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“Plenty,” Sally assured her

With a wave, Tara went out the back door Young Trey didn’t bother to look up as Laura wailed a protest and toddled to the back door

A steady stream of dump trucks, loaded with coal, rolled past the ’s s andMore of it darkened the vehicles parked in the lot next to it Buck Haskell parked his truck in a slot marked for visitors He wasn’t sure that he exactly qualified as a visitor, but it was the closest to the front door

Conscious of the nervous churning in his stomach, Buck climbed out of the pickup, tucked his shirttail a little deeper inside his jeans, andwalk to the door As he opened it, another truck ru up a fresh swirl of road dust and soot

The receptionist looked up when he entered Like nearly everybody in Blue Moon, she was a stranger to him But that didn’t ease his tension any

“May I help you?”

Buck opened his mouth to answer, but his throat locked up After all the years he had spent in prison, it angered him that a mere slip of a woman could scare him into silence

Buck tried again “I’m here to see a Mruh—” For a split second, he blanked on the nale”

“And this is in regard to what?”

“A job interview” His palms felt sweaty Buck buried them in the pockets of his tan windbreaker

“And you want to see Mr Daigle?” She eyed him in surprise

He faltered a second then insisted gruffly, “That’s the naave me when he called for me to come in”

Clearly skeptical, she picked up the phone “Let ers above the buttons “And your name is?”

“Haskell Buck Haskell”

“Just a moment” She punched in a number, waited, then slid a look at Buck and said into the mouthpiece, “There is a Mr Haskell here He says he has an appointment with you” She shot Buck another look and nodded “Of course I’ll send hi up the phone “Down that hall, the second door on your right”