Before I could go to Kole's Krafty Keys the next morning - before I could do anything really - we had our first customer in three full days. A woman with long black hair waited outside before we'd even officially opened. Next to her sat a sea-green Pinto with black and white racing stripes and a very flat tire.
I nearly kissed the pavement in my rush to open the garage doors and greet her. A customer! Hopefully a paying one! Thank you, car gods!
"We're open and we have tires and it won't take long at all to change it. We have payment plans and also take credit cards, checks, cash, or wampum. Just kidding on that last one." I thrust my hand toward her, well aware I was talking a mile a minute. "I'm Victoria Fox."
She grinned so hard her big brown eyes crinkled at the corners. "Cass Rudio." She shook my hand with a light grip, probably because three fingers on her right hand were bandaged.