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“Take a seat,” I offered in my best HR appropriate tone. I needed to get a handle on this situation, and I needed to do it fast.
“I’ll stand,” Will said, his arms crossed.
I sighed and tried to reason with the guy. “Look, I know you don’t believe me, but I don’t like this any more than you do.”
“Bullshit, I’ve seen you eyein’ up that little tasty.”
“I meant about Jim and Hank,” I snapped, “I know you’re pissed, and I don’t blame you. I would have kept them on if I could afford it, but I can’t. Mark and Barry listen to you. Do you think you could talk to them for me?”
He shrugged exaggeratedly. “I can’t promise anything, but I’ll give it a go.”
“That’s great man, I —”
“For another thousand a week.”
I stopped in my tracks and started to shake with anger. “Why don’t you just make it the treasures of Atlantis? You know I don’t have that kind of money, Will.”
My anger was met with another shrug. “Change the tune, boss. It’s gettin’ boring.”
Will got up and led Mark and Barry out on an unsanctioned lunch break. I gave a moment’s thought to firing them too but was afraid that everyone would hate me if I did that. Then I would come in one day to find the place burned to the ground. Will had a real Napoleon complex sometimes, and there was no telling what he would do.
Waiting for the shock to wear off, I went back out to the shop floor. Nothing but trainees, some of whom had gone very pale. It was almost comical what a shambles my business had become. Like something from a sitcom. How was I going to get out of this one?
Then the answer hit. The same way I’d done every other damn thing in my life: improvise.Chapter Seven - NinaIt was terrible. The mechanics had walked out, it almost seemed on strike, and three cars had come in all at once.
Chad was arguing with the head mechanic in his office, so it was just the trainees and me on the floor. They looked lost — like sheep that had just woken up in a stage valley, no shepherd in sight. I wasn’t sure what was going on, but even I could tell it would’ve been good for the garage if none of the work got done. If no one else was going to do it, I figured I might as well take charge.
With a fortifying breath of courage, I adjusted my cap and went up to the first car. It only needed an oil change. That shouldn’t be too hard, even for the other trainees. The second car needed the same. It was a truck and might be a bit more awkward, but it should still be easy enough. The third car, however, required major work to be done on the muffler. It sounded like a dragon when I turned it on to see how bad the problem was. Ordinarily, one got in trouble for a noisy muffler if it went too far and became noise pollution. The only reason Art was still driving being who his father was. No one dared arrest him or even give him a ticket for fear of ending up working traffic — Art’s dad really was that powerful. Not only because he played golf with the chief as well as the District Attorney.
It was okay. I could do this. I just had to focus and think. I don’t think anyone was more surprised than me when I spoke.
“Dale, Jeff, this car oil change, get on it. Eric, Shawn, you’re on the truck.”
I had done my best impersonation of Chad’s boss voice, and it turned out to be surprisingly effective. After a moment’s hesitation, the boys set to work on the oil changes while I went over to start the muffler job.
“Can I help?” Juan asked, looking at the floor as usual as he approached.
I couldn’t tell if he was just shy or thought he might turn to stone if he looked at me directly. Either way, I was glad for the help.
“Sure, hand me tools when I call for them and then stand well back, okay?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
It was strange being called that but also pretty exhilarating. No one had ever spoken to me with a modicum of respect before, outside of Uncle Bill and Auntie Blair, and I actually rather liked it.
The fix didn’t take long. Not having to go get a tool every time helped a lot. When the car was done, I went out to the front and told the customers what was up. I couldn’t do the money stuff. I wasn’t qualified and had to wait for Chad to do that. Yet, it still made me feel good to get the work done. Even if the customers were a bit surprised to find the head mechanic appeared to be a young woman. I didn’t let it go to my head, knowing it was a matter of circumstance as much as anything else, but yeah, I was. Even if it was de facto.
