Albert drove quickly along the country road. He had just collected a casket at the joiner. Now he had a three-hour drive to pick up the dead. He accelerated and the Bedford truck rumbled forward.
There was no moonlight and it began to rain. As the rain intensified, Albert showed down. He spotted a man sheltering under a tree at the side road. The gentleman had on a long white sleeved shirt and a black pants. He flagged the truck down and Albert stopped to pick him up.“Get in the tray if yo want a drop!”
The man jumped into the back of the truck. The sky opened up. Seeing the casket, the hitch hiker popped the lid and saw that it was empty. He got in and closed it. At least he would stay dry.
A couple of miles down the road the driver spotted another man trying to stop the truck. He stopped and gestured for him to get into the tray. The man did so Albert continued on.
There were the occasional bumps and potholes but this did not interfere with the speed he was driving at. The trucked roared on. The rain continued and darkness clung to the land.
Duke was soaked, cold and miserable. He sat in the corner away from the corpse. He kept his eyes riveted on the box.
Meanwhile, Alexander lay half-drunk in the casket. He had gotten onto the truck and into the casket with a few drinks under his belt. While lying there he added a few more thanks to the half he has tucked into his pocket. It was getting hot in the small space so he decided to check and see if the rain had stopped.
Duke thought that he was hallucinating. Before his very eyes the casket cracked open with a weird sounding creak. From the dark interior a white hand came out and felt about. Despite the heavy rain, Duke saw all this with great clarity. The hand shook off the water and retreated. Duke decided to do the same. With a shriek he jumped from the moving truck. Luckily he landed in a large nasty drain.
Albert stopped for a third time and picked up a group of youths. They had just exited a dance and were caught in the downpour. He sent them to the back and waited until they had all climbed in before moving off.
The five young men were high and happy. Gary was higher than St George Cathedral. He tried standing but fell. Seeing the casket he crawled to it and sat on the box, comfortable. The vehicle sped along.
Alexander took another drink. He had come awake when the trunk stopped for the last group. Putting away the bottle he decided to check the weather. When he tried popping the lid it would not budge. He felt a rush of desperation. He tried to shove the lid open. It moved a bit. Someone or something was keeping him inside. With desperation born of fear, he gave it an enormous push. The lid pitched up then slammed down again.
Gary felt the movement. At first he thought it was the truck. After a while he was sure it was the casket. He shouted to the others: “Something moving in this thing!”
They all burst out laughing. All expect Gary. The lid was being forced upwards. He put pressure on it and it closed. He began to tremble. Suddenly the lid was forced up about 12 inches. With strength he never knew he had, Gary threw his weight on it and slammed it shut.
Now the others saw the last bit. More than that, they had gotten a brief glimpse of a body inside the box. It was moving! Two of the lads jumped on the box while the other two banged on the cab of the truck to catch Albert’s attention.
Alexander began screaming then moaning. He cuffed and kicked the casket trying to get out. All this did, was frighten the common sense out of the five youths.
Everyone began screaming. The rain continued and the truck hit a large pot hole. Then all hell broke loose. Albert slammed on the brakes. The three Closers few off of the coffin and lid flew open. A figure in black and white sat up screaming and glaring all around him.
Zoom! Zip! Swish! Swoosh!
The youths took off at break-neck-speed in all directions that led away from the haunted truck. Albert stood in shock watching them flee. What in heaven’s name was going on? And where was the other passenger?
Alexander got shakily down from the truck. He did not see the youths in the blackness. All he knew was that something had tried to keep him prisoner in the casket. He would walk the rest of the way home. His last words to the driver was “Yu carrying jumbie me boi!”
Albert continued his journey his mind in a puzzle. He had only picked up the casket and people were already behaving strangely. What would happen when he picked up the dead? At this rate, he was not looking forward to it.
By Neil Primus