Chapter 2

The next morning Joe walked across the street and went to a pay telephone at the gas station to call his tax attorney. Jessica had expressed a desire to use the money from the Carousel sale to retain a lawyer.

Joe dialed using his calling card. He was in luck as his attorney friend Roger was in his office.

"Hi Roger. This is Joe." He began.

"Joe. It is good to hear from you. How are you holding up?" Roger replied.

"I'm Ok. I'm calling to get your opinion about something."

"I didn't think you called just to shoot the breeze. You're more of an 'all business' type than anyone else I know. I guess you have some questions about Carol's estate?"

Joe responded, "No. It has nothing to do with Carol. You should know—you drafted our will. We left everything to each other."

"Uh. Ok." Roger replied tentatively. "I just assumed... because sometimes the courts get goofy about beneficiary deeds and such."

Joe reassured him, "Everything's fine with all that. I'm hoping you might be able to give me a referral for a friend of mine."

Joe proceeded to fill Roger in on Jessica's situation and her need to get a fair price for her property.

Roger gave him couple of referrals, but he seemed hesitant. Joe had given him all of the information without naming any names. Roger finally offered that there was one lawyer that he would want above all others.

"Her name is Jill Stark and she is a CPA as well as an attorney." Roger explained. "She has a great head for numbers and a lot of experience in eminent domain cases if it comes to that. She picked up a nickname a while back. They call her the junkyard dog or sometimes just 'the bitch' behind her back. Seriously--she is a very effective litigator. Once she sinks her teeth into a case she won't let go."

"She sounds like the right woman for the job." Joe quipped. Do you have her number?"

"Yes. I'll give you her number, but the thing is I don't think she is taking on any new clients right now."

Joe retorted, "Well If she isn't taking new clients why are we talking about her?"

"That's what I'm trying to explain if you'll just let me finish." Roger replied testily.

He continued, "You said your friend was a young woman. Is she good looking?"

"What the hell does that have to do with anything?" Joe exploded.

Roger finally cut to the chase and said, "Look. The thing is that there are not a whole lot of secrets in this business. Rumor has it that Jill Stark likes young women if you get my drift. I do know that she has never married and she has never dated anybody I know. I know that a lot of these rumors may be just sour grapes from guys who resent her success or the fact that she made them look foolish in court, but... Jill does seem to have a bit of a soft spot for pretty young women in need."

Joe was momentarily stunned. He asked, "So. You are giving me a referral to a lesbian lawyer who may want to seduce my friend?"

Roger was taken aback. "I'm not suggesting anything of the sort." He insisted. Jill is a pro and she is the best I know for this kind of case. The fact that your friend is an attractive young woman is an asset. In my business you learn to use every little advantage you can. Anyway—what's this girl to you? If Jill wants to make a play for her—and I'm not saying she would—why should you care?"

Joe responded wearily, "She's just a friend I'm trying to help out. I guess you're right. Give me Jill's number already." Joe got the number and returned to the motel office where Jessica had a pot of coffee going...

Joe returned to the motel and told Jessica what he had learned about Jill Stark. Jessica called Ms. Stark at her office and to her surprise Jill answered the phone instead of a voice mail system or receptionist. Jill asked Jessica a number of questions about the situation and then she surprised Jessica by offering to visit the motel. Jill expressed a desire to see the property in question and meet with her client in person. The conversation turned to the subject of fees and when Jessica heard what it would cost to retain Jill's expertise she was shocked. The money from selling the carousel was not likely to cover the cost of the legal fees. Jessica decided to sell her car and buy a little old pickup truck. The money from selling the car combined with the money from the old carousel would be enough to retain Ms. Stark.

Joe offered to help Jessica financially. He had plenty of money from his retirement fund and other investments. Jessica had refused saying that she would handle her own problems. Her attitude changed a few weeks later when the great weed whacker incident occurred. Kyle was still helping a great deal and he wanted to help more. He and Joe had moved the Sleeping Beauty display forward so that it occupied the place where the carousel had been. The carousel had been hauled away and Marvin's check had cleared. There were still other storybook characters in need of restoration, but they were covered with weeds, vines, and brush.

Joe decided that Kyle could clear the weeds and brush with the gasoline powered weed whacker. Kyle already did most of the yard work around the motel anyway and the boy loved to used the riding lawnmower. Joe and Jessica insisted that Kyle take safety precautions because of all the broken glass and debris that had accumulated near some of the storybook displays. Kyle was dressed in heavy boots, jeans, a long sleeve shirt, safety goggles, and a sun hat as he began to clear brush on a July day when the forecast called for temperatures of over 95 degrees. Joe and Jessica busied themselves cleaning rooms and left Kyle to his work.

Kyle was a weed whacking machine and he worked relentlessly clearing everything from around his grandfather's displays. He hauled trash away in large bags and mowed everything from weeds to small trees with the mighty weed whacker. Kyle worked without a break and without a drop to drink for 5 hours straight. Joe was outside with the laundry cart and he happened to look in Kyle's direction when Kyle suddenly fell to the ground. Joe ran as fast as he could as the weed whacker fell silent and Kyle disappeared from view by falling in the tall weeds. Joe reached the unconscious boy and carried him back to the motel in a firefighter's carry. He yelled for Jessica who emerged from a motel room with a stricken look on his face. Joe carried Kyle into the nearest open motel room as Jessica pulled truck keys from her purse. "We have to rush him to the hospital!" She cried. Joe replied, "There's no time! Let's put him in a bathtub." Joe proceeded to deposit Kyle in the tub with all his clothes on. They ran cool water on the boy and applied cool washcloths to his head. Kyle regained consciousness, but was woozy and disoriented. Joe said," We really should take him to the emergency room." Jessica wrung her hands anxiously and replied, "We don't have health insurance. Do you really think he needs to?" Kyle, who was always trying to show Joe how tough he was, piped in, "I'm Ok. I don't want to go to the doctor."

Joe took Jessica by the arm and led her outside. He said, "I've become very fond of Kyle over the last two months and I care about him very much. I'll pay for any medical care he needs and you can always repay me later." Jessica was tough and proud, but she was not foolish. Her son's welfare came first so she and Kyle got in the old pickup and went to the hospital leaving Joe to watch the motel. The ER doctors had them wait for about 45 minutes filling out forms and then they waited some more. A physician finally examined Kyle. The doctor said Kyle was very dehydrated. He recommended fluids and rest. Kyle and Jessica returned home very relieved.

Since the next day was Kyle's designated rest day Jessica declared it a day of rest for all of them. She and Joe stayed in the office most of the morning and he did not work on the roof all day. She said she would wait and clean rooms later in the day and declared that she might not even clean all of them. She was concerned about turning away customers, but the previous day's events had drained her and business had been good. It was around two in the afternoon when a well dressed woman came into the office and requested a room at the four-hour rate. She had arrived in a Buick sedan driven by a young man wearing jeans and a tee shirt. Jessica gave the woman a key to one of the nicer rooms around back. The woman returned to the Buick and the couple drove to their room.

Jessica laughed and said to Joe, "I guess you know who that was?" Joe responded that he had no idea. Jessica informed him that she was Elizabeth and was married to the town mayor. Jessica laughed again and said, "One of these days they are going to run into each other here." She informed Joe that she knew that the mayor was having an affair with a young girl and frequenting the motel. She found it amusing that the mayor did not realize that his own wife was having an affair with a much younger man and was frequenting the same motel.

Joe remarked, "I guess he's a happy young fellow. She's a very attractive woman." Jessica stiffened slightly and said, "Do you think so? I don't really get what she sees in him or vice versa. She's old enough to be his mother." Joe kidded her, "Do I detect a note of jealousy in your voice." She responded, "No. I just prefer a more mature man. Kyle's father was not very mature. I think older men are more attractive." Jessica placed a hand on Joe's shoulder and he gave her a small hug. He felt the wedding ring between them on the gold chain under his shirt as Jessica pressed to him. Joe began, "I'm sorry things didn't work out for you with Kyle's father." Jessica stopped him mid sentence and said, "I'm not sorry. I was sad at the time that I broke up with Brad, but we were both young and it was for the best. I have a much better idea what to look for in a man now and maturity is a quality I value highly." She held both of Joes hands and kissed him softly. Joe kissed her back and sat down still holding her hands. He said, "I've grown so close to you and Kyle that I don't know what to say. I'm still getting over losing Carol and I have strong feelings for you now. I don't know if part of what I'm feeling is just a response to the loss. I'm not sure if I'm ready to give you what you need from a man." Jessica responded, "I'm not going anywhere so take your time. The real estate consortium keeps trying to get me to leave and they haven't been too successful." She kissed him again and then left to clean rooms leaving Joe to sit in the office with his head spinning.

Elizabeth and Steven entered their room and embraced as soon as they were inside. Steven said, "I've been aching to be with you Beth. I wish we could be together more often." Elizabeth responded, "We need to be thankful for what we have." She kissed her young lover and went into the bathroom to change and freshen up. As she touched up her lipstick and makeup in the mirror she pondered the decisions that had led her to the present predicament. Steven had been her eldest daughter's boyfriend in high school and he lived four blocks from their home. Emily had broken up with him after high school and was now dating some guy with long hair, tattoos, and bad breath. Elizabeth had decided that she would never really understand her own daughter. Steven was very good-looking and well built for a young man. Steven did not have the scrawny build that some young men like Emily's new boyfriend had. Steven had sandy hair, a great body, and a boy next-door appeal. Elizabeth reflected that he very nearly was the boy next door.