Roadside Bodhisattva Part 6

"Ah, thats sweet. So, hows the job going? Everybody treating you okay?"

"Well, washing dishes isnt my idea of a stimulating career. But its okay. And your aunt Ann is pretty neat. Shes fair, and it seems like she really cares about people." didnt say anything about how Ann had been worried about Sue, or how Ann and Sid had tried to get me to weasel information out of Sue.

"Oh, yeah, Anns a regular bleeding heart. Takes in strays like me and you and your hobo buddy like we were kittens someone planned to drown. And you can see where all her goo-goo ways get her. Hanging on by her b.l.o.o.d.y fingertips to a loser lifestyle."

"You think thingsre really that crummy here?"

Sue swung an arm around to indicate the whole Deer Park setup. The cigarette in her hand trailed an arc of smoke, and its red tip flared. "Jesus, Kid, just look at this place. A greasy spoon, a broke-down lube joint, and a row of shacks, all by the side of a road to nowhere. Oh, and dont forget your luxury accomodations. They add that final trailer-park touch. Its a sure bet n.o.bodys getting rich here. None of usd stay if we had even half a chance to leave for something even a little bit better."

"I dont know. Even if this place isnt a big moneymaker, it still seems kinda exotic to me."

Sue took another drag. "Then you must be a natural-born romantic. Or maybe you just havent been here long enough."

"I didnt get the feeling yesterday that you were so down on this place."

"Todays a different day." Sues echo of what Sid had said last night made me curious if they had talked, but I couldnt see when they wouldve, so I forgot about it. Sue threw her cigarette down and ground it out. "Hows Yasmine treating you?"

"Shes a pain in the b.u.t.t. I try to ignore her. I figure her problems with her mother must be making her mean."

Sue looked slyly at me. "Know what kind of actress her mother was, out in her wonderful California? A third-rate p.o.r.n star."

A million tiny hot needles p.r.i.c.kled my skin. My eyes automatically dropped to Sues impressive chest, but I forced them up to look her in the face. I wondered if every conversation with Sue was going to lead to s.e.x. "No way."

"Im not s.h.i.tting you. Yasmines mom was real active in the hardcore scene back in the late 'eighties, when Yasmine was about ten years old. Know what her screen name was? Pookie Arizona!" Sue barked a sharp laugh. "But she burned out and came back here, back to where she grew up. She took her minor daughter away from all her California friends with her, of course, and Yasmines never forgiven her for that. Then, just when Yasmine got old enough to leave her mother and go back to the land of her dreams, her mom got sick with aids. Yasmine had to stay with her to take care of her. There was no one else. That was almost ten years ago now."

"Jesus." I didnt know what else to say.

"Yeah, that about sums it up. But Yasmines still a b.i.t.c.h in my book. And who knows if the move back here wasnt ultimately the best thing for her? Yasmined probablyve ended up s.c.r.e.w.i.n.g on videotape too. At least this way she kept her health and looks. What you can see of em through all that makeup. But anyhow, if I were a guy planning to pork Yasmine, Id still make sure I wore two condoms." Sue stood up. "Well, enough dishing the dirt. Weve both got work to do."

"Sue, you have an iPod? I thought maybe youd like to swap some files later. With me, that is."

"Why not? If nothing else comes up."

I watched her walk away. Then I went to find Sid.

I spotted a paint-splattered dropcloth laid out on the ground near one of the cabins, and heard noises of metal dragging on wood. I turned a corner and there was Sid. He was standing on a small ladder, using a sc.r.a.per on the cabins wooden gutters. He was working so energetically that flakes of paint sprayed through the air like snow.

"Kid A! Youre now officially vice-president of Hartshorn Painting. Grab a sc.r.a.per, and start attacking any G.o.dd.a.m.n peeling patch you see."

I picked up one of the tools. "Gee, Master, which end do I hold?"

Sid laughed loud and long.

I got to work a few feet away from Sid. I didnt want my hair full of his sc.r.a.ping crud. Sid kept up a line of chatter. He seemed to have a endless supply of stories and opinions. Lots of the stories featured a moral of some sort, I noticed. Oh, he didnt come right out with the lesson in so many words. He was too subtle for that. But I could see the messages poking through, like elbows through a ripped flannel shirt. After all, I had grown up with all kinds of parables and sermons, teachings of every kind, from tricky ones to straightforward ones, ones that snuck up on you days after you first heard them and ones that hit you over the head immediately. If Sid thought he was gonna slip something past me, he didnt know who he was dealing with.

As the sun got higher, the day got warmer. Now it was the morning chill that seemed like the faroff dream. We moved around the cabin, leaving its walls a patchwork of bare spots and untouched ones where the old paint clung better. If possible, the work was even more boring than washing dishes.

"Are we gonna sc.r.a.pe every single cabin before we can paint even one of them?"

"You bet. No point in setting up all your brushes and turp and s.h.i.t just to pack it away and get your sc.r.a.pers out again the next day."

"Ever heard of variety being the spice of life?"

"Ever heard of Henry Ford and the invention of the G.o.dd.a.m.n a.s.sembly line?"

"Forget I even asked."

"Consider it done."

Noon rolled around at last, and I got ready to head back to the diner. That was when the cop car arrived.

The cops here drove navy-blue cruisers with gold seals on the doors. This one pulled into the lot near the office, and kept on coming, until it came to a stop right next to us, half on the gra.s.s.

Sid got down off the ladder. He wore that same dopey expression he had put on for Angie yesterday at the pumps. He moved slow and easy toward the car, hands hanging loose at his sides, and I followed.

The door opened, and the cop got out.

I guessed right away this was Al Vakharia, the guy Ann had warned us against yesterday. When he got closer, seeing his last name st.i.tched onto his shirt just confirmed my guess.

Vakharia wasnt really fat, just a little overweight, but he mustve put on that weight since his uniform was new, because it was really too tight for him now. Or maybe he was one of those guys who couldnt admit to themselves they had gone up a size. Or maybe he thought he looked like some kinda stud in tight pants. But the way his stomach was cinched in by his belt, puffing out above and below, just made him look like a conceited jerk. His face was kinda pasty, with a narrow mouth and sharp nose. I couldnt tell anything about his eyes because of his sungla.s.ses.

When Vakharia spoke, his voice was pleasant enough, I guess, in an official way, but there was still this undertone of "dont-f.u.c.k-with-me" in it.

"Howdy, gents. I heard tell we had some new residents in the county. Would you be them, by any chance?"

Sid stuck out his hand, trying his trick of getting Vakharia to shake. But the cop wasnt Angie, and he didnt make any move to accept Sids hand. After static and voices had crackled from the cruiser for what seemed like a long, long interval, Sid dropped his hand and spoke.

"Well, officer, you heard right. Me and my buddy here have signed on for a hitch at Rancho Danielson. Sid Hartshorn and Kid A, at your service."

The cop ignored me for the time being. "Got any ID, Hartshorn?"

"Sure thing." Sid dug a license out of his back pocket and handed it over.

Vakharia took it, strode to his car and radioed it in. He came back shortly and said, "Okay, youre clean. Now, you."

I gulped, and my throat felt sore. I was scared, but at the same time I was a little angry. "I-I dont have a license. I dont drive."

"Whats your name then?"

Should I tell this cop my real name, and risk him finding out that maybe my parents had a runaway notice out on me? I didnt want my road trip to end so soon. I had hardly begun to experience anything at all. I swore in my head at myself and Sid. Why had I ever agreed to stay nailed down in one place, especially a place that featured such a hard-a.s.s cop?

I didnt say anything, and I could see Vakharia starting to scowl. That was when Sid jumped in.

"Officer, my little buddy here wants to keep his name to himself for a while. Personal reasons, nothing illegal about it. Kid A is all he goes by when hes on the road. Now, I dont believe that he necessarily has to supply you with his actual moniker, unless hes under suspicion of some crime. And you can plainly see thats not the case. Hes not a vagrant, hes a gainfully employed working man. In fact, his boss is expecting him in the diner right this minute. You got my credentials, and I stand bond for the Kid. Plus I think Miss Danielson will vouch for us too. Cant we all be satisfied with that? After all, were not going anywhere. You know right where to find us if you need us for anything."

Vakharia said, "Dont like anyone in my district not having some id."

Those words made Sid bristle. "You know, officer, thats one of the great things about America. Leastwise, the America I know and grew up in. We dont have any national id system. No internal pa.s.sports like the Red Chinese and the G.o.dd.a.m.n South Africans before Mandela. I showed you my drivers license, but that was just a courtesy. That square of plastic is permission from the government for me to drive a car, not permission for me to exist. And I sure as h.e.l.l aint driving no car as I stand here jabbering to you. So if I were you, Id be content with the half a loaf I got, wish us a pleasant goodbye, and let us get back to work, before I ask for your badge number and your bosss name."

Vakharia glared at Sid for a long time. One corner of his mouth was twitching. Finally he said, "You sound like a troublemaker, Hartshorn. The kind of troublemaker we dont need around here."

"Maybe thats because you forgot what a real G.o.dd.a.m.n American citizen sounds like, officer. Been so long since you heard one, maybe. But then again, we might just both be right. In my book, troublemaker and real citizen have always been more or less synonymous."

I braced myself for the cop to take out his cuffs and slap them on Sid. But then, incredibly, Vakharia laughed. It was a nasty laugh, but it was better than the alternative.

"Okay, Hartshorn. You talk tough, but you dont look like any ex-con Ive ever met. Plus I respect Ann. Shes got a good head on her shoulders. Ill cut you and your friend some slack. But just remember this. If anything bad goes down within my district and the perps not obvious, then you twoll be the number one suspects on my list. And well see then if you walk it like you talk it."

"Fair enough, officer. Got any raffle tickets for the fop you want to sell me while youre here?"

"Dont push your luck," said Vakharia. Then he got into his car and took off. He used his siren to stop the traffic on Route 1 so he could merge, even though there was obviously no emergency.

I turned to Sid. My anger toward Vakharia was swamped by my grat.i.tude toward Sid. "Boy, thanks, Sid. I didnt know how I was gonna get out of that one."

"Small lesson for you there, Kid. Respect and deference as a tactic only goes so far with some jerks in positions of power. Sometimes you gotta rear up on your hind legs and let out a roar. Shout it to the top, right? Might not even make things go any smoother, but at least youll be able to look at yourself in the mirror in the morning. Now why dont you go help the ladies inside? And dont bother Ann with an account of this c.r.a.p, okay?"

"Sure."

Inside the diner, Yasmine scowled at me. "I got two dirty tables here, Kid. Youre not earning your share of my tips this way."

I started to say something sharp back, but then I bit my tongue. The story Sue had told me about Yasmine and her mother left me feeling kinda bad for the woman.

"Sorry, Yasmine. I was busy with Sid."

My apology seemed to throw her for a loop. "Well-okay, then."

In the back I strapped on my ap.r.o.n, grabbed the scratched plastic gray tub and went out front to bus the dirty tables.

Time went by pretty quickly. Sid came to pick up lunch for himself and Angie. By three I was really hungry. Sonny made me a triple-decker tuna sandwich with fries. I scarfed it down, finished my share of the cleanup, got my few bucks from Yasmine, then went to look for Sid.

I found him at the garage, sitting in the little office with Angie.

They were playing chess.

At first I didnt believe my eyes. There they sat, underneath a tattered calendar of a babe in a bikini stroking a transmission. Fanbelts in their cardboard sleeves hung from a pegboard. Tottering piles of new air filters and oil filters and spark plugs stood all around them. The greasy wrappers from their sandwiches lay across the rubbery green desktop. There was barely room left for the chessboard. They were hunched over it deep in concentration, and didnt even hear me come in.

"Uh, Sid, shouldnt we be getting back to sc.r.a.ping?"

"Shhh! Not now, Kid. This b.a.s.t.a.r.ds getting ready to whip my a.s.s, and I gotta focus."

I had never played chess before, so I couldnt tell who was winning. It seemed like each player had about the same number of pieces left. But I knew that some pieces counted for more than others.

At last Sid moved a piece. Angie followed up quickly. Sid said, "d.a.m.n!" and knocked over one of his own pieces. "You got me, Ange."

The burly mechanic did not smile exactly. But he gave off this kinda satisfied glow. "Well, you put up a good fight."

The phone in the office rang, making me jump for some reason. Angie picked it up. "Uh-huh. Right near the Lil General store? Ill be right out.

"Lady with a flat," Angie said after he hung up. "You guys wanna come?"

"Sure," said Sid.

"All right," I said.

Angie flipped a cardboard sign in the office window to closed, but didnt bother to lock up. We piled into the front seat of the Deer Park Filling Station tow truck, with me in the middle. Angie and Sid both smelled sweaty, but not gross. I figured I probably smelled worse than either of them. Id have to try to take a shower before I hung out with Sue tonight. That is, if she even showed up.

We had to wait for a break in the traffic to cut across all four lanes, but then we drove fast.

While we drove, Angie and Sid talked about chess. Angie had learned to play at a Boys Club when he was a kid. Sid had learned in New York City, from people who played in some park somewhere. It was hard to imagine Angie as a kid. Sid in New York I could picture better, even though I had never been near that city myself.

The woman was standing outside and behind her car in the breakdown lane. I had been kinda fantasizing about some real glamorous young babe in distress, maybe because of that calendar picture. But instead she turned out to be short and stocky and maybe thirty-five years old, wearing a sweatshirt and sweatpants. But her face was kinda pretty, and she smiled real big when we pulled up.

Between the two of them, Sid and Angie made short work of changing the tire. The spare was a doughnut, not good for much, and the woman agreed to follow us back to get the real tire patched up.

Back at the station, I helped too. Angie showed me how to find the hole and plug it. That was cool. Pretty soon, we had the woman back on the road. She gave us a five-dollar tip to split between us. I told Angie to keep my share.

"No way, boy. You earned it."

I stuck the dollar and change in my pocket. With what I made yesterday and today from Yasmine, I had over ten bucks. There was nothing to spend it on here at Deer Park, so I thought Id keep saving whatever I earned, as a stake for once I hit the road again.

"Well, Kid, guess we should get back to our sc.r.a.ping, at least for another hour or so."

Angie said, "Another game tomorrow?"

"Sure, Ange. I gotta reclaim my G.o.dd.a.m.n honor somehow."

Sid and I headed back to the cabins. I wanted to ask if Sid had lost the game to Angie on purpose, but in the end I kept that question to myself.

We went back to work until around five oclock. Then Sid said, "h.e.l.lfire, thats a long enough day for me. Anns paying us, but shes not paying us time-and-a-half. Lets call it a day, Kid."

"Fine by me."

We cleaned up our stuff. Sid said, "Race you for a shower."

"Youre on!"

He beat me to the outer door to Ann and Sues rooms by about five seconds.

While I waited outside for Sid to finish his shower, Sue strolled by. She looked more bored than tired.

"Hey."

"Hey."

"Still think you wanna listen to some music with me?"

"Okay. But just till nine or so."

"Thats cool Ill meet you at the trailer. Bring some sweet stuff."