"Yeah, the original order said next Friday, but then the boss called last night and said the owner wanted it gone ASAP."
Last night?Was this all my fault? Had Griff called to have it demolished the moment I'd left?
I asked,"Whichowner? Do you have a name?"
He snorted. "Hell no. I don't even got my thermos."
From the wagon, the other guy shouted, "Screw the thermos!"
"But it's my favorite!" Clipboard Guy called back.
"Fine," the other guy snapped. "With the bonus, I'll buy you a new one. Now hurry up!"
"Oh, keep your panties on," Clipboard Guy said. "We've still got a half hour."
"Yeah, and we're not driving a rocketship, are we?"
"Jeez, I'm coming," Mister Clipboard grumbled as he started lumbering back to the wagon.
Desperate for more information, I followed beside him. "But wait…why'd the owner change the schedule? Do you know?"
"Beats me," he said. "But the guy promised us a nice bonus to make it happen."
His co-worker called out, "Which we'll lose if you don't get your ass in the seat."
Mister Clipboard turned to me with a smile. "You see what I gotta put up with?" He pointed vaguely toward the slab. "About the thermos…if you find it, run it down to the dock, alright?"
I didn't even know which dock he meant. But it hardly mattered. The thermos was obviously gone.
Just like Griff.
76
Crash, Cry, Whatever
Griff
Ryder pointed at the thing in my hand. "What the hell is that?"
I felt like beating him with it. "I'm guessing it's your idea of a joke."
"An orange thermos?" He frowned. "If it's a joke, I'm not getting it."
The hell he wasn't.A half hour ago, I'd gone back to the boathouse, only to find it gone. Demolished. Hauled off like it had never existed.
And sitting right there on the cracked foundation, in all its blinding orange glory, wasthis.
I lifted the thermos higher. "Bullshit. You think it's funny?"
"What, the thermos?" He gave it half a glance. "I guess it's alittlefunny. I mean…orange is funnier than black."
"Lemme guess…you stuffed it full of cranberries." My tone grew sarcastic. "Sofuckingfunny."
"Dude," he said. "If you open that thing and find cranberries, I'll eat my hat."
My grip tightened on the thermos. "You're notwearinga hat."
"Fine. I'll eatyourhat." He gestured vaguely toward my head. "So, you're what? In disguise or something?"
