But instead of breaking the miserable humidity, the rain seemed simply to accentuate it. So in additionto having a nervous night—being held at gunpoint always disturbs my rest—Joe and I were also physically miserable, lying on damp sheets with a fan blowing wet air over us. If God had wanted people to live with high humidity, He wouldn’t have invented central air.
I finally fell soundly asleep about four a.m. and didn’t wake up until after eight. Luckily, Gina had made coffee for the gang. Doubleluckily, it was my day off. The skies were still gray, but the drizzle had stopped.
When I staggered to the table, barefoot and still in the T-shirt and shorts I’d slept in, Gina and Joe were sitting on either side of the toaster. Joe wore gym shorts and a T-shirt. Gina wore tight pink pants, a bright blue tunic, and pink high heels. On her shoulder was a pin featuring a poodle with a semiclearpink tummy, and pink plastic earrings hung from her ears.
I roused enough to ask about the rest of the houseguests, and Gina said everyone else had eaten. Joe said Pete had gone someplace to watch birds—like I believed that—and Brenda and Tracy had left for the shop. Darrell was in his camper. I could see all his doors and windows were open, and his fan was going so hard it must have been likea wind tunnel in there.
I was drinking coffee and wondering if I had enough energy to drop a piece of bread in the toaster, when someone knocked at the back door. Gina rapidly tiptoed into the living room, and Joe went into the kitchen.
The door was standing open, of course. I could hear Alice scratch on the screen.
“Hi, Harold,” Joe said.
“Joe! I’ve got a great idea about how to fight theseburglaries. We need to form a neighborhood watch.”
I let my head sink into my hands. All I wanted to do was go back to bed, and here was Harold, ready to hold a meeting.
I’m happy to say that Joe didn’t invite Harold in. He stepped out onto the porch to talk to him. But I could hear every word they said.
“A neighborhood watch?” Joe said. “I don’t know how that would work out here where thehouses aren’t very close together.”
“That’s why we need one!” Alice gave a yap, apparently to encourage him.
Harold went on. “We could have patrols.”
“A lot of the summer places have alarms,” Joe said.
“I know. But they don’t seem to be doing much good.”
“I don’t know, Harold. It seems to me that the main value of a neighborhood watch is to encourage people to get to know their neighbors—youknow, so they know who’s out of town and stuff like that. And out here . . . well, we pretty much know one another already.”
“You and Lee do, maybe. I know most of the permanent residents. But the summer people—I don’t know them at all.”
“You will before the end of the summer.”
Harold took Joe’s comment as a compliment. “I try,” he said modestly. “And Alice helps. Everybody likes Alice.”
I grinned. Yes, the lonely Harold with his cute mutt would know everybody for miles around by the end of the summer.
I barely caught Joe’s sigh. “It’s certainly an idea, Harold. Why don’t you talk to the city clerk on Monday? She’ll tell you how to go about setting up a neighborhood watch. But it won’t be easy, because of the summer people. They’re not interested in going to meetings.”
“If wehad lists of everybody’s license tag numbers,” Harold said, “if we knew who was supposed to be in the neighborhood and who wasn’t, then we might be able to catch those guys in the act.”
“The summer people have houseguests all the time, Harold. That’s one of the reasons people buy these places. So it would be hard to keep track of license numbers.”
Harold nodded. “I know, I know. But they stillhear things. Like last night—maybe I wasn’t the only person who heard someone running around at the time of the robbery at the Garretts’ house.”
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The Emperors of
I finally fell soundly asleep about four a.m. and didn’t wake up until after eight. Luckily, Gina had made coffee for the gang. Doubleluckily, it was my day off. The skies were still gray, but the drizzle had stopped.
When I staggered to the table, barefoot and still in the T-shirt and shorts I’d slept in, Gina and Joe were sitting on either side of the toaster. Joe wore gym shorts and a T-shirt. Gina wore tight pink pants, a bright blue tunic, and pink high heels. On her shoulder was a pin featuring a poodle with a semiclearpink tummy, and pink plastic earrings hung from her ears.
I roused enough to ask about the rest of the houseguests, and Gina said everyone else had eaten. Joe said Pete had gone someplace to watch birds—like I believed that—and Brenda and Tracy had left for the shop. Darrell was in his camper. I could see all his doors and windows were open, and his fan was going so hard it must have been likea wind tunnel in there.
I was drinking coffee and wondering if I had enough energy to drop a piece of bread in the toaster, when someone knocked at the back door. Gina rapidly tiptoed into the living room, and Joe went into the kitchen.
The door was standing open, of course. I could hear Alice scratch on the screen.
“Hi, Harold,” Joe said.
“Joe! I’ve got a great idea about how to fight theseburglaries. We need to form a neighborhood watch.”
I let my head sink into my hands. All I wanted to do was go back to bed, and here was Harold, ready to hold a meeting.
I’m happy to say that Joe didn’t invite Harold in. He stepped out onto the porch to talk to him. But I could hear every word they said.
“A neighborhood watch?” Joe said. “I don’t know how that would work out here where thehouses aren’t very close together.”
“That’s why we need one!” Alice gave a yap, apparently to encourage him.
Harold went on. “We could have patrols.”
“A lot of the summer places have alarms,” Joe said.
“I know. But they don’t seem to be doing much good.”
“I don’t know, Harold. It seems to me that the main value of a neighborhood watch is to encourage people to get to know their neighbors—youknow, so they know who’s out of town and stuff like that. And out here . . . well, we pretty much know one another already.”
“You and Lee do, maybe. I know most of the permanent residents. But the summer people—I don’t know them at all.”
“You will before the end of the summer.”
Harold took Joe’s comment as a compliment. “I try,” he said modestly. “And Alice helps. Everybody likes Alice.”
I grinned. Yes, the lonely Harold with his cute mutt would know everybody for miles around by the end of the summer.
I barely caught Joe’s sigh. “It’s certainly an idea, Harold. Why don’t you talk to the city clerk on Monday? She’ll tell you how to go about setting up a neighborhood watch. But it won’t be easy, because of the summer people. They’re not interested in going to meetings.”
“If wehad lists of everybody’s license tag numbers,” Harold said, “if we knew who was supposed to be in the neighborhood and who wasn’t, then we might be able to catch those guys in the act.”
“The summer people have houseguests all the time, Harold. That’s one of the reasons people buy these places. So it would be hard to keep track of license numbers.”
Harold nodded. “I know, I know. But they stillhear things. Like last night—maybe I wasn’t the only person who heard someone running around at the time of the robbery at the Garretts’ house.”
CHOCOLATE BOOKS
The Emperors of
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