arrival sat down beside him. Long, lean guy with a shaved head and a tattoo on the back of his left hand, a weird symbol that meant nothing to Jerry. Had a camouflage jacket on over jeans and a T-shirt. Seventy degrees today, and both this guy and the one who’d come into the shop office to talk with Nora were wearing jackets.
Jerry turned back to the TV, and the new guy didn’t say anything for a fewminutes, not till Carl brought his drink—vodka tonic—and returned to the other end of the bar.
“You work down at that body shop, don’t you?” the guy in the jacket said. “Stafford’s?”
Jerry turned and offered his favorite expression for making new acquaintances—sullen, with the lip curled just enough to imply a little disrespect.
“I don’t think I know you, pal.”
“My apologies,” the guy said, making a little bow of his head. “Name’s AJ.”
Jerry didn’t answer, just drank his beer and looked at the TV.
“So you work at the body shop, correct?”
“Uh-huh. And I don’t give free advice on cars, and I don’t look at them after work on a Friday. So you got one that needs fixing, bring it in Monday morning and we’ll—”
“The car I’m interested in is already there,” the guy named AJ said, and Jerry paused with the bottle back on his lips but no beer flowing yet. He lowered it.
“The Lexus?”
AJ smiled. “Either you guys don’t have much business, or you’re a smart son of a bitch, Mr. . . . ?”
“Dolson. Jerry Dolson.” He took another drink and turned all the way around to face AJ. “You want to tell me what the deal is with that car? Who the hell you are, and who’s the fella you’re looking for?”
AJ reached into the front pocket of his jacket and came out with cigarettes, shook one out, and offered the pack to Jerry, who accepted. They lit up and smoked for a minute, neither saying a word. A group of five came into the bar and settled onto stools beside Jerry, talking loud and laughing, yelling drink orders at Carl.
“You work for that girl?” AJ said. “She really run the place?”
Jerry scowled. He had enough headaches over working for Nora without some stranger walking into a bar and pointing it out.
“She doesn’t run shit,” he said. “I worked for her daddy for, hell, a number of years. He had himself a stroke, and for some reason the girl decided not to sell the place. Got this idea of keeping it going till Bud comes back. But you want to know who
runs
that place, you’re looking at him.”
AJ sucked at his cigarette and nodded, like this was just what he’d expected. “She doesn’t seem like the car-fixing type.”
“She ain’t.”
“Problem is, she also doesn’t seem like the question-answering type. Friend of mine stopped by today, had a few inquiries to make about that Lexus you mention. The girl, she wasn’t too cooperative. Put on a bit of an attitude.”
“That’s Nora, all right,” Jerry said. He finished his beer, and before he could wave for another, AJ did.
“I got this one.”
Jerry didn’t thank him, just accepted the drink and consumed a few swallows of it, feeling a nice light buzz beginning. Beer in his right hand, cigarette in his left, a fine start to the weekend.
“Now, you want to come in here and tell me that Nora gave you a headache, that’s fine,” Jerry said. “But you just said that she, how’d you put it? That she wasn’t the question-answering type.”
“That’s right.”
“Well, seems to me I just asked you a question of my own. Don’t recall it getting answered.”
He felt a smug smile growing as he lifted the cigarette back to his lips. This guy think he was a total idiot? Come in here and bitch and moan about Nora, get Jerry loosened up to the point that he’d just forget about his own questions?
“Fair enough,” AJ said. He was using his thumb to clear a streak of condensation off his vodka glass. Not much of the vodka was gone.
“What I’m saying is, you want me to
Jerry turned back to the TV, and the new guy didn’t say anything for a fewminutes, not till Carl brought his drink—vodka tonic—and returned to the other end of the bar.
“You work down at that body shop, don’t you?” the guy in the jacket said. “Stafford’s?”
Jerry turned and offered his favorite expression for making new acquaintances—sullen, with the lip curled just enough to imply a little disrespect.
“I don’t think I know you, pal.”
“My apologies,” the guy said, making a little bow of his head. “Name’s AJ.”
Jerry didn’t answer, just drank his beer and looked at the TV.
“So you work at the body shop, correct?”
“Uh-huh. And I don’t give free advice on cars, and I don’t look at them after work on a Friday. So you got one that needs fixing, bring it in Monday morning and we’ll—”
“The car I’m interested in is already there,” the guy named AJ said, and Jerry paused with the bottle back on his lips but no beer flowing yet. He lowered it.
“The Lexus?”
AJ smiled. “Either you guys don’t have much business, or you’re a smart son of a bitch, Mr. . . . ?”
“Dolson. Jerry Dolson.” He took another drink and turned all the way around to face AJ. “You want to tell me what the deal is with that car? Who the hell you are, and who’s the fella you’re looking for?”
AJ reached into the front pocket of his jacket and came out with cigarettes, shook one out, and offered the pack to Jerry, who accepted. They lit up and smoked for a minute, neither saying a word. A group of five came into the bar and settled onto stools beside Jerry, talking loud and laughing, yelling drink orders at Carl.
“You work for that girl?” AJ said. “She really run the place?”
Jerry scowled. He had enough headaches over working for Nora without some stranger walking into a bar and pointing it out.
“She doesn’t run shit,” he said. “I worked for her daddy for, hell, a number of years. He had himself a stroke, and for some reason the girl decided not to sell the place. Got this idea of keeping it going till Bud comes back. But you want to know who
runs
that place, you’re looking at him.”
AJ sucked at his cigarette and nodded, like this was just what he’d expected. “She doesn’t seem like the car-fixing type.”
“She ain’t.”
“Problem is, she also doesn’t seem like the question-answering type. Friend of mine stopped by today, had a few inquiries to make about that Lexus you mention. The girl, she wasn’t too cooperative. Put on a bit of an attitude.”
“That’s Nora, all right,” Jerry said. He finished his beer, and before he could wave for another, AJ did.
“I got this one.”
Jerry didn’t thank him, just accepted the drink and consumed a few swallows of it, feeling a nice light buzz beginning. Beer in his right hand, cigarette in his left, a fine start to the weekend.
“Now, you want to come in here and tell me that Nora gave you a headache, that’s fine,” Jerry said. “But you just said that she, how’d you put it? That she wasn’t the question-answering type.”
“That’s right.”
“Well, seems to me I just asked you a question of my own. Don’t recall it getting answered.”
He felt a smug smile growing as he lifted the cigarette back to his lips. This guy think he was a total idiot? Come in here and bitch and moan about Nora, get Jerry loosened up to the point that he’d just forget about his own questions?
“Fair enough,” AJ said. He was using his thumb to clear a streak of condensation off his vodka glass. Not much of the vodka was gone.
“What I’m saying is, you want me to
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