Free Laura's Big Win by Michelle Tschantre' Page B

Ryan
needed not only on-site maintenance, but competent and responsive
maintenance. Ryan also saw an advantage in Franz being physically
small since he could get in and out of tight places quickly; on top
of that, Ryan believed that Franz would cleanup well and would fit
into the team he was building. A few minutes of conversation
confirmed what Ryan had thought; seeing through the slight
impediment, he saw a rather knowledgeable and perceptive man who
just took a little longer to make his position known. In the great
scheme of things Windmere, a Franz could unobtrusively fill a need,
and avoid the appearance of a grease monkey on the loose at the
same time. An offer was made, and accepted. Franz truly loved his
position where he was pretty much his own boss, and, when he went
into town for parts he secretly enjoyed knowing that he was way
ahead of those who had treated him, if not badly, at least not as
well as they should have.
    Listening to the casual conversation
between Dennis and Franz, Jack quickly learned that Franz took care
of the facilities mechanical needs and cars, and decided this man
should be his friend, playmate, and so on. For his part, Franz had
no objections to the tag along; he enjoyed company, regardless of
size, and reflected back to when he would have appreciated someone
to stand with him when he was that age. And when he hinted about
other vehicles that might be in the carriage house, Jack was
hooked. Finishing his cup of coffee, Franz asked Dennis if there
were any plans for the kids that morning. Dennis hadn’t a clue, but
taking a shot in the dark, said “No, nothing that I know of;
besides you have your pager if we need you back for some reason.
Road trip this morning?”
    “Yes; I need some air conditioning unit
filters, and there are some repair parts in for the fairway mowers.
Gotta stay ahead in the parts race you know; those operators could
break a steel ball playing with it. Anyway, you think there would
be any problem if short stuff here went with me?”
    “No, but if something comes up, it’s on
me. I’ll let Alice know the deal as soon as she shows up. See you
back here for lunch about twelve?”
    “You got it. Jack, you ready for a
parts run with me? Bathroom check first?”
    Jack flew off the booster seat, in and
out of the nearby bathroom, and was ready to go in under three
minutes. This was more fun that he had seen in a while and he was
not about to miss the chance. Besides, much as he liked Dennis,
this guy was more his size. And a friendship that lasted for years
was begun in a bouncing 4 by 4 making a parts run.
    With Jack and Franz gone, Dennis
announced he had to make a security round of the grounds and check
on some plantings. “There’re two seats in the cart. Anyone around
here want to ride shotgun?”
    Amanda could hardly get the “Yes” out
of her mouth quick enough, but Dennis turned toward Doris: “You
hear some noise in here? Sounds like a cricket to me. Well, I have
to go make a round now. Too bad I’ll be all alone.”
    Prompted by the big man’s seeming
disregard, Amanda was bouncing up and down in her seat saying “Me
too, me too.”
    “I’m just teasing; of course you can
go, but first: potty check, shoes tied, and you need a ball cap;
sun’s bright today. I have a cap you can use in the carriage house.
Ready?” And after Doris supervised the potty break to make sure
Mandy was truly ready to go, off they went in the big
ATV.
    Laura had been sleeping the deep sleep
of the exhausted when the kids had awakened and made good their
escape. She was starting to drift toward consciousness when the
knock at the door came. Startled to awareness, her heart leapt when
she realized her two children were nowhere to be seen. Fearing the
worst, she flew to the door, to find the ever calm Alice Hamilton
waiting for her.
    “Is there something wrong? Where are
the kids; are they all right?” the words tumbled out of her
mouth.
    “Calm down, please, take a