Page 8 of Tooth and Nail

“Sapphire!” someone called, and Eoghan turned to see Richard Tooley and his brother, wearing their typical uniform of gray overalls smeared with grease. They were bent over the raised hood of a black Dodge Charger, holding wrenches. He raised his hand and returned the wave of one of the two brothers, unsure of who’d called him by name.

“Hey, Rick! Hey, Dick!” he called out, heading toward them with Ari at his side. “I want you to meet Richard Tooley and his brother. They’re our mechanics.”

“Okay. Which one is Richard?”

“Both of them,” Eoghan replied, tongue in cheek. He thought he knew what Ari was asking but he wasn’t going to assume.

“No, I mean which one is Richard Tooley?”

“Both of them.”

“They’rebothRichard Tooley?” Ari asked.

Eoghan glanced at him, unable to hide his smirk. “They’re twins, Rick Tooley and Dick Tooley…both are named Richard Tooley.”

“Are you serious?”

“I am so serious. We call them the Tools and boy do they ever fit their moniker. Just wait until you meet them.”

“Okay.”

As soon as they got to the men, Eoghan stuck out his hand. “Hey, guys.”

“Oh, I can’t shake, Eoghan. I have grease all over my hand,” Rick said. He grinned and the vacant look in his eyes was on full display.

“Grease all over my hand,” Dick echoed.

Eoghan dropped his hand back to his side and then half turned, nodding his head at Ari. “Rick and Dick Tooley, I’d like you to meet Aristotle Brown. He’s my new partner. Ari, these are the best mechanics on Earth. They keep our vehicles running.”

“Nice to meet you, Brown,” Rick said.

“Brown,” Dick echoed.

“Rick…is it okay if I call you Rick?” Brown asked.

“Call me Rick,” Rick replied.

“Call him Rick,” Dick said.

“Oh…okay,” Ari said before turning to Dick. “And, is it okay to call you Dick?”

“Call him Dick,” Rick said.

“Dick,” Dick echoed.

“Okay then,” Ari said, rubbing his hands together before turning to Eoghan with comically wide eyes.

It took every ounce of self-control Eoghan possessed not to burst out laughing. “We’ll let you get back to what you were doing, guys. I just wanted you to meet my new partner and now I need to finish the tour and then outfit him with weapons.”

“Outfit him with weapons,” Rick said, waving at them before they walked away. They’d barely turned their backs when Dick echoed.

“Weapons.”

“Wow,” Ari said after they’d gotten about fifteen steps away.

Eoghan clutched his stomach and clamped a hand over his mouth to hold in his laughter as they walked across the room, heading for the jail.

“What’s the deal with the brothers?” Ari asked.

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