hesitated.
Seeing the gun stopped me for a minute, but I wasn’t sure why. It was logical to have a gun, especially out here in the middle of nowhere. You never knew what kind of people were out on the road.
I started searching.
There were two shelves behind the desk. The top one was stacked with paper towels and a spray bottle filled with a light green liquid. The next shelf had a series of receipt books, magazines, and newspaper crosswords.
I picked up the magazines and shuffled through the titles. Most were familiar, Guns & Ammo, Soldier of Fortune.
Some weren’t.
I stopped at one with a picture of three young men on the cover. They were standing together in their underwear with their arms around each other, smiling into the camera.
Above them, in bold letters, was the word TWINKS .
At first I thought it was a catalog.
I opened it and flipped through the pages.
I was wrong.
Behind me, I heard Caroline laugh and Butch say, “Well, I’ll be damned.” Then the thin rattle of chips sliding across the table.
I looked up to see if anyone was coming, then I put the magazines back on the shelf. When I did, I saw the notebook sitting next to a stack of paper towels.
I heard a chair slide across the dining room floor.
I grabbed the notebook and flipped through it until I found my name, then I tore the page out and stuffed it in my pocket.
I put the notebook back and stood up.
Butch was standing in the doorway.
For a moment, neither of us said anything. “Help you with something, Minnesota?”
My throat felt tight, but I managed to find my voice.
“Matches,” I said. “We ran out.”
Butch stared at me then pointed to a box of kitchen matches on the shelf next to the wooden pegboard. “Take what you need.”
I took a few, thanked him, then came around to the front of the desk.
“Anything else you’re after?”
I told him there wasn’t.
Butch walked behind the desk and looked around, then stared up at me. He didn’t speak.
I grabbed the plate off the desk and thanked him again for the matches then turned toward the door.
Butch stopped me.
“Do me a favor, Minnesota.”
“What’s that?”
“Next time you want something, just ask.”
I told him I would.
When I opened the door and walked out, my head was throbbing. I told myself I’d make it up to Butch and leave some money in the room to cover the cost of our stay.
I’d even leave a couple hundred extra for the mirror and the inconvenience.
I didn’t mind.
Butch seemed like a decent guy.
The sky outside was a cold white haze. I could see the sun working behind the clouds, but it wasn’t cutting through. There was no sign of the plows, but no sign of another storm, either, and that was a good thing.
With luck, the plows were on their way.
Things were looking up.
I’d managed to get the page from the notebook, and for the first time that day, I allowed myself to relax. We’d covered ourselves the best we could, and now it was out of our hands. All we could do was wait.
I started across the parking lot toward our building. The plate of food was hot and I switched it from one hand to the other as I walked. Then, when I turned the corner, I noticed something dark lying at the edge of the playground.
At first I thought it was a blanket or maybe a trash bag blown in with the storm, but something about it didn’t look right.
I started across the parking lot toward the playground. When I got closer I saw what it was and felt something cold spread through my chest.
It wasn’t a blanket or a trash bag, it was a man.
It was Syl.
I stood where I was, unable to move.
I didn’t believe what I was seeing, and that gave me the strength to start walking again.
I had to be sure.
When I got close, I looked at him lying facedown in the snow. His coat was ripped and his pants were caked with mud. One shoe was missing, and the sock was pushed down past his ankle, showing a band of blue skin.
I couldn’t tell if he was alive or not,
Seeing the gun stopped me for a minute, but I wasn’t sure why. It was logical to have a gun, especially out here in the middle of nowhere. You never knew what kind of people were out on the road.
I started searching.
There were two shelves behind the desk. The top one was stacked with paper towels and a spray bottle filled with a light green liquid. The next shelf had a series of receipt books, magazines, and newspaper crosswords.
I picked up the magazines and shuffled through the titles. Most were familiar, Guns & Ammo, Soldier of Fortune.
Some weren’t.
I stopped at one with a picture of three young men on the cover. They were standing together in their underwear with their arms around each other, smiling into the camera.
Above them, in bold letters, was the word TWINKS .
At first I thought it was a catalog.
I opened it and flipped through the pages.
I was wrong.
Behind me, I heard Caroline laugh and Butch say, “Well, I’ll be damned.” Then the thin rattle of chips sliding across the table.
I looked up to see if anyone was coming, then I put the magazines back on the shelf. When I did, I saw the notebook sitting next to a stack of paper towels.
I heard a chair slide across the dining room floor.
I grabbed the notebook and flipped through it until I found my name, then I tore the page out and stuffed it in my pocket.
I put the notebook back and stood up.
Butch was standing in the doorway.
For a moment, neither of us said anything. “Help you with something, Minnesota?”
My throat felt tight, but I managed to find my voice.
“Matches,” I said. “We ran out.”
Butch stared at me then pointed to a box of kitchen matches on the shelf next to the wooden pegboard. “Take what you need.”
I took a few, thanked him, then came around to the front of the desk.
“Anything else you’re after?”
I told him there wasn’t.
Butch walked behind the desk and looked around, then stared up at me. He didn’t speak.
I grabbed the plate off the desk and thanked him again for the matches then turned toward the door.
Butch stopped me.
“Do me a favor, Minnesota.”
“What’s that?”
“Next time you want something, just ask.”
I told him I would.
When I opened the door and walked out, my head was throbbing. I told myself I’d make it up to Butch and leave some money in the room to cover the cost of our stay.
I’d even leave a couple hundred extra for the mirror and the inconvenience.
I didn’t mind.
Butch seemed like a decent guy.
The sky outside was a cold white haze. I could see the sun working behind the clouds, but it wasn’t cutting through. There was no sign of the plows, but no sign of another storm, either, and that was a good thing.
With luck, the plows were on their way.
Things were looking up.
I’d managed to get the page from the notebook, and for the first time that day, I allowed myself to relax. We’d covered ourselves the best we could, and now it was out of our hands. All we could do was wait.
I started across the parking lot toward our building. The plate of food was hot and I switched it from one hand to the other as I walked. Then, when I turned the corner, I noticed something dark lying at the edge of the playground.
At first I thought it was a blanket or maybe a trash bag blown in with the storm, but something about it didn’t look right.
I started across the parking lot toward the playground. When I got closer I saw what it was and felt something cold spread through my chest.
It wasn’t a blanket or a trash bag, it was a man.
It was Syl.
I stood where I was, unable to move.
I didn’t believe what I was seeing, and that gave me the strength to start walking again.
I had to be sure.
When I got close, I looked at him lying facedown in the snow. His coat was ripped and his pants were caked with mud. One shoe was missing, and the sock was pushed down past his ankle, showing a band of blue skin.
I couldn’t tell if he was alive or not,
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