I shrugged again like I agreed, and fired another cigarette. But I already had my answer.
We stayed like that for a moment, silently staring over the horizon as the low winter sun set behind Lamentation.
“Saw you talking to Tom Gable,” I said.
Charlie flashed a devil’s grin. “As luck would have it, he’s looking for help.”
“You sure about this? No benefits. No union.”
“No waking up every morning with a hole in my belly, feeling like I want to die. I’ll take my chances. Besides, if it doesn’t work out, it doesn’t work out. I’ll find something else. Life’s too short to be spending every day doing something you hate.”
“You’re still helping me move next weekend?”
“You bet.”
“You’re going to get down and visit once in a while, right?”
“Of course. But you’ll be back plenty. You’ve lived in Concord before. You always come back. Fisher always comes back. Everyone comes back. Ashton is like herpes. Can’t escape it.”
I drained a slug of beer, and handed Charlie the half-full bottle. “You need me to help clean up?”
“Nah,” Charlie said. “Get home to your wife and son.”
“She’s not my wife yet.”
“She will be soon enough,” he replied with a grin. “Face it, Jay. Ain’t no running from it anymore. You’re a family man now.”
I had to admit. I liked the sound of that.
Joe Clifford
Joe Clifford is acquisitions editor for Gutter Books and managing editor of The Flash Fiction Offensive. He also produces Lip Service West, a "gritty, real, raw" reading series in Oakland, CA. Joe is the author of three books: Choice Cuts, Wake the Undertaker, and Junkie Love. His latest novel, Lamentation, will be available October, 2014.
