Thirty Five

2019

If McDonald’s starts charging me for office space, I might need to pick up a second job.  I am back in the same spot where I recently sat with Becca at the back of McDonalds on Soldiers Field Road.  LoMack and I agreed to get some coffee and talk about our common experience.  We’ve both got our paper cups and settle in at a table where few others are nearby.

“I can’t believe you recognized me?” said LoMack. “I’m looking right at you, and I remember the driver and that I was with someone, and all.  But—sorry Kozak—if you were sitting at this table over here, two feet away, I wouldn’t have known who you were.”

“I have a good memory.”

“You do.  Do I look the same?

“Well you’re gray now and I can see some mileage.”

“Some? A lot of mileage.” LoMack sighs and takes a swig of coffee. “Lot of mileage. Didn’t go anywhere but a lot of mileage.”

“What have you been doing?”

“Not much.” Another sigh and another drink from the cup.   “I don’t know what I told you then if anything.”

“We talked some.”

“Well, I never was a student. When I got back from hitch hiking all over, I tried Community College.  Couldn’t even hack that.  Got jobs here and there. Then, first dad, and then mom passed away and left me dough. My father was a doctor and did well. My mother a nurse.  They had money and were generous. My sister became a doc too. She took over dad’s practice. My sister and brother-in-law are saints. Just saints.  They built an in-law addition to their home and that’s where I live. In law additions are supposed to be for parents, but the loser brother is living there.”

“Maybe you’re being too hard on yourself.” I said.

“Maybe. I have a steady job, now. Work across the river in Watertown.  My sister’s house is in Belmont so an easy drive.”

“What’s the job?”

“Sell appliances at Best Buy.  Been there since it opened. Before that I worked in Lechmere. You remember Lechmere?”

I nod.

He gives off a self-deprecating laugh. “You ever need a dishwasher, washing machine, refrigerator. I’m your guy.” He laughs again. “How about you. You weren’t from here. Were you?”

“No, at the time I was in Buffalo.”

“That’s right. Upstate New York. Right. I remember that.”

“I moved here in the 80s.”

He nods. “Boston is home.  Good place. I’m comfortable here. As comfortable as a guy who couldn’t hack Community College can be.”

“Hey, you’re here. You look well.”

“Thanks.”

“So,” I ask “What happened to you that day. After we split up.”

He wheezed. “Like I said, Kozack, I don’t have the memory you do.  I remember the crazy guy, and remember I was with another hiker.  You, I guess. And I remember, very clearly, getting out of the car after he was already out and him taking a shot at me.”

“I’ll never forget it.”

“Crazy.” LoMack shakes his head. “It took me about an hour to get out of wherever we were.”

“Gallup, New Mexico.”

“Right. Gallup. I knew it was New Mexico.  Anyway it took about an hour to get out.  The rest of the trip was relatively uneventful. I mean, let’s hope the rest of the ride was relatively uneventful.  Got stuck in Nashville for a stretch, and have no fond memories of West Virginia, but no big deal. How about you?”

I told him what happened the rest of my way.

“Hairy.”

“Not the whole way.”

“Still.” Says Kozack

I want to get back to what happened in Gallup. “You remember that the guy wanted to rob a gas station?” 

“Sure. That was the whole thing, wasn’t it. He was bragging about how he wanted to have money in his pocket when he saw his father.  It was crazy.  He doesn’t want to pay five bucks then—we’re talking when gas was what 50, 60 cents a gallon. Not like now.  He doesn’t want to pay 5 bucks for gas.  We said, we’d split it right?”

“Something like that.” I say “You had offered to pay for the tank in Gallup and he’d get the next one. I paid for the first tank somewhere in Arizona. Probably would have cost him 10 bucks to Chicago if we kept taking turns paying.”

“Right, he was going to Chicago.” LoMack paused to knock off his coffee.  He shook the cup as if to see if anything was still left. “You said the trip was on your mind recently. How come.”

I didn’t want to get into it with LoMack.  Not yet at least.  “I don’t know” I said.  

“You go after that other guy you just told me about.”

“No.” I say slowly.  “No. I did not.”

“He was probably just blowing smoke.” Said LoMack.

I thought of something Becca kept bringing up.  “Can you remember anything about our maniac. Any physical thing about him.

“Not really.  I remember him bragging non stop about how he was getting laid all the time. And how he was flush with thirty bucks in his pocket like he was a millionaire. “Thirty bucks’ he kept screaming. Like he was Rockefeller.”

“Any scars? Or any physical characteristics.”

“Can’t remember any. Nothing comes to mind. Don’t forget it was at night.” Said LoMack

“Yeah, right. Probably be impossible to find him” I mused out loud.

“Want to get him back for scaring the bejeesus out of us?”

“Something like that.”

“Well, brother, don’t forget I fixed his wagon.”

“What do you mean?” I said.

“Don’t you remember?” said LoMack.

“Remember what?  All I remember is him taking a swing at you and we both took off.”

“Didn’t we talk after?”

“Well, just to say goodbye. What do you mean you fixed his wagon?”

Lomack laughed. “I must not have told you. Well when he went ballistic, in Gallup or wherever we were, he bolted out of the car.  Remember that?”

“Yes, So.”

Again, Lomack laughed. “He was screaming at me. Then he vaulted out, and I was still sitting there.”

“Yeah.”

“Well, I opened up the glove compartment, found the car registration and stuffed it in my pack”

I froze. “You took the registration?”

“I did.” LoMack smiled. “Got that madman back. Sometimes doing the wrong thing is the right thing.” Another big smile. He points to himself proudly. “LoMack. Thief.” 

“The thief” I blurt, but he does not get the reference. “You still have it?”

“Might be in a box somewhere. I know I held on to it for a while”