Crimson Highway by David Wickenhauser (i can read with my eyes shut txt) 📕

“OK, James. By the way, where are you?”

“I had a delivery in Salt Lake City, and I’m headed in the morning for Portland. I’ll be fairly close to you tomorrow as I go through southern Idaho.”

“That’s cool. Maybe we can hook up. Talk to you later.”

“Be careful now.”

Hugh hung up his cordless headset on a hook he had glued to his dash for that purpose. He had read about long-term radio frequency exposure causing cancer. He didn’t know if that was true, but he wasn’t going to take any chances by wearing the headset for a prolonged period like a lot of other drivers did.

He mulled over what James had told him about the Susanville accident.

There was a possibility that there was more to Jenny than the fact that she was just an obnoxious bitch. But, it wasn’t his problem any more. She was out of his life, and he was leaving her far behind at the steady pace of sixty miles an hour.

Suddenly, he had to force his attention back to his driving as imminent danger loomed ahead on the road. A large, jagged chunk of retread, called an “alligator” by truckers, lay across his lane. Instinctively, Hugh slammed on the brakes, because to swerve out of his lane into oncoming traffic on this two-lane road would almost certainly have caused an accident.

He’s seen the damage that an alligator can do to the underside of a truck, ripping out airlines and tearing up other equipment. Those big chunks of tire weighed a whole lot more than people realized.

As soon as he hit the brakes, everything in the sleeper went tumbling off of the upper and lower bunks, flying toward the front of the cab. Besides the usual bunk accouterments, however, this time he saw arms and legs in a tangle of old, dirty clothes fly past in his peripheral vision, accompanied by a scream.

This whole mess finally came to rest against the front of the cab, wrapped around the gear shift lever.

“Jenny!” Hugh yelled. “What on earth are you doing here?” He couldn’t do anything to help her because he was busy driving safely around the obstruction in the road.

But Jenny wasn’t needing help. Angrily, she picked herself up and began beating Hugh over the head and shoulders, flailing at him with her fists.

“Wicked witch!?” she screamed at him.

“Bitch!?”

“Couldn’t wait to get rid of me!?” she continued, still beating on Hugh, who was doing his best to duck and block her blows with one hand, while still trying to keep the truck on the road with the other.

With Jenny still flailing at him, he finally got the truck under control, slowed down, and pulled over onto a wide spot on the shoulder. He jumped out of his driver’s seat, and clasped Jenny’s wrists in his own large, strong hands, pinning her arms to her sides.

Like an insane person, she continued to struggle as Hugh forcibly set her down in the passenger seat.

Eventually, her chest heaving with her heavy breathing, Jenny realized that any more resistance was futile, and she slowly began to settle down.

One of the thoughts going through Hugh’s mind as he leaned into her, still pinning her arms down, was that she obviously hadn’t taken the opportunity to use the shower.

Another thought that Hugh was having at the moment, however, was discomfiting to him. This was indeed a real-deal female. The proximity to all this female heavy breathing as he pressed against her threatened to distract him from the anger that he felt he should be feeling for her right now.

He slightly relaxed the pressure on her wrists, and she immediately tensed up to struggle with him again.

Applying full pressure again, he said, “OK Jenny. I can do this all day if I need to. But it would be a lot better if you would calm down. If I let go of you will you sit there quietly?”

She looked directly at him for several moments, then nodded.

Again, he slightly relaxed his grip while still keeping a tentative hold of her wrists. This time, she responded by remaining still.

Keeping a close eye on her, Hugh released her completely, and sat back down in his own seat. He could see that Jenny was exhausted and defeated from the tumble out of the sleeper bunk. The violent tirade against him, and the struggle after Hugh had pinned her down to her seat, must have also taken its toll with her as well.

She needed to answer some questions, though. Hugh was determined to ask, and he wasn’t in the mood for evasive answers.

“What are you doing here? And how did you get into my truck?” he demanded.

“Bitch!? Wicked witch!?” She threw back at him, apparently still angry. “‘I couldn’t wait to get rid of her,’” she quoted, using a deeper voice to imitate Hugh’s in his conversation with James.

Hugh could see she was getting ready to start it up all over again. “Look little lady, get over that. I want to know what you think you were doing by stowing away in my truck.”

“Well, old man, I just didn’t want to be left behind.”

“Did it ever occur to you that your ugly, nasty attitude might be the reason I wanted to leave you behind?”

“I don’t give a damn about your reasons. I just need this ride. How about if you just start this thing up and get us back onto the road?”

Hugh knew he wasn’t going to get through to her in her agitated state right now. “OK. I need to make my delivery on time. But, you are definitely getting off this truck in Burley, if not sooner. Got it?”

“Got it,” she answered, with barely controlled anger. “Now drive.”

Bitch, Hugh thought, as he started the