Border Issues

I am working on several other stories and all of a sudden i had this idea. So here it is. It is not long, but it is more than 750 words. So not a flash story. A word to my critics. Thank you. I am self edited, if you would like to edit my stories let me know. I am not adverse to any help. I write ideas that come to me. I am sure many people do a lot better than i do. I write to fill some of my spare time. I am not bitter about my divorce. As for any critics of my style, please forgive me I am still trying to learn. I hope I will do better with time.

To all of you who like my work, thanks a lot. I appreciate it.

*********************

I drove up to the border check point and rolled down my window. I had my bills in my hand and handed them to the agent before he even had a chance to ask. He smiled.

"Hey Pat, see you're at it again."

"Yep, heading south for a drop and a pickup. NAFTA at its best. The only good thing is since I am so close, tomorrow when I get back, I will drop in on the wife and say hi."

"Yeah, I bet you will. I see my wife every day and say hi as often as she will let me."

He checked the paperwork, but it was in order. He knew it, but he still checked. We did this on a regular basis. I crossed at this check point at least 8 to 10 times a month. Sometimes I crossed almost every other day. I would drive into Mexico. Drop a trailer of raw parts. Sleep, and then hook up a trailer with finished goods and drive back. Sometimes to the depot in El Paso, other times to a destination somewhere else in the United States. It was a decent job and my time in Mexico was always in a safe area.

The agent finished with the paperwork, and I headed out. Two hours of driving would put me at the warehouse deep in Chihuahua. It was a guarded facility and there was even a lot for us to park to get some sleep.

12 hours later I was back at the crossing, getting my papers checked and then I drove to El Paso. I parked down the road from my house, the city didn't like it when semis parked on the city streets. I walked the two blocks to the house. As I approached the house I froze. There was a car in my driveway that should not have been there. It belonged to that asshole Jake. Jake and I didn't like each other and had not since high school. My wife knew this, and she knew I would kill Jake before I would invite him into my home.

I slipped up to the house and remained as quiet as I could. I listened. The noises I heard were not only familiar they were the sound of the end of my marriage. I took a few minutes to think then went around to the back of the house. I slipped in the laundry room door and walked down the hall. I found the master bedroom door open a little bit. I took out my cellphone and put it on record. I recorded my wife's ending of our marriage for around ten minutes and then reversed the process and left the house.

I went back to the truck and started on my trip. I was headed towards Seattle and knew I would have plenty of time to think about what had just happened. I had to stop a few times to get control of myself. I did not see this coming. I trusted Marie and knew she loved me. I guess I had been wrong. I know there are lots of reasons for a spouse to screw around on a marriage. I know that being a long hall trucker it's almost a cliché that the spouse will cheat on you. I would never have believed Marie would though.

Now I didn't spend my time thinking what did I do, was this my fault. Nope, not when she was screwing Jake. Jake and I had hated each other since I put him in the hospital for trying to get too fresh with my sister. Because there had been lots of witnesses, I never got in trouble for it. Actually, my dad bought me a new car for it. My sister was two years younger than me. Jake barely escaped going to jail for his actions. I was not going to blame myself for her screwing Jake.

I needed to plan. So, I used some of my down time to research divorce in the great state of Texas. Whereas adultery mattered in the division of assets, there was a problem. We had three kids. I called a 'friend' and asked him some questions. I quickly realized I was going to get screwed.

Once again, the cry baby men haters had worked together to screw over men. If we got divorced, I was going to have to pay for child support, not a problem; but I would also have to pay for the house she was living in, the health insurance, and if I was not lucky, some form of alimony until either the baby was old enough or she could get a job. I really didn't like that.

I will be honest and the thought of killing her, and Jake really did fill my mind as I drove. I entertained several different fantasies about how I could do it and get away with it as I drove to Seattle. On my way back, I had some other ideas I indulged myself with. It helped. I was sitting in line to cross the border and I looked at the signs like I had over a thousand times, when I suddenly got an idea.

That whole trip to the warehouse and then to Chicago I made my plans. When I returned to Texas I started putting my plans into motion. I stopped at the local gun shop and placed an order. I filled out the forms, gave them my drivers license and went on my way. I waited for the appropriate amount of time and then bought three other rifles. I also bought a lot of ammo and some mags for the rifles.

Each time I returned home, I put the weapons in my wife's car. She had a nice SUV and there was a lot of room around the spare tire area. I put the ammo there. I put the rifles in on top of the spare and filled the rest of the space with the extra rounds and mags. It did not take long before the whole space was filled with weapons and ammo.

When I had all the preliminaries done, I called the wife.

"Marie. How are you honey?"

"Oh Pat, it's good to hear from you. I missed you."

We talked about the kids for a few and then about other matters for a little longer. Finally, I got to my point.

"Marie, how would you like to go to The Lodge at Creel Hotel & SPA? I won a weekend get away there. The only problem is that I cannot take you. I have to get a load to New York instead. But I figured you could take your sister and go for the weekend. I hear its really nice."

She thought about it, and I could almost hear her thoughts. She wasn't thinking about taking her sister, she was thinking about taking Jake. But that was kind of what I was hoping for anyway. We talked for about an hour while we made plans. She would drop the kids off at my sisters on Thursday night and that way she could leave first thing on Friday. Her and her 'sister' could then drive to spa in Mexico and get there by Friday evening. Spend that night and all day and night on Saturday at the Spa and return to El Paso on Sunday. We hung up and I called my sister and gave her the news. She didn't mind as she loved my kids even more than their own mother did.

I was just outside of Nashville when I got a phone call. It seems my wife and a male companion had been arrested for arms smuggling in Mexico. They were pulled over in Mexico for a routine check and when the car was searched, weapons and ammunition was found in the trunk of the car. The fact some of the rounds were 'hidden' under the spare tire, made the case even more damning. The US consulate in Cd. Juarez informed me that my wife denied any knowledge of the matter.

I called my sister, and she told me that she had no problem taking care of the kids. I called my boss and explained the problem to him. When I got back from New York I was put on a regular run daily to the warehouse and back to El Paso. The pay was not as good, but it would more than cover the bills.

Six months after she was arrested, my wife finally appeared before the judge. The prosecutor showed the evidence. My wife's attorney claimed she had no idea the ammo and weapons were in the car. It didn't matter. She was sentenced to 8 years for arm smuggling.

I filed for divorce at that time and was granted full custody of the kids. My sister moved into my house and watches the kids for me. She goes to college and is working to be a lawyer. When the kids are all in school, she will be able to go full time.