Barry ‘Bardog’'s Arc

Chapter 9 of 13

Barry sent the trader out the back door after dark with enough food for two days and told him not to come back through Rust Creek. The man didn't argue, just shouldered his bag and disappeared into the lot behind the bar. Barry locked the door and went back inside, knowing he'd crossed a line he couldn't step back over. He'd made his choice. Tomorrow morning he'd find Sherrie and give her the driver's name, and whatever came after that would be his to carry. The driver showed up again the next afternoon in a rusted delivery truck with faded logos still visible on the sides. He parked in the lot and came through the front door carrying the metal thermos on his belt, same as before. Barry was behind the bar when the man sat down at a booth near the window. The woman brought him water and the driver ordered food again, paying with a small pouch of screws and wire. Barry watched him settle in, relaxed and unhurried, and felt the weight of what he knew pressing against his chest. The man had no idea Barry had already decided his fate. Barry walked over to the booth and sat down across from him without asking. The driver looked up, surprised but not alarmed, and Barry asked him how long he'd been running the eastern route. The man said three years, maybe four, depending on how you counted time anymore. Barry nodded and asked if the work paid well enough to make it worth the risk. The driver shrugged and said it paid what it paid, same as anything else in Rust Creek. Barry leaned back and watched the man's face, looking for the crack in the surface, the moment when the lie would show itself. But there was nothing there except a tired driver waiting for his next shipment. Barry stood up and told him the food would be out soon, then walked back to the bar and poured himself water. He'd confirmed everything he needed to know. The driver was good at what he did, good enough that Sherrie had trusted him for years. That made what Barry was about to do feel heavier, but it didn't change the choice. He'd already told the trader to leave. Now he just had to finish it.