Luck of the Draw

Chapter 23 - Decisive Moves

Mac was sitting behind the cash when Mickey got back to the nursery, and he could see that something was wrong. He hoped it wasn't the fact that he took so long. He shouldn't have stopped by Carly's.

"I'm back and I'm ready to work as long as you need, Mac." He walked to the front to the counter and held his arms out to show he didn't need the cane any more.

"So the leg's all better?"

"Yep... is something wrong, Mac?"

"Old Barney called from the printer's and then Carly called; they both told me that sales fella from NaturGro ordered a pile of posters for Christmas trees. He's rented a spot downtown and he's gonna be selling them himself."

Mickey thought, oh, oh, and made a face instead of offering a comment.

"It looks like we might be in some trouble if he undercuts us. I can't afford to lay out what we figured if I can't get the return I need. We might have to lower our order." The black face wrinkled in concern.

"But if he's more expensive then we'd be missing out that way too."

"I can't risk it. The missus and I are counting on this place to finance our retirement."

"Hell, Mac, that's a ways off yet."

He looked up at Mickey and smiled. "How old do you think I am, Mickey?"

"I don't know. Fifty-five? I never thought about it."

Mac laughed. "I should have given you a raise. I'm sixty-six."

Mickey gaped. The man just looked too fit and strong for him to be ten years off. "Get out of here."

"And Katherine's a year older."

"Have you two been using your competition's product... NaturGro?" He laughed, trying a joke to lighten the circumstance.

Mac took no notice. "So I hafta decide if I want to gamble that much money in the face of competition like NaturGro. They could probably afford to break even just to capture the market."

"You've got the reputation in town, Mac. Folks around here won't just up and go some place new for a few dollars. Hell it's a one time purchase every year, how much can be too much for a Christmas tree?"

"I take back that bit about a raise if that's your approach to business, Schafer."

Last name again! Is this something I should be paying attention to? "All I'm saying is that people who have been buying here all their lives won't switch for a few bucks. There're traditions to Christmas that people like to hold on to and one of them is where they get the tree."

Mac shook his head. "I'll have to talk this over with Katherine."

"There's not much time to decide. Anything I can do, Mac, just say the word."

"Work. Now."

"That's two words." Mickey backed away, hands raised, and grinning and stumbled over a stack of road salt. "I'm fine! Nothing broken!" He laughed out of sight and then rubbed his bruised rump vigorously.

!!!!!

Barclay's phone rang and he answered, hearing about the delivery request from Teddy. After all his caution in erasing his part in the arrangement, the idiot warehouse manager called him with the news. Now he had to remove any trace of that call as well; it was becoming too much to juggle.

All through November and the first part of December he had chewed his nails off to his elbows wondering if there would ever be a report from Glen Springs again. Malcolm had also been noticeably absent except for a mandatory meeting or two, which ended with his instant departure for points unknown.

His insistence that all the paperwork be in Teddy's name had increased the difficulty for Barclay. He had been the one to initiate the program, but in looking into things he found that Teddy was the only name connected to the actual sale. The money for the order had been a wire transfer under Teddy's direction and the delivery was to a street address only, no client name. All references to him, except this latest one, had been safely buried.

Now five thousand NaturGro evergreen trees were travelling down the highway and the company could claim a sale of the new product species. Barclay's concern was not knowing who the buyer was,and just what the hell Playford was up to. He worried that Malcolm had not contacted him for a report and he worried more about what that might mean.

Had he been left to wear the responsibility when the quality of the product was discovered, in spite of removing his name from the deal? On an impulse, Barclay decided to take a trip to Glen Springs and find out for himself just what was going on.

He issued his secretary with another stern warning that she was to say nothing to anyone. Her disregard of his previous order was covered with a threat of instant dismissal if she erred again. As far as anyone was concerned he was taking some personal time.

The charge for his trip would be on his personal account and he arranged for his own accommodation in the town then ordered a rental car outside the company umbrella to maintain as much anonymity as possible.

!!!!!

Katherine darted to and fro within the indoor section of the nursery, waving her arms and calling instructions. Mac sat on a wheelbarrow, his head in his hands and his hopes for a secure retirement, ebbing rapidly.

His wife's sudden enthusiasm for converting the nursery into a Christmas wonderland moved forward, an unstoppable force that involved several other wives and innumerable workmen.

"The ceiling needs to be higher," she called to three men balancing on tall ladders, holding a sagging sheet of black plastic. "I want it to appear like the real night sky when we add the lights."

"Boy, Katherine has certainly jumped into this with both feet, eh, Mac?"

A groan was the best Mac could do in response. "She insists that we aggressively attack the Christmas season and dare any potential competition to enter the field. Where this came from I don't know, but she sure has the bug. I tell you, Mickey, after all the money she's spending on this makeover, if we don't sell those trees..." He let the sentence dribble away.

"It might be a surprise, Mac. People have been coming here for years because there was no other place to go. This looks like you at least are interested enough actively to seek their business instead of taking it for granted."

"You think that? That I take the business for granted?"

"Well no, not really, but..."

"But? Never mind." Mac stood and placed his hands on his hips. "If Katherine sees this as necessary, then I guess I'd better get on board."

"Tell me what to do, Mac. I'm with you both all the way."

"Just don't fall or injure yourself, okay?" He strode off toward his busy wife.

Mickey called his assurance and gazed around at what he might do to contribute. He saw the heaps of trees wrapped in plastic netting out the back and he felt he could get those organized. The first bundle he picked up, the netting caught on the corner of a bench and dragged the tree though his tender hands. Mickey managed to stifle his scream by biting his sleeve.