Four

One would think that someone who spends days upon days sitting in the passenger seat while on the road would develop some kind of hobby or continuous activity. They could take up reading, or buy a music player. They could buy a laptop and learn a new skill, or keep a journal of the interesting places they’ve been and things they’ve seen on the road. Victor did none of that. Much like a bored kid on a train, all he did was stare out the window and watch the world pass by. Someone else would’ve probably made a game out of trying to find as many different license plates as possible. Not him. His brain was the equivalent of white noise.

This is why Victor preferred the jobs that remained on the eastern seaboard, and Marty’s was a good base of operations. Piper on the other hand, loved to travel. She wanted jobs that took them to different places around the country. Not that you could tell from her natural scowl, but Victor knew that his daughter was excited for this job based on how far they were traveling.

Three hours into the drive and it felt like they hadn’t gone very far. There were virtually no cars on the road and they were in a part of the country where everything was flat and looked the same. The only things that changed were the exit sign numbers and the sun as it rose into the sky. Victor was happy when his stomach started growling because it gave him something to do.

“I’m getting something from the back. You want anything?”

“Cereal bar.” Piper said flatly.

Walking to the back of the truck was like walking to the bathroom on an airplane. It was smooth enough, but all it took was a quick bout of turbulence or a change in direction and you could be thrown off your feet. Victor rummaged through their tiny cupboard and pulled out a couple cereal bars and a large bag of chips for himself.

“That’s not a proper breakfast.” Piper said at the crinkling of the bag of chips.

Victor returned to the front and buckled back up. “It’s my breakfast.”

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During the rest of the day, Victor tried to stay awake. He loved naps, but he felt it wouldn’t be fair to Piper. Most people like him preferred to work alone. They might have family and friends, but it was easier to be a lone wolf. As soon as his daughter found out why he was gone for long periods of time, she decided she wanted to be a part of it. At first he was against it, as was her mother, his ex-wife. Eventually though, she grew up, and right out of high school earned her CDL and managed to convince her father to let her tag along. He had to admit, there were plenty of advantages to having his own driver. The trade-off was that on long road trips like this, he had nothing to do.

It was getting dark when they pulled off onto the exit that would bring them to their first checkpoint. It was a town on the Tennessee/Arkansas border called Dartenville. It was one of those towns that no one would know existed unless you were seeking it out. Even those who lived near it.

A single road ran through the town proper. The town was made up of old brick buildings that looked like they belonged in a historical documentary. Street lights and the truck’s headlights were the only sources of light as they drove. The turn off to go to the truck stop was on one of roads that blended into the scenery, so you had to know exactly what you were looking for. They almost missed it and had to pull a sharp turn that threw Victor into his window

The so-called truck stop was nothing more than a small gas station with a near empty parking lot. There were two pumps for cars, and one for trucks. The pavement was cracked and broken in chunks which made the truck rock and bounce as they drove. There were a couple other cars parked on the far side. They were probably wayward travelers, or a husband who was kicked out of the house for the night.

They pulled into the pump and got out. When Victor’s feet landed, his joints popped in a symphony of pain and relief. The other sound was Piper swearing.

“What’s wrong?” Victor asked.

“This place is so old, they don’t have a credit card swiper. I hate interacting with people at these places. It’s probably some teenager watching TV.” Piper stomped off to the grimy little shack.

Victor went to check on the cargo, though due to the incline it wasn’t hard to tell that it was still there. After he verified that everything was still in place, he walked away from the pumps, lit up a cigarette, and called Gene.

“Hello.”

“It’s Victor. We’ve reached the first checkpoint.”

“I assume you’ll be staying the night. Let me know when you reach the second checkpoint.” Before Victor could say anything more, the call ended.