Bridget Bundy - The Secret Weapon

“Who were you trying to call?”

“Our ride to Erato. He should be going through Baker in a couple of hours.”

“Text him,” Rudy suggested.

“Good idea.” Coraset remarked as she immediately opened the phone again. She handed it back to Rudy and told him to recall the last number dialed. “Type in Baker at 9:30 a.m., 7772.”

Rudy did as she said and asked, “Do you think this person will answer the text?”

“Oh yeah,” Coraset said with confidence.

He held on to the phone with both hands, and a few minutes later, a text appeared on the illuminated screen. Rudy read the message back to Coraset.

‘85234, old Baker at 10:00 a.m.’

She smiled and nodded with confidence. They were set.

Rudy looked at the phone, thinking about his sister. He wanted to reach out to Alice, but he wasn’t sure if he should. Rudy was concerned about the man they stole the car from. Would the police track the phone to find them? A fear overtook Rudy, and he quickly turned it off . He decided he’ll contact his sister once he got home.

After what seemed like an endless drive, they stopped just before old Baker. They slowly and as casually as possible, walked towards the highway. Rudy lingered behind. His eyes gaped tiredly at the surrounding dilapidated stucco homes. He wanted so much to be back in Barat. He didn’t like the desert anymore. He was tired of it. Nothing seemed to exist. He wanted his life back. He wanted to see his sister again.

Rudy rushed to catch up with Coraset and asked her, “Who are we meeting?”

“His name is Getty.”

“Are you sure he’ll meet us here? This town looks like there hasn’t been anyone here since the outbreak.”

“There’s a gas station near the highway where we’re going to meet him.”

“Do you think the police will be looking for us?”

“I hope not, Rudy.”

They arrived at the gas station, only to find an attendant sitting in a small booth. He was leaning back in his chair against the wall with his mouth wide open and sleeping. Coraset and Rudy kept out of view by sitting under an awning at a nearby hoary general store.

It was another thirty minutes before Getty drove into the gas station in his truck. Erato Federation in big bold cursive lettering was sprawled on each side of the long white trailer. Getty exited the cabin, and Coraset swiftly walked over to him with Rudy in tow.

Getty was really plump with an unshaven, ratty, grey beard littered with the crumbs of past meals. Large blue green eyes twinkled with a sort of joy that Rudy had pictured on a certain jolly elf in red from his childhood.

“Cora,” the big man cheered, arms spread wide as he swept her up in a hug, causing Rudy to snicker in amusement.

“Coraset…” she grounded out in half-hearted annoyance. The man was far too cheery for her to ever stay mad at for long, and besides that, she was too tired to even put forth the effort.

Getty released a long, hearty laugh, dropping Coraset onto her feet and reached out his hand to Rudy. “My name is Getty Solomon, and you are?”

“Rudy Remald,” he said as he gripped Getty’s thick, calloused hands.

“Good to meet you, Rudy.” Getty turned quickly to Coraset, pointed to Rudy with his free hand and asked, “New boyfriend?”

“No,” Coraset and Rudy said at the same time.

“It’ll take time, son. You’ll be with her soon enough.” He said as he threw an arm around Coraset.

Rudy looked at Coraset, and she shook her head as she grabbed the bridge of her nose.

“Getty, can we get going, please?” She asked impatiently.

Motioning for the two to follow, he hastily walked towards the cab of the truck. The two entered Getty’s vehicle first and moved over so he could take his seat at the steering wheel. He shifted and turned to find his comfort, and then he buckled in.

“Alright, I hope you’re ready for a haul?”

“You are headed to Barat, right, Getty?” Rudy asked inquisitively as he crawled in the back area of the cab.

“Yes, sirree! I drive a load to Las Vegas at night, and in the morning, I take another load back to Barat.”

Getty shifted his way out of the gas station and unto the empty highway. The truck’s slow roll began its steady ascension to 70 miles per hour. Coraset watched as the landscape sped by in a mixture of yellows and reds. The farther they got away from the Mojave Prison and old Baker, the better Coraset felt. Rudy’s exhaustion caught up with him, and he was asleep before they got ten miles down the road.

Getty lit a cigar he had started the day before and settled in for the next destination of Victorville, another truck stop for the Erato Federation tractor trailers.

He asked, “How did you end up in Baker?”

“In a very roundabout way,” Coraset answered as she avoided eye contact.

“There are only three ways you can end up in Baker. You work at the Mojave Prison, you work as an Erato Federation diesel gas station attendant, or you’re a truck driver.”

“I think you know the answer,” Coraset remarked.

“Did you break out of prison?”

“No, but I did steal something I wasn’t supposed to.”

“I’ll turn on the computer for alerts.” Getty said as his fat fingers reached for a grey box on the dashboard. With one push of the button, a list of announcements was scrolling upward on the screen. “We’ll be able to find out something from the computer if they’re looking for you two.”

“Hopefully, they won’t be,” Coraset answered.

“If they’re not, I’ll take you directly through the gate at Barat.”

“Thank you, Getty.”

“So, Coraset, when was the last time you spoke to your father?” He asked as he gripped the huge steering wheel near his legs.

“It’s been a while, over a year and a half.”

“When was the last time you saw him?”

Coraset answered somberly, “The same amount of time.”

“How did you end up in prison anyway?”

“I was blamed for a murder I didn’t commit.” She answered.

“Well, that’s strange. You were convicted of murder and not put to death? I’m not trying to be funny or anything, but that’s unusual. The Erato Federation doesn’t let those kinds of things go unpunished.”

“I know they don’t. I really can’t explain how I didn’t get the death penalty, and I really can’t explain why I was released.”

Getty thought about what she said as he peered out to the winding and hilly highway. He remarked, “Maybe, someone was looking out for you, or maybe, they believed you didn’t kill anyone.”

“I guess,” Coraset closed her eyes and scooted down in the seat hoping Getty would understand she didn’t want talk anymore.

They drove through Barstow, a town once home to many US Army soldiers and other retired military personnel after over an hour of driving. The town that set on a hill was now empty. The desert was taking back its property. Every home and business had years of dust and dirt accumulated in it. Coraset could feel the emptiness, even though their drive through was quick.

When they reached Victorville, Getty stopped to get fuel. He pulled into a fuel station only meant for tractor trailers. Coraset and Rudy remained in the truck as Getty stretched his legs and refilled his thirsty ride. The place had only an Erato Constabulary Officer and another gas station attendant. Getty didn’t stay long, as his schedule was strict and must be adhered to.

When they drove through the pass between San Antonio Mount and the mountains that lead up to the Valley of Enchantment and Big Bear, the earth began to change. Trees and desert underbrush mixed together, but soon nature’s lush personality took over the landscape. The air wasn’t so dry and hot. The foliage was a welcome site.