Chapter 4.
Halfway through the story.
Hope you enjoy.
The next morning, after everyone was dressed and ready, they headed to the mattress warehouse to drop off the load before they had to pick up the Jones' at their motel. The manager, Roy, saw the big red Kenworth and went out to meet his favorite trucker.
"Well, McKay, you're a few hours early but that's a mark of a good transporter." Roy handed his clipboard over for BJ to sign the paperwork.
"Yeah, I wanted to take the family to the fair while we here." BJ signed with a flourish and handed the clipboard back.
"You got the whole family with you on this trip?" Roy was surprised, knowing Jem's condition.
"Yeah, they're in the truck." BJ pointed with his thumb, smiling.
"It's been awhile since I've seen Jem." Roy started toward the truck to say hello.
"Yeah, well after she became pregnant with JB she stopped driving her truck, but she's still got her license." BJ followed behind.
"That's good but also a shame. Her family is known for being some of the best drivers around." Roy shook his head and opened the passenger door of the rig.
"Hey, Roy." Jem greeted him with a smile.
"My, my. Mrs. Jemima, it's nice to see you again." Roy patted her gently on the hand. "Where's this little future trucker that I've heard so much about?" Jem helped JB stand up on the seat beside her so Roy could see. "Well, nice looking young feller, McKay. It's funny how the kid has blonde hair while you two have dark hair."
BJ squinted his eyes at what Roy was implying but answered anyway. "Well, all of Jem's brothers and mother all have blonde hair as well as my sister, so I guess it kinda runs in the family and just skipped us."
"You still travel around with Bear?" Roy stood on his tiptoes trying to see in the back.
"Everywhere I go and Baricza is normally with us, too." BJ smiled up at Jem.
"That's nice." Roy backed up so BJ could shut the door. "Well, it'll take about half an hour or less for your rig to be unloaded and then you folks can be on your way to the fair."
"Thanks." BJ shook his hand.
"Hey, no problem." Roy turned back and saluted Jemima with his clipboard. "Nice to see you again, Jem."
"Yeah, you too Roy." She waved back.
"BJ stepped up on the truck so he could talk to Jem through the window. "How about we run over to the drug store and get a few drinks?"
"Fine with me. I've been dying for a Canada Dry ginger ale for the last few miles." BJ laughed at that and hopped down, opening her door as she guided JB onto her lap so she could pass him down to his dad. "What's so funny?" She smiled at him as he took JB from her and offered her his hand.
"Nothing. Come on." BJ helped her down and made sure the chimps followed behind. He grabbed the mischievous monkeys' hands to escort them to the drugstore while Jem did the same for their son.
"Food?" JB looked up at his parents, curiously.
"Yep." Jem smiled kindly at the adorable boy.
"Goody." JB grinned and quickened his steps pulling on Jem's hand urging her to go faster.
"Come on, you guys." BJ was attempting to keep the chimps in line. "Walk like men." Jem raised her eyebrow at him and looked at him pointedly. "And Baricza walk like a woman" He corrected himself with a shake of his head at Jem. "Better?"
"Much." Jem beamed at him. A couple of minutes later they had reached the drugstore, JB leading them to one of the circular booths.
The waitress saw them and headed over. "What ya'll be havin'?" She asked the unusual family.
BJ answered for them. "One ginger ale, two orange sodas, a coffee and a beer."
The waitress looked up at him accusingly. "A beer?" She was appalled. "Sir, I hate to point this out but I don't think you should be drinking beer with a little boy near."
"No, no, no." BJ motioned to Bear. "You've got it all wrong. You see the beer is not for me, it's for Bear." He reached over and patted Bear's head making him chatter gleefully.
"You mean it's for the monkey?" She was taken aback.
"Yeah, but Bear's a chimpanzee not a monkey." He corrected her.
"Alright, fine. It's coming up." She pocketed her notepad and walked away, rolling her eyes and shaking her head.
Jem's shoulders shook with her stifled giggles. "I forgot how funny it was whenever you try to order a drink for Bear."
"Yeah, I know." BJ chuckled, too.
"How did Bear get hooked on beer anyway?" She asked him pointedly, raising her eyebrow giving him a look.
BJ cleared his throat and looked away. "You don't want to know." The waitress arrived just then with their drinks, saving him.
"Here you go." She set the drinks down and passed them around. "One ginger ale, one coffee, two orange sodas, and a beer." She looked around the table, ensuring that she hadn't forgotten anything before walking away. BJ took a straw and opened it for JB, putting it in his drink while Jem handed Baricza and Bear theirs.
Trouble was starting to brew in a little hotel room not far way. Peter Jones was pacing back and forth as he awaited the arrival of the McKay family.
"What is taking them so long?" He wondered aloud, impatiently.
"Would you quit pacing? It's giving me a headache." Kayla snapped at her husband as they were both on edge.
"Well, it's not my fault." Peter went to sit by her on the bed. "You'd be a little jumpy too if you knew who we had to give those cards to."
Kayla sighed. "They'll get here when they get here."
"At least we make the trade-off at the fair." Peter scrubbed his hands over his face.
"Yeah." Kayla rubbed his back and rested her chin on his shoulder. Becky, climbed down from where she had been watching cartoons on her bed and went to stand in front of her parents. "Dad, why do you have to give the cards to that awful man?"
Peter looked down at her little face and tried to explain. "Well, my boss told me to." He picked her up and sat her on his knee. "Something about how some people here in Winslow want them. I don't know."
"Peter, aren't you supposed to call your boss this morning?" Kayla, remembered and looked at the clock.
"Yeah." Peter put Becky down and patted her behind gently as she scampered off to finish her show. "Thanks for reminding me." He kissed Kayla lightly on the forehead before moving to the phone. Kayla, trying to give him a little privacy in their cramped quarters, went to sit with Becky. Just a few minutes later, he was off. "It's all set."
Meanwhile, at the Winslow County Jail, Sergeant Wiley had just received a phone call from Michael Milo, Peter's boss. "Alright, we'll be on the lookout. Thanks for calling." Wiley hung the phone up and chuckled sinisterly at the thought of nabbing some bad guys, not knowing that Michael Milo had just set up an innocent man.
The Fox, relaxing with her feet propped up on Wiley's desk, looked up from her book. "Who was that?"
"That was Michael Milo from the credit card company about three hours out of Winslow." He rubbed his hands together gleefully.
"Oh, what did he want?" She put her feet down and set her book on the desk, all ears.
"One of his employees has stolen about twelve credit cards from the vault and he wants the cards sent back to him and the employee and his family arrested." He poured himself a cup of coffee, walked back to his desk, and before he had a chance to take a drink, the Fox grabbed it. "Thanks." She smiled at him. He glared back but went to pour another cup.
"What's the name?" She asked him before taking a slurp of the hot drink.
Wiley chuckled at that. "Peter Jones."
"What's so funny?" She leaned back in her chair.
"A certain red and white Kenworth trucker is driving them." He gulped his coffee and immediately regretted it, gasping as it burned his tongue and throat.
"BJ McKay is back in Winslow County?" Her mouth gaped open as she thought of her last encounter with the troublesome trucker.
"Yeah." Winslow stood in front of her leaning on the desk. "This is great, we'll put him behind bars for assisting in stolen contraband." The Fox and Wiley laughed together, enjoying the thought of seeing BJ McKay in their jail once again.
Sheriff Masters walked in on his two corrupt employees. "Big golf tournament today, do you think you can handle the fair Wiley?"
"Of course I can." Wiley stood a little straighter to assure his boss.
"Good." The naive sheriff nodded to each of them and took his leave. "Well, see you guys later."
Thanks for reading, hope you liked it. Let me know what you thought.
Chapters 5-8 posting soon...(hopefully sooner than later).
