Chapter 29For once, Chuck was the first to arrive at the Barrel Bar. ‘Hi, Tom,’ he greeted the barman as he settled onto a stool. ‘How are things?’
‘So so,’ Tom answered in his usual downbeat voice. He was popular with the gang. Beneath the surface he was a kind man with a dry sense of humour, and he had become a friend to Chuck. He handed him a glass of his favourite Peroni beer.
‘That good, huh?’
‘An empty bar, and you lot heading my way – what’s good about that?’
‘I reckon you’re lucky to have us.’
‘Seems to me you’re the lucky one.’
‘How do you figure that?’
‘Lots of friends, a good job, and a big brain.’ Then, as an afterthought – ‘And a pretty girl on your arm.’
Chuck felt proud but a bit embarrassed. Alice was coming along later, and he couldn’t wait.
A shadow fell over the
