When they did, and after they had exchanged with each other the names they were currently living under, Robert Lester and Leo struck up an agreement to use the L&S store to move merchandise stolen by Lester in addition to the fake jewelry already sold there.  Lester was opposed to mixing the two businesses but Leo stuck to his belief that the one store could serve a dual purpose and eventually his partner gave in.  Leo did not inform Stanley about the arrangement and was determined to keep his two partners completely separate from each other while running the store himself to profit off their work.  With that deal done, and beginning to feel a bit like the crime boss he wanted to be, Leo went over to check on production at the clock shop.   When he arrived Stanley was hard at work, a fact that pleased Leo, and he stood around watching the other man work for about half an hour.  There were a good number of new pieces on the table and he carefully placed them into a box to take to the store.  There was even a very nice mantel clock with a gilded face among the items and Stanley replied in the affirmative when Leo asked if it was something he had made for sale at their shop.  That initiative impressed Leo and he figured maybe he had misjudged the other man yet again.  Then, right before leaving, he jokingly told Stanley to cut his hair, something which it was apparent had not happened in many months.  Stanley replied that it was all part of his new look and Leo shook his head and left feeling like things were definitely looking up.  

All continued fairly well through the end of October and well into November.  There were a few arguments between Lester and Leo, mostly about the low volume of stolen product that Leo was managing to move through the shop, and several times when Leo’s two partners came close to meeting.  That was something he really wanted to avoid and so he told Stanley that it really would be better if he stopped going out into town or anywhere else for that matter.  He should just keep working and Leo would bring him whatever he needed.  This generated quite an argument as Stanley was still enjoying his new lifestyle among the burgeoning social scene in Bakersfield.  Ultimately Leo resigned himself to the fact that the two men were going to meet and he was just going to have to deal with it when that happened.  As things turned out that did not take long, and soon after two uncommon things occurred  which resulted in their meeting on November 23rd.  It was fairly cold out that day and Stanley, dressed in a long trench coat with a plaid scarf wrapped around his face, walked into the L&S store around two o’clock in the afternoon.  Coming to the store was something that Stanley almost never did so he caught Leo by surprise.  Leo himself had already been surprised by an equally infrequent caller, Robert Lester, who avoided the shop as he always told Leo because, “it’s the place you’re going to end up being arrested at one day, and I sure don’t plan to be there when that happens.”  Today the on-going lack of sales by Leo had finally driven Robert to the store, demanding that he be told what was holding up the making of some profits on the items  he was risking his own freedom to steal.  The stamping of Stanley’s feet as he crossed the threshold of the store stopped the argument between Leo and Lester.

“What are you doing here?” Leo snapped at Stanley, walking over quickly and grabbing the man’s arm.  “I though I told you to stay away from town.”

“Who is this person?” Lester asked from where he stood by one of the shop’s display counters, “I don’t suppose this is that silly clockmaker you are in business with?”

“Who’s he?” Stanley asked with some fear in his voice, “and how does he know who I am?  What’s he doing here?”

“Ah, so this fella doesn’t know about us then, huh?” Lester shot back, “all these secrets Leo, very bad for your constitution you know.”  

“What’s he talking about Leo?” 

“Stop!” Leo shouted.  “Stop it and shut up both of you.”

Lester laughed but otherwise stayed quite.  Stanley cowered a little and then stood with suspicious eyes darting back and forth between the other two men.

“Listen, both of you.  Neither one of you needs to know anything about the other.  You are working for me, and you talk to me and me only.  Neither damn one of you should be here right now, it’s bad for us to be seen together.  Now, why are you here?”  Leo asked Stanley, still holding his hand up in Lester’s direction.

“I, well, I had to give you something.”  Stanley replied, his voice low but clear. 

“Are you sure this is something we should be talking about here?” Leo replied.

“Well, well, I don’t know.  But you did say to give you letters addressed to any Leo name that came to the shop.”  As he spoke he withdrew an envelope from the inside pocket of the overcoat.

Leo’s eyes clouded for a minute as he realized it must be a letter from his sister.  He really needed to contain the information on his real name but Stanley kept talking.

“It said Hombert but I still did what you told me, I told the postman I would take it.  Is that your real name?”

“Shut up!” Leo exclaimed as he snatched the letter from Stanley’s hands.  “That isn’t even the name on here,” he continued in an effort to make both men forget what had just happened.  

“Sure it is,” Stanley replied.

…to be continued