The Cranberry Hush: A Novel by Ben Monopoli Read Free Book Online Page B

fired him depends on whether he shows up for his next
shift, I guess.”
    “Sounds a bit harsh.”
    “Griff, he was in the store when he wasn’t supposed to be.
Oh and lest I forget, he was having a fucking suckfest.”
    “C’mon, it’s a comic shop. It’s all about fantasy.”
    “It’s a business.”
    “It’s a business to your boss ,
Vince. To you, it is a comic shop. Hell, it was almost appropriate . Do you know how many times I’ve spanked it to Wonder Woman comics?”
    “Doesn’t matter.” But Griff had always had a knack for
silencing me with his bizarre logic, the kind that took the wind out of my
dramatic sails, and now there was nothing I could say back to him, nothing
besides—
    “You’ve spanked to Wonder
Woman ?”
    He chuckled, remembering fondly the sweet secret fumblings
of an intense affair. “When you were in class, I’d peruse your Justice League books.”
    “You spanked to my comic books?”
    “Once or twice.”
    “I can’t believe it.”
    “Why not? She’s hot!”
    “She’s Wonder Woman ,
for god’s sake. I can’t think about her that way. She’s like the mother-figure
of the entire DC Universe.”
    “So then she’s a MILF,” he said, darting his tongue in and
out. “I’d let her tie me up with that magic lasso of hers.”
    “You’re unbelievable, you know that?”
    He leaned back against the headrest, smiling smugly at the
huff he’d gotten me into. “What time is it anyway?” he said, flicking the
broken clock on the dashboard with his thumb. A green eight lit up briefly.
    I pushed up my sleeve and looked at my watch. “Almost midnight.”
    “Late,” he said, resting his head against the window. And
then he added, making me smile, “Bring me home, Vinny.”

 
    Using all my weight I pulled the squeaky garage
door down on its tracks. Above us the motion-detecting floodlight blinked off
and then turned back on when Griff waved his arms.
    “I should be tireder,” he said. “It was that nap.”
    “I never nap.”
    “So you’ve basically put me up for two days so far,” he
said.
    The last flakes of the storm had stopped falling and now the
sky was opening up, showing its first stars in days. They reminded me that
there was a wide world out there, one that would take Griff back.
    “No problem,” I said, kicking my boots against the front
steps. “So do you know how long you plan on, like, staying?” As soon as I asked
I regretted it—I wasn’t sure I wanted to lose the mystery. “Or, if you
don’t know, that’s cool.”
    He pulled off his gloves and stuffed them in his pocket. His
hair went up crazy when he pulled off his hat. “Is a few days OK? Definitely no
longer than a week, max.”
    “Sure, that’s fine. It’s not like there’s a lot going on
here.”
    It was exactly the amount of time I’d expected, even the
same as I’d hoped at first, but hearing it out loud really cut down on my
ability to imagine something more.
    “Just until I can figure out the next stop on the Griff
Express and stuff,“ he said.
    “Any ideas?” I went to the thermostat and turned the heat up
a few degrees. “You want some coffee or something? Tea?”
    “Tea would be nice. Green?”
    “Sure.”
    “Yeah. Thanks.”
    I went to the kitchen to put the kettle on and he flopped
into one of the corduroy armchairs. My kitchen was separated from the living
room by a half-wall; above it I could only see the top of his head.
    “I’ve been in touch with my cousin Dave,” he said. “He’s the
one in Phoenix. Close to Phoenix.”
    “I thought Dave lived in Florida?”
    “Oh—he moved to Arizona like three years ago.”
    “Three years ago. Oh.”
    “Yeah.”
    “Does he like it? I wouldn’t mind visiting Arizona someday.”
    “Yeah, me neither,” he said. “So you know, I figure... He’s
putting in a pool. Or a hot-tub. Something—some kind of construction.
Said I could crash at his place for a while if I give him a hand.”
    “You’re going to fly