Uncle Buck (standard:fantasy, 2565 words)
Author: Alpha43	Added: Apr 17 2005	Views/Reads: 3248/2381	Story vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
a country girl is excited to travel to a large city, even though it is to attend a funeral. She had never met the deceased, but leaves the wake with a fairly thorough knowledge of “Uncle Buck.”

Click here to read the first 75 lines of the story

offerings brought to Grandma. I went to bed that night extremely full 
and wondering just what a wake was, but I figured I would find out 
Thursday night. They were holding the wake at the Knight’s of Columbus 
Hall, just two blocks away from Grandma’s. I was told I could attend 
for a while, but the wake lasted all night and I would be in bed by 11 
PM. Uncle Buck will be there too! 

Thursday was spent getting more introductions; visiting Callahan's
Funeral Home again, and even more choices of food to snack on. Dad 
reminded me that I would need to take a shower, change clothes, and let 
him brush my hair out, so I would be presentable at the wake. I wanted 
to wear blue jeans, but dad said that was out of the question. 

We waited for Grandma to come down stairs, and then we all walked to the
K of C, going slow to give grandma comfort. Uncles’ Pat and Connor 
guided grandma and I trailed behind dad and Aunt Kathleen. 

When we got inside the K of C, there were a lot of candles lit, and
groups of people were talking at tables covered with even more food. In 
one corner, a keg of beer was sitting in a tub of ice, and most of the 
men were around the beer. Grandma was seated at a special table, with 
dad, his brothers, and sisters seated with her. 

I noticed that there were no kids here, mostly old people. Everybody
seemed to make it point to talk to the family, with lots of hugs, 
handshakes, and kisses. Around the keg, some of the men would break out 
in Irish songs, then everybody would laugh, but they soon would go back 
to being somber. Maybe an early bedtime wouldn’t be so bad, this was 
not too exciting or entertaining so far. 

They had placed the casket at the far end of the hall, but nobody was
anywhere near that area. I would see people sneaking quick glances 
toward Uncle Buck, but then they would act like they were involved with 
the activities around them. I started to amble toward Uncle Buck once, 
but my father asked me to get him a glass of beer. I don’t know why, he 
already had a glass of beer in front of him. 

I wandered around the room and noticed some of the older people were
nearly asleep, several of them nodding off from time to time. Then I 
spotted an older gentleman sitting alone in the shadows near Uncle 
buck’s casket. He said ‘Hello’ and he knew my name was Gloria. He said 
he had to come to see who and how many people would be attending a wake 
for the infamous Buck. I was embarrassed, knowing this might be one of 
the hundreds of people that Uncle Buck had cheated or swindled. 

I asked if he knew Uncle Buck well, and he said he knew him better than
anybody in the room. He said he could tell me things about Buck that 
nobody knew. 

This was very strange. For two days, nobody would even mention Uncle
Bucks name and here was a man who talked freely about Uncle Buck and 
knew him extremely well. I could not resist, and finally I asked if 
Uncle Buck was really as bad as everyone seemed to think. Everybody had 
some good points and surely Uncle Buck was no exception. 

The old man took out his handkerchief and wiped his forehead. I noticed
that the old gent must have been in a fire at one time, because his 
hands were all wrinkled with burn scars. 

“You want to know if your Uncle Buck was bad? My Dear, it’s been said he
was a Genius. They don’t hand out trophy’s or awards in Buck’s line of 
work, but he was a pure Master, a Rembrandt of the ‘Dip and Slip‘! 

He could run a roofing scam or a ‘green goods’ hustle cleaner and with
such precision that most of the ‘Dupes’ would thank him. He worked 
boiler rooms and bucket shops just for the fun of it. He once pulled an 
‘Ace Dip’ while in the middle of a ‘big store’ scam, both came off 
clean, a double header! 

I had no idea what this man had just said! 

“He did a great single, but he was in constant demand to be the back
half of a ‘Rube Shuffle’ or to set the hook in a ‘Mackerel Bake’. As a 
dealer, his hands possessed a nimbleness and agility that was 
unequaled. Fast or slow, he could float an ace every time you yelled 
‘Now’. 

“He had a soft ear and could duplicate any accent or dialect. He could
speak like the Pope or a bum. He could dress any part and be what ever 
the ‘mark’ thought he should be. Bring on the Oscars” 

These words were almost a foreign language, but the old gent was rolling
along, so I just nodded in agreement. The old man reminded me that what 
one person thinks is acceptable or fine, the next person might think is 
a sin. “We often never give a fellow a second chance after they have 
made a mistake. They seem to be branded as bad, and they will always be 
looked at in that way.” 

“Does that mean Uncle Buck was a good man?” I asked. 

“Your Uncle Buck had certainly made many mistakes during his life; he
did some very foolish things. But he never once did any ‘Wet’ work, he 
had his limits, and not many people knew about the good things that he 
did. Buck left this world with very few possessions, but with a lot of 
joy in his heart, knowing that he had made many people better off.” 

I mentioned that nobody wanted to talk about Uncle Buck. “Was he
disliked by everybody?” 

“In certain circles, Buck was the undisputed King of the Grifters, the
Mozart of Yaks! He was famous, hell he was a legend in the surrounding 
six States. He would get calls from both coasts, he could have worked 
anywhere he wanted and could have pretty much named his own wage. 

“But you see, for the average person, its easier to go along with the
crowd and label a person as evil, even when they know nothing of the 
mans special talents and natural gifts. 

“See the heavyset lady in the purple dress? She and Buck were the very
best of friends for many years. They shared many secrets and ideals. 
She would have Buck stay at her place and then sneak him out during the 
middle of the night. Buck helped that lady pay her rent and utility 
bills for a number of years after her husband died, but she would talk 
about Buck like he was a devil. 

“Father Fred knew that if he mentioned to Buck that some kid was going
to have a giftless Christmas, or if one of the neighborhood widow 
ladies were short of rent money, miraculously, presents would appear 
and rents got paid. The good Father never asked how these things 
happened or how the money was earned for these good faith acts, but I 
think he knew.” Said the older gent in a confident tone. 

“It’s strange how Buck would just happen to be in the neighborhood when
kids were about to get in trouble and break the law, or folks had 
thoughts of ending it all. He seemed like such a clown, that soon, 
different thoughts occupied these people’s minds. A number of 
youngsters are with us today because Buck fell in step with their 
mothers walking to the abortion clinic. His money was not always gained 
honorably, but it was nearly always used in a decent way.” 

The old man slowly stood up, limping towards the men’s room and I
thought about what he said. Maybe the things were true about Uncle 
Buck’s ill-gotten gains, but it sounds like he was not all-bad. 

More and more people were arriving all the time. The old man came back
and just stared at the growing crowd, shaking his head and grinning. He 
extended his hand, saying he’d seen enough, it was time to go, and I 
thanked him for his insight. He said it was his pleasure getting a 
chance to get to talk with me and also it made him truly happy to see 
so many people in attendance. 

Suddenly his eyes lit up and he reached into his pocket and pulled out a
beautifully engraved watch. It had a gold chain, with the cover showing 
a bird dog on point with pheasants taking off. The back showed a fox 
standing behind some bushes. “I would like you to have this watch”, he 
said. “And every time you see the watch, think of Chicago and our talk 
about your infamous Uncle Buck.” 

I explained that I never met Uncle Buck and I could not accept such a
wonderful and expensive gift. 

“I know you never met Buck, but now you have a clear insight to the real
Buck, and this watch will remind you our talk and of the honorable side 
of Buck’s life.” 

I was embarrassed, but I asked him if it was true that Uncle Buck was
‘in his cups’ when the bus hit him? 

He hesitated and then me smiled. “No, Buck had just received some very
bad news, his medical test results, it was just time to move on.” The 
old man wiped a tear from his eyes, then he turned and limped towards 
the crowd, speaking to no one, and in just seconds he was gone. I sat 
for a moment and admired the watch and then I wondered if I would be in 
trouble for accepting it? 

I carefully wrapped the chain around my hand, putting the watch in my
palm and went to show it to my dad. As I walked up to the family table, 
I heard Uncle Connor mentioning that Father Fred and the Church had 
sent a huge floral arrangement to Callahan's for Buck. He said he had 
never seen the church do anything like that, so extravagant. He guessed 
it cost well over three hundred dollars. 

Then I heard Aunt Kathleen saying, “Uncle Buck’s finest hour was when he
saved that little boy. He shattered his left knee, jumping from the 
second story of the burning Jackson street tenement, but even with his 
burned hands, he hung on to that Alexander infant. 

The beat cop said Buck ran into that burning building after Mrs.
Alexander recovered from fainting and said her child was still in his 
crib. The roof caved in just seconds after Buck grabbed the baby and 
leaped. The boy didn’t even have a scratch and he owes his life to... 
Oh Gloria, what are you doing with Uncle Buck’s gold pocket watch?” 


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