If I see any one of you doing that before I teach you how to do it properly, I’ll send you
all
home. Got it?”
“Got it,” we all said.
“Good,” Peter said. “Now that that is out of the way, let’s talk about something more fun—your bikes. They arrived earlier today. They’re in my garage.”
“How many boxes?” Hú Dié asked.
“Three. I didn’t open them, but based on the size, one looks like bike frames, one is probably wheels, and the last one is gear.”
“Three is the magic number,” Hú Dié said. “I packed the boxes myself.”
I couldn’t wait to open the boxes. Uncle Tí had given Hú Dié a tiny vial of dragon bone to include in the shipment, and she’d stuffed it into my bike’s hollow seat post. It wasn’tthe greatest hiding place, but it was better than my trying to sneak the dragon bone onto our airplane.
“Oh, my,” Hú Dié said suddenly.
“Sweet!” Jake said.
I glanced out the window and grinned. The strip malls and residential neighborhoods we’d been driving past disappeared, replaced by meadows of rolling hills. A canopy of trees covered the road. We drove over a stone bridge, and I caught a glimpse of the sea down a steep slope to our right. It looked like something out of a fairy tale.
“Nice scenery,” Phoenix said, “but where are we supposed to ride? This road is pretty narrow, and we’re right on the edge of a cliff.”
“That’s a surprise I’m saving for tomorrow morning,” Peter said. “It’s not far, and it’s quite safe. If you like it here, you’ll love it there.”
We slowed and turned onto a side road, bouncing along pockmarked asphalt that rose and fell between towering eucalyptus trees. Peter lowered his window, and I could hear and smell the ocean. We drove around a sharp bend, and surf crashed against rocks just a few feet from the pavement. The only thing separating us from the sea foam was a knee-high stone railing. The other side of the narrow road didn’t have a shoulder, either, just a tall hill of solid rock.
“I am speechless,” Hú Dié said.
“I’m not!” Jake said. “This is the coolest! Wow!”
“I’m glad you like it,” Peter said. “I have a small place just up this next hill.”
The van climbed the steep slope, and we pulled intoPeter’s driveway. He hit the button on his garage door opener, and the door began to rise.
“Look at that!” Hú Dié exclaimed. “I might never go into the house!”
Peter had converted his garage into a small machine shop where he built custom handcycles for himself and others. Tools and machines were neatly arranged atop a series of low workbenches. Cycles in different stages of completion hung from winches attached to the ceiling.
Peter turned to Hú Dié. “You like to look at mechanical things?”
Phoenix laughed. “She likes to
build
mechanical things. She has the craziest bike I’ve ever seen. She even named it:
Trixie
.”
“Really?” Peter said. “Ryan’s mother told me that you and your father owned a bike shop, but she didn’t mention that your employees actually build them.”
Hú Dié flashed her brilliant smile. “I build them.”
“You assemble everything yourself?” Peter asked.
“Yes. I fabricate the frames, too. We have tube benders and a TIG welder. I even paint the frames.”
“You bend steel?”
“Sometimes,” Hú Dié said. “Most of our customers want aluminum, though. It is so much lighter.”
“It sure is,” Peter said. “Do you know how to weld aluminum?”
“Sure. It took a few years to get the hang of it. Now I weld aluminum for other people, too. Not a lot of people know how to do it.”
“I got that,” Peter said. “I’ve been trying for years, but I still keep blowing holes in my frames. I end up spending a fortune to have my bikes welded by someone else, and a lot of times
they
don’t even get it right.”
“I can teach you how to do it,” Hú Dié offered.
“Really?”
She nodded. “Although it is
all
home. Got it?”
“Got it,” we all said.
“Good,” Peter said. “Now that that is out of the way, let’s talk about something more fun—your bikes. They arrived earlier today. They’re in my garage.”
“How many boxes?” Hú Dié asked.
“Three. I didn’t open them, but based on the size, one looks like bike frames, one is probably wheels, and the last one is gear.”
“Three is the magic number,” Hú Dié said. “I packed the boxes myself.”
I couldn’t wait to open the boxes. Uncle Tí had given Hú Dié a tiny vial of dragon bone to include in the shipment, and she’d stuffed it into my bike’s hollow seat post. It wasn’tthe greatest hiding place, but it was better than my trying to sneak the dragon bone onto our airplane.
“Oh, my,” Hú Dié said suddenly.
“Sweet!” Jake said.
I glanced out the window and grinned. The strip malls and residential neighborhoods we’d been driving past disappeared, replaced by meadows of rolling hills. A canopy of trees covered the road. We drove over a stone bridge, and I caught a glimpse of the sea down a steep slope to our right. It looked like something out of a fairy tale.
“Nice scenery,” Phoenix said, “but where are we supposed to ride? This road is pretty narrow, and we’re right on the edge of a cliff.”
“That’s a surprise I’m saving for tomorrow morning,” Peter said. “It’s not far, and it’s quite safe. If you like it here, you’ll love it there.”
We slowed and turned onto a side road, bouncing along pockmarked asphalt that rose and fell between towering eucalyptus trees. Peter lowered his window, and I could hear and smell the ocean. We drove around a sharp bend, and surf crashed against rocks just a few feet from the pavement. The only thing separating us from the sea foam was a knee-high stone railing. The other side of the narrow road didn’t have a shoulder, either, just a tall hill of solid rock.
“I am speechless,” Hú Dié said.
“I’m not!” Jake said. “This is the coolest! Wow!”
“I’m glad you like it,” Peter said. “I have a small place just up this next hill.”
The van climbed the steep slope, and we pulled intoPeter’s driveway. He hit the button on his garage door opener, and the door began to rise.
“Look at that!” Hú Dié exclaimed. “I might never go into the house!”
Peter had converted his garage into a small machine shop where he built custom handcycles for himself and others. Tools and machines were neatly arranged atop a series of low workbenches. Cycles in different stages of completion hung from winches attached to the ceiling.
Peter turned to Hú Dié. “You like to look at mechanical things?”
Phoenix laughed. “She likes to
build
mechanical things. She has the craziest bike I’ve ever seen. She even named it:
Trixie
.”
“Really?” Peter said. “Ryan’s mother told me that you and your father owned a bike shop, but she didn’t mention that your employees actually build them.”
Hú Dié flashed her brilliant smile. “I build them.”
“You assemble everything yourself?” Peter asked.
“Yes. I fabricate the frames, too. We have tube benders and a TIG welder. I even paint the frames.”
“You bend steel?”
“Sometimes,” Hú Dié said. “Most of our customers want aluminum, though. It is so much lighter.”
“It sure is,” Peter said. “Do you know how to weld aluminum?”
“Sure. It took a few years to get the hang of it. Now I weld aluminum for other people, too. Not a lot of people know how to do it.”
“I got that,” Peter said. “I’ve been trying for years, but I still keep blowing holes in my frames. I end up spending a fortune to have my bikes welded by someone else, and a lot of times
they
don’t even get it right.”
“I can teach you how to do it,” Hú Dié offered.
“Really?”
She nodded. “Although it is
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