The Hitchhiker

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November 2016

He walked along the road, arm out hoping to catch the eye of a passing motorist. It was a lonely stretch of road with trees lining it. Leaves were changing colour to golden browns and oranges, before falling to the ground.

He was wearing a grey hoodie and a backpack with a few necessary items in it. Not new to hitchhiking he was prepared to walk the distance required before being spotted. He deliberately chose quiet back roads instead of major ones. They served their purpose as Jake didn't want too many cars around to see what he was doing. Witnesses were not a good thing in his line of work. So far he had been fortunate, but it would only take one error and everything would be thoroughly messed up. Under no circumstances could that be allowed to happen.

As Jake continued walking he began singing under his breath. This was going to be a good day, he just knew it. A car with a single occupant was what he was looking for and preferably female. The problem being that female drivers were too aware of the dangers of stopping for a hitchhiker these days, but they were easier to over power.

He stopped, hearing the sound of an approaching vehicle. Straining his ears Jake tried to work out if it was a big vehicle or a car. He had a policy to only get in cars, much easier to meet his objectives. It sounded too loud so he moved in amongst the trees hoping not to be seen. The fewer the people who saw him, the better. It wouldn't do for witnesses to come forward at a later date. Sure enough, the sound of a large lorry trundled past. Withdrawing further into the trees he hoped to appear invisible to the driver. When the lorry was out of sight Jake again began his journey along the road. It wasn't long before the quiet purring of a motor could be heard coming closer. This time Jake stayed where he was but put his arm down in case the occupants weren't suitable for his needs. If he could be seen as just strolling along the road hopefully no one would be able to identify him later. He knew it was a bit of a contradiction, pulling in amongst the trees for a large vehicle and staying on the road for smaller ones but it worked best for him. Small vehicles he was trying to attract but not the wrong sort, so he had to be in view just in case.

As the car approached he could just see inside that it was a lone female. Perfect, he thought, now to attract her attention. He stepped in front of the car waving his arms in the air to flag her down. She pulled over and stopped.

"Is everything all right?" she asked.

"Not really, you see my car broke down further back and I urgently need a lift into town. I've got an appointment you see and I don't want to be late." He always found this sob story worked, especially with females.

It helped that he was a good looking bloke as well and he was perfectly capable of using all the charm at his disposal to be able to get in the car.

He smiled at this beautiful young woman, dazzling her. Forgetting to be cautious she opened the passenger door for him, not realising what a big mistake it would turn out to be.

Once in the car, Jake turned his smile on her again, introducing himself as Michael. Each time he picked a different name and varied his appearance somewhat. He had discovered that it was the perfect way to disguise what he was really up to. Taking off the backpack he sat with it on his lap. He undid it so all he would have to do would be to reach into it for the object he required.

The young lady who called herself Melanie drove a short distance in silence but she remained on high alert as she too, had a job to do.

It wasn't long before Jake decided the time was right. Reaching inside for his knife, he failed to see Melanie reach down and attack him with the taser that all police officers were issued with these days. With a yell, he put his face in his hands as she recited the words. "Jake Talbot you do not have to say anything. But, it may harm your defence if you do not mention when questioned something which you later rely on in court. Anything you do say may be given in evidence."

It was all over, the hitchhiker, as he had been dubbed, had been caught.

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