Van Horn on leaving

Dear Hank,

Now that you have left Van Horn and are safely out of harm’s way we can talk. I didn’t want to do anything that might have hampered your travels. btw, You did not tell me you were staying at The Sands. From everything I’ve heard it’s a pretty classy place, not like that piece of shit, The Captain or El Capitan, down the street. Oh wait, you’re at The Sands in Van Horn, Texas. I was thinking of Las Vegas. Anyway, they tore that dump down a long time ago - dynamite, if I remember rightly, which I wouldn’t bet on. But the Sands Corporation has been building glitzy hotels in rundown, corrupt, dirty cities for over a decade now and I thought they had gotten to Van Horn - but I was wrong. I’m sure it’s a nice place.

Did you eat at the diner with the silver chrome siding? The one that has the booths with red vinyl and the juke box flip selector boxes mounted at each table? Does Irma still work there? She’s kind of skinny, hair in a semi-bun, big glasses with a bead string running from the frames to the back of her neck? Always, chewing gum. Somewhere in age between 53 and 66? Seems to be talking to herself when she’s not talking to you or the guy drinking coffee at the end seat on the counter? Calls you “Hun” or “Sweetie” and asks you what you want, misses half of it the first time you tell her because she’s looking at the traffic, or lack there of, out the window? Then says, “I’m sorry, what was that?” And you repeat it and she reads it back to you and it’s not even close to what you wanted and on the third try she gets it right but when she brings it out later it has the white bread instead of the wheat toast and the eggs are fried not scrambled but you eat it anyway only to hear moments later that she delivered your order to the guy at the end of the counter drinking coffee?

Oh she’s not? Oh, I see. Well, that too bad. I guess the varicose veins she kept talking about and the flat feet she complained about constantly when not talking to everyone else in the place; I guess that finally got to her and she hung up her apron and cardboard tiara pink and white visor.

What’s that you say? You think she’s working at The Captain? No! She said she hated that man and would never work there even if her life depended on it. I didn’t know they used to be married. Well, not married just shacking up, common law wife and all that. Except, he liked cats and she couldn’t stand them. Oh, pussy. Oh, that’s different. I hadn’t realized - young stuff, huh? Something different he said, oh. Didn’t realize, I thought he was talking about kittens. I should have known better. But he left and now someone else is running the Captain Restaurant? Oh, so that’s why she went there? That and it’s closer to her trailer. Makes sense. Five to Seven? Years? Really? So he won’t be coming back for awhile I guess. Well, yes, parole maybe, for good behavior. But from what I heard Irma tell that man couldn’t be good for two minutes let alone two years. Prisons overcrowded? Could happen.

Hey, lots more to tell you about VHT but I understand you’re on the road.

Give my best to Speedie, yer pal,

Bryce