Honeymoon for Three

had a deal, and she’d betrayed him. That bitch. That damned-to-hell bitch.
    He had woken up at seven-thirty after a very pleasant sleep. He had dressed and gone to their room and knocked on the door. No answer. He had gone into the lodge café to see if they were having breakfast. They weren’t there. He had gone outside and looked for their car in the parking lot. The car was nowhere to be seen.
    He ate breakfast at the café, hoping against hope that they might be back soon. An hour later they hadn’t come back. They weren’t coming back. Penny had double-crossed him. He paced back and forth the length of the parking lot, looking in vain for the VW and throwing more pinecones. He became aware of people watching him and started feeling self-conscious. Well, he would find her. She couldn’t get away from him.
    Alfred drove south toward Yellowstone, because he knew they were headed in that direction. His calves were still sore, but if he were careful, he could drive safely. As he went, savage thoughts flooded his brain. It was Gary who was doing this, not Penny. He had forced her to leave, against her will. He was a domineering, moralistic pig. Gary was the cause of all his problems. There was only one solution. He had to kill Gary.
    His money situation was growing desperate. When he stopped for gas in Helena, the capital of Montana, this got his attention like a jab in the gut. After paying for the gas, only a few lonely bills remained in his wallet. Not enough money to eat, pay for motels, and buy gas for the return to Los Angeles, even if he drove back by the shortest route.
    What should he do? Alfred parked his car in downtown Helena and walked around with his hands in his pockets. He strolled past the state capitol with its dome on top. The dome had a statue on it. There was another statue in front. Statues of important people. People with money and influence. He had neither.
    During his meandering he passed a pawnshop with various items for sale inside the dirty window. He walked another block and stopped. One of the items in the window had been a small gun. That’s what he needed. He walked slowly back to the pawnshop. He had never been inside one before. He stood at the front window for a minute, afraid to enter.
    How much did a used handgun cost? If he said he wanted a gun, would the owner interrogate him—ask him what he wanted it for? Expose his ignorance of firearms? He had never shot a gun, except for a BB gun when he was a child. The draft board had declared him 4-F for a minor physical problem—not related to his bellybutton—so he hadn’t learn how to fire a rifle, courtesy of Uncle Sam, let alone a handgun.
    What would he say in answer to questions? He would think of something. His need overcame his trepidation, and he opened the door to the jingling of a bell.
    ***
    They purchased groceries in cold Choteau, Montana. Then they drove from light rain into blue skies as they approached Helena. They crossed the headwaters of the Missouri River at Three Forks where three rivers come together: the Jefferson, Madison, and Gallatin.
    All this time, whether she was driving or riding as a passenger, Penny had been thinking how wonderful Gary was. He was cheerful and attentive to her. He was supportive of her, but not domineering. He enjoyed sightseeing as much as she did. If she had any doubts about marrying him before, they had evaporated.
    She filled him in on the details of what Alfred had done to her, now that they were separated from him. She told him she had punched Alfred. He laughed and said that since she had punched him, he didn’t need to. She told him he had asked her to run away with him. Gary became very upset, but Penny assured him that she had told Alfred in no uncertain terms that she would never do that.
    She loved Gary too much and told him so. She would give herself to him without reserve tonight. He deserved it.
    ***
    A half hour after he had walked into the pawnshop, Alfred walked out with a gun in his jacket pocket. He also had some bullets and knowledge of how to load it, how to work the safety, and how to fire it. It had taken almost his last dollar, and he’d haggled to get the price down to one he could afford. He felt surer of himself, more powerful, knowing that he had a weapon.
    What he had to do next was to replenish his money supply. He continued to drive south toward Yellowstone. The afternoon wore on. He was getting hungry, but he didn’t have any money to buy