Vince opened the Atlas and flipped through the pages for Mississippi. “Where you want to stop in Mississippi? I thought we could speed through and get to New Orleans.”
Cap raised his hand for the waitress’s attention. “I’ve never stopped in Mississippi. I want to stop somewhere. Maybe Oxford. Mark Twain lived in Mississippi.”
Vince shook his head. “No he didn’t. He was a riverboat pilot on the Mississippi. He never lived in Mississippi”
The sunlight hindered the translucence of the window creating little colored dots that floated in front of their eyes. On the other side of the window an old man with an Africa shaped scab on his forehead leaned against a parking meter and coughed up phlegm on his hand over and over– loud enough so they could hear him inside. His pants were unzipped and unbuttoned, but held high on his waist by thick suspenders. He massaged his heavy, gray beard with the same hand he coughed all over.
Cap scratched his head. “Like to hang around West Virginia a little.”
“We have to be in Colorado yesterday and Texas is a big fucking state.” Vince searched for Texas in the atlas. It was quartered on four pages, which he held up in the air for Cap to see. “See what I mean?”
“Yeah, but we shouldn’t spend too much time thinking about where and when we get anywhere.”
“I just want to make sure we get to her sooner than later. You know. Please. I don’t want her out on the streets. She might get into trouble.”
“I understand. But I also have an agenda.”
“I remember.”
The old man in suspenders appeared before them like a slow-witted zombie. They acknowledged him with a nod. The old man made a backwards piece sign in front of his cancer colored lips. Oh, a smoke they realized.
Cap gave him a Marlboro from his soft pack on the table. “You need a light partner?”
The old man grumbled.
In the exchange Cap felt the bones beneath the man’s skin. A chill ran over his wrist and into his bicep.
The old man turned away from the matches. When the waitress came, she gently steadied the man’s sloped shoulders and pointed him towards the exit. “Go on now sir, you’re not supposed to be in here now.”
The old man waived his hand like whatever and shook off to the door. He crept past the window never looking up.
Beer spilled over the edge of the mugs when she placed them on the table.
“I’ll get something to clean that up,” she said.
“Don’t worry about it,” Cap said, as he wiped the beer up with his hand and then wiped his hand on his old jeans. “Can we get some napkins when you get a chance?”
Vicky Sue sat against the bar turning side to side on the stool. Her bangs swung past her eyes with each swivel. Her legs were spread apart and she held the loose fabric from her sundress over her groin. “Fucking got it.” She waived her keno card in the air. “It’s not the big one, but it’s enough for another crown royal.” She slapped the bar with her hand. “C’mon man, right here.”
A little fat guy, missing his legs below the knees, balanced his wheelchair on the back wheels. He wore a mop rag for a wig. “Got my check today and I feel like I won me a lottery. Hell yeah! Give me another fucking beer and a shot. That’s right!”
Vicky Sue slammed her shot back. She wanted that big score; ten thousand dollars, have herself a party, a big one– a lot of drugs, Crown Royal, guys and girls, everybody fucking on the floor. Get another tattoo to keep the bat wings spanning her back company. She tapped her glass on the counter. “It’s happy hour now. That’s two for one dirt-bag. I got one coming. Don’t act like you won the place and forget that.”
The sun made it’s descent on the other side of the Monongahela Valley as the courthouse across the street emptied of thieves, dead beat dads, drunks, druggies and the ambiguous. Lawyers, intent on avoiding their clients, hustled to their cars as they stretched the final minutes on a parking meter. The old man with the cancer colored lips cornered the people waiting at the bus stop for change. Nothing much running through his head, at least that he could tell. At that point in life he only responded to thoughts like cold, hungry and thirsty for liquor. A man in a WVU football coat and blue jeans turned out his pocket for the old man but came up empty. The bus came and left the old man alone to confront the idea that he might very well go hungry again. He didn’t remember how or when he ended up in the center of this town on the northern tip of Appalachia. In another town, not quite sure how long ago, he had a backpack with some dry rice and canned beans. Where did he leave that bag? Who was that friend? The one with the cane he carved from a healthy branch, and that hat with the feather in it. What did he say his name was?
Above the bank a digital billboard said it was 98 degrees and 7:30 pm.
Parked cars had gone home for the night, except for an old, blue pickup truck with a POW flag on the back window and Cap’s ’87 Pontiac Grand-am, prime painted gray.
The man in the wheelchair snored as he slept, head slumped forward, saliva spotted t-shirt. The keno ball tracked over the screen landing on ten. No one but the bar made any money on that round.
Cap and Vince had been drinking for some time, each drink finished quicker then the last. Not yet decided who would drive to a hotel.
Vince scratched his ass. “We can’t do this everywhere or we won’t make it to New Orleans.” He used his fingers to wipe the beer from his lips. “I think we should get going before we both go blind.”
Cap lifted his hat off his forehead. “One more, I’ll drive. I’m okay to drive.”
“I’m not. I can’t imagine you are either.”
“I probly not, but I will. This is West Virginia. Everybody on the road is drunk.” They laughed.
Vince suddenly realized. “The atlas, where is it, shit!” He bent down to look under the table.
Cap slapped it down on the table. “I have it, relax.”
“We can’t lose that. It’s our bible.” Vince picked it up and put it next to him on the seat. “We can’t buy a new one. The atlas you start with is the atlas you finish with.”
Cap pointed with his chin. “Look.”
Vicky Sue had her arms resting on Lady’s shoulders. Their lips dabbed at the other’s cheeks, then they moved to the lips, and then with tongue. The men along the bar called for more when the girls finished.
Vicky Sue knew exactly what she was doing. “Someone buys us a drink.”
A man with big sideburns crawling from under a welder’s cap raised his hand. “This one’s on me.”
Vicky Sue spotted Cap and Vince watching. She did her shot and put the glass down on the bar. “It’s still happy hour, so fill it.”
“She’s kind of hot in a red-neck sort of way,” Cap said.
“She’s drunk as shit man. I’ve seen her do like twenty five shots of that shit.”
“I can’t do any shots right now.”
“Me neither.”
Vicky Sue gave her friend another kiss on the lips and did another shot. She brushed her hair back with her hand and combed it down at her scalp. She was broke, spent all her money on keno and shots. She usually ended up on her back for money sooner or later, even with her boyfriend around. The same boyfriend she was waiting for to get out of court across the street. But the courthouse was closed by now and he hadn’t been in to get her. He probably walked down to the river to smoke some crank with the other criminals.
Vince spilled beer on his shirt. “Oh shit, now I stink.”
Vicky Sue leaned against the table and her top was very baggy and her breasts weren’t big enough to see anything. Just her perky nipples when the cotton draped against her. It took her a second to find her balance.
Cap slid over. “Do you want to sit down?”
She plopped down in the seat next to Cap and rested her chin in her hand. “Are you guys drinking crown royal? You should.”
“Why?” Cap said.
“Cause it’s two for one. And, well, I love crown royal.”
“I know,” Vince said.
“How do you know?”
“Got that feeling.”
She leaned into Cap and made herself comfortable. “This one a fucking wise ass, huh.”
“I’m just messing around,” Vince said.
“That’s okay. Want to do a shot?”
“I’ll buy,” Cap said.
She had her hand on Cap’s leg under the table. “What a gentlemen.” She slammed the table with her fist. “Hey! Bring us some more shots. Crown! Right, you guys want crown? Don’t be a pussy.”
Vince motioned towards the bar. “Tell your friend to come over here.”
Vicky Sue turned around and her boob slipped out the side of her dress. It stayed like that. Her skin was milky white and smooth and soft looking. “Hey Lady! Come here.”
Lady came over and sat down next to Vince, closer then she had to. Her hair was dark and up. She might have been mulatto. Her nose was freckled and pierced with a shiny stone. They leaned into each other over the table and kissed. Lady’s red lipstick left a mark around Vicky Sue’s mouth.
“Umm,” Vicky Sue said.
Cap had his hand on Vicky Sue’s leg too. He liked the way it felt, not to skinny, and when he squeezed it she said, “Yeah.”
Lady smoked Newport 100’s and left a ring of red around the filter. She tried to be sexy when she exhaled. “Are you guys passing through town or something?” Her voice was raspy.
Cap pulled his hat down. “Yeah, for the night. Can you recommend a hotel not far from here?”
Vicky Sue squeezed Cap’s thigh. “Of course. Can you buy another shot?”
He squeezed her leg. “Of course.”
She pointed out the window. “In Grafton there’s a bunch a cheap ones we get sometimes to throw parties. Do you guys want to have a party?”
“Do you guys have any drugs,” Lady asked.
“We have some pot,” Cap said.
Vicky Sue leaned into Cap and put her nose against his ear. “Do you smoke crank?”
“No, I don’t actually. It’s not real common where we live.”
“Where do you live?”
“New York.”
“Is it pretty?”
Vicky Sue began to spit with her P’s. She was aware of this but too drunk to care. She considered reaching down into Cap’s pants, hoping her boyfriend would walk in at that exact moment, give him something to freak about. He was probably fucking some crank whore in an empty warehouse down by the river. She drove him into town so he could go to court and he couldn’t even come meet her like he said. He must have met some whore sitting in court all day, and they talked about getting together afterwards. She was probably paying a fine for being a whore on some street in the middle of the afternoon. That little asshole will fuck anything with a cunt. They met at a party. They snuck off to do it in a bathroom while his girl waited in the car. So he fucked the both of them for a while until the other girl got pregnant. He threw her pregnant ass to the curb and chose Vicky Sue to be his number one. She loved him, but that didn’t mean she didn’t like getting it from someone else every so often. Turned out every so often is equal to a couple times a week, laid upside down in a hotel or the back seat of a car. All it took was a little smack on the behind to get her started.
It didn’t take long for Cap to realize that. “So you guys want to get a hotel and party for the night. You can bring your crank or your crack, what ever it is you like.”
“Crank,” Lady said.
Cap continued. “You can bring crank, Crown, more crank, what ever you like.”
Vicky Sue arched her back and smiled, which turned out to be very pretty. Cap liked her. Vince liked her. Lady liked her. The whole room watched her.
The pool balls broke and the man who took the shot hit the lights above with the pool stick. “Oops.” He stopped the lamp from swinging.
No one saw Danny until after they heard him. “Let’s go,” he said to Vicky Sue. Cap lifted his hand up from her knee.
“You were supposed to be here like right after the court closed. Where the fuck you been?”
Lady blew smoke at him. “Where the fuck you been Danny?”
“I been busy. Wha’s up, lets go.” His pants were buckled far below his waist and his undershirt tucked into his boxer shorts. “I’m fucking tired.”
“How do you think I feel,” Vicky Sue said as she shuffled away from the table. “We’re going to a party with these guys later. Okay.”
She said it like, we, him too. All of a sudden Cap and Vince realized they made a big mistake.
Cap nudged Vince under the table.
“Yo, let me get a Newport,” Danny said to Lady.
She gave him one, but acted like she was pissed at the fact that he never had any cigarettes and somehow smoked a pack a day. “Whateva, ya’ll haven’ a ho-down. I’ll bring the ho’s. Right?”
Lady and Vicky Sue laughed. They drew Vince and Cap a map on a napkin that said WOODY’S over an overflowing mug of beer. Lady kissed it leaving lipstick marks that didn’t look like lips.
“Yo, you a ho!” Danny said.
“Shut up fuck head,” Lady said. “You the ho.”
They said they’d see them later, then chugged a beer to see who would have to drive. Cap finished first so Vince had to drive.
“This could be dangerous,” Vince said. He unlocked the car door. “Are you going to smoke crank?”
“Don’t know, you?”
Vince shrugged his shoulders.
The old man found himself on the railroad parallel to the river. Completely dark and quiet, he could hear himself breathe. He forgot to do that, so why did it do it by itself? He thought about that house he lived in before he ended up a transient. It was green and the grass was always cut nice and even. His son did it maybe twice a week. The old man watched him from the front steps with a cold beer next to him. He showed his son how to make the lawn look like a chessboard. Maybe if I keep walking, I’ll find my way back to that place with the white house. My legs are moving and my eyes are blinking, just like my heart is beating. I’m still hungry. Maybe someone has something to drink down by the river.
Cap squinted, trying to see anything beyond the headlights. Beer bottles were shaking with the ice in the cooler on the back seat.
“We should have put that in the trunk,” Vince said.
“Pullover, I’ll put it in there.”
“No, don’t worry about it.” The bottles sloshed around, side to side, against the inside of the cooler. “Actually, get me one would you?”
“Hell yeah. Believe I’ll have one myself.” Cap reached behind and got two beers and opened them with the bottle opener attached to the keys dangling from the ignition.
Vince drank. “I guess it doesn’t really matter at this point. I guess.”
“No it doesn’t.”
Both of them flirted with the idea of going to a different hotel but neither of them mentioned those thoughts to the other.
The front desk clerk sat behind the counter and typed the word Jesus into the search box on the computer monitor. He pressed enter and the computer said, searching for results. A second later the computer said, 16,600,000,000 sites found.
His hair was short and parted just above the ear. On his t-shirt were the initials WWJD (What Would Jesus Do). An evangelist was crying on the television, for the mercy of the lord upon the loyal and obedient. His hair was white and thick, like a cloud, and his suntan was golden, jewelry expensive. There was a phone number to call underneath him. The clerk picked up the phone, held it between his shoulder and his head, and dialed the number, the whole time holding the crucifix around his neck.
“Hello, The Lord’s Mission,” a voice said on the other end. “What would you like to pray for?”
“I would like to pray that I meet someone that has as much faith in the Lord as I do.”
“That’s a beautiful prayer. And what is your name?”
“My name is Joshua.”
“Okay Joshua. The Reverend David will pray for you and the Lord Almighty shall answer his prayer.”
“Thank you, thank you very much.”
“Thank you for calling Jonathon and…”
“It’s Joshua…”
“…Thank you for putting your faith in the Lord, as Jesus is your only salvation.” She hung up.
Joshua watched Reverend David and waited to hear his prayer. The Reverend took a moment to dry the tears from his cheeks and apologized for his outburst. “But sometimes the Lord’s word is so emotional that not even I am able to compose myself from the powers that be.”
Joshua tapped his pen with anticipation.
“Okay,” the Reverend said. “Who’s next? Jonathon would like me to pray for him. He wants to meet more people like him. That’s not hard to do Jonathon, just locate your local Christian Chapter and you will meet many more people like yourself.” The Reverend closed his eyes and folded his hands. “Put your faith in Jesus the Lord and pray with me. Dear Father of Humanity, give to Jonathon the attention and devotion he gives to you. Guide him to others like him. Show him the way to salvation…”
A car crept up to the glass doors. Joshua watched Cap get out of the passenger side holding a beer bottle in his hand. He entered barefoot and scrapped the floor with his toes, canvassing the room with his eyes. He changed directions and headed for the pool table, ran his fingers over the green felt and took a sip of his beer.
Joshua was on his feet rubbing the crucifix between his fingers. Alcohol made him nervous: sin in the eyes of the Lord; a vice for those who choose doubt over devotion.
“Any rooms available?”
By the looks of the empty parking lot, most rooms were vacant.
“Yeah,” Joshua said as he returned to the computer. “Smoking or non-smoking?”
“Is the pool table open?”
“It closes at midnight.”
“Shit,” Cap said and snapped his fingers. “That’s too bad.”
“It’s only 9:13,” Joshua said.
“Well great, how about a smoking room for two. Do you have an ice machine?”
Joshua had already begun the checking-in process. “There’s one at the other end.”
“Good stuff.”
Cap leaned up against the counter as Joshua fumbled with the keys hanging on the wall. The Reverend was crying again and grabbing his hair with his hands.
Cap finished his beer. “Do you have a garbage back there?”
Joshua lifted a small wastebasket and Cap tossed the can in. Joshua put the key on the counter and filled out a room card.
“Hold on their partner, what’s the rate?”
“Twenty-nine, plus tax.”
“Well shit, can’t beat that with a bat.”
Joshua found that phrase funny. “No you can’t, at least not for another thirty or so miles.”
“Don’t got it in us. We’ve been drinking most of the day, now we just want to sleep.”
“Can you sign here, please? Your room is 32, it’s to the right. Your parking space is directly outside the door.”
“Alright, sounds great. That way right?”
“Yes, just straight down to the right.”
Joshua called out before Cap reached the door. “If you’re interested we have a bible study in the morning at 8 am right here in the lobby, if you’re interested. One lost soul at a time."
Cap took several steps back towards the counter. He tapped his forehead with his finger, like he considered the idea. “And tell me, during this Bible study do you explain how the father and the son can be the same thing."
“Well, we can try to help you understand and guide you in the right direction. Then you can answer it yourself.”
“I was kidding,” Cap said.
“I know,” Joshua replied, regrettably.
Lady smoked under a yellow light on the front porch ten yards from the quiet street. The steps balanced on cinderblocks and the paint on the house had chipped, exposing the grayed wood underneath. Little bugs were attracted to the light and Lady swatted at them between drags.
Vicky Sue was yelling inside, at the top of her lungs, something about drugs and fucking. “I want to go, I don’t care if you do.” She came outside on the porch and slammed the screen door behind her. Her cheek was red and her lip was bleeding. Danny pressed his face against the screen. “Go you fucking ho, fuck whoever you want, just don’t come back here until you douche.”
Vicky Sue looked at the stars. “Fuck you!”
“Why you got to be so nasty?” Lady said to Danny.
“Fuck you, you a ho too.”
“Fuck you,” Lady said.
Danny held the door open halfway. “But you better not be fucking those yankee mother fuckers cause you my hoes.”
“I ain’t your ho,” Lady said.
Danny stepped out to the porch and stepped up into Lady’s face. “I’ll slap you down bitch, fucking talk to me like that.” He grabbed her face with his hand. “Huh, you see. Who’s the ho now?”
Then, Whack!
Danny fell on the floor holding his head.
Vicky Sue threw the mahogany chair leg on the ground. “Who’s the bitch now!” She bent down over him. She kicked him twice in the ribs. “Get up mother fucker, get up!”
Lady pulled on Vicky Sue’s arm and they jumped down the stairs and into Vicky Sue’s car.
They drove over the lawn and down the dark road. Little red eyes blinked in the shrubs. Vicky Sue had been down this road before and the gothic nights among the old trees were not the realities she feared. Throw away those old memories. Maybe there’s a place somewhere by a waterfall, where I don’t drink so much Crown. Instead just the waterfall makes me happy. I’ll bathe in the pool of warm water beneath the waterfall and float like cotton does. Or does it?
The hotel room smelled like moldy cheese. The air conditioner hummed loudly. Vince hit the mattress with his hand to see how much dust had settled since the last guest checked out. After careful inspection he dragged back the decorative cover. “They never wash these things.” He analyzed the pillows for any harmful stains. He fluffed them with his fists and lay down with his arm over his eyes. A rush of eagerness filled his stomach. “Oh boy, I can’t wait to really ride the road again. I’m coming baby. She sounded really happy on the phone. I think.”
Cap was standing by the door with the small wastebasket from the bathroom. “I’m going to get some ice.” He opened the door and hesitated. “Why in such a hurry? I know you want to see your woman, but she’s not even done for another three weeks, and we got plenty of time to kill until then.”
“Close the door,” Vince said.
“Fuck you.”
Vince sat up on the bed. “You’re letting all the cold air out.”
“Fuck all the cold air, if you’re in such a hurry, I’ll drop you off at the bus stop.” He closed the door behind him.
Joshua was sitting on the couch in the lobby, reading Messenger Magazine, but mostly looking at the pictures of happy old people who shared their stories of how the lord had blessed them during their lifetime. Joshua believed that as long as his faith in the Lord remained strong, he would be blessed as well. Someday that special someone would walk through those doors and it would all be according to the Lord’s plan.
Just then Cap came through the glass doors with the empty wastebasket in his hand, propped against his hip. The room seemed to light up when Cap smiled. He tapped on the bucket with his pointer finger. “Ice machine don’t work.”
Joshua stood attentively, hoped his hair was neat, but regretted he ever wore that shirt he’d been wearing for three years. It had become too tight around his stomach. “I’m so sorry.”
He opened the door so Cap would follow him outside to the ice machine.
“Gary came to fix it the other day, maybe Tuesday, it always does this.”
“No problem, just need to fix it. Need me ice. Don’t get to see this many stars where I’m from.”
“I hope it’s not broken cause Gary won’t come out this time of night. Where are you from?”
“New York. I can probably fix it if you don’t mind me taking a look.”
He pressed the little red button and the machine made a grinding noise, but no ice. “Go ahead take a look at it. I don’t mind.”
Cap hugged the machine and turned it just enough so he could see behind it. There was a light above. “It’s filthy.” He reached and grabbed at some cables to make sure everything was secure.
Joshua liked watching Cap grunt when he stretched his reach.“Are you some sort of mechanic?”
“No, but I grew up around this kind of shit. My Dad owned a body shop and my mom worked too, so I spent a lot of time around cars. Now I seem to know what’s what.”
“That’s neat. Must save you a lot of money.”
“Sometimes, I guess so. Press that button…Please.”
“Sure.” Joshua pressed the button.
More grinding noises.
“Hold it down,” Cap said.
“Sorry.” Joshua held in the button, the tip of his finger growing numb.
More grinding. An ice cube popped out and hit the ground. Then more ice cubes.
“Okay, you can let go,” Cap said. He picked up the wastebasket and started collecting ice.
“Wow, you did it. How did you fix it?”
“I don’t know,” Cap said with a little laugh. “I think it just needed to be bounced around a little.”
“I’m sorry about the inconvenience. This always happens.”
“Don’t worry about it. We fixed it.”
“You’re right we did.”
“If you want to stop by the room for a beer, you’re welcome to. We’re expecting a few guests.”
“Oh, I don’t drink.”
“That’s not a crime either.”
“Are you going to join us in the morning?”
“I don’t think so. I think I’m going to sleep a little in the morning. I’m not one for praying. But you go ahead, it’s seems to work for you. Hell, we fixed the ice machine didn’t we? I guess you could attribute that to some sort of divine.”
“I don’t know, maybe, it’s possible.”
“Sure it is.”
Cap stopped in front of 32. “If you want to come by, you’re
welcome.”
Joshua stood there and waited. “Thanks a lot, I might do that.”
“Okay.” Cap closed the door. He watched Joshua walk past the window.
Vince had his acoustic guitar on his lap, the light reflecting off the black. “I decided to write a song for Lisa. I can’t wait to play it for her.”
“That sounds so gay.” Cap poured the ice over the beer in the cooler. “All your songs are about women. I think I should get more ice. Lets fill the bathtub.”
“Yeah, but they could be about anyone, by anyone. I want to write a song from me to her. A song that could only be hers. Something that other people will hear and know what we have. There’s nothing wrong with that.”
“That’s romantic.”
“Are you being serious?”
“Not even.”
“I want to call her. I hate this.”
Cap handed him a beer. “A Few more weeks, she’ll be all yours again. Can’t you wait?”
“I can wait, just don’t make us late.”
“And don’t make it sound like I’m some invalid who can’t follow directions. But understand. I’m not on this little expedition simply for your sole purposes. I have goals of my own. Don’t rush me or I won’t be fooling around about the bus. See, I want to party. I want to get laid.”
Vince waved his hand in the air. “Alright, Alright.”
“Alright, alright, no shit. I told you I’d get you to Colorado. That was before you started getting pushy.”
“You’re right, I’m sorry, I’m just scared. I’m scared that she’s not going to be okay. I don’t want her to be alone.”
Cap rubbed the corner of his eyes with his fingers. “Don’t worry, we’ll be there. She won’t be alone.”
Vince covered his face and thought about her standing on a Denver street alone. “Thanks.”
Danny faced his shadow on the wood paneled wall. He held a towel against the back of his head, put his cigarette in his mouth, and picked up the phone on the coffee table covered with empty forty-ounce beer bottles. He jabbed at the numbers with his finger. “Yo nigga,” he said into the phone. “Can you borrow ya sister’s car tonight? Because nigga, I axed you. Just, can you or not. I don’t have time to explain to you, but I need a fucking ride.” He tugged at the torn fabric on the arm of the couch. “Vic went to fuck some yankees at the hotel in Grafton and I want to go there and fuck somebody up. And the bitch took my shit. Well, pick my ass up when she gets home from work. And bring ya piece. Some niggas might get fucked up tonight.” He hung up the phone and swallowed from a bottle. “Mother fuckers!” He shattered the bottle against his shadow on the wall.
