by P. S. Power
They were wealthy and healthy enough to carry a bit of extra cushioning. George didn’t have that going on, but that didn't mean he thought less of anyone else that did. He drove to work, being careful, but only for normal reasons. When he went away, George didn’t do things like crash, thankfully. However that one worked out. There could be a bit of an adjustment, but that didn't seem to affect him in the world he left, for some reason. On either side. The one that he was consciously aware of at the moment.
The roads were a bit slick, since there was ice on them that morning. Not a lot, but it was clear that the heavy clouds above them could mean snow was coming. He hadn’t bothered to listen to the news that day, not even the weather. That wasn’t what he did in the early part of the day as a rule. If anything of note took place, he’d be told about it. Given the way things had been going, it would probably end up being another terror attack.
The new President had promised to limit people coming in from the Middle East, but they’d snuck in anyway. Illegally, for the most part. True, most of them were just people looking for a better life, but ten or twenty percent of them really wanted the infidels to die. He’d learned that one in the war theater, seeing it first hand. Muslim didn't mean terrorist or monster.
It was just that some followers of Islam used their religion as an excuse for that kind of behavior.
Propped up by a lot of others who sensibly didn’t want to risk their lives, but agreed with the basic idea behind those that committed acts of terrorism. Islam, as a belief system, trained its adherents to hate anyone that wasn’t one of them. It didn’t take a genius to work out that anyone that wanted you dead, for any reason, even if it was deserved, was your enemy.
Worse, the terrorists had come to them, all the way to the states, to cause problems. Not that the U.S. hadn’t taken their swings over in the M.E. Millions had died already, due to the attacks of nearly two decades’ past. More probably would, since each new attack pushed people to fight back harder, instead of letting things go. It was part of the never-ending war, though. An eternal struggle, designed to keep the ones in power right where they wanted to be.
On top of everyone else.
The parking lot was empty, meaning that neither Gary or Wendy were there yet. It wasn’t common, but had happened before. Normally if one of the kids got sick or had a school project that they’d forgotten to mention until that morning. Instead of making a big issue of it, George just opened the shop up, unlocking everything, turning the heat in the office up a bit, then flipping all the lights on. Including the sign that said they were open.
Then, he got to work, replacing an oxygen sensor in a decently nice economy car. It was well kept and cared for, but things broke from time to time, even when the owner tried to make certain they kept on top of things.
Things went faster than normal, since no one came in for a while. No talking, or asking questions, meant that the fairly simple repair jobs they had in the shop were all finished by a little after nine. It wasn’t odd to not have customers in that early, but strange that the boss wasn’t there. Worrying, to be honest. There hadn’t even been a call.
It was leaving him feeling edgy, by the time he figured it out. That happened when he turned the radio on. They listened to country at work, which didn’t bother him, but was more about what Wendy enjoyed than Gary. The customers always seemed to feel better hearing it though, as if it only made sense that the man working on your car would rather listen to people sing about tractors and ex-girlfriends than listen to the news. So, it was a shock when he heard talking instead of steel guitar and singing. It was just the normal morning host, but he sounded upset.
“Over… The count right now says that it’s in the hundreds. Hundreds of people dead, in Chicago. We aren’t… Um, it looks like five buildings are coming down. The explosion was… There’s footage of it… I can’t believe that wasn’t a nuke. It had a mushroom cloud… A giant blue flash… They’re saying it wasn’t. I don’t know.”
Nodding, George turned it off, then got back to work.
They weren’t so far from Chicago that it wouldn’t be impacting them, but people were going to need their cars, no matter what else was going on. Especially if they all needed to flee for their lives. At noon, someone finally came in, which was interesting, since the woman that came in just pulled off the road. It was kind of clear that she wasn’t getting much of a choice in the matter.
He walked out into the parking lot, looking at the steam coming from the front of the small, rather beaten up Hyundai. It had once been white, but now was kind of a mottled grey mixed with sooty looking primer spots that appeared to be spray paint, not anything that would protect the body of the car all that well. It was better than nothing, but the woman who got out didn’t look rich or anything, which was probably the answer.
Without doing more than waving, George called out.
“Pop the hood. I’ll see if I can…” He smiled, but as soon as it clicked, he moved to the side, and stood back. You didn’t have to make the mistake of having your face over a steaming mess like that more than once to get the idea. If you didn't want to parboil your nose, you got out of the way. On the great side, it was just water vapor, not smoke.
Looking at the rising white cloud, he could see the issue, which wasn’t all that big of a deal. Not really. The seal on the radiator cap had blown. It would need a new one, but they had that kind of thing in the shop. It was a common fix, after all.
The woman who got out of the vehicle smiled at him and shook her head a bit.
“Before you do anything, I honestly can’t afford this. I don’t even have anything on me, right now. I’m trying to get into work, but… Damn it. This is not what I need today.”
She was upset. Pretty as well. The kind of good looking that normally meant a woman didn’t have to really work in life. Not until she hit forty and forty hit back hard enough that looks weren’t enough to save them from the harder things in the world. She was young still, and wearing scant enough clothing that she had to be freezing her ass off, standing there. The snow hadn’t started to fall, but it was clearly below freezing still. It probably would be all day, given that.
He didn’t stare at her however, just making eye contact and recalling that he was so broken that hitting on her would be a disservice to her, no matter what else was going on in the world. Still, that didn’t mean he had to be a jerk about it, just because she wasn’t there to get with him. Normally he wouldn’t have even thought that, but her thin clothing was nearly see-through, even with him not looking all that hard. Instead of asking where she worked that required, or even let, her come in to work looking like that, he focused on the car. On his own job of the moment.
The poor thing was in need, and this lady had to get to work. At least she had a job, even if it didn’t seem to pay too well. Then again, given her twitchy demeanor, and thin frame, it was probably just that she spent most of her money on drugs. That was a horrible way to live, but he wasn’t going to judge. At least she could fix her troubles by quitting what she was hooked on, if that’s what was going on. Plus, she went to work, even if it was at noon.
“This is a simple fix. We need to let the engine cool first. It’s a two-dollar seal though, so not a big thing. You want to come inside for a few minutes while I do that? No one else came in today. You heard about Chicago?”
That got a big nod, her eyes clearing as she started walking, following him inside the little front space.
“Yeah. That is totally fucked up. All those poor people. Um… I don’t have any cash on me though, even two dollars. I mean, I have it, but not here. I just left home without thinking. Distracted by the news, I guess... Not that the club will be open today, but if it is, I don’t want to miss my time slot.” She grinned, which was charming enough. “I know, how desperate do you have to be to strip for the lunch crowd, right? That’s normally the fat girls and old ladies who can’t hang at night, but I promised to work for the boss there. He’s a decent g
uy, but needed an act, so I’m pulling a double shift.”
George nodded.
“That’s why you’re dressed up to freeze to death like that? Good to know there’s a reason for it. I was worried that you were just trying to die or something. It’s making me cold just standing near you. On the good side, I should be able to get to the vehicle faster this way. I can’t do it until the radiator cools down a bit. Don’t worry, I can float the two dollars.” Pretty women didn’t pay you back most of the time for things like that, but he didn’t really care. If Gary had been there, he would have done it for free as well.
The guy was just that kind of person.
“Thanks. I shouldn’t, but you know, I need my car.”
“I hear that, no worries. Do you drink coffee? I can make some. It isn’t horrible, I hear.” He didn’t touch the stuff himself, unless it was an emergency. “Oh, I’m George. Elder.”
That, cutely enough, had a hand stuck out at him, held a bit too high like women did when they wanted to seem like a sidekick from a nineteen-fifties movie. It was adorable, which wasn’t a thing he really needed to be thinking about. Still, you shook hands when it was offered. Unless you were a dickhead. That was the same in any world, as far as he knew.
She smiled as he took her hand. It was cold, but then her lips were turning blue. It fit. She kind of needed to have put a coat on. Even strip clubs let the women dress normally most of the time, off stage.
“Gina. Gina Nevins. Nice to meet you, George.” She looked around, then shrugged. “I could use some coffee, if that isn’t a big deal? Getting free auto work… I suppose I could work that off? Do some things for you in exchange?”
He got what she meant, and was tempted. Sure, she was a tweeker, but still managed to be hot, not being too far gone into that kind of thing. A little action in the back room wasn’t like having her in his life long term, after all. It had been a long time since he’d even gotten a tight hug from a woman, now that he thought about it. Years.
Still George shook his head, smiling.
“For two dollars? I’m not sure how that would be worked off, to be honest, at least that way. No big thing. Let me set this up, then get that fixed up for you? About twenty minutes. Do you need to call in to let them know you’ll be late? You can use the phone here if you need.”
She smiled, then nodded, pulling her own cell out. It was purple and obviously cost enough money that it made the idea that she drove a falling apart beater kind of interesting. Then, he’d already worked out a pretty good reason for why that might be happening.
He worked, cleaning the coffee machine then getting some filtered water for it, so that the coffee would taste better. Behind him, the attractive brunette spoke into the phone.
“Hey, Ralph! I’m running late. I should be in about one or so? My car erupted as I was driving in. I nearly died. At least I was near an auto shop… They’re fixing it for me. For free, which means that I probably owe the guy here my soul.” She laughed, then spoke more quietly. “I offered, but was told that it didn’t make sense. He’s sort of cute. Ripped, you know? Anyway… Yeah? I don’t know. That whole thing… Still, I’ll be there for you. We need to be there for our peeps.”
She hung up a bit later, as George pretended he hadn’t been listening, as if that was going to work. They were no more than three feet from each other, as she sat in the red vinyl covered chair. She smiled up at him as he turned, trying not to give her more attention than was professional. That would probably read as him being taken or possibly gay to her, but that was better than getting involved with him.
“Let me get that seal.”
It didn’t take long, though he pocketed three different sizes, holding the one he thought was needed in his right hand. The car had stopped steaming, which meant that it might be safe to check the cap on the radiator. It was fast to get to it, but the lady had places to be. Still, he waited, and got her a Styrofoam cup from the stack, even if it would take a minute.
Then he walked to the front parking lot, where the car was, and pulled the cap off using a rag, quickly. It was hot still, but didn’t burn him, due to a combination of being nearly ready to work on and agile reflexes. He felt decent about it, when he had the thing repaired, about two minutes later. The keys were still in the car, so he turned it on, then listened for a bit. It needed water and anti-freeze. Not winterizing the thing correctly was probably what had ruined the first seal. Ice crystals breaking the plastic down.
Then, strippers weren’t mechanics. It probably meant they didn't think to do things like that all the time. Honestly, George was being nicer to her about it inside his own head, than he normally would have been. Probably due to the fact that he really wanted to bang the lady. Even if he was resolved to being good about that kind of thing in his life. He didn't even flirt with Wendy, which meant she was nearly certain that he was gay, he was sure.
Cleot, his Weapons Master, might well feel the same way, since George hadn’t tried to find a marriage or anything. The interesting part there was that his mother and father in Stena hadn’t really insisted he do that yet. Which was all about economics. He had a good job there, but when he’d explained what he was trying to do, gain mastery in two fields, they’d understood. That you needed to be set up before having a family made sense. Most of his friends there had done that already, however. A lot of them had just been grabbed up by a local girl and were kind of ordered into marriage. It was how it was done there, mainly.
He just did the winterization, then listened to the car for a bit. Letting it tell him its story. It had a loose drive belt, which squealed at him, meaning he needed tools to fix it. Gina actually came out as he did that part, even though he didn’t need to raise the thing up on the lifts to reach what he needed. Looking over at her, he shrugged. Trying to make it look cool and suave, even if he wasn’t going to ask for her number.
“You have a few issues here. I’m tightening the drive belt, so that horrible sound will go away when you start it. Your gas mileage will go up as well. The timing is badly off, but I can’t do that one right now. Not and have you into work on time. I refilled the radiator, and it won’t freeze as easily now. You should bring it back in, if you can. You’ll want a new drive belt soon, if nothing else. See the wear there? It isn’t expensive, but a few repairs will get things back around.” Until the whole thing fell apart, which would probably be in about six months. Then it would probably cost less to get a new vehicle, rather than fix it back up.
Hopefully the ugly car wasn’t something she had an emotional attachment to.
“Thanks! I should go… Um… you really saved me here. I’ll be back. I promise.”
He nodded, not planning to believe her. People that did drugs and worked in strip clubs might be honest and keep their word, but most of them were a bit sketchy, as far as he could tell.
“See you then. Drive safe.”
After that, he didn’t really think about it. At three in the afternoon, Gary finally called. Not came in, he called the shop, which was the third time in the last two hours. They had two new cars in, and two appointments, since tragedy or not, people had to keep living. Some of them. Being open meant they were ahead of a lot of other places in the area. Both of the people that had driven in had told him that the other shops weren’t open at all. It meant they were getting their business that day.
“George? You came in today? I tried your place, but you didn't pick up.”
He nodded, letting his face relax.
“Yep. We’ve even had people come in, so you’re making enough to pay me and everything. It’s slow, but it’s going to be, for a day or two. This… yeah.”
“Yeah. They’re saying that it was a fertilizer bomb. I don’t know, the explosion was so big. That wouldn’t even work, would it?”
George didn’t know, but it had sounded vast on the radio.
“Not anything you could hold in a single truck. You don’t take out that many buildings with something like that. Not that it i
sn’t lethal enough. Are you coming in today, or should I just change the sign to George’s Garage? That works at least as well as Gary’s.”
There was a snort from the phone. It was a bit darker than normal, but not upset sounding.
“That’s a real point. I’ll be in, Wendy is… She’s worried. The kids were all kept home today. Not that I’m not concerned. This kind of thing… Why would anyone do this? It was so close to us.”
He didn’t know. Even though he’d heard all the reasons for it in the past. Hurting people with something like a massive bomb just didn't make sense. You were just going to hit people that were trying to live their lives, not anyone that could change anything of note. Then, it was terrorism. The goal was to scare people into buckling under to what you wanted. The press was probably already claiming that it wasn’t Islam again. They always said that first thing, each and every time. Right until the Middle Eastern man with ties to Isil was brought forward, then the government would stop talking about it altogether.
Not that it mattered. Not really.
No one in the U.S. was going to just give in like they were doing in Europe. The poor idiots there had let them in, inviting them, leading to the rape of Sweden. The tens of thousands of women that had been hurt was on them, the leaders there, but they still should have taken action when it first started to happen, instead of basically making it legal for “immigrants” to rape anyone they wanted. Things were getting worse, now, thanks to that.
Then, it might not be Islam at all that had done it. They weren’t the only group that ever did bad things. They did ninety plus percent of it, sure, but they weren’t alone in that kind of stupid thing.
He realized, after a bit that Gary had said goodbye and hung up. George wasn’t even certain that his boss was coming in. Not that it looked like it was going to matter. They only stayed open until six, which was a long day for him if it happened, but wasn’t a big deal. It wasn’t like he had anything to do that night.