Creating Little Chloe (My Little World Book 8) Page 2

  “I’ve been doing long haul trucking for about ten years now. I started after my divorce.” He picked up his coffee cup and took a sip. “Before that, it was a lot of short haul—day trips and what not.”

  “Are those your kids?” I motioned to a picture of a boy and girl that was taped to the dash near the odometer.

  “Yep, that’s Benjamin and Cindy.” He pulled the photo free and held it out to me. “They’re a lot older now—I don’t get to see them much. Their mother and I don’t get along.”

  “That has to be tough.” His tone didn’t sound like he was happy with the arrangement.

  “Yeah.” He put the photo back on the dash. “I never went to college, so this was the best job I could get. Kids are expensive and I want them to have better opportunities.”

  “I bet they miss you.” I looked at the photo again.

  “Maybe.” He shrugged. “I might get to see them again around the holidays if business slows down.”

  “Hopefully so...” I didn’t know what else to say. “So, do you live in Phoenix?”

  “When I’m home.” He nodded and sighed. “I’ve been doing these east to west trips for so long that I mostly just live in the truck.”

  “That doesn’t sound like much fun.” I looked over my shoulder at the small bed behind the seats which looked like it would be pretty cramped for a man his size.

  We drove through the night and as the hours started to pass, I could feel the weariness sinking in. I leaned my head against the seat and closed my eyes. Although I was tired, I couldn’t quite shut off my brain. I was finally free from North Carolina and I was getting as far as Phoenix. It wasn’t perfect, but it was a lot closer to where I wanted to be. Braden might not be very much for conversation, but he definitely didn’t seem to be crazy or dangerous. I finally felt relaxed enough to go to sleep as the miles rolled on.

  “DO YOU WANT SOME BREAKFAST?” Braden’s words pulled me from my slumber and I saw the sun peeking through the clouds.

  “Um...yeah.” I wiped sleep from my eyes. I wasn’t exactly hungry upon waking up, but I knew I should eat something.

  Braden pulled the truck into a Mom & Pop type restaurant that had a sign hanging outside indicating that truckers were welcome. It looked like a dive, but when he opened the door, I could smell bacon and eggs in the air. He opened the door and climbed out, turning towards me. I decided it would make more sense to just exit through his side of the truck since he was holding out a hand to me. I crawled across the seat and he took my hand to help me down. I took it and felt my foot slip a little, but he easily caught me around the hips and spun me in the air for a moment before sitting me down on the soles of my feet.

  “That is a lot further down than it looks.” I looked up into his eyes.

  “Yep.” He nodded and then started walking towards the restaurant.

  We went into the restaurant which was pretty much deserted. There was an older couple sitting in the corner chowing down on a full plate of breakfast, complete with biscuits and gravy. My stomach started to rumble, but I ordered it to be quiet. As nice as that looked, I had to stick with my modest eating habits if I wanted to keep my figure. It had to be nice and trim when it went up on the big screen. I didn’t want to be one of those airbrushed celebrities. He ordered a full spread and I got a couple of pieces of toast. After confirming the water was free, I asked for a glass. He chose coffee, and it came with free refills, so he set to work putting as much it in his system as he possibly could while the food cooked. His plate looked a whole lot better than mine, but I nibbled my toast like I had trained myself to do. I ate it slow so it would fill me up by the time I was done. He tore into his plate like a maniac set on murdering each morsel of food.

  “You eat like that every day?” He motioned to my slowly disappearing toast.

  “Yeah, I have to watch my weight.” I smiled and sipped water, forcing the dry toast down.

  “Huh.” He shrugged and kept eating.

  After the meal was done, the waitress brought one check. I asked for my own, but he waved me off. My toast was less than a dollar, so it wasn’t exactly breaking his bank. He pulled out his wallet and left enough for everything plus a tip. My eyes fixated on the thick stack of money and I could see a hundred-dollar bill on the side facing me. I had no idea he was carrying so much cash. I took note of which pocket he stuffed his wallet in and then followed him back to his truck. The restaurant refilled his coffee thermos, so he had plenty for the road after that stop.

  That much money. That would set me up nice in California.

  We set off into the breaking day with the sun in our eyes. I pushed the stuff in my bag around until I found my sunglasses and slipped them on my face. He didn’t seem to care one way or the other about the sun, and his visor blocked most of it. I wanted to talk more, but I was getting sleepy after barely getting any the night before. He turned on the radio and the same kind of country music started to play, so I found my eyes getting heavy from boredom and exhaustion. I leaned against the seat and sleep took me quickly. The last thing I heard was him humming along to the music and slurping on his coffee.

  He’s been so nice to me, but—I am chasing a dream here.

  I don’t know how long I slept exactly, but the clock on his dash said it was nearly noon by the time I woke up. My mouth was sticky and parched, so I pulled out my bottle of water and washed that away. I felt a gnawing hunger and dug into my snacks from the gas station, eating them slowly so they would last longer. He looked over at me and raised his eyebrows before focusing on the road once more. We passed a sign that suggested we were well west of North Carolina and a smile crossed my face.

  Finally. Freedom is so damn close.

  I was certain my parents knew I was gone by that point, and they were probably worried sick. They deserved it for the way they oppressed my dreams. I hadn’t told any of my friends where I was going, except for Lana, but I had hinted to a few of them that I might ditch town one day. Anyone who knew me well could have easily figured out my heart was set on California one day, although I doubted my parents ever believed I would go through with it. The road hummed along underneath his truck and I slowly digested my crackers along with half of my first bottled water. Eventually we stopped for lunch at another little restaurant and got some sandwiches to go. We drove with meaningless small talk, him singing along to songs he knew, and by the time darkness settled in, I could see fatigue on his face.

  “I’m going to have to stop and get some sleep. I generally sleep about every other night, and if I settle in now, we can be on the road before the world wakes up. Plus, I need a drink.” He motioned to a truck stop ahead.

  “I can’t believe how tiring it is just sitting in this truck all day.” I stretched out and suppressed a yawn.

  “You get used to it after a while. I’ve only got one bed though. Are you okay sleeping in the cab?” He pulled his truck into a parking space and killed the engine.

  “Yeah, that is okay.” I nodded and shrugged. “There are a lot of trucks here.”

  “This is a pretty popular spot for people to spend the night. When you’re on the road for a bit, you learn the best places not to get robbed.” He chuckled and leaned across me to the glove compartment. “Want a drink?”

  “What do you have?” I watched as he opened it and pulled out a bottle of whiskey. “I drink so much coffee to keep going during the day that I need something to take the edge off, even when I’m exhausted.”

  “I’m not a fan of the hard stuff.” I shook my head back and forth.

  “Suit yourself.” He pushed the curtains back and crawled into the small bed behind the seats, twisting the top off of his whiskey when he sat down.

  “I am a little hungry though.” I opened my bag and pulled out a bag of trail mix.

  There were dozens of trucks lined up. Some were lit up, but most of them were dark. I assumed the inhabitants were sleeping. A car pulled up nearby and I saw a few women get out. They were all dressed in sho
rt skirts and shirts that barely hung down past their breasts. They surveyed the scene for a couple of minutes and I saw some of the truckers walking over to them. After a little bit of conversation, one of the truckers took one of the women by the hand and started walking back towards his truck. He opened the door and she climbed inside. Before the light went out, I saw her crawling into the bed behind the seats—or at least it appeared that way if his truck was set up like Braden’s.

  “What is that all about?” I pointed towards the two women that were still standing by their car, talking to some of the other truckers.

  “Those are lot lizards.” He leaned up and looked over at them. “Prostitutes.”

  “Oh wow, I’ve heard about that, but I didn’t realize it really happened.” My face formed a bit of a shocked expression.

  “That is one of the reasons why truckers learn which spots are best for spending the night.” He chuckled. “That isn’t really my thing though. I need to get some sleep.”

  Chapter 4: Megan

  Braden turned away from me after putting the cap on his whiskey and within a few minutes he was snoring. I sat there turning the thoughts over in my head. I had never considered myself a thief. The only thing I had ever stolen in my life was a candy bar from the store when I was a child. I thought about the money in Braden’s wallet and considered how far it would get me. I could take a bus the rest of the way and I would still have a good chunk of cash when I got to California. It was definitely more than the measly amount of money I had saved. I reached behind me and pushed the blanket aside so I could see the imprint of his wallet against his jeans. He moved a little bit, and I pulled my hand away, but then his snores started to fill the cab again.

  Destiny awaits. Nobody remembers what people had to do to realize it.

  The truck stop was busy, so nobody would notice someone walking around. Trucks were coming and going pretty regularly. If I could get down to the main road, I could possibly hitch another ride, even if it was dark. Once I was on the highway again, I would be home free. I took a deep breath and reached into his pocket, slowly pulling his wallet out. He moved again, but didn’t turn over, so I finished removing it. I opened the wallet and removed the money quickly. I dropped the wallet in the seat where he sat and stuffed the money into my backpack. I quietly opened the door and watched. If he stirred, I would just say I was going to the bathroom. When he didn’t move, I half-tumbled, half-slid towards the ground.

  “Ow, damn it.” My foot hit the pavement hard and my ankle was a bit sore, but it seemed to be okay. I pushed the door closed quietly.

  Okay—home free!

  I held my breath again, and after there was no motion, I started walking quicker than normal, but not quick enough to draw attention. I hit the road with my feet running as fast as they would carry me, even with my ankle hurting, and once I picked up the highway again, I started throwing my thumb out desperately at every passing vehicle, just trying to find someone that would take me as far away as possible. Most of the cars ignored the sight of a young woman walking along the road in the middle of the night with her thumb out, but eventually I saw a truck coming my way. My stomach was in knots at first, fearing it would be Braden, but when I saw that it was an older model, I let out a sigh of relief. I didn’t recognize the name on the side of the truck, which went against every safety tip I had managed to learn, but I needed to get out of there fast, so I climbed inside when the door opened.

  “Hi, I’m—” I hesitated on giving him my real name. “I’m Chloe.”

  “Hello Chloe, I’m Randy. Where you headed?” He watched me as I struggled to get the door closed.

  “West.” I turned to him with a smile. “As far as you’re going.”

  “Sounds good.” He hit the gas and pulled back onto the highway.

  Randy’s truck was loud and annoying. It didn’t have the quiet hum Braden’s had. He also had his CB radio blaring non-stop, occasionally pausing to talk on it. His truck smelled awful and was littered with fast food wrappers. After being on the road for about thirty minutes, he dug into his pocket for a pack of cigarettes, I tried to hold my breath when smoke filled the cab. He noticed my discomfort and cracked the window slightly. It was barely enough to suck the thick smoke out that he exhaled while the cigarette dangled from his lips. There was nothing attractive about Randy. He was overweight and his t-shirt didn’t even cover his belly. The cab hadn’t even cleared of smoke before he lit another cigarette. I thought I was going to choke on smoke if he kept up that pattern for the entirety of our journey.

  “So, what is going to be sweetheart?” He looked over at me. “I almost stopped for a little entertainment at the last stop, but I guess that won’t be a problem now.”

  “What do you mean?” I looked over at him and noticed his hand was moving to his belt.

  “I prefer your mouth, but if you take off your shirt and let me see your tits, I’ll settle for your hand.” He started unbuckling his belt.

  “What?” I blinked in surprise. “No, I’m not doing that!”

  “I ain’t asking for your pussy, darling, but you gotta give me something.” He flicked ashes and put his cigarette back between his lips. “At least kiss it a little bit and rub it with your hand for a few minutes.”

  “Breaker-breaker-one-niner.” The CB lit up and I instantly recognized the voice. “This is a distress call. I’m on I-40, headed west, and I just got robbed by a brown-haired girl about five foot four—over.”

  “Wait a minute.” Randy turned towards me and reached for the CB.

  “No.” I shook my head back and forth.

  “This is Coot.” Randy said into the CB, using what I assumed was a codename. “Come again?”

  “I was asleep at the Falcon Truck Stop, friend. She rolled me after I gave her a ride. She’s probably headed west, what is your location?” Braden’s voice sounded angry.

  “Yeah, I’m near mile marker ten, and I think I just picked her up.” The truck started grinding to halt.

  “On my way.” The CB went dark and I felt my heart starting to pound.

  “You might be pretty, but I ain’t interested in a thief.” Randy glared at me.

  My fingers scrambled for the door. I had to get out of the truck. Randy didn’t make any motions towards me. He let me open the door, but as soon as I got my bags and started to climb down, I felt something against my back. I looked over my shoulder to see Randy’s boot. He lifted it and slammed it against me, sending me sprawling out of the truck. I tumbled down the side of the semi and landed hard on the gravel next to the road. Randy immediately started driving away. I staggered to my feet and gathered my stuff as Randy slammed the door and started driving away. The cars zoomed by quickly and I looked down to see both of my knees bleeding. My hands were skinned as well, with fragments of gravel embedded in them.

  Oh shit...

  It was still dark and I was more scared than I had ever been in my life. I started to try and walk, but I felt a sharp surge of numbness shoot down my right leg and into my foot. I heard a horn and looked behind me to see another semi-truck slowing down. I knew it had to be Braden, even though I couldn’t see for sure. The only option I had was to get off the road and try to get away. I looked down the side of the highway and saw nothing but grass and trees. I could try to run into them, but with my duffel bag and backpack, it wasn’t going to go very fast, especially with the condition of my leg. I started trying to shuffle myself forward, but then I took another tumble down the embankment. His truck roared to a stop as I tried to stand again, finding my knee was in even worse shape than before.

  “Stop!” His voice roared louder than his truck as he started down the embankment, closing the distance between us quickly.

  “I’m sorry!” I raised my hands as he approached.

  “Where is my fucking money?” He came to a stop in front of me, his nostrils flaring with anger.

  “It’s in my backpack, you can have it back!” I started to remove my backpack, but he yanked
it off my shoulder with force.

  I saw nothing but anger and hate in his eyes. He pulled apart the zipper and dumped all of the contents on the ground. I had folded the money up and tucked it in a pocket along with most of mine, except for a little bit I kept in my purse. He took all of it and stuffed it into his pocket. I thought about asking for my money back, but he seemed so angry that I didn’t think he would comply. I had never been so scared. He threw my backpack on the ground, landing on top of my makeup bag and bathroom bag. He put his hands on his hips and shook his head at me. The adrenaline coursed through my veins, but my knee was hurting so bad that I couldn’t help but reach down and grab it.

  “I was nothing but nice to you.” His eyes continued to blaze with rage. “Do you know what could happen to a young girl like you hitchhiking with strangers? Especially in the middle of the night! I felt sorry for you—I didn’t want anything that happened to be on my fucking conscious.”

  “I’m really sorry.” I whimpered as tears rolled down my face.

  “No, you’re not.” He shook his head. “You’re nothing more than a stuck up little brat. You think you’re special? You’re not. You’re just a stupid kid that thinks the world owes you something. News flash, honey—it doesn’t.”

  “I made a mistake!” I said through a sob as he started walking up the hill.

  “Well now you’re on your on with those mistakes.” He took a few steps. “The next person that picks you up might not be as nice as I was.”

  “Please don’t leave me...” I begged as I stumbled forward. “I can’t walk on my knee. Please, Braden—please don’t leave me out here in the middle of nowhere!”

  “It is what you deserve.” He finished climbing to the top of the hill and stared down at me.

  “I know.” I nodded quickly. “I know I screwed up, but please—I swear it isn’t who I am. I just got caught up in the moment.”