it’s called.”
“Global Positioning System,” I said.
“Nice truck.”
Dodge popped the clip back into his
pistol. “I used to work some down at the
garage. Trouble with all them new cars,
though, they got all that computerized
stuff. Hard to fix ’em.” He pointed his
pistol at the road like he was aiming
for something, but I couldn’t see what.
“Whadda you do now, Brad? You never
did say.”
“I work for a new company out near
the lake. Total Home Systems.”
“What in heck is that? You put in
septic tanks, or what?”
“No, more along the technologic
line.” Dodge looked blank. “A
lot of electronic stuff,” I added.
“Computerized stuff.”
“Like a coffee pot cuts on when you
set it to?” Dodge asked. “Or a toilet
flushes no sooner than you stand up?”
“Something like that. Only a little
more complicated. I just finished a job
near here. If you’d like to know more—”
“Don’t sound like nothin’ that’d
interest me. Computers ruinin’ the
world!” Dodge leaned out of the
window and looked up and down the
road. “Gettin’ close to dark. It ought to
be about time that buck crosses the
driveway up yonder. Sucker is at least
a 10-pointer. I been watchin’ him for
weeks. Been throwin’ out a little corn
now and then, too.” Dodge put his
pistol in the truck’s console and hefted
his rifle out of the gun rack. “If I get him,
they’ll put my picture in the paper for
sure.”
“Aren’t you afraid the game warden
will catch you hunting from the road?”
“Game warden can’t catch me. A
couple of us monitor channel 16. Let
each other know if we spot him.” Dodge
snapped on his CB. “Game warden
can’t be everywhere. Besides who’s
gonna report me? Folks who own the
place are back in Florida or Europe or
somewhere.” Static crackled from the
CB. “Maybe I’ll just drive on up to their
house and look around. Two years back,
I got a 6-pointer right by their porch.”
“Well,” I said, “I don’t want anything
to do with trespassing. I got too much
to lose. You better take me back now.”
Dodge put his rifle back in the
rack. “It ain’t exactly trespassing. My
grandaddy used to own all this land. And
his grandaddy before him. We always
done what we please all over this land.”
He started the truck and backed up a
few feet before stopping.” Hey Brad,
remember all the fun we used to have
runnin’ these roads and shootin’ up
mailboxes after the games?”
“We were kids. We didn’t know
any better. Look, I’ve really got to get
back, Dodge. I have promises to keep.
I promised my fiancee we’d Skype
tonight.”
“What’s that?” he asked. “Some
new way of doin’ it?”
“It’s like a computer phone call. We
can see each other while we talk. She’ll
be expecting me to call.”
“You ain’t no fun anymore, Brad.”
He spun the truck around and stomped
on the accelerator. “Lettin’ a woman
tell you what to do!”
Except for an occasional interruption
from the CB, we rode in silence to the
crossroads store where we’d met an
hour earlier. Dodge pulled his truck
beside my van.
“Well,” he said, “good seein’ you
again, ol’ buddy. Kinda like ol’ times.”
Yeah,” I said. “Like old times.”
“Glad I run into you.” He shook my
hand. “Uh, you ain’t gonna tell on a ol’
teammate if I slip up to that house and
have a look around, now are you?”
“No, Dodge, I won’t tell.” I got out of
the truck and started toward my van.
“Hey Brad, maybe one of these days
we could get together and play a little
ball?”
“I don’t know, Dodge. My playing
days are over.”
“Well, see you around, then.”
Dodge gunned his engine and sped
off. I climbed into my van and checked
my iPhone for messages while I waited
for his dust to clear. I watched until his
taillights vanished around a curve.
I won’t have to tell on you, Dodge, I
thought. Only a matter of time before
security comes to get you. The motion
sensors on the Total Home Security
System I installed today will pick you up
as soon as you turn into the driveway.
The camera by the gate is probably
already recording your license number.
Another camera will get a good close-
up of your face. Amazing how good
those low-light cameras work! You
won’t even be able to tell they’re there.
Before long, though, a light will come
on inside the house. Surely you’ll see
the light.
Then I pulled my van onto the road
and headed in the opposite direction.
“The Roadhunter,” winner of the
2004 Lonesome Pine Short Story
Contest, will soon appear in a collection
of stories Becky Mushko is publishing
as an ebook. Read more about her
work at
.
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~ End ~
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