ThomsonTalks

SWEET FOREST - Segment One - somewhere in South Alabama

The fifty-mile stretch of highway between Crawfordville, Alabama and the little city of Florala, Alabama was lightly traveled and had a desolate edge to it. North of and on a parallel with the Florida state line, most of the highway ran through the dense, dark, Conecuh National Forest, which bordered the equally dense and dark Blackwater River State Forest, located on the Florida side of the line.

It was near midnight. The tractor-trailer driver just dumped Anna Kimbrose along the side of the highway in the middle of the forest.  It was not her choice to be left there. She had met the driver at a truck stop near Greenville, Alabama where she’d been trying to find someone who would take her to Tallahassee. Unfortunately, for Anna, the driver - a family man - experienced a bout of short-term lust for the young 17-year old and then lost his nerve, got the guilts and   desperately wanted Anna out of his truck. She protested about being dumped on the lonely stretch of road, but the driver assured her that someone would eventually come and pick her up.

Anna flipped him off as he drove away. Fearfully she began walking in the dark. The night noises of owls, alligators, and various nocturnal creatures walking through the forest accentuated the dark side of Anna’s imagination and her regret.  If she had known some of the things she would face on the road she might have worked a little harder at dealing with the conflict between herself and her parents – at least until she was eighteen when she could legally move out.  Her parents were probably frantic about her absence, but she had too much pride to call them and admit her mistake in leaving her nice upper middle-class home in McLean, Virginia.  Maybe after she got to her girlfriend’s apartment in Tallahassee she would reevaluate her situation and call her parents…right now she needed a ride to get out of this spooky forest!

      “Sugar, this ain’t the place to be this time of night. Where you goin’?”

     “I’m trying to get to Tallahassee. Can you tell me how far it is?”

     “Child, you’re at least four hours away. Do you have any money?”

     “I have a little…” Anna had less than forty dollars.

     “Get in the car. I have a plan that will get you to Tallahassee before ten tomorrow.”   

The man in the car was chatty, instantly likeable, and seemed to have Anna’s best interests at heart.  Like all teenagers, trusting Anna didn’t question why the man was traveling a lonely highway at half past midnight. She was eager to hear his plan. She figured him to be a businessman of some sort as he cleared rolled blueprints from the passenger seat. He had clean cut middle age looks – like her father. He was cute. She knew she could trust him.

“I don’t live in this direction but I’ve got a big meeting tomorrow morning back in Crawfordville and - stupid me - I left some of my plans back in the building I’m constructing not to far from here.  I have to pick them up and head back home. There is a guy who used to work for me who lives not far from here who travels to DeFuniak Springs, Florida every morning.  He’s a good Christian man who frequently helps the passing stranger, if you know what I mean.”

Anna didn’t, but nodded her head as if she did.

“I’ll call him and see if he can put you up at his house tonight and get you to DeFuniak Springs where you can catch a bus to Tallahassee. I can’t imagine the fare to be over fifty dollars.  Have you got that much on you?”

Anna sadly shook her head.

The man paused a moment, looked at Anna searchingly and then withdrew his billfold. He handed her a fifty-dollar bill.

“Is that enough?”

“Yes! That’s more than enough. How can I repay you?” What a nice man she thought.

“Return the favor to someone else you meet along the way.” The man made a turn to the north. He passed a small green sign that read “Wing, Alabama” and stopped at a building that looked to be under construction. “Wait here,” he said. A few moments later, he returned with some papers. “I called my friend and he said it would be okay for you to spend the night with his family. I have to get back to Crawfordville. I’ll drop you off and get on my way.  I wish there were more I could do for you. I sense you’re running away from something. Where are you from?”

Anna paused before she answered, and then said, “I’m from Virginia.”

“You’re a long way from home little girl. Do you have any relatives in this area?”

“No, just in Virginia.”

“That’s too bad…”

Anna and the man whose name she discovered was Steve drove west towards Crawfordville.  Near a heavily wooded area, Steve turned onto a dirt road.  It seemed they had driven five miles when they finally turned on another smaller dirt road.  Anna wondered who would live in a place as remote as this.  Finally, they pulled in front of a large cabin-like structure that had two cars and a pickup truck parked in the driveway. Lights went on immediately as they drove in.  A black Labrador barked loudly as he approached the car.

“These are your friends?” Anna asked.

“Don’t worry about them. They’re salt of the earth. You’ll see…”

The dog wagged his tail and licked Anna’s hand, making her feel a little bit better. The door of the house opened and a man emerged followed by a girl about Anna’s age. The girl had a funny looking tattoo on her right forearm and two silver rings in her lower lip. The man had a face as handsome as an angel’s smile.” Is this the girl that needs to get to DeFuniak Springs, Steve?”

“It sure is, Jack, and I’ll vouch that you won’t have any trouble with her. She’s very nice. She’s having a little trouble right now and needs some space. Say, I have to get goin’. I let you handle things from here.”

“You know I will Steve. Be careful driving home this time of night you’ve got to watch out for drunks…”

Entering the house Anna noticed two other girls about her age.  One was dressed only in panties and a top. They were sitting very close. After a brief glance, they both ignored Anna.  From one of the rooms off the living room, a large woman wearing a colorful voluminous dress approached Anna with her arms outstretched. The woman had a scent of a strange perfume that Anna didn’t recognize.

“You’re the little runaway Steve told us about. Don’t worry honey, well take care of you.”  The girl with the rings in her lips and two girls sitting close to each other gave knowing glances to each other and smiled.

Anna didn’t remember telling Steve she was a runaway until after he had made the call to Jack. The whole look and feel of this scene was beginning to make her nervous. It showed.

 “Baby, you look scared to death and there’s no need for you to feel that way. Mama Rita and Daddy Jack meet young strays like you all the time and get them where they need to go. Have a seat and put your bags down. You need to get some rest. I’ve made you a hot cup of herbal tea that will have you sleepy in no time. We’re going to put you in one of the spare bedrooms.”

After a few sups of the tea, Anna began to feel very relaxed, indeed. She barely remembered being helped to the bedroom.  During the night, she turned and tossed with strange dreams. It seemed there were people in the room with her – touching her and whispering. At one time, she briefly awakened. A lamp was on. Above it was a carved wooden crucifix. Anna, a Roman Catholic, was briefly comforted and began drifting back to sleep.  Something began bothering her about the crucifix.  In her semi-conscious state, she remembered:  The crucifix was turned the wrong way!  It was upside down. Frightened, she tried to wake up, but found herself falling into a deeper slumber. It was as if she were drugged.

Steve drove his Lexus to his new colonial style home at the edge of the Crawfordville Country Club.  His wife and daughter were on a shopping trip to New York.  His son was away at Tulane.

He entered his den and pulled a small wooden box from a cabinet. In the box were thirteen small wooden balls numbered sequentially. Next to the box was a wooden bowl. Steve emptied the balls into the bowl. He pulled each ball out of the bowl and wrote its number on a writing pad.  He then put the balls back into the box and restored box and bowl to their place within the cabinet.  He then moved to the computer. He typed the numbers into a text in the same order he pulled them from the box, then he opened his email.  His subject-heading read, Sweet Forest, which translated in the codebook each recipient possessed to fresh meat, no repercussions. There was no other text…He must remember to pay the truck driver tomorrow…