CHAPTER 11
BERNARD'S FAMOUS TOMATO STAND
ARE WE THERE YET? / July 15, 2013
The crickets were driving him crazy. He smashed one on the counter with his fist He went to the file cabinet and stared at the files. The thought of killing all those people made him forget about the crickets for a minute and he felt some relief.
The sound of tires on the gravel driveway brought him back to the maddening sound of thousands of crickets.
First the redhead. Then the drug dealer. Then Mr. Durcheinander. "No more dumplings for you!" He laughed. Now what?
"Hope you're still open!?" A man holding a sleepy little girl tapped on the screen door. "Do you mind if we use your restroom?"
"Sure. Come in." He noticed they had a very nice car.
"I'm John Drayton. This is my wife Lidia and our kids, Linda and Hank." John introduced his family.
"Ya'll sure have a lot of crickets out here. I'm surprised they can survive this heat!" Mrs. Drayton made polite conversation.
"You can hear them too?" He looked through her and appeared to be puzzled.
An awkward silence loomed.
"Well, just point us towards the restroom and we'll be out of your hair." John didn't like the way he felt.
"Of course we'd be happy to buy some of your tomatoes..." Lidia tried to break the ice.
"Come on, honey. Let's just go to the car." John said softly to his wife.
"How come you only got one hand, mister?" young Hank blurted.
"Hank!" Lidia pulled her son close to her. "Where are your manners?"
"No. That's alright. I'm the one who forgot his manners. Bathrooms are around back. Follow me."
Against his better judgement, John Drayton and his family followed the man.
A few hours later the man drove away in the Drayton's car with the body of Edgar Bernard in the trunk. It wouldn't do to allow the fire department to find Edgar's remains.
For insurance, in case the crickets followed him again, the back seat held Edgar's customer files.
BERNARD'S FAMOUS TOMATO STAND
ARE WE THERE YET? / July 15, 2013
The crickets were driving him crazy. He smashed one on the counter with his fist He went to the file cabinet and stared at the files. The thought of killing all those people made him forget about the crickets for a minute and he felt some relief.
The sound of tires on the gravel driveway brought him back to the maddening sound of thousands of crickets.
First the redhead. Then the drug dealer. Then Mr. Durcheinander. "No more dumplings for you!" He laughed. Now what?
"Hope you're still open!?" A man holding a sleepy little girl tapped on the screen door. "Do you mind if we use your restroom?"
"Sure. Come in." He noticed they had a very nice car.
"I'm John Drayton. This is my wife Lidia and our kids, Linda and Hank." John introduced his family.
"Ya'll sure have a lot of crickets out here. I'm surprised they can survive this heat!" Mrs. Drayton made polite conversation.
"You can hear them too?" He looked through her and appeared to be puzzled.
An awkward silence loomed.
"Well, just point us towards the restroom and we'll be out of your hair." John didn't like the way he felt.
"Of course we'd be happy to buy some of your tomatoes..." Lidia tried to break the ice.
"Come on, honey. Let's just go to the car." John said softly to his wife.
"How come you only got one hand, mister?" young Hank blurted.
"Hank!" Lidia pulled her son close to her. "Where are your manners?"
"No. That's alright. I'm the one who forgot his manners. Bathrooms are around back. Follow me."
Against his better judgement, John Drayton and his family followed the man.
A few hours later the man drove away in the Drayton's car with the body of Edgar Bernard in the trunk. It wouldn't do to allow the fire department to find Edgar's remains.
For insurance, in case the crickets followed him again, the back seat held Edgar's customer files.
~ THE END ~
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