take off into the air like some awkward fledgling bird.
Instead he does a header off the path, crying out in a shriek of pain as he lands hard in the ditch.
I hop off my bike, letting it fall on the side of the road.
“Oh, sorry!” the girl says, her hand to her mouth. “So sorry!”
“Not your fault,” I say in Chinese.
Russell rolls over onto his back, pulls one leg to his chest, moaning.
“Can I help?” the girl asks, whipping out what I’m pretty sure is a
shanzhai
iPhone, a counterfeit.
“
Mei wenti
,” I assure her. “Your
xiaoniu
is running away.”
“
Aiya!
” And she hustles down the path, trying to catch up to her calf.
Meanwhile the big cow stands in the middle of the road staring at me with its placid brown eyes.
“Hey,” I say to Russell, who still lies flat on his back, pressing his thigh into his chest. “You okay?”
“What the fuck do you care?” he says between clenched teeth.
“Hello? You’re the one who attacked
me
. What the fuck’s your problem anyway?”
I scoot down into the ditch next to him. He backs up to get away from me, his shoulders pushing into the dirt and gravel. But aside from whatever’s going on with his leg, he’s holdinghis left arm against his chest, like he’s splinting it, and as I get closer, I see that his wrist has already started to swell.
“Get the fuck away from me!”
“Fine.” I shrug. “You wanna lie in the ditch with the cow, go for it. Seriously, does your paranoia go to eleven? If this is because I was asking questions about … about David—”
“He said they’d send people,” he spits.
“Who’s ‘they’?”
His face twists. “You think I’m stupid?”
Well, yeah, but I’m not going to say that.
“Look, the only ‘they’ who sent me is David’s family. They’re worried about him.”
That’s when he reaches behind his hip with his good hand. I back away. Especially when I see that he’s reached for a knife. It may be a cheap Chinese knockoff of a Ka-Bar that he fumbles out of its sheath, but it looks sharp enough to do some damage.
I lift my hands. “Okay. Whatever.” I scramble up to the road. “Because, unlike you, I’m not a crazy psycho, I’ll let someone know you’re here.”
I pedal back to the Ancient Village Artist Retreat.
When I get there, I turn in the bike to the same Chinese guy who kitted it out for me. “
Hao wan?
” he asks with a grin. Good time?
“
Hen hao wanr.
” Yeah, dude, it was really fun. If you have a weird definition of fun.
I limp into the reception area. I seriously need a beer.
Sitting at the desk is a Chinese woman who looks even younger than Heather. Slight and short, with big eyes and straight hair that cups her chin. She looks like a freakin’ elf. Or an anime character. She puts an English textbook facedown on the counter as I approach.
“
Ni hao
. Are you Alice?” I ask.
She nods. “Yes, Alice.”
“So I was visiting the art space, and this guy, I think his name is Russell? Do you know him?”
“Yes, Russell.” The way she says his name, I can’t tell what she thinks about him.
“Well, he had an accident on the road back there.”
“Accident?”
“Yeah. He … ran into a cow. I mean, he’s not hurt badly or anything, he just can’t walk very well. So I told him I’d let someone know.”
“Okay. Okay, thank you. Thank you very much.” She manages a polite smile before she picks up a cell phone.
“When you’re done, can I talk to you?” I point toward one of the wooden tables they have set up for indoor dining. “I’ll just be over there having a beer.”
By the time she comes over, I’ve drunk half my Liquan and am already thinking about the next one. It goes down like water. Delicious, beer-flavored water.
There’s a couple of guests sitting at the tables, checking email on their laptops, drinking coffee. I’ve found a seat in the corner, away from the others, so it’s relatively private. No sign of my mom or Andy. I
Instead he does a header off the path, crying out in a shriek of pain as he lands hard in the ditch.
I hop off my bike, letting it fall on the side of the road.
“Oh, sorry!” the girl says, her hand to her mouth. “So sorry!”
“Not your fault,” I say in Chinese.
Russell rolls over onto his back, pulls one leg to his chest, moaning.
“Can I help?” the girl asks, whipping out what I’m pretty sure is a
shanzhai
iPhone, a counterfeit.
“
Mei wenti
,” I assure her. “Your
xiaoniu
is running away.”
“
Aiya!
” And she hustles down the path, trying to catch up to her calf.
Meanwhile the big cow stands in the middle of the road staring at me with its placid brown eyes.
“Hey,” I say to Russell, who still lies flat on his back, pressing his thigh into his chest. “You okay?”
“What the fuck do you care?” he says between clenched teeth.
“Hello? You’re the one who attacked
me
. What the fuck’s your problem anyway?”
I scoot down into the ditch next to him. He backs up to get away from me, his shoulders pushing into the dirt and gravel. But aside from whatever’s going on with his leg, he’s holdinghis left arm against his chest, like he’s splinting it, and as I get closer, I see that his wrist has already started to swell.
“Get the fuck away from me!”
“Fine.” I shrug. “You wanna lie in the ditch with the cow, go for it. Seriously, does your paranoia go to eleven? If this is because I was asking questions about … about David—”
“He said they’d send people,” he spits.
“Who’s ‘they’?”
His face twists. “You think I’m stupid?”
Well, yeah, but I’m not going to say that.
“Look, the only ‘they’ who sent me is David’s family. They’re worried about him.”
That’s when he reaches behind his hip with his good hand. I back away. Especially when I see that he’s reached for a knife. It may be a cheap Chinese knockoff of a Ka-Bar that he fumbles out of its sheath, but it looks sharp enough to do some damage.
I lift my hands. “Okay. Whatever.” I scramble up to the road. “Because, unlike you, I’m not a crazy psycho, I’ll let someone know you’re here.”
I pedal back to the Ancient Village Artist Retreat.
When I get there, I turn in the bike to the same Chinese guy who kitted it out for me. “
Hao wan?
” he asks with a grin. Good time?
“
Hen hao wanr.
” Yeah, dude, it was really fun. If you have a weird definition of fun.
I limp into the reception area. I seriously need a beer.
Sitting at the desk is a Chinese woman who looks even younger than Heather. Slight and short, with big eyes and straight hair that cups her chin. She looks like a freakin’ elf. Or an anime character. She puts an English textbook facedown on the counter as I approach.
“
Ni hao
. Are you Alice?” I ask.
She nods. “Yes, Alice.”
“So I was visiting the art space, and this guy, I think his name is Russell? Do you know him?”
“Yes, Russell.” The way she says his name, I can’t tell what she thinks about him.
“Well, he had an accident on the road back there.”
“Accident?”
“Yeah. He … ran into a cow. I mean, he’s not hurt badly or anything, he just can’t walk very well. So I told him I’d let someone know.”
“Okay. Okay, thank you. Thank you very much.” She manages a polite smile before she picks up a cell phone.
“When you’re done, can I talk to you?” I point toward one of the wooden tables they have set up for indoor dining. “I’ll just be over there having a beer.”
By the time she comes over, I’ve drunk half my Liquan and am already thinking about the next one. It goes down like water. Delicious, beer-flavored water.
There’s a couple of guests sitting at the tables, checking email on their laptops, drinking coffee. I’ve found a seat in the corner, away from the others, so it’s relatively private. No sign of my mom or Andy. I
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