[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

changes, and a good workmanlike player could always find those.
Slim's fingers itched to play, which to him meant the band wasn't coming up to his standards.
Progress came back to the table and set two bottles of beer down just as the band kicked into a good
version of "You Can Have My Husband but Don't You Mess with My Man." They both listened for a
while. Progress tapped his foot on the table leg, and Slim was relieved to hear that, even if the world
he was in was different, much of the music had stayed the same. Standards were standards anywhere,
he guessed. Still, the music here, in this world, seemed to have more life, more vitality.
"What you think of the band?" Progress asked.
"They're okay," Slim said. "Nothing special. House band?"
"Yep. They don't have much power on their own. It's there, but they don't get to it. Probably
wouldn't know what to do with it if they did."
"Progress," Slim said. "I don't really understand what you mean by power. I can hear that the
music here is more more something than it is in my world. But I don't get what this power is."
"Well, son, the power of the blues ain't somethin' I can rightly explain. You wait till Nadine
comes on for her gig, then I think you'll see what I mean."
The band on stage stopped for a break, slowly moving off to the bar for the free beers and towels
the management provided as perks. Progress waved at them, inviting them to the table. They waved
back, and one of them, a skinny, dirty-blond, intense-looking man came over.
"Hey, Zarb," Progress said. "Soundin' all right tonight."
The man shook his head. "Nah," he said. "Sound just the same as we always do. Straight stuff,
nothin' big. Pays the bills, you know." He seemed to notice Slim for the first time. "Who's this?" he
asked Progress.
"Name's Slim Chance," the old man said. "My new apprentice."
"You took him on?"
a
a
T
T
n
n
s
s
F
F
f
f
o
o
D
D
r
r
P
P
m
m
Y
Y
e
e
Y
Y
r
r
B
B
2
2
.
.
B
B
A
A
Click here to buy
Click here to buy
w
w
m
m
w
w
o
o
w
w
c
c
.
.
.
.
A
A
Y
Y
B
B
Y
Y
B
B
r r
"Yep. What's wrong with that?"
"Nothing I guess. Not with him anyway. I'm just surprised." He turned to Slim. "My sympathies,"
he said. "I'm Zarble Marz."
"Glad to meet you," Slim said, shaking the man's bony hand. "What do you mean, your
sympathies?"
"Hah! Progress here, he's had a hard time with apprentices. Or they've had a hard time with him.
Hasn't he started teaching you yet?"
"Yeah, but there's nothing hard about it, except maybe my own ignorance."
Marz looked at him in surprise. Then he smiled and turned back to Progress. "Sounds like you
caught hold of the right sucker this time, old man."
"He's a good boy," Progress said. "You watch out for him. He'll be comin' along right quick."
The man laughed. "We'll see, we'll see. Look here, I gotta get goin'. Nadine should be about
ready to get started." He took a drink of his beer, smiled at Slim, waved and said, "See you." Then he
walked away.
Slim was left with a slightly sour feeling. "He always talk to you like that?" he asked.
"Sure," Progress said. "Nothin' to it. He got an attitude, but way down deep he's solid. He just
ain't found his groove yet."
"What's he got to do with Nadine?"
Progress raised one eyebrow and studied Slim for a moment. Then the gold smile reappeared.
"No worries, son. He plays in Nadine's band, too. And to answer the question you're too scairt to ask,
no, Nadine don't have any men in her life at the moment."
Slim blushed, but he was relieved. Was he really that easy to see through? And if so, how had it
happened? Was it truly possible to be so deeply involved from just seeing a face in a photograph, from
just an idea?
"What would you say," he asked, "if I told you I think I'm in love with your daughter?"
Progress laughed loudly, slapping his knee and choking, wiping tears from his eyes. When he'd
recovered, he said, "Well, son, I'd say you got yourself mighty good taste but a hunger for danger."
"What's that mean?"
The old man's laughter kept resurfacing. "You'll find out," he said. "The three of us, you and me
and Nadine, we're gonna be spendin' a lot of time together till we get the Gutbucket back."
"You have a plan?"
"Plan? No, no plan. An idea, though."
"What is it? Can I help?"
"Don't want to talk about it yet. Just wait till Nadine's with us, so I don't have to repeat myself.
As to whether or not you can help with it, that's somethin' we'll have to find out along the way. I got
me a feelin' you're a real deep part of it, though." He waved his hand at Slim. "You hush, now. I s'pect [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

  • zanotowane.pl
  • doc.pisz.pl
  • pdf.pisz.pl
  • thierry.pev.pl

    •