June 1986
Josie stood in front of a 1959 Chrysler 300, the latest addition to her father's junkyard. Its once candy apple red finish faded to a dull pink, its windshield had spider web cracks on the right side, rust pockets speckled all along the sides, a door was missing, and the white wall tires were flat and rotted. What her father saw in this mess she'd never know but he was always strange when it came to cars. He'd take in the most busted up and biggest piles of junk, claiming he saw the beauty within them. All she saw was another junker taking up space. Another junker she couldn't pull a part from because he might need it.
She leaned back against an AMC Hornet and let the warmth seep into her back. Her muscles relaxed, and the dull pain subsided. Her menstrual cramps were at their peak today and leaning over cars and laying under them only made it worse. Closing her eyes for a moment, she let the sun warm her face. Break time was almost over, and she wanted to spend the rest of it enjoying the summer air.
The week had dragged on with seemingly no end to it. It was finally Friday, and she was thankful she could spend the weekend at home in front of the TV with Animal by her side. After the disaster of a date she went on last Friday, all she wanted was alone time.
Climbing onto the hood, she scanned the sea of vehicles in search of her four-legged friend. His fur was a bright white with a brown "saddle" patch on his back and his face had beige patches on both eyes. Animal was a Johnson type American Bulldog. He was stockily built with a broad face and his muscles rippled under his coat. Between two S-10s, Animal came trotting out with a tennis ball in his jaws. Drool dripped from his jowls as he came bounding up to Josie. She jumped off the Hornet and met him halfway. As she reached for the ball, he gave a playful growl and leapt back, shaking his head wildly and sending slobber everywhere.
"Ew, gross!"
Grabbing his collar, she carefully pried the ball from his mouth and held it up in the air. Animal sat patiently, looking up at his human with big round eyes.
"You want the ball? Do you, boy? You want the ball?"
Animal inched closer, tail wagging, and stirring up dust.
Tossing the ball, it cleared five cars before bouncing off a van and landing in the tall grass. The canine took off like a white bullet, leaving a trail of dust behind. Josie laughed at his silly display and walked back to the garage. Stepping into the shaded building, she instantly felt cooler. She opened the fridge in the back and selected a bottle of water. Making sure no one was looking, she snuck into her father's office where she stood in front of the fan to cool off.
Sipping on her water, Josie listened out for her dad, in case he returned early. He'd mentioned that morning he had an errand to run and wouldn't return until that afternoon. When asked about it, he told her it was a surprise and wouldn't mentioning anything more. She couldn't understand the secrecy surrounding it, but shrugged it off. She's find out when he came back.
Hearing movement outside the office door, Josie froze. Mort Blair may have hired Josie because she was his child, but he would not give her any special treatment and that included hiding out in his air conditioned office. She was paid the same as her brother and co-workers. Therefor expected to behave as any other employee.
Grabbing her purse from under her dad's desk, she rummaged around for her lip balm and applied it before stepping out. In the corner of the garage, her brother Holoce, and two other mechanics, Brian and Abelardo, stood around cracking jokes and talked about weekend plans. Seeing Josie, they invited her over to join in on the conversation.
"I'm taking the boat out tomorrow morning. What about you, Josie?" Brian asked.
Brian was a tall, middle-aged man, with buzzed brown hair, and a squarish head. He was a divorcee with three kids who bitched about his ex-wife, and the child support he was forced to pay. The kind of man who complain about his ex keeping the kids from him while simultaneously declining to take his kids out for the weekend. Brian may have liked Josie, but she however didn't care too much for him. The fact that he was a hard worker and loyal to her father kept her from completely hating him.
