The Hitchhiker

The sun called it a day and went to brighten up the other part of the globe.

The farmers were in the bar for the night. One stranger walked inside the bar. 

'Hey, you are not supposed to be there?'

'Oh! I didn't know that. I am sorry.' said the stranger to the overcautious villager.

That village faced the problem of hitchhikers intruding on the safety of their village. They came up with a solution to identify and remove the hitchhikers from the village if the villagers found them to be drunk.

The solution was simple. They placed a door beside the Gent's washroom in the bar that almost the entire male population above 18 visited at night. The door was fake as it opened to a wall. Only the villagers knew about that, and thus anyone who opens the door was new to this place. The villagers were alerted by three murders and nine assaults in the village within nine months. In all case, the perpetrators were hitchhikers.

So, the entire village decided to solve this problem of intruders by devising a plan. But not all were drunks and were genuine hitchhikers travelling across the nation. They shifted the motel used by the hitchhikers near the police station. So, the police can keep a constant watch on the so-called sober hitchhikers. The menace reduced, and now the villagers slept peacefully knowing that there is no lunatic roaming around inside their village.

But now, they found another hitchhiker who was not so sober, according to the villager's observation. The strange thing about this man was that he was carrying only one small bag. He was travelling light as compared to others. The apology by him seemed to surprise the curious and overcautious villager, Joey.

The man with one bag was six feet three and had a chiselled body like a Greek god. After apologizing, he removed his specs from his pocket. Adjusting the specs, he said, 'I was passing through here. Is there any place nearby where I can eat?'

Joey listened with apt attention as he never expected such politeness from a muscular body.

'Ah, you can eat here, the burger is superb, Misterrrrrrrrr...' Joey continued pronouncing 'errrr....' until that stranger cut him off.

'Mr. Timothy Knowles. And you are?' said the stranger while shaking hands with Joey.

'So, Mr. Knowles, where to? If you don't mind.'

'Just call me Tim. I am travelling to the east. Probably I will stay here for about two or three days and proceed further.'

'Great, you can use the motel beside the police station. That is great place for a stay and also the only place in this village.'

'Thanks, but I already know that. I also know that there is an amazing waterfall near by the village.'

'So you know a lot about our tiny village, ’said Joey 

‘Yes, in this interconnected world, there is hardly any room for secrets.’

‘Yes, we have quite a lot of strangers coming here to enjoy the waterfall.’

‘And due to them, you had to face many issues.’

‘Yes. That is the reason we have to stay cautious with roaming souls.’

They chatted for few more minutes until the burger arrived. Tim ate it and went to the motel.

Tim went the next day to the waterfall and enjoyed the scenic beauty that nature had to offer. He swam for nearly two hours in the morning. On the way to the motel, he met Joey. 

‘Hi. Enjoyed the waterfall?’

‘Why not? The best scenic view with the perfect water. What a swim. Just like they describe on the net,’ said Tim.

‘Meet me for lunch. If you are free.’ said Joey 

‘Sure. Meet you at the bar.’

Villagers appointed Joey as the point person to keep tabs on the strangers. Joey was also a stranger once. However, Joey helped to nab a murderer by the name of Mark. He had proof that pointed to Mark. Mark was convicted and Joey decider to make this tiny village his home.

Subsequently, he helped the villagers nab other murderers as he was keeping a tab on them at every moment. The villagers hired him as the point person to keep a tab on the strangers. With further assistance from Joey, the sheriff solved all the case. Joey became a deputy sheriff although undercover. Now he had only one job to protect the villagers. Joy failed often but he succeeded in catching the culprit and that helped him stick to his job.

Tim and Joey had lunch together, and they exchanged words. In the evening, Tim went for a swim, and when he returned, he sensed that someone broke into his room. Tim arranged his things in the proper place and found that his lighter was missing. He ignored it and went for dinner. He met Joey, and they exchanged a few words. Tim went to his room after dinner as he decided to leave this village early in the morning.

It was past midnight, and there was an intense banging on Tim’s door. 

‘Open the door, Tim.’ a familiar voice was shouting behind the door.

Tim recognized the voice and opened the door. 

The sheriff read him the Miranda rights. Sherrif took Tim into custody for the murderous assault on a teenager. The girl was in ICU, and the proof obtained at the scene pointed to Tim’s involvement. Tim was smiling, a strange scenario for a smile to pop up.

Sherrif took Tim to the police station. The homicide department of a nearby town would pick him up for further questioning. As per rule, he was allowed a call. Tim called someone, and within fifteen minutes, five SUV stopped in front of the police station. They removed the handcuffs and gave Tim his badge and gun. 

‘We need to check the waterfall cameras. There must be all the clue that we need for indictment.’ said Tim

‘Okay, sir. We have already grabbed Joey. Other team is searching his house as we speak.’ reported one of the officers. 

‘Good. Now, let us go and grab some proof to nail that psychopath.’

They found what they were looking for. Joey was a psychopath who killed or injured people and placed the blame on strangers. The sheriff appointed him as a deputy sheriff, and that made his task easygoing.

Based on the same story provided by every accused, the homicide department roped in the FBI for this mission. They had a suspect. All they needed was proof. They got it. Now the village was a safe place for everyone. Now the villagers even welcomed the Hitchhikers.