He had the hack drop him off at a little Mom-and-Pop on the corner west of his apartment: Nick’s Nook. An unappetizing place with New York City grime permanently imbedded in the plate glass windows. Some of that grime seemed to have filtered through the glass and onto the grocery display items behind it. Faded dummy boxes of Tide, Cheerios, Gainsburgers, and such had been there for years and would probably remain there for many more. Both Nick and his store needed a good scrubbing. His prices would shame an Exxon executive, but the Nook was handy, and baked goods were delivered fresh daily—at least he said they were.

Jack picked up an Entenmann’s crumb cake that didn’t look too dusty, checked the fresh date on the side and found it was good till next week.

“Going over to Abe’s, eh?” Nick said. He had three chins, one little one supported by two big ones, all in need of a shave.

“Yeah. Thought I’d bring the junky his fix.”

“Tell him I said ’lo.”

“Right.”

He walked over to Amsterdam Avenue and then down to the Isher Sports Shop. Here he knew he’d find Abe Grossman, friend and confidant for almost as long as he had been Repairman Jack. In fact, Abe was one of the reasons Jack had moved into this neighborhood. Abe was the ultimate pessimist. No matter how dark things looked, Abe’s outlook was darker. He could make a drowning man feel lucky.

Jack glanced through the window. A fiftyish man was alone inside, sitting on a stool behind the cash register, reading a paperback.

The store was too small for its stock. Bicycles hung from the ceiling; fishing rods, tennis racquets, and basketball hoops littered the walls while narrow aisles wound between pressing benches, hockey nets, scuba masks, soccer balls, and countless other weekend-making items hidden under or behind each other. Inventory was an annual nightmare.

“No customers?” Jack asked to the accompaniment of the bell that chimed when the door opened.

Abe peered over the halfmoons of his reading glasses. “None. And the census won’t be changed by your arrival, I’m sure.”

“Au contraire. I come with goodies in hand, and money in pocket.”

“Did you—?” Abe peered over the counter at the white box with the blue lettering. “You did! Crumb? Bring it over here.”

Just then a big burly fellow in a dirty sleeveless undershirt stuck his head in the door. “I need a box of twelve gauge double-O. Y’got any?”

Abe removed his glasses and gave the man a withering stare.

“You will note, sir, that the sign outside says ’Sporting Goods.’ Killing is not a sport!”

The man looked at Abe as if he had just turned green, and went away.

For a big man, Abe Grossman showed he could move quickly when he wanted to. He carried an easy two hundred pounds packed into a five-eight frame. His graying hair had receded back to the top of his head. His clothes never varied: black pants, short-sleeved white shirt, shiny black tie. The tie and shirt were a sort of scratch-and-sniff catalog of the food he had eaten that day. As Abe rounded the end of the counter, Jack spotted scrambled egg, mustard, and what could be either catsup or spaghetti sauce.