The Arrival by Sean Monaghan

Author:Sean Monaghan [Monaghan, Sean]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Triple V Publishing
Published: 2015-03-14T18:30:00+00:00

Chapter Thirty-Six

Wright got out of the little souped-up black Japanese car. The air reeked of lawn clippings and motor oil. As if somewhere nearby someone with a mowing franchise had parked their trailer and left it, halfway through maintaining the mower and before dumping yesterday's load.

The light on the house's porch continued to flicker.

The doorway below and behind was dark. There could have been someone inside. Well, someone had opened up that door. Probably just standing there looking straight back out at Wright.

"Who is this?" Wright said, into the car. The driver's door was still open. The car was between him and the curb.

No response.

"This your grandmother?" Wright said. "Kid like you might be living with his grandmother."

"It's Arch," the kid said.

"Arch. How about that? Progress."

"Progress indeed," Anders said.

Wright closed the door and went around the car's hood. His footsteps seemed loud in the quiet street.

"Hey, Arch," Wright said. "Figured I'd drop Corey here home. He had a little trouble, but nothing too bad."

"Corey's always getting himself in trouble," a voice said from the doorway. Just audible. Old and rickety.

Wright reached the curb. He stepped up. There was a strip of grass, dead and weedy.

"Corey was helping us with something, but he seems to have forgotten about it. Someone who might have offered him employment."

A beat, then, "That would be Buzz D."

"Buzz D.?"

"Some kind of rap name. Thinks it sounds like buzzed. Like a bee. Or like being high on something. Thinks it's cool. He's no more than a thug."

"Know where we might find him?" That drone had buzzed around. Maybe that was where he'd gotten the name.

"This time of night?"

"Sure."

"Corey's going to get himself killed doing this stuff."

"So, Buzz D. is a killer?"

"He would say Keellaah. So not really. Likes to think he's tough."

Wright glanced back at the car. Anders had stayed in it with the other two. Good thinking.

"I'm Wright," Wright said. "Sorry, we found Corey's friend in one of our motel rooms. Uninvited. I figured we might bring them both home."

"Corey hurt?"

"Well, his pride, I think. His friend hit his head on the ceiling. Then the floor. More than once."

"You do that?"

"My friend did that."

"Another big guy?"

"Not so much."

The house's front walk had once been a single strip of concrete two and a half feet wide, but was not so broken and cracked that it looked more like a dried up riverbed. There were tire marks on the rough grass from the passage of numerous cars.

"I guess the friend there is Lucas?"

"We didn't get his name. He's not really very verbal right now."

"Knocked out?"

"Seems to be. At least, he's being very reticent."

"That's not like Lucas. I guess he should avoid the ceiling and the floor."

Wright smiled. This Arch seemed like a reasonable person. Even though Wright hadn't seen his face yet. Or even an outline.

"Guess you'll do the same to Buzz D.?" Arch said.

"Not if he's as conversational as you."

"Unlikely, but you can try."

"Know where we might find him?"

Arch gave an address.

"Other side of the city," he added.

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