Page 80 of Moros

Khadri tapped his shoulder.

“I know you got me,” Khadri said. “I just?—”

He saw me standing there.

I wasn’t even sure when I’d moved but he exhaled heavily as the happiness he’d had earlier now disappearing from his eyes.

“Who’s this?” Zero faced me.

“Rei Hakama, meet Ryanne Larwick.” Khadri explained.

“Larwick?” Zero shook my hand. “As in Theodore Larwick?”

I nodded. “I’m his granddaughter.”

“Um—you’re dead.” Zero spoke.

“Nope—still alive—fortunately or unfortunately—depending on who you ask.” I replied. “It’s lovely to meet you, Mr. Hakama.”

Zero laughed softly. “Nope. It’s Rei or Zero.”

Nodding, I looked up at Khadri. “Can we talk?”

“I’m going to head back to the wife.” Zero spoke to Khadri. “Remember what I said, huh?”

Khadri hugged him and after he winked at me, Zero made his way back across the lot.

“Get in.” Khadri said.

Usually, he would open my door for me. This time, he didn’t even look at me twice. Still, I got in and pulled my belt on, waiting until we were settled into driving before I spoke.

“Not yet.” He told me.

“Where are we going?”

“Somewhere we can talk.” He replied tersely.

Eventually, we pulled into a large lot with a food truck.

“Are you hungry?” He wanted to know.

“Um—no.”’

He ordered two coconut juice, and I watched as the man with the weird looking machete cut drinking holes into actual coconuts and stuck a straw in each.

Khadri paid for them and handed me one.

He led me away from the lot down toward the ocean to where they’d set up a seating area.

The sunshine was glorious and thankfully, the heat wasn’t as terrible as it could be. A soft, cool wind blew up from the north leaving the air perfect and fragrant with the smell of fruits from the surrounding trees.

He set his coconut on the table to open the umbrella and when we were shaded, he sat.

“Tex is looking for Paul as we speak,” he said, he was staring back toward the road. “Right now, I’m trying to find any traces of your father and?—”

“I don’t want to talk about that.”

“Then what do you want to talk about?”

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