The Gardens of Digby Green: Store Closing
When he arrived at the Roseland Garden Center, Digby drove behind the building and parked in the shaded area beside the storage lean-to. Tim moaned. Digby shut down the truck engine, and stepped out of the cab.
If Tim was starting to come around, fine. It wasn’t that far to the man’s vehicle, so when he’d regained his wits, he could drive himself home. Digby checked his watch.
With some luck, he could pick up his check, and be gone without crossing the manager’s path. He jogged toward the employee entrance. It really felt like time to be getting out of this town.
Success! He had the check folded into his shirt pocket, and was out the door in under three minutes.
Tim’s car was still on the lot, but Digby had no intention of hanging around. Pausing beside the quarter panel of his pickup, Digby peeled off the advertising magnet, then folded it multiple times, ruining it for use by anyone else. He repeated the sequence with the magnet from the other side, and dropped both of them onto a wheelbarrow heaped with pruned branches.
The truck sides now sported patches of missing dust, but a quick trip through a car wash would fix that.
Digby started the engine, and pulled out of the Roseland Garden Center lot. On his way to the hotel where he rented a room by the week, he drove down Dixie Way past Rose’s Roses. A Store Closing Sale banner spread across the plate glass window.
In the front parking lot, a large box truck sat across four parking spaces, its back door open, and ramps in place for loading. Digby slowed, while two men wheeled a refrigerator unit through the front door.
“So sad,” Digby said, and smirked. When he glanced in his rear view mirror, he saw the red classic car Rose must’ve owned. “You can’t drive that boat of yours any more, hateful florist lady.”
The Gardens of Digby Green is a serialized story that posts on Fridays.
Next week, part forty-nine, Voicemail.
Find a link to purchase Heartland Treasures anthology here.
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