Your number’s up

The rain was pouring down as she pushed her hip into the door of the diner and practically fell inside. It wasn’t too busy for that time of night; only about ten people were huddled inside warm and dry from the rain. She slid into the closest booth and wondered whether she’d have coffee or tea.

“What can I get you sugar?” The waitress interrupted her thoughts. “Coffee black” she said. “Be right back.” The waitress scurried away but her cheap drug store perfume lingered long after she had brought the second refill of coffee.

She had just started on her third cup when she noticed the little black book lying on the seat next to her.

She touched it tentatively as if heat radiated off its leather cover. As she opened it up to the first page she felt like every eye in the diner was on her; Glaring at her suspiciously. In realty everyone was lost in their own thoughts staring down at their hash browns or surfing on their phones. She looked down at the page. It was filled with a combination of numbers and dates. She flipped quickly through the little black book only to find more of the same. Page after page of sequenced numbers followed by a date. She tucked the book into her purse, slid out of the booth and headed out into the rainy night. On the cab ride home her mind raced with thoughts of the little black book. What secrets could it hold?

She dreamed of numbers and dates all night long. Numbers chased her and dates called out to her from the dark. She woke up exhausted. She knew the little black book was important. If only she could figure out the meaning of the numbers and dates. Was it a code of some sort? A gambling strategy? She just had to know the answer. Too bad she couldn’t find the owner. Of course, what are the odds that the owner would be willing to share the secrets of their little black book with a complete stranger. She would have to figure it out on her own.

A month had passed and she still struggled to unravel the mystery of the little black book. Dates and numbers followed her every waking and sleeping hour. She was a woman obsessed. If it was a code of some sort it was a good one. She snuggled under a blanket on the sofa and settled in to watch the 11 o’clock news. Suddenly a smiling face popped up on the TV screen and a beautiful woman announced that it was time for tonight’s lucky lottery drawing. As the numbered balls danced around a light went off in her head! That’s it! The code. It was lottery numbers. She grabbed the little black book and started searching through the numbers and dates. The very last entry in the book was dated March 4th.Saturday. It even had the year written next to it along with sequenced numbers. Could it really be this simple? A formula for picking lottery numbers? How accurate was it? Guess there was only one way to find out. Play the numbers and see what happens. She stretched and yawned and for the first night in a month she slept peacefully.

She was up early the next morning and she felt fantastic. Breaking the code had given her a renewed energy. A vigor she hadn’t felt in years. She hurried down to the corner mart eager to purchase her lottery ticket. In less than 36 hours she would know whether she had solved the mystery of the little black book. She crossed her fingers in the pocket of her coat and headed back home.

It seemed like weeks passed before Saturday night rolled around and the pretty lady popped up on the TV screen. Time for the lucky lottery drawing. As the numbers popped up one by one in sequence everything seemed to be moving in slow motion. She was right. She had broken the code and now she had just won the lottery! She sat on the edge of the sofa for a long time just staring at the ticket. Her life was about to change in a major way. Little did she know.

She stood outside the lottery claim office for what seemed like hours. Why was she so nervous? She was sure the moment she walked in to claim her winnings she would promptly be arrested for some sort of fraud. She stepped forward slowly and pushed the door open. No one rushed forward to handcuff her...no one even seemed to notice her. She walked up to the counter and announced “I’m here to collect my lottery winnings.” Before the woman behind the counter could respond a tall handsome man touched her arm and said “ I believe you have something that belongs to me.”

She thought her heart would leap right out of her chest. She looked up into the man’s eyes but she couldn’t seem to form the words for a proper response. “I’m talking about my little black book” the man smiled slyly down at her. “Why yes I did find something like that in a diner about a month ago.” “ you were smart enough to break my code I see. You know I never intended to use that to win the lottery. It was just a game for me. I see you had other ideas however.” She felt foolish. “Look! I wasn’t even sure I had broken the code. I played the numbers just to see. I’m happy to give the money to you.” The man looked puzzled. “I’ve got a better idea. I’ll let you have $20,000, you give me back my little black book and we’ll give the rest of the money to charity.” Twenty thousand dollars! That was a lot of money! “You’ve got yourself a deal!” She smiled.

As she walked up to the lottery claim counter with her winning ticket she thought this is going to be a great day! One of the best days of her life...and it all started with a chance encounter with a little black book.