Roadside Bodhisattva Read Online Free

refused to slow down, our packs slapping against our backs like enthusiastic teammates. The buildings we had seen waited for us another few feet down the road.
    A weedy gravel parking lot stretched in front of two shabby structures. One building resembled a small ranch house, with its front rooms fixed up to be an office. I knew this because there was a darkened neon office sign in one window. The other sign above this door said deer park motor lodge. The second building struck me as more important just then. It was a long, low-slung boxy diner that billed itself as deer park kitchen. A third building, set off to one side, had its own paved frontage. It was a gas station with just one pump and one bay, deer park filling station and repairs.
    Behind the office building, about six small crummy-looking cabins sat on a grassy area that called out for a good mowing. Sharing a gravel path, they seemed to huddle against the dark forest behind them. A busted-down old-fashioned torpedo-shaped rust-spotted silver trailer was tucked away partly out of sight behind some birch trees.
    The gravel lot held three or four cars. I guessed it was about ten o’clock or so, and the breakfast crowd must’ve faded away. I had left my watch back home on purpose when I set out, and Sid didn’t seem to carry one either.
    Sid smacked those thick lips of his like a cartoon wolf. “Man oh man, this place has hungry traveler’s heaven written all over it. You willing to part with a few bucks, Kid A? Pancakes, bacon, eggs, coffee. That appeal to you?”
    “Sounds sweet.”
    “What’re we jawing for then? In we go!”
    The heavy wooden door opened outward, allowing delicious smells to escape. My mouth watered and my stomach clenched in on itself.
    Booths with window views ran along the outer wall of the diner, to either side of the door. A counter with stools and a cash register occupied the other wall. Behind the counter stood deep-friers, a grill and several drink dispensers. Standing at the grill, his back to us, was a small, skinny guy, his apron knotted behind him. Sparse hair was slicked across his skull in a totally gruesome comb-over. Also behind the counter was a pretty woman, stocking shelves and cleaning. She wasn’t young, maybe even as old as Sid, and her face was red from hot work and her brown hair was pinned up sloppy. But she was still pretty. Out among the booths, a waitress was scooping up dirty plates from an empty table and loading them into a big rubber bin. She was about twenty-five, I figured, and she was really sexy.
    Some groups of people were seated in the booths, chatting and eating. But several booths showed still vacant.
    “Let’s shuck these packs and grab us a seat, Kid A.”
    Sid and I got ourselves seated. After the waitress had carried her bucket full of dirty dishes into a back room, she ambled over, taking her time. I studied her as she came.
    She had long black hair clipped up atop her head so that it fountained forward. She wore a tight one piece white waitress uniform that showed off her curves and which stopped about mid-thigh, and clunky white waitress shoes. Her long legs were bare. She used a lot of makeup, and her nails were long and painted raspberry color to match her lipstick. She didn’t look too stuck-up or conceited, but she didn’t look cheery or real friendly either. Just kinda bored and above everything.
    Her voice was nice but neutral, without a lot of energy. She had some kind of way of talking I thought maybe showed she came from California.
    “What can I get for you two?”
    Sid said, “Well, now, that depends on what your fine establishment offers. Any chance of us snagging a couple of menus?”
    The waitress sighed, and brought us stained laminated menus from the counter.
    “Thank you very kindly, darling.”
    She rolled her eyes and made a point of digging out her pad and pencil and holding them poised like she was in a hurry. I wanted to rush my order, but Sid deliberately made a