He finally arrived at the exit where he had left the truck several hours earlier. Once again, at the stop sign, he turned left and followed the road for about a mile. The red and blue flashing lights a hundred yards ahead through the tree cover caught his attention.
Son of a bitch, a cop found the semi.
He had to come up with something fast. John killed the headlights and passed by unnoticed. With the car parked farther up the road, he slinked out quietly and backtracked on foot. His vantage point, behind a wide oak tree, provided him with the information he needed. The officer, there alone, pounded on the truck door, obviously thinking someone was sleeping inside.
John crept closer until he was within ten feet of the man. Gravel kicked up when the officer spun around at the sound behind him.
“Who’s there?”
“Sir, this is my truck. I pulled over because I felt sick. Flu symptoms, you know? I was in the woods barfing my guts out. What seems to be the problem?”
“There’s a BOLO out for this truck. I need to see some form of ID.”
“Sure, not a problem.” John approached the officer until they were face-to-face. He reached back as if to pull out a wallet but grabbed the wooden handle of his skinning knife instead. A split second was all it took. The look of surprise on the officer’s face caused John to laugh. He watched the grisly scene unfold in front of him while the officer tried to hold his neck together as blood pumped out with each frantic gasp for air.
John shoved the officer backward, and he fell to the ground. Within a minute, he had bled out and lay motionless, his eyes open and his hands still grasping his throat. John climbed the truck steps and unlocked the door. Inside, he pulled the letter from the door pocket and the pair of Neko Te gloves from beneath the seat. Seconds later, he crossed the road and disappeared into the darkness.
By two thirty in the morning, John’s head finally hit the pillow, and he drifted off to sleep in the comfort of a modest motel room where Interstate 80 met up with 57, south of Chicago.