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Thursday, March 27, 2014

DQ 10-The parade for Don Q

Don Q was outside raking leaves into piles and the wind blew them from the piles back into the yard.
When Seventy Percent asked what he was doing, Don only said "Idle hands are the Devils playthings." and would not come in despite the intermittent drizzle and cold.
Inside Seventy looked at the motorcycles if you could call the collection of parts stacked more than assembled in an almost random pattern as near as he could tell.  Seventy crossed himself.  He would be Pope before anyone convinced him to ride one of these.
Inside the living room beside the candles a few books on motorcycle maintenance had been stacked against the travelogs.  The one open, visible now that SEventy had pulled aside the blackout curtains to let some light into the room was a parts manual, but it seemed to show one of the motorcycles broke into its component parts.  The pages were greasy.  He notice a book, "Walking in the Holy Land" and picked it up and was reading the introduction when there was a loud banging on the door.  'It is the devil himself," Seventy said with a start.  The door was not locked and it flew open.  The 'devil' was a woman wild eyed with a look that stripped Seventy Percent down to his skeleton and left him as naked as the day he was born.
"Who are you?"
"I'm Seventy Percent," he said.
"Seventy...?  Where the hell is Don Q?"
"In the back," Seventy said unable to withhold information and he immediately felt he had betrayed his benefactor, but just that fast she was gone.  The walls seemed to vibrate from the screaming.  Seventy gingerly crossed to the still open door and pushed it partially shut.  He picked up the book but could do nothing more than hug it to his chest.
"What the hell are you doing?" he heard.  He could not hear the answers, but what followed was the loudest, most blasphemes filled harangue he had ever heard, but he was unable to make sense of it.  Later, there was the sound of rubber peeling and he allowed himself a sigh.  When he went back and checked, Don Q was raking leaves as peacefully as ever.
Seventy went back to Walking in the Holy Land.  A more tentative knock.  Seventy was too afraid to answer, but the door, still not fully shut, swung open a bit and a man's voice asked, "Don?"
"It is only me," Seventy said.
"A man, even older than Don Q came into the room in a formal black coat that reached his shins below which was an expensive suit ending in well polished shoes.  "And you are?" he said with a smile.
"P-p...SEventy Percent."
"Well Mr. Percent, that is certainly a strange name."  Before Seventy could explain the main continued, "I suppose from your expression, you have met Jen?"
"Jen?"
"The one that left the track marks outside."
"Diablo!" Seventy said before he could catch himself.
"Well, she is capable of being quite professional, but you are not the only one who has used that expression."
"Who is she?"
"She was married to Don Q.  I believe she came looking for something from him, but what it is I would not know.  I hope she did not kill him?"
"No, senor.  She came and...spoke with him then left."
"I'm sorry, I wanted to come first, but..." the man looked down at his hat, "I'm sorry, can you show me where Don is?"
Seventy took the man with the hat into the back yard where what transpired will be told shortly.

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