Chapter 9 #2
“I can’t do what I do without you doing what you do, and you do it remarkably.
Catch up with you later, bud.” Hank hung up and Blue turned back to the tablature sheet on the table.
Occasionally he’d pick up his acoustic guitar and try out a chord to make sure it was exactly what he wanted.
He still played with the guys on the weekends, but they couldn’t do his original songs anymore―those were under contract to the record label, at least for the first four months after they’d been written.
But Devon wrote too, and sometimes they’d try out one of his.
And Blue knew he’d eventually be bringing Devon into the writing for Tidal Wave.
He’d talked to Hank about his friend and the country music star had seemed very interested in having Alex talk to Devon.
He’d almost finished the chorus of the song he was working on when his phone rang, and it was a number he didn’t recognize. He hit ACCEPT and said, “Hello, Wallace here.”
“Blue Wallace?”
“Yeah.”
“God damn, you’re a hard man to find,” the voice said and chuckled. It was familiar, but Blue couldn’t figure out who it was. “I’ve been looking for you for months.”
“Who is this?”
“It’s CharlesWentworth! How in the hell are you?”
Mr.Wentworth! He knew it sounded crazy, but he’d missed the old man. “I’m good, Mr.Wentworth! Damn, it’s good to hear from you!” Then he remembered what Wentworth had said. “You’ve been looking for me?”
“Had to give that secretary at the garage fifty dollars to give me your number! That woman doesn’t know the meaning of confidential information. Lucky for me, though. So, Blue, have you found a job?”
“No. I haven’t. I’ve got some part-time work, but that’s about it.”
“Do you want a job?”
Blue chuckled. “Of course. I just haven’t had any luck.”
“Go to our Chevy dealership tomorrow at ten and ask for ChuckWentworth. That’s my son, the idiot. Don’t turn him down cold; listen to what he’s got to say before you decide, okay?”
“Sure!” Wow! If he’s been looking for me, he’s serious. “I’ll be sure to be there.”
“Hey, what’s your real name?”
That made Blue laugh. “It’s Brent!”
“BrentWallace. I’ll tell him. And good luck. With that dumbass, you’re going to need it.”
“Thanks, Mr.Wentworth. Hope to see you soon,” Blue told him, and he meant it. The old guy was a hoot, and he could use more laughter in his life, that was for sure. As soon as the call ended, he punched in another number and waited. “Could I speak with Ms.Parker?”
“Just a moment, please,” the voice told him. He waited on hold for a couple of minutes before there was a click and another voice.
“VirginiaParker. May I help you?”
“Ms. Parker, this is Brent Wallace.”
“Oh, hello, Mr.Wallace. What can I do for you?”
“I know we have an appointment tomorrow morning at ten thirty, but I just got a job offer and I really need to reschedule so I can go there.”
“You got a job offer? Absolutely. Maybe just later in the day? Three thirty?”
“Sure. Sounds good. If anything changes, I’ll give you a call. Oh, and you said there were things you could help with. So… Do you know of any really affordable day cares anywhere near me?”
“Is your neighbor no longer watching the baby?” Ms.Parker asked.
“Oh, yes, ma’am. She is. But if I get a good job and can afford it, I’d like to give her at least a couple of days a week off. You know, when she can just relax and not have to watch Indigo.”
“That’s a good plan. I don’t know of any with openings right off, but I’ll ask around and let you know tomorrow.”
Blue smiled to himself. “Thanks. See you tomorrow.” He hung up and sighed.
The writing gig was giving him some money. Now Mr.Wentworth wanted him to come to work for the company. Everything was looking up.
Indigo made that barking squirrel sound she loved to shoot out.
“I know, I know. You want me to play the guitar and sing. Okay, hang on.” Blue grabbed his guitar and started strumming.
In minutes, he’d worked out the chorus of the song and had it on the run while Indigo squealed and kicked her legs. She was his greatest cheerleader.
ChuckWentworth wasn’t at all what Blue had expected. He was a stuffy, uptight little man with a pinched face and a shrill voice. “My father gave me instructions to hire you, but I don’t have to if I don’t think you’re a good fit.”
Blue nodded. “And I think that’s fair.”
“So he says you’re a very good mechanic. Said something about intuition,” Chuck said.
“Yes, sir. He told me that too.”
Chuck frowned. “So you’re ASE certified?”
Blue’s heart plummeted into his shoes. “No, sir. I’m not.”
Chuck shrugged. “No big deal. We can send you for your certification. I’ve even got a couple of guys who’ll help you study.”
“Great. I’d appreciate that.”
“There’s just one test here.” He motioned for Blue to follow. When they stepped out of the garage and onto the back lot, Chuck walked up to a huge pickup truck. He slapped the fender and said, “This.”
“What?”
“It’s not running right and none of those boneheads in the shop know what’s wrong with it. Let’s see if you can figure it out.” With that, Chuck handed him the keys.
Blue got in and started the truck, but it seemed to be running okay. “What’s the problem?”
“You tell me. Take it for a spin.” Chuck folded his arms across his chest and just stood there.
“Well, okay, sir.” Blue closed the truck door and headed out onto the street.
He drove for several blocks, but there didn’t seem to be anything wrong with the truck.
When he got to the edge of town, the speed limit went up to forty-five miles per hour, then fifty-five. Blue pushed it to sixty and waited.
Sure enough, the truck started to bog down, shaking all over and sputtering. He dropped the speed and it smoothed out, but as soon as he pushed it again, the same thing happened. Turning it around, he headed back to the dealership.
To his surprise, Chuck was still standing right there. He pulled up, dropped it into park, and stepped out. “Well?” When Blue grinned, Chuck stared at him. “Do you know what’s wrong with it?”
“Yeah. I know exactly what’s wrong with it.”
“And?”
Blue pointed to the upper front fender of the truck just in front of the door. “This particular engine.” Chuck nodded. “Put it on the machine and I guarantee you it’ll say it’s got a bad spark plug.”
“Yeah. It does.”
“There’s a problem with that.” Blue leaned against the truck and tossed the keys back and forth between his hands.
“These engines have long, skinny spark plugs, and they’re mounted really deep,” he said, holding up his pinky to demonstrate.
“Takes a special tool to take them out. And nine times out of ten, they break off before you can get them out. One breaks off, you’ve got to tear the engine apart.
A two-hundred-dollar job turns into an eight-hundred-dollar job or worse. ”
“And I suppose you’ve got a solution for that?” Chuck said mockingly.
“I looked at the mileage. This truck’s only got fifty-two thousand miles on it. Plugs don’t usually foul that fast. I could change out the plug wires and if that didn’t do the trick, change them back and charge the customer nothing. But I don’t think that’s what it is either.”
With that statement, he got Chuck’s attention. “And what do you think it is?”
“How ’bout I fix it and we see if I got it right?” Blue said with a wicked grin.
“You fix this truck on the first try, you’ve got the job.”
Blue nodded. “Deal. Give me a bay and some tools and I’ll have it done in no time.”
One of the guys in the shop loaned Blue a pair of coveralls and the tools he said he’d need.
He got on the phone to the parts house he’d always used and ordered the part he needed.
It was there in ten minutes, and all the techs in the shop stopped to watch.
When he was finished, he slammed the hood shut and wiped his hands with a shop rag.
“Take it out and drive it. It’ll be fine. ”
“What did you do to it?” Chuck asked.
“Make sure it’s fine and then I’ll tell you.”
Chuck and another tech disappeared in the truck and in ten minutes they were back. “Well?” Blue asked as they climbed out of the cab.
Chuck’s eyes were wide and his jaw was hanging open. “What did you do?”
Blue grinned. “Ignition coil. It reads like a spark plug failure, but it’s really the coil. They’ve had a lot of trouble with them, but it’s not a hard fix if you know what it is.” Two of the guys started laughing. “What?”
“I’ve been trying to figure out what was wrong with that truck for a month now,” Chuck said.
“It’s my truck. It’s been sitting out there because I didn’t want to drive it the way it was running, and I didn’t trust anybody here to change out the plugs.
” He started into the main part of the building, then looked back at Blue.
“Well, come on. Let me tell you what I can offer you.”
Chuck closed the door behind them and motioned for Blue to take a seat.
“Here’s my offer. Thirty-five to start.” Blue nodded.
“You get your ASE certification in the next three months on my dime.” Blue nodded again―it was sounding promising.
“And in six months, you go to manager of the service department. Sixty a year. After the first two months and with a good review, you’ll go to seventy.
Full benefits after your first sixty days.
Three weeks paid vacation per year and ten sick days.
In two years, you’ll be in charge of hiring new techs.
At some point, we’re probably going to consolidate the running of all the service departments, and I think you have the potential to be the guy to spearhead that move. ”
Blue heard that buzzing in his head that said he wasn’t getting enough oxygen, and he sucked in a huge breath. “Seventy?”
“Yep.”
“And insurance?”
“Yep.”
I don’t believe this. I really, really don’t believe this. “Could I ask you something?” Chuck nodded. “Could I start today?”