"Dollars to doughnuts he's at his social club," Vinnie said.

It used to be there were a lot of powerful social clubs in the Burg. They were powerful because numbers were run out of them. Then Jersey legalized gambling and pretty soon the local numbers industry was in the toilet. There are only a few social clubs left in the Burg now and the members all sit around reading Modern Maturity and comparing pacemakers.

"I don't think DeChooch is at his social club," I told Vinnie. "We found Loretta Ricci dead in DeChooch's tool shed, and I think DeChooch is on his way to Rio."

From Seven Up (A Stephanie Plum Adventure), by Janet Evanovich. © June 19, 2001 , St. Martin's Press used by permission.