The Hellhound's Secret

General Deception, Part II

"...One must turn away from a problem to find its solution," said Sensei.

"If you're talking about Zurgane then I agree with your dad," said Kali, wandering over. She was pulling her leather jacket up onto her shoulders and pulled her hair out from under the collar.

Cam frowned as he looked her over. "Where you going?" he asked.

"Storm Chargers. I promised Kelly I would help out while the boys are camping," Kali answered.

"Have you ever worked in an extreme sports store before?"

"Well, no," said Kali, shaking her head. "But I have worked in a record store. How different can it be?"

"What if someone asks you for information on a product, or, you know, for your advice on which products would be better suited for their sport?"

Kali shrugged. "I have participated in extreme sports before, Cam," she said. "I may not be an expert like Kelly or the boys, but I can handle my own."

Cam murmured and raised his head.

"Besides, it's only for a few hours," said Kali. "My only concern is the customers that flirt, or at least try to flirt with me."

"If you can call it flirting," Cam muttered.

Kali laughed. She looked at the screen and then patted Cam's shoulder. "Don't overdo yourself, alright? Tori is at the beach, and I'm at the store, come find one of us if you want a break. I'll see you later."

"Have fun," Cam called.

Kali waved her shoulder and then disappeared above ground.

~X~

Arriving at Storm Chargers, Kali smiled as she spotted Kelly at the front counter. She was reading a sports magazine while a few customers mingled and explored the store.

"Alright, boss?" Kali teased, slapping her hands down onto the counter, making Kelly jump.

"Hey, you're off to a great start," Kelly said. "Putting the boss in the hospital and all that."

"You're tougher than that."

Kelly smiled and closed her magazine. "You sure you want to do this?" she asked. "I can manage until Monday without the boys."

"I got nothing else to do," said Kali. "My boyfriend is camping, my best friends are either surfing or working, and, if I am honest, I could use the extra cash."

"You ever worked under the table before?" Kelly asked.

"A few times, yeah," said Kali. "I had a few odd jobs in Sacramento, growing up, but nothing ever serious until I moved to Briarwood."

"Rock Porium, right?"

Kali nodded. "You know it?" she asked.

"It's one of the stores my guys can get sponsors from."

"That's what those papers were," said Kali, thinking back. "I remember Toby asked me to fill paperwork in once for him, and I noticed that it was sponsor forms. I was curious why a record shop was doing sponsors, seeing as it's, you know, a music store, but I never asked Toby about it."

Kelly smiled. "Yeah, Toby's great, very encouraging," she said. "A little weird, but all the best people are."

Kali rolled her eyes. "I never would've guessed you were an Alice in Wonderland fan," she said.

"Ever since I was a kid," said Kelly, laughing. "So, should we get started?"

"Just point me in the right direction," said Kali, shedding her jacket. She folded it and hid it behind the counter and followed Kelly over to the left side of the store, where a box of Motocross gloves were ready to be unboxed.