Road Trip (2018 Wattys Long List)

Chapter 19

The bus left Winnipeg without fanfare, and that suited Harvey just fine. They hoped to give that snoopy cop the slip, and it looked very good to Harvey, so far. It was 825 miles from where they now were now to Calgary, Alberta, and this express bus would do it in fifteen hours, including two meal stops along the way. Pretty fast, faster than they could have driven it, Harvey thought. That meant the cop couldn't likely do it, either. He reclined the back of his seat and dozed as his mind wandered back to the days when he and Martha were still young. It was a long time ago, but Harvey remembered it like it was yesterday.

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

After the war ended in nineteen forty-five, Harvey couldn't deal with Navy life any longer. The horrors of war were too much for him and he needed to get far away from it as soon as he could manage. He left the service glad to be alive when so many of his friends were not. He returned to Martha.

It had been very difficult to readjust to civilian life, but Martha helped him through it. She seemed to understand, when so many people did not, that his time in the service of his country had been a very bad experience for him. She knew that he did not want to talk about the war and she protected him in this regard. She would often shield him in difficult situations, steering people away from Harvey's horrifying memories of the conflict. At such times she often protected Harvey by whisking him off to a happier place to brighten his mood and restore his mood.

Martha had known him so well. She was his rock and he had depended on her to keep him sane in those early days. He had sought her out immediately in Antigonish. Harvey smiled, suddenly remembering how it had always gotten to her when he jokingly referred to the place as "Auntie Galoshes". He enjoyed aggravating her like that because making up with her usually meant the sex between them would be that much more passionate.

They had rented an apartment in Halifax and he had apprenticed with a boat builder there for five years before going out on his own building a few boats and doing a lot of other miscellaneous carpentry work. Finished woodworking was a specialty and Harry had been a perfectionist. He had taken great pride in doing a good job. He had loved working with his hands especially with wood. He remembered the smell of fresh lumber and the feel of a smoothly planed and sanded board. There was nothing quite like it. There had never been any stuffy office work for him. Not a chance!

The kids had started coming along after the first year and they soon required more space for the family. The kids needed to get out of doors too, so they bought their own little house in the small seaside village of Digby. They had been happy there, but after the kids were gone, and after Harvey had laid down his saw and hammer for the last time, they had decided to sell and to travel some in their retirement. The kids had wanted them to stay close to them of course, but Harvey and Martha had moved to Orillia, Ontario once Harvey had stopped working.

Martha had always wanted to travel and especially to see the rest of Canada. One important place she had wanted to see was the City of Vancouver, British Columbia. She had lots of pictures of Vancouver that she had collected over the years that depicted the majestic and snow-covered Rocky Mountains standing tall behind the cityscape. It sure looked beautiful, kind of surreal, somehow. Of course, they had never made it that far even though they planned to make the trip someday. But that day had never come. Martha got sick and instead, they had to put their travel plans on hold. Then Martha did the unthinkable and she had died. He nearly went crazy with grief. Years of sadness and inactivity followed. Once Sarah placed him in the home, he had believed the trip out to Vancouver was out of the question for good. But now here he was, on his way to the west coast! And it was because of Stu and the others giving him the courage to still follow his dream. Martha would be so proud of him.

Sometime during the night, the bus hit an unusually impressive bump and Harvey was jostled in his seat. His bladder used this excuse to demand that he make a trip to the restroom at the rear of the coach. He rose from his aisle seat beside Reg, and because the passageway between the rows of seats was narrow he decided to leave his cane behind. Clutching setbacks for support he made his way to the rear of the swaying vehicle in the near dark.

They had chosen to sit well back in the bus when it had left Calgary so it wasn't far to the restroom. The bus took another lurch and Harvey found himself half in the lap of a woman about five years younger in age than he was.

"Well, hello, Handsome", was her immediate response, and Harvey flushed red with embarrassment.

"I'm so sorry, I lost my balance", he said quickly. "I hope I didn't hurt you", he continued, as he straightened up again as quickly as he could. He was mortified.

"It's ok, believe me. You drop in anytime," the woman said smugly. I didn't mind a bit. Your welcome to sit here on my lap if you like!", the woman replied, non-plussed.

"I am so sorry. It was because of the road that I lost my balance. I'm Harvey, by the way. If your ok, I'll get along to the restroom. I apologize for landing on you. I'll try to not do that again."

"Denise, sir, and it is a real pleasure to meet you." She smiled, and Harvey moved on down the aisle.

When he had finished his business, Harvey emerged from the washroom and made his way back to his seat. He was thankful when he passed Denise's seat without further incident. He didn't have to acknowledge her presence this time since he approached her this time from the rear of the bus. He was still feeling embarrassed.

They continued through the night, ever westward, but in the morning the coach rolled to a stop at a roadside diner so that they could stretch and enjoy a breakfast break. The four fugitives and Ryan stayed close together. They took a seat at a booth near the back, hoping to be less noticeable. It didn't take Denise very long to find them though, and she slid into the booth directly across from Harvey.

"I hope you don't mind my company, the place is filling up fast with so many people", she said. "I'm Denise, I'm on the bus, too. Harvey and I already met last night," she said, giving Harvey a rather intimate look.

"So you know our Harvey, eh? Didn't think he had it in him"! Stu smiled at Denise. "I'm Stewart and these are my friends Mildred and Reg, and the young fellow here is Ryan. I guess you met Harvey, already. Your welcome to sit with us. Any friend of Harvey's is a friend of ours."

Harvey turned red all over again. "I lost my balance on my way to the washroom and I fell into this ladies' lap. It was just that simple."

"Maybe it's me but that doesn't sound simple", Reg added, with a smirk.

"Take my word for it, it was simple", Harvey frowned in displeasure.

"I told him, I said, you drop in anytime", Denise cut in. Harvey looked mortified. "Are you guys all related or what?", she continued.

"Naw, we're good friends, and we're traveling together. Ryan, here, joined us on the road. We help him, and he helps us. We work together," Stu interjected.

"And where are you from, Ryan?'

"Sudbury, Ontario. I want to travel a bit, while I'm young," Ryan said.

"Well, you got a real early start on that I'd guess, but isn't your family worried about you?"

"We sort of parted ways, you might say. I doubt they are too worried about me."

"Oh. Shouldn't you call them, tell them where you are? I bet they are worried," Denise suggested.

"Maybe I will, but not today. ..... I'll think about it," Ryan added, as an afterthought.

"I really think you should. Your mother must be worried half to death I bet! Don't think about it for too long before you do it, that's my advice," Denise counseled the boy.

She turned her attention to the others now. "So where are you all headed?"

"West. We are just going west. We'll know for sure when we get there. Ya, west right now," Stu kept his answer purposely vague.

"I see," replied Denise. "Myself, I'm going to Calgary to live with my daughter. I'm all alone now since Ted died three years ago. He was my husband." She batted her eyes coyly at Harvey.