chemist––a younger girl recently graduated from college. “Hey, how’s the repellent going?”
“Honestly, DEET is still the best repellent but who wants to spray that on.” Anne took off her safety glasses and looked at Sharon and said, “What works for me pretty well is a dryer sheet. It has to be scented. Just rub it all over your skin. It keeps off all but the most aggressive mosquitoes.”
“Very interesting,” said Sharon. “How was your weekend?”
“It was good,” replied Anne. “I went to a sale. I found a beautiful Steiff bear. It was on my list.”
“What list is that?” Sharon looked quizzically at her.
“Oh, my friend CC and I––you’ve met her––have a blog about our finds at estate sales. A lot of our fans have been writing to us looking for help finding items.”
“Really? That’s pretty cool. Maybe you can help me out,” Sharon said.
“What are you looking for?” Anne asked, getting enthusiastic.
“My boyfriend and I are buying a loft off of Madison and Racine, not too far from the United Center. He wants to bring over all his furniture. Let me clarify that––his junk.” Sharon leaned against Anne’s table. “I’m trying to be fair about it. I told him he could pick three of his favorite possessions, but I get to okay them. Anne, you should see his taste. It’s like he’s still in a college dorm room.”
Anne rubbed her chin and looked thoughtful. “Let me see. What’s your style? What do you like?”
Sharon sat on the stool next to her. “I really love 1960s mod. I’d love to find an Andy Warhol, a real one. I inherited a couple Eames chairs and I’d like to decorate the whole loft around them.”
“Eames chairs. Those are really valuable,” Anne said. “I’ll put you at the head of the list. I’ve got some ideas in mind for 1960s décor.” Anne thought for a moment. “I might just have a few things in my garage. Give me a day or two.” She had to decide if she was willing to part with one of her Formica kitchen tables or her avocado green stove.
“Thanks, Anne.” Sharon stood up. “We’re heading out to lunch. Do you want to join us?”
“Not today. I brought lunch,” Anne said. She watched her coworkers walk out. Anne sat at her desk, nibbling her chicken salad sandwich, browsing through her eBay watch list. Anne took a couple bites and reached into her drawer, pulling out a Reese’s peanut butter cup. “If I eat half the sandwich, I can eat the whole candy bar,” she said to herself. She scrolled down her eBay watch list. The silver tea service that had started at $25 was now up over $100. Too bad; she couldn’t spend that much right now. She had overextended herself again and was struggling to pay her monthly bills. She didn’t tell CC because she didn’t want a lecture.
After work, Anne headed to the police station to meet Nigel Towers. She sat in the viewing room as Nigel spoke with the homeless man who matched her description. It was definitely him. She watched through the glass and listened intently.
“Tell me, Mr. Findle, you say that some guy came up to you and asked you to hock this ring?” Nigel put the ring on the table.
The homeless man touched the ring and said, “Yep, yep; that’s it. That’s the ring.”
“What did this man look like?”
“I don’t know––just a middle-aged white guy, kind of greasy.” The homeless man’s leg bounced up and down with a nervous energy.
“What do you mean by greasy ?”
“He seemed kind of off. He didn’t seem right, you know what I mean?”
“Did he say why he wanted you to pawn the ring?”
“He said that he’d lost a lot of money at the track and he wanted to sell his wedding ring. He’d told his wife that he lost it. He didn’t want her to find out. That’s why he wanted me to go inside the pawnshop. He said he’d split the money with me whatever I got from the pawn shop guy.”
“What happened after you pawned the ring?”
“I got $50 for it.
“Honestly, DEET is still the best repellent but who wants to spray that on.” Anne took off her safety glasses and looked at Sharon and said, “What works for me pretty well is a dryer sheet. It has to be scented. Just rub it all over your skin. It keeps off all but the most aggressive mosquitoes.”
“Very interesting,” said Sharon. “How was your weekend?”
“It was good,” replied Anne. “I went to a sale. I found a beautiful Steiff bear. It was on my list.”
“What list is that?” Sharon looked quizzically at her.
“Oh, my friend CC and I––you’ve met her––have a blog about our finds at estate sales. A lot of our fans have been writing to us looking for help finding items.”
“Really? That’s pretty cool. Maybe you can help me out,” Sharon said.
“What are you looking for?” Anne asked, getting enthusiastic.
“My boyfriend and I are buying a loft off of Madison and Racine, not too far from the United Center. He wants to bring over all his furniture. Let me clarify that––his junk.” Sharon leaned against Anne’s table. “I’m trying to be fair about it. I told him he could pick three of his favorite possessions, but I get to okay them. Anne, you should see his taste. It’s like he’s still in a college dorm room.”
Anne rubbed her chin and looked thoughtful. “Let me see. What’s your style? What do you like?”
Sharon sat on the stool next to her. “I really love 1960s mod. I’d love to find an Andy Warhol, a real one. I inherited a couple Eames chairs and I’d like to decorate the whole loft around them.”
“Eames chairs. Those are really valuable,” Anne said. “I’ll put you at the head of the list. I’ve got some ideas in mind for 1960s décor.” Anne thought for a moment. “I might just have a few things in my garage. Give me a day or two.” She had to decide if she was willing to part with one of her Formica kitchen tables or her avocado green stove.
“Thanks, Anne.” Sharon stood up. “We’re heading out to lunch. Do you want to join us?”
“Not today. I brought lunch,” Anne said. She watched her coworkers walk out. Anne sat at her desk, nibbling her chicken salad sandwich, browsing through her eBay watch list. Anne took a couple bites and reached into her drawer, pulling out a Reese’s peanut butter cup. “If I eat half the sandwich, I can eat the whole candy bar,” she said to herself. She scrolled down her eBay watch list. The silver tea service that had started at $25 was now up over $100. Too bad; she couldn’t spend that much right now. She had overextended herself again and was struggling to pay her monthly bills. She didn’t tell CC because she didn’t want a lecture.
After work, Anne headed to the police station to meet Nigel Towers. She sat in the viewing room as Nigel spoke with the homeless man who matched her description. It was definitely him. She watched through the glass and listened intently.
“Tell me, Mr. Findle, you say that some guy came up to you and asked you to hock this ring?” Nigel put the ring on the table.
The homeless man touched the ring and said, “Yep, yep; that’s it. That’s the ring.”
“What did this man look like?”
“I don’t know––just a middle-aged white guy, kind of greasy.” The homeless man’s leg bounced up and down with a nervous energy.
“What do you mean by greasy ?”
“He seemed kind of off. He didn’t seem right, you know what I mean?”
“Did he say why he wanted you to pawn the ring?”
“He said that he’d lost a lot of money at the track and he wanted to sell his wedding ring. He’d told his wife that he lost it. He didn’t want her to find out. That’s why he wanted me to go inside the pawnshop. He said he’d split the money with me whatever I got from the pawn shop guy.”
“What happened after you pawned the ring?”
“I got $50 for it.
Similar Books
