Thirsty

Thirsty.docx

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Thirsty

By Tawny Moody

The Colorado River Basin from Wyoming to Mexico had truly become THE VALLEY in THE SHADOW OF DEATH. Jason, Jamie and Buddy grew up there and adapted in order to survive it. They were only toddlers when the economy crashed in the west. The trio never knew the neon lights and tourist filled extravagant nights of the Bellagio Fountain times. As teens Las Vegas Blvd is where they went to lose their virginity, drink their first beer and throw roof top bon fire bashes. The city was occupied by those who were too poor to pay their way through Idaho and buy their way into Canada. Congress abandoned the Basin and everything west of it. When their parents could not pay the Exodus Tax their United States citizenship was revoked. Buddy and Jamie’s Moms got jobs in the prison as intake administrators. They greeted new arrivals, had the privilege of collecting and recording their personal property and filling it away. Jason’s dad was the head of the strongest prison gang. He compensated Buddy’s mom well for raising Jason. Buddy’s mom was his number one mule. She could smuggle anything. She rarely had to. She just funneled the incoming personal property into Jason’s dads’ cell. The privately owned prison was the wests only source of revenue. It housed the Easts worst offenders and all the wests’ offenders. They received more money for each prisoner per year than they paid their top 2 employees combined. Nobody fought for higher wages out of fear they’d be let go and lose their only water source. The prison was the only way to access water legally. The trio, Now in their early 30’s were all wanted for GTA. Grand Theft AQUA. They loved outlaw life. They knew that desert valley better than any bounty hunter or hired henchman.

Late one August Buddy found himself right in the path of an oncoming medical supply truck. It wasn’t a coincidence when 2 tires blew out and the truck jack knifed just out of the prison guard towers scope. Buddy blindsided the driver, had him knocked out and hogtied under the trailer in record time. Buddy was smiling slyly as he cut the bolts on the trailer doors. He flung the doors open and hopped up to assess his bounty. This was the employee and personnel medical truck. It had a six-month supply of opiates. Vials and Pills. Mood stabilizers and psyche meds. All to keep the personnel healthy and content with life as they knew it. Along with the pallets of water, Buddy stumbled on the score of his life. He radioed Jamie. Told her to “find Jason and Bring the flat bed and a tarp to NEVAZ bridge “tout suite.” “10-4 Good Buddy” Jamie replied without question. Buddy was in the mood to celebrate and it being the hottest part of the day he decided to drench the unconscious driver in some stolen water so he might live to be found when the sun goes down 4 hours later. He knew nobody but him and his friends were crazy enough to be on the NEVAZ bridge that time of day that late in August. It was against the water conservation and rationing laws to use the amount of water needed to keep radiators cool enough to make that stretch of highway over the damn. Buddy grabbed a vial and a syringe, tied off his arm with his belt and took his shot.

Jamie finds Jason at his usual haunt. An underground whore house called Sly Ninjas. She whistles through her teeth for him at the door. He folds his hand collects his winnings and greets Jamie with a spinning embrace. “What’s goin’on wild thing, why are you rolling up with the flat bad?” Jason asks. “Buddy needs us and the truck at NEVAZ, (Jamie raises her hands, does finger quotes)” TOUT SUITE”” She exclaims. Jason raises his eyebrow intrigued, takes the keys from Jamie,” I’m driving!” Opens the door for her and smacks her ass after helping her up to the cab. “Buckle up, Lil Pup, its gonna be a bumpy ride.”

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Forty-five minutes later Jason comes over the hump of the NEVAZ bridge and approaches the jack-knifed cargo truck and trailer. He backs the flat bed right up to the trailer doors. Jumps out expecting to see Buddy under the trailer taking refuge from the sun in its shade. He only sees the unconscious driver tide up and losing shade. He takes a closer look to make sure he’s not dead, sees the 5 gallon water jug and dumps what’s left on the now dry driver and pulls him further under the truck so he’s entirely shaded again. Jamie Hopped out of the truck and swung the trailer doors open to see what Buddy scored them. “BUDDY WHAT DID YOU DO? We’re RICH! BUDDY? BUDDY?” She kneels down next to Buddy’s Clammy body. “OH NO” She pulls the needle out of his arm and removes the belt from his bicep before Jason leaps in the trailer. Jamie looks up at Jason, tears flowing off her cheeks, snot running out of her nose down her chin. Jason grabs her hand pulls her to her feet and holds her for a moment. Jamie hears Buddies disembodied voice “Hey ya’ll need to load this out and on the flat bed and trade your way through Mexico to south America. Mourn me later baby, you got to get moving” Jamie doesn’t say anything about it. Jason grabs Buddies body by the feet and drags him out to the flat bed. “C’mon J-baby get in” Jamie gets in turns around to watch Buddies body as Jason drives up to the top of Hoover Damn. He and Jamie drag Buddies corpse over to the edge and roll it off the Nevada side into the malaria ridden mosquito pit that’s left of Lake Mead. Jamie looks at Jason. She knows she will sound like she’s flipped when she tells Jason “Buddy says, Don’t let his death be in vein. We need to load up and out and trade our way through Mexico to South America.” Jason surprises her when he opens the heart shaped locket shes been wearing around her neck for 24 years. He smiles as he looks at the picture of the 3 of them at 11 years old. He grins at Jamie and points south “Lead the way Buddy!”

The End