SWITCHBLADE TRAVIS

PART EIGHT: THE RIVER

The man was puzzled at Travis' actions, for he never encountered this before. Travis swung at the man with his switchblade and was able to get a piece. With pinpoint accuracy, Travis had sliced the man's jugular. Charley walked over to relieve himself on the now dead leader. Once he had finished, Travis and Charley walked endlessly through the night back to the Whip River. Once they had reached the river, Charley licked Travis' leg before curling up in a ball and falling asleep. Travis took off his shirt and placed it over Charley before going to the river banks. He spoke to himself. " It's been a good long walk to the river, I've held my weight in shame. Sometimes that walk to the river seems so short I just want to jump in and drown." Travis was in shock, having now been baptized in murder and grief, the pain never willing to cease. He went into the deepest part of the river, soaking himself in shame and pity. As his head was going under, Charley sensed danger and jumped into the river. Charley then pulled Travis out by his arm and put him on land. Before Travis could compose himself, Charley got on top of him and fell asleep. Travis knew that Charley was doing what he thought was right, as most people should. He kissed Charley's wet fur and fell asleep in the pouring rain which was soaking the dirt, creating a photogenic image of a man and his dog together in a heap of mud. When morning came, the rain had ceased, but it had also created a pool of dirty water around Travis and Charley. At this point, there was no way of knowing what lied ahead on the marathon of roads for Travis and his loving dog. Death was always burning near Travis, and it seemed as if he had a rain cloud above his head. The burning inferno containing the city life, cancellations, and a life without Charley loomed over Travis like a shadow that stays even in the dark. Nowhere to go, nowhere to run, nowhere to live, nowhere to be happy, nowhere to be free, and nowhere to be human. Travis decided to trek onward with no idea of direction. If he happened to be caught, then so be it. There was only one issue with dying: Charley would have no one. Travis knew he could not do that to someone who lived their life as a guide to a senseless country boy. The first night fell fast, and Travis knew that midnight decisions would not get him very far.