Chapter 5: NatalieI got smart. I bought a cheap Styrofoam cooler that I tucked away under the counter, behind the register. That and a bag of dog treats. My plan was to stock it every weekend with a six pack of Diet Coke bottles and a ten-pound bag of ice. It was cheaper than buying drinks from the deli all the time and kept Pepper sufficiently caffeinated that she stuck around for more than her usual ninety minutes. The treats made Trixie my best friend.
And as word got around that the woman who played every weekend at the park pavilion had not gone into hibernation as suspected, but had instead moved her act to A to Z Music downtown—well, that drew about half the usual crowd. I’m not sure what the rest were doing to entertain themselves these days, but it was a start. It kept the cash r
