After failing miserably at realizing anything resembling any sort of decent sleep, Jeanie got up two hours prior to her usual time and started a pot of coffee. “What’s the matter, honey, can’t sleep?” asked her elderly mother, who entered the kitchen upon hearing the old percolator begin it’s familiar gurgling.
She always knows when something is on my mind, Jeanie thought. “I thought I might go in early today. It looks like this storm is going to hit us, and you know how these roads get around here. I know Sue Ellen would be grateful if I relieved her early. She lives clear out on the other side of Bowling Green, and it could be a nasty ride if this mess gets here when they predict it will. There are already some flurries dancing around outside.”
What she told her mother was true, but it wasn’t the reason she couldn’t sleep. All she could think about was the disturbing phone call from Jo Ann, the second shift cashier, telling her about the woman from Indiana who wanted to see her. Jeanie came close to driving back out there, but the idea of meeting a strange person at night in a motel room didn’t seem very wise. And she couldn’t help but wonder if it was the same young lady who seemed to be taking an interest in Steve, earlier that day. Her curiosity had gotten the best of her, and she decided to visit the motel room this morning before her shift began, providing the mystery woman was still there.
After sharing some coffee and local gossip with her mother, Jeanie decided to head on over to the truckstop, visiting the motel en route. Light snow was already settling on the windshield of her twelve year old Pontiac, but the wipers swept away the wet flakes easily. She knew it wouldn’t be so easy as the temperature continued to drop. The rural, two lane highway was only wet, the fat flakes melting as they hit, but she knew that that too would change soon enough as well.
Jeanie identified two vehicles in the motel parking lot with Indiana plates; the first being a Chevy Tahoe parked at the end of the building. She ruled that out in favor of the Honda Civic, only three doors from the office. Jo Ann had told her it as a smallish import. The bell tinkled over the lobby door as Jeanie entered. Thankfully, Jo Ann’s cousin, Debbie was behind the counter, whom she had known since elementary school. Debbie told her the woman’s name was Doreen Samples, and she had appeared distraught when she checked in the night before. Jo Ann also informed Jeanie that Doreen had been in the lobby just minutes before, helping herself to a cup of coffee and a cinnamon roll.
Jeanie told Debbie about Doreen eating lunch at the truckstop the day before while Steve was there, and how she appeared later that night trying to contact her. “It just seems to be too much of a coincidence that she was there when Steve was there, and then wanting to talk to me the same day. I can’t help but thinking she is up to no good.”
“You shouldn’t think the worst of her without a reason. Maybe you’re just a tad jealous?” Debbie said with a mischievous grin.
“Now why would I be?” Jeanie countered, defensively, blushing. “He’s just a good customer, and maybe I feel a little protective, that’s all.”
“OK, whatever you say. So, are you going to ask her what’s up? I know you didn’t come over here just to see me.”
“Yeah, that was the plan. Do you think it’s safe for me to see her?”
“If you’re asking if I think she’s dangerous, the answer is no. She seemed perfectly sane to me, just tired and worried. I think you will be fine, shug.”
Doreen slept like a rock. She couldn’t remember when she had ever been as exhausted. Feeling disoriented waking up in a strange motel room, she initially thought she was still in Nashville, before realizing that was the night before. She must have awoken at some point during the night and undressed, for she found herself under the covers. She didn’t remember turning on the television on either, but she obviously did, and it was on the Weather Channel.
Oh my Lord! Doreen thought. She remembered something about an approaching blizzard, but that seemed like ages ago. So much had happened in the last twenty-four hours. The earnest sounding meteorologist behind the desk spoke of near record amounts of snowfall in Saint Louis, Missouri and Paducah, Kentucky. Terra Haute and Evansville, Indiana were currently under siege, with Indianapolis and Louisville due for a big hit by early afternoon. The storm was not only dropping huge amounts of frozen precipitation, it was moving rather fast. The unusual development was the direction of travel. Having moved on a direct path since it left the west coast, the storm took an unexpected turn to the southeast. That was good news for Chicago, Detroit and Cleveland, but not so good for places like southern Indiana and Kentucky; areas not expecting the brunt of the blizzard. Even Nashville was warming up the few snowplows they had and considerable coverage was expected as far south as Alabama and Georgia.
Checking the time, Doreen saw it was still too early for shift change at the truckstop and opted for a shower and whatever breakfast was offered in the lobby. Common sense told her she should be heading north right this minute, if she were to have any chance of all of making it home today. But there was no way she was leaving without first accomplishing what she came for, which was talking to Jeanie.
The coffee hit the spot, as did the cinnamon roll. Just as she decided to go to the lobby for a refill and another roll, there was a knocking at the door. Even as she did it, Doreen knew it was foolish to open the door, especially in a strange place, without at least looking through the peephole or asking who it was, but in her haste to find out about her father, she didn’t take time for caution.
Apparently the woman standing outside the door wasn’t expecting her knock to be answered so quickly, for she appeared startled. Neither of the two women spoke for several seconds as they each sought to recognize the other. Doreen was dismayed to see snowflakes coming down now, when just a half hour earlier, it been only cold and clear.
“Oh, you must be Jeanie.” Doreen said, finding her voice, at last. “Please come in. I don’t know how you found me, but I’m grateful you did.”
“Small town.” Jeanie answered, as if that explained everything. “Jo Ann, the woman you spoke to last night, called me and curiosity got the best of me, so here I am.”
“Have a seat, please.” Doreen offered, as she pulled them each a chair from the small table in the corner. “I’d offer you something, but as you can see, I’m a little short on supplies around here.”
Realizing an attempt at humor when she heard it, Jeanie smiled and replied “Oh, no, that’s quite alright. I should have brought you something.”
“That’s awfully kind of you, but I guess I should tell you the reason for me asking about you.” Doreen looked around for the photo, not realizing she had been holding it when Jeanie had knocked on the door. She at last looked at it in her hand as if seeing it for the first time. She handed Jeanie the old picture, almost reverently.
“The little girl is me when I was four and the man holding me is my dad. That was the last time I ever saw him. I believe the customer you were serving yesterday while I was there is the same man.” Doreen said quietly.
She watched Jeanie carefully as she studied the image, not seeing any flash of recognition as she had hoped she would.
“This is an old picture. People change a lot in thirty years, and I have only known him a year or so.”
“Yes, I realize that. I was just hoping maybe you would see something, anything the least bit familiar.” After a hesitation, she continued. “I see the way you are looking at me, but I’m really not crazy and I can’t blame you for being protective of Steve; I’m sure he’s a nice guy, I certainly hope so, anyway.”
Jeanie’s eyes widened at the mention of her friend’s name. “How do you know his name?”
“My mother told me, yesterday, in fact. I had just found this picture and confronted her with it. Before that I had no idea about my real father. I know this must sound absolutely bizarre to you, I know it does to me also, but it’s the truth.”
Still looking at the picture Jeanie said “I’m not saying I don’t believe you, but I don’t see how I can help.”
Being a seasoned real estate agent, Doreen could tell when somebody was holding back. She felt there was more going on here than meets the eye. This woman was closer to Steve’s age than she was hers. Maybe she had feelings for him and was feeling threatened, which was perfectly understandable. And as a sales person, Doreen knew that applying too much pressure can ruin a deal as quick as anything. Sometimes tact and diplomacy smoothed the bumpiest of roads.
“Jeanie, you don’t know me from the man on the moon, and all of a sudden I just pop into your life out of nowhere, inquiring about a man I think you may care about.” Doreen began, speaking softly. “Well, I care about him too, at least I did at one time. This isn’t about child support or custody or alimony or any other legal nonsense and I swear that’s the honest to God’s truth. I just want to see my father after having been lied to nearly all my life. Surely, you can understand that.” A tear trickled from her eye as she finished.
Jeanie’s expression softened, the plea, spontaneous and unrehearsed, having had the desired effect. Doreen wrote her name and cell phone number on the back of the photo and handed it to Jeanie.
“Just show him this and you will know. If he wants to call me, he will.”
Jeanie accepted the photo. “I’ll do that for you. I can’t know exactly when he will be back, but I will show him.” Doreen sensed Jeanie was still holding back something, but let it go, not wanting to spoil the progress she had made.
“Is there a chance he could show up today, you think?” she asked, hopefully.
“I have never known him to come through here on a weekend, and I would hate to see you stranded here in this weather.” Jeanie answered, truthfully. She held back the fact that she was certain he would be here Monday, just as he was nine out of ten weeks. But she felt it was only right that Steve make the decision regarding seeing her or not. It would be wrong to allow him to be ambushed. After all, there may be a reason he hasn’t seen his daughter, if she really is, for all these years, something that hasn’t been disclosed by Doreen.
Doreen reluctantly agreed, pulling back the curtain, only to see that the snowfall had intensified. “You’re right. There is nothing to be gained stuck in this room all weekend. Thank-you so much. You don’t know how much it means to me that you are willing to help. I really appreciate this. And one more thing, even if he doesn’t come in, could you please call me anyway, so I won’t be wondering?”
“I will, honey, I promise. And if it’s not Steve, I hope you find him, because I understand more than you think. My daddy went to Viet-Nam when I was a baby and he never came back home.”
Those words lay heavy on Doreen’s heart as she made her way back to the interstate highway. The snow was steady, but still fairly light as she let her car settle in at five miles under the limit, which seemed to be the natural flow of traffic. Searching for a news/weather station on the radio, she noticed for the first time the dark, menacing skies to the west and shuddered. Her home state of Indiana generally took great care in keeping the roadways free of snow and ice, but it was difficult, if not impossible to keep up with sudden, unusual amounts of snowfall. Another concern was the remaining hundred miles of Kentucky, mostly hilly, with some long, steep grades of which she was fearful, should they become slippery with ice.
Doreen was almost feeling optimistic about her chances of making it home without incidence when things took a sudden and unexpected turn for the worst. She was only forty miles from the state line and the relatively flat ground of Indiana, a half hour under normal conditions. But things were far from normal as she topped the grade near Elizabethtown, the highest elevation along her route; the air was much colder here, as was the road surface.
The driver of a pickup truck, pulling an overloaded U-Haul trailer lost control in a curve, careening wildly across all three lanes, into the path of an eighteen wheeler, which had been attempting to pass on the left. Unable to brake hard and maintain control on the icy surface, the driver of the big rig swerved hard to the right in an attempt to avoid crushing the pickup truck and it’s occupants. It looked as if the maneuver was successful until the big, refrigerated trailer began it’s own frightening slide in the opposite direction, throwing the semi into an inexorable jack knife.
Doreen watched in horror as the events unfolded before her and her mind raced to weigh her options. The pickup truck was nose down in the median by now, with it’s U-Haul trailer occupying the left lane. The big Kenworth tractor was on course to collide with the mountainside, as it’s fifty-three feet long trailer swung wildly across the right and center lane.
There was simply nowhere to go, she thought as she applied her brakes in a vain attempt to stop. The Honda’s anti-lock brakes were no match for the icy surface as the car careened on a collision course with the stalled big rig. Doreen’s world went from shades of gray to black as she slid underneath the trailer.