{"id":3387,"date":"2022-08-07T14:23:37","date_gmt":"2022-08-07T18:23:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.otownmedia.com\/blog\/after-breakfast-copy\/"},"modified":"2023-01-27T15:26:01","modified_gmt":"2023-01-27T20:26:01","slug":"the-hardware-detective","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.otownmedia.com\/blog\/the-hardware-detective\/","title":{"rendered":"
The Hardware Detective<\/div>"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"Hale’s summer job gets him in trouble. Just not the good kind.<\/h4>\n

An Eddy and McClure Story<\/em><\/p>\n

\n
\n

That Friday night, Hale Eddy decided he needed to get a job. Just like that. He wandered into the living room where his dad was watching \u201cGame of Thrones\u201d on HBO.\u201cHey, Dad!\u201d he called over the sound of battle, \u201cAre there any jobs at Parks I could get?\u201d Eddie Eddy was a supervisor at the Parks Department.<\/p>\n

Eddie hit the mute button and turned to his eldest son. \u201cNaw. Hale, you\u2019d hate it there. For one thing, I would be in your face so as not to show favoritism. For another,\u201d he continued, \u201cyou\u2019d be weed whacking and lawn mowing. Since you don\u2019t do that here at home, why would you want to do it at Parks?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale considered. \u201cYeah. Guess you\u2019re right.\u201d He wandered outside. A thought struck him and he jumped on his bike and headed for Pete\u2019s Saloon on Henry Street. Just like that.<\/p>\n

Pete\u2019s Saloon was where his dad would spend evenings at the bar with his cronies from the Parks Department. Bud Rawlins, the bartender shook his head. \u201cSorry, Hale. You can\u2019t work in a bar \u2018til you\u2019re eighteen. Besides you\u2019d spend all your money on that ancient Space Invaders game.\u201d Bud looked thoughtful. \u201cBy the way, you still owe me quarters from the last time you were here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale shrugged muttering over his shoulder on the way out, \u201cI\u2019ll pay you back. When I get a job!\u201d<\/p>\n

That Saturday, Hale was out and about early. He headed downtown thinking he\u2019d try the gas station for a job. Just as he passed the bus stop, the Cuttersville bus pulled up. Without really thinking about it, he felt in his pockets for the fare and boarded the bus. Just like that.<\/p>\n

Trickling his quarters into the hopper and nodding to the driver, Hale took a seat halfway down the aisle and looked around. There was a Latina woman with shopping bags. A grey-haired man who looked tired was staring out the window. A young guy wearing earbuds, the wire stretching down to his pants pocket. Hale could hear the bass boom and treble crackle from where he sat. He had noticed there were two other teenagers he didn\u2019t recognize sitting in the back of the bus. \u201cMaybe they\u2019re from Cuttersville,\u201d he thought.<\/p>\n

Three nurses in blue scrubs got on at the Southcove Hospital stop. The grey-haired, tired guy got off. \u201cHe\u2019s going to Emergency Room,\u201d Hale fantasized. \u201cHe has a gunshot wound and will just make it through the door before falling unconscious.\u201d<\/p>\n

At the next intersection, by a commuter parking lot, two Black women got on along with three kids \u2014 a boy, a girl, and a baby. Climbing up the stairs behind them was a person Hale had never seen before. He wasn\u2019t sure if it was a man or a woman. The person had a bald head and was wearing sandals and brown baggy clothes. (\u201cRobes, maybe?\u201d Hale thought.) On consideration Hale decided it was a woman. A bald-headed woman wearing loose clothes.<\/p>\n

He overheard her ask the driver, \u201cIs this the bus to Cuttersville?\u201d At the driver\u2019s nod, she asked, \u201cHow much?\u201d \u201cOne seventy-five.\u201d<\/p>\n

She started rummaging in a cloth bag she was wearing over her clothes. \u201c25-50-75-one dollar,\u201d she recited to the clank of the coins in the hopper. \u201c25-50 \u2013oh! I don\u2019t have enough.\u201d<\/p>\n

The driver was commencing to get impatient, Hale could tell. With most of the change in the hopper, but not enough to get to Cuttersville, the driver made a quick calculation. \u201cOne-fifty\u2019ll get you to Baker Street.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIs that far from Railroad Avenue?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2019Bout a mile or so.\u201d<\/p>\n

The person \u2014 Hale was back to thinking it might be a man the voice was so low\u2014 then said, \u201cThank you. I can walk from there.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt ain\u2019t such a good section of town.\u201d The driver looked over the person\u2019s robes and sandals. \u201cI\u2019d be careful if I was you.\u201d The driver looked at his watch.<\/p>\n

Suddenly Hale knew what he must do. Just like that. He hadn\u2019t an inkling that this thought would flash into his mind and even later he wasn\u2019t sure it really did.<\/p>\n

\u201cWait!\u201d he called, getting up and feeling in his pocket. \u201cI have a quarter!\u201d Hale dropped in the coin, the driver pressed the bar to clear the hopper and put the bus into motion.<\/p>\n

The person \u2014 it was a woman \u2014 looked at Hale, straight into his eyes, and smiled. \u201cYou are very kind. Thank you. Namo Amida Butsu.\u201d She caught herself as the bus lurched forward and sat down right up near the door.<\/p>\n

Hale felt stunned by her gaze. Calm, yet powerful. As he made his way back to his seat, the feeling of being mentally touched by someone made his trip to Cuttersville seem unreal. \u201cWas that why I hopped on the bus almost without thinking?\u201d he wondered.<\/p>\n

Hale mused all the way to the Cuttersville bus station. The two Black ladies and the kids got up and stood in the aisle as they neared the terminal. The teens from the back of the bus pushed up to the front giving Hale sideways glances as they went by.<\/p>\n

The bus pulled into the platform and there was a general jostling as the passengers got off. Hale stood up to let the Latina lady with the shopping bags go first. The driver looked up into the rearview mirror and called out: \u201cLast stop! Last stop! Cuttersville! Everybody out!\u201d<\/p>\n

That got the attention of the guy with the earbuds who jumped up and cut Hale off as he charged down the aisle.<\/p>\n

It ended up that Hale was the last to get off. He looked around for the woman with the shaved head. Everyone else was clustered on the platform, but she had disappeared. Hale felt oddly let down. He realized he had wanted to see where she went, maybe feel that calm penetrating gaze like she somehow was looking deep into his mind.<\/p>\n

He wandered down the ramp from the bus station and looking left sighted a Dunkin Donuts at the far end of the street. \u201cTime for a brew,\u201d he decided and started off.<\/p>\n

This part of Cuttersville was zoned light industrial. A gas station with a convenience store, Herman\u2019s Autobody Repair, the Dunkin Donuts opposite a White Castle. A UPS depot across from a bakery outlet next to a scrap metal yard. A lumber yard next to a cemetery. Connecting it all was a rail line. As Hale watched, a freight train was bearing down on the crossing with ear-piercing blasts of the horn\u2014 two longs, a short, and a long.<\/p>\n

Sitting in DDs sipping his iced Macchiato, contemplating his impulse to board the bus, it occurred to Hale that maybe he could get a job in Cuttersville. Immediately, he began to review his options. The gas station was out. He didn\u2019t want to work in a convenience store. Same with the bakery outlet. Boring. He wouldn\u2019t have minded driving a UPS truck, that would be cool, but he didn\u2019t have his license yet. Not that they would take a 15-year-old anyhow. The cemetery didn\u2019t offer any possibilities unless he wanted to mow lawns. (No lawns!) The scrap metal yard looked interesting, but what could he do? Remembering that scene from Goldfinger, he definitely would want to run one of those car crushers. Okay, he thought. Stop at the scrap metal yard first. Then if that didn\u2019t work out, try the lumber yard. After that, catch the bus back to Crawford.<\/p>\n

Hale walked through the truck entrance to the scrap metal yard. A bullhorn shattered his thoughts. \u201cHey, kid! Where\u2019s your hard hat? This is a hard hat area! If you want the office go \u2018round to Green Street!\u201d<\/p>\n

Whoa. Okay. Hale backed out of the driveway just as a trailer load of scrap was pulling in. The horn near blew his ears out. \u201cWatch out kid!\u201d the driver shouted.<\/p>\n

Railroad Lumber & Hardware was on the way to Green Street, so Hale stopped there first. Bells jangled as he entered the store. Long aisles of hardware and supplies stretched out before him. To his left was a counter with cash registers and phones and parts catalogs. Two men were behind the counter in deep discussion with a customer.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow long is your driveway? Get your square footage then multiply that by 1.5. You got cracks? You\u2019ll need some crack filler. Jimmy can show you where the rubber squeegees are.\u201d The conversation went around and around.<\/p>\n

Still standing in the doorway, Hale spoke up. Just like that. \u201cYou\u2019ll need to power wash your driveway and let it dry real good before you start.\u201d<\/p>\n

Three heads whipped around to stare. In the silence Hale could hear a clock ticking. He struck a pose with his hands in his jean pockets and tried to look unconcerned. Then heavyset man behind the counter said, \u201cKid\u2019s right. Got a power washer? We rent \u2018em if ya don\u2019t.\u201d Conversation picked up again and the heavyset man came around the counter and over to Hale.<\/p>\n

\u201cName\u2019s Bert Rowley. You seem to know something about driveway repair.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMy dad\u2019s in Parks Department over in Crawford.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201c\u201dYou\u2019re a ways from home.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLookin\u2019 for a job.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cKnow how to do anything? Run a register? Stock shelves? Sort lumber?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI can fix lawn mowers. None of that other stuff. I could learn though.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah? How old are you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEighteen.\u201d Hale lied.<\/p>\n

\u201cHarrumph. You\u2019re fourteen if you\u2019re a day.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFifteen!!\u201d Hale realized too late he\u2019d been trapped into the truth.<\/p>\n

\u201cHarrumph,\u201d Bert Rowley said. \u201cKnew it. What\u2019s your name?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHale Eddy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCome on fella! Ya want a job, ya got to tell the truth!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHale Eddy! That\u2019s my name!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDamn peculiar name,\u201d Rowley muttered. \u201cAnyway, why come to Cuttersville? There\u2019s a fine lumber yard right in Crawford.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale struggled to express a reason that was as close to the truth as possible, but not the real reason why he had decided to find a job in Cuttersville. The real reasons were that one, he didn\u2019t have a reason, and two, he was bored.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy dad goes there.\u201d was all he said.<\/p>\n

Bert Rowley had two sons and a daughter. The youngest, Frankie, would be the same age as Hank \u2014 uh, Hale. \u201cTell you what,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019ll give you a job application and you fill it out and bring it back next Saturday with your dad\u2019s signature and we\u2019ll see what you can do.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSure.\u201d Hale said, then remembered, just in time, \u201cUh, thanks.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale sat on the bus back to Crawford looking alternately out the window and at the job application. He wondered where the bald lady in the brown robes had got to and whether he should forge his father\u2019s signature so he could keep his job a secret.<\/p>\n

._.<\/p>\n

Hale slipped into his seat at dinner just before his father would have bellowed \u201cWhere\u2019s Hale?!\u201d It had happened before, many times. Hale knew the drill. But tonight he didn\u2019t want any questions he didn\u2019t want to answer about where he\u2019d been.<\/p>\n

As usual, his sister Lizzy excused herself first claiming she had to study for a final in cosmetology school. Hale mumbled, \u201cExcuse, me.\u201d and followed her out to the porch.<\/p>\n

Lizzy Eddy was lighting up a cigarette. Pulling in a puff and making smoke rings on the exhale, she stared out at the yard with its ragged grass lapping up against an ancient crabapple tree. She had to study for her final at cosmetology school. But her shift as a cashier at King\u2019s Supermarket was in an hour. For the moment though, she just stared out into the yard and dreamed of the day she would have her own place and her own hair salon business. Maybe in Sanders\u2026<\/p>\n

\u201cLiz, I got a question for you.\u201d It was Hale. When Hale said \u201cLiz\u201d instead of \u201cDizzy Lizzy,\u201d \u201cLizzy Pizzy\u201d or \u201cLizard,\u201d he was being serious.<\/p>\n

\u2018Yeah?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale hesitated, breathing in Lizzy\u2019s smoke, coughed, then voiced the decision he\u2019d come to during dinner.<\/p>\n

\u201cWill you sign a job application for me? I don\u2019t want Dad to know.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lizzy sat up and spurted smoke out her nose. \u201cYou want a job? Are you kidding me?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShhhh! You want everyone to hear?\u201d Hale gestured, thumb over his shoulder, toward the kitchen.<\/p>\n

Lizzy lowered her voice a decibel, \u201cYou\u2019re kidding me, right?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot.\u201d Hale pulled the slightly crumpled job application from his back pocket. \u201cThis just says \u2018Sign by Parent or Responsible Adult\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGive it here.\u201d Lizzy held her hand out lacquered nail extensions glittering in the semi dark. \u201cRailroad Lumber and Hardware, 450 Railroad Avenue, Cuttersville. \u201c Lizzy\u2019s head jerked up. \u201cCuttersville?! What do you want going to Cuttersville for a job?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShhhh!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSorry.\u201d Quieter. \u201cWhy Cuttersville?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI took a bus out there this morning and \u2014 it happened. Just like that.\u201d Hale waved smoke away from his face. \u201cBy the way, when are you gonna stop smoking those things?\u201d<\/p>\n

Lizzy ignored him. \u201cWell, Cuttersville is just ugly. You could get something in Saunders. I could drive you. Give you cover if it has to be a secret.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNaw.\u201d Hale shook his head. \u201cI couldn\u2019t stand being in the car with you smoking all the time.\u201d Then remembered he wanted a favor. \u201cBut thanks anyway,\u201d he amended.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat are your hours?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe said come in on Saturday with the application and we\u2019d work something out.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s the pay?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale\u2019s eyes opened wide. \u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou don\u2019t know???\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShhhh!!!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHale you are a worse dreamer than your brother.\u201d At twelve, Hale\u2019s brother Palmer was noted for having his head permanently in the clouds. Lizzy looked disgusted, took another drag of her cigarette and blew out a deep cloud of smoke.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know, if you didn\u2019t smoke, you wouldn\u2019t stink of dead cigarettes.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah. Well, you want me to sign this or not?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMeaning?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou lay off bugging me about smoking \u2014 I\u2019ll sign.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll lay off for a month.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTwo months. I\u2019ll have quit by then.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale looked at his sister appraisingly. \u201cOkay. Deal.\u201d He handed her a pen and she scrawled her name next to \u201cParent or Responsible Adult\u201d and handed the application back.<\/p>\n

\u201cPen?\u201d Hale held his hand out then caught himself. \u201cAnd, uh, thanks.\u201d<\/p>\n

Just then Eddie Eddy appeared in the doorway heading for his favorite after dinner porch chair. \u201cWhat\u2019s up, Hale?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNothin\u2019 much. Goin\u2019 for a ride.\u201d Hale did not want to talk about anything with his dad. He jumped on his bike and took off.<\/p>\n

._.<\/p>\n

Right after breakfast the next Saturday, job application in his back pocket, Hale headed for the Cuttersville bus stop. He half hoped the bald lady would show up. Instead, every seat, and the aisle, too, was filled with worker-types heading to their jobs. \u201cLike me,\u201d he thought. \u201cMaybe.\u201d<\/p>\n

It was typical bustling Saturday on Railroad Avenue. UPS trucks were going out, screeching and crashing were coming from Murphy\u2019s Scrap Metal. Cars were wrapped around the Dunkin Donuts drive-through. \u201cAll good.\u201d Hale thought.<\/p>\n

On the advice of Lizzy, he\u2019s brought proof of residence and his high school ID card with his photo. As he walked towards the lumber yard, Hale patted his back pocket. The application was still there.<\/p>\n

As he turned in the entrance, he could see the forklift buzzing back and forth. Entering the store, he could see things were pretty busy there, too. Folks were lined up to pay at the front counter. Others were conferring with store help in the aisles. Snippets of conversation filled the air. \u201cWhere do I find hardware cloth?\u201d \u201cThe gutter crimpers are in aisle three.\u201d \u201cGo round the back and pick it up there. Show them your receipt.\u201d \u201cAre pressure treated two by fours okay for a raised bed garden?\u201d \u201cHarry! good to see you! What can I do you for?\u201d<\/p>\n

The bubble of activity pleased Hale. He felt comfortable here. He stood near the registers and looked around for Mr. Rowley. There was no sign of the heavyset man.<\/p>\n

All of a sudden, one of the clerks called, \u201cHey! You the kid supposed to come by for a job? Help this guy find Scotts Lawn Turf Builder on aisle five!\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale looked over his shoulder, but no, the guy was looking right at him. Plus, the customer was heading straight toward him. \u201cSure!\u201d Hale called back. He gestured to the young man with a baby in a carrier on his chest, \u201cThis way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Finding Turf Builder in aisle five was a no brainer. There were stacks of the stuff. All different sizes. \u201cWhat size you looking for\u201d Hale asked quickly scanning the bags. \u201c12 pounds? 37 pounds?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not sure.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale flipped over the twelve-pound bag. \u201cCovers five thousand square feet,\u201d he said reading the back of the bag. Thinking about the tennis courts at Crawford Park, Hale guesstimated, \u201cA tennis court is about 2500 square feet.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat seems about right. No bigger than that.\u201d The baby in the carrier started to whimper.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019ll have some left over, but it keeps. Got a spreader?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah. From last year. Thanks.\u201d The baby started to squirm and whimper loudly.<\/p>\n

\u201cOkay. I\u2019ll take this up to the counter for you.\u201d Hale eyed the baby and added, \u201cand out to the car.\u201d<\/p>\n

With Hale in the lead, the young man and the now crying baby headed towards the check out.<\/p>\n

Luckily there was an open register. Hale waited until the sale closed and hoisted the bag on his shoulder following the young man and his now wailing baby to his car. Over the sound of bawling, the young man said, \u201cThanks. Thanks a lot. Here\u2019s something for your trouble.\u201d<\/p>\n

Holy moly! A tip! Hale had never thought of that. \u201cThanks!\u201d he said spontaneously.<\/p>\n

Turned out, Mr. Rowley never showed up that Saturday. Nobody else was authorized to hire Hale. But Hale stuck around until about 2 o\u2019clock helping out here and there, mostly carrying customers\u2019 stuff to their cars. Though he didn\u2019t get any other tips, Hale did learn about customers and the kinds of things they bought this time of year.<\/p>\n

Around 2:30, Hale decided he\u2019d had enough. \u201cHey!\u201d he called out, \u201cGotta go!\u201d<\/p>\n

The guys behind the counter called back as he left, \u201cCome back soon, Hale!\u201d \u201cThanks for your help!\u201d \u201cWe\u2019ll tell Bert you were here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sitting on the bus back to Crawford, Hale\u2019s thoughts were a pleasant jumble of all his experiences.<\/p>\n

._.<\/p>\n

Three weeks later Hale was sitting in the Cuttersville Dunkin\u2019 Donuts again considering his options. \u201cGrounded for two whole weeks,\u201d he muttered. All because he tipped the police to a bank robbery plot. (Well, not really, the police just came cause his dad and Mr. McClure were hanging out in the bank parking lot. But that was a whole other story.*) No one believed him (except his best friend Doug) right up until the last minute. Actually, past the last minute \u2014 it was the next day when the attempted robbery (complete with a chase!) was in the paper. He should have been a hero. Instead, he was grounded.<\/p>\n

He had told Doug his bank heist hunch was a secret. But that secret got out big time. And put him in jeopardy with his other secret \u2014the one he never got to tell Doug\u2014 about getting a job.<\/p>\n

Mr. Rowley had said, \u201cCome back on Saturday,\u201d He didn\u2019t exactly say which Saturday, so Hale hoped showing up on the first Saturday after being grounded would be okay.<\/p>\n

Hale took another sip of his Frozen Chocolate Vanilla Spice Coolata. \u201cHi, Mr. Rowley.\u201d He practiced in his mind. \u201cRemember me? Hale Eddy? Came here looking for a job a couple weeks ago?\u201d No, better say \u201ca while ago.\u201d Nah, that sounded too long. Just say, \u201clooking for a job.\u201d\u201d he thought. \u201cCame here looking for a job,\u201d he practiced.<\/p>\n

Hale stood up, took a last sip of his Coolata, hitched up his jeans and sauntered off to the lumber yard.<\/p>\n

This time, Railroad Lumber seemed remarkably quiet. The counter guys were all leaning back drinking coffee and shooting the breeze.<\/p>\n

Hale\u2019s entrance made the bells over the door ring out and as he was approaching the counter a voice called out from apparently nowhere.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, now, if it isn\u2019t the job seeker, Mr. Hale Eddy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale looked around for the source of the voice.<\/p>\n

\u201cGet in here fella and explain yourself!\u201d<\/p>\n

There was Mr. Rowley sitting behind a desk in an office at the end of the counter.<\/p>\n

Hale realized that all the lines he\u2019d practiced at DDs didn\u2019t prepare him for this. He\u2019d just have to improvise. He entered the office and stood in front of the desk.<\/p>\n

Mr. Rowley looked meaner somehow that Hale remembered. He was actually scowling.<\/p>\n

Just then a freight train began to blow at the crossing so Hale didn\u2019t hear Mr. Rowleys\u2019 next comment. So he just started in. \u201cI want to\u2026\u201d he stopped and felt in his back pocket. \u201cHere\u2019s my application for the job.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo you hung me up for three weeks without a word? Ya think I\u2019m gonna just wait around until you decided you might show up? Well, time waits for no one. Ever hear of that, fella?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale was stunned. He never imagined this. What the heck was the matter with this guy? He started to think of a lame excuse, then completely changed his mind.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, I was delayed because\u2026well, the truth of it is I, well, I uncovered a bank heist in Crawford and because I was out late, I got grounded.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cReally. Is that so.\u201d Mr. Rowley scowled at Hale.<\/p>\n

\u201cReally. It was in the paper.\u201d Hale fished out a tattered newspaper clipping from his pocket and handed it to Mr. Rowley.<\/p>\n

Bert Rowley wasn\u2019t a mean man by nature. He tended to be rough with his own two sons, but he called it \u201ctough love.\u201d But he was truly annoyed that he took a chance on Hale because he thought he saw something in him that he liked. He did not like broken promises, being stood up, and being offered preposterous excuses. He had a business to run. He ran his eyes down the clipping.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo you think you had something to do with this?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cUh-huh. My dad had me talk to the police after they caught those guys. I saw them talking in the bank parking lot the night before and heard the sound of breaking glass.\u201d Hale warmed to recounting the story. \u201cThe police found broken glass in the parking lot and more in one of the guy\u2019s car.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale paused wondering if he should say the next part, then decided to go for it.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut then I was grounded anyway cause I was out late,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

Hale waited while Mr. Rowley looked at the clipping some more.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s some story you got there.\u201d he said finally. \u201cSeems like you have an alert eye.\u201d Mr. Rowley stopped for a moment. \u201cSit down.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale wondered where this was going. Since he wasn\u2019t summarily being thrown out, he sat down.<\/p>\n

\u201cRailroad Lumber stays in business because we are solvent. Know what solvent means?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale nodded having absolutely no idea what Mr. Rowley was talking about. \u201cYeah. Not in debt.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSomething like that.\u201d Mr. Rowley looked appraisingly at Hale. \u201cKnow what a saboteur is?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale was starting to feel like he was back in Mrs. Japlonsky\u2019s English class. \u201cTerrorist?\u201d he hazarded.<\/p>\n

\u201cClose. Troublemaker.\u201d Mr. Rowley looked closely at Hale. You\u2019re wondering how all this applies to a lumber yard and hardware store in Cuttersville on a Saturday morning.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale couldn\u2019t help it. \u201cThat\u2019s right.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mr. Rowley smiled for the first time since Hale got there.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell,\u2014close the door would you, Hale?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale closed the office door and sat down again.<\/p>\n

\u201cI believe Railroad Lumber has a saboteur. I don\u2019t know who it is. Maybe one of the guys,\u201d he gestured toward the counter, \u201cor someone else, but my inventory and sales are off. Before I go to the police, I need some evidence.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale was starting to get interested.<\/p>\n

\u201cSaturdays are our busiest day. That and Mondays. I can handle Mondays. On Saturdays, I want you straightening shelves, doing shelf inventory, helping customers, all the while keeping your eyes and ears open. Can you keep a secret?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes.\u201d Hale sensed his one word answer convinced Mr. Rowley more than any long explanation. He thought how he kept the secret of the bank heist \u2014except for telling Doug\u2014and the secret of his job search\u2014except for Lizzy. This secret he couldn\u2019t share with anyone at all. Except Mr. Rowley.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnything you see or hear,\u201d Mr. Rowley continued, \u201canything that feels \u201coff,\u201d you tell me right away. Got that?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWill you do it?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale looked at Mr. Rowley looking at him straight in the eyes.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGood. Saturdays from 10 to 2. Every. Single. Saturday. You got that?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes,\u201d Hale said.<\/p>\n

Mr. Rowley stood up and offered his hand. \u201cShake on it. Fifteen dollars an hour. Every Saturday starting today. Let\u2019s go meet the guys.\u201d<\/p>\n

As he turned to leave, Hale said, \u201cUm, can I have that clipping back?\u201d<\/p>\n

Clipping safely back in his pocket, Hale was introduced to Mark Leewood, Jimmy Davidson and Jake Davenport, \u201cthe guys.\u201d Jake was detailed to show Hale the ropes.<\/p>\n

And Hale\u2019s adventure was official. Just like that.<\/p>\n

._.<\/p>\n

Around this time Hale\u2019s dad decided to run for Highway Supervisor. Since that took up all his dad\u2019s time, Hale was practically free to do anything he pleased, no questions asked. It pleased him that he could show up at Railroad Lumber every Saturday and no one at home seemed to notice.<\/p>\n

Well, Lizzy knew what was going on, but the good thing about Lizzy was that she really didn\u2019t care.<\/p>\n

It pained him, though, not to be able to tell his best friend Doug what a cool thing he was doing. Doug would say, \u201cWanna ride over to Crawford Lake and shoot hoops Saturday?\u201d Hale would have to say, \u201cNaw, too hot\u201d or \u201cNever any courts free\u201d or \u201cGot to mow the lawn\u201d. Doug would look puzzled and that was that.<\/p>\n

But at Railroad Lumber Hale was in his element. It didn\u2019t take Jake Davenport long to show Hale how the store was laid out, how to do an inventory, straighten and dust the shelves, how to gr\u00aceet customers, and generally be polite and helpful. For Jake and the other old timers, Hale was a refreshing change of pace, even if he was a bit taciturn and rough around the edges. He was just a kid, right?<\/p>\n

Hale absorbed his tasks in no time. He mastered snooping around while stocking shelves, while keeping an eye on the back dock where customers would pick up big orders, and listening in on the \u201cguys\u201d chatter at the counter while helping customers.<\/p>\n

The guys spent a fair amount of time discussing baseball with side arguments about whether the term football had been co-opted by soccer fans and whether real \u2018Merican football could be traced back to Knute Rockne or Vince Lombardi.<\/p>\n

For a while, Hale thought maybe Mark Leewood was the saboteur. Leewood was something of a gambler. Having been with his dad at Pete\u2019s Saloon before the Superbowl, Hale recognized all the signs. Mark bought Powerball tickets with contributions from everyone and constantly reminded everyone how accurate his March Madness bracket predictions had been. Was Mark Leewood dipping into the register to play the horses? Hale couldn\u2019t make any of his suspicions stick.<\/p>\n

Then he thought Jimmy Davidson was acting suspicious. He always made sure to serve the same couple customers. Contractors with large, repeating orders. Was something fishy going on there? Hale realized he didn\u2019t know enough about purchase orders and store accounts to tell. If Davidson was the saboteur, then Mr. Rowley could have checked that out right away.<\/p>\n

As far as Jake Davenport was concerned, Hale thought Jake was, frankly, just too lazy to do anything tricky.<\/p>\n

So, Hale finally gave up on the \u201cguys\u201d. They were exactly what they were \u2014 the guys. Plus Hale was starting to get comments from Jake about hanging around the front counter when he should be dusting and straightening.<\/p>\n

._.<\/p>\n

So Hale switched to working the back of the store where the loading dock was.<\/p>\n

It was at the dock that Hale began to be aware something was going on. He took to sweeping out the dock which invariably had peat moss or coconut mulch scattered about.<\/p>\n

Hale pieced together the scenario. A customer might buy a couple bags of grass seed, pay up at the front counter, take the receipt and drive around to the dock, and give the receipt to the \u201cyardman\u201d \u2013 one of the teenagers from Cuttersville hired for the summer \u2013to load the car. Usually there was a tip involved which was why the \u201cdock guys,\u201d as Hale preferred to think of them, had this job nailed down.<\/p>\n

He\u2019d asked Jake Davenport if he could work the yard. The tips looked pretty good from what he could tell. Jake wasn\u2019t having it. \u201cThem\u2019s all taken. High school guys like yourself. Every summer.\u201d Jake was a master of the fractured sentence. \u201cHard work anyway,\u201d he said dismissively. \u201cAir conditioned in here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sometimes, items like bags of gravel, for instance, were stacked further away in the lot. The customer would drive to where the gravel was stacked, wait for the yardman to arrive on foot and load the car \u2014away and out of sight of the store.<\/p>\n

Hale just knew something had to be going on back in Gravel or Top Soil. If he could figure it out, Mr. Rowley might be able to solve his inventory problem and Hale would be a hero. But how to be sure?<\/p>\n

The Cuttersville guys were all footballers, big and muscular and 17 or 18. Hale was tall and stringy and strong, but no match for their bulk. But, Hale thought he could find out by hanging out with them. When he tried to make conversation, it didn\u2019t go well.<\/p>\n

\u201cHey. Need help with that?\u201d he\u2019d say pointing to a line of cars with orders for bales of peat and chicken wire waiting to be loaded.<\/p>\n

\u201cMind your own business, sweeper. Go stock shelves or something simple you can handle.\u201d was a typical reply. Then they’d purposefully dump some peat moss on the dock. Hale would feel his temper kicking up, then remember his secret with Mr. Rowley and say, \u201cWhatever.\u201d And walk away.<\/p>\n

One Saturday morning Hale was sweeping out the dock when a red pickup truck drove up receipt in hand. Hale had noticed truck showed up regularly for gravel, mulch, fencing, stone \u2013 maybe the guy was a landscaper or something. He looked about the same age as his dad, only in better shape. Definitely gruff like his dad, too.<\/p>\n

It happened that the dock guys were all off getting coffee for the counter guys, so no one was around. Instead of letting the driver sound his horn for help, Hale stepped up. \u201cYessir, whatdaya got?\u201d<\/p>\n

The driver looked hard at Hale. \u201cGravel. Eight bags. You new here?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBeen here all summer.\u201d Hale took the receipt like he\u2019d seen the other guys do. \u201cMeet cha back there.\u201d Hale said it just like the other guys did.<\/p>\n

The pickup truck headed down the dirt track leading to the back you the yard sending up a plume of dust as it passed him. He moseyed down the track stopping just behind a stack of plastic fencing and watched as the driver, looking around for prying eyes, tossed two extra bags of gravel onto the truck and quickly covered them up with a tarp.<\/p>\n

Jogging down the track, Hale called out, \u201cI can help you with that!\u201d The driver covered his surprise at being caught stealing by jumping down off the back of the truck.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust clearing the deck,\u201d he called.<\/p>\n

Hale came up to the truck looking at the receipt. \u201cEight bags,\u201d he said and loaded up the gravel.<\/p>\n

\u201cHey, kid. You from around here?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNope.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLookit. Make it worth your while to forget what you saw. The other guys know me, see? Thought you were in with them.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSure.\u201d Hale said.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, here.\u201d The driver fingered his cash roll and peeled off a $50. \u201cFor your trouble.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale took the fifty. \u201cSure.\u201d he said again.<\/p>\n

Hale stood watching the truck disappear around the side of the store and heard it gunning down Railroad Avenue.<\/p>\n

He looked at the fifty. How long had this been going on? He shrugged and headed back to the dock. The dock guys were trickling in. Hale quickly began sweeping.<\/p>\n

\u201cHey, sweepy, seen a red pickup come by?\u201d The biggest footballer they called The Ref confronted Hale.<\/p>\n

\u201cNope.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHuh. Must be late.\u201d The guy muttered to himself.<\/p>\n

Hale kept on sweeping.<\/p>\n

._.<\/p>\n

On the way home on the bus, Hale got to thinking about what Mr. Rowley had said, \u201cAnything you see or hear, anything that feels \u2018off,\u2019 you tell me right away. Got that?\u201d<\/p>\n

A payoff to ignore taking extra bags of gravel sure felt \u201coff\u201d to Hale. He should have gotten the pickup truck\u2019s license plate number. Hale fingered the fifty-dollar bill in his pocket. \u201cI guess it\u2019s evidence,\u201d he thought. And touched something else. Pulling his hand out he saw he still had the receipt from the gravel purchase. This could be a clue to the driver\u2019s identity. Maybe he could somehow ask who he was from the counter guys.<\/p>\n

After dinner, Hale was about to get on his bike and take off like he usually did, when Lizzy waved to him to come on the porch.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow\u2019s it goin\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s going.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNotice something different about me?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale considered. \u201cSome kind of stinky perfume?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not smoking you crumb!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, maybe that\u2019s it. Well, see ya.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHold on there! You said you\u2019d lay off me for smoking for two months. I haven\u2019t had a smoke in four weeks! So now I want an accounting from you what\u2019s happening at your job. Mom\u2019s been asking me questions.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018Yeah? That\u2019s not good. Meet me in Crawford Park Community Center. Can\u2019t talk here.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re all spy versus spy these days aren\u2019t you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhatever you say, Lizzard. Meet me in ten.\u201d Hale got on his bike and took off.<\/p>\n

Lizzy watched her brother ride away. \u201cYou\u2019re nothing but trouble!\u201d she called after him. Sighing, she got into her car and drove to Crawford Lake.<\/p>\n

When Lizzy arrived, she found Hale in the community center sitting on a folding chair alongside the pickleball court. The poing and whallop of the paddles hitting balls ricocheted off the walls.<\/p>\n

\u201cA little noisy in here,\u201d she called.<\/p>\n

\u201cNobody\u2019ll hear us then will they.\u201d<\/p>\n

A big shout from one of the players, a moment of quiet, then the poing and whallop started over again.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m going outside. You come too if you want to hear what Mom said.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOkay, okay.\u201d Hale followed his sister out into the summer night.<\/p>\n

\u201cMom pulled me aside yesterday and asked if I knew what you were up to on Saturday mornings.\u201d Lizzy began.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo? What\u2019s it to you whether Mom should know what I\u2019m up to. Why doesn\u2019t she ask me herself?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause,\u201d Lizzy let the irony sink in, \u201cyou wouldn\u2019t tell her if she paid you and she knows it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s true.\u201d Hale looked thoughtful. \u201cWhaddya say?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI said I really didn\u2019t know specifically. Then she said some older teens came by the house asking for you. They made her feel nervous. She said she didn\u2019t want to intrude in your life, which was really nice of her by the way, but if you are in trouble, she\u2019ll have to tell Dad. She asked if I would find out what\u2019s going on. So here I am \u2018finding out.\u2019 It better be good.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale leaned against the archway over the community center front door. Was he in trouble? Was this serious? Should he talk to Mr. Rowley? Should he clue Lizzy in?<\/p>\n

Lizzy watched him. \u201cWell?\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s like this\u2026\u201dHale started. Then he said flat out, \u201cI can\u2019t tell you what\u2019s going on if you\u2019re going to tell Mom. I made a promise and I want to keep my job. And my self-respect,\u201d he added as an afterthought. He was on the spot and now he\u2019d put Lizzy on the spot too. He wouldn\u2019t lie to her, what good would that do? She wouldn\u2019t lie to his mother. \u201cThis is what an \u2018impass\u2019 is,\u201d he thought, Mrs. Japlonski\u2019s face rising in his mind.<\/p>\n

\u201cAlright,\u201d he said. Lizzy brightened. \u201cI may be able to next week, but not now.\u201d Her face fell. Mentally he had decided he should talk to Mr. Rowley. The 50-dollar bill and the receipt were burning a hole in his pocket. \u201cThe only thing I can think of to buy some time is that you haven\u2019t been able to get me to be serious enough to answer Mom\u2019s questions. That you will try again. Then I\u2019ll avoid you until next week.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, that won\u2019t be hard. I\u2019ll start now.\u201d Lizzy pulled a cigarette from the pack, lit it and blew a big puff of smoke at Hale.<\/p>\n

\u201cHey! I thought you\u2019d quit! You are a lizard, I swear.\u201d Hale turned on his heel and disappeared into the community center, the sound of pickleball poing and whallop echoing out the door.<\/p>\n

Lizzy took another deep drag and watched him go. Then started coughing on the smoke. Throwing the cigarette down and crushing it with her foot she thought, \u201cMaybe I am really quitting smoking!\u201d<\/p>\n

._.<\/p>\n

Hale was not looking forward to appearing at Railroad Lumber with a fifty and a receipt in his pocket. Especially after the football guys had taken the trouble to visit his mom. So when Hale asked where Mr. Rowely had gotten to, the counter guys said that he was taking some vacation.<\/p>\n

Hale made it a point to keep out of sight of the dock guys. Conveniently, a trailer truck-sized shipment of summer merchandise arrived all at once. Hale was hard pressed to keep up with the boxes of bug spray, rolls of netting, bags of fertilizer, pallets of plywood and wallboard, and all kinds of paint. Particularly, with Jake so-called helping. Hale kept having to undo Jake\u2019s shelf displays as he would set them up in the wrong aisle. Jake would leave pallets half unpacked to go help at the registers and conveniently forget to come back and finish up.<\/p>\n

But Hale got good at following the directions to set up the \u201cdumps\u201d \u2014 the stand-alone cardboard displays for specially-priced items like batteries or light bulbs.<\/p>\n

One afternoon, he was frowning at printout instructions for a garden glove display, with a pile of cardboard pieces stacked in front of him.<\/p>\n

\u201cInsert Tab (A) on piece labeled \u201cFront\u201d into \u201cTab A\u201d on piece labeled \u201cSide B,\u201d he read. \u201cRepeat for B, C, and D, rotating each piece 90 degrees.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHmmm\u2026\u201d Hale looked for Side B in the stack on the floor. A slight movement made his catch sight of a pair of Air Jordans, topped by some Levis, and finally a Cuttersville \u201cSlashers\u201d football hoodie.<\/p>\n

\u201cUh-oh.\u201d Hale sat back on his heels, looked up at the biggest of the dock guys, and waited.<\/p>\n

\u201cKid, you in trouble.\u201d It was that dock guy they called the Ref. \u201cYou wanna taste of gravel? Gra-vel. Get it? You keep playing with your sissy garden gloves and stay out of our way.\u201d With that, the Ref kicked the pile of cardboard sending it skittering across the floor.<\/p>\n

As the Ref (whose real name, Hale found out later, was Howard Ornstein) walked back toward the dock, he called back over his shoulder, \u201cYa got that, kid?\u201d At that point, Hale decided on his course of action. Revenge. Just like that.<\/p>\n

._.<\/p>\n

Hale was thoughtful on the bus ride back to Crawford. How did the dock guys find out about the $50 payoff? Did the red truck guy tip them off? Hale still had the $50 and the Amex receipt. He had thought it would be useful somehow. Maybe they were a liability now.<\/p>\n

Or were they?<\/p>\n

All along the obvious course had been to lay it all out for Mr. Rowley and let him take it from there. But when the Ref kicked over Hale\u2019s cardboard dump, it became personal.<\/p>\n

The other guys that worked at the dock followed the Ref like sheep. One of them reminded Hale of Farcus\u2019s sidekick in that movie \u201cA Christmas Story\u201d \u2014 which his mom insisted on his watching. Every. Single. Year.<\/p>\n

There was another guy, Norman, who was big, burly, and Black. Norman kept to himself; he didn\u2019t hang out with the Ref or any the Ref\u2019s entourage. When the Ref and his group went for coffee \u2013 if that\u2019s where they went \u2013 Norman said he was going for a walk. No one ever argued with Norman or made him the butt of a joke. Hale wondered if Norman was in on the scam.<\/p>\n

._.<\/p>\n

When Hale saw Norman near the dock, he tried to make eye contact giving him a nod. But he just looked past Hale like he wasn\u2019t there. One time though, when Hale was sweeping out the dock before leaving for the day, Norman appeared in the doorway and stood watching.<\/p>\n

Hale just kept on doing what he was doing. He figured if Norman was on the Ref\u2019s payroll and was assigned to kick Hale\u2019s butt, well, just let him try.<\/p>\n

\u201cStill got that $50?\u201d Norman had a low voice that matched his build.<\/p>\n

Hale said nothing.<\/p>\n

Norman went on. \u201cI know you got that $50 and why. And I know there\u2019s some guys that are permanently pissed off about it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale gripped the broom and waited.<\/p>\n

\u201cI also know that being caught a fifty-dollar bill and a customer that would say you shook him down for it would get you in some deep trouble.\u201d<\/p>\n

Norman paused as if expecting Hale to say or do something. Hale felt like he was in a dream or a movie about gangland violence on Netflix. So he just waited.<\/p>\n

Norman shrugged. \u201cI was watching when the Ref tried to get you to fight. Saw how you just waited like you are now and the Ref got more and more crazy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut let me tell you something.\u201d Norman stepped closer to Hale who mentally braced for a punch. \u201cIf you think you want revenge, that\u2019ll make you just like him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Norman stepped back, nodded at Hale and disappeared through the door. Big, quiet, thoughtful.<\/p>\n

Hale leaned on his broom staring at the empty doorway. He was getting the same vibe from Norman that he got from the bald lady on the bus. They had a presence almost like a perfume that lingered after they were gone. What was that?<\/p>\n

On the bus ride home Hale assessed what had just happened. Funny thing was he really didn\u2019t have any particular reactions. Not anger or anxiety or fear or foreboding or even confidence. As if his quarter the lady monk dropped into the hopper those weeks ago had turned his world in another direction. It was like he was watching his own life on TV. As Hale got off the bus, there were his best friend Doug and his brother Palmer waiting for him. \u201cWe gotta talk,\u201d Palmer said.<\/p>\n

._.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019ve been hiding from Doug and me all summer. Every Saturday you\u2019re gone for hours \u2014 always at the same time, 9:30 to 3:30. We want answers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Doug added, \u201cPalmer called me to ask if I knew what was going on. If I did and you swore me to secrecy, I wouldn\u2019t tell. But you didn\u2019t and I didn\u2019t know. It\u2019s just weird.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale looked at his brother and his best friend staring at him, their faces serious. \u201cI was gonna tell you Doug, but the bank heist thing got in the way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Doug looked confused.<\/p>\n

\u201cRemember that day in the park when I said I had a secret and told you about the mysterious meeting behind the bank? How I thought your dad was involved?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, yeah. I won\u2019t forget that in a hurry.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI also said that I had another secret, but I couldn\u2019t tell you what that was. I guess I can tell you now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ambling along, they had reached Crawford Lake. They flopped down on the grass and Palmer said, \u201cOk. then, shoot.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale started slowly, telling how he had decided to get a job, just like that. \u201cThat was to be the secret, Doug, but now there\u2019s more \u2014 a lot more.\u201d Hale took a deep breath all his recent thoughts racing through his mind. Then he let it all go \u2014 Railroad Lumber, the red truck guy, the Ref, the bald lady on the bus, Norman, Mr. Rowley\u2019s suspicions, the $50, the Amex receipt, Lizzy and the job application \u2014 everything.<\/p>\n

\u201cEgad!\u201d Palmer said. He\u2019d picked that up from the Dicken\u2019s book he had to read over the summer.<\/p>\n

Doug was thoughtful. He immediately understood the danger Hale was in keeping the $50 and the receipt. \u201cYou got to go to Mr. Rowley. You\u2019ve got evidence but you need proof.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, we need actual proof that the dock guys are the ones running this, this\u2026\u201d Palmer searched for the right word.<\/p>\n

\u201cScam,\u201d Doug said.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, scam. We need video proof! There must be security cameras. Show that to Mr. Rowley!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot bad, Palmer.\u201d Hale sprawled on his back and stared at the sky. \u201cThose cameras are so fuzzy, you can\u2019t see anything except shapes. If the yard cameras worked, Mr. Rowley would have found out already.\u201d<\/p>\n

Doug ventured, \u201cWhy don\u2019t we hide in the yard like we did at the bank?\u201d Doug paused then added, \u201cbut if it\u2019s as buggy and itchy, I\u2019ll vote no.\u201d<\/p>\n

Palmer was always looking for the tech solution. \u201cHow about a drone?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale snorted. \u201cWhat and have it hovering over the yard for all to see? You\u2019d still need a camera on it. Who\u2019s paying for this anyway?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou are, bonehead! You got the job!\u201d Palmer rolled his eyes and sighed, then perked up. \u201cWhat about Lizzy?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat about Lizzy?\u201d Doug couldn\u2019t figure how Hale and Palmer\u2019s sister could fit into any scheme. She always seemed to be worried about damaging her nails.<\/p>\n

\u201cGet Lizzy to be the customer and have a camera in her car. She can make anyone do anything.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, wait!\u201d Doug said. \u201cGet Lizzy to be the customer and we can hide in the yard and take pictures!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot bad.\u201d Hale acknowledged. \u201cIf we could get the name of the red truck guy, she could say that he \u2018recommended\u2019 the yard guys would help her.\u201d Hale put air quotes around the word recommended.<\/p>\n

Then Hale sat up, drew up his knees, and slumped over them. \u201cNah. Won\u2019t work. I\u2019d have to tell Lizzy the whole story and she\u2019s promised to tell Mom.\u201d<\/p>\n

Palmer said, \u201cIf you\u2019d been around the last couple Saturdays, you\u2019d know that she has announced with much fanfare that she\u2019s quit smoking. So, Dad gave her a hundred bucks.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re point being?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI saw her smoking outside the Safeway on Thursday,\u201d Palmer continued. \u201cI\u2019ll tell her that I saw her and that I\u2019ll tell Dad unless she doesn\u2019t tell Mom about you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Doug shook his head. \u201cYou sure have a transactional family.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt could work. Might work. Lizzy\u2019s tough. Is that enough pressure to make her do it?\u201d<\/p>\n

Palmer smirked. \u201cGet this. Dad said he\u2019ll take back the hundred if she\u2019s ever caught smoking again.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWow. That\u2019s pressure. Now where do we stand?\u201d<\/p>\n

Doug summed it up, ticking the points off on his fingers. \u201cOne. Get a photo of the red truck and license plate. If we can get a photo of the guy even better. That will connect to the $50 Hale has and the Amex receipt.<\/p>\n

\u201cTwo. Talk Lizzy into being a decoy. I mean, that\u2019s what she\u2019ll be!\u201d Doug looked hard at the two brothers about to object.<\/p>\n

Hale said, \u201cLet\u2019s not tell her that!\u201d<\/p>\n

Doug continued. \u201cThree. Either video or photograph Lizzy giving the dock guy cash and getting extra items.<\/p>\n

\u201cFour. Turn in all the evidence to Mr. Rowley. Immediately. Hale, you\u2019ve waited too long already.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI guess it\u2019s a plan. I\u2019ll talk to Lizzy-Pizzy.\u201d Hale said.<\/p>\n

._.<\/p>\n

When Hale finished explaining The Plan to Lizzy on the porch that evening, she said, \u201cWell, you got me cornered, but you are in even bigger trouble. So, there\u2019s nothing for me to do but straighten all this out.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale bristled at the faint sound of condescension in her voice. \u201cIf you want me to tell Dad that Palmer saw you smoking\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThen I\u2019ll tell Mom and Dad. Your fix is worse than mine! Though I\u2019ll admit $100 would go towards the Dyson Supersonic I want.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s that?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cA hair dryer. Costs five hundred.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShew! You live large!\u201d<\/p>\n

They both fell quiet contemplating the idea of a $500 hair dryer\u2014Lizzy wistfully, Hale incredulously.<\/p>\n

Lizzy broke the silence.<\/p>\n

\u201cYour plan\u2019s got major flaws of course. What stuff is stored outside in the yard?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cUh, peat moss, gravel, top soil\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHow much does gravel cost?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe six dollars a bag?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI need something more expensive than that. Something around $40 bucks.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s your plan?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat costs $20 or $40 dollars?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale reviewed the layout of the yard in his mind. \u201cShingles, I think\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cShingles is a disease! Gramma had it, remember?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDifferent kind. Roofing shingles.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, \u2018oh.\u2019 Roofing shingles come in bundles 3 feet by 3 feet. I helped unload them last week. Heavy suckers.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re about $40 bucks?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah. Think so.\u201d Hale looked fixedly at his sister. \u201cSo what is your plan?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJust leave it to me. There\u2019s some stuff I got to check into.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI got to trust you to do the thing?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah. How about that? How about you stand down and let me work or I tell Mom what you just told me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale shook his head. \u201cMan, you are tough.\u201d He thought for a moment. \u201cUh, thanks\u2026sister.\u201d<\/p>\n

._.<\/p>\n

The next week Hale was on high alert. He noticed if Lizzy came home late or left early. He didn\u2019t usually care whether she was on the phone on not because she was always on the phone. But lately she was making short calls and would lower her voice if he was around. One time he overheard her say, \u201cNo. Not on Saturday.\u201d Did that have to do with him, he wondered. \u201cI\u2019m getting paranoid,\u201d he thought.<\/p>\n

She ignored him completely. So much so that when Palmer told Hale she needed some money for the \u201cthing,\u201d as she called it, Hale said, \u201cShe can\u2019t just ask me? She\u2019s going through you now?\u201d<\/p>\n

Palmer was his stolid, straight-arrow self. \u201cShe doesn\u2019t want to connect you to her plan \u2013 at all. Pretty nice of her. Good plan, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCome on! What plan? What is it? Palmer!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou don\u2019t have anything on me, Hale. So back off.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale grimaced. \u201cI guess. Geeze, you guys.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOkay, then. She wants the $50 and the Amex receipt. Oh, and reimburse her for gas. And, um, $60 bucks for a pair of sunglasses she wants.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSunglasses? For what? Are you serious? $60 for sunglasses?\u201d Hale couldn\u2019t decide which was more absurd, the costs of the sunglasses or why she wanted them for the thing. \u201cI\u2019m not giving up the receipt or the $50. Eighty bucks for gas? That\u2019s just crazy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe,\u201d Palmer said quietly, \u201cyou want the thing done or not?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI guess. Geeze.\u201d Hale knew he was repeating himself, but else was there to say?<\/p>\n

The next day Hale put $110 dollars of his earnings from Railroad Lumber in an envelope along with the $50 and the Amex receipt and gave it to Palmer to give to Lizzy. \u201cBusy Lizzy.\u201d He muttered under his breath.<\/p>\n

._.<\/p>\n

Whatever Lizzy was doing, Hale was determined to find out who Red Truck was. He followed his usual routine of shelf-straightening and cardboard dump assembly all the while watching if the dock guys had a pattern of meeting certain customers, what times they decided to go for \u201ccoffee\u201d (and come back smelling like marijuana), and who was who in the group.<\/p>\n

There were five dock guys total though they weren\u2019t all there at one time or, in fact, every Saturday that Hale was there. There was the Ref and Norman, Stickley, Joey Barnes, and a guy they called \u201cWolf.\u201d They were all beefy and, except for Norman, who was the only Black guy, all loud and jokey with each other.<\/p>\n

Hale would watch them closely making himself as invisible as possible. On Saturday, he was loitering near the dock and the red truck pulled up. \u201cThe red truck!\u201d Hale exclaimed to himself and watched from the electrical wiring aisle.<\/p>\n

\u201cHey, guys!\u2019 Red Truck called out. Who\u2019s gonna help me load some peat moss?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll do it, Jim\u201d called the Ref.<\/p>\n

\u201cMr. Fetterman to you, bub! Ha, ha!\u201d was the reply. \u201cHop in!\u201d Red Truck, now Jim Fetterman, opened the passenger door and the Ref climbed in.<\/p>\n

Hale almost felt faint from this stroke of good luck. He gently edged his way back down the electrical aisle towards the counter and made himself very busy reorganizing the GFI outlets which got mixed in with the 15v\/20amp household ones. Then suddenly he thought, I need to get a pic of the truck and the license plate number. He dashed to the front of the store and out into the parking lot. The red truck was just pulling around the side of the building. He pretended he was dialing his phone and caught a perfect shot. He turned back to the store just as the truck pulled out into traffic.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat was that all about?\u201d It was Jake standing in the doorway. \u201cYou go rushing through the store like it was on fire.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought I saw a friend and wanted to catch up with him.\u201d The excuse was so unlikely Hale was surprised that Jake just nodded and went back inside saying over his shoulder, \u201cBetter finish up in Electrical, then go, Hale. It\u2019s almost 2 o\u2019clock.\u201d<\/p>\n

._.<\/p>\n

Lizzy had a general idea of what it would take to get the evidence Hale needed. It was the specifics that she was wrestling with. She was wishing she had a cigarette to keep her thoughts company, when Hale flopped down beside her on the porch swing. She looked at Hale\u2019s slouch and said, \u201cIf you\u2019d sit up straight, you wouldn\u2019t be so round-shouldered.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAre you my mother or my sister?\u201d<\/p>\n

Lizzy didn\u2019t bother to take the bait. \u201cWhat kind of stuff do they sell out in the yard?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGravel, of course. Peat moss in bales, pavers. And lumber.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhich items are the furthest from the dock?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale visualized the yard from the dock. \u201cBulk topsoil, bulk mulch\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat won\u2019t work.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAhem. Don\u2019t interrupt. Roofing stuff like downspouts, gutters, shingles \u2014 roofing shingles to you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lizzy pretended she was having a smoke. Breathing in through her mouth and out through her nose. Thinking about The Plan. They both sat for a bit.<\/p>\n

Then Hale said, \u201cI got his name and license plate number.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cName\u2019s good. License plate, not so much.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCan\u2019t you look up someone\u2019s address from their license plate number?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNope. But name\u2019s good. What is it?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJim Fetterman.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re kidding!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNope. Name\u2019s good, huh?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYep.\u201d Lizzy pulled out her phone and started tapping furiously.<\/p>\n

Hale watched smirking, \u201cHow can you even use that thing with those nails?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m good, that\u2019s how. Now be quiet. Hey, Chris. Lizzy Eddy. Yeah, hi. You going to chemistry class today? I need to talk to you about something. Nah, it\u2019s no big deal. Yeah, okay. See you at class.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lizzy tossed her phone aside. \u201cAlright. Operation \u2018Catch \u2018em\u2019 is under way.\u201d<\/p>\n

._.<\/p>\n

Chris was waiting outside for Lizzy after class. \u201cWhat\u2019s up, Liz?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere you are. I was looking for you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHere now. What\u2019s up?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMy brother\u2019s got himself in a bunch of trouble and you can help me get him out.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHuh? Me? How?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou live in Cuttersville, right?\u201d Lizzy added, \u201cAnd you drive a pickup.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah. So?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI need a pickup and a muscular guy who\u2019s ready to do me a big favor to help out my brother, who\u2019s an idiot.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSure.\u201d Sarcastically, \u201cSounds like great fun. What do I have to do?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou and me drive to Railroad Lumber in Cuttersville and buy some roofing shingles.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou need roofing shingles, Liz?\u201d<\/p>\n

Lizzy sighed. \u201cFollow me closely on this, Chris. We pull around to the back to where the roofing shingles are and you get out to help the dock guy \u2013 not the Black dude, remember that \u2013 load the roofing shingles. You offer the dock guy $50 \u2013\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFifty bucks! What for?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m getting to that. You offer the dock guy $50 to let you load two extra bundles. Now, this is important: You say that Jim Fetterman \u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s my uncle! You knew he was my uncle?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYour last name\u2019s Fetterman and you live in Cuttersville. What\u2019s to know? Anyway, that Jim Fetterman specifically recommended Railroad Lumber. \u2018Recommended.\u2019 That\u2019s the keyword. Got it?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWho\u2019s paying for all these shingles?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s your only question? We\u2019re getting my brother out of trouble, remember? Whatever it takes. You\u2019re going to pay cash \u2013 my cash \u2013 at the counter. Does that help at all?<\/p>\n

\u201cThen, after you get the load, we drive around to the front of the store and we ask for Mr. Rowley. We show him the receipt, the extra bundles, and the video I\u2019ll be taking video of the whole thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

._.<\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t that Chris didn\u2019t like Lizzy Eddy. But she was tough. Saw everything only from her point of view. Bossy and opinionated. But he was attracted to her in some peculiar way. Maybe it was her self-assurance. Her independence. He couldn\u2019t tell but he thought it would be a good idea to hold up his end of The Plan.<\/p>\n

\u201cI should be memorizing the steps necessary to avoid the dilution of a neutralization,\u201d he thought typing \u201croofing shingles\u201d into Google search that night. \u201cCosmetology will have to wait.\u201d<\/p>\n

Apparently, roofing shingles were sold in \u201cbundles.\u201d To roof over a 12×12 shed (that was the project Chris decided he was shopping for) he would need three bundles. According to the Wikihow calculator, he\u2019d need another 2 bundles for 10 percent waste. Further research showed that a bundle could weigh between 40 and 60 pounds.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo wonder she wanted a muscular guy.\u201d Chris mused.<\/p>\n

._.<\/p>\n

That night Lizzy pulled Hale aside. \u201cListen. Call Railroad Lumber and ask when Mr. Rowley will be in next.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy? What\u2019s going on? You mess up my job\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYour job\u2019s already messed up and you did it yourself. Just ask.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale texted Lizzy the next day. \u201cHe\u2019s in all week.\u201d<\/p>\n

._.<\/p>\n

Lizzy chose a Wednesday after class to implement the plan. She had Chris park next to her in the lot and she slipped into the passenger seat as he started the truck.<\/p>\n

\u201cNice truck. Remember The Plan?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah. Don\u2019t know why I\u2019m doing this for you or your brother.\u201d He pulled out a cigarette and lit it from the dash lighter.<\/p>\n

\u201cOooo, that smells good.\u201d Lizzy said. \u201cUm, can I have a puff?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHere.\u201d Chris passed the smoke over.<\/p>\n

Lizzy inhaled deeply. And started to cough. And cough. She rolled down the window and let fresh air blow on her face. And coughed. \u201cOh, man. Now I feel light headed!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHah. I sense I\u2019m in the company of a former smoker. Never would have thought it of ya, Liz.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI guess you\u2019re right.\u201d She took another deep breath out the window. \u201cBlah. Now I have a headache and my mouth tastes awful. Great.\u201d<\/p>\n

As they were riding along, Lizzy shook out her hair, added lipstick and miraculously applied false eyelashes as the truck bumped along.<\/p>\n

\u201cTurning on the charm, eh?\u201d Chris commented.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou drive.\u201d Was the answer.<\/p>\n

Lizzy waited in the truck as Chris when into Railroad Lumber.<\/p>\n

Once inside, he headed for the counter. He picked out a counter man with Jake embroidered on his shirt. \u201cLookin\u2019 for some shingles.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHowdy! Know how much you need? We have a sale going on for Timberlines. Incombustible fiberglass base. Highest fire and wind protection. Thermally-activated self-sealing system. Looks like an expensive wood shingle roof.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSounds good.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNine in-stock colors. Sale price $32.00 a bundle. Need to calculate how much you need. Be sure to account for waste.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI got a 12 by 12 shed. I\u2019m thinking a grey color.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jake tapped at his calculator. \u201cLooks like you\u2019ll need five bundles including the extra for waste.\u201d He tapped some more. \u201c32 times 5, add tax\u2026you picking up or do we deliver?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPicking up.\u201d Chris was starting to get anxious. This was taking too long for his comfort. He hated lying or playing games. Jake interrupted his reverie.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe got three shades of grey. Come this way and let\u2019s look at some samples.\u201d Following Jake, Chris found himself staring at a display of shingle shades. \u201cHow did I ever get into this?\u201d He thought. Then he started to get into it, prompted by his training in hair coloring. There was Slate and Charcoal. That was to be expected. But \u201cBirchwood\u201d? \u201cMission Brown\u201d was sort of grey. Then he pivoted entirely and chose \u201cHickory.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat ain\u2019t grey, if you don\u2019t mind my sayin\u2019\u201d Jake offered.<\/p>\n

\u201cDoesn\u2019t matter\u2014uh,\u201d Chris caught himself. \u201cThis will work better. Thanks for your help.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOkay, then. I\u2019ll write up the order. You pay at the register and go \u2018round to the dock and one of the boys\u2019ll help you load up.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAt last!\u201d Chris thought following Jake back to the counter. \u201cNow onto the real reason I\u2019m here.\u201d<\/p>\n

._.<\/p>\n

Lizzy thought she would completely lose her mind. Chris has been in the store for hours it seemed. Maybe something went wrong. Maybe they guessed he was faking it. Maybe he didn\u2019t have enough cash. \u201cMaybe I really wish I had a cigarette!\u201d she moaned to herself.<\/p>\n

She squirmed in the passenger seat trying to calm herself down. \u201cBetter check my phone,\u201d she thought. She silenced the ringer and checked the battery life. Switched to the camera and set it to video and shot at the front of Railroad Lumber. Then she swiveled around and practiced shooting out the truck back window, keeping the phone\u2019s camera low and out of sight as much as possible. She switched to ultrawide and shot again. And got the whole expanse of the parking lot out the back window. \u201cHmm. This might just do it.\u201d<\/p>\n

She swung back for another shot of the front of the store just when Chris emerged, receipt in hand. Looking directly at the camera, he gave her a thumbs up.<\/p>\n

They pulled around the back and Chris gave the receipt to a beefy-looking guy. \u201cShingles,\u201d the Ref said. That\u2019ll be in the back corner,\u201d he gestured. \u201cOver there.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Ref made to open the passenger door and get in when Chris said, \u201cHey, the girlfriend\u2019s with me, Better meet up back there.\u201d Lizzy scooted up next to Chris. \u201cDon\u2019t make him walk all that way,\u201d she crooned, \u201cIt\u2019s way too hot. There\u2019s room for one more.\u201d She smiled at the Ref, held her finger-nailed hand to her mouth and gave the Ref a side-eye and a slow motion wink. The Ref swallowed and got up into the truck.<\/p>\n

They bounced along the dirt track to the back of the yard. Chris calculating the best angle to park the truck for Lizzy\u2019s camera shot. Lizzy was subtly wiggling in her seat crossing and adjusting her legs all the while smiling dewily at the Ref who was beginning to sweat a bit.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s is hot isn\u2019t it?\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah\u201d was about the best the Ref could manage.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhich way?\u201d Chris broke the silence.<\/p>\n

\u201cLeft at peat moss and shingles are on the right.\u201d<\/p>\n

Chris pulled up trying to decide when he should invoke the magic words \u201crecommended.\u201d He and the Ref were alone outside loading the shingles when he said, \u201cJim Fetterman recommended working with you. Wanted to let you know that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh really?\u201d the Ref was rearranging the pile of shingles to get to the Hickory shade. \u201cJim\u2019s a good guy. You wanted Hickory, right? Not too many people get Hickory. Mostly gray. Here we are.\u201d The Ref started piling up shingle bundles to move to the truck bed. Chris eyed the back window of the truck and adjusted his position so both he and the Ref were in view.<\/p>\n

Chris realized maybe \u201crecommended\u201d wasn\u2019t the magic word after all. The Ref was not taking the bait. He swallowed. If what he was to say next would come back to bite him so be it. At the same time, he realized he must like Lizzy Eddy a lot to be doing this.<\/p>\n

\u201cJim Fetterman\u2019s my uncle,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The Ref dropped a 40 pound bundle of shingles and stood like a statue.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, that kind of recommended.\u201d The Ref thought a bit. \u201cHow many extra bundles do you need?\u201d<\/p>\n

Chris didn\u2019t have the faintest idea. It was all he could do to not turn his head towards Lizzy in the truck for guidance. Then he heard her calling from the truck.<\/p>\n

\u201cCome on guys, we got to be in Sanford by FIVE o\u2019clock.\u201d<\/p>\n

Just the way she said five told Chris what to do.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll need an extra five bundles.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMake it three and you have a deal.\u201d The Ref countered.<\/p>\n

Chris counted bundles in his head. He had totally bought into the idea he was building a shed. An extra three plus the five in his order\u2026\u201dThat\u2019ll do it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Together they loaded the truck with Chris making as sure as he could to stay out of the way to show there were more bundles being loaded than he had paid for.<\/p>\n

At last, Chris turned to the Ref and said, \u201cThanks, man. Much appreciated.\u201d He took out his wallet and carefully extracted the fifty-dollar bill. Flipping the ends up either side of his index finger, he offered the bill to the Ref.<\/p>\n

The Ref\u2019s eyes widened. \u201cThanks, man!\u201d He took the bill, stuffed it into the watch pocket on his Levi\u2019s, and started walking back to the dock.<\/p>\n

\u201cBye!\u201d Lizzy\u2019s voice floated out of the open truck window. The Ref kept on walking.<\/p>\n

Chris\u2019s knees were a bit weak, but he wasn\u2019t about to tell Lizzy. Instead, he got into the truck and said, \u201cLet\u2019s get this over with.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut first, get this. fella. Don\u2019t call me \u201cgirlfriend\u201d unless you mean it. You hear me?\u201d<\/p>\n

They bumped down the dirt track in silence emerging in the front parking lot of Railroad Lumber.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou got the receipt?\u201d<\/p>\n

Chris\u2019s heart stopped briefly. \u201cHe\u2019s got it!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShrewd move, dude. I, on the other hand, got great video. Everything.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLady, it\u2019s like I said,\u201d Chris got out of the truck. \u201cLet\u2019s get this over with.\u201d<\/p>\n

They entered the store together.<\/p>\n

\u201cHey, Jake!\u201d Chris called out. \u201cThanks for your help! Mr. Rowley around?\u201d<\/p>\n

Lizzy muttered under her breath. \u201cCome on, Chris! Play acting\u2019s over!\u201d<\/p>\n

Chris muttered back, \u201cHey, I took the risk.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not over yet and we\u2019re both in it,\u201d she muttered back.<\/p>\n

\u201cSomething wrong?\u201d Jake looked worried.<\/p>\n

Chris couldn\u2019t think of a single thing to say. The silence stretched out.<\/p>\n

Finally, Lizzy said, \u201cI\u2019m Hale\u2019s sister. Wanted to introduce myself.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, that\u2019s okay, then!\u201d Jake was relieved. Bert Rowley had been on his case lately and he didn\u2019t want any more grief. \u201cThat\u2019s his office there,\u201d he said pointing to a closed door.<\/p>\n

Lizzy knocked and without waiting for an answer opened the door. She and Chris entered and stood in front of Rowley who was on the phone.<\/p>\n

\u201cLook, I ordered ten pallets and I got six. You make me pay 50% down and I got 60% of my order. Therefore, I owe you 10% and we\u2019re clear \u2014 unless you can guarantee four pallets by the end of the week \u2014 what do you want? No not you, Bill, there\u2019s two people just came into my office,\u201d Rowley glared at Chris and Lizzy, \u201cwithout knocking. Just barged in. Right. Call me in an hour.\u201d Rowley slammed the phone down. \u201cWhat the hell do you want?\u201d<\/p>\n

Lizzy had the capacity, maybe annealed through the rough and tumble of Eddy family life, to remain calm in the face of anger, bullying, noise, emergencies, and general stress.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m Hale\u2019s sister,\u201d she said simply. \u201cAnd I want to report a theft.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rowley looked hard at Lizzy looking for a clue what this was all about. He leaned by in his chair. \u201cGo on.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMy friend and I just purchased some roofing shingles. Five bundles, right, Chris?\u201d Chris nodded dumbly.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe went around the back to the yard to pick them up. We were helped by one of the guys from the dock. When my friend indicated he was aware that some cash would get him additional merchandise, the dock person actually bargained with him, loaded extra shingles and accepted $50 in return. The dock person has the receipt for five bundles. We have the three additional bundles in the truck outside.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lizzy waited for a response. Not getting one, she concluded, \u201cAnd I have a video of the whole thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

._.<\/p>\n

Hale was sitting on the porch swing after dinner. It was hot, hot. \u201cNot a breath of air\u201d as his mother would say. Whatever that meant.<\/p>\n

Lizzy came out and sat next to him. \u201cThis is when I used to light up, inhale, and just relax and let go.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale looked at her out of the corner of his eye. \u201cYou don\u2019t smell as bad as you used to.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd you don\u2019t have beefy guys hunting you like you used to.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah. They\u2019ve all been fired. Except Norman. He quit. Going to Howard in the fall.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWho\u2019s running the dock?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe counter guys have to take turns. Ha.\u201d Hale looked at the tips of his sneakers for inspiration. \u201cAnd I, I got fired, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat! You uncovered the whole scam!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah. But when I didn\u2019t tell Mr. Rowley right away like he asked, it looked like I was in on the scam.\u201d Hale paused. \u201cStill having the receipt and the $50 and all,\u201d he added lamely. Mr. Rowley explained that it didn\u2019t look good to keep me on when the other guys were fired for doing what it appeared I had done. Even though I was being a detective for him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat sucks, Hale.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hale sighed. \u201cIt\u2019s not so bad. Summer\u2019s almost over anyway. I\u2019ll pick up my last check tomorrow. Mr. Rowley said he\u2019d give me a recommendation if I wanted another job. Just between us.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re different somehow, Hale.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo are you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYea. Not smoking is really different. I feel cleaner. But I think your job changed you somehow.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt wasn\u2019t the job. It was that guy Norman. And the lady on the bus the first day. I learned how to\u2026just wait.<\/p>\n

\u201cHold it. I got a text.\u201d Lizzy held up a finger, looked at her phone, smiled, and stared off into space. The message said: \u201cHi, girlfriend. And I mean it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAble to just wait. Like now. Never was able to do that before. I think Norman and the lady on the bus had this presence almost like a perfume. The kind that lingers after someone goes away. What is that?\u201d<\/p>\n

Lizzy looked up from her phone. \u201cWhat? What is what?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGeeze, Lizzard. You may smell good, but your brain is mud. Solid mud.\u201d Hale got up. \u201cSee you later.\u201d<\/p>\n

._.<\/p>\n

On Saturday, Hale sat on the bus to Cuttersville to pick up his paycheck at Railroad Lumber. He stared out the window somehow feeling sad that his summer adventure was coming to an end. Then he perked up remembering that his dad still didn\u2019t know anything about it, his mom had stopped asking what was going on, he was doing stuff with Doug again, and Palmer was so in awe of Lizzy\u2019s plan he was leaving Hale alone for once.<\/p>\n

He\u2019d kinda hoped on his last trip maybe he\u2019d see the bald lady again. But here he was at the bus terminal and she hadn\u2019t gotten on.<\/p>\n

After the bus pulled in, Hale started for Dunkin Donuts then changed his mind. He just stood after the bus emptied watching the bus in the next gate start to depart. A movement caught his eye. Someone was waving from one of the windows. He stared. It was the bald lady. Waving at him. He grinned and waved back wildly. The bus pulled out and disappeared down the ramp.<\/p>\n

Still smiling, Hale turned and headed for Railroad Lumber. Just like that.<\/p>\n

\n

*The Bank Heist, an Eddy and McClure story<\/p>\n

Story by Caroline Meyers, \u00a92022<\/p>\n

Photo 30976743<\/a> \u00a9 Jeff Ferguson<\/a> | Dreamstime.com<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hale’s summer job gets him in trouble. Just not the good kind. An Eddy and McClure Story That Friday night, Hale Eddy decided he needed to get a job. Just like that. He wandered into the living room where his dad was watching \u201cGame of Thrones\u201d on HBO.\u201cHey, Dad!\u201d he called over the sound of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"page-templates\/full-width.php","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-3387","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.otownmedia.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3387","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.otownmedia.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.otownmedia.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.otownmedia.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.otownmedia.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3387"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"https:\/\/www.otownmedia.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3387\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3419,"href":"https:\/\/www.otownmedia.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3387\/revisions\/3419"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.otownmedia.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3387"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}