The next day the furniture for the Star was delivered, and I called David, John—another name to get used to—and Xavier to help set up the dining room. The framed lawmen portraits had arrived, and we could hang them too. Hot damn. The Star was starting to look real.
John and I did a serious tour of the kitchen while David herded Xavier to the front of the house, where they started moving the tables and chairs.
“Four more tables,” David was telling Xavier when John and I emerged from the kitchen.
“Oh my God. s**t!” Xavier screamed, pointing into the corner where he’d been standing. “s**t, no!” He was scrabbling to climb onto a chair.
“What?” I asked.
“Didn’t you see it? The biggest damn rat ever!” he screamed back at me.
“Where?” Oh s**t, a rat? I tried to breathe. No need to panic.
“
