To Kill a Hummingbird
Page 25
“They are?” Steve and Karl replied as one.
“Yes, they are.”
“What kind of vehicle have they got?” demanded Steve.
“Now, now, Steve,” Otelia interrupted. “Like John said, we’re here to talk about birds, not cars.” She patted his knee. “All this shop talk can wait.” She giggled.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t resist a little good-natured trash talk myself. “It’s a 1961 Chevrolet Impala SS convertible.”
Steve whistled through his teeth and brought his hands to his cheeks, making him look like a chipmunk with indigestion.
“That’s some car, ain’t it?” Karl remarked.
“Can we see it?” asked Floyd. “Please?”
“Sorry, Floyd. Derek and Paul have sworn me to secrecy.” The two men had been huddled out in the detached garage at Paul’s unfinished house practically every night for the past month. Plus weekends. I barely saw Derek, at least when his hands weren’t covered in grease and grime and he wasn’t smelling like an auto repair shop. “To tell you the truth, I haven’t seen it lately myself.”
“A ’61 Chevy Impala convertible,” Steve said, his voice just above a whisper. “That’s some car, all right.”
“An Impala SS.” I couldn’t resist correcting him.
Steve nodded. “Yeah. SS.” He looked at Karl. “We’ve got some competition this year.”
Karl twisted his lip. “We ain’t worried, are we, Floyd?” He turned to Floyd, but Floyd’s eye and attention had been drawn elsewhere.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
J.R. Ripley is the pen name of Glenn Meganck. In addition to the Bird Lover’s mystery series, he is the critically acclaimed author of the Maggie Miller mysteries and the Kitty Karlyle mysteries (written as Marie Celine) among other works. He also serves as an Audubon Ambassador. Visit his website at www.JRRipley.net.