A Sheep Called Pepito

"What if they're right?"

"You mean: 'what if they find something?' Bah!" Ray's attention was suddenly diverted back to the computer screen as an unknown voice on his machine announced that he had email. Instead of his normal rooster greeting he heard a distorted male voice gruffly announce the arrival of mail by saying:

It took Ray by complete surprise. "Who the hell put that on there?"

Noel laughed. "Not me." But Ray knew it was a dead set lie. The grin gave it all away.

"Where do you find these sounds, or more to the point, when do you find time to download these sounds?"

"Sometimes when it's quiet here..."

"You'll get me into heaps of shit if it comes on and says that when Glandman is around, or when I've got a client sitting here with me. What kind of impression is that going to leave?" Ray was anything but impressed, and very shortly he was going to get a whole lot less impressed. He browsed through the directories on his PC, and eventually into the media folder which housed his sound files. He found the one Noel had put there and deleted it. The folder was otherwise empty.

"Where are my chicken sounds?"

Noel's smile deteriorated into a grimace of pain. "Oh, no, Ray. Don't tell me I..."

"Whatever I say, Noel, I want you to know that you are still my friend," Ray said.

"Uh... Ray?"

Ray pointed to his computer's speakers. "Do you know what is missing?"

"Well, err...Ray."

"My chicken sounds. I cannot find them." Ray's plastic mouse squeaked under the strain of being pushed at breakneck speed across the mouse mat as he searched desperately through his files for his beloved chicken sounds. "I can't believe they're gone!"

"I'm sorry, Ray. I didn't touch them, I swear," Noel said, sincerely.

"It's not your fault," Ray said, aggressively. "Sometimes these computers just delete things of importance on you overnight. I am sure of it. One minute you've got a chicken sound and the next minute it's BLOODY GONE!"

Ray's voice was getting so loud the glass partition separating the offices from the hallway began to shudder.

"I'll have a look at home, Ray. I've got heaps of wav files at home."

"Well, I'll bet you wouldn't have any chicken sounds. Not as good as the ones I had, anyway."

The fear in Noel's face was flooded by a steady stream of perspiration. He found it hard to swallow. Had he accidentally deleted Ray's files? He knew how much those sounds meant to him. Ray had told him before that they were the most important things on the machine and if anybody deleted them he would have their head on a platter. Ray's face was no less pink. It was like a sore blister ready to burst. "Do you know how hard it is to find good chicken sounds? I spent days searching the internet for them. Do you know there are bugger all chicken sounds on the internet?"

"I didn't know that."

"Do a search! Do it now!" Ray demanded, all priorities forgotten.

"What? You're serious? You want me to..."

"Yes," Ray spat. "Do it now!" White stuff foamed near the corners of his mouth. He was deadly serious.

Noel wavered. "But...I've got my column to write. His column was quirkily titled: Poole of Fire and Ray could have easily led him into the fire right about then.

"That can wait," Ray told him. "I want you to go into Bluey's office down there and get on the internet and find me some bloody chicken sounds!"

Noel shuddered. "Okay, Ray. I'll try."

Ray placed a heavy hand on Noel's shoulder.