Free H.J. Gaudreau - Jim Crenshaw 02 - The Collingwood Legacy by H.J. Gaudreau Page A

lowered himself one more step and stopped.
    “You alright?” Eve called.
    “Yeah.”
    Jim considered. Then, after a moment he climbed back to the top step, “Eve?”
    She leaned in the window. “You forgot something didn’t you?”
    “Hon, ya got a flashlight?”
    Eve thought a moment then said, “You climbed all the way up here and forgot a flashlight?”
    “Yeah, well, I thought more light would come through the broken window.”
    Eve grinned. “Good thing I know you.” She said and, reaching behind her back she removed a flashlight she had stuffed into her belt in anticipation of this very request.
    “Thanks hon! Oh, I’ll need some tools too.”
    “How did you expect to open the rusted shut doors
    without tools?”
    “Eve, I was just going to look around, then I’d get the tool I needed. It’s a process, very well thought out and methodical. Don’t you see?” Jim did his best to look innocent.
    “Oh brother, it’s getting deep and I’m ten feet above the ground!” Eve grinned back, turned and shouted:
    “Sherrie…in the truck. Jim needs the tool box.”
    Sherrie was back in a moment. Gerry lowered the bucket and Sherrie handed the box to Eve then climbed into the loader. “I want to see what’s going on,” she said as she surveyed the inside of her metal steed.
    Both women knelt on one knee, grabbed the sides of the steel box and gave Gerry a thumbs-up. He gently touched the control lever, raised the tractor arms, and set the box against the wall. Then Gerry watched as the toolbox was pushed through the open window and lowered to Jim.
    A moment later Gerry was staring at the backsides of two women who had their heads thrust inside a broken window. He grinned, took his cell phone from his pocket and snapped a picture. “This will be a great Christmas card,” he said to no one in particular.
    Jim stuffed the flashlight in a pocket and gripped the toolbox with one hand. Using the other hand he slowly climbed down the ladder, put the tools on the floor and scanned the building with the light. Immediately Eve and Sherrie let out a gasp. The flashlight illuminated a large wooden cabin cruiser.
    “Are you guys seeing this?” Jim shouted as he moved closer to the boat. He flicked the beam of light across the craft as he walked. Finding a dusty metal name plate Jim used his free hand to wipe off a layer of dirt. Slowly the words ‘Chris-Craft Express Commuter’ emerged. He stepped back and tried to get some perspective on the large boat. The darkness was too much. He couldn’t take it all in.
    Jim slowly walked around the boat. Rounding the bow of the craft his flashlight found a small stack of crates against the block wall. The crates were covered with dirt and he couldn’t tell their contents. Jim suppressed his curiosity and began looking for the building’s doors. Spotting the main doors he was about to pick up the toolbox when his light swept the bow of the cruiser. A hole had been smashed into the left forward area. The damage was about four feet long and two feet wide. It appeared to be fairly deep and Jim wondered at the story he would never hear.
    Focusing on the immediate task Jim recovered the toolbox and went to the large garage doors on the end of the building. After a short examination he found two spring loaded latches, one secured the top of the door to the frame and the other at the bottom secured the door to the building’s concrete floor pad. A chain extended from the top and Jim used it to release the latch. A bar extended up from the floor latch and he pulled it up and swung it out of the way, releasing that latch. Jim then pushed on the doors, but only succeeded in flexing them outward a few inches. He pulled on the doors and didn’t do much better.
    Examining the door handle he found a steel cylindrical lock. It looked completely rusted and Jim was certain it was unusable. Taking a flat head screwdriver and a hammer from the box he was able to knock the cover off the