Hughes was mad, and ready to stomp away no matter how good the truck was.
Purgy didn't say anything for a minute, and Grofield, studying him, saw that Purgy too was on the edge of real anger. Grofield waited, knowing better than to enter into this thing, but hoping one or the other of them would eventually climb down off his ultimatum. It would be really stupid to have to wait around St. Louis an extra fifteen days because of no truck, with a perfectly good truck standing right there.
Finally, Purgy sighed. He shook his head, and shrugged his fat shoulders, and said, 'I don't see any damn reason to get upset. What the hell, if I can't bend a little what am I in business for? I'll spray a little paint over those doors for you.'
'Dark green,' Hughes said.
'Well, it may not be a Grade A Perfect one hundred percent match,' Purgy said, 'but I'll give it the closest I got.'
Hughes suddenly nodded; his face and body became more relaxed. 'It's a deal,' he said.
'That's fine,' Purgy said, with a broad smile. 'I'll go get the paint.'
'We've got our own plates to put on,' Hughes said.
'Well, go ahead.'
Purgy waddled away toward the house, and Hughes said, 'Come on.' He and Grofield went over to get the plates out of the trunk of the Javelin. They were Missouri plates, for a commercial vehicle, and they weren't on anybody's wanted list. 'These babies cost me a hundred and a quarter,' Hughes said, taking them out. 'And now I went a hundred over what I wanted to pay for the truck.'
'I thought you were going to walk away,' Grofield said. 'I really did.'
Hughes looked at him in surprise. 'You did? What the hell would I do that for? The truck's worth fourteen.'
'You looked mad.'
'It took you in, huh? I don't think it took Purgy in.'
'I do,' Grofield said.
'Purgy's slier'n he looks,' Hughes said. He gave Grofield one of the plates and a screwdriver. 'You do the back, I'll do the front.'
'Right.'
They walked together toward the truck. Hughes said, 'I hope Barnes makes a good price on the guns. We'll go over the two grand if we're not careful.'
They separated at the rear of the truck, where Grofield hunkered down to remove the Pennsylvania plate the truck was carrying. A couple of dogs came over to watch, but by now Grofield was getting used to them – silent, restless, observant, more like an audience in a theater than anything else.
He was just finishing removing the Pennsylvania plate when Purgy came back down from the house, shaking a can of spray enamel in one fist. The metal stirring ball rattled around inside it. Grofield put the clean Missouri plate on, picked up the Pennsylvania plate, and walked over to see what the spray job looked like.
It was a slightly lighter shade of green, but Purgy was doing a pretty good job of bleeding it out at the edges. It would be plain that a firm name had been removed, but it would look like a neat job, not something done in a sloppy hurry.
Hughes came over with the other plate and the other screwdriver and studied the door. Purgy, finished, stepped back and said, 'How's that? Nice, huh?'
'I won't argue with you, Purgy,' Hughes said, as though he thought the paint job was lousy.
But Purgy was in a good mood now, and didn't care what Hughes said. 'You just didn't want to pay me so much,' he said, grinning. 'I know you, Hughes.'
'What about the other door?'
'Keep your pants on, I'm gonna do it right now. And then you got to pay me.'
'You keep your pants on, too.'
Purgy went around to the other side of the truck, and Hughes said to Grofield, reluctantly, 'I suppose I'd better drive the truck. Get to know it and all.'
'Don't worry,' Grofield said. 'I'll treat your car like a bride.'
'I don't think I'd like that,' Hughes said.
'You know what I mean.'
'Let me go first,' Hughes said. 'You just stay at my pace.'
'Sure.'
Hughes gave him the license plate and screwdriver. 'We'll stop somewhere and eat. I know a couple places.'
'Fine.'
Hughes looked across at his car, and then at Grofield. He wanted to give Grofield an hour or two of instructions about how to handle the car; Grofield waited and watched him fight the urge and win. 'See you later,' Hughes said.
