Chapter Nine

THE REMODELING ACCOUNT

Celeste Stuart was not surprised when someone finally crashed into the column alongside their driveway. The column supported the roof which formed a canopy above the driveway. She narrowly missed it several times herself. Termites had quietly feasted on the wooden members for years so the structure was weak. Nevertheless, Arthur Stuart, a Civil War aficionado, was explosive when he arrived home late that night and saw part of his house in ruins.

"Andersonville. Whoever did that deserves the best hospitality that Andersonville ever offered," he stated, referring to the horrific, Southern, prisoner-of-war camp.

Arthur was a generation older than his second wife, Celeste. He was in his early fifties. His face was ruddy complexioned. He had worn a flat top hair style since the 1950's. During the ensuing years, his hair turned white.

After surveying the damages, he entered his house through the front door. In his right hand he carried a large, legal briefcase. He leaned to his left side as he balanced a handful of bricks from the column support.

"Who's responsible for the slaughter outside? I thought we ordered a waterbed, not the destruction of Atlanta," he fumed, throwing the bricks on the polished, oak floor.

Celeste had prepared herself for his reaction.

"Arthur, you have bumped into that column yourself. Remember?" she asked as she came to Wilbur Dobbs' defense and forced Arthur to divert his anger to a past episode.

Arthur had bumped the column several months before when he returned, lipstick-stained, from a late-night office party.

"Remember when you hit the column?" Celeste continued. "The young man that did it was driving a large van. It was late, and I guess he was tired. He just wasn't watching where he was going. It was an accident."

She remembered it exactly. She would never forget it. Wilbur Dobbs was staring at her as she stood nearby. He was not paying attention to the van or the columns.

Arthur softened. He wanted to change the subject as far away from his philanderings as possible.

"There will be insurance companies involved in this," Arthur muttered.

He brightened as he thought about the prospects for repairing the damages.

"The young man, Wilbur, was certain that his employer carried some kind of business or liability insurance," Celeste added.

"This might not be as bad as it looks then," Arthur stated majestically. "If we work the insurance companies right, we'll turn this into the first Battle of Bull Run and kick some Yankee butt and make some money for your remodeling account. I'll get on this first thing in the morning." he said shrewdly. "Tonight, I'm looking forward to the waterbed. Won't you join me or are you going to sleep on the third floor again?"