The Blue Tarp

The suffocating odor of plastic overwhelmed her senses. She opened her eyes to see a cocoon of blue. Not knowing where she was, she attempted to move her head to investigate, but a torrent of pain ravished her, and the blue disappeared, turning into the dark abyss of unconsciousness.

Bill and Laura were driving to an evening concert at a local church. Laura pointed out the blue tarp on the side of the road.

“Bill, we could hide that ugly field behind the church with that tarp. If we tied it to the fence, it could be a canvas, and then if the kids put on latex gloves, they could dip their hands in bright paints, and leave their handprints on it.”

“That’s a great idea, but that one is dirty. We’ll go get a new one tomorrow.”

“We could clean that one Bill, the money that we save, could go for paint, and remember, we haven’t much of a budget.”

“Okay, Laura, if it’s still there on the way back, I’ll stop for it, but I don’t want to be late for the concert.”

Laura watched as they passed the tarp, drawn to it for some reason.

She came to again to the bright lights shining through the deep blue of the plastic. She gagged with the odor of it. Her head hurt. Hurt was not the word; it felt like there were hot razors embedded in the back of her neck. She could feel something sharp poking into her back, probably rocks. There was something thick and sticky on her cheek, she stuck her tongue out licking some that had dripped onto her lip. It was blood, and she knew it was hers. In the plastic coffin she lay broken and bleeding, trying to remember how this had happened. Another light accompanied by a familiar sound illuminated the plastic. She saw legs bent at an odd angle, and realized they were hers. How could they bend like that, and why couldn’t she feel them? Yet another light went by, and she thought, “Oh God! Someone stop, someone stop, I’m dying, oh please, somebody help me.”

Sara, a newlywed of less than a month, was on her way to meet her husband for dinner. She rounded the corner, and her headlights beamed on the blue tarp. It would be a perfect covering for the floor when they painted the walls this weekend. Checking her rear view mirror, she turned on her signal to take the next exit. Rick would be pleased. It was a challenge to see how cheaply they could do things. The next exit was a mile down, but it would be worth the detour for a free tarp. Her cell phone chirped Rick’s tune, and she answered it excitedly.

“Hey, baby, guess what I found?”

“It’s hard to tell with you, Sara. Is it bigger than a breadbox?”

Sara laughed, “No, it’s a blue tarp on the side of the road, perfect for a painting drop. I’m on the exit now to turn around and go back to get it.”

“Don’t you Dare, Sara McDaniel! Do you have any idea how dangerous it can be on the side of the road at night?”

“Don’t be silly, I’ll be fine. I’m on the exit now.”

“Sara, you get right back on the highway and I mean it. I don’t want you alone on the side of a dark road at night.”

Sara laughed and then merged back onto the highway. “Oh you silly old pooh, okay, I’m back on the highway now, and headed for the restaurant.”

“That’s my girl. I’ll be there in five minutes and I’ll see you there. I love you.”

“I love you too,” Sarah said. She took one last look at the tarp. She supposed he was right; it was only a tarp, no big deal.

Consciousness came to her slowly. At first, she thought she was just dreaming that she was trapped, unable to move, and in a suffocating place. Then reality dawned on her as she heard the whoosh of a car, and the highlights illumined her for a moment. How had she got here? She laid, eyes closed, trying to remember.

She remembered that it was Friday, because she had gone to Renegades, a bar near her job, to celebrate. Celebrate what? She watched the lights come and go as she lost the thought. Then it returned. She was twenty-one, and it was her birthday. Now it came back – the drinking, laughter, drinking, dancing, and drinking. She remembered opening the door to her apartment, but not how she got there. Once again she faded away into darkness and lost conscious thought.

Timmy pressed his nose against the window of the SUV. He was watching the white lines on the freeway zip past as he tried to count them. It made him dizzy, and then he saw the tarp.

“Mom! Mom! Look!” he shouted above the music.

“What?” his mom responded out of habit, but not really interested.

“There’s a blue tarp in the road. I could put Christmas lights on my ceiling, poke holes in the tarp, put it over the lights, and it would look like stars. I saw that on a t-v show.”

“That’s nice,” his mom said absently, not really hearing, as she thought about what they would have for dinner.

Timmy drummed his fingers against the armrest in time to the music, and wondered if he could be a star in a rock band. The blue tarp was but a moment come and gone in his seven-year-old life.

There was something big clawing at the tarp. She could hear the scratching, and attempted a scream that came out a hollow gasp, but it was enough to disturb the rodent and it scurried away, dragging its rubber-like tail behind it. She lay hurting and finally remembered. She was twenty-one, and she had gone home drunk and alone. When she opened her door, there had been something wrong. Her computer was on the sofa. Why would it be on the sofa? She staggered into the room going for the desk drawer, where the gun her brother had given her was kept. She had heard a noise, turned, and then heard a shot. The next thing she remembered was waking up here. Her lips moved and formed the words ‘help me’ as she again sank into darkness.

Ed and Jonathan were coming back home from a fishing trip, and were talking about Jonathan’s new Harley. The weather was getting rainy, and they were discussing how to cover the bike, when Ed saw the blue tarp. He pulled over and stopped in front of it.

“There’s your answer, Jonathan.”

“Sure enough,” Jonathan agreed as he got out. “That will work perfectly; I can even cut it to fit.”

Ed walked up to the tarp grabbing a corner and pulled. “It’s caught on something. Hey grab the other end and help me fold it.”

Jonathan grabbed the opposite end and the two men folded it back. The young girl’s body was exposed. Her head lay in a pool of blood and her eyes opened and looked pleadingly into Ed’s.

“I don’t want to die,” her mouth formed the words but the sound did not escape the bloody lips.

“Oh God, call 911!” Jonathan said.

Ed already had his phone out and was talking. Within minutes they heard the commotion of lights and sirens. The paramedics secured the girl on the stretcher as Ed and Jonathan talked to the police. They watched the ambulance speed off with sirens blazing and lights flashing. Then it slowed to normal speed, and the lights shut off. There was no longer a need to hurry.

Charles and Amy were heading home after a movie, and traffic was beginning to back up.

“Is there an accident?” Amy asked.

“I’m not sure,” Charles replied.

As they approached the police cars, he looked to see what was going on, and saw the police folding something up.

“Oh, it’s nothing important, just the cops cleaning up some road debris. It’s a pity how people clutter up the roadway with useless junk.”

They drove past, not giving it another thought.


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