My smile instantly disappears. Although Callie brought a credit card machine, it’s only meant for the beautification fund. There’s no way I can process this personal transaction on it.
“Sorry, cash only,” I reluctantly say, no doubt effectively killing the sale. Even I never carried around that kind of cash before.
She begins riffling through her wallet. “I’ve got five hundred.”
Callie will be back at any moment, and soon it’ll be time to pack up and leave. Seeing as I don’t have a choice, I agree to the deal and the lady pulls out the cash, placing the crisp bills on the table.
Even though it’s more money than I’ve seen lately, it’s practically highway robbery. This piece could have easily sold on eBay for ten times that amount. But I have to count my blessings. I have five hundred dollars more than I had before I got here. Which gets me that much closer to getting back to LA.
I wrap my bracelet in a piece of parchment paper that was used to wrap the jars of honey and hand it to her.
“Nice doing business with you,” she says before walking away.
I wave goodbye to her since I can’t get myself to say the words back. My only regret in selling the bracelet is that I was only able to get a fraction of what it’s worth. Before I can dwell on it any longer, Callie walks toward me. I quickly shove Gavin’s tie and belt in my bag.
“Wow, we did good.” She eyes the empty table.
“We sure did,” I say. “Did you get anything for yourself?”
“Just this.” Callie shows me a different kind of jewelry than the one I parted with. A handwoven bracelet she bought from a girl who was raising money for her school. She must really be charitable, because that is a bracelet you couldn’t pay me to wear.
We pack up our things and load the Jeep, which is much easier than unloading it was, since we sold everything we had. Before we get on the freeway, Callie notices something on her dashboard.
“Oh, shoot. My tank is empty. We should fill it before we get on the freeway.” She spots a gas station ahead and turns into it. After she pulls up to the pump, Callie gets out and opens the tank of her car.
“This Jeep is diesel-run?” I ask while the fuel is pumping into the car.
“Yeah. Diesel-run cars don’t have spark plugs, which disrupt the electromagnetic waves,” she explains. “It’s more expensive to operate, but luckily we don’t drive too much in town. So a tank usually lasts me weeks.” Easily believable, since even Gavin and I can manage to get from one end of the town to the other on foot. After the pump is done, Callie gets out to close her tank and pay for the diesel.
“How much did you say we made at the farmer’s market today?” I ask when she returns.
“Three hundred dollars.” Callie’s smile stretches extra wide. “It’s more than we made in the last couple of times I came here. Your display made all the difference.”
“I’m so glad I could help.” Staring out my window, I read the pump. Diesel is $4.31 a gallon, and Callie must have a twenty-one-gallon tank, because the total came out to $86.00.
“Just curious, but does the town reimburse you for the diesel?” I ask as we’re driving off again.
“Nah, we decided to take it out of what we make since we know the town doesn’t have much to spare.”
I do the mental math. That leaves her with just a little over two hundred, which seems hardly worth the effort. We spent all morning working for her to make less than what I made selling my braceletin two minutes. Not to mention the time and effort put into making the products when mine was gifted to me. On the drive back, when Callie isn’t looking, I decide to slip two hundred-dollar bills into her bag and keep the rest for myself. As much as I need the money, it seems like a fairer valuation of the day’s efforts.
When we pull into our driveway, Gavin comes around from the side of the house. I assume Mom and Dad are still at the secondhand furniture store since I don’t see the tractor.
Gavin approaches the car as I’m getting out. “So, how was it?” he asks Callie apologetically, anticipating the regret in her response. Happily, she doesn’t give it to him.
“It was great.” Callie beams.
“Really?”Gavin looks at me skeptically.
“Really,” I say without a hint of irony. It felt good to flex my influencer skills after not being able to use them for a while.
“You should come with us next time,” Callie says. “We could use another pair of strong hands.”
“Sure,” he says. “I’d love to come next time if you want me to. Er, if you wantmy help, that is.” His neck turns all blotchy.
Callie giggles in a pitch that registers slightly higher than what I’m used to hearing from her. “Elena has such an eye for detail. Her display brought in more customers than we could handle. Which was a good problem.”
“Not sure what I can offer in that department. She knows what people want, and drawing a crowd is Elena’s specialty.”
