Page 71 of Tiki Hut Tragedy
Gail broke off a large piece of pizza, rolled it up and crammed it into her mouth.
While the minutes ticked by, the women chewed, swallowed, drank, repeating it over and over.
Meanwhile, the host kept a running commentary, moving from contestant to contestant, adding his own take on how the eating was proceeding. Gail took a slight lead. Wendy stepped it up a notch, sipping and stuffing, her cheeks bulging. A third contestant, not part of the Belly Busters group, picked up the pace.
“I can’t watch.” Cat tossed her empty cake plate in the trash. “No amount of money would be worth stuffing my face.”
“I would do it for forty thousand smacker-oos,” Sharky said. “Hey, I might take up professional eating as a side hobby.”
Millie’s eyes twinkled with mischief. “You’re off to a good start with the cake.”
“It’s all in the technique, Mill-ster.” Sharky patted his protruding belly. “I’m a firm believer that you can do anything you set your mind to.”
The contest wrapped up with Wendy the “Wolfette” wolfing down her pizza first. Hotshot Hannah was a close second.
The host escorted her to the scales for the post-competition weigh-in.
Millie’s jaw dropped when she saw how much Wendy had gained. “Ten pounds,” she gasped.
“That’s a whole lotta pepperonis.”
An enthusiastic round of applause ensued. Wendy claimed victory with her signature wolf's call after collecting her check and the trophy—a plastic pepperoni pizza mounted on a stand. A brief blurb about the upcoming pilot television program and Wendy hosting it was announced.
Annette turned the television off. “And that’s a wrap. We can give ourselves a congratulatory pat on the back for helping her walk away with the grand prize.”
“All of those practice runs and consuming tons of food,” Millie said. “Watching the competition makes me want to jog around the track a time or two to burn off a few calories.”
Danielle tapped the top of her activity app. “It makes me want to eat some ice cream before I head over for the lido deck’s funny flop.”
Sharky belched loudly. “Excuse me. I’ll meet you there, Danielle. But first, I’m gonna pack a few slices of cake to take home.”
“A soft swirl cone in this Caribbean heat sounds tempting,” Millie said. “I’ll go with you.”
“Me four,” Annette said. “How about you, Cat? You want a little cold treat to wash down the cake?”
“As long as it’s not pepperoni pizza flavored,” Cat grimaced.
Sharky left, promising to meet them by the ice cream machine on the pool deck.
Millie flung her arm around Annette. “Something tells me if you gave Sharky an ounce of encouragement, he would tell Elvira sayonara and ask you out on a date.”
“I’m done with dating.” Annette dusted her hands. “I hate to say it, but Sharky seems more stable than Jose.”
“Sharky’s the best. He might be a little quirky, but he’s solid.”
Danielle playfully nudged Millie’s arm. “I think we can officially add him to our team of amateur sleuths. What do you say?”
Cat made a timeout. “We need to put a little more thought into this. Let’s hold off, at least until after we’re done eating our ice cream.”
Tink.Millie’s cell phone chimed. It was a text from her cousin. “Hold up, everyone. Gloria sent me a text.”
“Who is Gloria?” the pastor asked.
“Millie’s cousin from Michigan,” Cat explained. “She’s also a super sleuth. When those two get together, you better watch out because they always seem to stir up some sort of mischief.”
“Liz, my other cousin, who is Gloria’s sister, just booked an all-expenses paid cruise on board the Siren of the Seas for her and their friends.”
“Whoo-ee,” Cat whooped loudly. “This oughta be an exciting adventure.”
“Liz, Gloria, Margaret, Lucy and Dot? Something tells me we’re in store for some High Seas Hijinks.”
Millie waited for her friends to make their way out of Pastor Haakenson’s office. “Would you like to go with us for some ice cream?”
“Yes, I think I will. You and your friends have had some exciting adventures.”
“You have no idea. The way things are shaping up, I envision even more in our future.” Millielinked arms with him, trailing behind the others at a slower pace. It was good to be home, enjoying the palm trees and warm breezes with nothing but blue skies on the horizon, at least for the time being.
The end.
