Page 20 of River Ride

Duds and Suds. Main Street. Coyote Creek.

Virge ran across Main Street, passed the diner and three other stores and kept going until he got to the laundromat. Out of breath, he ran in the front door and glanced around for Vicki.

No sign of her but he did see two other girls doing their laundry who were a lot prettier than Vicki. Each one of the girls was shoving dirty clothes into a washing machine.

“Hey, girls, I’m Virgil.” He gave them a big grin. “I work at the sheriff’s office across the street. Haven’t seen you in here before.”

“Yep. We can see your uniform.” They giggled. “Do you shoot a lot of crooks in the laundromat?”

Before Virgil could think of a comeback, the door of the office opened, and Vicki strolled out with a can of Coke in her hand.

“What are you doing here so early in the day, Virgil?” Vicki turned and stared death-ray eyes at the other two girls and Virgil didn’t stick around to see how mad Vicki was or if there was going to be a cat fight.

“I was missing you and I just ran over to say hi, Vick. Got to go to work.”

He was halfway out the door and could hear Vicki hollering after him, “You drag your ass out of here, Virgil. We’ll talk about this later.”

Virgil ran across the street and almost got himself whacked by the fuckin feed truck. He figured Vicki wasn’t finished giving him a calling down. There’d be more coming his way.

Fuck.

I’m not telling Harlan that we didn’t break up. That lie might not be a lie by the end of the fuckin day.

Great Falls. Montana.

Mick pulled into a service center to gas up for the last lap of their long journey.

“How far away are we now, Mom?” asked Jackson.

“More than an hour,” said Annie. “Not too far away now.” She stood at the back of the convenience store beside her cart and texted Travis.

“Be there in about two hours. Tammy hasn’t been so great. I don’t want you to expect too much.”

“Okay. I’ll be ready.”

“Doctor Fielding is hoping she’ll improve a lot when she gets home to the ranch.”

“I hope so too.”

“See you soon.”

“Love you, Annie-girl.”

Annie put her phone in her pocket and loaded her cart with cases of Coke, water, Coors and Miller. She didn’t want to arrive empty-handed. Not her style.

Cracker Barrel. St. Louis. Missouri.

“I heard a lot of cops eat at Cracker Barrel,” Ray mumbled as he parked the truck in the side lot.

“Ray, you’re afraid to get up in the morning, man. We’re gonna be okay. Trust me.” Bobby pointed to the bulge his gun made in his waistband.”

“I’m not afraid for me, Bobby. It’s you getting caught that scares me.”

“Hell, you’ve been aiding and abetting me for months, Ray. That should get you a nice comfy cell for at least a nickel.”

“Shit, Bobby. Don’t say stuff like that.”

Bobby had a good laugh at Ray’s expense. He was getting a little tired of Ray’s constant worrying.

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