“How old are your kids?” AnnieLee asked.
“Fourteen and twelve,” he said. “Boys. One plays football, the other plays chess. Go figure.” He held out a battered thermos. “Got coffee if you want it. Just be careful, because it’s probably still hot as hellfire.”
AnnieLee thanked him, but she was too tired for coffee. Too tired to talk. She hadn’t even asked Eddie where he was going, but she hardly cared. She was in a warm, dry cab, putting her past behind her at seventy miles per hour. She wadded her poncho into a pillow and leaned her head against the window. Maybe everything was going to be okay.
She must have fallen asleep then, because when she opened her eyes she saw a sign for Lafayette, Louisiana. The truck’s headlights shone through slashing rain. A Kenny Chesney song was on the radio. And Eddie’s hand was on her thigh.
She stared down at his big knuckles as her mind came out of its dream fog. Then she looked over at him. “I think you better take your hand off me,” she said.
“I was wondering how long you were going to sleep,” Eddie said. “I was getting lonely.”
She tried to push his hand away, but he squeezed tighter.
“Relax,” he said. His fingers dug into her thigh. “Why don’t you move closer, Ann? We can have a little fun.”
AnnieLee gritted her teeth. “If you don’t take your hand off me, you’re going to be sorry.”
“Oh, girl, you are just precious,” he said. “You just relax and let me do what I like.” His hand slid farther up her thigh. “We’re all alone in here.”
AnnieLee’s heart pounded in her chest, but she kept her voice low. “You don’t want to do this.”
“Sure I do.”
“I’m warning you,” she said.
Eddie practically giggled at her. “What are you going to do, girl, scream?”
“No,” she said. She reached into the pocket of her jacket and pulled out the gun. Then she pointed it at his chest. “I’m going to do this.”
Eddie’s hand shot off her leg so fast she would’ve laughed if she weren’t so outraged.
But he got over his surprise quickly, and his eyes grew narrow and mean. “Hundred bucks says you can’t even fire that thing,” he said. “You better put that big gun away before you get hurt.”
“Me get hurt?” AnnieLee said. “The barrel’s not pointing at me, jackass. Now you apologize for touching me.”
But Eddie was angry now. “You skinny little tramp, I wouldn’t touch you with a tent pole! You’re probably just another truck stop hoo—”
She pulled the trigger, and sound exploded in the cabin—first the shot, and then the scream of that dumb trucker.
The truck swerved, and somewhere behind them a horn blared. “What the hell’re you doing, you crazy hobo bitch?”
“Pull over,” she said.
“I’m not pull—”
She lifted the pistol again. “Pull over. I’m not kidding,” she said.
Cursing, Eddie braked and pulled over onto the shoulder. When the truck came to a stop, AnnieLee said, “Now get out. Leave the keys in and the engine running.”
He was sputtering and pleading, trying to reason with her now, but she couldn’t be bothered to listen to a word he said.
“Get out,” she said. “Now.”
She shook the gun at him and he opened the door. The way the rain was coming down, he was soaked before he hit the ground.
“You crazy, stupid, trashy—”
AnnieLee lifted the gun so it was pointing right at his mouth, so he shut it. “Looks like there’s a rest stop a couple miles ahead,” she said. “You can have yourself a nice walk and a cold shower at the same time. Pervert.”
She slammed the door, but she could feel him beating on the side of the cab as she tried to figure out how to put the truck into gear. She fired another shot, out the window, and that made him quit until she found the clutch and the gas.
Then AnnieLee grabbed hold of the gearshift. Her stepdad might’ve been the world’s biggest asshole, but he’d taught her to drive stick. She knew how to double-clutch and how to listen to the revs. And maybe songs weren’t the only thing she had a natural talent for, because it didn’t take her long at all to lurch that giant rig off the shoulder and pull out onto the highway, leaving Eddie screaming behind her.
I’m driving, she thought giddily. I’m driving!
She yanked on the horn and shot deeper into the darkness. And then she started singing.