The Witch Box

by Laura Ellison

  Chapter Three

  Joshua awakened early to go to the plant with his father. His headache and the pain in his eyes and neck had subsided in the night, but he took two aspirin before leaving the house.

  He had taken off the crystal when he went to bed. He left the chain on his dresser. He slept on and off, but no disturbing dreams.

  Joshua was dressed in his work clothes; black Dickies with a dark blue polo shirt, the words ‘Max Packaging’ sewn above the left breast. He wore an insulated flannel jacket, but still shivered in the truck.

  “You’re wearing your sneakers,” Max said.

  Joshua looked down. “Is that okay?”

  His father smiled. “It’s regulation to wear work boots. I don’t want you on the floor today, but make sure you wear ‘em tomorrow.”

  “I didn’t see any boots in my room.”

  “I’m sure you’ll find ‘em.”

  Joshua slapped his forehead with the palm of his hand. Max laughed. “They’ll all be so happy to see you. You’ve always been their mascot, son. Someday, you’ll be the boss.”

  Joshua looked out from the passenger side window, taking in the farm country. The morning air was humid, dew covering the corn rows and trees. They passed several decaying farmhouses and barns, fields overgrown. Joshua saw a huge weeping willow in the distance, along with an old white building off a dirt road.

  I know that road, Joshua thought. I’ve been there before.

  He didn’t ask his father. Instead, he kept the vague recollection to himself.

  Max drove closer into town, passing gas stations and fast food restaurants, along with the new grocery store and Wal-Green’s pharmacy. He made a left turn at the town center, another left to the Max Packaging building.

  The long warehouse was brown with a red roof, two stories. The large letters ‘Max Packaging Co.’ were in black, on both sides of the building. A sign in the shape a five sided star rested above the front door, facing the highway. ‘Max Packaging Co.’ was printed inside the star, another sign on the lawn.

  Max parked in his space. When Max and Joshua entered from the front door, Anna met them there.

  Anna was smiling, dark brown hair in a ponytail. She had a big smile, her cheeks flushed pink. Joshua noticed she was not as striking as Colbie, but there was a sensitivity and maturity about her. She was not tall; she had to reach up to hug him. She smelled like baby powder, wearing a lacy white blouse and black pants. The only jewelry she wore was a watch on her left wrist. Her face was round and soft, her nose and lips small. She had an olive complexion, her lashes long and dark, but she wore no makeup.

  “Glad you’re back, Josh.” Anna gathered a pile of white envelopes in her arms. “They’re waiting for you upstairs.”

  Joshua hesitated for a moment, he wanted to talk to Anna, but Max beckoned him to follow. They passed the office area to a hallway. Joshua noticed the framed newspaper articles about the plant. Several plaques hung on the walls; one commemorating Max Packaging as Small Business of the Year and another from the United Way.

  A door at the end of the hall took them into the downstairs production floor. The various packaging machines were operated by men and women. Heavy, thick sheets of corrugated cardboard in different sizes were slid through one end of the machines by hand, coming out the other end smeared with glue in the correct places. Another worker would catch these pieces, making a pile at a side table. When the pieces were gathered, two workers lifted the pile to a binding machine. One worker would step on the pedal, and the pieces would be wrapped by plastic binding, the package put on a rolling belt. The hi-lo would later lift these away to the storage area, then placed on the truck, the packaging delivered to Max Packaging’s various clients, including auto parts factories in Falls River.

  Joshua was greeted by the downstairs workers, their salutations heard over the noisy machines. He smiled and waved to these people, their faces unfamiliar behind thick work glasses. A hi-lo, the blades supporting a tall pile of thick cardboard panels, passed Max and Joshua. The driver nodded and smiled at them. He was a stocky man around seventy, hair thinning on top, but sported a thick white moustache. Age spots peppered his face and hands. A strong chin and hooked nose below blue eyes, his brows also white and bushy. He sat up tall on the hi-lo, also wearing a navy work shirt that showed off tan arms.

  “Morning, Leo,” Max said.

  “Morning, boss.”

  The place started to feel more familiar to Joshua by the time he and his father entered the elevator. A short lift took them to the upstairs. They turned a corner, and Joshua saw the series of long tables where the women were working.

  “Hi, Josh.” A heavy set woman with thick pinned-up red hair and work glasses approached him. “You look well.”

  “I feel a lot better.”

  “Josh is going to help in the office for a while, Ruth,” Max said. “He’s still on the mend. His memory is a bit cloudy.”

  Ruth and the other women, all over the age of fifty, murmured and nodded. Joshua noticed they had long sheets of packaging spread out at the tables. They were using glue guns to secure the sheets, gradually making flat piles that would be bound together, later folded into boxes.

  “We were all in the break room, but Anna let us know you were coming,” Ruth said. “Meningitis is nothing to mess with. I almost lost a nephew that way. Well, we gotta get back to work; this order is due tomorrow at Metal Concepts...”

  “You all know you have overtime this weekend?” Max asked.

  Another woman, her steel-gray hair cut very short, said, “Oh, we heard yesterday. There goes the trip to the casino.”

  Ruth rolled her eyes. “Bonnie, if you keep gambling, you’ll end up living with your kids.”

  “Good. They deserve it.”

  The other women laughed.

  “Ladies, we’ll leave you to get back to work,” Max said. “Have a good day.”

  He and Joshua walked back to the elevator, and Joshua knew he had better ask his questions now. “Is Ruth the supervisor?”

  “She is upstairs. She’s been here since we opened. She’s Leo’s wife, Colbie’s grandmother.”

  “Oh.”

  “You didn’t remember her or Leo, did you?”

  “No. But they don’t feel like strangers, either.”

  “Bonnie and most of the other workers have been here since the beginning. Bonnie and her husband were my neighbors when I was a kid. Lois and Marilyn are related to Bonnie; cousins, I think. In this town, almost everyone is related.”

  “Is Max Packaging the only factory in Fruit Ridge?” Joshua asked.

  “Yes. The other businesses are retail and a few auto dealerships. Fast food. That’s it.”

  Joshua nodded. “We get a lot of business...”

  “Yes, we do. But there is competition in Falls River, that’s why I’m going through with the merger. Our next stop is in Human Resources. I have to talk to Jay about the meeting with Great Lakes Packaging.”

  “How do the workers feel about the merger?”

  “The ladies upstairs feel the most threatened, but I can’t–won’t–get rid of them in favor of a bunch of ex-cons and illegals from the big city.” Max chuckled, scratching his chin. “I trust those old girls. Loyalty goes a long way, son. Never forget the people who have helped you along the way.”

  “We’re like a family here.”

  The elevator doors opened, Max stepping out first. “Yes. And I’m proud of that.”