by Rich Garon
“Yes, that is some picture, Lee,” Christie said, seeing in him a boy she might have to take care of forever.
“Boy, Reid, you always said you would win the lottery and you did. You must be very proud of yourself. How much did you win in the lottery?”
“How much did I win? Well, I, I have to see. They have to figure out all the taxes and everything. I guess it will take a while to figure out.”
“Reid, look one of your favorites is coming on, Mr. Ed. Reid loves Mr. Ed. Come on Reid, show Christie how you do it.”
“No, I don’t think she wants to see that.”
“Oh, I know she will love it, come on, you do it great.”
“W-i-l-b-u-r-r-r.”
“Hear that Christie?”
“Yes, Lee, that’s a pretty good Mr. Ed impersonation.”
Lee’s finger went quickly to his lower lip as he thought what else Reid’s winning the lottery might mean. “Does this mean you have so much money that you will be quitting your landscaping job?”
“Quit, how can I quit? I didn’t win enough money to stop working forever. I don’t want to lose that landscaping job. Damn, they already laid off two guys. Luis and Lope might be next soon. No, I’m not quitting my job. My lottery money will just be like a rainy nest egg or whatever that is.”
“So, they’re not hiring any more people at your landscaping job?”
“No, I just told you they’re laying people off. Some contracts fell through or something.”
“Do you want to watch any more cable TV, Christie?” Lee asked.
“No, it’s very nice, but I think it’s time for us to be going. It’s a work night you know.”
“Yes, it is a work night. Reid could you bring your flashlight and walk us to Christie’s car?”
“Sure. Let’s go. I’m going to get those punks one of those days.”
“You probably will, just like you won the lottery,” Lee said.
“Hey guys,” Reid whispered. “Me winning the lottery; I want to keep that just among us for now, okay?”
“Yes, that is okay with me Reid. Is that okay with you Christie?”
“Yes, Lee, that’s okay.”
Lee was very concerned about what Christie said about Dan Calvert. He had listened very carefully to Christie and he could understand why she didn’t like Dan Calvert. It sounded as if she had all the facts and from people who would know about what had happened. He also thought that Christie didn’t like his working for someone whom she believed had done bad things. But he didn’t know what to do. If he quit, where could he work? Reid told him the night before that there were no more landscaping jobs. Mrs. Plennington would be angry with him; she would be very disappointed and he didn’t know if she would tell more people that he had been at her house alone with her. His father, well, his father would give him another “told you so,” but his father had been acting strangely since the rally: he wasn’t yelling or saying mean things. He seemed mostly to be ignoring Lee. Maybe his dad was sorry for yelling “kick the damn ball, kick the ball.” Maybe his father was taking a breather, his anger being strengthened as a hurricane passing through tropical waters replenishes its fury.
But the truth was Jim Fitts knew it was over that day at the rally. His anger was gone; carried away with his vanishing dreams by the football that had hit his son in the back and then rolled towards the two boys from whom Jim Fitts had taken it.
“Feet nailed to the floor? You’ve been standing in that same spot for twenty minutes and staring at the wall,” Terri said, annoyed that Lee was blocking her view of the hall.
“Someone told me that Dan Calvert might have done some bad things and I was thinking about that,” Lee said in a rush.
“Tell me something I don’t know,” Terri Herman said. “Everyone knows that Dan Calvert is a real piece of dirt. Kicked the damn homeless out of those buildings and came up with some bullshit scheme to tear those buildings down. My brother told me all about it when he first said we were going to work on the Calvert campaign. When I asked him why we would work for Calvert then and not someone else, Andy smiled, shrugged his shoulders and said “six-to-one-half-dozen-to-the other, but Calvert’s the one that’s willing to pay what I’m asking.”
“So, Dan Calvert did those bad things?”
“Would you please get the hell out of the doorway? I just told you he did. What the hell do you care? You’re getting paid, aren’t you?”
“I am, sorry I have been standing by the doorway and staring.”
“You better get your ass out there and start ringing those door bells. I don’t give a damn about Dan Calvert, but we damn well better win this election.” Terri moved the glasses down the bridge of her nose, her mouth stretching into a smile. “Andy and I get a nice fat bonus if that jerk wins.”
Lee remembered them all. He thought if he hurried, he could finish by the end of the day. He’d talk with Andy later at the office.
He didn’t take long once their doors opened. The people that smiled at him when he first visited smiled at him again. The grumpier people were no more pleased to see Lee than when he had first knocked on their doors.
“I’ve never heard of anyone doing that before,” said one of the smilers.
“That was very nice of you to come back,” said another.
“That’s a new twist,” an old grumpy man said as he hurriedly closed the door before Lee had finished speaking.
The last house he visited that day was the Aggarwals. K.S. Aggarwal smiled politely as her elderly father stood behind her with an impassive look. A Dan Calvert for Council sticker was on the glass pane next to the door.
Lee took the deepest breath of the day. “Hello Mrs. Aggarwal. Hello sir. Do you remember me? My name is Lee Fitts and I gave you that Dan Calvert sticker.”
“Yes, I do. I showed my husband the brochure you gave us and he said that we would vote for your candidate,” Mrs. Aggarwal said in an accent that tapped out each syllable precisely. She looked at Lee as if to ask what further business they needed to transact.
“That was very kind of you and your husband.” Lee paused. “I came here to tell you something that is not easy for me, but I am not going to vote for Dan Calvert. I have found out things about him that make me believe he is not a good man and that he should not be elected. I do not know all the details, but I think it was more important to him to make money on a deal that left some really needy people with no place to live. I do not think he cares about those people; he was only thinking about making money. I wish I knew more, but that is all I know. But it is enough for me to know that I cannot vote for him. I have spent the whole day going to the houses of everyone I told to vote for Dan Calvert and letting them know of this new development.”
Mrs. Aggarwal looked toward the other room. An impatience to attend to things in the other room overtook her formal smile. “I will tell my husband about these things, but I am not sure I understand why you are telling me these things.”
“Thank you for listening to me Mrs. Aggarwal. I wanted you and your husband to know that I think I gave you wrong information when I was here before.” Mrs. Aggarwal’s father nodded approvingly at Lee.
Andy Herman was on the phone. Sanford was in the back room staring motionlessly at a chart on the wall. There was no one else in the office. Lee unfolded a chair and waited for Andy to finish his call.
“You did what?” Andy Herman asked, his eye brows exploding upward. “Are you kidding me?”
“No, I am not kidding you. That is what I told the people.”
“Why you dumb shit. Are you out of your mind? “I’m giving you five seconds to get your ass out of this office. I don’t give a damn if Audrey Plennington got you this job or not. Wait till I tell her about her nice young man who she was sure would do such a great job. I’ll get you Fitts. Now get the hell out of here before I . . .”
“I am leaving. I do not want to work for the Dan Calvert for Council team any more. I believed the brochures I was handing out.” Lee
stopped at Terri’s desk on his way out. “I walked fast because I wanted to tell as many people as I could about all the good things Dan Calvert was going to do. You tricked me and I tricked those people. That is why I had to tell them the truth.”
“I told you to get the hell out of here,” Andy Herman said.
As Lee strode away, Terri took off here glasses and looked at her brother. “I told you he wasn’t right,” she cackled. “That nut, I wish I could have seen the look on those peoples’ faces when he started to tell them that what we know all too well, that Dan Calvert’s a no-good son-of-a bitch.”
“That’s helpful Terri, oh that’s very helpful right now. Sanford, get in here!”
“This is a new one boss. Got nothing in my playbook for this one. I didn’t tell him to do this, you know. You know that, don’t you?” Sanford cowered.
“Yeah, I know that Sanford, but you’re going to fix it. I want you to go to every house on his walk sheets and fix it.”
“But how do I do that?”
“Fix it!”
“Okay, okay. That’s why I get paid the big bucks. There’s got to be someone here for the toughest job. I can handle it. I can handle it boss. Let’s see, I know. I’ll say it’s part of our opponent’s dirty tricks campaign. Yeah, that’s it. Our opponent hired some creep to go around acting as if he were a very sincere person telling the unvarnished truth about Dan Calvert so the voters wouldn’t be fooled. Yeah, I’ll put this whole package together, we’ll have these people back supporting Dan in no time. I’ll . . .”
“Just fix it; I don’t need to hear all the horse shit.”
Ellie’s kitchen was like the one she and her brother had known as children. The same blue and white curtains hanging on the window; the refrigerator with an armor of magnets sprouting homey aphorisms or Bible passages; vases of artificial flowers shooting colors across the spotless white counter tops; a large wooden container brimming with kitchen utensils; and the aromas announcing that Ellie had prepared, almost subconsciously, every meal exactly as her mother had taught her.
“Lee, I guess you did what you had to. I must admit I never cared much one way or the other about Dan Calvert, but when you started working for him I guess I tried to see him in a new light. Are you sure you are all right?”
“Yes, I am all right. I was a little scared when Andy Herman started screaming at me and using bad language. There was nothing I could do about anything at that point but leave the campaign office. But now I do not have a job. That is not a very good thing because now there are not even any more landscaping jobs.”
“Did you tell Dad yet?”
“I did not tell Dad yet because he left early this morning. Dad has been very quiet since the rally. And one more thing, Dad left fifty dollars on the table to go shopping with. He scribbled a note “use the extra ten to get yourself some pie or chips.” Dad has not yelled at me since the rally; he has been different. He still is not home on Tuesday nights so I do not know if I will see him tonight.”
Ellie smiled and sat down at the table across from Lee. “I told you that you should come over here on Tuesdays for dinner. D.H. normally has to travel early in the week. So, you see you’d be keeping me company. You can walk over if you’d like, and I’ll drive you home. We can even stop at the grocery store on the way home so you can do your shopping.”
“I should have listened to you Ellie. I like Hungry Man dinners, but it’s like Mom’s cooking when I come over here and you always have much larger portions than Hungry Man.”
She let pass his comment about their mother. “Well, maybe one day, we can get Dad to come over. Maybe things might be different than they’ve been.”
Lee put the plastic grocery bags on the table and read the scribbled note that Reid had left in the door. “Didn’t know when I would see you next and didn’t want you to make a trip to my room at Tammery for nothing. I had to move. My new address: Apt. 170 B, Hickory Hollow Luxury Garden Apartments. I don’t have a phone yet, but try to come over tomorrow after four so I can show you the new digs. Reid.”
Lee knew where those apartments were. They were brand new; they had those red and white flags in the garden with the beautiful rock wall. There was a big sign that said “Last section of units now available.” Reid must be doing very well in his job to be able to move into Hickory Hollow Luxury Garden Apartments Lee thought, and on top of that he won the lottery.
“Hello Christie,” Lee said before the phone went dead. He played with the clip at the end of the wire on the receiver that frequently came loose, and got Christie’s voice back although there was still an intermittent crackle.
“Lee, can you hear me?”
“Yes Christie, I can hear you. I am holding the wire on the receiver so there is not so much crackle on the line.”
“Well, I guess that’s a little better. I tried to get you earlier.”
“I was at Ellie’s for dinner and then she took me to the grocery store so I could do my shopping and then she brought me home. I am unpacking my groceries.”
“Do you want me to call back?”
“No. I am glad you called. There is something I have to tell you. I do not work for the Dan Calvert for Council Campaign any more. I lost my job because I went back to every house and told them I did not think Dan Calvert was a good candidate and that I would not be voting for him. You were right about Dan Calvert. Terri Howard also said he was no good.”
“Lee, I didn’t mean for you to lose your job. This is horrible. I mean I’m sure there is something wrong with all these candidates.”
“But what Dan Calvert did was bad.”
“What Dan Calvert did was bad, but Lee, what are you going to do? I want to help you find something. I’ll look in the paper tomorrow and talk to some of the clients at the spa that I know. We will find you something Lee.”
Outside of Ellie, there was no one else in the world who spoke to him with the caring that Christie did. “Did you know that Reid moved? He moved to Hickory Hollow Luxury Garden Apartments. He would like me to visit him tomorrow night. Would you like to go with me?” Lee realized that this might qualify as his second date with Christie.
“Well, do you really want to go?”
“I think that Reid wants to show me his new apartment, it is Apartment 170 B.”
“All right Lee I’ll go with you. I can pick you up at your house.”
“I have an even better idea Christie, I can walk to the spa and wait outside until you are done with work so you do not have to go out of your way to pick me up.”
“Okay, Lee I’ll see you tomorrow, outside the spa. Are you sure you’re all right, I mean with everything that happened today?”
“I am okay. I did the only thing I could do.”
“I’m proud of you Lee. We’ll get everything taken care of.”
“Dad, I need to speak with you before you go.”
Jim Fitts turned just as he was about to open the door. Lee told his father what had happened. The impatience and intolerance usually quick to overcome his father didn’t appear.
Jim Fitts put his lunch bag in his other hand. “That’s pretty damn funny,” was all Lee’s father said. He wasn’t yet prepared to say more. Lee watched as his father walked toward the small crowd waiting at the bus stop to go to work.
Lee walked all day, looking constantly at his watch to which he surrendered all freedom. The watch flashed off seconds as if they were minutes. The watch would give him plenty of time to think about the Dan Calvert Campaign, Mrs. Plennington, his father, Reid, Rev. Taylor, Ellie, his mother, and Christie. He wished he could make the watch shoot to five o’clock so he could see Christie right then. He knew the watch would laugh at him. It was a different story when Lee was walking from house to house handing out Dan Calvert for Council Campaign material. Lee didn’t need any special dispensation from the watch then. Lee knew what he had to do, and he could always do more than he had to. Maybe that had made the watch mad. Maybe that was why the watch had slowed
down today, just at a time when Lee needed it to go fast.
Lee walked to Ellie’s, but she wasn’t home. He walked toward Hickory Hollow Luxury Garden Apartments and found 170 B. Several men in green T- shirts with yellow writing stood on self-propelled lawnmowers that whirled across stretches of the new lawn. He would know now exactly where to go when he came back with Christie. He walked across the street that led to the Aggarwal’s house. Lee froze, but quickly recovered and ran. He didn’t think the man approaching the Aggarwal’s house had seen him. It had been Lee’s experience that Sanford didn’t see much around him. What would Sanford say to the Aggarwals? Sanford always spoke about his long years of experience and his playbook. Lee hoped Mrs. Aggarwal’s father wouldn’t think he had been wrong to give that I-approve-of-what-you’ve-done look to Lee. Lee knew he could never be the political pro that Sanford was.
Lee stopped looking at his watch. There was no hope now. The time piece was holding on to the seconds even longer. The lunch lines were long gone when he ordered his burger, fries, and chocolate shake. He found a bench in the park where the rally had been and began to eat the only meal he would have that day. Before he left home, he set a place for his father at the kitchen table. Beside the plate, Lee left a note saying he would be back probably before nine. Maybe his father wouldn’t mind eating his Hungry Man dinner alone. Lee would find out after Christie brought him home.
It was four-thirty. The watch started to work as it should. It took Lee twenty minutes to get to the spa. He looked in the window and saw Christie. She waved. Was it Hi? Was it I’ll be right out? No, it was go away. Her hand started pointing faster and it was pointing away from the spa. But it was too late and Christie turned away and walked toward the far end of the spa.
“So, I see you’ve found a new friend, Lee,” Audrey Plennington said as she finished tying a wrap-around skirt that left a small portion of her flat stomach visible below her taut exercise top. “I guess I wasn’t your type.”
