Following Sean and Kevin, I ran around to the front of the truck.

I was about to slide in next to Sean when I heard Tommy say, "What's this? The truck you didn't steal!" Tommy practically ignored the truck and continued to walk towards the mouth of the ally.

"C'mon, Tommy. Lighten up!" Jimmy said, holding the driver's door open. There was an almost begging look on his face.

"Everyone get out of the truck. The cops are here." Tommy said. I noticed that his statement seemed to be mainly focused towards me. Every man in the Donnelly family had at least some kind of run in with the cops. Every member of my family, even my mother, had spent a night, or two, in jail. All except me. And Tommy seemed determined to keep it that way.

"C'mon. You know Jimmy can't drive." Kevin said from inside the truck. Actually, none of us but Tommy had a legal drivers' license. But that never stopped my brothers.

"Neither can you. Get out of the truck!" Just then a New York Police Department car pulled up and parked, blocking the exit of the ally. Tommy quickly turned around and walked back to the truck. "Son of a bitch. Get back in the truck." I finally sat down next to Sean and closed the door.

Thankfully, the cab of the truck was large enough for all five to fit in. Once we were all in the truck, Tommy started it while Jimmy picked up a shirt. The shirt had a mixture of orange flowers and green leaves printed on it. The kind you see tourists in Florida wear. Not that I had ever been to Florida. My brothers and I had never been out of the state of New York. "Hey, Tommy. Do you like this shirt?' Jimmy asked with laughter.

Tommy looked at him with confusion on his face. "Did you just ask me if I like that shirt?" Tommy said as if the answer should be obvious. The shirt was pretty ugly.

"Yea, because I got a couple thousand more in the back." Jimmy said before he erupted with laughter. He then slid the stolen shirt on over the one he currently had on. Tommy put the truck in gear and pressed on the gas. Tommy could drive anything. Before he became Mother Teresa he had a big time thing for joy riding.

Tommy stopped the truck at the end of the ally. Annoyance was clearly visible on his face as he sat in silence waiting on the cops to move. We all sat in silence with him. After thirty seconds of waiting in silence, Tommy leaned out the window. "Hey! Hey! You wanna move!" He yelled down at the officers in the cop car. Their only response was an indifferent look before they pulled forward, out of the way. We all waited until we were out of the ally and away from the cops before we started laughing. Tommy even laughed a little.

After we had finished laughing, Jimmy directed Tommy to a retail shop. Jimmy had Tommy parked the truck in the ally similar to the one we had just left. As we all piled out of the truck, a man came out from inside the shop. Kevin unlocked the sliding door to the truck and pulled it open. There should have been a ton of boxes carrying the ugly shirts. But inside there was nothing. There was absolutely nothing in the back of the truck. Apparently, while Jimmy was in the bar, someone stole the stolen shirts.

Jimmy swore a few times before we left the truck were it was and walked away. Kevin was the first to break the awkward silence that had surround us. "Anybody know how I can get four thousand dollars?" His voice was full of desperation. So that's why Jimmy stole the truck; to pay off Kevin's gambling debt.

Sean spoke as if a light bulb had switched on in his mind. "Did you what Bobby O. and J. J. McGain did? They stole an Italian. Held him for ransom." A small smile appeared on Sean's face. Little did I know that this statement would change all our lives forever. And not exactly for the better.

"And where are Bobby and J. J. now?" Tommy asked.

Sean was silent for a moment as he thought. "I don't know. Attica, I think."

"Right." Tommy said, hoping that Sean's answer was enough to push the option out of their minds. "I'll see you guys later." With that, he crossed the street and disappeared. Jimmy and Kevin walked in front of Sean and I. The two were talking quietly together. That's when I noticed a clock in one of the restaurants we passed. According to the clock it was 2:07. I had to be at work at three. I said goodbye to my brothers, who appeared to be happy to get rid of me, and headed home to get ready for work.