A/N: Reposting again due to an error on my part in geography!
After another ten or fifteen minutes, her worries were all confirmed, when she saw a sign that read "Oklahoma City, 75 miles". Sam realized suddenly, she wasn't in Kansas anymore.
Chapter 53
Sam had lost track of the number of days since the accident had changed her well laid plans and sent her on an unexpected detour of more than 300 miles in the wrong direction. She thought it had been at least a week, maybe more, since leaving Oklahoma City and heading once again west, this time on I-40.
After stealing another map, Sam had dismissed the idea of backtracking her way back to I-70 and settled on simply heading west again. If she could get to Albuquerque, Santa Fe, or somewhere near there, she would be much closer to home, and she could just follow I-25 North to Colorado Springs and Denver. She didn't expect to get a ride all that way though, and figured she'd be hopping transports again like she'd been doing.
Again, she'd alternated catching rides when possible, and taking to foot if places were close enough. The territory soon turned to desert unfortunately, and before long she was forced to rely more on rides, despite her worries about a repeat occurrence of her little detour. In her travels, she'd slipped aboard all sorts of vehicles, from pickups to tractor trailers, to a Volkswagen with a chair crammed in the trunk, the trunk tied closed over it, providing her a means to slip inside. She'd been mostly sticking to vehicles she could sneak aboard, rather than relying on the kindness of strangers after her bad experiences. It seemed more often than not people shooed her away, but there were those few that seemed to find it their duty to haul strays off to the pound, or worse, cause harm to them. So she just kept a watch out for places she could stow away on.
She hadn't seemed to have the luck to find any trucks loaded with mattresses or other soft materials though. Although she was starting to think the gods were taking a perverse enjoyment in her predicament. After making a fervent wish for a truck heading her way carrying something soft, she'd managed to steal aboard a truckload of chickens, her current transport. The truck was on its way to Amarillo, Texas. While Sam had to agree that feathers were indeed soft, chickens most certainly were not. Not only were they not soft, they were noisy and smelly.
Sam was busy counting the miles to where they would stop, and she could search for something nicer, something with air conditioning. And cushions. Sam sighed, and curled her tail in front of her nose protectively.
Not soon enough for Sam, the truckload of chickens left the interstate, and pulled into a gas station, somewhere in the outskirts of Amarillo judging by the last signs she'd seen. Barely waiting for the truck to come to a full stop, Sam quickly passed through the rows of caged squawking and flapping chickens and slipped out under the loose rail she'd discovered that had allowed her access.
Darting under some nearby bushes, hopefully unnoticed, Sam looked around. Despite being nearly midday, this particular gas station didn't seem too busy. She was also hungry, and there wasn't a convenience store attached to this station, so it was unlikely she'd find food. Sam looked at the other nearby businesses, and took note of what seemed to be some sort of buffet style restaurant just across the street. The parking lot was full of cars and buses, and seemed to be busy for the lunch hour. Sam decided to take her chances on getting a meal there, and maybe she'd be lucky enough to find a ride as well.
It wasn't hard to cross the divided highway and get to the restaurant. Keeping as close to the walls and shadows as possible, Sam approached the entrance. The place was very busy, noisy talk and laughter coming through the doorway. Sam had realized that the busier places were, the more likely she'd be able to slip in unnoticed. Her observation proved no less true today as she slipped in quietly with a large family just entering, and ducked under the nearest table.
Sam had barely begun to stake out the place when a woman entering the buffet collided with a large man just leaving it with his loaded plate, looking over the shoulder at someone behind him. His plate went flying, the food going in every direction including all over people. Sam blinked as a large serving of ribs landed with a plop just a few feet in front of her.
Not wanting to look a gift horse in the mouth, Sam made her move while everyone was still distracted on the man and woman who were now shouting at the top of their lungs at each other, a harried looking manager hurrying towards them. Not giving the commotion a second look, Sam darted from under the table and hastily grabbed the fallen meat into her mouth, running towards the doorway and under the legs of a very startled couple that had just opened the door, her prize clutched in her mouth.
Checking for any signs of pursuit, Sam breathed a sigh of relief when there was none, and took her meal into the shade of a parked car behind the restaurant, where all the buses were parked.
The ribs were delicious, tender and warm, the sauce sweet and just a little bit tangy. The portion was large, and Sam grew full before she'd made it halfway. Sam licked her whiskers as she lay under the car, eyes half closed in contentment, the afternoon heat making her feel drowsy. It had been a long time since she'd had enough to be able to eat more then her fill.
People walked back and forth in the parking lot, groups talking and laughing, children running. Sam's ears twitched as she listened to one group, sudden hope filling her. A man stepped towards a group of older gray haired women and confirmed what she thought she'd heard.
"Bus leaves for Santa Fe in ten minutes ladies! Don't forget anything!" The man, who looked like a bus driver, headed back to the bus and walked around it, inspecting it. The door stood open, its engine idling. No one was near the door. Sam glanced at the group of ladies, some of whom had gone back in, presumably to use the lavatory or find the rest of their companions. The wheels in Sam's head turned. Could she slip aboard without getting noticed and thrown off?
Sam decided she had to take the chance. It was nearly 200 miles, maybe more between the two cities, and Sam knew it would put her so much closer to home. She'd had to take a handful of different rides as well walk some on foot to cover that same distance earlier in her trek, as she hadn't found a ride like that first one with Big Red again.
Taking one last look at the ribs, Sam made another choice, and grabbed up the leftovers in her teeth. There was more than enough for another meal, and she couldn't remember the last time she'd had more than one full meal on the same day.
Clutching her food, Sam darted from the shadow of one parked vehicle, to the shadow of another, until she was as close as she could get to the bus without leaving cover. Peeking about cautiously, Sam noted the driver was on the other side of the bus, and the group of ladies was looking away from the open bus door towards the front of the restaurant, where police had just arrived. Sam guessed they were here to deal with the man and woman that had inadvertently provided her windfall. Although there seemed to be a large number of people milling around outside the restaurant, and many of them didn't seem very happy. There also seemed to be a lot more police than seemed necessary for two people.
Not bothering to dwell on it, Sam thanked whoever was responsible for her sudden change in luck and didn't waste the opportunity. Counting to three in her head, Sam made a dash for the open door of the bus, blinking at the sudden change in temperature. Air conditioning!
Sam shook herself; careful not to drop the precious ribs she carried. Fine taste of Eden she would have, if she just stood here like an idiot in the doorway she'd likely find herself tossed back outside into the Texas heat. Scampering up the stairs, Sam darted down the aisle, relieved to find no one had boarded the bus yet. Looking about for a hiding space, Sam's eyes were drawn to the luggage rack, already crammed with bags and other things. Heading down the aisle, Sam saw an open space on the rack, and without hesitation leapt lightly onto the seats. From the back of the seat, she leapt onto the rack, settling next to a rather large, rather garish looking furry hat with feathers sticking out of it. Sam glared at the feathers, remembering the chicken truck.
It seemed Sam had found her spot not a moment to soon, as the first group of ladies returned to the bus, chattering about the commotion at the restaurant. Apparently the argument had escalated, and the woman had thrown something at the man, who'd ducked, and the food had hit another man, who had become angry. Next thing and there had been a bit of a brawl, with food flying everywhere. The ladies had been in a banquet room and merely closed the door until things had quieted. Sam shook her head; now glad she'd taken her meal outside!
Before long, the bus was full, nearly every seat taken when the driver did a quick head count and closed the door. Sam remained as small as possible, she'd managed to avoid the handbag that had been dropped literally in front of her nose, fortunately the owner hadn't noticed her, and Sam hoped she wouldn't notice the barbeque sauce on her handbag!
Sam tried to stay alert, but her full stomach, the cool temperatures, and her sheer exhaustion won out, and Sam drifted into a light slumber, lulled by the motion of the bus and the chatter of the women.
A few hours later, Sam woke, dazed and a bit confused, before remembering where she was. The bus had stopped moving and the women were standing and stretching, gathering up their things, chattering excitedly. Mountains were visible through the window, and the architecture was uniquely New Mexico, with its unmistakable, yet beautiful, Spanish and Native American influence. No doubt, she'd made it!
A hand reached up to the rack, grabbing the handbag, startling Sam. She grabbed her now cold meal and moved back as far as she could get, hoping no one would notice her.
"Eeeew what's this on my bag?" Sam heard a woman's voice. Oops.
"I don't know, but have you seen my hat?" A second woman answered the first.
"You left it on the luggage rack Dolores! Yuck. This stuff looks like barbeque sauce!" The first woman was preoccupied with her handbag.
"Oh bother, if only I were a bit taller." Sam heard the woman who wanted her hat muttering to herself, while hands appeared, groping blindly. Sam turned, and tried to slink away, but before she could react one of the hands landed on the back of her neck, closing reflexively.
"Found it!" Sam scrabbled, but her claws skidded on the smooth plastic luggage rack, her startled yelp muffled by the meat she refused to drop. Sam felt herself lifted and plopped down on someone's head without ceremony.
"What the-"the woman started to say. Eyes wide, Sam came face to face with the woman holding the barbeque sauce covered handbag. The woman blinked, mouth opening and closing, before dropping the bag and pointing at Sam, and earsplitting shriek escaping from her mouth. Her excitement spread, and the woman who thought Sam was her hat started to jump around shrieking too.
"What is it what is it?! Get it off me! Heeeellllp!" More women started to shriek and point, although some started to laugh. Sam was losing her precarious hold on the woman's head, and decided it was time for her to beat a hasty retreat, especially when the other woman retrieved her handbag and cocked it back, obviously preparing to swing it.
Wasting no more time, Sam leapt, making a beeline for the door as she heard the unmistakable thwap of the handbag connecting with someone's head. The shrieks and shouts Sam caused as she ducked over, under and around the occupants of the bus and out the open door did nothing to hide the howls of fury from the now extremely perturbed owner of one very ugly furry hat.
A/N: The meanness continues... And Sam seems to cause commotion or bring trouble wherever she goes doesn't she? Hehehe. Anyway, she's covered a lot of distance in the past few weeks, but there's still at least 200 more miles to go, and as you've seen, a lot can happen in that amount of space! Still a few more surprises in store... (hides from the masses)