all good.”
He terminated the call with one thumb, raising his arm at the same time in greeting.
“Wilberforce! My brother!”
The two of them embraced and did a two-part handshake—clasp then finger-grip.
“Man, you look like you’ve been in the wars,” Virgil said.
“My face isn’t as pretty as it used to be, but it’ll get better. Wish I could say the same for yours.”
“Thought you’d abandoned Puddle Jumper for good. Left me to look after the old lady all on my own.”
“You know I wouldn’t do that, Virge. I love her too much.”
Virgil chortled. “Well, I’ve been turning the engine over once a fortnight, regular as clockwork, you know that. And only last Tuesday I cleaned out the compressor and put in some new gaskets. She purred like a happy cat when I fired her up after that. You going for a flight right now?”
“Not exactly. Just checking up on her. Chances are she’ll be airborne in the near future, though.”
“Oh, okay. Hey, Lex. How’s it going?” Virgil shook Lex’s hand briefly, then Albertine’s at much greater length and with much greater vigour. “Very nice to meet you , pretty girl. I’m Virgil. That’s Virgil as in the famous Roman poet. The love poet.”
It was a chat-up line Lex had heard the mechanic use more than once at the rum shack. Corny, but it sometimes did the trick.
“Really?” said Albertine.
“No doubt. Actually, I’ve got a bit of love poet in me myself. You want to see? I can show you.”
“No, I mean was Virgil really a love poet? Because, as I recall, he wrote epic poetry. You know, the Aeneid ?”
Virgil looked so crestfallen, it was all Lex could do to suppress a smile.
“Yeah, I knew that,” he said, recovering. “Epic love poetry. And epic love is what I’m all about.”
“Well, if I want some of that, I’ll be sure to give you a call,” said Albertine.
“You do.” Virgil turned back to Wilberforce. “She’s a sharp one, brother. Where’d you find her?”
“Nowhere. We’re related. That’s my cousin Albertine.”
“Your cousin? Oh. Ohhh. The one who...?”
“The same,” said Wilberforce, nodding. “Now, come on. Show me how well Puddle Jumper ’s doing. Let me see what I’m getting in return for you draining my bar dry every Monday night.”
The two of them talked fluent engineering for a while, leaving Lex and Albertine with little to do but stand in the sun, watching. Virgil raised Puddle Jumper ’s engine cowl to allow Wilberforce to inspect the plane’s inner workings, after which Wilberforce climbed aboard, sat in the pilot’s seat and started the motor up. There was a metallic cough, a puff of bluish smoke from the exhaust manifold, and the propeller began to turn jerkily. More smoke blurted into the air, and then the propeller settled into a spinning blur while the engine droned smoothly and comfortably. Virgil gave Wilberforce a thumbs-up through the windscreen, and Wilberforce returned it.
“Say what you like about my cousin,” said Albertine, “but it was always his dream to fly, and he worked his backside off getting his pilot licence. Look at him sitting there. Like a little kid. It’s his passion. Shame he had to give it up, mostly. Lex? Don’t you think?”
“Hmm?”
“Lex. What’s that look on your face?”
“Look?”
“That scowl. Like something’s bugging you.”
“Something is,” Lex confessed.
“What?”
“Virgil. He’s behaving strangely.”
“Is he? I don’t know him, but he seems normal enough to me.”
“Normal, yes. Almost too normal. Something’s off. It’s as if he’s trying too hard.”
“Are you usually this suspicious of people?”
“Until lately I’ve had no reason to be, not since I started living here. Now, suddenly, I’m having to be a mite more cautious again. See the way Virgil’s hand keeps going to his pocket?”
“I hadn’t noticed,” said Albertine, “but now that you mention it...”
Virgil was doing it right now, touching
He terminated the call with one thumb, raising his arm at the same time in greeting.
“Wilberforce! My brother!”
The two of them embraced and did a two-part handshake—clasp then finger-grip.
“Man, you look like you’ve been in the wars,” Virgil said.
“My face isn’t as pretty as it used to be, but it’ll get better. Wish I could say the same for yours.”
“Thought you’d abandoned Puddle Jumper for good. Left me to look after the old lady all on my own.”
“You know I wouldn’t do that, Virge. I love her too much.”
Virgil chortled. “Well, I’ve been turning the engine over once a fortnight, regular as clockwork, you know that. And only last Tuesday I cleaned out the compressor and put in some new gaskets. She purred like a happy cat when I fired her up after that. You going for a flight right now?”
“Not exactly. Just checking up on her. Chances are she’ll be airborne in the near future, though.”
“Oh, okay. Hey, Lex. How’s it going?” Virgil shook Lex’s hand briefly, then Albertine’s at much greater length and with much greater vigour. “Very nice to meet you , pretty girl. I’m Virgil. That’s Virgil as in the famous Roman poet. The love poet.”
It was a chat-up line Lex had heard the mechanic use more than once at the rum shack. Corny, but it sometimes did the trick.
“Really?” said Albertine.
“No doubt. Actually, I’ve got a bit of love poet in me myself. You want to see? I can show you.”
“No, I mean was Virgil really a love poet? Because, as I recall, he wrote epic poetry. You know, the Aeneid ?”
Virgil looked so crestfallen, it was all Lex could do to suppress a smile.
“Yeah, I knew that,” he said, recovering. “Epic love poetry. And epic love is what I’m all about.”
“Well, if I want some of that, I’ll be sure to give you a call,” said Albertine.
“You do.” Virgil turned back to Wilberforce. “She’s a sharp one, brother. Where’d you find her?”
“Nowhere. We’re related. That’s my cousin Albertine.”
“Your cousin? Oh. Ohhh. The one who...?”
“The same,” said Wilberforce, nodding. “Now, come on. Show me how well Puddle Jumper ’s doing. Let me see what I’m getting in return for you draining my bar dry every Monday night.”
The two of them talked fluent engineering for a while, leaving Lex and Albertine with little to do but stand in the sun, watching. Virgil raised Puddle Jumper ’s engine cowl to allow Wilberforce to inspect the plane’s inner workings, after which Wilberforce climbed aboard, sat in the pilot’s seat and started the motor up. There was a metallic cough, a puff of bluish smoke from the exhaust manifold, and the propeller began to turn jerkily. More smoke blurted into the air, and then the propeller settled into a spinning blur while the engine droned smoothly and comfortably. Virgil gave Wilberforce a thumbs-up through the windscreen, and Wilberforce returned it.
“Say what you like about my cousin,” said Albertine, “but it was always his dream to fly, and he worked his backside off getting his pilot licence. Look at him sitting there. Like a little kid. It’s his passion. Shame he had to give it up, mostly. Lex? Don’t you think?”
“Hmm?”
“Lex. What’s that look on your face?”
“Look?”
“That scowl. Like something’s bugging you.”
“Something is,” Lex confessed.
“What?”
“Virgil. He’s behaving strangely.”
“Is he? I don’t know him, but he seems normal enough to me.”
“Normal, yes. Almost too normal. Something’s off. It’s as if he’s trying too hard.”
“Are you usually this suspicious of people?”
“Until lately I’ve had no reason to be, not since I started living here. Now, suddenly, I’m having to be a mite more cautious again. See the way Virgil’s hand keeps going to his pocket?”
“I hadn’t noticed,” said Albertine, “but now that you mention it...”
Virgil was doing it right now, touching
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