I turned the heat up more in the car as I drove down the long lines of shops fronting the street, my eyes scanned the names and I stopped in front of a rather rundown one that had the words 'Big Rick Black's Record Shack' on it.
I spun the car into a parking space and opened the door, not bothering to turn it off. Then I saw a figure in the window and the shop door open to reveal a hulking black man with a smile on his face and milky white eyes.
"Hey Baby-Girl," he said, embracing me in a fierce hug that squeezed the breath out of me.
"Russel!" I squeaked happily. He held me out at arm's length and frowned.
"Where are Muds an' Stu?" he asked.
"Murdoc is at Kong, fighting off an infection from his gunshot wound and 2D… well," I trailed, looking down at the ground. "I think it's best I explain the situation when Murdoc's with me…" I said sheepishly.
He frowned. "I think we should get going." He said, ushering me to the car and getting into the passenger seat.
I sighed and looked up at the sky, I knew that the rest of the band had just been dragged into this whole thing by accident but I still felt like I now played a crucial role in bringing the singer back. The fate of 2D and Murdoc rested on the line and I couldn't help but wonder how far this would take us and in the end whether Murdoc would be able to cheat the Devil again and escape. Sacrifices must be made, but what would the price be?
"Noods?" Russel prompted, a little confused. I hurriedly settled into the driver's seat and began the hour or so drive back to Essex.
"So how did you get back to normal size?" I asked, curious.
"Well, I followed the group of submarines until we reached the port in Guatemala; we saw a dilemma with tryin' to get me on the ship or even on land. So what Snoop Dogg did was disappear one night and then he came back with this person. Called him the Evangelist, the guy was dressed all in white with a bunch of cloth wrapped around his face with little tiny eyeholes and a big fat necklace." Russel paused to take a breath.
"The Evangelist?" I asked, curious.
"Yeah, Snoop said he had found him, it seemed this wackjob had heard of the giant man at the port and had taken a special interest in him. So when he saw Snoop looking for help he volunteered.
"Next thing I know I was smacked over the back of my head and I wake up here a week later, lying on the sidewalk." He said, rubbing the stubble on his face. I looked sympathetically at his confused expression. "So tell me where Stu is please." He added.
I took a deep breath, filled with hesitation. "He's with the Boogieman." I muttered. Russel looked alarmed at first but then just calmly nodded and sighed.
"I sure hope Murdoc knows what the fuck he's doin' here." He murmured.
"Me too, me too." I replied, brushing my bangs out of my eyes as I tapped my hand on the steering wheel.