“Yes, and like I said, I’ll wait until I get this home, but it looks like there might be drugs in here, and if you look closely, there might be a notebook in here.”
“Fuck me,” Warren whispered.He held up his hands and stepped back.“I’ll go find a garbage bag.”
“Thanks,” Paul said and continued to look inside the bag, but didn’t touch anything.
“What’s up?”Petra asked as she came in with a large plastic bag.She looked inside and did the same thing Warren did, whistled, and looked at him with wide eyes.
“Have you looked at anything?”
“Just what you saw.I want to take it home, store it in the shop overnight, then bring it into the basement to go through it tomorrow.There’s no telling how long it’s been here, so I don’t think one more day will matter.”
“I agree.”Petra nodded and held the bag open as he placed the pack in it.With the plastic wrapped around it, he took it out to his bike and stuffed it inside one of the saddlebags.As soon as he finished, he jumped in to help Norm and Warren pack up the van.Two hours later, Paul, Petra, Norm, Sally, and Warren watched as Paula pulled her van out of the driveway and took off down the street.
Paul turned to Norm with a business card held out.“If Eddie comes here and tries to start any shit, call me.”
“Me too,” Warren said as he handed over his own business card.“Between Paul and I, we believe he might come looking for her.He might try to destroy the home if he finds her gone.”
“Not to mention the pack he left in the closet.I have it, and I’ll go through it tomorrow.If I feel you might be in danger, I’ll reach out to you.”
“Thank you,” Norm said and made sure they had his information, then he sighed heavily.“I guess I’ll have to find something else to do now that Paula’s left.”He shook his head sadly.“I enjoyed looking out for her.”
“What do you do for a living?”
“I’m retired.I know, I know, I’m not even fifty yet, but within five years of my wife’s death, I lost my last surviving grandparent, and parent.So, Grandma, Dad, and Betty passed within five years of one another.They all had gigantic life insurance policies, naming me the beneficiary.I don’t have to work the rest of my life.Betty and I had always wanted to travel, but it doesn’t have the same appeal now that she’s gone.I suppose I could probably go overseas to visit my daughter, but again, it doesn’t hold any appeal to me.”
“What did you do before you retired?”Warren asked as they made their way to their motorcycles, still parked in the driveway.
“I was a mechanic.I owned and operated my own shop, and ended up selling it when Betty got sick.For the last two years of her life, I was her sole caregiver.After she passed, I redid the entire Monte Carlo from the frame up.It’s all original parts.”
“Have you ever worked on motorcycles?”Paul asked.“I’m starting my own MC, and could use someone with knowledge.”
“What’s MC stand for?”
“Motorcycle Club.”He held up his hand and chuckled.“We’re nothing like Eddie.You saw the ID I gave you, that’s all the people that will be working with me.They will have one or the other, or maybe both of those IDs, but with their names on it.”
“Can I think about it?”Norm asked after several minutes of thinking.
“Absolutely, no pressure.Even if you don’t want to work for me, if you just want to come and hang out, that’s fine too.”
“Where do you live?”
“Out near Fonda, about forty miles east of Fort Dodge.”
“Damn, that’s far out.”
“Yeah, but I own a two-hundred-acre farm there.I rent out the land to local farmers, but the house and buildings are all for my use.”He looked at Warren and at his nod, continued, “I’m turning one of those sheds into the motorcycle repair shop.I have men coming from all over the country to help me with my mission to get rid of riffraff like Eddie.”
“Are you telling me you’re going to murder people?”
“No, but they will be arrested and prosecuted.”
“Damn, do you realize that the jails will fill up fast if you do what you want to?”
“I figured as much, but...”he paused and shook his head as he rubbed the back of his neck.“But, if it gets people like Eddie off the streets, I’m okay with that.”
“Good.”Norm raised the business cards in a salute.“I’ll think about what you said.”He turned and walked down the street toward his own home.
Paul looked at Warren, and they both shrugged as they went to their own bikes, readying themselves for the drive home.Just before they started the bikes, Paul called over to Warren and Sally that he would break off and head home.They agreed, started their bikes, and took off for home.
