A Short Story by John Daly

Copyright © 2009 by John Daly
This revised version was originally published in The Fiction Writer and Other Short Stories, which is copyright © 2007 by John Daly. No part of this story may be used without permission of the Author.

“I want to talk to you about my son, William Joseph Haley, and his truck that you see in the driveway.”

“Your son’s name is William Joseph Haley?,” David asked incredulously.

“That’s his name, William Joseph Haley. I only use William Joseph when I am upset with him. I am upset with him now, that’s why I’m using it. I usually call him Billy Joe,” she said softly.

“My son’s name is also Billy Joe! That’s his real name on his birth certificate!,” shouted David.

“That’s interesting,” said Florence, not really meaning it. “But why are you shouting?”

“Don’t you see? I’m not here by accident! The dog has been here before me! This has all been planned!”

“I see that you are suspicious about big yellow dogs. That’s all I see.”

Sensing that he might be frightening Florence, David said quietly,

“You’re probably right. Tell me more about your son.”

“Well first of all, I’m a widow. My husband, William Joseph Haley, whom my son was named after, died when Billy Joe was only 10 years old. You can see why we called our son Billy Joe. It was to avoid confusion between the two names. Well anyway, Billy Joe was an only child. He was very easy to raise. Very bright. A good student. However he tends to be a dreamer, always chasing rainbows. The rainbow he is chasing now is being a charter sail boat captain in the Virgin Islands. He just withdrew all his savings one day and left for the Virgin Islands where he signed on as a captain. He has sailed all of his life and has a Commercial Captains License. He always had a dream of owning his own boat. Perhaps one day he will, who knows.”

“When did he leave,” asked David.

“Two weeks ago today.”

“That’s about when Magic came to live with us,” thought David.

“Where was Billy Joe working before he left to go sailing in the Virgin Islands?”

“He was self employed as a “handyman’. He used that truck in his business. He constructed shelves in the interior of the truck for his tools and supplies. He is very good with his hands and had a very profitable business. Really more business then he could handle by himself. It was hard for him to expand or even get an assistant, because everyone wanted him to do the work, not an assistant. I think he finally just ran away from the business.”

“Why didn’t he just sell the business or hire some people and convince his customers that the new people could do the work as well as he could?,” David asked.

“Well the business just consisted of people who wanted him to do the work,” Florence said. “Other than that, the only assets are the truck and his tools. They are of no use to me. I have his power of attorney to dispose of them as I wish.”

“Why are you telling me all this?,” asked David. “I told you I have no money to buy the truck.”

“I just have a good feeling about you. I don’t know why, but I do,” said Florence. “It’s one of those unexplained events that we talked about earlier. I felt it when we first met at my front door.”

“I know why you have a good feeling,” thought David. “It’s because of that big yellow dog.”

But David remained silent waiting for Florence to continue.

“I want to turn over my son’s business to someone who will agree to hire him as some type of partner, if and when he tires of being a sailboat captain and returns here. If you will agree to that, I think I can make you an offer that you will be hard pressed to refuse.”

“I think I have an open mind, but I can’t agree to your proposition until I hear all the details. Tell me more about your idea.”

“I have a truck and a profitable business to dispose of. You have no money, and as of now, no prospects of getting any. The truck and the business are of no value to me, but my vagabond son is very important to me. You could profit from being in business with me. I could profit from being in business with you. In addition to the truck and the customer list, I have capital to invest in the business if we need it. You have the skills and the energy to do the work. I did all the paper work for my son and also I was in charge of running the office. My son had no interest or ability in that area. He was only interested in doing the ‘handyman’ work. He did not know how to charge for the work, or collect the money he earned from the job. I imagine that you are somewhat the same.”

David nodded his head in agreement.

“I must admit detail paper work is of no interest to me. I’m not very good at it. Never have been.”

“Well then, this is my proposition. I presently have customers, who this day, have some work to be done. I have been stalling them. Take the truck, go home, change into your work clothes and wait for me to call you. Do you have a cell phone?”

David reached into his pocket and held up his cell phone.

“Good. Give me your number and I’ll call you within the hour and give you the names of three people who need work done today. After you have finished the work, let me know. I’ll then make a ‘courtesy’ check up call to them to see how you did. Sort of like a test. If you pass, I’ll tell you, and you can bring the truck back and we can talk some more. If you do not pass, just bring the truck back and I will pay you for the work you did and we will just part as if nothing happened, with no hard feelings.
David, I’m positive you will pass with flying colors. I can feel it.”

(To be continued…)