Chapter 87

I was back at the Barge House by 3PM. Since I had plenty of time I decided what the hell I was time to bite the bullet. I had to go out to the grass airfield and face my fears.

When I got out there, I found three men setting the corner post for the hanger. Actually they were setting lines of posts and shoveling concrete into the holes. While I was uncovering the airplane they stopped to watch a few minutes, but were back to post setting posts before I got the plane ready to fly.

I found quickly that I wasn't ready to fly after all. I needed a tug motor to set the plane in a position so that it could take off into the wind. I could have asked the men to move the plane but I was sure Margo would charge me for it, so I replaced the tarp.

I drove the red pickup to a pawn shop, which I had seen in town earlier. The reason it came to mind was that it had a small three wheeler off road vehicle on the sidewalk. It would do quite well, since the plane was light and rolled easily. I remembered that from the day the mechanic landed it and I helped roll it to where it sat at the moment.

I parked in front of the pawn shop, then entered. I had expected it to be be dark and dreary and it didn't disappoint me. "Good afternoon," the middle aged man behind the counter said.

"Hi, I'm looking for something to tow a light airplane around on a grass runway. I don't want to make ruts in the landing strip that would be bad business."

"Yeah it you get a little throttle happy you could make a rut with an ATV for sure. How about a riding lawn mower of a lawn tractor?" He suggested.

I remembered the old men I had seen driving them on the sidewalk of County seat. They even drove them on the shoulders of the county roads. They must go five miles an hour at the most, but I wasn't going to be in any hurry. "You know a riding lawn mower just might work fine," I suggested. You got anything?"

"I got a 17hp lawn mower out there' It is designed to look like a lawn tractor but it's really a mower. It sold new last year for over a thousand dollars, but the guy who pawned it never came back." the man said getting a little more interested in me.

"So how much," I asked.

"Seven hundred bucks and it's yours," he said.

"Prove it runs and I'll give you five," I countered.

"You have been watching TV. I tell you what I will do, I'll start it for you and only charge you six hundred and fifty dollars," he said.

"Okay, let's see it and then hear it run," I said. He had at least cleaned it off. I waited while he charged the battery. After a quick charge it started right up on the first try. I expected the battery to be dead the next time I tried it, but I bought it anyway. The man behind the counter and his handyman loaded into the truck.

Even though it was designed to look like a lawn tractor it was much to light to be a real lawn tractor. Wilson and I unloaded and locked it in the storage shed of the office building. When we finished we were both out of breath.

"Come on Wilson we can go get a hamburger on the Jefferson Island Pier, while you fill me in on the two dudes, who we have surveillance running," I suggested.

"If you are buying, I'm willing to ruin my health," he said.

"Sure I'm buy and sure you are eating something that is not grass trimmings," I said. "So what do we know?"

"Not till after you feed me," he said.

"You mean, I'm really going to have to feed you to get an answer to a question I'm paying you to answer?" I asked.

"Yes, you have to understand, I have the information you want. Once I share it, I lose whatever edge I have," he said.

"Wilson, you have no edge," I replied.

"Then I just won't tell you," He said.

"Then I won't pay you," I replied.

"Yes you will, you can't do without me," he said.

"Honey, I stopped paying Osborn, and she is one hell of a lot better looking than you," was my reply.

"Okay, let's get our food and go look at the water a while," he suggested.

"Alright, I'll get the food you find us a place to sit," I suggested. It took about ten minutes for them to cook the burgers. They were efficient, but it still took time, since every order was cooked fresh. After I paid I found Wilson sitting almost at the end of the pier.

"Well you finally conquered your fear of water?" I asked.

"No but I figure I'm safer here than walking that board onto the barge," Wilson said.

"Wilson you do realize that from the dock to the deck of the barge is only two steps, on a foot wide gangplank." I said.

"I would feel better if you added another six inch wide board," he said.

"Call someone tomorrow and get it done, if it bothers you that much," I said.

"Good, I will call the woman who did the renovation for the office. She can make a real gangplank," he said. I just shook my head and unwrapped the burger.

"So what do we know about Randy Ralph and Brian," I asked.

"It looks as thought Ralph does some moonlighting with Brian."

"That makes sense. During the day Brian scouts for boats. He would also need to find a nearby spot where they can load them onto Ralph's trailer." I saw an empty trailer in Ralph's drive way and wondered about an empty boat trailer." Once a week or so, I expect that he and Ralph drive to the selected boat. He probably drops Brian off somewhere near by. Brian walks to the boat, unties it, floats it out a ways."