Paid in Full

oiled until they were the color of strong coffee, and it was big enough to park eight vehicles on, nose to tail, in a long gleaming row. A broad flight of wooden steps led up to it from the lot. There were planters at the corners with ornamental grasses that bent and hissed in the wind. And at the far end there was a covered pavilion where the dealership held its customer events — a barbecue in July, a toy drive in December, a "Cadillac and Cowboys" evening in the fall that involved a country band and a great deal of beer.