Opening the Door

by Michael Roberts

  It is simpler for me. All I need to say is that I am an intern and a student. Since I do not look any older than I am people often assume that I am naïve and new to this world. When people make assumptions like that it’s easier for me to get a good insight into their real character.

  My radar was telling me these two were a couple of interesting decent guys. Neither was trying to be too cocky or over bearing. Neither one was trying to impress us with a bunch of hyped up BS. They were simply what they appeared to be, two young men interested in two young women.

  My only problem with the situation was that Dave had only been gone a little over a week. I wasn’t looking for any attachment for a while. I seem to have a habit of getting together with guys too quick and then they leave. One way or the other.

  Still both of these two had definite possibilities as people who would be fun to be around. I don’t want to get serious with anyone for a while though. Ann seemed to hit it off with Jeffery. There was a lot of eye contact and sparkage there. I would have enjoyed being with Allen more if I didn’t feel that by smiling at him and enjoying his company I was cheating on Dave.

  The guys were fun to be with, and before we noticed it the day had turned into night and we needed to get home. After all, we really just planned to come over to see Sally and baby Crystal for an hour or so but ended up spending all of our time with the guys. We made a quick trip inside to say good night and thank Ben and Sally for inviting us then we went back to Ann’s place. I had to work out with her to an exercise video before she would let me get back to my studying. All in all it was a nice way to spend a Sunday.

  Usually I don’t remember my dreams but I woke up around four o’clock with a strange one in my head. In it I was with people in some kind of a mansion/castle, and there were bad guys with swords and stuff outside. I ran up to the second floor balcony and saw some old hag like woman riding what looked like a cross between a giant vulture and a Thanksgiving turkey. She had a bunch of little goblins things dancing around her feet and was talking to the bad guys who were attacking us. She was laughing.

  In my dream I picked up an arrow that looked more like a stick you would find laying on the ground. It was twisted and covered in tree bark. Somehow I also had a bow in my hand and I used it to shoot at her. Granted I have never held a bow and arrow in my life and have no idea how to really shoot with them. Anyway I ended up shooting the old woman right in the heart. Her head went down for a second. Everybody gasped, then she looked up and pulled out the arrow while laughing at me.

  I shot a second one at her and it bounced off an invisible shield before it even hit her. The third one missed her, but hit and killed one of the little creatures cavorting around her feet. She got mad and said “I wasn’t going to come in, but now I am!” She and that big bird thing she was riding jumped up to the balcony and I took off running. I remember ducking into rooms and stairways trying to figure out where I was going. Then I woke up.

  Very strange. Some people would say I shouldn’t have late night snacks before going to bed. But if we are not supposed to have snacks at midnight then why do they put little lights in the refrigerators?

  I had two surprises on Monday. During the morning meeting Beverly told me I had an appointment Wednesday with “the lawyer for the Buckroe Investments” account. I know the fact that no one else understands what it means amuses Beverly. She uses it to keep them on their toes.

  Ann also texted to tell me not to make plans for Saturday because Jeffrey and Allen were taking us to Busch Gardens. I wasn’t sure I wanted to go but knew that I wouldn’t have a choice. No matter what happened I knew this would be better than the last double date we went on with those two jerks Bobby and his cousin. At least this time I’ve met the guy first and think he is nice.

  Ann’s friend Dawn passed on some gossip that Bobby was out of jail and working at a dive in Newport News. He had tried to get hired back at some of the places he worked previously but ever since our confrontation no one wanted to have him around. I really did enjoy remembering the police arresting him and his cousin in front of my home while I watched. (Nobody hurts or takes advantage of my sister). Sometimes Karma is my friend after all.

  School was good, Sally was back and I insisted on carrying her book bag inside. She had a self-satisfied smile when she found out we were going out with the guys she introduced us to. She also had an almost pathological need to show me each of the hundreds of pictures she had of baby Crystal.

  I wonder if my mom ever gushed over me or if she took any pictures of me as a baby. It would be nice to think she did, but deep down inside I doubt it. People like Ben and Sally help keep this world on an even keel. People like my mom did not.

  I made sure to get to Mr. Wendell’s office a little early so I could have time to talk with Marie. It feels funny not having Rico around, but Marie makes my self-adopted big brother happier than I have ever seen him.

  Once again she is wearing jewelry any woman would kill to have. I told her about our double date next weekend and said if it looked good then we would have to bring them around so that we could see if they were ‘Rico approved’.

  When I talk to her I forget she was born a guy. For all I know she still is one, so to speak. To me she is just the woman who is with my older brother and that is the niche I have for her in my mind. Not sure if that makes me open minded or selectively blind. Either way she is a joy to be around.

  Finally Mr. Wendell called me into his office. Once again he turned off his phone so as not to be disturbed. This is a major concession for him and I appreciated it. He told me the good news that any questions of ‘the provenance of ownership’ had been resolved. The bad news was that he couldn’t get as much for the properties as he wanted. I hadn’t known what to expect so I couldn’t tell if I was going to be disappointed or not. He wrote a figure down on a piece of paper and slid it across his desk to me saying this should be what I would receive after taxes and fees.

  I stared at it for a minute. I am not sure what he had wanted to get, or what I should have expected. His face was an unreadable blank as he waited for me to say something. Truth be known this was more money than I had expected. A lot more.

  Let’s just say that my buying a house was no longer going to be an issue.

  The bottom line was that on the first of November I would sign final papers. The day after that the money would be deposited into the Buckroe Investments account. All the tenants had to be out of my duplexes no later than 15 December. Sounds too simple. When things go too easy for me then I always get worried. Always.

  When I asked if there were any last minute problems or hitches Mr. Wendell shook his head and said “that’s what you pay me for.” Enough said. I do know when to shut up and not ask stupid questions I do not want to know the answer to. I asked if I could retain him to be my lawyer when I decided what property to buy and he said he would be delighted.

  I thanked him and headed back to work. Making sure to give Marie a good hug before I left. I did take a little ride across the James River Bridge to tap into Sawyer’s accounts first. It always makes me smile when I take money from that dead bastard. Some shrink would probably have a field day wandering around in my head trying to see what makes me tick. But if he could get in, then some days it might be a little too dark for him to find his way out.

  The thought that I needed to find a decent way to launder Sawyers money also popped into my head. But I will think of something, I always do.

  When I returned to the office Beverly was in a meeting with someone who owned used book stores on the peninsula. After he left she asked how it went at Mr. Wendell’s office. I handed her the paper with the figure written on in and waited for her reaction.

  She raised an eyebrow and asked “Is this what you wanted?”

  “I honestly had no idea what to expect. I know what the dollar value the city taxed them was, but didn’t know what they’d give me f
or them. There are always taxes and transaction fees plus I have no idea what Mr. Wendell charged.” Thinking about it for a moment “Yes, overall I am very happy with the outcome. I also asked Mr. Wendell to be my lawyer when I buy some place after this.”

  “He is expensive. You can easily find someone who is cheaper.”

  “He has done me several good turns already. I like to stick with people I know and feel I can trust.” She is looking at me with a flat and level gaze. “Do you trust him Beverly?”

  “Yes I do. I am glad you see it that way Sarah. When will you begin to do a house search and where are you looking?”

  “I need to do a lot of driving around first to map out the peninsula in my head. The only area I really know is Buckroe and it is slowly going downhill. I also have to decide if I want to buy someplace to rent out or not.” After a pause “This money is good but it is a one-time thing and I can’t afford to be stupid with it.”

  “You won’t be.”

  With that I headed back to my office. After all studying can never wait. What good is it to study after you have already taken a test?

  I told Ann about going to the lawyer but not how much I would get. I told her when the deal was going down but warned her against telling anyone else. I am going to wait until the paper work is signed and the money is in the bank before I say anything. That way if there is a last minute hitch then there will be less confusion all the way around.

  This should give everybody about six weeks to find someplace to go. I know they were just tenants and not really my friends but I am going to miss seeing them, especially the kids. I also need to figure out where Ann and I are going. I don’t know how I am going to do it, but we are not going to be separated. Not now, not ever.

  Jeffrey and Allen picked us up at my place Saturday around noon. The time was good because Ann got a little sleep from working the night before and I could do a little studying. I know I study way more than I have to but have become almost obsessed with knowing all there is in those books. Ann thinks I am going crazy and need a break. Maybe she’s right.

  I’ve heard people talk about and praise Busch Gardens but this is the first time I’ve been there. Actually I seldom go anywhere, which is kind of sad. I couldn’t believe how much it cost to get in. We wouldn’t let the guys pay for our tickets, but agreed they could buy us lunch. Unlike our last double date these were good guys. I had no intention of milking them for everything.

  When we walked in I saw a scam I recognized. There was a good size official looking sign in big red letters that warned people to check their valuables and beware of pick-pockets. When everybody saw it they all began to do the typical reaction and I had to jump in there.

  “Freeze all of you.”

  They did but the guys turned their heads to look at me. Obviously wondering what I was up to. I guess it is up to me to train them.

  “Without moving your bodies just cut your eyes over to each other and see where your hands are.” They did but obviously didn’t catch on.

  Sometimes I think I know too much.

  Ann was following directions with a quizzical expression.

  “All three of you are checking your money, right?”

  They nodded, still confused. Okay, time to clarify things for these guys. “The sign is a fake. Pick-pockets put these up to see what pocket you pat down to ‘check your valuables’. You have just told them where your money is. The guys were looking at each other now. I kept going and explained the system.

  “Usually they work in threes. There is a spotter who identifies the marks, which would be you guys. They signal where the mark is hiding the money. The one who actually makes the hit is called the ‘dip’. The ‘tiler’ is the runner. The runner is the one the ‘dip’ passes the swag off to.

  They do that so if the dip is caught they can make a big scene protesting innocence and drawing attention away from the runner who has the swag. If the police are there, the dip will loudly proclaim their innocence and demand to be searched. After all, they have already passed everything off.

  Meanwhile the runner is long gone and doing a skim with your cards.” I can see everything slowly sinking in with them so I continue. “Whenever possible they will return the wallets to you.” They looked doubtful at that. “The first thing people do when someone, usually a young girl, returns their wallet is to check and see that everything is in there. Right?”

  They all nod and so far are taking in everything I have said. Glad to see they are listening and paying attention, so I continued. “The first thing people look for is their money. I can guarantee it will all be there. Then people will check on their credit cards and ID. Again everything is in there. What people don’t realize is that the runner has scanned all the information he needs from their credit cards and has it filed away in his smart phone.”

  Their eyes get a little wider as everything sinks in.

  “The trio will wait until they have at least twenty sets of cards from their various marks before they bust them all out. Preferably at least a week after they make the scores. They set up a couple of accounts and scan the cards for charges somewhere between 50-70 dollars each time. They will go thru each of their marks cards one at a time then start over again. They will milk the credit cards to their limits over one week end, then drain the fake accounts into a new one they can withdraw cash from and never use your cards again.”

  Looking around for a minute, I finally see what I am looking for.

  “See the woman with the sunglasses and the green ball cap?”

  As soon as they spotted her I told them that she is not shopping at the store. She was looking at the reflection in the stores window to see anyone who reacts to the sign. “If you watch her for a few minutes you will see that she doesn’t move.”

  Allen speaks up and says “How do you know all this?”

  Oh crap.

  Ann saved me by saying she heard the same thing too “Maybe on the Discovery channel.” That seemed to satisfy them. The rest of the afternoon was fun. I went on my first roller coaster ride and loved it. Fortunately we didn’t eat anything until afterwards. Some other people seem not to have thought that far in advance but I am glad the guys cautioned me about it.

  I think walking around that much in the sun really wore me out because I could not stop yawning on the way back. I made sure Allen knew it wasn’t because of him. Guess I am just not used to having that much fun.

  After about eight hours in the park it was getting dark and I was worn out. Ann may be the energizer bunny but I definitely am not. We were quiet on the way back home, even the guys seemed a little drained of energy, but being macho-men would never admit it.

  We asked them in for a drink and ended up having more than just one or two. I invited Allen to crash on the couch and offered blankets and pillows to Jeffrey. They thought about it but said they had to be on duty first thing in the morning so they headed back to the base. Hope the cops won’t pick them up on the way there.

  They both live in the same room in some barracks. Must be tough to bring dates back with you. Most girls really don’t like an audience when they want to be personal with a guy. I know I don’t. We kept the door to the other bedroom closed so they thought Ann lived with me. That way if she really wanted one of them to stay the night she could invite them back to her place, otherwise it was a good excuse not to let things go too far.

  Jeff and Allen each got a kiss good night from us and we thanked them for a good time. That is as far as you should get on a first date. No matter how much fun you had.

  * * *

  The next day, after she finished her morning run, I dragged Ann with me to look at residential areas in Hampton and Newport News. My thought was simply that we should first settle on the area then see what was available. One of the signs I looks for is how many young peoples are meandering around on bicycles. I don’t mean the ones who are using
them to exercise or the family that is out getting fresh air.

  When you see a young man on a bicycle slowly cruising around it usually means one of two things. The first is they are slinging something illegal. The second is they are checking out the area for a home or car burglary. This is not a hard and fast rule but I am right about it over half of the time and that is good enough odds for me.

  Ann was not comfortable with our neighborhood search. When we stopped for lunch I questioned her. She was worried about how much it would cost to live in some of the places I was looking at. Since I found out about her debt and what she was doing to pay it off I could appreciate how she felt. I also had to be careful about how I approached this, after all everyone has pride.

  When I finally got her to talk about it Ann said that she didn’t think she could manage to pay what the rent would be in these areas. The only reason she had stayed at Sawyers was that it was all she could afford. I reached across the table, looked into her eyes and held both her hands saying.

  “Sis, do you think I am not working on something for both of us?” She smiled a little so I went on. “There are several things that might work and I am not sure which one is best, but either way we are in this together. Never doubt that.”

  “You’re not just saying that because you want me to bake you some more cookies are you?” She is trying to keep it light but I know the words moved her. Somebody really hurt this woman in the past – wish I could meet them in the present. I really do.

  Of course on the other hand…. “Well, now that you mention it. If it would make you feel better to do some baking then I guess I could probably force myself to test a few samples of your work. But only if it would make you happy.”