Taking One for the Team: Chapter Four The Right Way

Kevin and Samantha take a long road trip to the new facility.

“Holy fuck!” I shouted to myself as I got out into the cold.

The first morning breeze shot through my coat and clothes like a lance. I rushed toward the rental vehicle and slammed the door closed behind me.

“Damn, it’s fucking cold!”

Samantha had picked out the rental vehicle, which I picked up yesterday. I was surprised that she had chosen a large sports utility vehicle. It had more than enough room for just the two of us, plus our luggage. I entered the address she gave me into the onboard navigation.

“Twenty minutes,” I nodded. Not bad.”

When I pulled up to the security gate, I wasn’t surprised to see the guard inside still asleep. I pressed on the horn.

“Who is expecting you?” the young man asked.

“Samantha Kolesky,” I said, reading the name. “She said she put me on a list?”

The guard scrolled through the names on his computer screen. “I.D.?” he said, holding out his hand. I showed him my Identification. “Do you know the way?”

“Yeah,” I smiled, pointing to the navigation.

The large gate opened, and I waved goodbye.

“Damn, all these houses look exactly alike,” I said, looking at the houses as I drove around.

Although they were all large and beautiful, they were all the same. The lawns, the windows, and the outside lights looked the same, and each looked precisely like the one next to it.

As I pulled up, I saw Samantha standing outside her door. “Hey there,” she smiled as I got out.

“Hi,” I replied.

“The guard called to let me know you were here,” Samantha said as her breath caught the cold air.

“Go inside,” I smiled as I picked up her large bags.

“I won’t argue,” Samantha said as she jumped into the passenger seat.

I pushed the bags in with mine. There was still room to spare. “Quite a large vehicle,” I said as I got back in.

“Yeah,” Samantha smiled, looking back. “I have always wanted to drive one, so I took this opportunity to rent it,” she shrugged.

“We might as well let the company pay for it,” I said as I entered the hotel’s address.

“Oh,” Samantha said as she looked at the address. “Did you not get Jackson’s email?”

I looked back at her. Truthfully, I never looked at company emails unless I was at work or told that I should. “No,” I replied.

“He wants us to pass by the facility first,” she said as she punched in the new address.

“Seven hours,” I said, looking down at the screen.

“You take four, and I will take the rest?” Samantha said.

“Sounds like a plan.”

“Good.”