Where is the love?// JJ Maybank

Chapter 16

The next day the three girls were gathered in the back of the van looking a drawing that John B drew.

"He said it looked something like this." Kie said. "That's 50 feet down, and they're using 100-feet rope. So I guess this little wagon will go straight to the gold room."

"Who drew this?" Sarah asked laughing.

"Who do you think?"

"Bob Ross." Emilie says.

"Kie! This better work." JJ walked over to the van, "We can't pawn this if there's a giant wheat symbol on it."

"It's gonna work." She said.

The Pogues gathered in the van and drove to the pawn shop.

"Hell of a job melting it down, Dr. Frankenstein." JJ said to Kie.

"Like you could've done better." Kie retaliates.

"I could have, I took a welding class."

"When?"

"Whoa, whoa. Hey. Sh!" John B cuts in, "Chill out, okay?"

"Easy for you to say. You're not the one that has to pawn this piece of shit off." JJ says, "How did I get this job anyway?"

"Cause you're the best liar." Pope tells him.

They walked into the store and JJ went up to the cashier.

"Afternoon, ma'am." He greeted.

"Afternoon." She replied.

"I see you buy gold."

"That's what the sign say, don't it?"

"Well, I sure hope you buy a lot of it, because I'm about to blow your mind."

"I ain't got much mind left to blow, so have at it."

JJ set the block of gold on the counter.

"How about them gold apples?" He asked.

"That ain't real." The cashier said.

"That ain't real?"

"It can't be."

"Feel how heavy it is."

The lady tried to pick it up but soon realized it was heavier than she thought.

"Let's get some light on that." JJ said.

"Spray-painted tungsten." The lady said.

"Spray-painted tungsten?"JJ asked, "Why don't you see how, uh, soft it is?"

"You mind?"

"No, go for it."

She hit the gold with a hammer.

"Wow. Would you look at that?" JJ said.

"Hold your horses. We ain't got to the acid test yet."

"Ooh! The acid test. My favorite, guys."

She poured a drop of acid onto the gold and nothing happened.

"Well, it ain't plated, and it ain't painted" she said.

"Ma'am, I'm telling ya, this is as real as the day is long." JJ told her.

"It looks like somebody tried to melt it down."

"My mom. She had all this jewelry laying around the house, and she thought it was best to... to melt it down to "consolidate" it."

"Seven pounds?" She asked, That's a lot of earrings."