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Show page 97 TIME OF THE TRUMPET CREEPER Big Miles Bolin l i v e d near our town sixteen y e a r s , waiting a l l these years for revenge. When opportunity came, in the persons of Stetson Jack Plank and Lippy S n e l l , Miles had a good boat r e n t a l business on t h e big lake behind the dam on the r i v e r. The lake has a two-acre i s l a n d of pine t h i c k e t s midway i t s shores and s t r e t c h e s u p r i v e r as far as the eye can s e e . It was a business and _a p l a c e t h a t Miles had learned t o l i k e , along with h i s home, h i s wife, f r i e n d s , and a trumpet creeper. Miles was at a corner t a b l e in Mamie Lou Diamond's cafe xtfhen Lonnie his boat boy came running and t o l d him two curious men were at t h e dock wanting a boat. Miles was drinking a noontime beer and fingering a limp brownpaper c i g a r e t t e . He shoved the unfinished beer toward Lonnie, placed h i s u n l it c i g a r e t t e in an a s h t r a y , and climbed to h i s f e e t . He sighed a long sigh, tucked h i s s h i r t t a i l under h i s b e l t , and from an unscreened window peered toward h i s lakeside dock. The two men were facing h i s l i n e of boats, t h e i r p r o f i l es toward him. It was as he had envisioned i t . He had known they would come. He had known he would f i r s t see them from t h is very window in Mamie's, He placed a hand t o the nape of his neck, rubbing away sweat. It was g e t t i n g h o t t e r . It was going t o be another scorching day. The men had changed not enough, he n o t i c e d . The l a r g e r one had a rheumy appearance, and one ofyhls legs angT5a~^s though t h e prison had reached |