Good morning. It is I Gigi the parti poodle here to delight you with the sixteenth chapter of my story. This is an important time of the year for my novelist as it is the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale. If you are not aware of it, every year Nordstrom puts brand new fall clothing, shoes, accessories, and products for the home on sale in July (although due to Covid19 it was in August last year). My novelist always saves her money so she can splurge a little at it. It is most bizarre how she intensely analyzes and lays out a strategy of what to purchase. She is choosy about fabrics and yarns because she took a costume class for her drama degree at the university and was always taught that natural fabrics and yarns trump synthetics. But she has managed to find good choices this year she thinks will be warm as it is forecasting to be a cold winter here in the northwest. But enough about all that. Here is chapter sixteen of What I Found in the Trunk. Njuta!

What I Found in the Trunk

By

Gigi the parti poodle

Chapter Sixteen

“Wakey, wakey.”

Gary’s dad fought to roll up the heavy shades on his eyes.

“Looks like he’s coming out of it.”

“What the blazes…?” Gary’s father said, his tongue heavy.

“Yep, he’s coming out of it.”

Gary’s father, his head sloshing around in the sleepy haze fought for consciousness. His eyes focused and he realized he was in some house somewhere with a wood floor and a lot of empty space. And then he saw three young guys staring down at him. He studied their faces and said, “You guys look familiar.”

“How are you doing old man?”

“Where am I?”

“Is he awake?”

“Yup.”

Durwin strode over and joined his three buddies all towering down over Gary’s dad. “Well, well,” he said. “Gary’s father I presume.”

“Where’s my son?” Gary’s father demanded.

“Funny. That’s what we were going to ask you.”

“Are you friends of his?”

“Acquaintances.”

“What do you want with him?”

Gary’s father tried to move his hands and realized they were tied to his chair.

“Is this a kidnapping?!”

“More or less. Look old man. Your boy took something that belongs to me.”

“My son doesn’t take things that don’t belong to him.”

“Well, you’d be surprised.”

“What is it you think he took?”

“That’s none of your business. Your business is making Gary give it back.”

“Fat chance, kid.”

Durwin glared at Gary’s dad. He shoved a Ritz cracker in his mouth and munched it down. “I’m going to ask you one more time, old man. Where did Gary go?”

Durwin glared at Gary’s dad. He shoved a Ritz cracker in his mouth and munched it down. “I’m going to ask you one more time, old man. Where did Gary go?”

“Kid, I’ve been on this big round ball of a planet for a while now and I’ve seen a lot of punks like you. If you think you’re going to strong arm information out of me, you’d better think again.”

“This isn’t the time to play the tough guy. If you don’t tell me where Gary is I’m going to do a lot more damage to the both of you then if you speak up now.”

Gary’s dad laughed. “I’m in the business of used cars. I know a con when I hear one.”

“Well, aren’t you the tough guy.” Then he turned to his buddies and said, “Go to town on him.”

Durwin walked away as the first guy stepped in front of Gary’s dad and pulled back his fist. Suddenly, Gary’s dad’s phone played “Achy Breaky Heart” by Billy Ray Cyrus.

“What the hell is that?” the first guy asked.

“It’s country music from the nineteen nineties,” the second guy said.

“It sounds like ass.”

“It’s his phone you idiots,” Durwin said marching over and grabbing the phone out of the pocket of Gary’s father’s blazer. Durwin looked at the caller ID. “Well, looky here. Gary’s calling. Answer the phone, pops.”

Durwin accepted the call, put it on speaker, and shoved the phone in Gary’s dad’s face.

“Hello?” Gary’s dad said.

“Hey, dad it’s me,” Gary replied.

“You didn’t show up for work today.”

“I…Bennet had an emergency…at his cabin in Soap Lake. I tried calling you earlier, but you didn’t pick up.”

“Today has been a blur.”

“I apologize. I didn’t mean to leave you in the lurch, dad.”

“That’s alright.”

“I’m not going to make it back for a couple of days. There’s a wildfire here.”

“Wildfire?”

“And we’re trapped till they get it under control.”

“When will that be?”

“Couple of days maybe. Rusty is here too.”

“Rusty? Why’s he there?”

“It’s a long story. Anyway, I didn’t want you to worry.”

Gary’s dad looked at Durwin and his crew. “Are you in trouble?”

“Trouble?”

“Gary?”

Gary fell silent. Then he said, “Someone thinks I took something from him.”

“Did you?”

“No. But I had to find the person who did.”

“Go to the police.”

Durwin hung up the call. “Shouldn’t have told him that old man. Now you’ve hurt my feelings. One of you guys find out where that cabin is. Then we’ll take the old man for a ride.”

My Books

You can check out my books Chicane and the five installments in my Musicology book series Musicology: Volume One, Baby!, Musicology: Volume Two, Kid!, Musicology: Volume Three, Twist!, Musicology: Volume Four, Sweetie! and Musicology: The Epiquad on Amazon in Kindle and Paperback editions. You can also check out Musicology’s web site at www.musicologyrocks.com and vote for who you think will win Musicology!!!

STREAM OF THE WEEK: ULEE’S GOLD (1997)-Amazon Prime

It’s hard to believe this fantastic sleeper was only nominated for one academy award for Peter Fonda’s career best performance. Victor Nunez should have also been nominated for his original screenplay, but the academy decided to nominate Woody Allen for Deconstructing Harry instead because let’s face it, Oscar voters prize manipulative narcissistic pedophiles over cinematic art. Ulee (Peter Fonda) is the only survivor of his Vietnam War platoon which he credits to cleverness and luck. He is the grandfather of two girls, likeable grade school aged Penny (Vanessa Zima) and teenage Casey (a young Jessica Biel in her first full length major motion picture). Ulee’s son Jimmy (Tom Wood) is in prison for a robbery gone bad and his strung-out wife Helen (Christine Dunford) is nowhere to be found. Ulee struggles to raise his granddaughters as he attempts to harvest his Tupelo Honey all by himself until he gets a phone call from Jimmy who has run into a little problem with the money he hid from his partners in crime.