The Mainteance Man

The Maintenance Man

By Damon Nomad

          Clarence found Jerry in the small room where they always ate lunch together. "Hey, boss. What you got for me today?" The older man read the Bible each day just before eating lunch. Jerry had been doing it since before Clarence started working as a maintenance tech at City College sixteen years ago. Clarence wasn't a religious type but he felt better hearing a key part of a passage each day.
          Jerry looked up as he closed the old worn Bible. "God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. From Psalm forty-six," He opened his lunch box as he mumbled, "I'm not your boss."
          Clarence sat down at the small table. "You taught me everything I know about doing this job. I never would have made it without you." He got the thermos full of soup, a bowl, and a spoon from his lunch box.
          "You'll do fine without me." Jerry sighed with a shrug.
          "I ain't got to worry about that for a while. You got what, six more years before retirement?"
          "I gave my two week notice this morning."
          "What?" He put down the soup spoon. "You won't get a full severance. So sudden after what, nearly forty years?" He paused, "You haven't mentioned anything. What are you going to do?"
          He knew Jerry needed the severance after the medical bills from Lorraine's, his wife, fight with cancer. A seven year battle she lost three years ago and Clarence knew that it nearly wiped out their life savings.
          "I'm going to write a novel and short stories to make some money until the novel is done."
          "Aren't you kind of old to try and be a writer?" Clarence felt a bite of guilt when he saw his friend's reaction. He respected Jerry and thought of him like an uncle. "Sorry, I just never heard you talk about writing."
          "I was an English major in college before I dropped out. Wanted to be a writer since I was in high school."
          "I didn't know that." Clarence knew part of the story; Lorraine had told him that Jerry had to drop out of college when he was a junior when his father passed away. He went to work in the maintenance department at City College to support his mother.
          "Lorraine made me promise just before she passed that I would write the novel and get it published. She is the only one I ever told my story idea."
          "What's it about?"
          "You'll have to buy a copy," Jerry smiled.
          "Aren't you afraid of taking a chance?" Jerry had no living family and was a bit of a loner. Clarence knew he didn't have a support system or financial safety net.
          Jerry tapped on the bible, "I'll lean on the good book and the Lord to give me strength." He sighed, "I've felt the need for a change since Lorraine passed away."
          He added with a thin smile, "I've been a pretty good maintenance man; maybe I can be a decent writer."
          ***
          Nearly three years later, Clarence knocked on the door of the small rental house. He knew they had to sell their house to pay medical bills and Jerry and Lorraine moved to his place the last year or so of her life. Jerry had not shown up for Christmas Eve dinner two days earlier and now his mobile phone seemed to be out of service.
          He was shocked when the door swung open. Jerry looked thin and tired and he was wearing a winter coat and cap inside the house. "Jerry, we expected you for dinner on Christmas Eve. Are you okay?"
          "Yeah, sorry about that. Come on in. The heat is off; the cost is outrageous. I've got a fire in the den."
          Clarence saw the writing area that Jerry had set up on a coffee table near the fireplace. A laptop, a pile of papers, and books. He sat down in a seat across from Jerry. "You said you finished editing the novel in September. Get any good news from a publisher?"
          "Lots of responses, but only rejections. I did sell three more short stories, a few hundred bucks," he said with a weak grin. "I'll keep working at it with God's support."
          "God ain't gonna cast a spell over some publisher to give you a deal." Clarence cringed at his outburst.
          Jerry stared for a moment, "That's not what prayer and faith are for. It's for the strength to keep going and to accept any outcome."
          They stood together at the front door a few hours later. Clarence put a hand on Jerry's shoulder. "Please take care of yourself and keep your mobile phone charged. Stay in touch and let me know if you need anything."
          Clarence worried as he walked down the sidewalk towards his car. Jerry's faith seemed unshakeable, but was he just fooling himself? He sighed loudly, what's going to happen if he never finds a publisher? Clarence didn't have an answer to the difficult question.
          ***
          Nearly two years later, Clarence spotted Jerry at the large table in the men's shelter as he came through the entrance. Father Carrico called Clarence the day before and said he was worried about Jerry's health. Jerry had lived in the shelter for about a year after nearly a year living on the streets. The only possessions Jerry now had besides some clothes, were his laptop and his Bible. Jerry refused offers to stay with Clarence and his wife and he would not accept money.
          Father Carrico met Clarence at the door. "I'm glad you came. He has hardly been eating and like I told you he's had a cough for a few weeks. You're a good friend." Carrico helped Clarence get Jerry into the shelter.
          "Thank you for calling, father." Clarence was impressed by the middle-aged Catholic priest's thoughtfulness and his energy in running the men's shelter along with his responsibilities at a nearby church.
          The two of them shuffled over and took a seat opposite Jerry. Jerry finished a sip of coffee. "Hi, Clarence." He nodded at Carrico. "I'm guessing the good father called you." He put his hand to his mouth as he coughed.
          Carrico gestured at Jerry, "Only coffee? You should at least have some soup."
          Clarence added, "You look thin Jerry, and pale. You feel okay? Father Carrico says you've had that cough for a while now."
          "I'm okay. I'll be fine."
          Carrico crossed his arms over his chest. "You could get more rest. You stay up late working on that laptop."
          Clarence sighed, "Still trying to find a publisher? It's been nearly six years. Maybe it's time to give up on that dream."
          Jerry frowned, "It's not a dream. I promised Lorraine." He paused, "I did another round of polishing."
          Clarence snapped back, "You've lost your home and now you're risking your health." He paused and took a breath. "I'm sorry, Jerry. Lorraine wouldn't want you to suffer."
          Jerry answered in a near whisper, "After I've suffered a little, the God of grace, will restore and strengthen me."
          Father Carrico nodded his head, "That's based on Peter Five Ten. You certainly know the scriptures." He glanced at Clarence and then turned to Jerry. "You're faith is strong, but you need to take care of your health."
          ***
          Nearly a year later, Clarence stood with his wife beside Father Carrico after the funeral service. He looked around the small chapel. "Not a lot of people, but more than I expected to be honest. Jerry had no family."
          Carrico smiled with a nod, "He touched a lot of hearts at the shelter. Worked in the kitchen and taught a nighttime Bible Study." He gestured at Clarence, "It's interesting what he would explain when people ask him what he had done for a living. He would say, he was a maintenance man at City College for many years and was now an aspiring writer."
          Carrico chuckled, "He would add, I've learned that getting a book published is far harder than writing one."
          Clarence sighed loudly, "I feel badly I haven't been here to see him for a while, nearly four months before he went into the hospital. Lost track of time." He paused, "Was he still trying to get the book published?"
          "He hadn't said much about it for some time. I wasn't sure if he had given up and I didn't want to bring it up, to be honest."
          Clarence felt a lump in his throat and brushed away a few tears. "It breaks my heart that he never got it published." He mumbled, "Breaks my heart."
          He took in a deep breath and exhaled slowly. "He never lost his faith."
          His wife squeezed his hand, "Nothing you could do darling."
          A man approached them, "Sorry to interrupt. Are you Father Carrico?"
          "Yes, that's me."
          "I'm Randy Quinn. Did Jerry Peterson mention me to you?"
          "No, I'm afraid not."
          Quinn smiled with a shrug, "I'm not too surprised, he seemed to want to keep all of this secretive."
          "What did he want to keep secret?" Carrico queried.
          "His book deal."
          Clarence nearly shouted, "Book deal! Is it going to be published?"
          Carrico gestured at Clarence, "Clarence has been Jerry's best friend for many years."
          Quinn nodded his head, "You're Clarence? This will be of interest to you as well." He continued, "The book was published nearly a year ago. I'm the managing editor. We're a very small publishing house but I really believed in the book. We took a gamble on it, no advance payment but Jerry will be due a royalty payment after the first year and then annually."
          Clarence interrupted, "I want to buy a copy. Where can I get one?"
          Quinn smiled, "Just about anywhere, it just hit number three on the national best-sellers list. We've never had a book even close to making it anywhere near the list. You've probably heard of it; the carpentry shop is the title."
          Father Carrico blurted out, "I've read the book. Twice. All of my colleagues and most of my parishioners as well. A modern telling of the life of Christ as a man born in Nazareth, Texas." He paused, "A woman is the author. Lorraine, something. Lorraine Travers, not Jerry Peterson."
          Quinn answered, "A pen name."
          Clarence added, "That's his wife's maiden name."
          Quinn continued, "That's right. She is in the dedication along with you Clarence as his closest friend who supported him through good times and difficult challenges."
          Father Carrico shook his head. "I can't believe Jerry never said anything about the book. I had talked to him about it and suggested he read it." He smiled as he paused, "He said he would wait for the movie."
          Carrico turned to Quinn, "Why did you seek me out?"
          "There is a clause in the contract because Jerry did not have a will and I suspect he knew he might not be long for this earth. You are to receive the royalty payments for the church and men's shelter if Jerry passed away. I thought it better to give you the news face to face and I knew you were handling the funeral." He paused, "It's going to be a sizeable sum of money, his payment is going to be well over a million dollars for the first year."
          He nodded at Clarence, "Also, twenty percent to you."
          Clarence's wife gasped, "Twenty percent of a million dollars . . . that's, that's . . ."
          Quinn interrupted, "Two hundred thousand dollars, I expect you will get at least that."
          Clarence smiled as he looked down at the floor, "I knew he was a top-notch maintenance man. Seems he was also a pretty decent writer."


          Word Count: 1980
          Prompt: Write a story about a job change after a long time for a fresh start doing something else.