Page 71 of Final Ride

The clothes were too big, but they had to do until she found a better fit. The jeans were the worst, but the cotton shirt covered the sagging waistband. A belt would be helpful, but there wasn’t one in the bag.

The shoes barely stayed on her feet as she walked, but she’d get rid of them soon enough. Tammy slipped them off once she entered the stairwell.

With the trainers in her hand, she ran down to the main floor barefoot. She stuck her feet in the shoes at the bottom level, opened the door and ran out the closest exit.

In a hurry to get to the street, she moved too fast for the condition she was in and was forced to sit down when she came to a low stone wall in front of a big house.

She sat there until her head cleared and had enough strength to stand up again. Gingerly getting to her feet, Tammy tried one step at a time until she was sure her legs would hold her.

She shuffled along—walking slowly and carefully until she had to sit down. She rested and then began walking again.

Using this method, she found what she was looking for several hours later. On the other side of a six-lane highway, Tammy spotted a truck stop.

International Truck Stop. New York State.

Without her purse, her wallet or a nickel to her name, there was only one thing Tammy could do. She sat at one of the picnic tables outside the truck stop restaurant and watched the trucks pull off the highway.

Finally, a big red Freightliner drove in and parked in the long line of shiny eighteen-wheelers. Tammy let out a sigh of relief as she got to her feet and followed the driver into the restaurant.

The restaurant was busy like all the other truck stops she’d been to, and there was a lot of noise and movement of customers and servers.

Tammy felt the warmth of familiarity. Long days of trucking with Eldon filled her senses and warmed her heart. A sense of belonging filled her and made her smile.

She edged closer to the driver’s table where he sat alone. The owner of the red Freightliner was a cute guy in his thirties with shaggy brown hair and when he noticed her and looked away from the menu, he had a nice smile.

He reminded her a bit of Eldon and she spoke to him in a weak but friendly voice. “Sorry to bother you, but I’m looking for a ride.”

He stared at the scabs and bruises all over her and for a second she thought he was going to call security.

“I don’t always look this bad,” she said, “but I just got out of the hospital.”

“You sustained a lot of damage to your face and arms there, girl. It looks like somebody laid a bad beating on you.”

“Yeah, they did.” Tammy felt faint and asked, “Do you mind if I sit down for a minute?”

Without waiting for an answer, she slid into the bench seat facing the trucker and lowered her head until the dizziness passed. When she looked up again, she said, “I’m Tammy.”

“I’m Glen. Do you want water or a coffee? For a minute there, you looked like you were passing out.”

“A coffee would help. Thanks. I lost all my stuff when the guy beat me up and tossed me into the river. I’m not homeless, if that’s what you’re thinking. I do have a bank account but no card to access my money.”

“You have to get a new card at the bank,” said Glen. “Then you can access your account.”

“But they won’t even talk to me without ID. They’ve got me there.”

“I see what you mean. You’re in a predicament. How about a sandwich?”

“I’m okay,” said Tammy. “Don’t waste your money on me, Glen.”

Glen waved the server over and ordered the lunch special for himself and coffee and a turkey sandwich for Tammy.

“Where are you headed?” Driven by an unknown source, even in her most weakened condition, Tammy pursued her quest to find Eldon.

“I’m hauling a load to Northern Ontario.”

Tammy was happy to hear Glen’s destination. She wasn’t sure where Eldon was, but she thought he might be hiding out at her mama’s cabin.

When they were together as a couple, they’d talked about the cabin on Baptiste Lake and discussed going there to hide out if they needed to. Eldon would’ve remembered that because he was smart, and he was a good listener. He never got mixed up in his head like she did.

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