The Truck in Front, part 3

This tale is feeling like it is going to have six parts. I'm not sure if we can still call it a short story. Maybe it's a novella.
Anyway, make sure to read parts 1 and 2 before tackling this one. Enjoy!


The Truck in Front, Part 3

The road dropped down the backside of the plateau, following broad switchbacks into a ravine. Distant snowy peaks glowed like nightlights.
Down in the ravine, there was no wind and Niyah was able to hold her headlights steadily on the crate. She leaned forward like a near-sighted little old lady, her chin almost touching the wheel as she peered intently at the mysterious box.
After a few miles, her vigil was rewarded. The crate jumped again and this time she knew it had jumped of its own accord; the road had been smooth with no bumps. The crate seemed closer to the edge of the truck bed. Was that thing even tied down?
Then something new caught her attention. Instead of a black hole behind the broken wood she saw something soft and…furry. Or fuzzy. Downy. A surface that rippled in the breeze. Then it went black again, but not before there was a quick golden glint.
Niyah’s heart pounded in her breast. That could be the sign! The signal she was looking for…
Last night, after the day’s whirlwind activity, the solitude of her trailer had been a haven. She remembered stumbling through the front door and flicking on the light, but her fatigue had knocked her out like a hypnotist. And that was why her brain had been so slow to respond when someone pounded on her door in the still hours before daylight.
She’d sat up on her still-made bed, panting. The lamp still glowed on the nightstand. The furnace whirred smoothly. The alarm clock displayed 5:11. She exhaled and told herself it was nothing. But the urgent knocking which rattled her hung pictures told her otherwise.
She reached for the Smith and Wesson 38 special revolver tucked between the mattress and the paneling. Her dad had given it to her. No doubt if he were here now he would be telling her to start shooting. Ask questions later. Fortunately he wasn’t there and Niyah had more sense than that. She calmly checked the gun’s cylinder, confirmed there were six rounds in it, and returned it to its hiding place. Then she answered the door.
It was the teenage boy from Manny’s place.
Silky hairs stood up on the back of Niyah’s neck as she croaked, “Ah...Hi. There.” She cleared her throat and tried again. “Hi there. Ollie, right?”
Ollie stared at her, like last time, as he nodded and said, “You haunt my dreams.”
She almost slammed the door in his face. But something in his eyes, a sparkle or a flicker, kept her interested. She asked, “What?”
Ollie began spilling, “I know that sounds creepy but I don’t mean it like that I just had to find you lucky for me I saw the detective’s paperwork so I knew you lived out here on this ranch and now I found you but you’re not going to believe me.”
He paused to draw his breath and Niyah held up her hand to stop him. “Hold it. Please. I’m not awake yet.” She rubbed her forehead and suddenly realized her hair was a mess, so she pulled her dark tresses into a bunch and rolled a rubber band off her wrist and onto the tail
Ollie gulped and ran his hand over his own buzzed hair. “I don’t think you have time. I think…I think you have to leave while it’s still dark. Before dawn.”
Niyah looked the boy up and down. If he were going to hurt her, he would have done so by now. She glanced at the black skies to the east and said, “Well that gives us an hour, at least. Come on in and sit.”
Ollie sat at the tiny kitchen table and bounced his knee up and down rapidly while Niyah made coffee. Then he pounded his fist on his thigh. When she sat down across from him, he blurted, “Believe me. This is hard for me. I’m not…not a dreamer, you know? I don’t even remember my dreams. But there was this girl, and she’s been in my dreams for weeks! Not like fantasies, you know, but like haunting! Like I was possessed or something! I didn’t know who she was but then yesterday, when I saw you—I knew! It was you! And the dreams make sense now and I have to tell you, lady! I think…I think you’re supposed to save that kid! What was his name?”
“Jeremiah.”
“Yeah, Jeremiah. You’re gonna save him.” Ollie, apparently satisfied with himself, poured himself a cup of coffee and relaxed.
Niyah was at a loss. She prompted, “So what did I do? In the dream?”
Ollie smiled. “Oh yeah. I dreamed about this black cloud. Thick, really scary black. Then I dreamed you came in and the cloud got, like, lighter. Then in the cloud, in the middle of it, was that kid Jeremiah. Then you left and the cloud got thicker again! But the cloud wasn’t just black anymore. There was a light flashing in it! I think Jeremiah had like a flashlight or something and he was trying to signal you.”
“Ollie, did you tell the police—”
“I’m not done!” said Ollie. Then softer, “I mean, there’s more. After he signaled you, you came back. But this time you were a kokopelli and you pulled him out of the cloud.”
“A kokopelli?” she asked, eyes wide.
“Yeah, those Indian guys with the feathers in their hair and playing a flute, you know? They put ‘em on hats and stuff at the gift shops, you know?”
“Yes, I know what a kokopelli is. The Hopi god that gives children to their mothers! They—”
“There’s a little more,” Ollie interrupted again. “Sorry, but this might be the most important part. In my dream, Jeremiah was wearing a hat that said ‘Arches National Park’. Was he, you know, wearing that hat when you lost him?”
“I didn’t lose him! He was stolen!”
“Whatever, lady. Was he wearing it?”
Tears filled her eyes but she shook her head and said, “No. He was wearing church clothes. No hat.”
Ollie pounded the table and said, “Then that’s where he is! You have to go to Arches to find him! You’re the kokopelli. You’re the one to help him. Even though you probably don’t believe me.”
Niyah’s entire face was moist as she leaned forward to hug the teenager. She said, “I do believe you. I do.”
Ollie pushed her back and raised one eyebrow. He said, “Really? Uh…why?”
Amidst a teary smile she said, “My daddy used to call me ‘kokopelli’. Me! That doesn’t seem like a coincidence to me. I don’t know…Don’t know what any of this means but I need to do something! Anything. And if that’s just taking a road trip, I’ll do it. I can leave right away.”
So Niyah wasn’t really surprised when she saw the flash from the crate. Rather, she was confused. This had to be the signal. She wasn’t far from the national park, maybe an hour and a half. And now she felt sure that this truck in front of her had something to do with it.
What was she supposed to do, though? Try to get it to stop? Ram it?
She couldn’t do anything until she knew more. Could Jeremiah be in that crate, signaling her? No, it was too big for a little boy. Way too big. It looked more like an animal cage, which would explain how it had jumped.
Still, he could be in the cab. After all, the truck seemed destined to be in front of her. She’d been following it for hours now, ever since it had pulled out of that ranch driveway in New Mexico. The Flying Animikii Ranch. The strange name had stuck in her mind. The truck had rumbled over the cattle guard and eased onto the two lane road amid a billow of red dust. She’d had to slow down to less than thirty miles per hour. She had been angry, especially with her fear of passing, but the many miles helped her get over it.
The best thing would be to keep following and see what would happen.
Everything was starting to make some sense. Everything except that crate on the flatbed. What did that have to do with a missing boy? And if not Jeremiah, what had caused that golden glint?
Right now, following this truck was Niyah’s best hope. If that glint had been the sign and she found the boy, wonderful. If not, at least she would have something to do until the sign showed up.