Chapter 04 - the Diner
Its predictable, if nothing else. I'm chugging and working my way towards another destination, and its just like the trip here. Slow, with obstacles and little puzzles to solve. I would have liked to have gone back the way I came, as I would then know what to expect and when. Where's the fun in that, though. So here I am, winging it. Its a small area I'm aiming to get to now. That means, more trees and power lines and snowdrifts. Zar isn't any kind of a spoiled princess. She wants to get out and take turns digging out a snowdrift, for instance.
"Honey? I get you something you can put on your feet for winter, and I promise. You can dig out every snowdrift we run into, if it'll make it up to you. But for right now, just take a break."
We were back to the grind in short order.
"We're close?"
"We are."
She gazed around some.
"Place is really out of the way."
"In a way, I'm happy about that. It makes the traveling, slow, but... it has its silver lining."
"What's that."
"Would you rather play Where's Willy in a big city? Or, some tiny one horse town. Where strangers, should stick out like a sore thumb. Or, a strange car abandoned somewhere, is actually local news."
"I see your point. It does sound easier."
We were stopped by a tree down. Looked like it had something wrong in the trunk, and it finally ate through and kicked over.
"Now what. We go around some other road."
"No, we're already going around another road. I'm getting through this."
"How."
"Watch and learn, little one. Watch, and learn."
I nipped and tucked a bit, with my trusty little chainsaw. Its too small of a saw to tackle this head on, so I sliced limbs off all the bigger stuff. I pulled the truck right up, so I could see where to cut to get through. I felt as if I was measuring the doorway, to get a fridge through. Good bit of this thick tree is already over the guardrail it crushed, and down a little ravine. I cut enough off the top end to get through, the idea being to let it tumble down and away. With too tiny of a chainsaw, it took several cuts to make it though what would have taken me a few seconds with my bigger one back home.
That worked, but not without a surprise. There were branches down and out under both sides of the tree. So while it did flop over and down when cut loose, it also took me out. Branches ripped up out of the deep snow, and sent me rolling. I must appear to be a stuntman, doing a pratfall. Nothing hurt except my pride, but the running chainsaw flying around was a fun bonus. As it skittered towards my thigh, I heard the clack of the safety bar that locked the chain up.
"So. I watched. What did I learn."
"Oh. I tried that. I want you to have a perfect idea, of what not to do."
"You're lucky you didn't get swatted into the valley with the tree, Panic. Like a human tennis ball."
"Yeah, and I almost got my leg cut in two. Thank god someone invented the safety brake."
"You cut wood all the time. Is it always this dangerous?"
"Well, you're thinking of firewood. I do that? Spring, summer, fall. I'm not used to looking for hidden shit, in deep snow. But? Lesson learned."
"We're getting close."
"We are. I just want to put eyeballs on this guy, and we get our ass home."
"Sound good to me. But I admit it, this is better than sitting there freezing, in my bare feet."
"First chance I get, I gotta get you some boots of some kind."
"Partying, going out to eat... now, you're taking me shopping. You're just too good to me, honey."
"I'm trying to find a place to take you out dancing, too."
"I'm sure they'll just love my interpretive jazz dancing, at the diner."
"If it finds me my guy, you can dance your little heart out. Speaking of dancing, you still do it?"
"I still work out, and yeah, I still dance, just... not like I used to. No performing, really."
"How come."
"My hips, Panic."
"What about them. Honestly, to lay eyes on you? Doesn't look like you shit a puppy out. Why you so self conscious about your hips, anyways."
"When you have a kid? Your hips change angle. Everything I do just about automatically, changed. You never noticed, you just don't see any single mommies in the Olympics, or on college sports teams."
"Oh."
"My, jumps and landings? Feel funny. So I just work out, and dance at the studio now."
"You miss it?"
"Mm. Not really. I still work out, I still dance. Just no real audience, that's all. It more than takes the edge off."
I've had tire tracks visible, and for a while now. Civilization. This road looked like it had been plowed a ways back, but the snow just kept coming. Oh well, nothing to be done about it. There's a lot of that going around, just now. At least someone is out there trying, though.
"Hey. What's that look like. Up there."
"GPS says our place, is on the right. That's on the wrong side of the road."
I stopped and looked around. Little diner, all right. Not really much of anything else around. I figured this has to be the place.
"A sit down meal? You shouldn't have, Panic. Its too much."
"I was gonna just go in and ask around a little. But, I don't see the harm in getting something to eat."
"Do I get carried in again? Makes me feel like a little kid."
"Sure."
I got her over the deep snow, and to the steps up to the old place. Nice, old fashion diner. Looks as if it was built around 1970. Cement block rectangle, windows all around that any big aquarium would be proud to show off. Looks like all locals. I'm figuring a stranger would really stick out. Hoping, anyways.
"You don't have to wait to be seated."
I pointed at the sign. Please wait to be seated.
"The sign just covers a hole in the wall, where the electric got fixed. Grab anywhere to sit."
Didn't take long.
"You both want coffee?"
We both nodded.
"Anything else."
"Uh, you have some kind of... big breakfast deal? One of everything."
"That, would be the lumberjack."
"Sounds good."
"You mind blueberry pancakes? We're out of regular. The snow."
"Fine. And you?"
"Guess I'll have the lumberjack, too."
"Two lumberjacks!"
Then she went back to her normal voice.
"Anything else?"
"Information, if you have a spare moment."
"About."
"I'm looking for someone."
"Ain't we all. Care to narrow that down some."
"Are these all, you know, locals."
"My breakfast crowd. Most people have time off work, on account of the snow. So yeah, locals galore right now."
"You get strangers come through, I guess."
"It happens. Used to happen a lot more, before they closed the exit. Everyone used to take 17 to 22, coming through. Mainly just locals now, though."
"This would have been---"
"Look. I'll get back to you. You can see I'm busy."
"Sure, sure."
After we ate, she came over and tore off the little order slip. I handed her a twenty and a five, for breakfast. Then, I took out a couple more twenty dollar bills, and laid them just out of reach.
"Okay. You got a couple minutes. Go."
"Wondering if a stranger, would stand out here."
"Kind of. Is this ancient history, or..."
"Couple days. Would have been, I think Thursday."
"Well? What would I have seen. Thursday."
"Don't really know. Maybe, you noticed a strange customer."
"Not being rude, but why would I notice him."
"Hmm. Good point. This guy? Would have maybe hung around. After eating, nursing his coffee. Maybe, got up to go look out the window, sometimes. He was waiting to meet someone. Here."
"One of my locals?"
"I don't think so, but anything's possible. After waiting, he would have went off after the meeting happened. I'm kind of hoping, he didn't really, you know... blend."
She lifted her chin towards the couple of twenty dollar bills.
"How much is that, anyways."
I counted out the five twenty dollar bills again.
"A hundred bucks."
"That, would be a nice tip."
I nodded.
"It could be."
"You a cop?"
"Nope. Just a consultant."
"Mind me asking what business of yours, this all is?"
"Not at all. Perfectly normal question. Some guy was supposed to meet someone, we think here. He calls in, he met up. He should have gone off, and called in again. After they compared notes and all. That never happens, my guy goes off radar after he leaves here."
"Well, if you're not a cop..."
"I was asked to take a road trip. In this mess, mind you. To go pick her up. I did. This, was just... can you stop in and see what happened. On your way back. So? Here I am."
"All right. My husband? He's the cook. I do the counter and the tables, for breakfast. Got a girl in to help me with the lunch rush, then two afternoon and evening girls. What time would this have been."
"Good question. I'll get right back to you on that."
I started poking a text at my phone.
"God bless you, if you can use your phone in here. See everyone going out back? Most of them, aren't smoking. You can maybe get one bar, out the back."
I disappeared and came back.
"My guy said he confirmed his meet, about nine in the morning."
"Well, that would have been me. Let me ask my husband."
She waved me behind the counter, so I could share her talking to the cooking husband through that server's window opening. They both seemed to be in their fifties. The man's big hands were on autopilot, he didn't even have to look at what he was doing while manning the big grill. He had the look of a short barrel chested Brooklyn Italian guy, but with no accent.
"She might do faces, guy. Me? All I see is the orders. Now. You ask me, if anything weird happened Thursday morning? Hmm. Hey! What about Vegetable. That was a weird one, for me."
"Hey. I'll take anything. What was... Vegetable."
"Can't remember the last time someone didn't eat meat, here. I mean, come on. Its a greasy spoon diner. Guy didn't want bacon, sausage, no meat. I gave him some extra eggs and home fries."
"Maybe he's all religious. You got your Jews, the Muslims..."
"No. I short order cooked in the city when I was younger. Those kinds? They can't handle the bacon grease touching the rest of the food. This guy didn't care. He just didn't want any meat. You want weird on Thursday morning? That's all I got."
I ruminated, out loud.
"Ma'am? Anything about... Vegetable. Anything, at all."
"Well. Short, skinny guy. Middle aged. Quiet, really. Other than the whole no meat thing he had going on."
"But, not a local."
"Oh, no. A local goes Vegetable? We'd all tease him, on that."
I get it now. Instead of a vegetarian? They call it being a vegetable. Cute joke.
"Maybe he was wearing, a suit?"
She looked up and off, trying to recall.
"Oh, hell no. I'd remember that. No, Vegetable... okay. Maybe, there was something off. About his clothes."
"Oh, do tell."
"No suit, but... brand spanking new jeans. And, a flannel."
"A new flannel, you mean."
"Looked like if I smelled it? I'd smell the new clothes smell. You could see where the jeans and the flannel, were folded up. You know, like you get them in the store."
"Oh. I gotcha. Jeans and a flannel, normal to you. But brand new? You noticed."
"And a baseball cap. And you know? Tell me the last time you ever saw a good old boy wearing a baseball cap? Looked new. I mean, guys will walk on a new hat, to break it in. Before they wear it."
I nodded along. Flip a coin if its my guy or not. I don't care, I asked for anything? I got it.
"Now, for the big one. Maybe, he paid with a credit card?"
They both laughed at that one. She had to explain.
"Be a nice trick. Sign says, cash only.
"Well, the other sign says please wait to be seated."
"Yeah, but that sign? Is up for a reason other than to just cover a hole in the wall, the electricians left behind."
"Maybe a vehicle? A color, anything."
"Just about everyone, drives a truck around here. Especially in winter, and even more if its snowing out. Vegetable? Little tiny car. I don't know why, but... he parked on the other side of the road."
"When I came in? The GPS said that---"
"I know what it told you. We're on the other side of the road. The last owners, and that's some years back now, mind you. There used to be a spare gravel parking lot, over there. Back when the exit was still open, we'd get trucks come through. You have a big gravel parking lot? They'll stop. But with the exit gone, no need for that any more."
"If you can't think of anything else..."
"Not really. And sorry, I didn't know I'd be taking a pop quiz on some guy, days later. So, how did I do."
"Really good, all things taken into consideration."
"So..."
I grinned.
"Yeah. Enjoy your tip. Oh, just one more thing."
"Hmm."
"I see the camera. You have video."
"We have a camera. But, the camera's home base? I can't get to play back anymore. I don't know why we still have it."
"Really. Can I take a look at it?"
"Hold on."
It was a typical couple hundred dollar setup. Four cheap cameras, wired not wireless like they all are now. Yeah, the lights were all on, the light for "recording" was on. But damned if I could get playback or even think about burning a DVD off.
"Ma'am?"
"Yeah."
"Thing doesn't work, anyways. Right?"
"Nope."
"Does it have any great sentimental value, then."
"Not really. Our son bought it for us, when we bought this place. Good luck present, I guess."
"Well, what would you say. If, I were to offer... to buy you? A brand new one. You can keep your four cameras. You'll get four more cameras, with the new one. I'll make sure you get the eight screens thing going."
"You just go driving around hell's half acre, with security systems in your truck?"
"I was thinking. I take my phone. I order it. I pay for it. I'll just have it delivered here. I'd buy you overnight shipping? Really don't think that's happening in this weather, though."
"Let me ask my husband."
She was back in no time.
"If you buy it on his phone? So he knows its coming. All yours."
This took some doing. I had to wait for the breakfast rush to slow down. They explained this is a dead zone for phones, since forever. You have to stand out the far end of the back, and hold the phone up in the air like I don't even know what I resemble, doing this. Everyone on a phone is doing it, though. Normal to them. Text... phone up to send it. It got done, and I had nothing else anyways. Tiny possible progress, is better than no progress.
On a whim after we were done ordering, I held my own phone up for a minute. It beeped. JR had sent me a little care package. Finally, back onto the stroke of luck plan. I just want this chore over, and to be on my way back home with me and Szarabjorna. No, check that last request. I want to already be there, but wish in one hand and all that.
On my way out, I asked the waitress.
"Any chance, this could be Vegetable?"
"Hmm. Maybe. You take that little goatee off, he is in a suit... but, I mean it could be him. And I mean, maybe. Sorry."
I nodded along, and complimented her for doing so well. I gave her the five twenty dollar bills, and took out five more but held that back.
"Wanna go for...extra credit?"
"Sure."
"You said, a little tiny car. Any chance, what color it was? Being over on the other side of the road, and all."
"Really little puddle jumper. Looked about new. Light colored, but... not white. Maybe, cream? Light beige or tan? Sorry."
"Nope. Good enough."
I gave her the extra hundred bucks, and we said our goodbye's. We each got a free extra large take out coffee, guess they were happy getting a new DVD recorder.
I feel like I got the better end of the deal. My petty whistle blower, who reported hooking up for his meet and greet here, was just that. I only have his word, he was here. Up until now, though.
The morning waitress wife? Nailed the car description and color pretty well. Guy has a new little hybrid. Gas and electric, both. High gas mileage. One of those little fart of a car deals, with little tires pushed out to the four corners. In the city? He's one out of a million others. But around here? Wife was right. Parking lot was all SUV's and work pickup trucks.
Now I just gotta figure out where he went, and its around here somewhere. When I was handed the two coffee take outs, I asked what the guy he finally met might have looked like. She said there never was another person that came in to sit with him. He finally just leaves.
"So. What do we do now."
"Zar, you actually know about what I know, right this second. One, I was asked on the way back from picking you up. Since I'm near the area, would I poke around and try to come up with what happened to their guy. Now, you were with me in there. You heard, what I heard. It sounds like, my guy was there. He was supposed to be there, too."
"You already knew that much."
"Did I?"
"What do you mean."
"Until just now, the guy called and told them he made his contact, and would report in shortly. I could entertain the idea he drifted off, changed his mind, whatever. Except, JR had GPS data. But, that was his phone they were tracking, not him. To me, that's just proof his phone was here. Although now, I got something somewhat resembling a witness, and I use that term loosely."
"Maybe the waitress, just wanted that hundred dollar tip."
"Yeah, but then she described his car and the color fairly well."
"What do you make of, parking on the other side of the road. Why walk through more snow than you have to."
"If you get an idea, would you share."
"Sounds like it would get me home quicker. Sure. So, what do you think went on now."
I handed her the phone, so she could see the guy's make and model of car.
"Would you want to go prancing around here, in this snow... in that little half electric go kart?"
"No way in hell."
"Until I know different? This is a city guy. He had no idea what he was up against, in deep snow in the country. I mean, look at all our own problems. Just about everything, has the word snow in the problem."
"Definitely."
"From point A to point B. Point A, being that diner. Point B, I want to figure out and find. But, somewhere between A and B? He disappears. Start with the word snow, and figure it out. He runs out of gas. He breaks down. He's in an accident, either a one car accident, or an actual collision with another car. Maybe he's in a snowdrift, or slid over the side of the road somewhere. I'm kind of not thinking he got carjacked or mugged. Not that kind of area. The diner doesn't even really care they have no security video working. No one's scared of major crime around here."
"Keeps coming back to, some kind of accident."
"It is the easy answer in this mess."
"You really thought maybe just his phone was here, not him?"
"I thought it was a possibility. I'm close to ruling that out, because..."
"Witness."
"Yeah. There's also the matter of car GPS data."
"You can't just go to the car, that way?"
"We don't have a dot on a map. JR and Uncle Mike? Were given coordinates, last known location of his car."
"You don't trust that?"
"Well, I'll put it this way. I need to put my eyes on the guy. Finding the phone is nice, finding the car? Really cool. But... the game is to find him. Not, his phone or his car. If either of those lead to him? Fine. But, a car and a phone, with no guy? That's barely above a failure."
I waited a few seconds.
"Here. Would you loan me your car, one weekend?"
"Probably, yeah. Sure."
"You leave a cellphone in the glove box, I drive to Ohio for the weekend. Guess what? According to all available data, you... were in Ohio that weekend. If we all started a manhunt for you? We'd comb Ohio, and you were never there in the first place."
"I guess. But, the witness."
"Yeah."
Now she waited then spoke.
"Again, what do we do now."
"Right this second, I'm on my way to the last known GPS location of the car, supposedly. Its going to take us through a little town. I'm hoping, I can get something to put on your feet for a couple days."
"Don't forget the pitchfork."
"What?"
She grinned at me.
"You're dressing me up like a farmer. Don't forget the pitchfork, I wanna look the part. Should I start chewing tobacco, you think?"
"Well. Might do something for me, watching you spit. Go for it."
"Normally, I'd make a joke about swallowing, instead, but..."
"Yeah, yeah. That would be just plain mean, to tease me like that."
"Hmm. Sit down eating. Shopping. You, carrying me around so I don't get my feet wet. You really know how to sweep a girl off her feet."
"Yeah, I'm a regular Don Juan."
I tried to change the subject.
"So. Things good with you and your hubby?"
"Oh, yeah. Nothing but little shit."
"Well, that's good."
"Yeah... I mean, I have to make up with him, when I get back."
"Why, unless its personal."
"Mm. I might have, gotten a little snarky with him. Frustrated, I wanted a ride home."
"Big fight?"
"No, just... I know it was me, and I was taking it out on him. So, when I get back? I try to make up for it."
"Sounds like Merry's department. I heard a rumor, she used to be a therapist."
"Well? I'm following her advice."
"Which is, curious."
"Apologize. Be sincere, and mean it. These things happen, just be an adult and move on."
"Sounds good."
"It should be. Merry says to just avoid the common pitfalls."
"Which are?"
"Don't keep it up, just because you can. I get into that habit, he'll just leave one day. Or stay, and be miserable. The other trap? Is that I'm embarrassed, and I hope it just passes over, with nothing. It keeps happening, and I keep covering it up and it slides? Its just building up. This is a weed, you pull it up quick, and make sure you get the root. Apologizing and owning up to it? Merry says its easier, but only once you get started."
"Sounds like her."
I got the glance and smile.
"Chapter and verse. I'm one of those people, that had lots of therapy back in the day. We can sometimes sound like a therapist. The lingo, the stories."
"Better than women's magazines, right?"
"Yeah. The girl rags, will tell you how to win the argument. Not, how to preserve the relationship. The therapist phrase here? Nobody actually wins the argument. All you did, was create another bigger one."
"I'm sure you and Merry have everything under control. Sounds like you two crazy kids are doing fine."
"I think so. He says so. I got nothing else to go on, so. Yeah."
"You know I'm happy for you, right?"
"Thanks. We've been talking about maybe having another kid."
"Really?"
"Yeah, if we can. What would it hurt, for my son to have a little brother or little sister."
"You like the whole idea of, family. Don't you."
"Yeah. I do. I honestly, never once in a million years thought I'd ever be a mother. I mean, being honest. Merry and... you know who? Were pretty much my first real family."
"Well, home is where you make it. Family? Where you find it, I guess."
"Can't believe it, I'll end up a grandma, one day. Na Na Lightning."
I couldn't help it.
"And Paw Paw Junior... kicking the grand kid's asses, at video games. That, will be one for the record books."
"Merry says being a grandma is easy. Just, spoil the little ones, and send them home ruined. Grandma's job."
"You got it all planned out, huh."
"Yep."
"Good for you."
I'm learning how the locals get around some. Finally, a road with all kinds of tire ruts in the deep snow. Makes sense. There's a couple tiny towns out around here, and the diner seems like a local fixture.