Editing Getting the Band Together (section)

==='''Arrival'''===
She had walked into town six months earlier. It was a busy place, unlike anything she had seen in her travels. Certainly, it was unlike her home. That was something she could never explain to the people she met here. They would think she had just arrived. Her explorations had been low-key, like a lost puppy. Other cities. Learning languages, manners, cultures. She had to fit in when she got where she was going. Little things went away or were replaced.   In time she was ready for the job at hand.

The heavy guitar case needed to look like it was once well cared for, but time and rough living had stained it. Covered in travel stickers she had collected. It was unusually thick since it carried her 6 string bass guitar, a 6 string Fender lead, a ukele, a recorder, and a piccolo.  It carried more then that but no one was going to see that.

Her backpack looked like something used a decade ago, large and deep, a grown man's hiking backpack but its hidden depths made it worth it.  It was big enough for the beatup gear it carried as well as its necessities and treasures. Paper money and a few gold coins. Her pack had a few practical items. Notebooks filled with songs and music. A cellphone with more music than she had ever heard, but her father had insisted. If she had left it behind, she would have been running away from home. If she took it, she was just traveling. 

Her jeans were patched and fraying, her loose shirt faintly smudged with dirt.  Her hair—that was a crime, cut and dyed blue, but it was necessary. Less bathing. Her mother would have been annoyed to see her.

The careful disguise had worked well enough: she looked the part of the drifter, the runaway. But under the surface was something sharper, something the average observer wouldn’t see. A hunting knife hung on her belt, and deeper in her pack rested her father’s .45 and ammo—a weight she carried with purpose. She didn’t plan to use it. But then again, planning wasn’t always her strong suit.

She found a shady spot under an oak tree where she could see the musicians take turns performing. The crowd’s reactions told her everything she needed to know—who played for passion and who played for desperation. Gadget leaned against the tree, watching, listening, and feeling the pulse of the park.

It wasn’t long before someone noticed her. A boy, maybe the age she portrayed, with unruly hair and a guarded expression, walked over and sat down beside her, uninvited but not unkind.

“Hey,” he said, nodding toward her guitar case. “You looking to play?”

She hesitated. “Yeah.”

“Well, just so you know, in this stretch, Tiffy’s up now, then I’m next, and Jax gets lunch. Cali is missing, and we are worried about her. Holden would be after her, but he hasn’t shown up today. After that, it’s you, if you’re still here. We’ve got a system.” He smirked faintly, but his eyes were serious. “We all gotta eat.”

“Got it,” Gadget replied, her voice measured. She didn’t need to explain herself yet.

“I'm Eddie. Edwardo, technically,” he said with a half-grin. “Parents thought it was funny. And you?”

“Do I find it funny?”

“What’s your name, new girl?”

“Gadget.”

“Really? That’s what you’re going with? People usually pick something easy, like Gail or Ginger.”

“Gadget’s fine,” she said, unmoving. “Nice to meet you.”

Eddie shrugged. “Suit yourself, Gadget. You new to the city?”

She nodded. “More or less. Wandering mostly. Stayed at the mission for a night.” She paused, shuddering. “That place isn’t what I expected.”

Eddie gave her a knowing look. “Yeah, the mission’s rough. Better to stay in the open if you can. But, you know, stay visible. Shakers come out when you’re alone.”

“Shakers?” she asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Shakers are takers,” he said, gesturing toward the park’s edge. “They roll in, act like they belong, and take what’s ours. They don’t care if you’ve got a spot or if you’re trying to eat. Stay sharp, Gadget.”

She nodded, filing away the warning.

Eddie continued, “Listen, you can wander off if you need to, but be back when Jax is done, or someone else’ll jump in. Holden’s been known to push his way in, but if you stand your ground, he’ll back off. He respects the system, even if he pretends not to.” 

“And Cali?” Gadget asked, catching the name from the murmurs earlier.

Eddie frowned. “Cali’s...well, she hasn’t been around. Missed a whole week. She’s in trouble, and we haven't been able to find her. Till we hear something, she’s gotta sort it out herself. That’s how it works.”

Gadget didn’t reply, but her mind turned. Trouble had a way of finding people like her, and she wasn’t sure yet if Cali’s story would intersect with her own. For now, all she could do was wait. And watch.

The guitar case at her side felt heavier now, but not with dread. With purpose. If the park was a stage, she’d play her part soon enough.

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