It did. Twelve minutes to go.

“You ready?” Senior said.

“Yeah. Pull around the corner so I can get out without Barney Fife up there seeing me. You sure you’re up for what you have to do?”

“I’ve been waiting for this for almost twenty-five years,” Senior said. “I’m more than ready. Just make sure you do your part.”

“Don’t worry, Daddy-O. I’ve got the easy part, remember?”

“Yeah, I remember,” Senior said. He dropped the transmission into gear and they turned the corner and stopped the van again so Sid Jr. could get out. “You sure the timing’s right?”

Junior shut the car door then leaned down into the open window on the passenger side. “He’s never more than a minute off. I’ll come in from the south and be able to adjust my pace and time it just right. Just make sure you’ve got the angle on Barney over there. And try not to miss. Missing would be bad.”

“I won’t miss, for Christ sake. I never miss,” Senior said. Then he said something that both surprised and shamed him, though he couldn’t explain why. “I love you, Sidney.”

Sidney Jr. smiled and tucked a lock of red hair behind her ear and when she did, Senior thought for a moment he was back in time and looking at his wife more than twenty years ago. Neither one said anything else after that. Junior just turned and jogged away, a fanny pack bouncing lightly on her hip.

 

__________

 

 

Indiana State Trooper Jerry Burns sat in his police cruiser, his radio turned down low, his windows open. He yawned, took the last sip of cold coffee from his thermos and checked his watch. This was the best part of the day for him. It had been a long and boring night, but now—just before seven in the morning—he’d be off shift in less than thirty minutes. Better still, in less than five minutes or so, he’d get a gander at the eye candy jogging up the street. She wore the same thing every day…tight black shorts made of spandex or something like that, though he didn’t think they called it spandex anymore, a black sports bra, and white Nikes with little ankle socks. Her red hair was cut short and fell against her jaw line and every time Burns watched her jog by he wished he were thirty years younger. Her stomach was flat and firm, her ass was high and tight, and her tits had just the right amount of bounce.

He checked his watch again, and then looked out the window. He saw her come around the corner and jog in place for a minute, checking the time on her watch, like she was taking her pulse, trying to get a read on her heart rate or something. Burns didn’t know much about physical fitness anymore, but he knew about heart rates. Age and all.

He watched her jog in place for a few minutes, then surprisingly, she did something she’d not ever done before. She waved at him.