A short time later, they saw their first fellow commuter.
Gliding smoothly through the stopped and wrecked traffic, the man on the moped wore a white motorcycle helmet with red and blue stripes down the middle, a light brown trench coat, goggles, and a red scarf that trailed behind him in the wind. Daniel alerted the others to the man’s presence as he approached from behind, driving through the maze of cars, seemingly without a care in the world. Daniel pulled the Jeep up next to a stopped RV, positioning it so that they could look out the left side of their vehicle as they watched the man getting closer. Unconsciously, Daniel reached down and retrieved his Glock from the door pocket, disengaging the safety without looking as he remained focused on the moped rider.
Nearing them, the man drove between a large red truck and a silver Nissan compact car, swaying back and forth playfully as he did. When he looked up, he saw the five of them watching his approach. His eyes widened as he engaged his brakes, clamping down hard on the handles. The small moped screeched to a stop suddenly, throwing the man off-balance and sending him tumbling onto the pavement. Unsupported, the moped fell to the pavement as well, smashing the right mirror and denting the body of the bike.
Instinctively, Daniel reached for the door handle, moving to get out of the vehicle, eager to help the injured man.
Serafina grabbed his arm, getting his attention. “Be careful, honey.”
“I will. Keep your gun close just in case.”
Daniel slid his Glock behind his back and walked over to where the man laid on the pavement. He remained on his stomach, unmoving save a slight heaving. When Daniel got closer, he realized the man was crying.
Stopping several feet away, Daniel called out, “You okay, there?”
The man reacted as if slapped, rolling over and scrambling backwards in fear, his feet kicking pebbles and rocks as he moved. “Ahhhh!!”
Bringing his hands up in an effort to calm the man, Daniel tried to reassure the man that there was no reason to fear him. “It’s okay bud. I just want to be sure you’re not hurt. You took quite a tumble there.”
The man reached up and tore away his goggles, trying to see Daniel better. When the man’s eyes finally met Daniel’s, it was clear that the man had a learning disability, which explained the blissful ignorance the man displayed while riding his moped through the congested freeway. He looked to be around thirty, with a dark brown scraggly beard that framed his acne covered face. The man’s eyes wandered aimlessly as he tried to comprehend what was happening.
The man brought his knee up towards his face, examining it. The material of his pants had been torn, revealing a bright red scrape that was oozing blood. The exposed flesh had small bits of rock and dirt embedded in it.
“My mommy is going to kill me.” The man said as he looked at his knee.
“Your mom? Is she around?
“Yes. She’s over there,” the man pointed, a sheepish look on his face, “waiting by the park. She said I could ride around for a while. She said it was okay as long as I didn’t run into anything.”
Daniel turned and looked forward. The road sloped down and to the left as entered the valley. Off to the right, about half a mile away, he saw a small park.
The man began to cry as he held his leg, looking at his pants. “Mommy got me these pants for my birthday.” He looked up at Daniel, tears in his eyes. “Can you fix it?”
Daniel shook his head, sympathy showing in his eyes. “I’m sorry, bud, I don’t think those can be fixed without patches and a sewing machine.”
Tears rolled down the man’s face as he slapped the ground with his hands in frustration. Looking up at Daniel, he asked, “Why’d you have to scare me?”
“I’m sorry. We were just surprised to see someone else out here.”
The man rolled over onto his knees and rose to a standing position, still focused on his torn pants and bleeding leg. Leaning over, he reached down and began brushing away the rocks and dirt. When he’d done all he could, he brushed off his coat sleeves before looking at Daniel, sniffling as he tried to hold back his tears. He reached down and picked up his discarded goggles. “I’ve got to get back to my mommy. I’m gonna be in so much trouble.”
“Maybe she’ll understand that it was just an accident,” Daniel offered. “Heck, tell her I jumped out and scared you. Let her get mad at me.”
The man’s eyes widened as he looked at Daniel. “You said a bad word!”
Daniel quickly ran through what he’d said in his head. “Heck?”
The man pointed at Daniel, his mouth forming an ‘O’. “Ooohhh, you said it again! You’re gonna be in trouble!”
Daniel shrugged. “Sorry.”
Walking over to his moped, the man shook his head. “Big trouble. You can’t say that stuff. Those words are bad. That’s how the devil gets in your mind.”
‘Oh boy,’ Daniel thought, watching the man shuffle over to his moped. Reaching down he lifted the moped into an upright position using the undamaged hand grip. When he saw the broken mirror on the opposite side, he began crying again, stomping his foot on the ground for emphasis. He looked over at Daniel again, a childlike anger on his face. “I guess you probably can’t fix this, either, right?”
Daniel shook his head. “I’m sorry. I wish I could.”
“Hrumph.” He got onto his moped and started it, his lower lip sticking out in a pout. He pulled his goggles back on, using his left hand to straighten them.
Daniel put out his hand. “Listen, are you sure your mom is going to be waiting for you down there? It’s dangerous out here, and I don’t want you to get hurt.”
The man-child looked at Daniel and lifted his chin in indignation. “I’ll be fine.” He pulled back on the grip, moving the moped forward. “I’m a big boy.” With that, he rode away, weaving happily between the cars and trucks that cluttered the freeway. Daniel watched him leave, wishing he could do more, but looking back at the Jeep, where his family sat, watching through the windows of the vehicle, he reminded himself that they were his priority. Nothing mattered more than getting them to safety, and chasing the kid down to make sure his mother was there, waiting for him would introduce risks that he was unwilling to take on.
Still….
From somewhere ahead he heard a slight skidding sound, then a crunching sound, accompanied by breaking glass. Even from where he stood, Daniel could hear the sound of the young man crying again.
‘Alright then.’ He made his way back to the Jeep and got in.
“What was all that?”
Starting the vehicle, Daniel looked at his wife. “Guy’s got a learning disability. Says his mommy is waiting for him down there near the park.” He pointed towards the patch of green further down the hill on the right side of the freeway.
“And he’s out here by himself? What the hell?”
Daniel smirked at her, turning and raising a finger to chastise her. “You said a bad word. That’s how the devil gets in your mind.”
“What?”
“Apparently his mother told him that. I mean, technically, ‘heck’ is a bad word. Who knows just how bad ‘hell’ is.” He put the car in gear and began working his way down the freeway towards where he’d heard the wreck.
“What’s the plan now?”
“Well, first, I’m pretty sure I heard him crash somewhere up ahead, so we’ll need to see how he’s doing. After that, I’m leaning towards making sure he gets back to his mother - assuming she’s still alive. He certainly indicated that she is, but I don’t know. Like I said, he’s mentally challenged.”
Brenna spoke up from the back seat. “He reminds me of one of the kids at my school. His name’s George. He’s really nice, but even at thirteen he acts like he’s six or seven.”
“We have a few girls like that on the cheerleading team. It’s actually pretty cool that the school included them.” Ashley added.
Nodding, Daniel replied, “I agree, that is pretty cool.” He continued on, his hands deftly moving the stee
ring wheel to the left, then right, then back again repeatedly as he worked his way down the road, making slow but steady progress. As he maneuvered the Jeep around a large Chevy truck with a horse trailer with its doors open, they saw a small plume of smoke coming from the smoldering wreckage of a blue Kia Optima, its front end completely smashed by the rear bumper of the 18 wheeler it had run into. From what they could see through the dark tinted windows, the driver’s body was still in the car.
Beyond the wreck, near the front of the semi-truck, the moped was on the ground near another stopped car. From what they could tell, the man had lost control of the small motorcycle as he drove through a large puddle of motor oil that had spilled from the damaged Optima.
Groaning as he writhed on the ground, the man was clearly in pain, holding his right arm close to his body, using his left hand to cup the elbow. Daniel pulled the Jeep to a stop about five yards away and hopped out.
“Took another spill, hunh?”
The man looked up at Daniel, confused. “You again? Where did you come from?” Suddenly his eyes widened and he used his feet to push himself backwards on the pavement, away from Daniel. “Are you following me? I don’t have any money. My mom wouldn’t give me lunch money because there’s no school today.”
Daniel brought his hands up again. “Easy, there, bud. I don’t want any money. I just want to be sure you’re okay.”
The man turned away, looking at Daniel out of the side of his eye. “Why do you keep calling me ‘bud’? My name is Tyler.”
Daniel smiled at him disarmingly. “I’m sorry. Nice to meet you, Tyler, I’m Daniel.”
“Hi.” Tyler grimaced in pain as he held his elbow.
Daniel pointed at the injured arm. “Can you move it?”
The man flexed it out and back in slowly, his face a tight mask of pain as he did so. “Hurts.”
“Okay, well, at least it’s not broken or dislocated. You probably just bruised it. Any chance your mom has access to ice?”
“Maybe, in the RV.”
Daniel nodded. “Oh, so you two live there? Did you have to leave where you lived before?”
Tyler shook his head from side to side. “No. We’ve lived in the RV for a long time. Mom says it lets us see the country. The good ol’ U S of A!” He pumped his fist at the last statement for emphasis.
“I see.” Daniel looked down at the moped. The other mirror was broken, as was the tail light on the left side. The headlight was damaged as well from the impact. The front tire appeared to be low on air, but it wasn’t flat. Even so, given the man’s condition, riding it probably wasn’t a good idea.
Looking ahead, he saw the off ramp that led toward the park only a few hundred yards away.
“Hold on a sec, Tyler. I’ll be right back.” Daniel walked back to the Jeep, opening the door to talk to his family.
“The guy’s mom is in an RV down by the park, there.” He pointed at the park before continuing. “He hurt his arm in the crash. Nothing serious, but he probably shouldn’t try to ride the moped down there. What do you think about following me down there in the Jeep while I push his moped for him?”
Serafina’s mouth twisted as she thought about what Daniel had proposed. They needed to continue North, and she really didn’t want to spend another night in some random spot if they could help it, but leaving the mentally challenged man to fend for himself seemed a bit callous. She looked towards the backseat. “Ashley, Brenna, Paul, thoughts?”
Ashley spoke first. “I think we should help him.”
“Me, too.” Brenna added.
Paul remained silent, looking at Serafina, expressionless.
“Paul, what do you think?”
The young man shrugged. “I mean, I guess we should help, but is there any chance that this could be a trap?”
Serafina drew back at the suggestion. She hadn’t thought of that. She cocked her head to one side as she regarded Daniel. “Honey? Could this be a trap?”
Daniel shook his head. “Don’t think so. I can’t see anyone trusting this guy with any complicated instructions, and I’m ninety-nine percent sure he isn’t faking it.”
Serafina nodded. “Okay, but be careful and make sure you’re ready for anything.”
“Will do.”
Ten minutes later they were on the off-ramp, Daniel walking alongside a limping Tyler. Daniel was surprised at how light the moped was. Pushing it required little effort, allowing him to scan the surroundings for any signs of trouble.
Like the freeway, the off ramp was cluttered with cars. Apparently a number of drivers had decided to abandon the freeway in an effort to outsmart everyone by taking the side streets. Unfortunately, in the mad rush, a massive Ford Excursion SUV and a working van had collided, and both had suffered from the impact. The van had been driven into the light pole and wrapped around it, the metal of the pole resting firmly in the center of the engine compartment. The SUV had rebounded from the impact, its momentum carrying it into the intersection, where a Uhaul moving truck had t-boned it. By Daniel’s estimate, the accident had happened at least 24 hours prior. There were no signs of life from any of the vehicles involved in the accident or from those on the off ramp.
While Daniel took all of this in, silently, Tyler walked along happily, humming a tune to himself. Daniel was pretty sure it was ‘The Wheels on the Bus.’
As they walked, Daniel insisted on taking paths that would allow Serafina to follow in the Jeep. Several times this confused Tyler, who saw an easier path in front of him, but each time Daniel reminded him of the Jeep and each time he nodded and followed, continuing his happy tune.
Reaching the intersection, they looked both ways before crossing, more for potential threats than for approaching vehicles. The little convoy crossed the street and climbed a short way up a small hill before reaching the cross street that bordered the park.
Halfway down the street was the entrance to the parking lot, where Tyler’s mother was supposed to be waiting in an RV. As they entered the lot, Daniel saw two RVs: one was on the far end of the lot, parked considerably so as not to block multiple parking spaces. The other was parked along the curb directly in front of the building that held the restrooms, effectively blocking six parking spaces.
‘Don’t tell me…’ Daniel thought to himself, hoping it was the one on the far end of the lot.
“There it is, right there by the little boys’ room.” Tyler smiled broadly, clearly happy to be home.
Looking at the RV, Daniel realized that the door to the living space would be on the other side of the vehicle, out of sight from the Serafina in the Jeep. Watching Tyler’s childlike excitement, he decided that the risk was minimal, and he turned briefly towards Serafina and motioned downward with his hand, indicating that she should stay back and wait. Confusion and anger crossed her face briefly and she raised her hands off of the steering wheel briefly to indicate that she didn’t understand his plan, her mouth forming the words, ‘what are you doing?’
Daniel flashed her an ‘OK’ sign and nodded, indicating that there was nothing to worry about.
As he and Tyler rounded the corner of the RV and approached the door, it crashed open with a bang and a woman with a shotgun emerged, the gun leveled on Daniel’s chest.
“I hope you’re good with the Lord,” the woman said, racking the shotgun, her finger pressed tightly against the trigger.
CHAPTER THIRTY SIX
“I hope you’re good with the Lord.” The woman said as she leveled her loaded rifle at Daniel’s chest.
Daniel raised his hands immediately, stepping back.
“Don’t move!” The woman’s voice screeched when she yelled, a shrill, grating sound that made him recoil. Dressed in cowboy boots, overalls, a patterned long sleeve that she’d buttoned to the top, she had a two inch gold cross hanging on a gold chain around her neck. Her brown hair was streaked with gray and parted down the middle, framing her middle aged Caucasian face. She was average looking, with a slender, almost skinny bui
ld, but none of that could be observed for more than a split second while her eyes were locked on him. In those eyes he saw fear, anger, and a whole lot of crazy.
“I’m sorry, Ma’am. I was just making sure your boy got back to you.”
“What? Tyler?” Somehow the woman had completely overlooked the chubby man-child standing less than five feet away from Daniel. “Tyler! What happened to yer pants? Juh ruin ‘em?”
Tyler looked at the ground, moving the dirt in front of him with his right foot as he slid it around. “Sorry, Mommy…”
The woman stood up straighter, keeping the gun on Daniel as indignation crossed her face. “Don’t be sorry ta me! You know the Lord frowns on wasteful boys. You’d best pray hard tonight, make sure he don’t strike you down!!”
“Okay, mommy….”
“Why you holding yer arm like that? This man hurt choo?” The woman stepped down off the riser that led up into the motor home, closing the gap between her and Daniel. The gun never wavered.
“No, Mommy. I jus’ fell. Fell real hard.” Tyler looked up at her, his face filled with regret. “The bike’s kinda messed up, too…” his voice trailed off as he looked down and away.
The woman’s face turned red with anger as she exploded at the man. “Good lord! What did you do? You jus’ got that bike today. I swear, the Lord tests me ev’day wit choo. Been testing me since you ‘un came outta me.” Shaking her head, the woman took a deep breath, closing her eyes for half a second before opening them again and regarding her son. “Of course, the Lord knew I’s da only one that can take care of boy like you. You special. You special, but you need me. You need me and I’s gone take care ‘a you. Together, you and me, with the grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, will be okay.” She stopped and stared at him for a full minute, making Daniel briefly consider drawing his gun and taking the woman down, but the distance between the two of them was too great, her finger on the trigger too tense.
Surviving Rage | Book 1 Page 32
