I turned my stereo down and slid onto the newly paved road. Glad to feel the tires catch asphalt. These back roads had seemed to be one stretch of gravel and mushy red dirt ever since I left the highway some ten minutes ago.
"Crap!" I spat in frustration as my navigation program gave me yet another bad turn prompt. I pulled over and waited for the status bar to reload. "More backwards ass directions right?", I mused as the green bar gradually crawled across the map. "Make next available U turn....your destination is approaching on the left...re-routing...". I shut the phone off in disgust. Glancing around the new homes with their sparkling windows, I wondered if any of these neighbors would be able to tell me where this address was. I could see a few cars parked in open garages and car ports, but everyone seemed like they were out shopping.
Stretching my arms, I snatched the scribbled note and stepped out of my old truck. It was a beastly thing from the late 80's. Rust red with a single white stripe running down the side panels. Out of habit from working in big cities, I opened the tool box in the back and checked the contents. Everything seemed to be in place. Saws, clamps, rope and twine, various nails and screws. The old man had said the lumber would be waiting for me at the job site. If I could just find the damn thing...
I lit up a cigarette and locked my door. Walking down the street in my work boots, faded jeans and sueded leather work boots. The steel toe was glinting just at the tip of my left boot. A reminder that skipping a song on my MP3 player while operating a circular saw could be very dangerous. My Motorhead t-shirt was sure to attract attention from the locals in this small, country town. I didn't care at this point. They should be happy just to see a contractor who spoke English.
I walked for what seemed like two blocks, noting how the homes were spread pretty far apart. Privacy fences separating each lot, with a higher fence surrounding the back yards. "What in the world are these people up to out here?" I chuckled as I imagined wild barbecues and church revivals gone wild.
I found the home at the corner of the lot. A nice enough looking beige brick house with obviously brand new windows. The blue painter's tape still flicked and fluttered in the breeze around some of the edges. "Starter homes...go up quick, come down quicker."
I didn't see anyone home, but the old man had given me a key to the back fence. He had also mentioned that his daughter was going to college online and working part time in the city. Perfect. I preferred not to be bothered while I worked. Just me, my pitcher of iced tea and the sawdust.
I hopped into the cab of my truck and pulled into the drive. The tenant's neighbor had come out to see what the noise was all about. Clatter and ruckus was sure to draw attention out here, no doubt. I placed my sunglasses on my head and waved to him with a smile. "Just working on the back shed man!".
The man appeared to be in his fifties. Gray hair and that typical suburban outfit that told you he lived alone. No sensible woman would let her middle aged husband go into public, wearing a bright Hawaiian shirt with khaki cargo shorts.
I grabbed my music player and attached the ear buds. And...trip-hop, techno playlist. Why not? The set up work would be brainless anyway. The tail gate came down with a hefty "thunk". I crawled into the bed of the truck and stooped over my tool box. Hammers and nails, saw blades, the random measuring and leveling equipment. As usual, there was always ONE piece of something I desperately needed that found its way to the bottom of this box. I dug for what seemed like twenty minutes, fussing and cursing as other tools fell back down onto my hands.
A faint vibration caught my foot and traveled up my leg. Three taps, once..then again. I spun around and noticed a woman in a plain black, long sleeve top...peering over the gear I had been setting aside. I plucked one of my earbuds out and managed a smile. How long had she been there? I didn't even hear her pull up.
Her black rimmed glasses said "librarian" but the blood red lip gloss suggested a wilder side. She was an attractive girl for sure. Not the kind you would see on the cover of a swimsuit catalog, but easily the thicker build of a woman from those more risque' magazines. Her shirt did little to conceal her large and firm breasts. Auburn hair spilled down her back, restrained from her rounded face by a single black head band.
"I'm not here to steal the copper from your A/C unit, I promise!" I said with a grin. She smirked at me and nodded to the shed in the back yard.
"You're here to fix the roof on that thing? Good luck." She said with a playful jab as she walked away from my truck, running her fingers down the side rail as she went.
I thought to myself, "No wonder the old man moved her out here in the sticks." I watched her hips sway as she walked toward the side entrance.
She shot me a look and caught me staring. I nearly blushed and found something very important to do at my feet. Her faint laugh caught my exposed ear as she slid into the home. It was at this point, that I noticed the windows all had darkly tinted film. So much so that you couldn't see inside, except for certain rooms. "Old man probably has bad eyes..." I figured to myself quietly.
I found a wheel barrow and loaded all of my "toys" into the center. Plugged my music back in and steadily got to work. Now and then I could catch a glimpse of the sunlight as it peeked through the swaying branches overhead. The faint red flicker of an LED light caught my eye from the corner of the house. It signaled the power supply to a couple of digital cameras that overlooked the back yard. He had mentioned not wanting to store his classic car back here until the job was done...so extra security didn't seem that odd.
I plugged in the circular saw and got to work on the lumber pile. Two sawhorses nearby proved adequate. I must have been working for at least an hour, when that same rhythmic tapping reached my hand while I nodded to the music in my ears, marking the next few cuts.
Glancing up, through a haze of sweat and sawdust I saw her again. She was smiling at me, like a girl on the playground who was about to drop a frog down the back of my shirt. I pulled my headphones out again and attempted some humor to break the ice. "We have to stop meeting like this." I grinned and wiped the sweat out of my eyes.
She had changed clothing while inside. If she had been insulted by my stare earlier, the new outfit certainly didn't reflect that! Black and white stripes, that clung to every curve and exposed much of the porcelain white line of cleavage. She had changed into black shorts while inside and was now wearing a pair of Converse sneakers with little white skulls and crossbones on the toe.
"Hey! I'm going into town to grab some food. You want anything?" I was a bit flustered from her outfit and thought for a moment. "I really don't know what's around here...are you going some place in particular?"
She giggled and gave away the smell of a margarita on her breath. "There's a killer little Mexican place in the shopping center. I love their tortilla soup!"
Yes, she had been drinking inside. The blush of crimson on her cheeks gave that away. "You know, that sounds good. I haven't had good Mexican food since I left San Antonio." I smiled sincerely and thanked her for the offer. She bounced away and jumped into her car.
I shook my head and cranked my music back up. Another vibration ran up my fingers as I notched the 2x4 in front of me. This was different, electronic, like a message alert.
