I’m a truck driver. Most of my trips take me all around California, but I mainly do loads and unloads between the north and south parts of the state. The desert at night is a peaceful setting, and I’ve gotten to know all of the exits along the 5 freeway.
It was a long night. I was going to be early to my destination and I would be forced to wait in line to unload. Whatever. It was better to wait outside of a warehouse instead of being parked along an old truck stop with dirty showers and clogged toilets. I think they were out of service this one night.
This particular truck stop has a history, you see. I had been told in the break rooms of different offices before, that this place, near Rosemary exit, is haunted. After so many hours on the road and lack of proper sleep, our imaginations tend to get the better of us.
Maybe knowing that made the whole thing a little more uneasy, but I really didn’t like the bathroom situation. At least that’s what I told myself.
If you’ve never been inside of a truck before, there’s usually two bunks, a small area where you can eat or read a book, regular outlets, and the driver and passenger seats. When you’re sleeping on one of the bunks, you have easy access to a window that you can open up to get some air. I was in the bottom bunk when it happened.
I was trying to fall asleep when I heard something hit the side of the truck. Like when someone’s trying to wake you up to get you to move so they have room to move their trucks around. It happens often.
I opened up the window and looked outside, but couldn’t see anybody. Then I heard the knocking again, this time on the other side of the truck. I moved up toward the seats to get a closer look at my mirrors, just in case I could catch a glimpse at something, but the sides of the truck were empty. Those mirrors give you a clear view all around except for the back part of the trailer, where the trailer doors are.
Then I heard a squeak. There two other trailers parked quite a distance away, and I was sure it was neither of them.
They’re trying to open up my trailer.
I grabbed my baseball bat and flashlight, opened the door to the passenger’s side, and aimed the flashlight at the bottom of the trailer to try to find a pair of legs or someone walking around, but there was nobody there. I stepped down and went around to the back. My door was properly shut.
Confused, I went back to the truck, locked both doors, and started up my engine. I wasn’t going to stay there any longer. I guess I would be three hours early to the warehouse.
I was coming down from one of the long curvy roads through the hills just before getting to the long stretch of desert when I saw something behind the truck. They were flashing red and blue lights. I was getting pulled over. I was going way under the speed limit, since my trailer was loaded and I hadn’t even stepped on the gas, since I was still moving with the momentum I gained from the hills. Maybe that was the problem.
Two police officers came toward the passenger door and asked me to open it. I did and then went back to turn off my engine. They asked me if everything was okay. I asked them what the problem was. They asked me if I was by myself in the truck, and I said yes. That’s when they looked at each other and one of them, the taller one, asked if I could let him take a look around and for me to step down. I said sure, having nothing to hide, I came down, and he went up the steps saying “Police. Hello?”
I told the other officer that I was by myself, but he kept staring at me. I was more confused than anything, since they weren’t being very clear with me. I asked the officer to tell me what they were doing, and that they couldn’t go around doing this kind of thing to people, especially if they’re just trying to work. It was freezing outside too.
Just as the other officer stepped down, the one I was talking to told me to give them a minute. The taller officer explained that the truck was empty, that he checked everything out. I was getting angry at the whole situation, I didn’t understand what was going on.
That’s when they told me their reason. I wish they hadn’t.
The police cruiser was parked on the side of the road when I passed by, slower than usual. As I was driving by, both officers were caught by surprise when they saw a woman waving frantically at them.
From the passenger seat of my truck.
Leave a Reply