Never Fear (35 page)

“
It will all appear as an
accident.”

“
You’re sure that this is
foolproof, and that we’ll get rid of that sumbitch
forever?”

“
First of all, when this
takes place I think the Fire Marshal, the Chief of Police, the
Mayor and every other civic leader will ban anyone who wants to
build a holiday extravaganza. The events will be deemed hazardous.
Second of all…”

“
Kevin, is there a way we
can do this and not have dead bodies?”

“
No guarantees, Bobby. Let
me explain what I have in mind.”

*

The explanation took half an hour
exactly. The bleary-eyed audience was hypnotized and only asked a
couple of questions at the end.

“
Genius,” Gillian
said.

“
Oh, almost genius.”
Cleary smiled. “But thanks for the vote of confidence.”

“
Your team can make this?”
Zeke asked.

“
They will have no idea
what they’re building and I’m dummying up a contract for a place in
Illinois. We’re telling them that the main piece is going to a
holiday display in Danville.”

“
I still don’t know if I
can deal with casualties. Dead bodies? It just seems so... okay,
how much?” Zeke drummed his fingers on the green felt.

“
Well, let’s see how
serious you two are.”

They both anted up. Five thousand
dollars apiece and Cleary picked up the rest. It was a strong
debate, but in the end the three of them agreed that if there was,
possibly, maybe, remotely, an outside chance that someone got
killed, they could live with that. After all, the neighborhood, the
community, the city and the state would be quietly, eternally
grateful. What was one or two deaths when an entire population
would be rid of this major nuisance? And beyond stopping the
immediate problem, they were stopping dozens of copiers, stopping
those interlopers who would be tempted to duplicate the light show,
the extravaganza, stopping that self-centered group of folks who
would seek the adulation of the locals and hope for the cover of
national magazines and to be featured on morning network news.
After another three beers, they had agreed.

*

And so it began. KC Industries started
working on the main ingredient. A giant sleigh. A sleigh that could
hold up to a dozen people, although no one would actually ride in
it. Just a giant stuffed Santa in a plush velvet red suit. A Santa
with almost Satan eyes, who would stare laser beams through anyone,
even through his large goggles. A Santa that looked exactly like
Kevin Cleary. He was proud of that addition. If he stared at the
face it would look like gazing into a gigantic mirror.

And this was a sleigh that ran on
steel tracks, tracks that would bend and rise to rooftop level. And
every fifteen minutes the glittering sled would glide across the
track, and take off for the sky. Then, slowly it would slide back
down and reset at the other end of the house.

“
It’s our present,” Cleary
said. “There is no question when I show him this he’ll go
ballistic. And we’re offering it to him as a gift in gratitude for
his giving our neighborhood, our town, the notoriety we’ve
received.”

“
Damn,” Zeke said as they
walked through the bustling factory. “That thing is impressive.
Obviously it will be the hit of his collection.”

“
That’s what we’re hoping
for. And I’ve got someone working on the Claus figure.” He didn’t
mention the uncanny resemblance to his face. “It’s going to be a
night to remember.”

“
The Today Show
is coming in four weeks,” Gillian said, watching
a crew gluing lights on the vehicle. “Can it be ready by
then?”

“
Plenty of time,” Cleary
walked up to the sleigh, putting his hand on the shiny red
aluminum. “We still have to install the electronics, but over
there,” he pointed across the concrete floor, “Marty and his team
are almost done with the system. We are about to give
The Today Show
and the
entire country the performance of a lifetime.”

Zeke and Gillian nodded.

“
I still think we need to
reconsider the casualty issue,” Zeke said.

Cleary smiled. “What has to happen
will happen, my friend. My customer in Detroit... no more
vandalism.” He chuckled.

Two weeks later Cleary invited his
co-conspirators back to the workshop. The decorated sleigh, minus
the large Santa with the Satan eyes, was mounted on the tracks. The
steel rails that ran flat for forty feet then bent upwards, the
slope rising to a forty-five-degree angle, were temporarily bolted
to the concrete.

“
Anybody want to ride
along on the test drive?” Cleary asked.

There was a shaking of
heads.

Cleary pulled a canvas cover off of an
item on the floor, and the three of them were looking into the
gleaming eyes of the giant Santa Claus.

“
That face, damn, it’s
yours. Hell, it looks exactly like you, Kevin, and that is just
plain creepy.” Gillian stepped back.

Goggles were strapped over the
piercing orbs, but those eyes seemed to stare into each of their
souls.

“
This is the guy who will
ride in the show.”

“
Scary,” Zeke said. “Those
eyes, your eyes, they give me the willies.”

“
Santa Claus,” Gillian
said, staring at the figure. “He knows all, sees all. Very scary,
Kevin.”

“
Okay, Johnny, put her in
gear.”

Lights flashed and the sleigh started
its journey, gliding smoothly along the ground. It moved slowly,
almost as if preening, showing off its curved body, the brass rails
that ran along the sides and the candy-apple-coated exterior
covered with brilliantly colored lights.

And then, as if by magic, the sleigh
started its climb. Twenty-eight feet up. The same height as the
peak of the two story home that Glen Roberts owned.

“
Wow,” Zeke said. “That’s
amazing.”

“
It’s going to do a lot
more than that, Zeke. That sleigh will do more than you can
possibly imagine. There are even rockets in the side panels that
will shoot off like fireworks. They’re just a little stronger than
a bottle rocket. I can only demonstrate the tracks and the climb.
That will be what attracts people. The rest will have to come
later.”

*

After reaching the apex,
the sleigh started its slow descent back to the ground. The fifteen
minute trip was magical as The Beach Boys sang
Little Saint Nick
the story of a
hotrod, souped-up sleigh that could take on all the other street
rods.

“
What you’ve told us is
amazing,” Gillian said. “I understand that you can’t put her
through her paces right now. This is a one-time event.”

“
We’ve tested it all, Bob.
This baby is going to blow people’s minds.”

“
And we’ve got the ideal
showcase,” Zeke laughed.

“
Al Roker is doing the
segment,” Cleary said. “I believe he is going to get the highest
ratings in history when this runs.”

“
If it delivers.” Gillian
watched the giant vehicle back down the incline and glide into home
base.

“
Oh, I guarantee
delivery,” Cleary said. “Don’t doubt me, boys. I did the final work
on the system myself. This will be the biggest show of the
Christmas season. But remember, there may be collateral damage.
You’ve got to be able to accept that. You’re on board with that,
right?”

They looked at each other, then
reluctantly nodded.

*

The days dragged on. Work across the
street seemed tedious as countless numbers of workmen dug holes,
planted artificial trees, strung thousands of lights along the
gutters and designed lighted patterns on the grass. Then they moved
in the real stars of the show. They placed a life-size stable and
manger, complete with animated mooing cows, baying donkeys, and
groaning goats. There were angels seemingly floating in mid-air and
a smaller version of Santa and his reindeer, shimmering in the
dark, but never moving.

The entire
Peanuts
gang was
featured with Snoopy on his doghouse and Schroeder playing his
piano, all outlined in blinking lights. Twelve six-feet-tall
nutcrackers lined the driveway and there were at least another
dozen tin soldiers standing guard around the yard. Cleary started
wondering if there would be any room for his track and sleigh. He
was sure his neighbor would find room somewhere.

And two weeks before the show was to
begin, traffic was lining up every night to see how far along the
extravaganza had progressed. And even though Roberts turned the
installed lights on, the best was yet to come.

One week before the
anticipated opening, before Al Roker and
The Today Show
crew were to arrive,
Cleary and company, fortified with copious amounts of alcohol,
walked across the street, and knocked on Glen Roberts’ door. His
lovely wife Gloria answered, looking extremely suspicious of their
motives.

“
Hey, Glo, we’ve got
something we’d like to run by you and Glen.”

She called to her husband, and the two
of them stood in the doorway, never inviting the trio into their
spacious home.

“
I know in the past we
haven’t always shown a lot of support for your light show,” Cleary
said, “but this year, I think we’ve made up for it.”

“
How is that, bro?”
Roberts asked.

“
Well, if you’ll look
outside, you’ll see a huge sleigh and a track.”

He pointed to the front of their house
where two flatbed trucks were parked.

“
What the hell is
that?”

“
That, my friend, is a
custom built sleigh that will rival any holiday display in the
country. In the world.”

Roberts and his wife stood there,
their mouths wide open.

“
It’s beautiful,” he
finally stated.

“
Every fifteen minutes it
travels those tracks and climbs up to the top of your
roof.”

“
Oh, my God. But wait,” he
paused. “Is this because you want recognition on
The Today Show
?”

“
Absolutely not,” Cleary
said. “Am I right, guys?”

Zeke and Bob nodded.

“
This has nothing to do
with us. We all chipped in to build this, and there’s a stuffed
Santa in the cab of that truck that will ride in the sleigh. This
is all about you and your display. What do you think?”

“
Magnificent.” Roberts’
eyes were sparkling. “Kevin, Bob, Zeke, I don’t know what to
say.”

“
Just being able to watch
it perform will be thanks enough,” Cleary said.

The crew stepped out of the trucks and
started the installation. Everything was working like a charm, just
as he knew it would. Cleary and his two partners stayed, talking to
Glen and Gloria in their yard while the track was
assembled.

“
Damn big sleigh,” Roberts
said. “Must have cost a pretty penny.”

“
Small price to pay, Glen.
Small price to pay.”

A handful of cars pulled over to watch
the crew set up the contraption, three actually parking in Cleary’s
front yard. When they pulled away he walked over and picked up two
fast-food bags and a French fry box, smiling at Roberts the whole
time.

And a week before opening
night, that very evening, he pushed the switch on the new display
and the sleigh slowly glided across the carefully assembled tracks,
and climbed twenty-eight feet into the air, as the Beach Boys sang
praises to
The Little St.
Nick
. “
He’s got
to wear his goggles cause the snow really flies, cruisin’ every pad
with a little surprise
.” As it paused at
its highest point, Cleary admired the work. Sleek, elegant, the
shiny red coating reflecting the array of green, gold and blue
lights molded around the body. Then the sled made its graceful
pause and started its slide back down, Roberts actually clapping
his hands together and screaming like a small child.

“
It’s marvelous,” he
squealed. “And the giant Santa is so real.” Smiling he said, “He
looks like you, Kevin. The eyes behind the goggles. Like he’s
watching everyone. He sees you when you’re sleeping, he knows when
you’re awake. What a great idea.”

As the neighborhood, the
town, the entire Northeast corner of the state got ready for
The Today Show
, Roberts
added more and more lights. There was talk of power outages across
the city due to the current that the house drew. And dozens of
Roberts’ construction crew climbed over the house, up trees, up a
flag pole and into his empty swimming pool until almost every
square inch of the man’s property was covered in some lighted
decoration.

The night before the big event, Cleary
went to his basement and pulled out a metal box, about two feet by
three feet wide. The apparatus looked like a sound mixer, with
dials, levers and slides. He wanted to try it so bad, but of course
he couldn’t. It was designed to work for one performance only, when
the filming started. Tomorrow night, while Al Roker’s team was
filming for the next morning’s show. If all worked well, and it
should, he would flip on his box and take control. And all of the
levers and dials and slides would do their thing.