It Takes Money To Make Money And Water To Get Water....

 "What were you doing under my Jeep? I saw you under there. What's the matter with your head? Did you get the buckets so we can clean a place for us to sleep tonight? What's the matter with you anyway?"

Josh really had a bad headache and her high pitched angry voice made it worse. But he felt like he couldn't tell her the truth just yet. He liked Allie, but he didn't want to tell her that his dad had him put a tracking device on her Jeep. He also didn't want to tell her that for some reason probably money he didn't want Allie to live on the ranch. He hadn't figured out what connection his dad and Allie's Uncle Bill had except a long time friendship. It was a mystery to him and until he had it all figured out he was going to keep his mouth shut. He had no idea what had hit him on the head. It must have been a fallen branch or something. He needed to tell Allie about the water situation. He was sure her yelling was going to be heard across the next county. He took a deep breath and said, "Well, Allie, it's like this. You don't have any running water in the house. We will have to pump it from the pump in the yard. But before we can do that we have to find some water to prime the pump with. It's like the old saying goes 'it takes money to make money'; well it actually takes water to get water so you and I need to go for a walk before it gets dark or I sleep in the Jeep and you sleep in the camper."

Allie looked at Josh and grinned. "No way! I'm sleeping in my very own house in my very own bed. You are telling me stories. Now come on let's go get some buckets so we can clean this place up." Josh looked at his new friend, "No, Allie. I'm telling you the truth. There is no water. We do need to find a bucket, but we really need to find a pond or stream or something. We have to prime that pump. I'm not telling you stories. I've read all about these old farms. That's what you have to do. Come on, get your dog and let's go over there by those trees. Trees usually grow by water. We can't be gone too long or it's going to be dark. We sure don't need to get lost out here." 

Josh and Allie and their little dog walked for as long as they thought it was safe. Then they returned to where the Jeep and camper were. "Well, I guess we need to set up camp for the night and start out early in the morning. If nothing else we can go to town and buy some water to get the pump started. I found some batteries for the lights. in the back of the camper. We have had a really long day. Is that okay with you? Go to town tomorrow?" Allie saw no way around it. It was late and they both were exhausted. Josh seemed to know his way around a camper.  He unhooked the camper from the Jeep, hung some battery operated lights up and then all they needed was food and water. "Do you have anything left in the cooler? I am starved and thirsty."

"All I have is a little bit of water and a candy bar that I got at the gas station. I drank some water even though you told me not to after that horrible chili. Okay, here's the plan. We go to sleep and when we wake up we go to town, get something to eat and buy some supplies. Have you got enough money for us? Oh I forgot. I have money in the bank. We can use some of my money now that we are here. Are you sure you will be alright sleeping in the Jeep?" Josh grinned and said, "Yes, I'm fine. See you bright and early in the morning."

The neighbors had been watching the young people and weren't a bit happy, but decided that they too would go ahead and get some sleep and call the lawyer in the morning.

Marlee called to her brother. "Kyler, come over here. Look what I found. It think it's an ancient cell phone, but there's a magnet thing on the back like Mama puts on the refrigerator when we do stuff that she likes." Kyler "I think it's boring, why don't you just throw it in the trash? Let's see if Mom will take us to the park."

"Okay, it doesn't work anyway. It doesn't have any numbers on it only lines and blue spots and stuff. I could use it for pretend though. It has a cool little red light that blinks all the time. I think I'll put it in my new birthday purse. I'll think of something to use it for. Okay, let's go to the house and see what Mom is doing. Race ya!"

Marlee and Kyler ran to the house and asked if their mom would take them to the park. She grinned and said, "Sure! Let's pack a lunch and have a picnic while we are at it, or do you want to eat at the pizza place?" Kyler and Marlee agreed that pizza would be good.. Marlee quickly put her treasures in her new purse added the old cell phone she had found along with the broken one that Kyler had found. Now they each had one for make believe play days. She was soon  ready to go.

Arie and her little sister and mom were at the Pizza Palace having pizza when Arie looked out the window and said, "Mom, look. Here comes Marlee and her little brother. Can we have them sit with us? I haven't seen her forever." Her mother grinned and said, "Of course."

The families were having such fun visiting and laughing they didn't pay any attention to Lill sitting in the booth behind them. She had taken a much needed day off from work at the chili cafe. She was busy thinking about all the money she would have someday when Bill's dude ranch finally sold when her cell phone rang. "You say they are right by me? Well, they aren't. Wait, just a minute. I think I know what's going on. I'll call you back." Lill sat back and listened to the two girls chatter about Marlee's new toys she found in her yard. "Arie, I left it out in the car, but it even has a red light that blinks. It's so cool."

"Yeah K.R. you were right. Some kids must have found his cell phone and the tracking device you had Josh put on the girl's camper. I don't see Josh and the girl anywhere, so I'm not sure where they are.  I'll keep looking. I know they won't come back into the cafe after the stunt I pulled with the hot peppers in her chili. Now you said I get a piece of the action, right?  So how much are we talkin' here? I'm wanting out of this hick town. What do you mean you gotta go? I'm talkin' to you...K.R.!"

Critters In The Kitchen And A Tarantula In The Privy!

 As Allie pushed past Josh in her hurry to find a bathroom a rooster flew right in behind her and sat himself down looking like he owned the place.. Allie again found herself brushing cobwebs out of her eyes as she searched the house on a run. There was not a bathroom to be found on the first floor. She saw the staircase and ran upstairs; no bathroom. She went running down the stairs only to find Josh grinning at her. He was still in the kitchen talking to the animals who evidently had decided that the kitchen was their home and Josh was their new friend. This was not going to happen, but first things first. "Josh, there is not a bathroom in this house. What am I going to do?"

"I think we are destined to use the ancient outdoor bathroom that the old people used to call the outhouse, or the privy." Allie at this point almost screeched, "What? An outdoor bathroom? I don't care! I don't care! I have to go and I have to go bad!" Josh told her he had spotted one in back of the house so he led the way through the overgrowth of blackberry bushes and assorted weeds to a small building. "There it is. Yup, it's an outdoor bathroom. Actually it is in pretty good shape. Look at that roof. I bet it never leaks when it rains. "When It rains I will not be coming outside to pee!, Allie yelled. I'm going in there right now!"

"I had better check it out for you first to make sure there aren't any critters in there. When a building isn't used for a long time you never can tell what has moved in; for instance the kitchen back there." He opened the door and there was Allie's first experience with an outdoor bathroom.

Josh was laughing so hard he snorted through his nose. "There you go heiress to a dude ranch. Your very own two-holer. A fancy one too. Oops, there's a tarantula right by the doorway. I'll bet he is looking for a female. Did you know males actually knock on the door of a female's nest? Then if the female doesn't want a date then she either ignores him or eats him." Josh was still laughing. Allie was not. "I will eat you if you don't hurry up and get rid of that spider. My life seems to be destined to be dealing with spiders lately. Careful, don't let it bite you. I don't want you dead." Josh grinned as he carefully rehomed the spider out of the way. "His bite wouldn't kill me, but I'd just as soon not chance it. Okay it looks okay in here. You go ahead and use it. I'll wait for you."

 "What do you mean use it? There is no toilet paper in here! And its dirty! Yuk, there is no way. Go get me some tissue out of the Jeep. I'll use that, then we had better start finding a place that's clean enough to sleep. We are going to need lots of water. There should be some buckets out in one of those old buildings. With both of us working it shouldn't take long. We have a busy few days ahead of us by the looks of that house. I guess Uncle Bill wasn't much of a housekeeper."

Josh went out to the Jeep and found some tissue for Allie. He left her grumbling and talking loudly to herself while he went back into the kitchen. He shooed the animals out and assured them that the kitchen was not theirs anymore. He went to find the sink and discovered that there was no water faucet because there was no sink. "This can't be happening to me. How is she going to take this? Well, there has to be water somewhere; there are animals living here." He walked around the house and thought, "She is really going to have a fit when she sees this. She may not stay. In fact I don't think she should stay. If she sells the land she at least will have a little nest egg to live on until she finds a good job and a nice place to live."

Josh woke up finding himself laying on the ground beside the old water pump. He rubbed the back of his head and found a tender lump. He had a terrible headache. "This is getting old. That's twice I've been injured since I've been with Allie. What's the deal, Dad? Did you hire someone to kill me? I've about had it. I'm going to see if I can't find Allie's cell phone and call you. Enough is enough. Wait a minute. You don't even know where I am. Oh yes you do. I forgot about the tracking device on her camper. I have to get rid of that thing. It is you! Who have you hired to get us off this ranch? Oh my poor head. Doggone it!"  He made his way back to the camper and felt under the wheel well for the little tracking device. It was gone. He got down on his hands and knees and looked all over. It was not where he put it. "Well, dear old Dad, I guess it wasn't you after all. Sorry about that, but you are under handed enough to do something like that. That's how this whole thing started. Glad you have no idea where I am. I wonder where that thing fell off? We have been on the road for miles. It could be anywhere. Man my head hurts. How did I get this knot on my head? It's weird out here that's for sure." Josh was rubbing his head and looking the place over as he walked back to the house. "I think I had better check on Allie to see if she is okay." He did grin to himself about the outhouse. "She sure can get mad about stuff."

The neighbors across the way were laughing too. "It won't be long now. They are city slickers for sure. All those animals Maxine put in the house was a great idea. They never did find the bathroom either. Maxine's man friend did a good job of boarding it up. Hey look. That young fella is laying down on the ground out by the water pump. I wonder if he is sick. Hmm. Better watch to see if he is alright. We don't want no city folks looking for those two. Oh there he's getting up. What is he doing? Get the binoculars. What is he doing under the Jeep? Keep an eye on him. I'm going to give Maxine a call."

Uncle Bill Didn't See The Need For The Niceties Of City Folks

 Josh was laughing so hard he was choking. "Stop! Don't leave yet. I need to get out and see what's going on around here. Give me your cell phone. If it has Google Maps on it I can see if in fact we are at the right place. You know we are because it says the DD Ranch sign hanging down from the top of that gate. For some reason there are goats and chickens here instead of horses." All of a sudden the dog jumped out the window and barked so loud that the animals all scattered. Feathers flew and the long necked creature hummed as he ambled away. But Allie was not a bit amused. "Why are you laughing so hard? This cannot be the dude ranch that my uncle left me. I don't see a horse around here anywhere. But she started to chuckle herself when she saw a sheep nudging and nipping at Josh's arm while he was trying to get some cell phone reception. "What's the matter, Josh? Does that sheep think you are good to eat? So where are we anyway? And please get that goat off my Jeep. It's going to put a hole in the top. It's not metal for some reason. Did you notice that?"

"It's no use. There isn't any reception where we are. Let's just drive on down this gravel road. I think it's probably the driveway to the outbuildings.  There has to be some buildings for the animals and your house down there. Let's hope for the best. If nothing else we will have a good place to sleep tonight."

As they drove down the winding driveway they did see some outbuildings, but not what they expected. The buildings were gray and weather worn and some were about to fall apart. "Oh no! Look at this place. Surely this was never a dude ranch, Josh. What am I going to do now?"

Josh was beginning to wonder the same thing when he saw a little log cabin and a woman waving at them.

"Who is that, I wonder? At least there is some human beings here, not just goats and chickens." Josh laughed and said, "Don't forget the alpaca and that sheep back there. This is quite the little menagerie. I wonder what happened out here? If this place is as run down as it appears to be, why would your uncle want you to have it? I'm with you there. I don't get it."

Across the way the couple watching with their telescope and binoculars were not happy. They thought that the girl and her friend would leave as soon as they saw all the goats and chickens, but not so. "Lookie there, my dear. They plumb drove right up to Maxine's cabin. Doggone it. I thought fer sure they would hightail it back to the city. We gotta watch and see what happens next. Maybe Maxine will get rid of 'em. Let's get out on the porch. It's getting late, but the moon is pretty bright. We should be able to see what is going on. I left the binoculars outside. Can you grab the telescope for me? I think we could get a better look see from out on the porch. Do ya need some help? That's okay I'll get it. It's pretty heavy.  Keep an eye on them though. I don't want them in that house if I can help it."

After they had talked to the friendly lady Josh told Allie to wait in the Jeep. He had a hunch that the house might not be where they wanted to spend the night. This was not looking good. "I just don't understand this whole thing. I have a feeling there is more than meets the eye around here. I get the same feeling I did at that little cafe. Weird that's what it is."

" Oh doggone it! Look there goes that young man over to the house. There is no need them going over there. I have to figure something out quick." His wife grinned and said, "They are from the city. Remember things like running water and inside bathrooms? They will leave as soon as they find they only have an outhouse for a bathroom and have to prime the pump out in the yard to get water. Bill never did see the need for all the niceties of city folks. They shall soon be gone and our investment will pay off for sure. The lawyer told us we would soon be rich if we invested with him in that ranch. It will be fine. Wait and see."

Josh walked around the house only to find a cat and a goat laying on the porch. 

He slapped away spider webs and tried the door. It wasn't locked. He couldn't believe it. He went to yell for Allie to come over to the house and felt that he had company.  He looked over his shoulder and a friendly voice said, "Hey there, young fella. Whatcha doin ' out here? This here is private property."

"You scared me. Who are you? Yes I know this is private property. The woman that owns it is right over there in that Jeep. Or she was. Looks like she is on her way over here now. This is is Aaliyah. She is the new owner of this ranch. Her Uncle Bill left it to her in his will."

The man frowned and said, "I never heard of Bill having any relatives. He never said a word about having a niece. Now, I'd just as soon have you leave or I'll have to call the sheriff. I mean it now. Now git yourselves back in that there strange vehicle and go back to where you came from."

Aaliyah was really tired. She was tired of lots of things; being evicted, being poor, traveling, and now this nosy old man was threatening her. "I have proof that I am the rightful owner of this ranch. Now it's your turn to "git" as you say or I will call the sheriff for you!"

The man frowned. He didn't look so friendly anymore, but he did turn and walk away. Josh and Allie watched him disappear into the trees and scrub brush. "I wonder who that guy was. What a welcome committee that man was. Silly me. I was hoping to make friends here and have some fun. So far not so good. Oh well, let's go in and see what's inside. Is the door locked? I really need to go to the bathroom."

Lill

 "Hey, it's Mom. I know you don't like me to call you at work, but Josh's dad is at it again. He says this is the last time I do his dirty work, but you know you can't trust him. Bill's niece is here at the cafe and she's got Josh with her. What is going on? Have you heard anything? I will be so glad when I can leave this jerk water town and leave that man and his shenanigans as far behind me as possible. He wants me to somehow stall her so she won't leave the cafe for awhile. I have no idea what he's up to. But I'll tell you this, it isn't good. But why is Josh with her? I know I know you can't be caught talking to me. If you just hadn't cheated on your entrance exams this wouldn't be happening. I could have my cute little apartment in the city. I could have had girlfriend spa days and shopping sprees. As she talked she realized that her son, Justin was no longer on the line. "Hmmph, the Senator won't talk to his mother anymore. Well, little boy, this has gone far enough. One little thing has led to many little things. I'm done. Tomorrow I am outta here."

Lill had taken Allie and Josh's orders. They had both ordered chili. When she took the order back to the cook she said, "The girl out there ordered her chili extra hot. You can dish up some of the boss's chili. That should suit her." She closed her eyes and said, "I'm so sorry I ever let that crooked lawyer talk me out of having Justin confess about cheating. He probably would have been fine. So what if he never got a public office? It sure would be better than living a lie and having it being held over his head. If Bill was alive I'm sure he would have taken care of business. I loved that man. Should have married him, but no, I wanted no part of a ranch. I wanted city life just like Maggie. Look what it has gotten me. Look what it got her. A big fat nothing, that's what."

Her order was up and when she set the two bowls of chili on the table she told Allie, "This is spicy, so take it easy." and walked to the back and watched.

Allie could take chili or leave it, but she was really hungry. It had been a long day and soon she would be home. A real home. A ranch with beautiful horses and a comfy bed and no one could kick her out. She was so excited. She took some crackers and crushed them and took a big bite. She screamed grabbed for her water and started choking. It was so hot she couldn't breathe. Josh quickly took her water away from her and yelled at the waitress. "Bring her milk or lemonade now! Hurry!" Lill took her time, but brought them a glass of milk. "You said you wanted it spicy, didn't you?" Allie shook her head, "No, I didn't!" Josh said, "Just keep drinking the milk. The oily chemical compound; capsaicin in chili is fat-soluble. So  when you rinse your mouth with milk it helps ease the burning pain from the extremely hot pepper someone put in your chili. I'm guessing it was on purpose. He gave Lill a look that could have curled her toes. He said, "Come on, we are out of here. Let's get to your ranch where it's just a little bit friendlier." He quickly paid the bill with his credit card and they were out the door.

Allie didn't argue with Josh for a second. She didn't like it in the cafe either. "Okay point the way, my exceedingly knowledgeable co-pilot.  So just how do you know all that science stuff anyway? What do you do for a living?" Josh said, "Nothing, remember? I'm looking for a job. That's just something I picked up on a long time ago." 

They hadn't been on the road more than twenty minutes when Josh said, " I think your ranch is  a lot closer than you thought. I can see down that gravel road that there is a big wooden gate. I really think it's only about a quarter of a mile away. Yes! Look, Allie. You are home."

As Allie pulled her camper through the Rocking DD Ranch huge wooden gate she felt a sense of peace. But that peace was soon broken by the bleating of a goat. "What's a goat doing on my ranch? That goat has a chicken on it's back.  Josh, help! A goat just crawled up on top of my Jeep! No no no you get down off of there! There are chickens and goats all over the place! Huge chickens! Oh no! There is a creature with a very long neck looking like he's going to eat me! This is the wrong place. Help me get out of here! Josh, now you quit your laughing! It's not one bit funny! Help me back this thing outta here. I'm going back to the city where I belong. What was that uncle guy thinking? Mom was right all along. I should have stayed where I was at and just found a better job." She put her Jeep in reverse and was backing out the gate.

"Hey come out here and look at this. Lill stalled the girl just long enough for Maxine and her sidekick  to scare her off. It shouldn't be long now before she's gone and the ranch will be all ours! Well ours and our lawyer's. He was a great investment counselor. Sure glad old Bill is long gone. Been waiting for this day for years. We're gonna be rich little lady. We are gonna be rich."

They Are In Texas!

 Aaliyah had never been more terrified in her life. The wind was blowing, the sky was getting darker and darker. The little camper she was pulling was all over the road. Then a car appeared out of nowhere behind her and had started honking the horn. Finally even though she knew she shouldn't stop, she did. A younger man came running over to her window and was shouting, "Tornado coming! Tornado! Pull your rig over there into that corncrib. It's not the best but it should help a little. "She understood what he was saying even though the wind was raging and the rain had started to pour. She couldn't believe her luck there was a little drive that she pulled into. The guy behind her kept yelling, "Pull it all the way in! I'm coming right behind you." Well, the whole thing was her rig took up all the space. Josh had nowhere to park his rental car, but he jumped out and ran inside the corncrib and got in the front seat of the Jeep. "Hi, I'm Josh. We are about to get the ride of our lives. Get your head down. Let's hope and pray that funnel doesn't touch down and goes on about it's business."

The noise was deafening. They could hear loud banging noises. Something or things were hitting the side of that old corn crib. It held steady, but it creaked and groaned with the strength of the wind. Then there was nothing but quiet. Aaliyah sat up and looked out the back window of her Jeep. She could see a fire flying up into the sky; then nothing. She had never seen or heard of anything like that in her life. Otherwise everything was as it was before. She looked at her new friend and said, "Where did you park your car? I don't see it." They got out of the Jeep and cautioned the dog to stay inside. They looked all around the old building. There was debris everywhere. Ears of corn and cornstalks, branches and pieces of metal and shattered glass. The Oklahoma red dirt had embedded itself into the corncrib making it look as if it was bleeding. It was injured indeed.  It was the biggest mess she had ever seen. But they were alive and unhurt; thanks to Josh. After a few minutes of searching they both agreed he no longer had a car. He was her newest passenger.

Josh told Aaliyah to go ahead and start the Jeep. He was going to walk the drive to make sure that there was nothing blocking the way. As he looked down the road there was nothing to interfere with their trip. He did not see his cell phone anywhere. The wind had sucked his phone out of his car and had taken it down the road about two miles to live the rest of its life in a farmer's yard. Never to be seen again except perhaps by two little children that thought it would make a great toy many days later when they were climbing trees for fun.

Aaliyah said, "Well, I guess I had better introduce myself. I'm Aaliyah, but you can call me Allie. So where are you headed, Josh?" Josh thought a minute before he answered. He could go two ways with this; his father's way or his way. "Well, I quit my job and thought I would go to Texas and look for work. You can take me as far as you want to. I'll see if I can get another car." Allie thought a minute and said, "What kind of work do you do? I might need somebody on my ranch. That's where I'm headed. I'm going to the Double D ranch a little ways north of San Antonio. It's up to you. I have no idea what is needed or maybe nothing, but you are welcome to ride along as long as you aren't a crook," she chuckled. "You know a person is not supposed to pick up hitchhikers." Josh grinned back at her and for the first time he felt free of his father's dubious ways. "Nope, I'm not a crook, so let's go to Texas. It's not all the far. I think we should be there in just four or five more hours. I'm starving. You got anything to eat in that camper?" When the dog heard the word "eat" he barked in agreement with the stranger. Allie and Josh both laughed. She pulled over to a rest area. They got out of the Jeep and got into the cooler. There was enough bread and lunch meat to make a couple of sandwiches. They had bottles of water to take along. They gave the dog a little bit of meat and some water.

"Do you think you could find something on that old radio of yours besides boot skootin' music?  Let's see if we can't find something fit to  listen to. Backstreet Boys is good, Adele is cool, how about some Madonna? " Allie looked at him and said, "What are you eighty? I've been listening to nothing but Blake Shelton for hours. I mean country is okay, but enough is enough." Josh continued to turn the dial to suit himself. When he found a Morgan Wallen tune, Dangerous, he said, "Well this guy is country, but kinda pop country. Is that okay, Miss Heiress?"

Allie turned her head so fast towards him her neck snapped. "What do you mean by calling me heiress? What are you talking about?" Josh quickly caught his mistake, "Oh nothing. Good grief you have kind of a short temper there, girl. I'm just talkin' that's all. Now listen to your tunes, I'm gonna see if I can't take a quick nap. It's been a long day."

Allie was getting really tired; tired of driving and tired of thinking. Did Josh know that she had inherited the ranch?  He couldn't have. Shed' never seen him before. He actually saved her life. She had been thinking so hard she had missed the Welcome to Texas sign a few miles back. Before she knew it she would be driving through the gate to her new home along with the young man who was needing a job. Two more hours, maybe more maybe less. She had forgotten to set the GPS after the tornado. Instead she had taken directions from Josh. They needed to stop soon anyway. 

"Hey wake up! We are in Texas and it's time to stop and stretch our legs. That sign back there said, Smidgemore, Texas. Funny name. I don't have much money left. Do you have enough for gas and something to eat? Josh sat up and looked around and said, "Sure. Looks like a little town, but maybe they have a cafe around here somewhere. He rubbed his eyes and looked around. He knew they were much closer to the ranch than Allie thought. His guess was they were about ten miles away. "That girl must have broken a few speed limits or I slept really hard. I have a feeling Dad is having sixteen fits back in Illinois. Good for him. I'm finally free. Man it feels good to be out from under his thumb and not tied to a cell phone. "Allie, look over there! Says they have chili. Sounds good to me. What do you think?" She nodded her head and pulled over to a tiny hole in the wall cafe. Chili wasn't her favorite, but she was hungry. They found an empty booth and reminded Josh that he needed to order a hamburger for the dog. As she was looking around the cafe, she noticed that the waitress seemed to be taking special interest in them. She mentioned it to Josh. "Yeah, we are strangers in this little town. She probably knows everybody's name and birthday in this little backwater. Go ahead and read the menu so we can order. Then we can eat and get out of here. This place gives me the creeps."

 The waitress whose name was Lill quietly walked back to the office. She dialed the old phone and said quietly, "She's here and she's got company. Now what do you want me to do?... Your son, that's who!"

A Stowaway, Red Dirt And A Tornado!

 Josh had his feelings hurt more than his body. Yes he had gotten bonked on the head with something or someone. He had fallen down the hill and the girl was gone. "What happened here? Dad is going to have my head for this. Oh no! Where is my phone? It has the GPS app on it that's connected to that girl's camper. I have to find that before I do anything else. Why on earth would anyone want to hurt me? Josh, my boy, I think you are imagining things. It must have been a branch from a tree that fell on your head. Wait! What are those campers saying about that girl? He crawled on his belly up the hill a little so that he could hear them better. Is that right? Heading to Oklahoma huh? Well I had better find my phone because Oklahoma is just where she should be going if she's going to Texas. She will be on I-49 soon. This shouldn't be a problem  even for a school child. I got this."

Aaliyah was on the road. Her belly was full and she had made fun forever memories with the campers. Some of them were so nice. That little girl's dad had moved her camper so easily it almost made her mad. She grinned remembering those little girls. "They were funny. Boy they sure had good food, but they were so nosy! "I didn't tell them much. Oh well, they were harmless, but right now I have to find a gas station. I'm getting down there towards a quarter of a tank. Oh there is one. Good."

When she got out of the Jeep a little dog came trotting over to her. "Oh aren't you just the cutest thing? Who are you? Where is your owner, little one? You are so cute. Wish I had a dog. Oh well, I need to fill this thing up again. I wonder if they have an ATM. I am running out of cash in the glove box. You stay put, little one. I'm sure your owner will be right out. You have a collar and leash so you belong to someone. I have to get going."

Aaliyah filled the tank it took $31.68 worth of gasoline. "She counted out the cash from the envelope. I have only seventy-four dollars left in the envelope. Maybe I should have used the ATM and gotten cash from the bank account Uncle Bill said I had. But who knows what expenses I will have when I get there. I should be able to get there with the money he left in the glove box. I still have food in the cooler. Those campers really helped my budget as far as food goes. They even gave me some food to take along. Nice people."

She got back in the Jeep and noticed that little dog still sitting on the blacktop. "Oh dear. What shall I do about that little dog? I guess I had better go in and ask the cashier if she knows who that little cutie belongs to."

 She got out and went back in the station. The cashier said she hadn't noticed anyone with a dog for several days. "I don't know where it came from." She told Aaliyah that she guessed she better call the pound so it would be safe from cars hitting it. At least it would have shelter, food and water there." Aaliyah sadly agreed and went back out to the Jeep. She had no idea that she was being watched. Josh was standing in the trees not far from the gas pumps.

Aaliyah soon noticed the sign that said I-49 in 2 miles. "Oh good! I know that Oklahoma is coming up soon. I go through there then on to Texas and my new home. She noticed that the weather was getting warmer and she didn't have to have the heater on anymore.. Before she knew it she saw people pulling through a little booth that looked a lot like the campground booth. "Toll booth. What's that for? It says all kinds of axles and money for the different axles. What's an axle? Is that wheels?  Money? Oh good grief! I can't keep paying out money. What do you mean how much does your camper weigh? I have no idea. I just got it. No I didn't steal it. I inherited it from my Uncle. I'm sure it has a license on it. Oh you are giving me a break? How nice of you. It's only fifteen dollars? Great." She handed over the fifteen dollars and decided no more turnpikes for her. She was going to take the back roads.  She only had fifty-eight dollars and some change left. She had to be ever so careful.

She soon found a state highway and stopped for a cool drink and took a few minutes to set her GPS. She noticed that taking the state two lane highways was going to take her a lot longer to get there, but there wouldn't be anymore toll charges. She just couldn't afford it. As she drank her drink she had the oddest feeling that she wasn't alone. "Stuffy, I think I'm getting goofy. I must be really tired. I feel like we have company." About that time a warm little tongue licked her ear and whined. Aaliyah screamed and jumped so hard she hit her head on the head liner. There was that little dog! "Oh no! What are you doing in my car? Oh no! Now what do I do? You silly thing. I can barely feed myself, let alone you. Oh you are so very cute though."

There was nothing to it. She had to take the dog with her. She didn't have the time or the money to turn around and take the dog back. She could tell that the dog was hungry and thirsty so she got out and went back to the cooler and got a bottle of water and took a little of the lunch meat she had. She needed some kind of dish. Yes, there was a little dish. She put some water in it and got back into the Jeep. "Well, it looks like you are going to Texas with me, little one. I don't think Stuffy will care. I could use some company anyway. Ok, let's get going. Oklahoma isn't far away, maybe only half an hour. Soon you and I will have a new home. 

As Aaliyah traveled on she did miss the big highways, but she met tractors and trucks. She wasn't making very good time. She wondered if she had done the right thing. As she looked around she noticed that the dirt wasn't brown anymore, it was red. Red dirt, that's weird. I wonder why that is. She saw a lot of farm houses and farmers planting out in the fields. "They are way ahead of the farmers in Illinois. I guess it's because I am a lot further south and it sure is warmer." She noticed that she was talking to her new little friend, the dog. She guessed she would have to pick a name for it one of these days.

As she traveled further she saw something she had never seen before; oil wells and bales of hay on the same field. "Now this is weird. I had no idea this was going on in my country. That's what you get for not going anywhere or at least looking things up in the library or on my phone. Of course, I couldn't concentrate on anything but my belly and getting a job so I could eat and keep my apartment. This is so cool, dog. Just makes me wonder what we will see in Texas."

Josh's rental car was a safe distance behind Aaliyah's Jeep so she didn't realize he was following her. He was not a happy man. "It's getting hot and dusty out here.  I think I will give my dad a call and let him know what's going on. He grabbed his phone and his dad answered right away. "Are you in Texas, kid?" "Dad she is taking the back roads to Texas. We are in Oklahoma, but she's making me drive on these old red dirt roads. That red dirt might be great for planting things, but I'm going to choke to death out here. You know the weather in this state can get pretty dicey. I hope I'm not going to get mixed up in a tornado on the way. Plus she picked up a dog at a gas station back a few miles.  She actually looks like a very nice woman. I'd hate to think that you are planning on taking away her ranch. That is not what you are thinking of doing are you? Dad?" His dad had either hung up or he had lost reception out here in no where land.

He had taken time to grab a sandwich, chips and some bottled water at the same gas station where Aaliyah had stopped. He turned on his radio and could only find country western music. Blake Shelton, the Oklahoma cowboy. Man, isn't there any other kind of music in this state?" About that time there was a loud test announcement on his radio. Tornado warning! He looked in the sky and couldn't believe his eyes. The sky was getting really black. There was a huge black cloud that didn't look good to him. "I hope I am imagining things, but I think I see the beginning of a funnel forming in that monster." He needed to find shelter and fast. But the girl! He had to get her to safety too. Okay little rental car let's catch up to her fast as you can go."

Josh tromped on the gas pedal and the red dirt flew! He was driving way too fast on these old gravel roads, but he had to catch up with her. At last he saw the little camper. It was kind of weaving behind the Jeep. The wind was blowing way too hard to be safe. He had to get them to safety. Up ahead he saw a building. It was provide at least some shelter. But there was a burn barrel with a fire in it. I don't dare. Something is better than nothing. I have to get her attention. He started honking his horn over and over. Finally the girl slowed down. He jumped out of his car and ran up to her. "Get going over to that old corn crib. There is a bad storm coming. Drive your rig right in the middle and I will follow you. Now GO! NOW!"

She's In Missouri: The Show Me State

 Marlee and her family lived in a small town, but had a large family. Her family loved to go camping and sometimes they would all get together along with friends and camp by a lake. Some of her family she didn't know very well, but they were all having a good time. They were eating hamburgers and hotdogs and at night they even had s'mores. Oh how she loved s'mores. They had finished eating and the grownups were cleaning up their campsite and visiting back and forth. Marlee was watching a young woman having an absolute fit trying to park her camper in her camping place. She would back up and go forwards, then she would get out and even kick her tires! "Oops, I think she is mad. Hey, Kaysyn! Look at that girl over there. She's have a terrible time parking her camper. Do you think we should tell my dad?" Soon her whole family was watching. Before Marlee's dad got up to go over and help her it looked like the girl had given up for the evening. "I think she gave up and went to sleep, Kaysyn said,  I'll go over in the morning. Maybe she would like to come over and have breakfast with us. She's all alone. I wouldn't like that." Marlee agreed and climbed down from the tree that had been the perfect watch tower.

It seemed like Aaliyah had no sooner gone to sleep when she heard a tapping noise on her window. When she looked out the window there was a man knocking on her window. He had a ranger uniform on. Oh how her neck and back hurt. She must have been asleep longer than she thought. She rolled down her window and said, "What do you want? It's the middle of the night and I haven't done anything wrong."

The man said, "Well actually you did and are. You didn't pay when you came into the park and you are parked crossways. You can't do that. You are blocking traffic. You will need to pay me fifty-five dollars for the night. You must get your camper parked the right way as soon as possible or you will have to leave. If you don't you will be towed out. That will cost you at least two hundred dollars. The check out time is at three o'clock this afternoon. If you don't leave, you will have to pay another fifty-five dollars. I will wait for you to give me the money then I will give you a receipt so the next ranger doesn't charge you again."

Aaliyah got out of her Jeep and said, "No way! I don't have any money." Then she remembered the envelope in the glove box. She opened up the door and found the envelope. There was only two hundred dollars in there. That money had to buy gas and food until she got to an ATM for more. She tried to negotiate with the ranger, but he said rules were rules and they were made for many good reasons. She needed to pay or he would give her a ticket and she would have to go to court before a judge. Well, she wasn't going to do that so she carefully counted out fifty-five dollars and told the ranger that she would be out before three o'clock. She didn't have a clue how she was going to get her camper out, but she was sure going to try. "This camping thing is not my cup of tea. I think that Uncle Bill of mine should have had me stay in motels," she grumbled.

It wasn't long before Aaliyah had yet another visitor; a little girl. "Hi there! What's your name? My name is Kaysyn. You're a bad driver aren't you? Ever go campin' before? Marlee said her dad would help you get this thing straight. My gigi says it's cockeyed and you need some help. You want to come over for breakfast? What's your name again? Why you got that old stuffed toy? Aren't you too big for toys? Come on let's eat. Why are you by yourself? Are you hungry? We got all kinds of food. Come on let's get up there before it's all gone. Fresh air makes you hungry. That's what everybody says anyway. Do you even know where you are? You are in Missouri now. It's a good state. They call it the Show Me State 'cause people here have good sense. Yup, so we could spot you right away. You could stay if you want to. Where you goin' anyway?"

After doing some thinking and listening to her stomach growl, Aaliyah followed her new inquisitive little friend up the hill without saying much.  She soon found out that she was right. There was all kinds of food and friendly faces. Many of them asked the same questions that Kaysyn had asked, but she grinned and answered some but not all of their questions. Soon after breakfast Marlee's dad got her camper and Jeep moved. As Aaliyah watched she just shook her head. He made it look so easy.

 Soon she was on her way to Texas. She had to find a gas station and an ATM pretty soon. She only had a little less than half a tank of gas. It seemed like her new wheels used a lot of gasoline. She had looked on the map and it was 1001 miles from Springfield, Illinois to San Antonio, Texas. "And one mile. Who cares about the one mile? I'm not going that far anyway, so I should be there by tomorrow night. I will be so glad to have a home of my own that no one can evict me from. A ranch; think of that, Stuffy. A ranch all of our own. It looks like we are going to see Oklahoma on the way. That will be fun. I have never been there. Of course, I haven't been anywhere except Illinois. Okay, here we go."

Crooks, Blackmailers, And Ghosts?!

 The young man watched as the Jeep pulling the tear drop camper pulled away. His job was finished. He sighed as he turned and walked back through the alley and walked towards his father's office. Hopefully this was the last of his dad's sneaky little jobs he'd have to do. He had made a mistake when he was in college and his dad had been making him pay for it ever since. But his dad had promised him that this was his last job then he could do what he wanted with this life. As he turned the corner he saw the sign over the wooden door that he had walked through so  many times. He was always proud of his father and told all his friends what a great man he was. He had wished that his dad could have spent more time with him, but that was in the past. His law practice was a big one or so he had always told his son when he had asked him to go to games with him or watch him run in track meets.

He sometimes wondered if his father was breaking the law in order to help his clients. Something just didn't seem right to him. For instance, why would his dad have him put a tracking device on the young woman's camper when she had left to get her things in her apartment. It didn't make sense to him. "I think I need to know exactly what is going on. When he found out that my best buddy had cheated on his college entrance exam he told me that he would tell the Dean if I didn't do just one little thing for him. Ha! One little thing seemed to go on forever. This needed to stop.

When he walked through the door there was a new secretary sitting at the desk. It seemed like every time he came to see his dad there was another new one. "Maybe Dad is hard to work for. I can sure understand that," he grinned to himself. He introduced himself to the woman and she motioned for him to go in.

When Josh walked in his father stood up. He was holding a set of keys. "Did you get that tracking device hidden on that girl's camper? Good. Here's a set of keys to a rental car that's sitting outside. I want you to follow that woman wherever she goes. Keep me informed of her every movement. It's important son, or I wouldn't ask this of you."

"No. You said I didn't have to do any more little secret jobs for you. I am done. I have my own life to live. You have held my friend's secret over my head for long enough. I'm not going to jump every time you tell me to anymore. I'm a grown man and soon I'll be of age to inherit my trust fund that my grandfather left me. You know I want to start up my own computer company. In a few years I might even want to start my own family. You just can't ask more of me, Dad. If you don't stop I will just have to tell Justin that you know what he did. He will have to face the consequences. He may lose his seat in the state senate, but that's on him. I can't keep covering for him and doing your under wrap jobs. Enough is enough."

When his father finished speaking, Josh took the set of keys and walked by the new secretary. He said, "Don't hold your breath until you get your next paycheck." He walked out through the wooden door; his head was bent his heart was heavy. He was so very disappointed in his father. In the last few minutes his whole future had been put on hold. He thought he never wanted to see his father again; ever! His father had spent and squandered  his entire trust fund his grandfather had left him. He was in debt and the young woman was the key to getting out of debt and paying Josh back at least some of his trust fund money. Then he could get on with his life. "Well, I guess I'm going to Texas too. I'll get this over with, so I can get at least some of my money back. I'll tell you one thing, my father isn't going to swindle me out of my money again."

Because Josh had attached a tracking device to Aaliyah's camper it was easy to see where she was going even though she had a head start on him.  When it was getting late he saw that she had turned into a campground. "Good. Now I can rest some myself. He had thrown a pillow into the backseat along with an old blanket. He had had time enough to go home throw some things in a suitcase, grab his laptop and his phone. "Well, here I am, Dad. Once again I have no idea what you are up to, but I do know one thing. I feel sorry for her. She is a terrible driver to start with.  She is crossways across a camping spot. She didn't even stop to eat on the way here. She has caused a little commotion in the campground though. There are all kinds of people watching her. You would think someone would go help her.

 Oh there goes a little girl over to that girl's camper. I have to see this. Talk to you later." He grabbed his phone and a candy bar and crawled up a little hill on his belly. "No one will see me. I'm going to take a picture of this.  Umph! What the heck? What or who are you?" Josh woke up on the hill the next morning dirty, bruised, cold and hungry. The girl was gone.

Goodbye City Life!

 Aaliyah reassured her driver that she didn't need any help packing. To be honest it was embarrassing to let anyone see how she had been living. She had sold almost everything she owned to be able to stay in her apartment. She had no tv, not even a table and chairs. She only had a bed and her couch, both of which she had bought used. In fact she was grateful that she had them. She had thought she was going to have to sell her bed and sleep on the couch. She thought, "This is only going to take about fifteen minutes at the most." She had an old cardboard box and started putting things in it that she wanted to take with her. She packed her few clothes, some dishes, pots and pans, and a few towels. She packed her backpack with her toiletries and some things she might need on the road then she was done. Then she saw it; the picture of her mama sitting sadly by her almost dead plant. "Oh Mama, what did you do? Why all the secrecy? Well, you are going with me, that's for sure. In you go!"  She taped the box shut and didn't even look back except to take a peek in the spider's corner. She was even gone. "Good for you, Miss Spider and good luck to you."

She easily carried the box out to the car, her backpack on her back and her dreams in her heart. She was ready for an adventure.

She had dragged an old stuffed unicorn that her mama had given her years ago out of her closet and held him closely to her heart. "Well, Stuffy, what do you think? Am I crazy or one of the luckiest girls ever?" She got no answer, but as usual he listened to her with no words of wisdom or advice, but with the ease of an old and dear friend. She settled him on her lap for a minute and they were on their way.

The driver took her directly to the storage unit and helped her get her things situated in the camper. She quickly grabbed her unicorn, propped him in the passenger seat, fastened his seat belt and they were almost ready to go.  The driver winked at her and gave her a friendly wave goodbye. She was on her own, only this time she had wheels and a portable home that no one could take away from her.

Aaliyah thought about money, but decided that there was enough food in the cooler and she had a full tank of gas. There had been some cash in the envelope with the debit card so she was more than ready to make her way to Texas. As she drove out of town she looked in the rearview mirror. She was leaving the city life which was her mother's way of life. She was heading towards parts unknown to a ranch of all places. She grinned and said, "So let's do this!"

Stuffy as always never said a word. He was busy holding on to her new smart phone. She had the GPS set for her new home in Texas. She didn't notice the young man in the alley watching her leave.

It was getting late and she was getting tired. She had had a late start so she started looking for a campground which was absolutely new to her. At last she saw a sign that said that there was just a campground just a few miles ahead. When she pulled into the park the attendant booth was empty so she pulled through to find herself an empty spot.

The park looked pretty full. "Boy look at all those fancy campers. Our little old camper looks like a bug next to those big things.  I hope we find a spot where I can just pull through. I'm not used to this, Stuffy. Oh man the only empty one is on the very edge of the campground. Okay, here goes nothing. I hope I can get this thing parked so we can get some food out of the cooler. I am too tired to cook. I just want to have a sandwich and get a good night's sleep. We can start early in the morning on our new adventure, but after we eat a good breakfast."

The sweat was running down the side of her face, she was getting exhausted. Her arms were so tired she could hardly feel them. The camper just would not go the way she wanted it to go. It would go left when she wanted it to go right. She pulled the camper forwards, then backwards. Maybe this wasn't a good idea, Stuffy. Oh no! I am sideways and can't get out of this place. There is a tree in front of me and one in back of me. What are we going to do now? I have been trying to get this thing parked for forty-five minutes. I guess there's nothing to do but curl up in the passenger seat until someone is willing to help us get out of here. I just can't do anymore. Come here, old friend, it's just you and me like it's been for years. I'll lock the doors and try to get some sleep. Man even the pillows and blanket is in the back of that old camper. Good thing it it isn't too cold yet. Night, buddy." Aaliyah squirmed and wrestled her little friend to her chest repeatedly until from sheer exhaustion she fell asleep with her head resting on the hard metal of the door. She had completely forgotten that the key to the camper side door was on the keyring in the ignition.

Some strangers had been watching Aaliyah with a great deal of interest from some distance away.