The Taste of Home

Chapter 10

With nothing to show for their labor but a couple cheap trinkets, Miguel and Alejandro retreated to Zest Fest's concessions stands. Miguel's eyes and mouth both watered at the spicy scents that permeated the air. With everything from cayenne-dusted popcorn to deep-fried peppers to choose from, they perused every booth before settling on their snacks.

"That guy was a real scumbag, even by carnival standards," Alejandro said. Powdered sugar dusted his mouth as he bit into a deep-fried Oreo. Unlike most of Zest Fest's visitors, he'd opted to punish his arteries instead of his taste buds. "I still can't believe he cheated you like that. Everyone saw you win."

"It's better not to make a fuss." Venom dripped from Miguel's fangs as he liquefied a jalapeño popper into cheesy mush in his mouth. He'd let himself get worked up earlier, and his fangs still ached to take out his frustration. What in the stars' name had gotten into him? "Sorry I couldn't get that bear for you."

"Don't worry about that. I just..." Alejandro sighed. "I just hate seeing people treat you like that."

"It's not like they don't have their reasons." Miguel grimaced as his dripping venom sizzled a hole through his napkins. He held up his hands and flexed his claws. "Folks like me don't exactly look harmless when we get riled up."

"That's nothing. You should see Ralph when he gets mad."

"He told me he got thrown in jail after breaking his hand punching a guy." While laughing as if the story was the funniest joke in the world.

Alejandro snorted. "That was in college. Some creep tried to mug us on our way home from a frat party, and they only had him in jail until they finally figured out who'd attacked who first."

Thank goodness Ralph seemed to have calmed down a bit since then. He was more than willing to speak his mind in the kitchen, but he never let his fists do the talking. "You guys went to school together?"

"And we dated for a while, but that didn't work out." Alejandro's eyes took on a faraway look as he mindlessly turned the last of his Oreos in his hand. "He seems happy with Lucy, I think. They got matching tattoos a while back."

Miguel fought to keep his voice neutral as a strange sense of relief washed over him. "Good for him."

That relief was soon tinged with something far less pleasant. Ralph wouldn't have let Alejandro down. He would have walked away from the booth with that bear, maybe a whole stack of them.

"Sorry today was such a letdown," Miguel said. "If I had just thrown harder..."

"Then that guy would have found some other excuse to be a dick. I'd say we still managed to get some cool stuff." Even though the sun wasn't due to set for another hour or two, Alejandro's glow stick lit up his face with a comforting red glow.

"I have to admit, these are pretty neat." The hatchlings would get an absolute kick out of Miguel's once he got home.

"Attention, everyone," said a voice crackling through Zest Fest's loudspeakers, "there's just five minutes left to sign up for tonight's Spice Showdown. Last one there's as mild as mayonnaise!"

"What in the stars' name is she talking about?" Miguel asked.

"A spicy food eating contest," Alejandro explained. "You should give it a shot! Yolanda wins every year, and I'd say it's about time someone gave her a run for her money."

"She already hates me. I don't even want to know how she'd react if I beat her." She'd probably find a way to barricade him in the prey room.