Page 5 of July's Bad Boy: Blaze

Shane winces, but Blaze just nods. "Need a ride?"

"Thanks but I have my truck. And thank for the help today." I turn and walk away before either can respond.

The Mercantile is bustling when I arrive, townspeople stocking up on whatever they can get their hands on. I find Ruby behind the counter, her usual cheery smile strained around the edges.

"How bad is it?" I ask.

"Oh, we'll manage," Ruby says, ringing up a customer's purchases. "The town always does."

The town is panic buying. I was hoping it wouldn't come to this, but I knew it would. It's human survival instinct.

Orville appears from the storeroom, his face like a thundercloud. "That developer is behind this. Mark my words."

"A developer caused the accident?" I raise an eyebrow. This is the first time I've heard Orville go after the developer without actual proof.

"Wouldn't put it past him," Orville grumbles. "That guy’s been sniffing around again. Offering to buy up properties for his resort nonsense."

"Orville," Ruby chides gently. "Not everything is a conspiracy."

I lean against the counter. "Have you heard anything from the county about a timeline for repairs?"

Ruby shakes her head. "They're saying two weeks minimum. Could be a month."

My stomach drops. A month. My delivery service can't survive a month of inactivity. And neither can the people who depend on it.

"I need to rework my distribution plan," I say, more to myself than them. "Figure out how to ration what we have."

"Use the back office," Ruby offers. "I've got inventory lists of what isn't on the shelves here, and I'm putting limits in place as we speak."

I spend the next two hours creating spreadsheets, making phone calls, and trying to suppress my rising panic. My laptop battery is at fifteen percent when the office door opens.

"Ruby said you'd be in here," Shane says, poking his head in. "We've got reinforcements to move supplies."

Before I can ask what he means, Blaze appears behind him, sleeves rolled up.

"You again," I say.

"Me again," he confirms. "Where do you want us?"

I close my laptop. "Ruby's handling inventory."

"Actually," Shane interjects, "Ruby asked if you could oversee the sorting. She's swamped at the register. She’s mainly calming people wanting to talk, but she isn't one to rush anyone."

I want to say no, but I can't. This is about the town, not my personal feelings about some random celebrity.

"Fine. Follow me."

In the storeroom, boxes of stock wait to be sorted. I grab a clipboard and hand Shane a box cutter.

"Canned goods on the metal shelves, dry goods on wooden shelves, and household items against the back wall."

"Got it," Shane says, then glances at his watch. "Shoot, I promised Orville I'd help set up for the meeting. Can you two handle this?"

Before I can protest, he's gone, leaving me alone with Mr. Famous.

"You sure you know how to lift a box, or is that a job for your roadies?" I ask, unable to help myself.

Blaze picks up a heavy box of canned vegetables with ease. "I worked construction summers during college. Before the roadies."

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