Honeymoon for Three

CHAPTER 23

By the time Alfred awoke, Mattie was already outside the camper making breakfast in the morning sun. He caught a glimpse of her through a window. He carefully lowered his body from the top bunk and saw Don still sacked out. He put on his shoes and went outside as quietly as he could.

He said good morning to Mattie and received a grunt in return. He had sort of expected that and just hoped she wouldn’t leave him stranded here. He figured he was probably safe. She couldn’t explain to Don why she was mad at him. She wore her camping clothes, including her “I survived the big one” sweatshirt. Gone were the white blouse and cleavage. He went to the restroom. By the time he returned, Don was sitting outside on the picnic bench, sipping coffee. Alfred suspected that Mattie had rousted him out of bed.

He looked the worse for wear with his unshaven face and bags the size of airline carry-ons under his eyes. He must have drunk a lot of beer and played a lot of cards. There was no indication whether he had won or lost. Breakfast was an almost silent affair. Alfred wondered how Don would be able to drive in his condition.

The answer was that Mattie drove. Don rode in the front seat beside her, relegating Alfred to the back. That was fine with him, just as long as they took him to Crescent City. He couldn’t hear everything they said to each other, but he gathered that they planned to drive straight through Oregon and get home tonight.

He was positive that he was ahead of Penny and Gary. They would probably be passing through Crescent City sometime tomorrow. If he were going to intercept them, he needed a plan. The key part of any plan was having a car. He didn’t want to steal another car. That left too many tracks. He didn’t know how else to get a car. Maybe he would have to wait until he was back in L.A. Of course, he no longer had a car there, either. If he got his job back, he could at least buy a used car.

Riding alone in the backseat without any responsibilities gave Alfred too long to think about his life. What he concluded was depressing. He was jobless, carless, and he didn’t know whether he even dared to go back to his apartment. Or try to get his job back. The police knew his address, because it was on the registration that had been in his car.

What did he have to show for his sacrifices? Nothing. Rage began to build inside him. Rage against Gary who had thwarted his every move. Rage against Penny, because she let Gary control her. But it wasn’t all her fault. Gary had her mesmerized.

Maybe he didn’t have to kill Penny. Maybe he and Penny could still have a life together. Alfred needed some hope in order to carry on. If he killed Penny, he had nothing and nothing to look forward to. He did have to get rid of Gary. This brought his mind back to the realization that he needed a plan. And he didn’t have one.

He felt like a hamster on a wheel. His thoughts went in circles, leading nowhere. He might be going crazy. After a while, the motion of the camper lulled him. He found a pillow and lay down on the seat. The hum of the engine quieted his brain. He closed his eyes.

Ironing before breakfast had not been part of Penny’s lifestyle when she was single. That it was now gave a good indication of the effect Gary had on her. She had even sewed a button on his shirt on their second date, for crying out loud, and fed him dinner when she could barely cook.

After their breakfast in Idaho Falls, they drove to Craters of the Moon National Monument. In addition to driving the loop road, they did some hiking. They climbed up and into a cinder cone and down into Dew Drop lava tunnel. This was too much like a cave for the claustrophobic Penny. It even had stalactites hanging from the ceiling. She was glad when they got out of there.

They mailed wedding announcements home from Carey, Idaho, and stopped for lunch in a cafe in Shoshone, Idaho. They drove through Boise to Juntura, Oregon, for supper at a truck stop. Then on through several western cowboy towns before stopping for the night at a motel in Lakeview, Oregon. Exhausted and still sore from their horseback ride, they fell into bed.

The house of Don and Mattie in Crescent City was a small, one-story affair, not far from the center of town, which appeared to be the Ben Franklin store. Alfred had taken his turn at the wheel, which kept him from thinking depressing thoughts, but by the time they arrived, Don was driving. He pulled into the driveway after dark and parked beside a pickup truck.

They had eaten dinner in Grants Pass, Oregon. Alfred tried to pay for his meal, but Don brushed his money aside and paid with a wad of bills he took from his pocket. Evidently he had won at poker.

Although they were all talking to each other by this time, nobody brought up the subject of what Alfred would do when they reached Crescent City. Would they dump him at the Greyhound bus station tonight? He decided that what will be will be and left his fate to the gods of chance.

“Would you mind helping us unload a few things?” Don asked Alfred.

That was a good sign. He would unload everything in the camper if they would let him sleep in the house tonight. That would give him all morning to figure out how to intercept Penny and Gary. He felt more optimistic now. Something would turn up. It always did. He was lucky that way.

Unloading wasn’t a big deal. They unloaded the perishable food and dirty sheets and pillowcases, but not much else. The camping equipment and some of the food stayed in the camper.

When they were finished, Mattie led him to a bedroom and said, “This is the spare room. You sleep here. We’ve only got one bathroom in this God-forsaken place, but when we’re finished with it, it’s all yours. I suggest you take a long, hot shower because those cold campground showers don’t cut it. I’m going to wash your clothes since you’ve only got one set, and I noticed that they’re starting to stink. You don’t want to offend the passengers on the bus. I’ll give you a bathrobe of Don’s to wear. I’ll have your clothes clean for you in the morning.”

“That’s very nice of you.”

“Don’t mention it. Don has to go to work tomorrow. I have off till Monday. I’ll drive you to the bus station or wherever you want to go.”

Alfred had taken a quick shower at the Tetons, but the water had been cold and he hadn’t stayed under it long. While he was taking the first hot shower he had enjoyed in days, Alfred wondered whether Mattie was cleaning him up to have sex with him. If so, he would accommodate her. He was a man now, and men had responsibilities. It was time he stepped up to his. He went to sleep with a smile on his face.