Between a Rock and a Hard Place by Glen Marcus (thriller books to read txt) 📕

Angie lay beside her lover, running an index finger in circles on the inner part of his bicep. Now awake, it had been the first good night’s sleep she'd had since leaving East Texas. The alarm clock radio beside the bed was softly playing the new Eagle’s tune ‘Hotel California’ and life was good. Faint streaks of morning sunlight were shining through the plate glass window and illuminating the seedy motel room a bit better now. Seeing the reflection of them on the mirrored-ceiling tiles above the bed, brought a sly smile to her face. Her mussed, long-blonde hair and tangled bed sheets only reminded her of their steamy night of love-making.
      It was a dream-come true for her to be running away to California,she thought, rolling back onto her pillow and allowing Jessie to sleep. In only a few short months since they met, the two had become inseparable. Even though her parents were against the relationship, it hadn't stopped their only daughter from secretly seeing the high school dropout. It was only after her dad caught them together in front of a local burger joint that the situation turned violent.
      After a few choice words to the ‘low-life’ who had ‘stolen’ his daughter, Angie’s father grabbed her by the arm and then began to physically drag her to his vehicle. Jessie, being almost as large as her dad, tried to free his sweetheart from the enraged man’s grip. This prompted a crashing blow to Jessie’s solar plexus and another to his cheek, almost knocking him unconscious. While the young man laid there on the cold black asphalt, he felt helpless as she was being taken away from him. Angie shouted at her father as he shoved her into the passenger seat, then waves of tears began to flow down her face. Through the back windshield, Angie saw Jessie trying to regain his footing and then standing erect as the Mercedes sped away across the parking lot.
That evening was a defining moment in her young life.
     “Screw high school, screw my parents and screw this town!”
     A new life awaited the two star-crossed lovers and soon plans were soon made that would change their destiny forever.
      It was a cold morning in Gallup, New Mexico, even for January thought Angie as she and Jessie entered the coffee shop for some breakfast. Finding a spot in a corner booth, the waitress took their order. The television over the counter was confirming Angie’s weather observation as the news reporter told of a freak snow storm in Miami, Florida.
      “See, I told you it was cold,” she giggled.
      “Yeah, I guess the sunny south just ain’t what it used to be,” replied Jessie with a half-grin.
      “So when do you think we’ll be in California?”
      “It’s hard to say. Two, maybe three days. I noticed my Camaro is running hot.”
      “Do you think it’ll make it?”
      “It’s a good car, just needs a little work is all.”
      The television above the bar was blaring out the news about the impending inauguration of the 39th President, Jimmy Carter. The waitress brought their food and after finishing the meal, Jessie told Angie to go out and warm up the car. As she made her way outside, little did she realize that her partner didn't have the money to pay for their meal.
      Jumping in the Camaro, Jessie slammed it into drive and spun the tires in the loose gravel. Upon hitting dry pavement, the car’s tired squalled and left two black marks on Route 66. Angie was accustomed to Jessie’s extreme driving habits, so she had no idea of what had just taken place.
      Though at this point it probably wouldn’t have mattered to her, it might have been nice to know she was nine-hundred miles away from home and there wasn’t two nickels to rub together between them both. All she could see was the wide open spaces in the front glass as they raced down the four lane highway.


      After crossing the Arizona state line, Jessie was getting concerned about the low fuel level. The temperature needle was also climbing a bit, but because he was running the heater, the car was holding its own. Pulling off the main highway, Jessie found a little roadside gas station where business appeared to be slow for a Thursday morning.
      “You want anything?”
      “Maybe a Coke babe,” replied Angie as the Camaro came to a stop in front of the pumps.
      “O.K. I’ll be right back. Leave the car running so you’ll be warm.”
      Jessie popped the trunk release as he exited the vehicle. After inserting the nozzle and starting to pump the gas, he opened the small trunk and slid the spare tire out of the way. Underneath was a hinged wooden box. Looking around the side of the open trunk lid, Jessie saw Angie inserting an eight-track tape into his radio. Opening the wooden box revealed a snub nose .38 Smith & Wesson revolver his deceased father had once owned. Raising his lightweight jacket, he placed the pistol inside the waistband of his Levis and then pulled the jacket back down to conceal the weapon.
      “I think I’ll get some snacks,” Jessie said as he opened the door of the idling hot rod.
      “What?” Angie shouted as she reached to turn the volume down on the radio.
      “Some snacks. I’m gonna get some stuff to eat so we can keep driving.”
      “Alright,” she replied and he closed the door. The song, ‘More Than a Feeling’ by Boston almost rattled the windows as Angie once again cranked up the sound level inside the car.
      Jessie entered the store and quickly began to round up some provisions. When he stepped up to the counter, a kid that appeared younger than himself stood ready to check him out.
      “Nine dollars, twenty cents on gas and all this,” said the young clerk. Looking towards the door and seeing no one outside, Jessie went for the gun.
     “I’m in a bad way and I’m taking this stuff.” Pointing the gun at the young man he said, “Gimme what you got in the register.” Shocked by the sight of the pistol, the clerk emptied the cash into a paper bag with the groceries.
      Arriving at the car, Jessie tossed the bag into the still-open trunk, fished out a Coke and slammed it shut. As the pair hit the highway again, Angie got her soda and Jessie had supplied their needs for the moment.
Though it wasn’t a lot, the money would take them farther down the road towards their final destination. And that was all that mattered for now.


      By the time the Camaro came rolling into the first suburbs of Flagstaff, it was on its last legs. Jessie had been watching the temperature gauge with great angst, hoping for a miracle. But instead of the fluctuations of readings between normal and hot, it now consistently was hovering on the red line. Angie had fallen asleep earlier, so she didn’t notice as he ramped off Interstate 40 just passed Winona.
      As he eased the crippled car down a street lined with fast food establishments, Jessie found what he had been searching for. Ed’s Used Autos sat just across the way from the Kentucky Fried Chicken. At 2:30 a.m., the only lights Jessie saw were the blinking yellow caution signals about two blocks up the hill. Pulling into the driveway of the car lot, Jessie cut the engine and the Camaro made a high pitched hissing sound as it gave up the ghost.
Awaken by the noise, Angie yawned and brought the back of her bucket seat to the upright position.
      “Where are we honey?”
      “We’re in Flagstaff or at least almost there.”
      Looking at the digital readout on the dash and seeing the time Angie asked, “What are we doing here?”
      “You trust me, don’t you darlin’?”
      “Sure. What’s the matter?”
      “The Camaro is dead and we need a ride.”
      “So we’re going to wait here ‘til in the morning and buy a new one?”
      “Afraid it doesn’t work that way Angie. We’re out of money and we need a ride. We need to get out of here and get back on the road or we ain’t never gonna make it to California.”
      “So you’re saying we are going to steal a car?”
      “It works for me.”
      Up until now, this wild adventure had captivated the young girl’s fantasies like nothing she could had ever imagined. Stuck in a lack-luster town with no plans, other than the blueprint of her parent’s ivy-league nightmare, running away had been perfect. Leaving behind all that idiocy for the chance to start a life with an exciting free-spirit like Jessie was what she yearned for. It appeared that this was one of those all-or-nothing moments that she was quickly going to have to grow accustomed to.
      Throwing caution out the window she hastily decided and said, “Let’s do it!”
      Making quick work of hot wiring an Impala on the lot was easy for Jessie, since his reprobate brother had schooled him well on the technique years before. Angie packed all their belongings into the new ride and they were off again, heading back for the main road. With her adrenaline flowing, she reached for the sack full of groceries in the back seat to grab something to eat.
      “Where’d all this money in the sack come from?”
      Grabbing the paper bag from her and tossing it into the backseat again, Jessie didn’t say a word.
      “I thought you said we were out of money.”
      “You said you trusted me.”
      “But trust goes both ways. Where’d you get it?”
      “I got it from the gas station last night o.k.”
      “Oh my god, you robbed the gas station?”
      Jessie’s eyes stayed on the road ahead but his glaring expression was illuminated by the dash lights and Angie picked up on the look.
      “So we’re on the run now? Is that how it’s gonna be?”
      “What else was I supposed to do? I used up all the money I had on the motel. We’ve got a car and gas money. We’re in the clear all the way to Cali."
      A little shaken by the revelation of the holdup, Angie remained quiet for several miles. As the night grew into early morning, words between the two were sparse, if not nonexistent.
      While Jessie didn’t know if his girlfriend would accept this twist their travels had taken, he hoped her feelings for him wouldn’t change because of the circumstances.
      Angie, on the other hand, was reeling with types of emotions she’d never felt. One moment excitement of the situation would engulf her and the next minute, fears of what might happen if the pair was caught. The desires of the deepening love she had for Jessie would come to the surface and then the awful feeling of losing him to the authorities would slowly creep into her mind. It was a roller coaster ride she hadn’t bargained for and didn’t know if she would or could stop it before it sailed off the tracks.
      In a while, the rush of mind-numbing questions subsided in Angie’s head and she got a grip on herself.
     ‘I have to concentrate on the love I feel for Jessie. It’ll be enough to get us through.’
     Thoughts of a teenager nonetheless but to her it was all she needed to hear herself say.
      “I love you baby and that’s all that matters,” she turned and said to her companion as the dawning sun was coming up in the Impala’s rearview mirror. They were just past Kingman when Jessie turned off on a deserted-looking dirt road and followed