Page 19 of Longest Ride

“Five hundred? Is that how much the pills will cost?”

“Be ready for a high price and offer less to the dealer.”

“Okay, I’ll be ready.”

“Hurry, Tammy. I can’t take this pain for much longer. I’m gonna lose my fuckin mind.”

Eldon was so pissed at me, I could hear the anger and the disgust in his voice. He said I was a baby trying to act like a woman, and he was right. I wanted him to love me, and I did a lot of stupid things to make that happen. Taking Eldon out of the ICU was the stupidest. He was going to die because of me.

I ran inside the convenience store to one of the ATMs lined up near the vending machines. I stuck Eldon’s card in, punched in the pin and asked for five hundred bucks.

The money came shooting out of the little slot and I grabbed it and put it in my purse. I ran back outside to the rows of parked trucks and started looking for a driver who might be dealing.

I walked really fast up and down the rows until I saw a couple of young guys talking to a driver who was leaning on the front fender of his truck smoking.

As soon as the boys were finished and walked away, I ran up to the guy. “My husband is hurt bad and needs something for pain. Can you help me?”

He stared at me for a long time before saying, “You a cop?”

I shook my head. It was a lie, but I didn’t care. “I’m not a cop.”

“You’re young for a cop, but you have the look.”

“Not a cop. I need the fent for my husband. If you don’t believe me, you can see him for yourself.” I pointed to our truck. “He’s lying in the sleeper.”

He laughed. “You driving that Freightliner by yourself, little girl?”

“My husband taught me how to drive it on our last long haul to Winnipeg.”

“Winnipeg? Like in Canada?” He tossed his butt down on the pavement and stepped on it. “Okay. I don’t believe a fuckin word you’re saying. Feels a lot like entrapment to me, but I’m gonna walk over to your truck and look in the sleeper. If it turns outyou’re lying to me, I’m going to make you real sorry you messed with me.”

“Why is everybody so mean?”

“Because you have to protect yourself out here in the real world, little girl cop. Somebody is gonna rob you, kill you, or break your fuckin heart and you’ve gotta be ready for it. That’s my philosophy.”

“I don’t like it much.”

“You don’t have to. The truth ain’t always easy to hear.”

The drug guy followed me to our truck. He hopped in the cab and pushed into the sleeper to take a look at Eldon.

“Jesus, girl. That guy ain’t gonna live more than a couple of hours. I’ll give you four pills for three hundred. He sure as hell needs them.”

“Thanks.” I pulled the money out of my purse and handed it over. He gave me a tiny container of pills.

“Where you headed?”

“Midway, Texas. Eldon has a house there and he wants to go home.”

The trucker nodded his head. “I get it, and I hope you make it in time, girl. I wouldn’t bet on him lasting that long. What’s wrong with him?”

“Gut shot.”

“Shit, that’s bad. How’d that happen?”

“Bounty hunter came for Eldon. They had a fight and Eldon got shot. Kind of an accident.”

“Guess it would be. The retrieval guy would want him alive so he could collect his money.”

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