father’s side. “You look after the money Dad, I’m only gonna take a few hundred…gotta get busy now.” He left the lantern just inside the hole and pulled himself back out, ready to put their plan into play. There was an embankment nearby he could use to get the dirt bike in the truck safely. Then it was off to a stream, just a quarter mile away to wash up and change clothes. While he was there he began exploring a bit. He followed the stream uphill to a spot twenty yards above the entrance to a thick stand of trees. As soon as he saw a large flat spot covered with moss and leaves, he knew it had to be another way in. This one was very large, thirty feet by sixty feet as near as he could guess. Some rusty machinery sat next to it covered in leaves. A finger of the stream wound around into a rocky puddle just a few feet away and disappeared into the ground. Undoubtedly the source of the underground pool. Filing the new information away for later he struck out for the road. He had carefully planned his route. Taken time to disguise the truck with mud, and he drove slowly without headlights to remain quiet and invisible. Once he reached the highway he took off to the south toward “The Sandbox.” He giggled with anticipation, high on adrenaline. “This is gonna be fun.”
Only twenty miles due south, nestled in a secluded valley was a small collection of hotels, greasy spoons, and truck stops. Fifty yards off the main road sat “The Sandbox” a strip club with an anything goes reputation. The area was near enough to a state road to attract plenty of traffic. But tucked away neatly out of sight. It had been there for over twenty years and had provided the county police with a tidy bonus program. Sheriff Talbot watched over the area with extra care, Protecting the business owners, and himself from prying eyes.
Junior wheeled into a truck stop just before ten that evening. Filled up with gas, ate his first normal meal in a week. Then into the adjoining gift shop. He picked out a new tee shirt and a backpack before striking up a conversation with the cashier.
“Will this be all?”
“Yeh, well…can you suggest a good hotel?” Junior feigned a yawn as he paid for his goods.
“Well, there ain’t but two Honey. An’ they’re both about the same, clean but not fancy.”The cashier could have been any one’s Grandma, smiling and plump.
“I kinda wanted one that didn’t ask for names or ages, if you know what I mean.”
Junior put on a broad smile and slid an extra twenty-dollar bill across the counter. The money quickly disappeared.
“You want the “Elite Inn,” Billy don’t care and he don’t talk either.” He thanked her and made his way down the street to the Elite. But instead of going in he went around back to the dumpster. Climbed in and began looking for a receipt from earlier in the week. He found a trash bag that came from the front desk and decided to look through it in a better light. Making his way to the front, he checked in using a fake name. He greased the man’s palm when he asked how old Junior was, no problem. It only took him ten minutes to find the paper he was looking for. A receipt for two nights stay dated last Tuesday and Wednesday. Perfect. He took a good look at the room so he could accurately describe it later. Then he left and hit another gift shop. This one had clothing so he bought a pair of jeans and another shirt. The girl behind the counter was young and giggly. So Junior took the opportunity to get some more evidence. With very little explanation and another twenty dollars, he was able to get a receipt dated three days ago. This should be enough paper work, now on to the next part of the plan.
Thirty miles more to the south was an abandoned rock quarry. It had filled up with water from an underground spring many years before. It was reported to be extremely deep. The water didn’t have a way to flow out so it became stagnant and full of algae, making it unsuitable
Only twenty miles due south, nestled in a secluded valley was a small collection of hotels, greasy spoons, and truck stops. Fifty yards off the main road sat “The Sandbox” a strip club with an anything goes reputation. The area was near enough to a state road to attract plenty of traffic. But tucked away neatly out of sight. It had been there for over twenty years and had provided the county police with a tidy bonus program. Sheriff Talbot watched over the area with extra care, Protecting the business owners, and himself from prying eyes.
Junior wheeled into a truck stop just before ten that evening. Filled up with gas, ate his first normal meal in a week. Then into the adjoining gift shop. He picked out a new tee shirt and a backpack before striking up a conversation with the cashier.
“Will this be all?”
“Yeh, well…can you suggest a good hotel?” Junior feigned a yawn as he paid for his goods.
“Well, there ain’t but two Honey. An’ they’re both about the same, clean but not fancy.”The cashier could have been any one’s Grandma, smiling and plump.
“I kinda wanted one that didn’t ask for names or ages, if you know what I mean.”
Junior put on a broad smile and slid an extra twenty-dollar bill across the counter. The money quickly disappeared.
“You want the “Elite Inn,” Billy don’t care and he don’t talk either.” He thanked her and made his way down the street to the Elite. But instead of going in he went around back to the dumpster. Climbed in and began looking for a receipt from earlier in the week. He found a trash bag that came from the front desk and decided to look through it in a better light. Making his way to the front, he checked in using a fake name. He greased the man’s palm when he asked how old Junior was, no problem. It only took him ten minutes to find the paper he was looking for. A receipt for two nights stay dated last Tuesday and Wednesday. Perfect. He took a good look at the room so he could accurately describe it later. Then he left and hit another gift shop. This one had clothing so he bought a pair of jeans and another shirt. The girl behind the counter was young and giggly. So Junior took the opportunity to get some more evidence. With very little explanation and another twenty dollars, he was able to get a receipt dated three days ago. This should be enough paper work, now on to the next part of the plan.
Thirty miles more to the south was an abandoned rock quarry. It had filled up with water from an underground spring many years before. It was reported to be extremely deep. The water didn’t have a way to flow out so it became stagnant and full of algae, making it unsuitable
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