Page 105 of Cookout Carnage
A man stood in the doorway, wiping oil off his hands on a rag. He was dressed in overalls and had a baseball cap jammed down over his light brown hair. Tristan recognised him from the diner earlier, and as the driver of the Buick from the day before.
‘Is this your car?’ he asked.
The man nodded, crossing his arms in front of his chest.
‘Are you the artist?’
The man nodded again slowly, as if the conversation was the prelude to a fight.
‘It’s incredible. You’ve got a real gift.’
The man’s stance relaxed a little. ‘You think?’
‘Absolutely. The level of detail is amazing. My younger sister does a lot of painting, so she’s taught me what to look for. Is this what you do? Paint cars?’
The man shook his head and let out a bitter laugh. ‘This is my pop’s business and he’s pretty clear about what he thinks of my ideas.’
Tristan looked up. ‘But he allowed you to do that?’
The man grinned. ‘No, he didn’t. He just left town with Ma for a week and…’ He raised his hands and shrugged.
Tristan grinned back and pulled out his phone. ‘Do you mind if I take some pictures?’
The man shrugged again. ‘Knock yourself out.’
‘Have you posted any of these online? I’m sure there are loads of people who would want something like this.’
‘I’ve got Instagram. But I’ve got like three followers or something.’
Tristan pulled up his account. ‘What’s the name?’
‘Axle Bodean. Axle spelled like the one on a car.’
‘Well, your follower count just went up one.’ He extended his arm. ‘I’m Tris.’
‘Axle.’
‘Nice to meet you.’
‘You too, man. What you doing in Midway? You seem a bit far from home.’
‘I’m just here for a few days. My friend’s getting married in Fairview the day after tomorrow, and I’m spending the weekend with my girlfriend and her family.’
‘Your first Fourth of July?’
‘Uh-huh.’
‘We take it pretty seriously here. Well, my folks do anyways.’
‘Do I need to hide my accent?’
Axle laughed. ‘No, you’re cool. Just steer clear of my pop if he’s on his eighth beer.’
‘Will do.’ Tristan looked between the mural and the car. ‘Who is she? Is she famous?’
Axle looked at his boots and shook his head. ‘She’s just made up.’
‘It’s weird but I’m positive I know her, or I’ve met her before. She just seems so familiar.’
