Page 2 of Taste of Forever
I obliged, surprised when he gestured for me to scoot backward and then closed the tailgate. Without another word, he got into the driver’s seat of the truck, next to where the woman was already seated and waiting.
The engine turned over with a rattle, and I grabbed the metal sides of the bed as the truck started moving.
Okay. I guess theyaregiving me a ride.
I hadn’t ruled out the possibility that they were taking me to a drug processing work camp, but I planned to worry about that when I had to stand up again.
The area of cleared forest stretched on as we drove. We passed a surprising number of tilled fields and growing patches of various sizes. I spotted corn, different kinds of squashes, tomatoes, hops, and even spied a small orchard of fruit trees. Definitely normal, not illegal crops.
I shook my head in disbelief as I took in my surroundings. Later, I’d have to find this place on a satellite map. How many miles must I have wandered around aimlessly to wind up on someone’s farm? I’d been trying to find my way back to the trailhead by following the sun. Great navigation skills, Heather.
The truck had only gone a mile or so before pulling up to a cluster of structures. Some were mobile homes that had seen better days, but I spotted cabins and more permanent structures too. All worn and aged like they’d sat here for decades.
Someone from here will drive me to the parking lot, I figured as the man parked the truck in front of the largest cabin and got out.
“Wait here,” he said, exiting the vehicle.
The woman remained in the passenger seat, watching me through the rearview mirror. I pretended not to notice while I took in the surrounding buildings. It looked like a commune or settlement of some kind. Maybe temporary work and livingspaces for farm laborers? For such seasonal work, it would make sense.
After about ten minutes, the man emerged from the cabin with another man at his side. They came around to the back of the truck together, and the first man lowered the tailgate.
“Come on out, miss.” He offered his hand as if to assist me.
I scooted to the end of the truck bed and accepted his hand, not trusting my own feet to hold me steady when I got out.
The other man came to my opposite side, and I assumed he’d steady my other arm. Shock hit me like a cold wind when he grasped my upper arm and proceeded to drag me from the truck.
“Hey! What the hell?”
I tried to pull my arm away, but he held fast, and the first man took hold of my other arm. Before I realized what was happening, the two men had restrained me between them and were dragging me around to the back of the large cabin.
“Hey, stop!” I kicked and ground my heels into the dirt, trying to find some purchase. But they only lifted me higher so that I kicked at air.
“Let me go!” I hollered, twisting and struggling to no avail. “You said you’d help me!”
“We are,” said the second man. “It’s safer for you this way.” He actually managed to sound regretful.
“I’m being kidnapped!” I yelled at the top of lungs to the onlookers who began to stare curiously. “Someone call the police! Fuck, someone help me!”
“We won’t hurt you,” said the first man. “But where you’re from, you don’t understand how things work around here.”
“What the hell are you talking about? I’m from the United States! I’m a citizen, I have rights! Iworkfor the fucking government!”
“Sorry, but none of that matters here.”
The first man opened one of two doors leading into a smaller cabin. Both men gave me a hard shove into the building, sending me sprawling onto a hardwood floor.
“Hey!” I got to my feet as quickly as I could, but in my weakened and panicked state, I moved in an unsteady wobble that cost me precious seconds.
By the time I made it to the doors, the men had already closed and locked them from the outside.
“Come back!” I screamed through the wood. “Don’t leave me in here!”
Pulling and jiggling on the doorknobs was useless. Pounding and slamming against the hard surface only hurt my hands and gave me splinters.
“Fuck!” I spun around to figure out my other options.
The cabin was a single room that looked like it was meant for meetings or town halls. It was sparsely furnished with a single desk, a couch, and a few folding tables and chairs. The ceiling was high and vaulted, with skylights and high windows near the roof line.
