Page 73 of The Side Road
‘It’s going great. And you?’
‘No complaints. I heard about the bike, the Black Shadow. Can I see it sometime?
‘Sure.’
‘I got a free afternoon right now. My stepdad said you used to race superbikes. He said you were pretty good.’
‘That’s kind of him.’
‘I’ll come by later,’ Jack said.
Standing in the garage,Jack placed his hands on his hips as he admired the Black Shadow. He squatted, and moving his head from side to side, checked out the form of the bike and the tyres. After grabbing a rag, he began polishing the tank. ‘There’s a mark,’ he explained.
‘I just fitted new spark plugs,’ Oliver said. ‘We might start her up.’
‘Seriously?’ Jack beamed.
Oliver straddled the bike. He kicked it over. The engine grumbled and came to life.
‘You did it!’ Tash said. ‘You fixed it.’
Oliver tilted his head. ‘Not yet. Listen.’
They paused, listening to the reverberating rumble of the bike.
‘It’s too loud. Piston slap?’ Jack suggested.
Oliver smiled. The boy was priceless. ‘I need to pull the heads off. But keep listening, there’s something else.’
A muffled, irregular sound came from the engine.
‘It’s the exhaust?’ Tash said.
Jack’s head swivelled. He stared at Tash.
‘You are correct,’ Oliver said. ‘It’s rusted. We’ll need to replace it.’
Jack shook his head. He let out a long whistle of air. ‘The big question is, do you go for an original or a replica?’
‘Original,’ Tash said. ‘We’ll get more money if it’s original.’
‘That’s all very well.’ Jack crossed his arms over his chest. ‘But where are you going to get the parts?’
‘We won’t.’ Oliver cut the ignition. ‘But we can get a custom version made.’
‘That will cost a pretty penny,’ Jack said.
‘Jack, by any chance, is one of your parents English?’ Oliver asked.
‘My stepdad. He’s been in the country for twenty years, and he still calls thongs flip-flops. Drives Mum crazy.’
‘That would be annoying,’ Tash sympathised.
‘Mind if I drop around now and then? Check on the progress?’ Jack asked.
Tash let out a long stream of air through her nostrils – Jack had that effect on her. ‘I guess it’s fine,’ she said.
In the distance, the sound of a Harley-Davidson reached them. The rider pulled up outside the house and dismounted.He removed his helmet, gloves, and bandana. After leaving the items on the bike, he stroked his beard several times before walking toward the garage.
