Free Collision Course by David Crawford Page A

thought,
no power for the pump
. He choked down three aspirins without water and then brushed his teeth. He would have climbed into a hot shower to relax his stiff muscles, but that wasn’t possible.
    He put his hands down on the counter and leaned into the mirror. “Well, Gabe, the world just handed you a big shit sandwich to eat,” he said to the reflected face. “But then, what else is new?”
    He walked back into the living room, his body telling him to pour another drink. He reached for the whiskey, but the sight of the empty spot on the wall stopped him. He spotted the framed picture lying facedown, glass shards covering the floor all around it. Gabe shook the broken pieces of glass off it. Turning it over, he was comforted to see that the picture itself wasn’t damaged.
    It was Gabe’s favorite picture of them. They’d all three gone to the beach and had a wonderful time. Gabe had taken the photograph himself shortly before Hannah and Michael left. Gabe was no photographer, but it was one of those one-in-a-million shots. The sun was low in the sky, and the light reflected off them like the seraphim. It was the way he remembered them most. They were smiling and happy, a son wrapped in a mother’s loving arms.
    Gabe’s eyes blurred and his lungs wouldn’t work. He turned to look at the bottle.
No,
he told himself. He had to clean this mess up first. He knew it would never happen, but he tried to keep the place nice in case they ever came back to him. There would be plenty of time for drinking later. He carefully placed the glassless picture frame on the table and got to work. After he’d disposed of the larger pieces of glass in a bucket, he went to the closet to get the vacuum cleaner. As his grip tightened around the handle, he realized it wouldn’t work without electricity. His shoulders slumped even more as he returned to his bucket and picked up the rest of the broken pieces.

CHAPTER 8
    D J woke and looked at his watch. It was midafternoon. He hadn’t slept this long since he’d left home. Now that he had gas, his mind was at ease. He’d only been able to drive for a little over an hour after getting the gas the previous night. The thought of the store owner finding the hundred-dollar bill and the note DJ had left brought a smile to his face. He imagined the man stomping around, fuming at how his gas had been taken right from under his nose.
    Although he hadn’t gone far before daylight threatened to creep up on him, DJ had found a good hiding place in an old deserted barn. He’d easily make it to the bridge tonight, and, once across the river, he’d reach his hideout in just a couple of days. He fixed himself a large celebratory lunch and tore ravenously through the food. Somehow it tasted better than it had before.
    He pulled out his maps and identified his location. It was only twelve miles or so to the bridge. Given the two-lane road it took across the river, DJ figured the bridge probably was on the small side, but as long as it wasn’t jammed with some monumental wreck, it should get him across.
    DJ paced from one end of the barn to the other. He looked outside each time he got to the doors. The sky was gray this afternoon, and it looked as if it might rain. He hoped the weather would hold up, but if it was going to rain, he wanted it to happen soon so that it would pass by nightfall. He thought about stringing his hammock up between a couple of the large beams that supported the barn, but he didn’t think he could be still long enough to get any rest. Excitement coursed through his body. He did some push-ups and sit-ups, but they did little to calm him. He returned to his pacing, staring out at the darkening sky on each loop and willing himself not to look at his watch.
    * * *
    Gabe had thrown the broken glass into the trash, vowing to pick up a new frame next time he went into town. He returned to the picture to check