After filling up in Mesquite, Mom guided the old yellow camper back onto the freeway. The “yellow beast” – as Trey and his sisters referred to it - rumbled along slowly, but started picking up speed as they merged into traffic. They had bought it used, and every year it seemed to slow down a little bit more, or take a little longer to reach freeway speeds. But eventually the cars streaming past slowed to a trickle as they reached maximum velocity.
Trey was already immersed in his book again when he noticed that something didn’t smell right. He sniffed the air, and noted the burning scent growing stronger. Instantly he looked at the temperature gauge and noticed that it was in the red. At the same time he noticed steam streaming out from under the hood.
“Uh, Mom!” he exclaimed, pointing.
“Whoa! What’s going on!” yelled Mom, at almost the same instant.
“We’re overheating!” yelled Trey, even though Mom was sure to have picked up on that fact already.
In response, Mom started slowing down and pulling off the road. They hadn’t made it all the way to the side when Trey was startled by someone rapping on the window behind him.
“Why are you pulling over?” Dad asked as Trey pulled the window open.
“We’re overheating!” Trey repeated.
Dad disappeared toward the back of the camper and Trey shut the window. As soon as the camper ground to a halt, he jumped out of the cab and headed around to the hood. Dad joined him seconds later as Mom popped the hood.
Dad lifted it up and steam poured out, forcing Trey to take a step back. Boiling radiator fluid spewed out of the radiator, and hissed into steam as it landed on hot engine parts.
Trey heard the back door of the camper bang open, and Trey’s sisters jumped out. “What’s wrong?” Amber asked.
“Mom busted the radiator,” grumbled Trey.
Dad scowled at the radiator, confirming Trey’s worst fears. When he leaned forward for a closer look, Trey followed suit. He had no idea what he was doing, but since he was a guy, he felt like he should be doing something to help. He changed his mind after getting tagged by a hot splash of radiator fluid.
“This stinks!” he muttered to no one in particular.
“Yeah, no kidding,” responded Liz. “I didn’t know radiator fluid smelled so bad.”
“I was talking about the situation,” Trey clarified.
After examining the engine and radiator for ten minutes or so, Dad finally admitted that he had no idea how to fix it. He turned to Trey and said, pointing back down the highway, “Will you run back with me to that call box back there so we can call a tow truck?”
Trey shaded his eyes and looked to where his father was pointing. In the distance, next to the shimmering road, he spotted the small box on a pole about a quarter of a mile back. He didn’t really feel like “running” anywhere in this heat, but at least it was something productive to do to improve their situation.
As they trotted back along the highway, he was already envisioning the likely effects of this tragedy. They’d have to be towed back to Mesquite, only to find out that the repair shops had already closed for the day. Then they’d waste away the next day in some grimy motel room, waiting for the vehicle to be fixed, while Devin, Brady, and the others were enjoying the reunion.
Even if they did catch the tail end of the reunion, the repairs would probably cost so much that, instead of going on the hike, Dad would feel obligated to head home and get a part time job for the summer until school started back up in the fall. In any case, there was no way that Dad was going to trust the camper on the remote roads of southern Utah.
Trey groaned as these thoughts drove themselves home. His adventure was going up in smoke before it even started.
##
“What’s taking them so long?” asked Amber. It had been an hour since Trey and Dad had returned from calling for a tow truck, yet there was still no sign of one. The longer they waited, the more depressed Trey became. Each wasted minute lessened the likelihood that they would get the camper fixed in time to enjoy the reunion.
“Did you tell them the right place?” asked Mom.
“I told them I-15 in Arizona,” said Dad. “It’s not very long. We shouldn’t be very hard to find.”
“We’re not in Arizona!” exclaimed Liz.
“Yes we are,” Dad informed her. “The highway crosses the northwest corner of the state before entering Utah.”
“You don’t think they contacted some place in Flagstaff do you?” asked Mom. “Cause if they did, we’ll be waiting here a long time.”
“Hmm,” said Dad, thinking it over. “Maybe you’re right. We better go call again, just to make sure.”
“I’ll go with you this time,” offered Amber.
Trey couldn’t believe it. This was turning into a nightmare! Except it was during the day – a very hot day.
“Let’s play Dutch Blitz!” suggested Liz.
“All right,” Trey agreed. It was a way to pass the time, but Trey wasn’t really into it. He kept thinking about all the fun his cousins were having without him. It just wasn’t fair.
Sure enough, the operator had contacted a towing company from Flagstaff. This time Dad told them to send someone from Nevada.
About half an hour passed since Dad and Amber returned before Mom started getting worried again. “Shouldn’t that truck be here by now?” she asked.
“If it was coming from Mesquite it should have,” agreed Dad. “But I suppose they could be sending someone from Vegas. Of course, that would mean another hour’s wait before they even get here.”
“I don’t want to get towed all the way back to Las Vegas,” said Mom. “Why didn’t you just have them send one from St. George? Especially since we’re going that way anyway.”
“I guess I didn’t think about it,” admitted Dad sheepishly.
After another brief discussion, Dad headed back toward the call box once again. Rather than keep losing to his sisters at cards, Trey offered to go with them. It had already been a very long day. Their problems were just making it seem even longer.
##
When the tow truck finally showed, from St. George, Trey breathed a big sigh of relief. He was still worried about getting the camper repaired so that they could attend the reunion; but the fact that they were pushing on to Utah, instead of retreating to Nevada, seemed to be a good omen.
But the feeling of relief and anticipation was brief. “There’s five of you?” asked the truck driver after introducing himself.
“Yeah,” answered Dad.
“How were you planning on getting to Saint George?” asked the driver.
“I hadn’t thought about it,” admitted Dad, his brow creased with concern. “Can’t we ride in the camper?”
The driver was shaking his head before Dad finished the question. “It’s against regulations for you to ride in a towed vehicle. Don’t you know anyone in St. George you can call to pick you up?”
“No.”
After discussing the options, the cab driver finally said, “Well, I really shouldn’t do this, but I suppose we can all try to cram inside the cab of my truck.”
Since they didn’t want to be stranded at the side of the road, the rest of the family grudgingly agreed. Because Trey and Liz were the smallest, it was decided that they’d sit on their parents’ laps. Trey didn’t like that idea at all, especially when they climbed in and realized what a tight fit it was.
“I hope nobody’s claustrophobic,” cracked the driver as he climbed into his seat. “Is everyone buckled in?”
Dad wrapped his arms tightly around Trey’s waist making him even more uncomfortable than before. Trey would have grumbled more about the whole thing, except he knew that his parents had it even worse off than he did.
Usually Trey enjoyed the winding ride through the gorge; but this time he didn’t enjoy a single second of it. With each twist and curve, Trey’s stomach did its own flips and turns. He was sure he was going to lose his lunch. Worse, he worried that someone else might lose his or her lunch instead. With everyone squished together, it wouldn’t be a pretty sight – or smell.
To make matters worse, Trey’s leg was getting a cramp, and he had no room to stretch it. He shifted in his “seat” in an effort to alleviate the pain, and succeeded in inducing a groan from Dad.
“You need to go on a diet,” complained Dad. “My legs are falling asleep.”
“Just be glad it’s me instead of Amber,” replied Trey.
“Hey watch it!” exclaimed Amber as she reached over to whack him on the stomach. In the crowded cab, she missed and got Liz instead.
“Hey, I didn’t say anything!” complained Liz.
Everyone seemed to be on edge, which made the trip seem even longer than it really was. In fact, it was definitely the longest forty minutes of Trey’s life.
According to Dad’s watch, they finally arrived at St. George a few minutes after 7:00. There was no way any repair garage would still be open now. Trey sighed, and resigned himself to the fact that they'd be sleeping in a motel that night. With any luck, they’d get the camper fixed tomorrow, and make it to part of the reunion. But he doubted it. This trip was officially a disaster.
The tow truck took them directly to a repair shop. As expected, all the lights in the service garage were off.
“Well, I guess that’s that,” grumbled Trey.
“What do you mean?” asked Amber, who was squished between Mom and the cab driver.
“Can’t you see? We’re stuck here overnight,” he explained bitterly. He looked at the run-down garage and added, “More if they can’t get it fixed.”
“Actually, we’re hoping to get it fixed tonight so you can be on your way,” the cab driver replied.
“You’re going to fix it?” asked Trey in surprise.
“It’s my shop,” the driver explained. “Usually I’m closed at this time, but your dad offered to pay me overtime if I stayed open.”
Suddenly Trey felt extremely guilty for all the disparaging remarks he’d made about the old camper in his parents’ presence. This had to be just as hard on them as it was for him – if not harder. Yet they were doing their best to make the most out of a rotten situation. He decided to do the same.
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