by Jerry Boyd
“You’ll figure it out. You’re the mighty Bob.”
“Not you too. I’m still regular, ordinary, plain old Bob, trying to stay ahead of everything.”
“Sorry. I’m in the same boat.”
“See you later at Shady Oaks.”
“Sounds good. Bye.”
“Later.”
Random had already gone to the house. I went in and got some more coffee. I asked Dingus, “How many autodocs can run off one power core?”
“More than we have, Bob. Where are you gonna get papers for all of Shady Oaks when you get them young?”
“That’s not the plan. Not today, anyway. John wants to help some more sick kids, without them having to get in saucers. He wants to put more ‘docs in his basement, and at least one at Shady Oaks.”
“Sounds like a decent plan. You sure you boys didn’t have help?”
“I think Jane might have started the ball rolling.”
“That sounds more believable.”
“You got anything pressing today?”
“Don’t think so. You need a hand?”
“Think I might. Sounds like John has quite a bit of stuff he’d like to get done today.”
“Can the boys help with much of it?”
“John has some plan to close off part of Shady Oaks and work on it. He hasn’t told me how it’s supposed to work, though. You know anything about it, Dee?”
“He moved some people to different rooms, and built a temporary partition. The boys can come in the back with no problem.”
“Great. I better send Topper the list, so they can figure out what tools to bring.”
I called Topper, and told him the list was coming. I asked him to send Taz to the barn. I asked Dingus, “Okay if we use your saucer to ferry things today?”
“I don’t mind. Give me a minute to pick up before you come aboard, if you would.”
“No problem. Let me know when you’re ready. I figured Taz could help me pull a core and autodoc for Shady Oaks, and you two could run it in and set it up. I’ll have one bot stay here to pull ‘docs, and take the other one with me to install them at John’s. I don’t think I can haul more than two at a time, but two trips should be enough for what he wants to do. When we get done with that, I’ll call you to come get the other two bots.”
“Sounds like a plan. Who are you? And what did you do with Bob?”
“Ha, ha. We better get at it.”
I guess tonsillitis is a big problem where Dingus comes from. Anyway he and Dee checked each others’ tonsils real well before we left. Taz was waiting when we got to the barn. “What first, Boss?”
“Let’s grab a power core and an autodoc out of one of the junkers. You and Dingus can take it to Shady Oaks and install it for them. I thought you could stay there and get started on the work they want done, while Ozzie, Topper and I move some autodocs over to John’s basement. When we get done, I’ll get Dingus to come get you some help.”
“Uh, Boss.”
“Yes Taz?”
“We already tore down those saucers you designated parts, in our spare time. We have a nice little power core with a lot of hours left on it, and four autodocs in good condition sitting here ready to go. Should we have asked first?”
“No, Taz. You boys did fine. Makes my day way easier. Can you load Dingus’ saucer with that core and a ‘doc, And put the other three ‘docs in that saucer over there.”
“Sure Boss. We went over that one, it should fly good for you.”
“Did Ozzie mess with the drive emitters?”
“Yes Boss. It’s quick.”
I commed John. “Hey partner. How’s life this morning?”
“It’s alright. I think we may be on the road to stability over at the Oaks. Whatchya need?”
“Will four ‘docs total be enough for your basement?”
“I think I can work with that. Why?”
“The boys already have four pulled and gone over. One for the Oaks, and three for you.”
“That was quick. I thought they were busy.”
“They’ve been working ahead, stripping down those saucers I designated parts.”
“Shame we didn’t find a medbot or two I could get to make me look good.”
“You do fine with just the ‘docs.”
“Jane’s a lot of help too. Nikki really scored when she recruited her.”
“Don’t tell me, tell Jane.”
“Isn’t she married?”
“She doesn’t wear a ring. I got the impression he couldn’t handle Greg’s diagnosis, but I wouldn’t want to risk any money on that.”
“Not like I have a shot, anyway. She’s joined the Cult of Bob.”
“All I did was ask what was bothering her. You don’t need a cape for that, John.”
“I’ve been a fuzz busy here.”
“I know. You’re doing great work, just don’t let it eat you up.”
“When can I expect you?”
“Dingus and Taz will be there shortly with your autodoc. The other boys and I are going by your place to put in your extra ‘docs. Shouldn’t take too long. After I drop off the boys, I’ll have to come back and get my pickup. What do you need me for?”
“You and Nikki need to take Mr. Bailey to the pound. He likes Snitz so much, he wants his own dog.”
“Good thing Nikki gets her rig back today.”
“Joanna’s car is done?”
“She left in it not too long ago. I’d think she would bring it by to show off, once she gets plates on it. You gotta see what Topper did on the paint. It rocks!”
“Better than Dee’s?”
“Different. I’d hate to say either one is better.”
“Ambassador Bob. Who’d have thought? Listen, I’ve got to go. See you later.”
“Bye.”
Dingus said, “I’m loaded, Bob. Can you get the doors, please?”
I opened them up, and felt the breeze as he left. I called Topper. “You guys about ready?”
“We’re ready, Boss. Can you bring your truck down to load tools on?”
“How much do you have?”
“Quite a bit. Mr. Branham has a lot for us to do.”
“We’ll have to make two trips, then.”
My phone rang in my other pocket. “Hang on, Topper.”
“Bob Wilson, How can I help you today?”
“Mr. Wilson, this is Rick, your favorite delivery driver. I’ve got a honking big crate for you. Bring it to the shop?”
“Yessir. You may have to come up to the house for a cup of coffee while my crew unloads it.”
“You, sir, are a saint.”
“Don’t spread it around. You’ll ruin my reputation as a nasty old man.”
“Be there in a minute.”
“See ya.”
I switched back to the comm. “Topper, do you have an order coming in today?”
“You said you wanted a ‘Honking big winch’ on the front of the 6X6, Boss.”
“Clear out in front of the door, and hide. You guys are going to have to unload this monster, while I entertain the driver.”
“Yes, Boss.”
I hung up and commed Dee. “Everybody get decent, we’ve got company coming.”
“Who?”
“Delivery driver. I promised him a cup of coffee while ‘my crew’ unloads his truck.”
“On it. Bye.”
By the time I got to the shop, Rick was backing in. He shut down his truck. “Will it be safe here?”
“Lock it if you want, but it’s fine. Let’s get some coffee.”
He noticed Dee’s Chevelle in the drive. Are those the parts I brought last week? Your crew is fast!”
Looking closer, he said, “And good, too! This thing is beautiful! How’s it run?”
“Fast. One of the guys on my crew is a power junkie. Right at 700 horses.”
“This lady you built it for, is she married?”
“Engaged, and he’s a dang good shot. Fast, too.”
“Forget I asked.”
“Healthier that way. Wanna meet her?”
“Sure.”
“She’s inside with the coffee.”
We went in. Dee said, “So you like my car?”
“Yes, Ma..”
“Don’t do it!”
Dee replied, “Oh, Bob! Only family get that treatment. He’s just trying to be polite.”
Rick looked confused. “I’m pretty sure I don’t wanna know.” He stuck out his hand. “Rick Bowman. Pleased to meet you.”
Dee shook with him. “Dee Sloan. Pleased as well. Bob and his boys keep you pretty busy, don’t they?”
“Long as they build cars like yours, it’s in a good cause.”
“Thank you. But I think my friend’s Datsun came out prettier, if what I hear is right.”
“You haven’t seen it yet?”
“She left out early to get plates on it before work. I need to get going myself. Nice to meet you, Rick.”
“Nice to meet you, too.”
Dee called, “Randi, are you ready?”
“Coming.”
Random came out in Earth clothes. She’s no Dee, but I saw Rick lock up, and poked him in the ribs. “Huh?” He stood and said, “Morning. I’m Rick, nice to meet you.”
Random thought a second. “I’m Randi, nice to meet you, Rick.”
They left. Dee revved the Chevelle a couple of times in the driveway for Rick’s benefit. Then she took off like a scared cat. Rick said, “You weren’t kidding about that thing being powerful.”
“Nope.”
“Thanks for fixing my brain freeze. Are all the women around this place beautiful?”
I thought a moment. “Pretty much, I guess. My wife has me so wound up, I don’t really notice.”
“She must be something.”
“That she is. You met her, before the shop was up, when we wrestled all that stuff over the gravel.”
“I remember. Little spitfire, ain’t she?”
“She is that. The boys ought to be done by now.”
“You have a good crew, Mr. Wilson.”
“That’s for sure.”
We walked down the hill, and Rick started to climb in. I said, “Here’s something for your trouble”, and handed him a tip. He said, “Take care of yourself. Mr. Wilson, I’m getting used to your tips.”
“Have a good one.”
I stuck my head in the shop. “You boys can come out now.”
I looked at the crate they had unloaded. “That’s honking big, alright.”
Topper said, “Yes, Boss. We have to upgrade the hydraulics to run it. Those parts should be in tomorrow.”
“Close the door. We need to get going.” I detoured to lock the house, and we got loaded up. I stopped to close the barn on the way out, but Topper said, “Watch this, Boss.”. Two of the smaller bots pushed the doors closed and locked up. There was a gap between boards big enough for them to get back in. I said, “Topper, could you send me instructions for how to do that?”
“Sure, Boss. There’s a sequence for opening it, too. You want that as well?”
“I do. That all your work?”
“Mr. Sloan gave me the idea.”
“Smart man.”
We got to John’s and Topper spoofed his garage door opener. I set down with the door facing out, and left the saucer idling, to keep up the stealth. Topper said, “Oh good! Taz packed us a grav pallet.”
They put the first ‘doc on the pallet and started in the house. I tried to move the next one, and decided to go talk to Max. He was in the kitchen, nursing a cup of coffee. I thought another cup sounded like a good idea, and joined him. “Hi Bob. How are you today?”
“Doing well, I suppose. Yourself?”
“Worried. I’ve been going over Mickolec’s logs. He’s not been performing up to standard for some time. I thought he was just getting old and tired, but it seems like he has some sort of problem.”
“Is it something the ‘doc can fix?”
“I’m not sure. It seems like he’s quit caring about much of anything.”
“Maybe talk to him when he wakes up, see what’s bothering him.”
“I suppose. It’s so different than the Mickolec I remember. I don’t know where to start.”
“You care. That’s nearly always a good start. From there, you’ll just have to feel your way, do what seems right. “We have a saying, ‘Whatever the hard thing is, that’s probably what you should do’.”
“I’ll think on it. Thanks, Bob.”
“Not a problem. I think the boys are about finished. We’ve got a lot to take care of today. I better go. Call if I can help.”
“Thanks again. Bye, Bob.”
“Bye.”
Topper met me by the stairs. “They’re all delivered and attached to power. The self checks read okay.”
“Load up, then. We have more work to do.”
I followed him and Ozzie out to the garage. We loaded up and took off, Topper put the door back down, and we flew to the shop. Taz was right, this saucer was speedy. I put the saucer down while Topper was opening the door. The boys climbed out and grabbed their tools. I knew better than to try to help, I would just be in their way. Soon enough, Topper started the door down, and closed the door of the saucer. I commed Dingus. “Hi. Can you move your rig temporarily, so I can unload?”
“I’m already in the air back to your place to get Sunshine. Taz has made a good start, but he needs that load of tools.”
“On our way, Dingus. See you later.”
“Later, Bob.”
I commed Taz. “We’re coming in. Can you open the back door, please?”
“You bet, Boss. See you soon.”
I sat down with the door facing the building. The bots lined up and passed things into the building. Shortly, Topper leaned in and said, “All done, Boss. See you when you get back.”
He closed the saucer door, and I lifted back to the barn. Dingus still had the door open, so I cruised right in.
Dingus was pulling on his helmet, ready to leave. I said, “That’s a neat trick, using the small bots to close the doors.”
“Did the boys show you how to set a delay, so you can get out before they close?”
“Nope. I’m the boss, supposed to be smart enough to figure things out for myself. How does it work?”
He showed me the trick. “You coming back to town?”
I replied, “I want to check on Nikki first. She usually doesn’t sleep this long.”
“See you when you get in.”
He kicked Sunshine to life. I saw bots scrambling to shut the doors, and ran to get out before I was shut in. At the house, Nikki was sitting at the kitchen table, trying to stare down a cup of coffee. “Hey Space Cadet, feeling okay?”
“Just tired. Lot of work getting Shady Oaks squared away. Hard to find good people who aren’t going to get mouthy the first time something weird happens.”
“Sounds like Jane has found a way to help with that.”
“Really? How?”
“She knows some more folks who had to quit in order to take care of sick relatives. The boys and I just got through putting in some more autodocs in John’s basement.”
“So we get to help people, and solve our problem at the same time?”
“We do. You about ready?”
“No, but let’s do it anyway.”
“I thought we were going to Shady Oaks?”
“Asshole! Am I riding with you, then?”
“You can if you want. I figured you wanted to drive, so you wouldn’t have to depend on anybody for a ride back.”
“Of course I want to drive. Joanna has my, oh, the boys finished her car?”
“They did. Wait till you see it. Topper outdid himself.”
“Well then, let’s go.”
I locked up, and Nikki took off. I wasn’t that far behind, but she had plenty of being a pedestrian. She was having fun. When I got to Shady Oaks, her rig wasn’t there yet. She must have gone
by the restaurant to see Joanna’s car. The grounds were filled with laughter. The folks who were mobile enough had brought Frisbee outdoors. Snitz was having enough fun for three dogs. He saw me and ran over to get pets. Then he ran back to the game. I went inside, wondering what I might find. Ms. Vonn was at her desk, stern as ever. “Good morning, Ms. Vonn. How are you today?”
“Fine, Mr. Wilson. Mr. Branham asked for you to meet him down in the construction area.”
“Thanks.”
I found the temporary partition, but not a way through. I called John. “Hey John, how do I get through your partition? I was told I was supposed to meet you on the other side.”
“Hang on, I’ll open it.” I heard a board being moved, and then the partition twisted out of the way. I walked through, and John put it back, and replaced the brace holding it shut. He said, “Had to come up with something that couldn’t be opened from the other side. Some of our residents are pretty sharp. Mr. Bailey used to work construction. I’m tempted to run him through the ‘doc and let him supervise.”
“I’m just glad he’s doing better. Saw him outside with the Frisbee team.”
“Snitz is a wonder. Got that old man up and giving a damn for the first time in years.”
“The folks sure have taken to Frisbee. Maybe we should put in a disc golf course if we get that land out back.”
“Hmm, walking, gentle exercise. Bob strikes again.”
“It was just an idea.”
“A good one, though. I just haven’t had time to see about that land.”
“I’ll get it, and you can buy it for ‘a dollar and other valuable considerations’.”
“Thanks, Bob.”
I called the lawyer’s office. He had left instructions for our calls to be put straight through. Amazing what a large commission on a deal can do. “Mr. Wilson, who’s applecart can I upset for you today?”
“We’re interested in the property behind Shady Oaks. Could you check into it and see what it would take to get ahold of it?”
“I should be able to have that information for you this afternoon. Anything else?”
“If it looks like we’ll be able to acquire it, can you go ahead with a title search and whatever other formalities are involved?”
“Be glad to. If I may ask, what are you planning for the property?”