‘Just like fishin,’ Garnett thought, and swiveled on the bar Stool.   ‘Maybe even better.’  Garnet would hang  around one of his “fishing holes,” Justice Drive-in, Big Red's Truck Stop, or Bella's Barbecue; his favorite hole, and wait for the right fish. 

It was fun.     

A year ago it was for the money.  Not much going on in a small town like this.  The business was going under back then. Couldn't make insurance, rent on the building always late, about to lose the ambulance; and no way could he let that happen.

So he thought.  Through the day into the night, sitting in the back of the old ESSO station that served as his home and office, he thought and talked business with himself.

"Second job?"  He asked out loud and listened for an answer.

"No ... no good. Can't take calls if ya ain't mannin' the machine and no way is someone else goin' to have all the fun. What's the use in havin' a rescue service if ya can't see the mangled flesh and guts first hand?"  Garnett reasoned with himself.   

With every solution came reasons why they wouldn't work. So his final solution was to stop trying to think up solutions and go right to the root of the problem.

The town of Pickens was too small.  Not enough heart attacks, strokes, over all ill health.  Crime was nonexistent.  Accidents – few and far between. Just not enough misfortune to create capital for the business.      

So with all that in mind Garnett thought some more. Centered in a globe of brown light made by the 45 watt bulb hanging above his head, he sat on a rusted oil drum behind a wooden crate for a desk and ate his dinner; usually a bologna sandwich and Dr. Pepper, and tried to think like a businessman.           

"Yeah, I'm a businessman all right," he said aloud.  "A businessman without product.  I either need product or sell out, pay off what I can and do somethin' else."   

"Naaa.  No good.  I don't want to do somethin' else," he said back to himself and filled his hands with his face.            

Surrounded by stacks of unpaid bills, collection notices and returned checks, he gazed into the darkness outside of the brown light and chewed on the warm bologna.         

Immune to the constant dripping from the faucet in the bathroom and the endless "sssss" sound from the ever running toilet, his thinking went uninterrupted until a car passed by on the old highway.  And that was seldom.              

Headlights from cars going towards town would shine through the glass front of the ESSO station.  The light would spread across the ceiling and pour down the walls, laying open the darkness that circled Garnett and his 45 watt bulb; turning the contents of the building into fuzzy shadows.  Finally the headlights would reflect in the huge mirror that hung over the sink in the bathroom.  Giving the impression, for just an instant, that a car was about to drive out of the bathroom.   

"Why?  Tell me why a old place like this has such a big son of a bitchin' mirror?  Who saw fit to have such a gruesome reflective device put in a whole like this?" 

He turned from the glare of the headlights approaching from outside and from the bathroom.                                                                        

"Wish the bathroom had a door."  He raised the Dr. Pepper just as another car passed by.    

"Well New York City!  Two cars in three minutes." He squinted at the headlights coming towards him from the bathroom mirror and raised his arms in mock terror of being ran over.

It was then, as the light reflected from the mirror into his squinted face, Garnett had his idea. And with the look of someone who had just received unexpected company, he began to think over his idea.

"Cause and effect," he said, nodding his head and agreeing with himself. "Cause and effect. I cause a small accident and in effect, save my ass. A single car fender bender or a ditcher."

"I've radioed the state police sir." He stood and walked to the front of the crate. "Are you all right? Better not move sir, you should go directly to the emergency room." His eyes and smile grew wide together. "First, cause a lil' accident . . . then I'll wait." He paced, explaining it to himself. "Not too close – not too far away. Then the state trooper'll come. Then I'll come with my lights on. Picked it up on the scanner sir. Does he need help?" He wrinkled his face in a concerned frown and bent over as if looking through a car window. "You okay mam? What! Your back! Your neck! A small scratch?"

With each question he posed to his imaginary victims the more dramatic he became.

"Can't be too careful mam. It might be a lower spinal bufferated disc." He faced the other way. "But sir the puffiness above your eye caused by the blow your head suffered when it hit the steering wheel may be a frontal lobal concussion."

Garnett laughed and danced to the Styrofoam cooler beside the crate. "Just a small accident, no real pain." He reached in the cooler and pulled a Dr. Pepper out of the lukewarm water. "They'll come out ahead with their car insurance anyway. Garnett saves the day and thus gets paid."

He stood at the edge of the brown light staring into the darkness, in the direction of the big mirror, nodding his head and agreeing with himself. "It'll work." He whispered and sucked on the can. The drink ran from the corner of his mouth and dripped from his chin to his gray shirt.

Now as with any change in company policy this took planning, and Garnett planned as hard as he thought. With swivel hooks on the back of the ambulance he could attach the mirror, small hooks no one would notice or think anything about. With the same type hooks on the inside of the ambulance he could stable the mirror for transporting it to and from his "accidents.”

"What are those hooks for Garnett?" He prepared himself. "Don't know, been there since I had the ambulance. Hadn't ya noticed 'em before?" That was all he'd have to say.

He wiggled with anticipation on the torn seat of the Ford as he drove, glancing over his shoulder at the huge mirror pinned against the wall and snickering. "Now I need customers. Don't want to use friends and no real close family. That wouldn't be good for business."

He hunched over the steering wheel, brightened his lights, and bared down on the car in front of him. The driver of the car flicked his rear view mirror to the night position. "Damn man, it's hard to read license plates at night." He scooted forward, sticking his face in the windshield. "What is that? Ida . . . Illi . . . Indio?"

He whipped the titanic ambulance off the road to the shoulder and studied the clock humming from the dash. "Let's see, set the clock again three days ago, gains fifteen minutes a day." He wiggled his fingers and rolled his eyes around in his head calculating the time. "So that makes it about 8:33. Now where at 8:33 could I find me a customer?"

There were only two motels in Pickens. Garnett went to the closest one, the Sawing Slumber Motel, and drove through the parking lot looking at license plates. Three of the nine cars had out of state tags. He pulled out of the lot and across the road, parked, and smiled.

"Ten thirty-four. That means it's . . . big hand on the . . . little hand on the . . ." He whispered numbers and counted backwards on his fingers. "It's 9:49. This is no good. No good at all," he shook his head. "Clients are there but no one's shopping."

So Garnett held a business conference. "If they're there, it's for the night."

"Ya could wait and catch 'em leavin' in the mornin'."

"No . . . no good. It'll be daylight then."

He turned in the seat facing the passenger side, thought on what he had told himself, and reached a business decision. On just the other side of the Sawing Slumber Motel was Bella's Barbeque. "Tomorrow I'll bring my dinner," he said and put all his weight against the ambulance door. The door squeaked and clicked nervously up and down as it opened.

Garnett scooted through the graveled lot entered Bella's Barbeque and walked towards the bar, moving his eyes around the room to see if there was anyone he didn't know, almost missing the stool as he sit down.

The waitress set a Dr. Pepper down in front of him. "Anything to eat Garnett?"

To Garnett her voice sounded as dry as her freckled skin looked.

You look like a toad, he thought, then said, "Like a little time to decide thank ya Estelle."

Estelle stared at him for a moment and then began wiping the surface of the bar.

"Hey Garnett, why don't you have a hearse with a cherry on top?" The three men at the table behind him elbowed each other and laughed. "Oh, I forgot you already got one." They laughed louder, twisting in their seats.

"That's a good one Jimmy," Garnett said, keeping his eyes on the soda can. Garnet had always been a slow learner, but the one thing he learned early was to agree with what was said to him and to laugh when they laughed, no matter what it was, and they would leave him alone. That's all he wanted.

Garnett opened the Dr. Pepper and took a drink, looking out the corner of his eye at the three men still laughing at him. He thought about it for a moment then quickly dismissed the idea. He had decided on no one he knew. It was a business decision. He nodded his head and agreed with himself.

The man brushed against Garnett's back as he walked behind him to a stool two seats from him. "Man I'm glad this place is open," the man said in a rushed tone. "I'm starving."

Estelle placed a menu and a glass of water in front of the man but looked at Garnett. "You ready to order Garnett?"

"Still thinkin'."

She rolled her eyes and popped her gum. Her earrings jingled as she turned her head to face the stranger. "Just holler when you're ready hon," she said and patted the counter in front of the man.

"Hey baby doll, I'm ready now!" the man said, raising his big frame off the stool and across the bar. "Oh, you mean to order." He laughed and grinned through yellow teeth that reminded Garnett of his own.

Estelle popped her gum through a frown. "Exactly."

"She's not too friendly," the man said into his menu then looked at Garnett, "is she stranger?"

Garnett took a loud sip of soda. "You're the stranger," he adjusted himself on the stool trying to appear cool, "stranger."

The man grinned at him with a smile that looked too big for his face. "Right you are my friend, right you are." He leaned over the two stools extending his right hand and putting the other hand inside his coat pulled out a little white card. "Let me introduce you to me. I am Walter P. Hutchins," he handed Garnett the white card, "sales."

"Sales for what?"

"Anything. That is anything a man such as yourself might truly need. I have solar powered tooth brushes, night vision sunglasses, now that's a hot item, toilet sanitizer kits, solar powered hair dryers, smokeless ashtrays . . . " Walter turned to Estelle who was back to take his order, " . . . you all might be interested in those. Coffee please." She rolled her eyes. "We also have a complete line of costume jewelry that any young woman would find a complement to her natural beauty." He winked at Estelle.

Garnett watched Estelle's face alter into something suggesting a smile.

"You do have a little lady, don't you son." He was telling Garnett more than asking him. "Because beginning next week I'll be carrying a complete line of beauty aids such as wart cream, corn remover . . ." Walter looked into Estelle's face, ". . . freckle dye . . ." Garnett watched the smile on her face weaken back to the usual frown and loved it. " . . . hair wax, and such." Walter finally shut up and stared at Garnett.

Garnett stared back. "Where ya from?"

Didn't you hear a word I said, the look on Walter's face asked.

Eager for an answer, Garnett asked again. "Where ya from?"

"Aaa, Earlanger. I'm from Earlanger. Up state. You know?"

"Yea, I know."

Estelle leaned across the bar. "Are you ready to order now?"

Walter looked into Garnett's blank eyes, nodded yes, then turned on his stool to face Estelle. "I'll have the pork barbecue, slaw, hot fries with cheese, and a Natural Lite." He reached the menu back to Estelle.

Estelle frowned at Garnett. "And you?"

Garnett was counting out one dollar and seventy five cents from a pile of change cupped in his hand. "No, nuthin'. Just the Dr. Pepper." He slapped the change on the bar. "Are ya stayin' over Walter or headin' out?"

"No. No, I'll be hitting the big road."

"Headin' down one nineteen to seventy five I guess?"

Walter hesitated then answered with a baffled nod.

Garnett stepped back, studied Walter's heavy frame perched on the stool, took a deep breath, and extended his hand. "Walter it sure has been good meetin' ya." Garnett's head nodded in rhythm with the handshake. "But gotta go now."

"I understand. Wish I was going home and crawling in bed myself," Walter said.

"Not going to bed. I just recently started working nights and it looks like I got a business transaction tonight."

Walter nodded as if he understood. "If your working nights you might be interested in the night vision sunglasses I was telling you about. Handy little item, wear them myself."

"Appreciate it, no."

"Some other time then," Walter said turning his attention to the plate of food Estelle placed in front of him.

Garnett pulled the bill of his cap down and walked to the door. "Don't think so Walter," he whispered.

"Hey Garnett!" Jimmy called out after him. "Why don't you get a uniform? You look like you drive a wrecker. Oh, that's right, you do."

The men's laughter stayed with Garnett till the door closed behind him.

Garnett's belly churned and his legs wiggled uncontrollable as he waited outside of Bella's.

"If only that fella would eat as fast as he talks,” Garnett said and reached under his seat for his multipurpose rag. The rag he used to wipe off, wipe up, and blow into. He cleaned off a small area of the window just in front of his face, leaving the rest of the window fogged up, and watched for Walter.

Walter came out wearing his party grin and stood at the edge of the sidewalk picking his teeth. Garnett wasn't sure but it looked like he was picking his teeth with one of his business cards. Walter threw the white whatever it was down, took his hand around the inside of his trousers, forcing his shirt over his gut, looked both ways and stepped onto the graveled parking lot.

Cocking his head to the side, Walter began picking at his teeth with what looked to Garnett like his whole hand. Walter walked to an aged white Dodge Caravan parked beneath the night light across the lot and got in.

Garnett bolted to life and turned the key. The Ford's engine grumbled in protest giving way to a single grunt that turned into a string of grunts that shook the hood, the windows, all of the dash, and vibrated up the steering column into Garnett's hands and up his arms.

"Opened for business." Garnett giggled, and beat the shift stick into first gear. With a grinding jump the Ford pulled out and rolled to the end of the parking lot, leaving behind a light blue mist and heavy exhaust fumes. He watched through the rearview mirror for Walter. Headlights came from behind the building and Garnett pulled out.

"Just business Walter, just business." He said to the lights reflecting in the mirror. "Business and that's all." He waved his hand in the air. "I'm sellin' a service Walter and you're a buyin'. Now it's true your choices are limited, but it's just business and a salesman such as yourself, if talked to right about it, would understand," Garnett explained to the headlights behind him then shifted and sped up.

Walter watched the tail lights in front of him fade behind a blue cloud and disappear into the darkness. The lights from Worly's Fuel N Feed came into view. Walter checked the gas hand and pulled in. He was pumping the Caravan full of regular unleaded when the red pickup shot by, kicking up dust, litter, and blowing Walter's tie into his dust filled face.

"Damn!" He said, grabbing at his tie with his free hand.

Garnett's eyes shifted from the road to the rearview mirror as he drove. The reflection of his tail lights on the guardrail and road signs was the only light behind him. He slowed and pulled across the road to the shoulder. Thirty-five feet ahead the road curved sharply, one of many steep bends on the old road. On the inside of the curve was a hillside – on the outside of the guardrail an abrupt drop. He checked the rearview mirror one last time and, leaving the motor running, with a push and jump, ran to the back of the ambulance. He turned the door handle and pulled. The door clicked. He turned the handle and pulled again, this time harder. His hand slipped and he stumbled backward.

"Ooooo shit!" He rushed to the drivers side door, climbed in and between the seats and over the cot in the rear of the ambulance. Leaning back and bracing himself with his hands on either side of the cot he rammed his foot against the door. The door creaked open two inches. He rolled off the cot and turned the L shaped hooks that held the mirror in place. The weight of the mirror sent him backwards. Regaining his balance he stumbled to the rear doors, pushed through them and stepped down to the dirt shoulder, losing his grip on the mirror. The thick edge of the mirror landed on his foot producing several sharp curses. Letting the mirror rest on his throbbing foot he stretched out his free hand and slammed the doors shut. He raised the mirror, set it into the stationary brackets, pushed it back and twisted the hooks at the top. The hooks screeched on the glass, pressing the mirror snugly against the doors. Garnett stepped back, smiled to his dark reflection, and admired his work.

Two small white eyes appeared over his reflections shoulder. "What the . . . " he said and reached his hand up to rub the growing white objects on the surface of the mirror. Garnett's notions always formed in the rear of his head. He could feel them bumping their way to the front, just over his eyes, where he could see them clearly. Most of the time he would receive the notion forgetting the cause long before. Then there were the times he paused, knowing he needed to listen to himself - like now. His mouth hung open and his eyes disappeared under their lids as his mind reckoned on the objects in the mirror. The eyes rolled down, the mouth remained open and Garnett whirled around. The headlights were coming up fast. Garnett slapped his hand to the top of his cap, ran for the open door, leaped behind the steering wheel and flicked on his lights.

"Ooops." He said, and flicked them back off, pulled onto the road, rounded the curve, and stopped. Using the clutch and gas Garnett rocked the ambulance back and forth and waited.

"I thought I saw a car." The man leaning against the passenger door said, his head bumping the window as the truck bounced on the old highway.

"Me too. Did you?" The man in the middle asked and turned to the driver. Jimmy flicked a cigarette out the window.

"Boys I didn't see nothin'." "I swear Jimmy for a moment I saw a car." The man in the middle pointed ahead. "Why don't ya slow down some man?"

"Ssshhh, boys." Jimmy took a drink of the Milwaukee's Best. "Don't bother the driver while he's drinkin'." Jimmy raised the beer again and took a long drink, looking over the length of the can and out the windshield to the narrow road in front of him as he went into the curve.

Garnett worked the clutch and gas and watched the mirror on the driver's door. "Gotta be ready to punch it if it works." Garnett rolled his eyes. "Gotta be ready to punch it if it don't."

The lights reflected off the guardrail on the other side of the road first, then came full around the curve. Garnett snickered.

The three men in the truck stiffened at the same time. The man in the middle and the man on the passenger side grabbed the dash. Jimmy jerked the wheel to his left to avoid the oncoming headlights and stomped the break. The truck did a sideways leap and rolled in the air coming down on its top on the guardrail. The pickup teetered back and forth on the guardrail a few times and then, in a blur of headlights and taillights, rolled over the embankment.

Garnett had stopped about forty feet from the curve with his head out the window watching the "accident". From a cringe, to wide eyed excitement, to horror, to amusement; with every roll, flip and bounce, his facial expression changed. He stared at the spot he last saw the tail lights, nodded in approval, and slapped the stick into first.

About a mile from his transaction he made a U turn and pulled off to the side of the road. He ran to the rear of the ambulance, turned the hooks, removed the mirror and turned the door handle. The door clicked. He turned the handle again and pulled. The door clicked again but didn't open.

"Shit fire!" he said and heaved the mirror up and against his chest and walked toward the open door on the driver's side. The noise was familiar. A soft gliding sound. He stopped, cocked his head and listened. He tried to place it, shrugged it off, took two steps, then everything lit up. He snapped his head around and looked over his shoulder into the headlights of a car. Garnett lurched forward to run for the open door then decided he couldn't make it. Shielded by the huge mirror, he pressed his back flat against the side of the ambulance and tried to hide.

As the light from the van coasted past Garnett and off the ambulance Walter's nightvision sunglasses became more effective. In the green glow of the glasses Walter looked at Garnett looking at him. Walter slowed to a rolling stop and stared into the wide eyed expression of the man he had met a while ago.

He looked from the eyes to the open mouth, down to the large mirror that hid all but Garnett’s head and watched the shadowy reflection of his white Caravan roll across its surface. Walter slowly raised his hand off the wheel in a slow wave. Garnett held his breath and for a moment forgot the weight of the mirror. Staring at the van as it slowed, his fear mixed quickly with shock. As Walter raised his hand Garnett gave a slow nod and mouthed, "'lo Walter." Walter turned his head back and forth from the road to Garnett until the sight was lost behind the trees.

Garnett slowly finished the distance to the door, set the mirror down and climbed inside. He then kicked the rear doors open, retrieved the mirror, and hung it back in its place. Garnett walked from the rear of the ambulance to the front dragging his feet in the gravel trying to think of something, he just didn't know what.

He reached the door, put his hand on the arm rest and stood looking through the window of the open door staring ahead. The question slowly entered his mind. Slowly seeped from the back of his brain to the front and sloshed back and forth before dropping down and out his mouth.

"Well who wrecked?" He asked himself and waited a moment for an answer.

With a jolt he was in the ambulance driving towards the accident.

Garnett stooped with his hands on his knees looking over the smashed guardrail. A dim red glow came from deep within the trees. He raised his leg to step over the guardrail then stopped, snapped his fingers, and said, "Got to git the law first," and amazed himself at how smart he was.

"Just business. Just a business transaction that's all. And now it's time to merge with another business called the state police," he said, climbing into the ambulance.

Garnett pulled to the far end of Worley's Fuel’n Feed. He hurried to the pay phone pulling a wrinkled piece of paper from his shirt pocket, dropped in dimes and nickels to pay the fee, and dialed the number on the paper.

"State police," a voice said after the second ring.

Garnett quickly realized he hadn't given this part much thought. "Aaaa, ye . . . yes mam. I'm on highway . . . " Garnett thought if he should change his voice. He decided to. ". . . twenty six, just north of Pickens at Worley's Fuel'n Feed and I believe there's an accident about five miles from here."

"What is your name sir?" "Gar . . . " he caught himself, stopped and looked around for help. He studied the selection buttons on the soda machine next to the payphone. “Garap, Mr. R.C. Garap,” he said, then covered the receiver with his hand and snickered. This was like pulling a phone prank and he loved pulling prank phone calls.

"All right Mr. Garap, we will be dispatching a trooper out there. Will you be there to
sho . . . “

"I gotta go," he hung up the receiver, giggled his way back to the ambulance, and pulled behind the service station. He wiggled his legs, calculated the time on the clock, discussed business, and waited. Garnett was deep in discussion when the voice broke over the radio, boosting him out of his seat and sending his heart on a sprint inside his chest. It took a moment for him to work things out in his mind and pick back up on what he was doing and on the conversation over the radio.

" . . . definite skid marks and damage to the guardrail. Possible vehicle is over embankment. I’ll call in when I know for certain."

"Gotta be patient," Garnett said, and began a business conference. "I gotta wait for them to radio in they found the vehicle."

"Then what?" He held his hand out explaining it to himself.

"Then give myself enough time to make it from the garage to the scene."

He went into rehearsal. "Yes officer, picked it up on the scanner sir. Understand you're in need of assistance. Yes sir, I can transport said occupant to General Memorial sir. Yes sir, always leave the scanner on twenty four hours a day, that's how long I listen to the scanner sir. Yes I know it's very professional of me sir, I'm here for the other man," Garnett said and tried his best to look humble.

"Found it." The trooper’s voice broke Garnett's mild assessment of himself. "One vehicle, three occupants, no survivors."

Garnett's heart stopped, his legs stopped swinging and all his thoughts stopped.

"Need a wrecker, need transportation . . ." Transportation was all Garnett heard. He started swinging his legs, started the ambulance, and started thinking.

"Gains and losses. Going to have 'em. Going to have shrink." The gravel popped beneath the tires. Garnett turned on the emergency lights. He loved using the siren.

***

'Yep, just like fishin', Garnett thought and rolled from side to side on the bar stool, scanning the room for clients. Although he had broken one of his work ethics with his first transaction he still preferred no friends or real close family.

Estelle set a can of Dr. Pepper down in front of him. "What'll it be tonight honey? Something to eat or just the Dr. Pepper?"

Garnett straightened himself on the stool. "I'll let you know." He said without looking at her, brushing her off with the coolness of any successful businessman, and you still look like a toad, he smiled to himself, but a much politer toad.

Looking down at his shoes he reached for a napkin and wiped them. He inspected the front of his shirt for stains. Although successful and trying to be more professional, every so often the Dr. Pepper would dribble down his chin to his shirt. No spots, just crisp clean whiteness. Garnett adjusted his black cap, his latest with his new logo on it in bright red letters, took a deep breath, started shaking his legs and resumed looking for business.

He stopped the stool in mid roll. The man was watching him over the turned down corner of a newspaper. Garnett frowned and thought. He almost nodded to the man but the man flipped the paper back up. Garnett turned back around to the bar.

"Now where, where?" He half looked over his shoulder to the man but all he could see was newspaper.

The man at the table read the ad in the corner of the obituary page. GARNETT'S TWENTY FOUR HOUR RESCUE SERVICE, was printed in bold type across the top of the ad. Below that was a drawing of the big ambulance, beneath that, smaller lettering read, 'I care anytime - DAY OR NIGHT. I can't sleep knowing you may need me,' and beside of that, a rendering of Garnett's head.

"Why not?" Walter whispered and sipped the black coffee that mixed his smile with a bitter expression. Walter turned back to the front page. To the report of the accident. The thirteenth one of this type, "that they knew of," the report read. For nearly a year now the accidents at or near Pickens were making the front page of the papers.

Walter had taken notice of the accidents during one of his trips through Pickens. The an accident just outside of Pickens. A couple of weeks later another in the same area, the next week another, then the next day another, but this time there were survivors.

The paper reported the accident happened about ten thirty at night. The occupants were traveling to Tandom when someone came at them head on. The driver of the other vehicle didn't stop and in the commotion of the accident no identification had been made of the other vehicle. Matter of fact the other vehicle seemed to disappear all together.

Every accident where there were survivors, same thing. Seemed the highways around Pickens had a ghost car that enjoyed causing accidents or an imbecile with the bad habit of driving on the wrong side of the road.

One of the victims of "Wrong Way Doe", as he was becoming known, claimed he saw tail lights then suddenly headlights came at him from no where. He dimmed his lights and the other driver immediately did the same.

Walter noticed that three things remained the same. The accidents all happened at night, they were all caused by a maniac driving on the wrong side of the road, and the good ol' Garnett was the first rescue service to the scene.

"And Garnett ol' buddy," Walter raised his cup in a toast ,"you've come to the rescue once to often." He took a sip of the coffee. "These local yocals might not see, but I do see. I see you and your little mirror too." He smiled. He tried not to, but his jaw muscles were trained to pull his mouth that way and he hated it.

He hated the cheap hotels, the homeless lonely life he led, he hated everything about his life and job. He wanted a good thing. He wanted a business. A steady job in one place. He was too old to start out at the bottom of some rinky dink job working and making money for someone else. He leaned forward in the chair, put his arms on the table and folded his hands.

"No. No way. I can't start over my friend," he whispered to Garnett's back. "This is . . . well it's just business. That's it Garnett, just business. Kind of a take over Garnett. I guess a hostile take over you might say." Walter tried to serious his face but even when he tried to frown it came out an ugly square smile. "And I'll improve on it Garnett. I'll come up with, well, let's say more of a variety for handling clients. I'll make you proud Garnett," his voice rose with excitement. He looked around to make sure no one heard. "But first Garnett, I must create a void. Then sir I must fill that void. But first things first Garnett."

Walter scooted the chair from the table and avoided Garnett as he made his way to the front of the restaurant. He laid exact change at the register and went out to his van. Pulling out of Bella's lot he flipped on the inside light and reached over the visor for the ad he had torn from a newspaper and took out his cell phone.

"Look at the bright side Garnett, any suspicion about you will soon be unfounded," he said and dialed the number on the ad as he drove.

Estelle set the plate of barbecued ribs in front of Garnett. "Here sweetie." She said, giving what Garnett thought must be her "I'll have sex with you smile". She had been giving him a lot of those lately.

Garnett put his napkin in his lap just like he had seen people do in the movies. He did that all the time now, even when he ate a bologna sandwich in the back of the old ESSO station. He stared at her face and tried to look past the universe of freckles covering her skin, deciding she might be pretty if some of those freckles would disappear.

Then the thought occurred to him, I know they can do that, I've heard it before. His beeper went off. He threw his fork on his plate and was up and scooting towards the door.

"Keep it warm, I'll be back." He yelled without turning around, feeling like a man in action. He vaulted into the ambulance and with both hands pulled the door too. "Next, new ambulance." He said to himself, picturing all the work he would have to create to get one, and sped from the lot into the night.

His mind drifted back to Estelle's face. "What was that stuff that annoying assed salesman was trying to sell? Freckle bleach, freckle gone, what was that stuff?" Garnett decided to get her some, whatever it was called. His mind shifted sides and he remembered Walter. Then his mind shifted to the man behind the newspaper. Garnett rounded the curve. The headlights were on his side of the road. Garnett had time enough to think to blink.

The Plymouth Voyager rocketed backwards then turned sideways, giving way to the speeding ambulance. On impact an explosion of flame engulfed both vehicles and blew through the ambulance in a ball of red and orange.

Walter watched from the other side of the guardrail, avoiding the debris falling around him and waiting for the commotion to stop.

"Wow!" Walter said, stepping over the guardrail. "Garnett I had no idea a vehicle could flip so many times. That was something! Just something.” He shook his head with amazement and walked as close as he could to the flaming heap. "Now do you see Garnett? Do you see what I mean by innovation? A leased vehicle, a gasoline can filled to the max, held in place over the bumper with a bungee cord. And then to top it off, I taped a lit cigar to the hood to insure combustion when you hit. It all adds up to what? I-n-n-o-v-a-t-i-o-n, innovation Garnett."

Walter gave a halfhearted salute, turned and walked to the other side of the road, still talking to Garnett's burning corpse.

"Your problem Garnett was you didn't put any thought into anything." He looked back at the burning wreck. "You had no creativity. Hey, the mirror was a good idea, but come on." Walter turned and kept walking. "You wore it out man. Let's see, tree limb in the road in the middle of a bad curve works for me," he said to himself and watched the yellow and orange flames reflect in the new paint job as he approached it.

"Cruise the parking lots late at night – perform a little sabotage." He opened the door, fixed himself in the seat and adjusted the rearview mirror. It wasn't new, but it was newer than Garnett's was. The body wasn't in bad shape and the interior was like new."And the elderly. Got to get to know the elderly and ill real well."

He looked over at the burning wreckage and turned the key and started the ambulance. "They'll understand won't they Garnett? After all, it's just business.