The men waiting in the chairs along the side of the shop began to clap. Grant extricated his hands from the cape that was covering him and joined them. The other two barbers looked bewildered. The guy in the back barber chair looked distinctly unhappy.
And so, Grant thought, that’s the way things are. People are divided.
As he was leaving, he thought about increasing the size of Johnny’s tip, but he thought better of it. He didn’t want to seem to be tipping Johnny for what he said. Instead, he merely commented, “You probably lost a couple of customers forever just then.”
“Customers like that, nobody needs.”
“Good man,” Grant said, putting his hand on Johnny’s shoulder.
“Thanks, Jim. See you next time.”
“Count on it,” Grant said, smiling at his old friend.
* * * *
Still no word from
