Page 5 - FINAL DESTINATION

FINAL DESTINATION
the pasture. Off in that direction, maybe a quarter of a mile, was a thicket of tall brush and trees. A large oak tree rose above the undergrowth. Neil remembered his mother and aunt talking about playing on a tire swing hanging from the old tree in their yard. Maybe this is the place, he thought.
At one time this had been a driveway, perhaps with a gate, but now closed off with the barbed wire. He didn't like the idea of having to climb the fence to go explore the thicket across the field.
Neil walked back to the edge of the highway and looked up the road to see if there was a nearby gate. There was none he could see in either direction. He considered driving further down to look for an entrance. He knew even if he found a gate there was a good chance it would be locked and he could not get in. Then he would have to climb the fence anyway.
Looking for a gate would also take time and the sun was sinking lower. He did not want to be out here, in the middle of nowhere, after dark. Neil resolved to get his appointed duty over with as fast as possible.
From the trunk of the car, he retrieved a cardboard box and carried it over to the fence where he slid it under the lowest strand of wire. Neil put one foot on a wire about halfway up the fence, then with both hands on the fencepost, pulled himself up to stand on it and swung his other leg over the top.
The wire he was standing on sagged and swayed as he tried to shift his weight to the leg inside the fence. His foot slipped slightly and brought the rusty barbs on the top wire frighten- ingly close to his groin. He tried to balance himself with his hands on top of the post. He had almost steadied himself when a pickup truck pulled off the road and stopped behind his rental car.
Neil looked up to see two men in the cab of the truck looking at him with the same curiosity of the cow but with more amusement. "You need any help," asked the driver as he
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