The Road Home by Clifford Beck - HTML preview

Chapter 29

Having never ventured beyond Tacoma’s city limits, the group, now reduced to four, was unfamiliar with what lay past its industrial domain. They knew how to get to the cabin, but the remaining landscape was a mystery. They needed directions, and the only way to get them was to go into Easton and hopefully find a map. This became a significant point of discussion. “Guys,” Maya said. “I think we’re going to have to go into Easton. We need to find a map, and the only place we’re going to find one is to go to that store.”

Eli was the first to speak up.

“Oh no, I am not going back there,” he said. “If you think I’m going back there, you are out of your fucking mind.”

Everyone agreed.

“So,” Jackson said. “If we’re not going to the store for a map, how are we going to get one?” Suggestions were less than forthcoming as everyone tried to think of another means of escape, and going back to Tacoma was not an option.

“Has anyone ever been in these mountains before? A ski lodge? Anything?”

The conversation jarred loose a memory as Aurora provided the answer they needed. “What about going to a national park?” It seemed to be a good idea, but Maya offered a cautionary response.

“That’s not a bad idea,” she began. “But once you get into places like that, there’s nothing around but woods. They’re pretty isolated places. If things were different, I’d love to go, but I just don’t think it’s a good idea.”

Now, Jackson offered what appeared to be a reasonable plan.

“I’ve got an idea,” he began. “Why don’t we just stay on route ninety and go east? Route ninety goes across the entire country. As long as we stay on track, we should be fine.”

Looking at each other for additional ideas, everyone agreed that this was the best course of action. But there was one more issue. “I just had a thought,” Aurora said. “Will these cars make it across the country? I mean, they’re not exactly in showroom condition.” Aurora was right. It wasn’t that their cars were well-traveled, but it was unlikely that they would get them across the mountains of the continental divide. Only later would they discover how treacherous their journey promised to be.

Upon further conversation, Jackson recalled having seen an RV store near the west end of Easton and suggested they go down for a look. With Aurora’s experience, she offered a question about their intended form of transportation. “Are these RVs or just campers? There’s a big difference. Campers are relatively small, but an RV is more like a palace on wheels, and I don’t feel like living in some tiny ass camper for the rest of my life.”

The only time he went into Easton was with Nathan, and they never even approached the building, so trying to determine a camper from an RV was beyond his reach. They would have to go to Easton. In the meantime, Maya suggested they spend one more night in the cabin, as it was getting late, and it would be to their advantage to get organized during the day. But she also stressed that no one was to go looking for Nathan’s body. If his death was as grizzly as Eli had described, it could easily have attracted any number of wolves in the area, and Maya didn’t think that anyone should see that.