Chapter 21

After everyone had showered, John asked “So where are we eating?”

Pixy replied “Everyone OK with the Panda buffet?”

John wasn’t really a fan of the owner of the place, but their food was alright. Pixy noticed his expression flicker, “Something wrong with Panda’s?”

“The guy running the place gives me bad vibes, like from the bad old days. The foods OK through.”

Mei knocked on the door. After letting her in, she was asked her opinion. “It will all be Americanized but I’m good with it.”

Mary spoke up “What do you mean ‘Americanized’?”

“It will not likely be any more authentic than Taco Bell is Mexican food” Mei replied.

John laughed at that, “Don’t get Jose started on Taco Bell whatever you do.”

After they all loaded up in John’s truck, he looked at Mary and said “When we get back, we’ll swap out the tool bed again and put your bed back on.”

“No hurry” she replied, “I’ll still be riding with these two regardless.”

Ten minutes later, they pulled into the parking lot. After getting inside, the host led them to a table, but before she left, she asked Mei in Mandarin where she was from. Replying in kind she said “Seoul.” After getting their drink order, the hostess walked off. John was watching the exchange and saw some dark expressions cross Mei’s face. John suspected it was the assumption the hostess just made. Jose got similar expressions, when people assumed he was Mexican.

After getting their food, Mary, who had noticed the same thing John did, asked, “What happened back there, you looked pissed off?”

Mei shrugged her shoulders “How do you feel when Mexicans assume you are Mexican?”

Mary replied “Those ignorant pendejos, don’t have a clue.” Mary then realized what Mei was saying and said “Sorry, I understand now.”

Pixy just sat there looking lost.

John turned to her and asked, “How many did you get in today?”

“I got in twenty, and Jose got nine, he didn’t look to happy about that.”

John replied “That’s to be expected, he hasn’t picked up a stinger in five months. That’s why continuity of the welding certification matters. Yesterday was his last day to maintain his cert, so he’ll be good for another six months now.”

Mei said “All of his welds passed. If you hadn’t just said what you did, I’d have just assumed he was slower due to being careful. That’s a good pass rate, for the length of inactivity.”

John nodded, “Jose is a good welder, he’s been running with me a touch over two decades, now. When he gets in a groove, it’s more about holding him back. Kind of like you, Pixy.”

Mei wrinkled her brow and asked “Pixy? What’s that about?”

Alex pulled out her phone, showed her green spiked hair, and said, “This was what I looked like the first day.”

Mei giggled “I can see why now. The first time I met her, she had the pink version of that look.”

Everyone but Pixy laughed at that. Pixy just looked perplexed as to why it was funny.

Their table was opposite the drink station. Two of the waitresses there began conversing in Mandarin in low tones. Mei stopped eating, turning her head to eavesdrop.

After a few moments, she turned to the others and said in English “There is trouble brewing here. One of those girls apparently refused to sleep with the owner. Now he’s threatened her with her family and life. We should leave soon to avoid any trouble.”

John looked up and noted the tear stains in the girl’s makeup. He thought to himself, ‘Somewhere, I must have taken a dump under a cross star.’

The alleged owner came out of the back at that time. Rounding the corner to the drink station, he backhanded the girl with a loud smack knocking her to the ground, then began dragging her towards the back. John stood, but Mei was faster, the asshole was on the ground bleeding after two moves by Mei that were almost too fast for the eye to see. John turned to Pixy and Mary and said “Start recording on your phones, I don’t have my body cam on.”

John saw the guy struggling to get behind the counter. He reached down, grabbed an ankle and yanked him back into the open. Whatever was behind the counter was obviously bad news. Pixy, seeing the action, jumped the counter. There was a shotgun on a shelf alongside what was the security camera system. She popped out the memory card, emptied the shells out of the shotgun, and hopped back across the counter.

Mei was pushing the girl out the door at this time. John stood over the guy until everyone had exited, then exited himself. Mei was talking rapidly with the girl, as they pulled out of the lot. She said, “We need to take a left on Adams Street, please?”

After taking the left, the girl guided them to a house that wasn’t much better than a shack. The girl jumped out, ran up to the porch, slid a window open, and crawled through. Mei said, “She’s getting her stuff and papers, please wait a minute.”

No more than thirty seconds later, she came back out the front door with a suitcase in her hand running to the truck. After she jumped in, they heard a female voice screaming from the house. John punched it leaving in a hurry.

After getting back to the park, Mei said “Thank you! This girl was about to disappear permanently. Sorry for dragging you into this.”

John looked at Pixy with a grin “One thing for sure, life has been interesting after getting with you.” She just smiled at that.

Mei was shaking like a leaf. She hugged John until her nerves calmed, then gave him and Pixy a sheepish look. The girl was just staring at them with wide eyes.

Mei said, “I’ll take care of An here. She’s ‘s a little confused and doesn’t understand why you helped her or me. She thinks I belong to you, as in a concubine, because of this” she said as she raised her hair exposing her neck.

On her neck, was a small tattoo. “I was given this when I was twelve, as I grew the characters distorted and now it looks more like a Mandarin sign for concubine instead of the Korean for concubine’s daughter.”

John said “Go get her settled in, then come back here, we need to talk some more.”

Mei nodded, then brought the girl over to Mary’s camper.

John said, “Let’s start swapping this over, pointing at the tool bed. Getting it on the stands and off Mary’s truck didn’t take long, nor did removing the fifth wheel hitch from John’s truck. Soon John was backing his truck under it once again. John called Jose to help them lift Mary’s bed back on to her truck.

Mei who had came back out to watch the festivities said, “She’s settled and sleeping.”

John just grunted acknowledgment as he was under the bed hooking Mary’s lights back up.

After a few more minutes they were done. Looking at his truck he said, “One thing for certain, anyone looking for this truck won’t recognize it now. Thanks for the assist, Jose.”