GUTTER SPLASH
At 3am Kent entered the fourth-floor galleries with a six-pack in each hand. He immediately felt light headed from the noxious fumes emanating from the molten lead. He called out to the crew, but they couldn’t hear him over the noise of the massive propane torch being used to melt the lead. He held the beer up and signaled them that it was time for a break.
They shifted their respirators up onto their heads as they wandered over. Tired and addled from the fumes each gratefully accepted a beer.
Richard continued to splash ladles full of liquefied lead along the wall of the gallery. Kent and the crew blearily watched as he tossed the last ladle, lead splattering into the corner. Richard stood back assessing his work.
Kent held a beer aloft catching Richards’s attention, who strode over lifting the protective mask and pulling down his respirator. He grabbed the beer, popped the tab and downed half the can in one pull.
He said to Kent “I need another twelve thousand pounds of lead by tomorrow night.”
Kent blinked, “Um, sure.”
Richard nodded curtly, finished the beer, crushed the can and tossed into the trash. He jerked his head at the crew letting them know break was over. They quickly downed the last of their beers and headed back to work.
“Shit.” mumbled Kent as he left the gallery.