Chapter Eight:
Hitcher
Salem was tending to the brown bears enclosure when Howard came along with a guitar in his hands. She had finished cleaning the cage and feeding the bear, as she locked the enclosure up and started on her way to the next animal when Howard started introducing his new fusion of music.
Staying silent Salem listened to the jazz, funk mix with a small smile on her face. Vince walked up beside her with a grimace on his face.
"Not this again." He muttered.
"I don't know, it's jazz... with a funk beat..." Salem said, tapping her foot to the music.
"Yea, It's jazz and funk, it's junk!" Vince said with a smile on his face. Salem giggled at the joke.
"I love all music, Vince. Each expresses a different kind of emotion and point of view." She said, her eyes turning to the bear. She noticed that it didn't seem to like the music at all. Panic filled her as she went to stop Howard, but it was too late. The bear had started reaching through the cage bars.
Salem sat between the two men as Howard drove the transport vehicle. The trio sat bored for a while, the men arguing over the music, Howard preferring the slap bass tape he had brought. Vince rolled his eyes as Howard tried to explain the music to him. The bear became upset and Vince quickly changed the music. Salem danced along with 'Cars' by Gary Numan. The music stopped as the men began arguing about travel sweets. She let out a sigh, as Vince pointed out a short cut to the animal prison on the map and told Howard where to turn.
Six hours later they were still no closer to their destination. Salem gave a sigh as the men argued over the short cut and how it was a raspberry shoe lace candy. The argument went on and on, until Howard stopped the car and Vince got out. She was torn on what to do and jumped out of the car to join Vince. Howard giving her an odd look.
"He can't survive on his own, Howard. I'll keep him safe, here's my cell phone, I have a GPS in my bag that is linked to my phone. If we need help I'll call and send you coordinates." She said, giving the device to him. Howard looked at the phone with interest before shoving it in his pocket.
"At least she's thorough." He thought, switching gears in the car to drive off. Vince stared at the girl before him confused. She turned to him and smiled.
"Well, now what?" She asked. Vince shrugged and began walking, Salem in tow.
The night air was cool, as the chill began to settle into Salems bones. She pulled her work jacket closer to her body. Vince noticed, and shrugged off his coat, placing it over her shoulders. Salem looked up at him, feeling the extra warmth.
"You look chilled." He said, trying to play it cool around the girl.
"Well, yes, but what about you? You'll freeze." She said, starting to shrug off the extra layer. Vince put a hand on her shoulder and smiled.
"I'm fine." He said. She gazed at him with her almond shaped eyes and his heart started fluttering again. Salem breathed in to calm her nerves. The smell of Vinces cologne wafted into her nose, taking her to cloud nine, only to crash back to reality when they started their journey to who knows where.
"Ok, just let me know if you get cold." She managed to choke out. Vince smiled and nodded to her.
The duo continued to walk, running into a deer like man, who was one of Vinces old friends, who gave him a horn to blow should the duo find themselves in danger. They walked on down the trail through the wooded area. Salem sighed and looked around at the surrounding plant life.
"You don't seem scared of this place. Care to elaborate?" He asked, knowing most of it already. Salem smiled while looking around some more.
"I was raised in the wilderness for most of my life, by animals mostly." She said. Vince just smiled.
"Me too." He said. She looked over to him and smiled. The duo continued walking, sharing stories from their childhoods, growing up with the animals.
"So, who's this Fae woman you keep bringing up?" Vince asked. Salem smiled and stared off for a moment.
"I guess, you could call her my mother. She was a strange woman, very in tune with nature. She came and went with the wind it seemed like, but I was fine with the animals she left me with." Salem said in a dreamy voice, her eyes turned to Vince with a smile.
"She sounds like an odd woman." Vince stated. Salem giggled at the statement and nodded.
"She was quite a character, that's for sure." She said hugging his jacket closer to her form.
The duo looked ahead, spotting a green man with an engorged thumb and a white ring around his left eye, standing in front of hem holding a box covered in white rings similar to the one around his eye an equally as white streak running down his face. They stopped, staring at the strange man in wonder. Vince put his arm around her protectively, walking up to the man.
"Can we help you?" Vince asked, his grip tightening around the girl. The man said nothing and sat his box down. He opened the box and disappeared. Salem and Vince looked around them in slight panic. Vince wrapped both arms around her as the green man appeared behind them and pushed them into the box.
Howard was driving along a marked path on the map, telling himself he wasn't going to stop when a green man appeared on the side of the road. He went against his better judgment and turned around picking up the strange man.
Howard tried to be polite and start a conversation, until the man began rambling about coming from a long line of hitchers, and finding a hornet shaman who stung his thumb. Howard was on edge from the mans tale as the man commanded for him to stop.
"Please, don't kill me." Howard pleaded thinking the man was going to slice him up into bits. The man laughed and excused himself. Getting out of the car and into the bushes to relieve himself. Howard tried not to watch as the man began hovering from the pressure his body was releasing.
Howard drove off, staring at the box the man had left in the car. He stopped and grabbed the box, walking a few feet off the road and throwing it onto a rock, he turned to leave. He turned back around, curious as to what the box held. He shrugged and walked towards the box, opened it and leaned over the edge, slipping in.
Naboo had convinced Fossil to go after them, after reading his tea leaves and discovering the trio was in danger. They sped on the motorcycle through the forest.
"Where to Naboo?" Fossil shouted over the wind. Naboo looked down at his cup of tea.
"Left at the light." He said as they sped up.
Salem and Vince landed with a thud in the dark space. Vince felt the girl landing on top of him, his arms still secured around her as she gripped the shirt on his chest. Feeling around, the pair slowly released each other. Vince entwined his fingers with hers. Salem blushed brightly, thankful for the darkness. Feeling the heat, she shrugged off his coat and gave it back to him.
"Thank you, Vince. I'm feeling a bit warm now though." She said, staying still as Vince put his coat back on and reconnected their hands. The pair stared off into the darkness, when another 'thud' noise reached their ears. A small light of a fire, illuminated the small space around the trio.
The green man appeared in a flash of light as he began to introduce the animal offenders, and describing how the trio was going to die.
"Any last requests?" The hitcher asked. Vince had none, gripping Salems hand a bit tighter and pulling her behind him. Howard took in a deep breath.
"I was hoping to go out to the tune of some slap bass." He said.
"Well what do you think this is for? I'm the slap bass king!" The hitcher said, a bass guitar appearing in his hands. The hitcher began to play and the roar of the bear could be heard ringing throughout the space. The bear appeared and tackled the Hitcher.
"He's melted." She heard one of the men say, only to look over and see the Hitcher in just his underwear. Salem smacked her face with her free hand as the Hitcher took off running.
The trio sat in the car, Vince driving and Howard sitting there nervously.
"Are you sure you can drive?" Howard asked.
"Of course, it's easy." Vince replied turning the wheel.
"You don't have to keep turning the wheel like that, the road is straight." Howard said.