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can’t refuse.”

9
    A aron was glad that the past several days at Bentley’s Trailer Park & Campground had been relatively quiet. He’d been checking on Heather every day. So far, her boyfriend had not returned to get his things. She didn’t seem to know what he was up to or when he’d be back, and she didn’t care, either.
    Aaron was pretty sure she was pregnant, and pretty sure she needed money. Before she drove off for work this morning, she’d asked Aaron if he wouldn’t mind stopping by on his lunch hour to walk Tess. She hoped to talk her boss into letting her work the dinner shift too, which meant poor old Tess would be stuck in that trailer till after 7:00 p.m.
    The other person Aaron had been keeping his eye on was Billy Ames. He stopped in on Billy every day after he clocked out. Billy had tried out the new ramp Aaron built a time or two, but for the most part, he stayed holed up in that dingy little place all day and night. Aaron had been trying to get him to get outside, get some fresh air. Always did Aaron some good when he was feeling low.
    On most days, especially now that the weather was nice, Aaron spent his lunch hour outside at this little hideaway he’d found on the back end of the park. It was available to everyone who lived at Bentley’s, but Aaron had never seen another soul make use of it. He liked to pretend the place was his. It was a wooden deck built out on a curve along the old Suwannee River, a section where the river faced mostly west. The tree line on the far side didn’t block the sky much. Made for some beautiful sunsets. No properties had been developed along the water’s edge as far as he could see in either direction. Made it nice and quiet. He was sure it would do Billy Ames a world of good if he’d get out there every now and then.
    But getting to the deck took a little effort. It was at the edge of the property, and you had to walk a block through a marsh across a winding wooden walkway. The walkway and deck were pretty old. Over the last two years, Sue had given Aaron permission to fix it up. He’d replaced all the rotten boards, made it as solid as he knew how. But folks in the park still didn’t take to it. Aaron figured they were afraid they’d run into snakes and spiders or the wasps who built nests under the wood railings. To Aaron, this wooden deck on the Suwannee was just a little closer to heaven than most places on earth.
    Aaron looked at his watch. Still had thirty minutes left on his lunch hour. He stopped off at Heather’s trailer and put Tess on a leash. Then he walked up Billy’s ramp and knocked on the door of his trailer. He waited a few moments then knocked again.
    “Who is it?”
    “It’s me—Aaron.”
    “Be right there.”
    Aaron patted Tess on the head. She sat beside him, looked up at him like they were best friends. A moment later, Aaron heard Billy’s scooter humming toward the front door.
    “What are you doing here this time of day?” Billy said as he opened the door.
    “I got some time left on my lunch hour, wanted to show you something.”
    “You got a dog?”
    “No, not the dog.”
    “Then what is it?”
    “You gotta come out here to see it.”
    “Outside?”
    “Well, of course, outside.” Aaron walked Tess down the ramp, hoping Billy would follow. He turned to find Billy sitting on his scooter half in and half out the door. “You coming?”
    Billy looked around. “Where?”
    “There’s a place I want to show you. It’s not far. Won’t take ten minutes to get there on your scooter.”
    “Is that dog friendly?”
    “Well, look at her, Billy. She’s smiling, wagging her tail. She’s part golden retriever.”
    “I can see that.”
    “Then you know she’s friendly. C’mon. She won’t hurt you.”
    “Why you walking a dog?”
    “It’s just a favor for a friend. You coming?”
    “This place, is it down the main road? ’Cause I don’t want to take this thing down that road. They don’t have a sidewalk, and I