“Showtime,”
Baloo said jauntily, a grin as wide as the Pacific on his face as he
hurried down the stairs with the cubs on his tail.
Rebecca,
leaning against the front of her desk, telegraphed a silent question
to Kit. The boy nodded in response.
Without
any preliminaries, Mr. Tannenbaum said, “After much deliberation,
the Chamber of Commerce and I have made a decision concerning the
winner of the Cape Suzette Family Business of the Year contest.”
It
was so quiet you could hear the cricket chirping cheerfully in the
corner. Baloo squirmed impatiently as the judge carefully opened the
envelope, removed a sheet of paper, and leisurely adjusted his
pince-nez.
After
what seemed like an eternity, Mr. Tannenbaum announced, “Higher
for Hire is the winner.”
“Wahoo!We won! We won! We won!” Baloo shouted. He caught Rebecca by the
hands and danced her around the room.
“It
was a very close contest,” the judge said. “Both families seemed
very caring and hardworking. However, there was one major difference
between you and the Lee’s.”
“What?”
Molly asked.
Deadpan,
Mr. Tannenbaum said, “You people make me laugh.”
“W-we
do?” Kit stammered, sharing a confused look with Molly.
Molly
whispered to Kit, “He didn’t smile the entire time.”
Mr.
Tannenbaum handed both the check and certificate to Baloo, who kissed
the check repeatedly.
Just
then a knock came on the door and a cheerful voice sang out,
“S.S.T.I.S.D.D.”
Kit
took the envelope from the mailman. “It’s for you, Mr.
Tannenbaum.”
A
frown creased his normally impassive features as he pulled out a
little cardboard rectangle. “Hmm... Would you care to explain
this, Mr. Baloo von Bruinwald?” He handed the license to the
big bear.
Rivulets
of cold sweat started to pour down the pilot’s face. “Uh...it
belongs to my long lost cousin who looks just like me an’ has the
same first name? What a coinky-dink, huh? Heh-heh...heh.”
Mr.
Tannenbaum fixed his steady eyes on him.
As
if admitting his guilt, the dejected Baloo hung his head. He had
rarely, if ever, been caught in a lie.
Mr.
Tannenbaum snatched the check and certificate from Baloo and tore
them up. A shower of confetti fell to the bare floorboards as he
said coldly, “In light of recent events, Lee’s Bakery is the
winner. Good day.”
Baloo
followed the judge to the door blubbering, “B-b-b-b-b-b-but!”
Without
a backwards glance, Mr. Tannenbaum closed the door behind him.
Baffled,
Baloo slumped in his chair. “What the heck just happened? How in
tarnation did someone get my pilot’s license? Coulda sworn it was
in my wallet. Fifty thousand smackers gone! An’ all because of a
license.” He covered his face with his hands and stifled a sob.
Exchanging
a discreet glance with Rebecca, Kit said quickly, “I’m gonna tell
Wildcat the bad news.”
“Wait
up, Kit!” Molly said, racing after him.
“Well,
I guess that’s that,” Rebecca said, settling herself at her desk.
She opened her ledger and pulled her adding machine closer.
“You’re
takin’ this awfully well.” Baloo, peeking through his fingers,
shot her a suspicious look across the room.
“Well...I,
uh...it’s just money.” She winced, feeling a deep pang of
regret. “A lot of money, not to mention all that free
advertising...” As if to forget about that, she shook her head.
“But look on the bright side, Baloo. We’re all togeth...I mean,
now we can get everything back to normal.”
“Whatever
you say, Honeylips,” Baloo said morosely. Realizing what he had
called her, he clapped a hand over his mouth in surprise.
Rebecca
smiled, then she started to giggle. Her giggling escalated into
throaty laughter.
After
a moment, Baloo’s hearty guffaws joined in.
Their
laughter drifted outside - past the houseboat where Wildcat was
listening to the cubs’ tale of how the ‘Cunninghams’ had lost
the contest, past the creaking docks, past the Sea Duck -
where it finally reached the ears of a lone seagull swooping over
Cape Suzette harbor, now glistening in the bright morning sunshine.
The
End
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