Small Town Angel

by K'Anne Meinel

  She waited until the sun was going down and the crowd of people had dwindled to almost nothing in the late afternoon before entering the store. She was surprised to see a set of curtains hiding the store from the view of anyone entering this section, poles held up the curtained sections and effectively hid the main store from their view. Amy had set up a couple of tables where applicants could fill out the stack of applications she had left there with pencils and pens available for their use. A desk was set up at the back of the curtained off area and Amy sat there with an applicant she was interviewing. Abby could see he wouldn’t be hired. He was too cocky and self-assured and it was obvious he was annoying Amy who tried to ask him a series of set questions she had ready. His answers seemed to only aggravate her further. Finally though, the brief interview came to a halt as she stood up and held her hand out which the belligerent teen limply shook. “I’ll let you know if I decide to have a second interview with you Billy,” Amy told him as she dismissed him.

  The teen glanced at Abby as he went by giving her a saucy grin as he saluted and said, “Chief.” Abby nodded at the teen knowing what a troublemaker he had been over the years.

  “Hi Abby, how are you today?” Amy said brightly, and Abby turned from where she had watched the teen thoughtfully leave the store.

  “I’m good, I see you are interviewing applicants, did you get a good turn out?” Abby asked as she turned back.

  “Oh my goodness, I have a second day tomorrow for the applicants, but I don’t know how I’ll get through all these,” she indicated the stack of papers she had already containing her applications and the paper she filled out with her notes on them.

  “Could you use an impartial, well slightly impartial, second set of eyes?” Abby asked

  Amy looked at her with interest.

  “I probably know most of the applicants anyway; I’ve lived here forever and can probably give you some insight.”

  “That would be terrific, it wouldn’t interfere with your work would it?” she drawled.

  Abby was enchanted at the accent as she always was. She hoped her friend would never lose it. She realized who Amy reminded her of now, a younger version of Reba McEntire, but with straighter and longer red hair. From the dimples to the heart shaped face she was an attractive combination and Abby had realized that from their first encounter. “No, not at all, it’s a fairly crime free day here in Northpoint,” she grinned wryly. “It’s a pretty easy appointment up here,” she said fondly.

  “You really love your job don’t you?” Amy asked as she gathered up the last of the papers and put them in the stack.

  Abby sat down across from her and shrugged. “It’s a no brainer, I loved living here with my grandparents when I could. Then when they needed help and I met my wife, it all seemed to come together.”

  Amy desperately wanted to ask her about that, but she wasn’t a gossip. How could she ask without revealing that she had heard the gossip about the town’s only police officer who happened to be a lesbian? Whose wife had died leaving her with two children to raise on her own with the help of hostile in-laws who had been determined to take the children away? Fortunately Abby had gotten a good lawyer who had gone over her wife’s will which clearly left the children to her ‘good friend’ Abby who could not under Wisconsin law be recognized as her ‘wife.’ “It’s a great town from what I’ve seen,” she said instead of the many questions she wanted to ask.

  Abby nodded as she held out her hand for some of the applications. “It’s good for the kids and I benefited from visiting my grandparents, it was better here for me than with my parents.”

  Amy had already begun dividing up the applicants from her notes making a pile of those ‘possibles’ to the ‘probables’ to the ‘no ways.’ She handed Abby the pile of ‘probables’ as those were ones she was certain she wanted a second interview with.

  “You know I’m not going to do this for free don’t you?” Abby asked as she began to read Alex Martin’s application. She was pleased he had interviewed well from the notes that Amy had written on her second sheet.

  “What’s it gonna cost me officer?” Amy asked playfully as she filed the ‘no ways’ in a folder and put them away. She had to, by law; keep them on file for a set period of time before shredding them as they all contained personal information.

  “Oh just a personal tour of the store,” Abby returned as she nodded at some of the questions Amy had asked and Alex’s answers.

  “You want to see it?” Amy asked surprised.

  Abby looked up to see if she was serious. “Of course I do, I’ve seen the things come into this store from what Terry carted in here, and the many deliveries have left us all curious,” she confessed.

  “Now?” Amy asked with a slight hint of a grin, her dimples barely showing.

  Abby smiled in return. “Let’s finish these up,” she indicated the small stack of applicants, the ‘probables’ and then the one of ‘possibles.’ “And then I want to see it all,” she said forcefully and they both shared a laugh.

  Amy was grateful that her interviews had gone so well. She had been amazed at the amount of people who showed up, but then realized there wasn’t a lot of opportunity up here and people had to travel so far for the few jobs that were seasonally available. She intended to keep her store open year round and would need trustworthy employees for that endeavor. She already had a few other ideas for other stores around town in the vacant buildings, but that would have to wait until she launched this one, hopefully it would be a success and make her money back.

  “Alex is a good kid,” Abby commented as she showed the application she was looking at and then launched into everything she knew about the kid. She did the same with a few of the other applications as Amy took notes and marked them for second interviews. They got through the small stack quickly and a few of those went into the ‘probables’ stack and others got filed with the ‘no-ways.’ Abby of course didn’t know each and every one of the applicants, but enough of them that she could offer an opinion on them. Amy was grateful that her own instincts on a few of them panned out and she determined to call a few of them this evening so she could set up interviews for the third day when applications would no longer be taken and she could show them exactly what they would be doing in the store. In the meantime she began to show Abby exactly what she had turned her grandparents store into.

  Abby was amazed, the store had been transformed into an old fashioned drug store with sections or various counters for the merchandise and services that Amy’s ‘general’ store would be offering. From UPS and FedEx services to a mini-post office as well as payments for water, gas, and electric as well as phone including cell phones. She was well set up and Abby could see the posters and products offered meant that locals and tourist alike would be well taken care of. She could see where Amy had moved back merchandise for her curtained off area that would be put back after her interviewing process was over. A postal annex stood in one area with the bars keeping customers from the postmaster and the bank of postal boxes that were all shiny and waiting for the occupants to come in and collect their mail. They had to walk through the store and temptations of merchandise and food before gathering their mail, or they could unlock the side door and go straight to the boxes, a cage panel came down from the ceiling to block this off. That way, they could gather their mail anytime and not get into the actual store once the panel was down. The coup de grace though was an authentic soda fountain complete with an ice cream factory, homemade candy, and plenty of details such as a popcorn maker, a salt water taffy pull machine, and many other nifty little gadgets. The counter was smooth as silk with a wooden top and brass fittings. An old fashioned juke box was in one corner where guests could sit and enjoy the music or dance on the polished wood floor in front of a large gas stove which stood in another corner. She could see it was an efficiency model that would and was already heating the whole store very well. It stood on Italian tiles and had a small ‘gate’ around it to keep out the
curious, but probably children most of all so they couldn’t get burned. The booths all contained a mini-juke box on them to change the music and pay for it at their table.

  “Wow, you really thought this out, I’m thrilled to see the changes,” she said as she ran her fingers along one of the booths shaped like a Cadillac back seat, right down to the big lights and tail fins that were standard on fifties style cars. “Where in the world did you get some of these things?” she asked as she looked at the neon and other touches.

  “Some of these things were impossible to find and I had to compromise,” Amy admitted as she showed her the bank of lava lamps in three different sizes and colors on the various shelves behind the counter and in front of a mirrored wall, creating an illusion of an even bigger store.

  “That’s incredible,” she said as she enjoyed the visual even though they weren’t turned on. “People are going to enjoy the nostalgia.” She looked at the various vintage displays of touristy items from the fifties and up to the present including postcards and signs of Door County that could be purchased. Some of the older scenes she had never seen before, some were from an era long gone. There were plenty of boxes waiting to be unpacked yet, but she could see why Amy had worked long hours in the store now as this came together. It had the feeling of a good old fashioned drug store, somewhat fifties style, some even older, and yet enough ‘modern’ stuff that the combination blended beautifully. “What’s this?” she indicated the computers by one of the shipping sections.

  “Oh, people enter their own data in them and print out a shippin’ label for either UPS or FEDEX or even the post office and then they pay over there,” she pointed at the shipping counter. “That way it’s up to them to get it right and the information correct. We won’t however require it especially as I’m certain we will get a few technophobes who will be shy of the computers.”

  “Yeah, some of the older folks don’t like computers,” Abby agreed. This place was going to look incredible she thought as she looked at the neon around the edges of the café portion. It wasn’t lit up yet but she was looking forward to seeing it when it was. The candy counter and the soda counter looked just as inviting. “I didn’t realize this place was so big,” she commented absently as she looked around trying to visualize what she had and where it had all been placed all those months ago.

  “It was huge, but we took advantage of the size and some of it is an optical illusion,” she pointed out to how the French doors leading outside to the deck were utilized and would bring in lots of light and ‘space’ to the café. “They will be able to eat out on the dock too when the weather is nice.” She showed her how the mirrors gave the impression of so much more space too as they reflected off the walls making it appear like a second store.

  “Amazing,” Abby enthused. “Too bad you can’t rent out canoes as well as sell gas out there,” she peeked through the window coverings at the snow covered dock and the now winter covered gas dispenser.

  “Oh I made a deal with Spencer’s Canoe and Kayak rentals, they are going to ‘store’ quite a few of their rentals over here and use the docks, they ran out of room a long time ago at their place and were very interested in the deal when I brought it up to them,” Amy told her modesty.

  Abby looked at her in surprise. People would always underestimate this woman, she had such ‘innocent’ good looks, her southern drawl disarmed them, but wow she had a head for business which was obvious from what she was seeing. “Good for you, any more surprises in store for us?” she asked with a grin.

  Amy returned the grin. “I don’t know anymore, I’ve just been trying to get everything organized and in place for the openin’.”

  “I saw the ads in the paper and the flyers,” Abby commented acknowledging her.

  “Yes, the printers were very accommodatin’,” she added nodding. “They liked all the work I sent their way,” she told her of the business cards, the various forms, and the brochures as well as the ads and menus she had sent their way. She handed Abby a menu.

  “Can you make all of that in here?” she asked in surprise. It was then she spotted the small grill and the walk up window to outside so that guests didn’t have to come in the store from the boardwalk.

  “Yes, I had to get the county to sign off on it of course, but I passed all my inspections with flyin’ colors thanks to Terry and his crew, they did good work for me.”

  Abby shook her head, so much work since last fall and it was still going strong as she eyed the many unopened boxes around the store. “Wow, good luck!” she said encouragingly. “Did you manage a store like this before down south or something?” she asked and then realized Amy immediately shut down at any mention of her past.

  Amy tried not to let it show, but people were naturally curious about her and her past. She was very careful in her answers though. “My parents had a fishin’ store and I dreamed of places like this,” she offered, more than many had gotten from her in a while. “I took businesses courses in college and thought this out as soon as I saw your store.”

  Abby nodded knowingly. She knew the redhead had to have had experience and some business sense. It was obvious she knew what she was doing and this store would be a great success as a result. The various services she was offering would appeal to everyone.

  “You let me know if my kids become a problem, they are going to want to live in here,” she warned.

  Amy laughed knowingly. “Heather comes by frequently to ask to see the store or to play with Toby and I’ve let Bailey walk him as well.”

  Abby was surprised, she had never known.

  “You know, I never knew you were the local Chief of Police, you don’t dress in uniform,” Amy finally felt bold enough to comment.

  She shrugged. “I don’t want to come on too strong especially with tourists. Occasionally I have to throw my weight around,” she laughed as she made a muscle to stress her point; she was rewarded with Amy’s tinkling laugh. “For the most part I just wear the badge on my belt and that’s good enough for those around here.”

  “You don’t act like a cop either,” she observed cautiously, but she was still laughing at the flexed arm of the law.

  “What do you know about cops and how they act?” Abby teased and saw something change in the redhead’s eyes. It was infinitesimal, but distinct. If she hadn’t been standing right by her she might have missed it.

  “Oh I don’t know, I’m sure that you aren’t typical,” she said airily as she dismissed it. She looked away as she looked around the store. “I hope the locals like it as well as the tourists,” she tried to change the subject.

  “I can’t wait to see it on opening day,” Abby allowed her to get off the hook, there was something there though and she wondered about it.

  * * * * *

  “Have you heard Chief, I got the job!” an enthused Alex told Abby when he saw her the following week.

  “You did? That’s great, Amy seems to be a nice woman to work for and the store should do well,” she told him. She hadn’t told anyone that she had read the applications and given Amy inside information on them.

  “It’s going to be good,” he said and then lost his smile. “Except….”

  She waited and when he hesitated she asked, “Except what?”

  “I just don’t like being called a soda jerk,” he complained good-naturedly.

  Abby nearly laughed into his face. “You should be honored; a soda jerk was an important position back in the fifties. I bet if you Googled it and learned more about it you’d have a lot of ammunition if anyone teases you about the title.” She figured he would now that she mentioned it.

  “She also wants us to wear these stupid hats,” he showed her the little cap that was definitely from the 1950’s and would look good on the kid with his height and narrow head.

  Abby shrugged trying not to laugh at him. He was going to get a lot of razzings probably from other boys his age in town. “It’s part of the job, is the pay worth the job?”

 
; “Oh yeah, she pays more than minimum wage and the job is really flexible. I’m gonna save up and buy a car,” he told her as he headed to what was obviously his mother’s station wagon.

  Abby laughed inside, he had already bounced back and forth about the job but it was obvious he was going to keep it just so he could get that car he wanted. Hat and title aside the job would be good for him. It would show him responsibility. Others who had gotten jobs with Amy’s ‘Emporium’ were just as pleased, even a couple of them who had been displaced by her opening up the extensions for the phone, post, and electric had gotten first crack at the key positions and were grateful because Amy had managed to get them insurance too. Gossip had it that she was offering a good benefits deal and people were pleased. Rumor also had it there was a scholarship opportunity for high school students but Abby hadn’t heard too many details on that…yet.

  * * * * *

  Amy had never felt so much cold. Throughout the month of January and February she was out almost every other day with her ATV plowing her driveway with Toby whom she had gotten a coat for so he could stay on the back and enjoy being with her in the outdoors. He still resented that she didn’t take him when she went on the trails as it was too long for him to be out. She had tried to put booties on him too, but those didn’t last long as he hilariously kicked them off and then chewed them up even though they kept the snow from between his pads.

  The snow was bad enough and she was grateful for the four wheel drive on her SUV just to get to town but the cold, it was bitterly cold. She worked hard in the store as she set it up and even after hiring employees and teaching them the various positions and cross training, some she could only hope that they would be reliable. During training no one missed work, but that might be another thing come actual work time, and she couldn’t do everything herself although she alone knew each position fully.