Jeff watched in fascination as the sagging wires between the poles seemed to be moving up and down as he passed by. Early on Monday morning driving along this highway, there was little else to keep his attention. He had been driving for about an hour and in another 20 minutes or so would be crossing the state line into Wyoming. Glancing at the clock on his truck's radio, Jeff saw it was a bit after 7, his start time right at 6 am. He thought of food but decided to wait until he had gone through Cheyenne and would make the turn toward the northwest. Once out of the town, he would stop and fill the truck's tank, then get a bite to eat himself. He knew that beyond this point, there would be far fewer gas stations and more remote areas he would be traveling through. Jeff was heading for his Uncle Roy's place, centrally located in 'Middle of Nowhere', Wyoming.
Roy was Jeff's favorite uncle, though as his only uncle that title was not too difficult to hold. Jeff had not seen his uncle since he was 15, almost 10 years ago. He had, after some perceived injustice done to him at the hands of his parents, run away from home and found his way to Roy's cabin. With a few belongings in his backpack and a few dollars in his pocket, Jeff had relied on his thumb to get him to Roy's place. Three days later, and even now Jeff did not know how he had found the place, he arrived at his uncle's cabin and announced that he would be staying with Roy for a while. Jeff did not offer explanation, and Roy had asked for none, just telling the boy to put his pack in the cabin and come out to help with the roof he was repairing.
Jeff was remembering back to that time, his illusion of adventure quickly banished by the hard life that was typical of what Roy faced every day. Roy was the black sheep of the family and Jeff did not know much about him. The family was small, both sets of his grandparents had died young, so Jeff's parents and Roy, his mother's brother, were all the family he had ever known. Jeff remembered seeing Roy more frequently when he was younger, but as he had gotten older, the visits had become infrequent.
Jeff's parents would rarely speak of Roy, only offering brief comments about problems whenever Jeff would ask for more details. They would offer things like "It was the war", or "the drugs did it", or just "that's the way times were back then". Jeff knew that Roy had been troubled, and had his share of problems growing up, but nothing too serious to Jeff's way of thinking. He had heard about the truancy, several issues with underage alcohol and grass, but the straw that broke the camel's back was the time he got arrested joyriding. Without the other stuff, the car charges might have been overlooked, but the judge decided he needed some more discipline, so gave him the choice of jail or military service. Roy took the service, and soon found himself in Viet Nam.
He survived the ordeal but according to his parents, Roy was never the same. They had tried to help him with life, but he gradually started to drift away and they soon gave up. Roy had moved to the wilderness to get away from the demons he lived with, and had for all intents and purposes, dropped out of society. Jeff found that his idea of adventure was far different from the reality he faced with Roy, and after a month, decided his parents had been punished enough. Roy had walked the 8 miles or so to the nearest phone to call them and let them know where their son was, not finding Jeff's worries sufficient to justify the use of his precious gas. His parents had come up the following day to get him. He knew his mother gave Roy some cash before they left, but they had said little. Thinking back, he realized that was the last time they had seen each other.
Jeff's thoughts were brought back to the present as he started encountering more cars as he neared the city ahead. He had spoken to his mother yesterday, something he did once or twice a week, even though they only lived 20 or so miles apart. Jeff loved his parents, but they had never been a family that found physical closeness necessary. It was always easier for them to call him or him to call one of them rather than find time to get together. He would see them every month or 2, but that was just the normal way of things in his family. He had noticed a distance in his mother's conversation, but when he asked about it, she had said it was nothing. Jeff had pursued his concerns, and his mother had finally made a mention of Roy. Jeff had not heard her mention his name for quite a few years, so was surprised to hear of him. After some more prodding, his mother had told him that Roy had died a few days ago. She had gotten a call from the sheriff telling her that someone had found his body in his cabin. They had said it was natural causes, and Jeff had no doubt it was, if one could call just being tired of living a natural cause for dying. Jeff assumed that Roy had decided that the best way to rid himself of the demons he faced would be to just stop living. Jeff was also annoyed with his mother, he felt that if he had not pursued the subject, she would not have even told him of Roy's passing. Jeff did not know why, but felt an irresistible urge to go to the cabin, the reason a mystery to him. He had called his boss at home yesterday and telling him of the death, had taken a week off. Jeff only knew he had to go to the cabin, and here he was on the road to find it.
Once on the northern edge of Cheyenne, Jeff stopped for gas and picked up a breakfast sandwich that he heated in the shop's microwave before resuming his drive. He continued for another 2 and a half hours before he found the area he was looking for. He remembered the town, if one could call this small collection of buildings a town. There was a general store, a part time ranger station, and a couple of other non-descript buildings. Jeff remembered the place from his visit 10 years ago, though it took him 3 days of hitch hiking to get here last time. Roy's place was another 10 miles into the wilderness from here, but Jeff felt comfortable that he could find his way. He followed a gravel road for some miles, and then turned off onto a fire road that was rutted and narrow from disuse. He saw the faint signs of where Roy had left the road in his own truck and pulled into the clearing that stood beside the old wooden cabin. It seemed smaller than he remembered but he had been much younger and considered it a sacred place back then. Jeff turned off the truck and got out, then walked toward the door.
The cabin did not have a lock on the door, just a simple latch holding it closed. Jeff walked in and instantly was transported back 10 years to the month he had lived here. He did not see anything that looked different from his time back then, but Roy was not one to embrace change either. Jeff thought the place looked oddly sterile, and then realized that there was nothing of Roy's belongings here. Perhaps the cabin had been looted after Roy's death, but since it was not trashed, he assumed that someone had removed anything personal and had sent those few belongings to his mother. Jeff walked around, remembering the time he had been here. The cabin had no electricity and the only running water was from a hand pump next to the sink in the kitchen that drained down a pipe exiting through the floor. No indoor plumbing and the heat came from a wood stove centered in the cabin's single room. The only item remotely modern was the propane stove where Roy could cook the game and fish he subsisted on most of the time. Jeff spent a few minutes reliving some of the experiences from his time here, and then decided to go back to the store to get some supplies for his stay. He wasn't sure how long he would be here, but knew he had to spend some time before going back to his life in Denver.
*****
At the store, Jeff filled his gas tank, he was not sure when he might get another chance. Having a full tank was often a matter of necessity when one lived this far off the beaten track. He went into the general store and picked up 2 cans of chili, a bag of beef jerky, a 12 pack of Twinkies and a 6 of Coors. He remembered a television clip of David Lee Roth telling of the 5 major food groups -- sugar, starch, fat, grease and alcohol. "Yup, got them all in here", he thought. After paying, he remembered ice and added that to his purchase. Outside, he put the beer into the old metal cooler he had strapped down in the bed of his truck, then poured the ice over the bottles and closed the lid.
Jeff drove back to the cabin and parked the truck, carrying his groceries inside with him. He was surprised to see a young woman inside the cabin as he entered, standing close enough that Jeff could have touched the rifle she was pointing at him if he had wanted. He decided that would not be a good idea and as he was pondering his next move, the woman demanded "Who the hell are you and what are you doing here?"
Jeff instinctively knew that if she did not like his answer, or if it was too long in coming, he would be standing here with a 30 caliber hole in his chest. Judging by the way she was holding the rifle, Jeff had no doubt she knew how to use it and the look of defiance on her face told him she had no reservations about shooting him.
"I-I-I'm Jeff. This is my Uncle Roy's cabin."
"I never heard Roy say nothing about no Jeff!" replied the woman, looking more menacing than before.
"I haven't seen him for about 10 years. We were not very close, but he is my mother Rachel's brother."
"Rachel?? I've heard that name before. Roy didn't talk much about her, but he did say the name a few times." the woman stated.
Jeff saw her loosen her grip on the rifle, but she still held it in such a way she could easily use him for target practice if she wanted. Deciding to try another tactic, Jeff offered, "Why would I be here if not for my uncle. I can't imagine anyone coming here for any other reason. There's nothing here to steal and I am not planning to move in."
