all know him better than me these days."
"Well, better than anyone except them. They've got shit to do. We're going to have to audition tomorrow."
"They're replacing him? Already?"
Chad shrugged. "Not replacing forever. Just until we get him the hell back. We've got four shows coming up back to back."
"Three. There are three more."
Chad looked like he was about to say something then thought better of it and stopped. He opened his mouth again and said, "Right, right. Three more. And we need to get a session musician in until he gets back. So we’ve got to audition, and you’ve got to get Si back."
I could never put my finger on it, but there was always something a little off about Chad. As if he was always scheming something, his mind hours or days ahead of whatever was going on now. I put it down to too much stress, too much shit on his plate, and far too much cocaine. The usual.
"How are we going to find them?" asked Ava.
"You're intending to help out too, huh, little miss?" asked Chad, his eyes flickering up and down her body again.
"I am not a little miss . And you're damn right I'm going to be helping out. She's my goddamned sister."
Chad looked at me and grinned. He raised his right hand in the air and raked it through the air with his fingers outstretched like claws. "Meow, feisty."
My eyes shot to Ava just in time to see her hand whip through the air and slap Chad across the face. I probably could have stopped her. If I’d wanted to.
"Yep," I said to Chad who was rubbing his hand against his cheek.
"So where do we think they are?" asked Ava calmly, her anger sated for now. This girl was feisty and I loved it. I like chicks with balls on them. Not literally, of course.
"Come on. I'll show you the note," said Chad without a hint of humor. He'd been cowed for now.
W e read the note together .
"So any ideas where he might be?" asked Chad.
"This bit," I jabbed at the paper, "he says he’s going to pursue his destiny."
“His destiny? That really sounds like he’s on drugs,” said Ava.
"Wasn't that becoming a rock star? Aren't I helping him with that right this very minute? Isn't Chad Chad here the daddy of helping young rockstars pursue their destinies of rock stardom?" Chad was shaking his head in disbelief, at the sheer ungratefulness of Si toward what he had done for him.
"I think... and I may be wrong, but I think I might know what he's talking about."
"What?" asked Ava.
"When we were young he used to talk about his granddad a lot. He never met this granddad, just heard stories about him from his uncle. But he was foreign, from Burma--"
"You mean Myanmar?"
"He called it Burma. Anyway, his granddad was some kind of Burmese boxing champion. There was a word for it, Luwei. Lethway. Some shit like that."
"Lethwei," said Chad.
I looked at him with my head tilted giving him a how the fuck do you know that look.
Chad shrugged in an uncharacteristically modest gesture. "I used to do a lot of bar quizzes."
"Right, Lethwei. Anyway, even while he used to sit there, strumming the bass away, he used to talk about how we was going to be a kickboxer too. A rock star kickboxer. Said he was going to win tournaments and shit. Said it was his dream."
"You've got some weird friends," said Ava.
I shrugged. "He was the least weird of us. Anyway, that's it. That's what he used to say was his destiny or some shit."
"So... did he ever take any classes or anything? Can he actually fight?"
A snort of laughter escaped at the thought of it. He couldn't fight his way out of a paper bag. He was all talk and no trousers when it came to that stuff.
"In a word, no. We used to watch kung fu flicks though. Bruce Lee, Chuck Norris shit. That's about the extent of his training."
"So what's that got to do with the note?"
"Well, it's the only thing that makes any sense. At least from back when I knew him. Maybe he's found a new ‘destiny’. But I doubt it. I bet it's something to do with that."
"So should we look
"Well, better than anyone except them. They've got shit to do. We're going to have to audition tomorrow."
"They're replacing him? Already?"
Chad shrugged. "Not replacing forever. Just until we get him the hell back. We've got four shows coming up back to back."
"Three. There are three more."
Chad looked like he was about to say something then thought better of it and stopped. He opened his mouth again and said, "Right, right. Three more. And we need to get a session musician in until he gets back. So we’ve got to audition, and you’ve got to get Si back."
I could never put my finger on it, but there was always something a little off about Chad. As if he was always scheming something, his mind hours or days ahead of whatever was going on now. I put it down to too much stress, too much shit on his plate, and far too much cocaine. The usual.
"How are we going to find them?" asked Ava.
"You're intending to help out too, huh, little miss?" asked Chad, his eyes flickering up and down her body again.
"I am not a little miss . And you're damn right I'm going to be helping out. She's my goddamned sister."
Chad looked at me and grinned. He raised his right hand in the air and raked it through the air with his fingers outstretched like claws. "Meow, feisty."
My eyes shot to Ava just in time to see her hand whip through the air and slap Chad across the face. I probably could have stopped her. If I’d wanted to.
"Yep," I said to Chad who was rubbing his hand against his cheek.
"So where do we think they are?" asked Ava calmly, her anger sated for now. This girl was feisty and I loved it. I like chicks with balls on them. Not literally, of course.
"Come on. I'll show you the note," said Chad without a hint of humor. He'd been cowed for now.
W e read the note together .
"So any ideas where he might be?" asked Chad.
"This bit," I jabbed at the paper, "he says he’s going to pursue his destiny."
“His destiny? That really sounds like he’s on drugs,” said Ava.
"Wasn't that becoming a rock star? Aren't I helping him with that right this very minute? Isn't Chad Chad here the daddy of helping young rockstars pursue their destinies of rock stardom?" Chad was shaking his head in disbelief, at the sheer ungratefulness of Si toward what he had done for him.
"I think... and I may be wrong, but I think I might know what he's talking about."
"What?" asked Ava.
"When we were young he used to talk about his granddad a lot. He never met this granddad, just heard stories about him from his uncle. But he was foreign, from Burma--"
"You mean Myanmar?"
"He called it Burma. Anyway, his granddad was some kind of Burmese boxing champion. There was a word for it, Luwei. Lethway. Some shit like that."
"Lethwei," said Chad.
I looked at him with my head tilted giving him a how the fuck do you know that look.
Chad shrugged in an uncharacteristically modest gesture. "I used to do a lot of bar quizzes."
"Right, Lethwei. Anyway, even while he used to sit there, strumming the bass away, he used to talk about how we was going to be a kickboxer too. A rock star kickboxer. Said he was going to win tournaments and shit. Said it was his dream."
"You've got some weird friends," said Ava.
I shrugged. "He was the least weird of us. Anyway, that's it. That's what he used to say was his destiny or some shit."
"So... did he ever take any classes or anything? Can he actually fight?"
A snort of laughter escaped at the thought of it. He couldn't fight his way out of a paper bag. He was all talk and no trousers when it came to that stuff.
"In a word, no. We used to watch kung fu flicks though. Bruce Lee, Chuck Norris shit. That's about the extent of his training."
"So what's that got to do with the note?"
"Well, it's the only thing that makes any sense. At least from back when I knew him. Maybe he's found a new ‘destiny’. But I doubt it. I bet it's something to do with that."
"So should we look
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