JJ and a Routledge

An Adventure

We all jump back in the Twinkie and we were now passing Freedman's Church. We are so close. "Guys, we're passing Freedman's Church. It's the church Denmark built for all the slaves he freed." Pope points right at it and everyone watches it as we go past. We then turn onto a dirt path, with a thin strip of land as the road, everything else was straight marsh.

I knew the Angel tree was huge, but not that huge. You could see it while we were on the small road. "There it is, Angel Oak," I explain, stretching my head to look out the front window. I couldn't really see much anyway, John B needed to get that window fixed.

"Oh shit! Tides coming in." The dirt road was half mud at this point, the water around it was seeping into it. John B groans at the water-indulged road ahead of us.

"Hey, wait a second look." Pope points at the tire tracks already marked into the muddy road. "They already came through here." John B comes to a stop right before the watery road. "Those have to be Limbrey's tire tracks. Guys, we gotta go."

JJ turns toward John B, "Mmm, what do you think, chief?"

John B looks forward, observing the road, "I'm thinking it's looking a little dicey." He admits.

JJ nods his head, "Yup I'm gonna have to agree with that statement."

John B finally looks at Jay, "Yeah."

Kiara thinks hard for a second before piping in, "Okay, well clearly they made it. No?" JJ looks back at her now and shakes his head.

"In a two-wheel drive? I don't know about that." We all sit in silence and then Sarah starts laughing.

"Why are you guys acting like you're not gonna do it anyways." I start laughing too, in agreement. "Like, when have y'all ever done the safe thing?" John B and JJ look at each other for a second.

"She's got a point." John B admits, and JJ nods.

"Speed is your friend here, okay?" JJ tells the boy, who doesn't look too confident with his hands on the wheel. "So, put her down in second and hammer down, brother."

Of course, advice from Pope is always better, "Stick to the high ground in the middle, John B." He tells him, which seems to be completely ignored. Great, this is the end of the Pogues.

"Alright, ready? Here we go." John B grimaces as he speeds up immediately. I hold onto Sarah, whose next to me, actually in a seat, unlike me, whose on the ground.

"Come on bro, punch it!" JJ yells, "Speed it your friend. Speed is your friend. No, you're not going fast enough!"

"I'm in second!" John B shouts back. At this point, I knew something was going to go wrong.

"It's gonna slide," Kiara tells them. No, fuck no.

"You're fishtailing already!" JJ tells him and John B laughs it off, pissed.

"Yeah. I know!"

Pope leans forward and pokes his head into the front, "Okay not to put any pressure on you, but if you don't make it through, we're going to be stuck here. Forever." John B grabs Pope's head with his hand and shoves him back.

"Back. Put your head in the back, Okay?" John B focuses back in on the road, which I wouldn't even call a road at this point. Finally, we make it onto safe, safe solid ground. The rest cheer, and I sigh in relief. "See, I told you we'd make it."

"That's my girl." JJ pats the outside of the Twinkie and laughs. "Alright, right here. Right here." JJ gets John B to stop the Twinkie and him and JB both hop out, JJ heads to the side door to let the rest of us out. "Angel Oak is right through here." He tells us, while he opens my side of the van. "So, word to the wise, I definitely know that gators nest back here, so, keep your eyes peeled, okay?" He points two of his fingers at his eyes and then around the foresty marsh. "You don't wanna step on a mama gator, that's the last thing you want." Nuh, uh. I am not doing this shit.