It really started on the day of the Pumpkin Festival; the day Perry Fiddler first came to my attention. It would have been an uneventful contest with Marcy, Wilber, and I, Otis Burrow, doing the judging honors for the annual festival. We had all bases covered; Marcy Winks was president of the Blushing Blooms garden club, Wilber Shuttle the State-U agricultural expert, and I, of course, owner of the Burrow Hardware and Feed. Everything was under control, that is until Wilber showed up with his nephew, Perry.
“Couldn’t get out of it,” Wilber explained, tossing his briefcase under the table and shrugging his shoulders. “Judy’s off for a job interview in Pittsburgh. She dumped him yesterday morning and, if everything goes right, she’ll be back again Tuesday, with good news. Until …show more content…
The parade through town over, they were motoring their way into the fairgrounds. The antique models peeled off to park beside the vintage automobiles in the parking lot. Others headed for the barns and the scheduled tractor pull. And, as previously arranged, those assigned to pull the wagons for the hayrides puttered past.
“Say, there’s a job for Perry,” I offered.
“Not happening,” said Wilber. Perry sat sullenly on the ground behind us, wires falling from his ears, plugged into some music that none of us could hear.
I took my seat and began the process of officiating. Matching contestants with registrations, and giving directions when asked. The crowd grew as the morning progressed, and I was soon swallowed in the festival atmosphere. I was so absorbed in my tasks that I didn’t smell the smoke until I heard the sirens.
I stood up quickly, knocking the chair out behind, and bewildered, watched the entrance of the firetruck over the heads of the festival goers. The truck headed directly toward the hay bales and the corn maze where a plume of black smoke snaked toward the sky.
Next came the whooping of the Police
“Couldn’t get out of it,” Wilber explained, tossing his briefcase under the table and shrugging his shoulders. “Judy’s off for a job interview in Pittsburgh. She dumped him yesterday morning and, if everything goes right, she’ll be back again Tuesday, with good news. Until …show more content…
The parade through town over, they were motoring their way into the fairgrounds. The antique models peeled off to park beside the vintage automobiles in the parking lot. Others headed for the barns and the scheduled tractor pull. And, as previously arranged, those assigned to pull the wagons for the hayrides puttered past.
“Say, there’s a job for Perry,” I offered.
“Not happening,” said Wilber. Perry sat sullenly on the ground behind us, wires falling from his ears, plugged into some music that none of us could hear.
I took my seat and began the process of officiating. Matching contestants with registrations, and giving directions when asked. The crowd grew as the morning progressed, and I was soon swallowed in the festival atmosphere. I was so absorbed in my tasks that I didn’t smell the smoke until I heard the sirens.
I stood up quickly, knocking the chair out behind, and bewildered, watched the entrance of the firetruck over the heads of the festival goers. The truck headed directly toward the hay bales and the corn maze where a plume of black smoke snaked toward the sky.
Next came the whooping of the Police