Crimson Highway by David Wickenhauser (brene brown rising strong TXT) 📗

“Well, it sure looks …” Hugh said, but got cut off again by Jenny.

“Well, it’s not!” she retorted again.

“OK. Then tell me about it,” Hugh said after a few moments had passed.

“For several years after high school I worked behind the counter at the local Harley shop. It was just a job,” Jenny said. “I got to know the guys who would come in. They liked me, and sort of adopted me as their little sister. You know about the code that these guys have about their moms and sisters.”

Hugh nodded.

“They protected me. And, if anybody even looked at me they would get rough with him real quick. That’s what made it hard for me to have a serious boyfriend,” she said.

“Ahh, I think I understand now,” Hugh said.

“Yeah. I didn’t always appreciate their attention and protectiveness, but it did actually come in handy more than once. My uncle always moved with a pretty rough crowd. And it was sometimes comforting to know my biker gang friends were at my back.”

Hugh nodded his understanding.

“And think about this,” she told Hugh. “You are the first that they have ever approved of for me. That’s some kind of big deal in their minds.”

“Yeah. Big deal,” Hugh responded sarcastically.

“In fact, you are sort of an honorary member of their gang. You’re an official Bakers Town Bad Ass,” Jenny said, clearly enjoying herself. “Now we need to go into town and get you fitted out for a new Harley.”

“Oh, for crying out loud,” Hugh said, shaking his head in disbelief as he reached to crank up the engine. “I can’t believe how upside down my life has been since you came on board.”

“It will teach you not to pick up hitchhikers,” Jenny said, outright laughing at this point.

“Oh, by the way,” Hugh said. “Was that some kind of joke? Huey, Dewey and Louie? Do you know how hard it is not to laugh when you hear that?”

“I am so glad you didn’t laugh,” Jenny answered him. “They are extremely sensitive about their names.”

“Then, why don’t they do something about it?” he asked.

“They did. They are cousins whose moms didn’t know what they each were naming their boys. So, they decided early on to take different names. Huey, for example, is Roc, without the ‘k’.”

“So, why do you call them Huey, Dewey and Louie?” he asked.

“I found out about their names a long time ago, and began teasing them about it,” she said. “I’m the only one who can use their real names. They accept it because they think it’s a cute little-sister kind of thing to do. Anybody else, and they’d probably pound them into the dirt. That’s why I had to warn you not to say a word about it.”

“Well, I guess I should thank you for that,” Hugh said.

“You’re welcome,” Jenny responded sweetly.

Hugh got the truck pointed down the road again, planning to stop at the truck stop for fuel before continuing on to where they would be stopping for the night.

He had no idea that in a little while his life would be turned upside down yet once again.

Hugh pulled into the fuel island of the truck plaza. While he pumped fuel, Jenny jumped down and dutifully performed her window and mirror cleaning duties—much to the enjoyment of every other truck driver there.

As she stood on the fender and leaned way over to wash the windshield, she looked back over her shoulder and winked at Hugh. Obviously, she knew what was going on with her admirers, and she was getting a huge amount of enjoyment out of it.

Hugh hung up the fuel nozzles, then told Jenny, “Climb up. I’ll park, and then let’s go inside and use the facility. We can also see about grabbing something for dinner. The drop yard where we are going is just a place to park, with not much in the way of amenities.”

As they were locking up, Hugh snagged his cell phone. He thought he’d try one more time to reach James.

Hugh made sure that Jenny had rounded the corner in the travel plaza store to go to the women’s facility, and then held back in order to call James. This time, James answered right away.

“Howdy, partner. What’s going on?” James said, recognizing Hugh’s caller ID.

“Oh, man, James, you wouldn’t believe what all has happened since the last time I talked to you,” Hugh said.

“Spill it, pal. What’s happened?”

“I don’t have much time to talk, but the main thing is that this hitchhiker I picked up—you’re not going to believe this—but I’ve found out she’s the daughter of one of the guys that we had that fight with my first night on your truck fifteen years ago.”

“Whoo, boy!” James exclaimed, then added, “But, wait. I thought you had gotten rid of her.”

“It’s a long story. But, she’s back with me again,” Hugh replied.

“Wow,” James said.

“Yeah, and here’s what’s worse. Turns out, she’s the daughter of the last guy we took down. Remember? What you probably don’t know is that he died in the ambulance on the way to the hospital. We killed him, James.”

“So, what does she think about riding around with the guy who killed her father?” James asked.

“That’s just it. She doesn’t know. She’s been harboring this hatred of that guy all these years, and I haven’t been able to bring myself to tell her that I’m that guy. James, it’s downright unreal what I’ve been going through.”

“I can imagine,” James replied.

 “Yeah. Hey, I’ve got a lot more to tell you, but she’s probably coming out of the restroom by now. I’ll call you later,” Hugh said.

“Well, buddy, if there is anything I can do, let me know,” James offered.

Hugh walked toward the restrooms, expecting to see Jenny