Young

9 - Road Trip

Before you knew it, Blake and I were seated in front with Paul and Annette in the rear. The trunk was packed tightly with tents and camping gear. Annette and I wore different pattern floral shorts and short sleeved white blouses. Blake and Paul wore khakis and collared shirts; Paul's beige and Blake's forest green.

We decided to travel down to Chicago and from there take Highway 66 all the way to San Bernardino.

"We'll go on adventures just like they do in the TV show!" I said with unbridled excitement.

Blake nodded and grinned, "Route 66, here we come!"

I could go on about all the fun we had camping near Springfield, Illinois and all the scientific facts Paul pointed out along the way regarding different weather patterns and geological formations.

I could also go on about how unbearably hot it got in Amarillo, Texas and the side trip we took to the Grand Canyon.

But the part that changed my life forever took place just beyond the Arizona border into California.

You would have seen the four of us weary from traveling in sweat soaked clothing, the 100 degree temperature taking its toll. We welcomed the site of a small motel as twilight approached.

There was really nothing to be seen except for the flat barren desert and mesas for miles on end. The sunset was a beautiful orange and appeared three times larger than normal. It was a lonely, desolate place but striking in its vastness.

We decided to turn in early. Annette heard about Indians selling jewelry made of polished stones native to the area so we decided to look for them in the morning. The boys would strike out on a hike while we shopped.

"Don't forget to gas up the car," Blake warned.

We woke up around nine-thirty. I knocked on Blake's door and he answered sleepy eyed. I could see Paul peering at us over Blake's shoulder, his hair looking like a disheveled mop.

"We're on our way, honey."

"Okay, have fun," he said as he rubbed his eyes.

Annette was by the car thumping her foot on the ground impatiently.

"Come on, Veronica!"

"Okay..okay..coming!" I yelled.

I gave Blake a quick kiss and ran over to her.

"So, you have the map?" I asked.

Annette pointed to her head. "I got it all right here."

"Okay, you're the boss," I said with a shrug.

The sky was blue and the sun bright. It was the perfect day. We drove down the main stretch of road for about ten minutes and then took a right onto a narrower road with less traffic. I lost track of time as we chatted about San Bernardino.

"It's been awhile, you do know where you're going, right?" I asked.

"Stop being such a worry wart, of course I know."

Annette suddenly turned left onto a dirt road.

"See, what did I tell ya?"

"Okay, just as long as you know what you're doing," I said with a semi-worried look.

"Let's sing, Veronica."

Annette broke out into Surfin USA and I tried to join her although she knew the words much better than I did. She turned right again on to an even narrower dirt road.

"I think we're almost there," she said.

I looked all around me and the landscape appeared the same from every direction, barren desert as far as the eye could see. The air conditioning was on at full blast but I was still getting hot and sweaty.

Annette focused on the road ahead with no more singing or talking of any kind. We drove in silence for about five minutes and I turned to look at her facial expression. She wasn't smiling.

"Are you sure..."

"No Veronica," she interrupted. "I'm not sure anymore, we should have reached it by now."

"Let's go back, we probably made a wrong turn," I suggested.

She nodded and said, "That's what we'll do."

The very moment she said those words the road ended abruptly, no signs or warnings, it just ended. She made a wide arc and started driving back the way we came on the narrowest of dirt roads, barely wide enough to contain the width of our car. Then we heard the most dreadful sound you could ever imagine, the engine sputtering and then stopping to dead silence.

Sweat trickled down Annette's neck, her breath quickening as she directed her gaze to the fuel level on the dashboard. I followed her eyes and covered my mouth in panic, it was completely empty.