Complicated Shadow [6/?]
anonymous
February 4 2011, 06:26:27 UTC
The interstate led them through and past Birmingham until they got off on a strip mall exit just beyond the main city. Alfred stopped for McDonald’s, buying Arthur a milkshake that he hadn’t asked for but accepted anyway. The girl at the drive-thru window waved at Al and greeted him by name when he pulled up.
“You come here often, I guess,” Arthur said with an amused smile as they waited at the red light to get back on the main road. Al shrugged.
“It’s the closest fast food place to where I grew up, and where you’re gonna live.” He poked Arthur’s shoulder on the ‘you’re’, and he swatted the hand away.
“Whatever. You’ve got a green light.” Al jerked his attention back to the road and turned right, shoving a handful of fries into his mouth in the process. “So where are we going?”
Alfred swallowed heavily and smiled. “You’re gonna love it, Artie-”
“If you call me anything besides Arthur one more time I will kill you, driving be damned.”
He snorted. “Yeah, right. Anyway, Arthur, it’s a little town just up this road a ways called Shannon. Feels like you’re in the middle of nowhere, but it’s not even fifteen minutes from downtown.” He took a pull from his Coke before continuing, “I got an old friend a’mine to give you a place to stay for now - man, two days is not enough time to rent an apartment around here. For now, you’re his cousin recovering from a bad marriage in the good ol’ US of A.” The car turned left at last green light just before the developments fell away to American forest wasteland. “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure you’re nice and settled and more thoroughly briefed on your new background before I go.”
Arthur shifted through the helter skelter information session in his head, trying to pick out what was meaningful and what was Southern gibberish. “You’re leaving me?”
Alfred laughed. “Well yeah! It’d be mighty suspicious if I stuck around you for too long, ‘specially since most of Shannon already knows I’m a Marshal - although only the police department and Matt knows exactly what it is I’m doin’, a’course.” Al glanced at him from the corner of his eye with a smirk. “You’ll be fine. The police there are new, but they know what they’re doin’, and even I’d think twice about tryin’ to pull the wool over Matt’s eyes when he gets all mama bear on ya. Besides, I’ll just be a twenty minute drive away if worst comes to worst.”
Arthur gave in with a sigh. “So how often were you planning on checking on me, anyway?” Al shrugged.
“Figured we’d start with once a week and go from there. Matt’s wife likes to feed me, so it shouldn’t be too hard to see ya once a week.” Al gave him another sidelong glance that Arthur was beginning to learn was a common habit. “The way you look, I’m sure she’ll wanna feed you all the time, too.”
Arthur sputtered in syllables normally only heard in keyboard smashing. “What does that mean?”
Al gave a little shrug that somehow moved the entire right side of his body. “Katsuya just likes to see men with meat on their bones, s’all.”
“What kind of bloody name is Katsuya?”
“Haha, ‘bloody’. You’re so British.”
And that marked the first of many blows to the head dealt to Alfred by Arthur.
“Hey, hey, be nice to your hero! Anyway, she’s Russian or Ukrainian or sumpin’ like that. Cancer doctor. Came over here for UAB and stayed for Matt, God only knows what she sees in him.” The bumpy forest terrain turned back into houses, and Alfred slowed down to residential pace before pulling into the parking lot of an obviously new brick police station.
Alfred cut off the engine and climbed out of his car, gesturing for Arthur to follow suit. As he opened the rear door to get his briefcase, he called over the car, “Now, although these guys are pretty good, they’re still a really new force - Shannon only just got big enough to need a police force - and this’s their first real big thing, so they might come on a little strong. Just warnin’ ya.” Arthur rolled his eyes and followed him to the door.
“I’ve worked in Manhattan for the past four years. I think I can take a few backcountry sheriffs.” Al snorted and held open the door for Arthur. He scowled and breezed past him into the station.
“You come here often, I guess,” Arthur said with an amused smile as they waited at the red light to get back on the main road. Al shrugged.
“It’s the closest fast food place to where I grew up, and where you’re gonna live.” He poked Arthur’s shoulder on the ‘you’re’, and he swatted the hand away.
“Whatever. You’ve got a green light.” Al jerked his attention back to the road and turned right, shoving a handful of fries into his mouth in the process. “So where are we going?”
Alfred swallowed heavily and smiled. “You’re gonna love it, Artie-”
“If you call me anything besides Arthur one more time I will kill you, driving be damned.”
He snorted. “Yeah, right. Anyway, Arthur, it’s a little town just up this road a ways called Shannon. Feels like you’re in the middle of nowhere, but it’s not even fifteen minutes from downtown.” He took a pull from his Coke before continuing, “I got an old friend a’mine to give you a place to stay for now - man, two days is not enough time to rent an apartment around here. For now, you’re his cousin recovering from a bad marriage in the good ol’ US of A.” The car turned left at last green light just before the developments fell away to American forest wasteland. “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure you’re nice and settled and more thoroughly briefed on your new background before I go.”
Arthur shifted through the helter skelter information session in his head, trying to pick out what was meaningful and what was Southern gibberish. “You’re leaving me?”
Alfred laughed. “Well yeah! It’d be mighty suspicious if I stuck around you for too long, ‘specially since most of Shannon already knows I’m a Marshal - although only the police department and Matt knows exactly what it is I’m doin’, a’course.” Al glanced at him from the corner of his eye with a smirk. “You’ll be fine. The police there are new, but they know what they’re doin’, and even I’d think twice about tryin’ to pull the wool over Matt’s eyes when he gets all mama bear on ya. Besides, I’ll just be a twenty minute drive away if worst comes to worst.”
Arthur gave in with a sigh. “So how often were you planning on checking on me, anyway?” Al shrugged.
“Figured we’d start with once a week and go from there. Matt’s wife likes to feed me, so it shouldn’t be too hard to see ya once a week.” Al gave him another sidelong glance that Arthur was beginning to learn was a common habit. “The way you look, I’m sure she’ll wanna feed you all the time, too.”
Arthur sputtered in syllables normally only heard in keyboard smashing. “What does that mean?”
Al gave a little shrug that somehow moved the entire right side of his body. “Katsuya just likes to see men with meat on their bones, s’all.”
“What kind of bloody name is Katsuya?”
“Haha, ‘bloody’. You’re so British.”
And that marked the first of many blows to the head dealt to Alfred by Arthur.
“Hey, hey, be nice to your hero! Anyway, she’s Russian or Ukrainian or sumpin’ like that. Cancer doctor. Came over here for UAB and stayed for Matt, God only knows what she sees in him.” The bumpy forest terrain turned back into houses, and Alfred slowed down to residential pace before pulling into the parking lot of an obviously new brick police station.
Alfred cut off the engine and climbed out of his car, gesturing for Arthur to follow suit. As he opened the rear door to get his briefcase, he called over the car, “Now, although these guys are pretty good, they’re still a really new force - Shannon only just got big enough to need a police force - and this’s their first real big thing, so they might come on a little strong. Just warnin’ ya.” Arthur rolled his eyes and followed him to the door.
“I’ve worked in Manhattan for the past four years. I think I can take a few backcountry sheriffs.” Al snorted and held open the door for Arthur. He scowled and breezed past him into the station.
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