He’d walk, all right. He’d walk straight to a lawyer’s office and sue those sons of bitches. This wasn’t legal. It couldn’t be.

But as he marched up the sidewalk, a small voice in his head wondered if perhaps it was.

3

“Nice wheels,” Brian said admiringly as he walked up to his friend’s new car in the bowling alley parking lot. He hadn’t seen Oscar all week, had half-assumed that he’d blown town, and it was definitely a surprise to find out that he was not only still here but driving a brand new Sentra rather than that old auction-bought Jeep he’d had ever since Brian had known him. “But how can you afford a ride like that?”

“That new bank,” Oscar said. “Got me a car loan.”

“No shit?”

“No shit.”

“How’s that possible?”

“Competition, man. These guys’re new and they’re trying to horn in on territory that’s already sewn up, so they have to think outside the box. Which is why they’re trusting me with a car loan and giving Jimmy G. a checking account.”

“Jimmy G.?”

“Jimmy G.”

The thought was so incongruous that Brian laughed.

“Dude. They don’t turn anyone down. For anything. You understand what I’m saying? It’s not like a normal bank where you have to have…I don’t know, references and a plan and shit. They just take you at your word, and as long as you can pay it back, everything’s fine.”

“So?”

“So? So you can get a loan. Remember what we were talking about at Rachel’s? Your idea? They’ll front you the money for that.”

“Bullshit.”

“I’m serious! And once you sell enough, you pay them back and you’re on your way. Easy breezy.”

Brian looked at him skeptically. “They’re going to lend me money to buy pot.”

“That’s what I’m telling you, man. They don’t care.”

“That makes no sense. They’re a bank. A real bank.”

“They’re different. With them, it’s strictly business. Like I said, they give you the money and don’t care what you do with it so long as you pay it back.”

It seemed crazy, and definitely too good to be true, and Brian wondered if Oscar was fucking with him, or was maybe drunk. Or high. But his friend seemed not only serious but totally grounded. And he did have a new car…

“So…” Brian took a deep breath. “…what would I do? How would I go about it?”

“Nothing to it. Just go over to the bank, ask for a loan officer, tell them what you need—” Oscar must have read the skepticism on his face. “I’ll go with you if you want,” he offered.

“Okay.”

They shot the shit for awhile longer before making plans to meet at the bank at ten o’clock the next morning.