Grange, Florida, is famous for its miracles—the weeping
fiberglass Madonna, the Road-Stain Jesus, the stigmata
man. And now it has JoLayne Lucks, unlikely winner of the
state lottery.
Unfortunately, JoLayne's winning ticket isn't the only
one. The other belongs to Bodean Gazzer and his raunchy
sidekick, Chub, who believe they're entitled to the whole
$28 million jackpot. And they need it quickly, to start
their own underground militia before NATO troops invade
America.
But JoLayne Lucks has her own plans for the Lotto money—an
Eden-like forest in Grange must be saved from strip-
malling. When Bode and Chub brutally assault her and steal
her ticket, JoLayne vows to track them down, take it back—
and get revenge.
The only one who can help is Tom Krome, a big-city
investigative journalist now bitterly consigned to writing
frothy features for a midsized central Florida newspaper.
With a persuasive nudge from JoLayne, Krome is about to
become part of a story that's bigger and more bizarre than
anything he's ever covered.
Chasing two heavily armed psychopaths down the coast of
Florida is reckless enough, but Tom's got other problems—
the murderous attention of a jealous judge; an actress
wife who turns fugitive to avoid divorce court; an editor
who speaks in tongues; and Tom's own growing fondness for
the future millionairess with whom he's risking his neck.
The pursuit takes them from the surreal streets of Grange
to a buzzard-infested island deep in Florida Bay, where
they finally catch up with the fledgling militia—Chub,
Bode Gazzer, a newly recruited convenience-store clerk and
their baffled hostage, a Hooters waitress.