The ghost merely stared at him, black droolies tossing about in his mouth as usual, and then he floated away, silently.
They wound their way through the streets, as fast as they could with the load they had. To get the best spots, they had to get there before everybody else.
The swap meet opened at 9 am.
For the first few hours, not much happened. People randomly wandered through the many stands, purchasing things here and there.
By noon, a couple of serious looking ‘antiquers’, as they called them, showed considerable interest in their stand. From them, alone, they managed to get several hundred dollars for most of the toys, and a couple cans of the Bully Beef.
Tatia did pretty well, too. She managed to sell off all the jewelry, bringing their income to nearly $650.
Jack was in high spirits and thinking that maybe they’d earn back his guitar by the end of the day, when Joey’s Seconds happened by.
“Hi, Jack,” they smirked.
Rob was a fat kid, and ugly, too. Pock marks sprinkled all over the right side of his face, kind of reminded Jack of a comic book villain.
His buddy, Nick was much easier to look at, but had a terrible lisp.
“Nice stand,” Rob said and started smacking things to the ground.
“Stop it, now,” shouted Bruce, “or I’ll have you thrown out.”
“Whoa, I’m scared, haha.”
Nick laughed, too.
“Trying to earn back the money for your father’s crappy guitar?” he asked, folding his fat arms over his large breasts. “Well, don’t bother.”
“Why?”
“He’s decided to sell it,” Nick said with a strong raspberry.
“No, he can’t. Tell him to give me a little more time.”
“You got seven days to come up with the money. After that, it’s so along,” he grinned. “He’s already got several bids, too.”
After that, Jack was really depressed.
“Don’t worry, we’ll get it back. We only need $350 to do it,” said Bruce.
Langley hovered in front of the fireplace, drooling as usual, watching them talk.
“How? Got any ideas? Because I’m all out.”
Langley whined, and floated around the couch continuously.
“We still got more cans of Bully Beef. Those ladies were crazy about them.”
Langley stopped floating around the couch, lowered himself down, his feet disappearing into the carpet and brake whined directly in their faces.
“I think he’s trying to tell us something,” said Tatia.
Slowly, he turned his whole body to face Tatia.
“Yes, he’s trying to communicate,” she added.
They watched him float toward the hall.
“Come on,” she said. “He wants us to follow him.”
They got off the couch and followed him to the den. He settled near the glass case, looking at the top shelf.
Tatia reached up and felt along the back of the shelf. She felt something cold and hairy.
“Eww… I think I just stuck my hand into a spider web.”
Carefully, she pulled the item out.
“A beautiful gold locket?” said Tatia.
The locket had little rubies and emeralds attached to the front.
She clicked the little latch on its side.
“There’s a picture of a baby. Is she yours?” Tatia asked.
The look in his eyes told her yes.
“It is pretty old. I don’t think we should sell something like this,” she said. “What if she’s still alive? It’d be just like with you and the guitar.”
Waaah! Sang the ghost, as it bounced about them.
“I think he wants us too,” said Bruce.
“Thanks, Langley,” said Jack.
~~~
The next day, Tatia and Jack took the locket to get it appraised while Bruce went to check on his grandmother, again.
Bruce warned them about the person in the window, several rooftops over. So, this time, they looked out of the kitchen window to make sure they weren’t being watched before leaving. Then they went to Eddie’s Pawn Shop on the East side.
Unlike most pawn brokers, Eddie was generally a good guy. He’d taken pity on them several times, when they were really down and out.
Still, he could be quite as shady as the people he did business with, all day long. One never knew which pawn broker persona of the day he’d be: Nice Eddie or Conman Eddie.
“Hey, Eddie,” said Jack, as they walked up to the jewelry counter.
Several people lingered about the shop while Eddie’s security guard stood at the entrance with his arms crossed, looking tough.
“Hey, kids,” he said with a gravelly voice. “What have you got for me today?”
He pulled the locket from his pocket and set it on the counter.
Eddie picked it up, and walked it behind the counter.
A moment later, he said, “Well, I’ll give you $1,000 for it.”
Something about the light in his blood shot eyes gave away a hidden excitement, making Jack suspicious.
“We’ll take it!” shouted Tatia.
“Hold on,” said Jack. “I think you’re messing with us.”
“Why would I do that? I’ve helped you out so many times. You don’t trust me? I’m taking a chance just buying this from you. One, you’re under age and, two, how do I know you didn’t steal this?”
“We’ll think about it,” said Jack.
Eddie handed Jack the chain.
Outside the shop, Tatia said, “What are you doing? That was exactly what we need to get your guitar back, and have lots of cash left over.”
“Come on,” said Jack.
Tatia followed him across the street, and a few blocks over.
A few minutes later, they found themselves in the nicer part of the business district.
They stopped in front of a tall white building with a Spanish tiled roof top. A large sign hung on the door, it said, ‘Crafteers Auction House.’
“What are we doing here?”
“My mother brought me here, once, when I was a kid. If I remember correctly, they authenticated some necklaces she’d inherited from her mother. I remember some old lady came in and sold them a painting, too.” He put the locket into her hand and said, “Here’s what we’re gonna say…”
After they’d come up with a story, they walked up to the serious looking man who sat behind a desk in the Crafteers lobby.
After claiming to be brother and sister, they told him a story about their grandmother leaving the locket to Tatia.
“It looks to be Russian, late nineteenth century. The stones are definitely real, and the gold is fine. Any paperwork?” asked the jeweler. “We can’t buy anything, unless we know it’s not stolen.”
“No. How do we prove that it’s hers?” Jack asked.
“We can do it, but you’ll have to leave it here for a week or two. We’ll run a background check, and a police inquiry. When we’re sure it’s free and clear, we’ll call you.”
The man began scribbling on a pad.
Jack looked down at the locket, and clicked it open and looked inside it.
“You know, we’re gonna think about it.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah, I’m sure. It’s a family heirloom. We need to be sure."
“Jack!” said Tatia, outside.
“I can’t do it. This locket meant something to Langley, and I bet it would mean something to his daughter, if she’s still alive.”
Moving On
Chapter 6
When they got back to the house, Bruce was still gone. They showed Langley the locket. He wailed lightly.
“We just couldn’t do it. It’d be different if you were dead. Although I guess you, technically, are, but something that means this much shouldn’t be sold for money.”
Jack set it on the mantle above the fireplace.
The ghost merely floated there a few moments, and then
disappeared.
They set about to rummaging through the house again.
“We’ll take the rest of the Bully Beef, dishes, and leftover toys to the swap meet tomorrow,” said Jack.
When Bruce didn’t come home that night, they didn’t think much of it, as he was prone to disappearing for a day or so. But when he didn’t turn up the next morning, they began to worry.
Tatia and Jack paced the house, wondering if they should go on to the swap meet, or find Bruce; even Langley lingered about the room longer than usual, before disappearing.
“Where do you think he got to?” asked Tatia.
“I don’t know; I just hope it’s not jail or some city home for kids.”
“Think we should call the police?”
“I think we should go to his grandmother’s house, but I don’t know where it is. I never asked. Gosh, I’m so stupid,” he said, and smacked himself in the head.
After waiting an hour to see if Bruce would show, they pulled out the wheel barrel and hurried to the swap meet without him.
A few hours went by, and they hardly sold anything.
“What a terrible day,” said Jack.
“We’re about $200 away. Don’t give up just yet.”
The rest of the day was just as dull. By the time the meet closed, they’d managed to sell off the last of the army rations, but they still had most of the old musty clothes.
“We’re still about $100 away,” said Tatia. “Maybe we should just go to Joey and beg him to take $900.”
“No, he won’t. Trust me.”
They threw the last of the clothes into a trash bin, and went back to the house. For hours, they stared, depressed and quietly into the fire. Langley continued to float around the couch.
At midnight, they were about to call it an evening, and go to bed, when Bruce walked in.
They turned and gawked at him a moment; Langley stopped his room revolutions.
Tatia leapt off the couch and shouted, ”Where have you been?”
Slowly, he walked to the couch and sat.
“My grandmother died.”
Surprised, they said nothing.
“The good thing is I’ve got a thousand bucks.”
He pulled a wad of cash from out of his pocket.
~~~
They tried to comfort him.
Jack made him a sandwich and gave him a cup of cocoa.
“I’ve just been walking around for hours and hours.”
“I know how you feel. I did the same thing when my father died.”
Bruce told them everything that’d happened to him, since he’d seen them last: About how he walked in and found her in her chair, still and cold. He, then, called the police, who called some relatives to come and stay with him, in the trailer, until they found a living arrangement.
“I tried to escape, but they kept a close eye on me. That’s not the worst of it though.
Hours ago, they sat me down with a city youth attorney. He told me that I was adopted.”
“Wow,” said Jack. “Do they know who gave you up?”
“No, they said it’s the law; they can’t tell me who my real parents are.”
“Wait, so I don’t get it. Why would the woman, who adopted you, go through all that trouble just to leave you?” Tatia asked.
“Well, I don’t remember much because I was still young, but my parents did fight a lot. One day, my supposed father left. I guess he was tired of it.”
“And then your mother left, later?” asked Jack.
“Yeah.”
“Where did you get all the money though?” he asked.
“My grandmother left me as sole beneficiary on her life insurance, which wasn’t much money, but it’s something. I can’t touch any of it until I’m eighteen, but the lawyer said my grandmother authorized me a cash advance of $1,000. I guess she really heard me, all those times that I spoke to her; it’s almost as if she knew she was gonna die.”
“So what, now?” asked Jack.
“Now, you guys go get your guitar. Me? I’m going to stay here. I just need to be alone.”
After Bruce went upstairs to wash up, Jack said, “Well, I’m gonna go get my guitar. The auction’s up in a couple days. We haven’t time to waste.”
“Agreed,” she replied. “Let’s go.”
They ran out of the house, and down the street at high speed.
When they made it to the cannery, Jack banged on the door until a kid, he’d never seen before, opened it.
“I need to see Joey.”
The kid stepped back and let them in.
Jack and Tatia followed the kid down the hall, into the large work area that had been turned into a dining area. On the wall, a television show played from a projection on a shelf, at the opposite side of the room.
A bunch of kids sat in random seats, watching: including Rob and Nick.
“He’s in there,” said the kid, motioning to the large office on the right side of the room.
They walked up to the door and knocked.
Joey opened the door, looking angry. His lips pursed, and his face turned red.
“What are you doing here?” he asked loudly.
“I got your money. Now, gimme back my guitar.”
“Well, I’m sorry,” he said. “But the price is now $10,000.”
“What? How do you figure that?”
“That’s where the bids are at. Turns out, the guitar is a real vintage piece. In fact, for others like it, I’ve seen the reserve set at $50,000. So if you can come up with that kind of money, I’ll give you first dibs.”
“We made a deal, Joey. That guitar means a lot more to me than money.”
“Then you should have paid me back weeks ago.”
Just then, Rob and Nick walked in.
“Now, you both got two minutes to leave, or I’ll have you thrown out.”
They heard footsteps and the scraping of chairs from behind. Tatia and Jack craned their necks and saw that all the kids, watching the film, had stood up. All at once, they turned and looked at them, leeringly.
~~~
When they got back to the house, they told Bruce all about it.
“That cheating jerk!” he shouted. “I should have come with you.”
“It wouldn’t have done any good. All that would have happened is we would have had a fight, and we would have been outnumbered.”
“So what do we do?” ask Bruce.
“We need a plan because I’m gonna get my guitar back, one way or another.”
Just then, there was a knock at the door.
“What the heck, and at this hour?” he said to the air, annoyed.
“What if it’s Joey or one of his seconds?” asked Bruce.
Jack, Tatia, and Bruce walked, quietly, into the kitchen. Bruce and Tatia each grabbed a pan, for self defense, while Jack peered through the window over the sink.
He turned back and said, “It’s Mira.”
Relieved, they set down their pans.
Jack opened the door and asked, “Mira! What happened to you?”
The dark haired girl from Joey’s warehouse stumbled in, grabbing onto his shoulder for support.
She had several bruises on her face.
“Did you get into a fight?”
“Sort of,” she said as she hopped in on one foot. “Joey said if anyone let either of you into the cannery again, that person would be kicked out. Well, they assumed that I let you in, when you came by with the money. I refused to leave, so they dragged me out.”
“How did you know we were here?” asked Tatia.
Jack closed the door.
“I followed you. I called your names but you didn’t hear, and with my ankle twisted, I couldn’t run to catch up with you.”
Operation Buchanan
Chapter 7
Jack helped Mira to the couch.
“AAAAGGGGHHH!!!!” she screamed.
“SHUT UUUUP!” shouted Bruce, Jack, and Tatia at the same time.
“Do you want the neighbors to call the police? Because we’ll then be sleeping on the streets!” said Jack angrily.
“What is that??” she asked sounding hysterical, pointing to the man floating in the corner.
“That’s Langley; this is his house!” said Tatia.
“What’s that in his mouth?”
“If I had to guess, I’d say it’s something to do with the way he died. Probably choked on something, or was suffocated,” she replied.
“Is he safe?”
“Of course he’s safe! Just don’t tick him off!” said Bruce annoyed.
After Mira was calm, they gave her a cup of cocoa, and then discussed how they were gonna steal back the guitar.
“I know where he keeps it: under his bed. He’s tried to play it a couple of times, but he’s really bad,” said Mira.
All the while, Langley bounced about the room, silently observing.
They waited until midnight, the next day, before they left the house and ran back to the warehouse. Mira stayed behind, keeping her foot elevated.
In the back of the warehouse, Tatia said, “Okay, when I get to the unlocked window, I’ll throw this,” she bent over and picked up a handful of gravel, “letting you know that I’m ready to sneak in. If I go in through the front, even with a diversion, someone will still see me; there’s just too many people living here.”
“Great, and when I think it’s safe for you to go in, I’ll scream, ‘Langley’s Blues,’” said Jack.
“Jack, you take off running up the street; Joey and the others will follow you, and I’ll follow them. That way, if they catch up to you and start beating the heck outta you, I can attack from behind, taking them by surprise.” added Bruce.
“Okay, but meet me back at the window ledge after you’re done. If I try to leave through the door, I’ll surely be seen. This means I have to leave through the window, and there’s no way I can walk the ledge with that enormous guitar case. I might drop it.”
Once they were agreed, Tatia jumped onto the large green dumpster. She reached up and pulled the fire escape stairs down.
She climbed up to the fourth set of stairs, stepped out onto the wide cement ledge, and disappeared around the side of the building.
Keeping her back against the wall, and trying to stay calm, she quickly edged her way to the window with the broken latch.