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breath, he clicked the file. Several photos of a man opened. One in a business suit. Another of him walking on a sidewalk next to a woman. A photo of the man sitting in a car. He looked middle-aged, upper-middle-income from his attire and his car. Underneath the photos was a message:
     
    Bring the package to the warehouse at 5600 East Cumberton Drive.
     
    What the hell was  the package ? Was this man supposed to hand it over to him? If so, he’d be looking for James, which meant that James had to come with Will.  Shit.  James would never agree.
    Maybe he would if Will handled it right.
    Will searched for the Pine Knot Motel and discovered it was in St. Cloud. Will could convince James to go into St. Cloud, and then suggest they stop at the bar next to the motel. It was a longshot, but worth the risk. If for no other reason that James was a dead man if Will didn’t follow through. Shit . Will should have thought of that before accepting this job. But it was too late to back out now. Besides, James had dealt with these people before. It wasn’t like he was innocent.
    Packing up a basket of cookies James bought from the local bakery for his clients, Will took it to the icehouse as a peace offering. James narrowed his eyes in suspicion while the client glared. But Will played nice, being extra attentive to the nasty client and his slightly more amicable friend. Will bided his time, knowing the clients were booked until six. That left plenty of time for Will and James to get to St. Cloud.
    When James was wrapping things up, Will offered to finish straightening up and even make dinner while James drove the client back to the motel down the road. But when James got back, Will sat in the living room watching television, stretched out on the sofa.
    “Where the hell’s dinner?” James grunted, looking into the kitchen.
    “I decided we need to celebrate. We should go into St. Cloud to eat out.”
    “What the hell are we celebrating?”
    “My decision to get a job.”
    James narrowed his eyes. “I don’t want to drive nearly an hour to go eat. We can eat here.”
    “When did you become such a grumpy old man, James? Next thing you know, we’ll be heading into town for the early bird special.” Will jumped up and pushed James down the hall. “Come on. It’s only a forty-five minute drive. And when we’re done, we can go hang out in a bar and pick up women.”
    “You don’t believe in picking up women at bars.”
    “That was the old me. I’ve decided turn kiss that good-boy shit goodbye. I already have. Now get ready. I need to get laid. It’s been months.”
    James titled his head, searching Will’s face. After several seconds, he scowled. “Fine, but you’re buying drinks tonight.”
    “Deal, now go get ready.”
    After James took a quick shower, they were in the car heading to St. Cloud, driving mostly in silence. Will knew he had to find out what he was supposed to do but worried that James wouldn’t tell him, or worse, kick him out of the car onto the snowy roadside.
    For a brief moment, Will almost regretted his rash decision to take this job. Almost.
    “So you said the things you used to do helped you keep eyes on me in Iraq. How did that work?”
    “Why can’t you leave this shit alone?”
    “Because you know I’m naturally curious. And you know I’ll just wear you down until you spill it.”
    “Fuck you.”
    Will laughed. “You wish. What’s the big secret? I bet you were a nanny.”
    “Good God. Can you picture me with kids? Hell no.”
    “Then what?”
    “When things were tight, I worked for an organization. They had me do  things  for them. Things that usually paid well. But what I did often kept me awake at night. Still, the money was good so it was hard to walk away from. Most of the time it seemed harmless enough, but other times…”
    “You said you used your skills. What did you do?”
    “What does it matter?”
    “It matters to me.”
    James sighed loudly and shifted in his