Chapter 18 - Page 263 - Pirate Ship

   "I love you too, angel. If you and Mama want to go to Florida, I'll take you for a boat ride."

   "Yes!" Rhasha said. "Let's go to Florida." Shanha agreed.

   He picked up his cell phone and dialed the number of a man in Florida. Jim instructed the man to have his boat seaworthy by the next day, then hung up and thought about what route to take. He'd already merged onto Interstate 44 so now he would have to get back to Interstate 55.

   "Okay girls," he said, "we're on our way to Florida."

   Rhasha and Shanha were all smiles. They knew Jim was going out of his way just for them, but they also knew he didn't mind. It pleased Jim to show Rhasha and Shanha new and exciting things. He felt like he was living life all over again. As the truck traveled down Interstate 44 toward Interstate 270, Jim calculated the miles to Pensacola, then from Pensacola to Dallas. Almost eight hundred miles out of the normal route.

   Less than an hour later, Jim turned south on Interstate 55. He would stay on Interstate 55 until he got to Interstate 12 near Hammond, Louisiana. Jim didn't like to drive in Louisiana; there was a lot corruption in the state's law enforcement. Officers were often accused of planting narcotics in victims' vehicles. The arresting officer then confiscated the vehicle and, in time, the vehicle would be placed on the auction block. A nationwide television show had exposed the corruption, but not before the practice had ruined the lives of an untold number of innocent travelers.

   As Jim continued down I-55, he thought of a way to entertain Rhasha and Shanha. "Rhasha, have you ever heard of pirates?"

   "No," she replied. "What are pirates?"

   Shanha knew Jim was going to tell another story. "Papa," she said, "could pirates talk like other animals?"

   Jim chuckled. "Pirates aren't animals, they're people."