Stories From the Road: The Secret

[Droopy]

I've written before about the trucker's version of Taxi Cab Confessional. It usually occurs when two drivers are riding together and one feels the need to talk about some private matter, but I've heard it over the CB as well.

One such incident happened to me last January. I was new to my current job then, I'd been there about a week, and I was riding with a guy because I was going to have to fill in on his route for three or four days and I had to learn it. I'll call the guy Ben, but, of course, that's not his real name.

We had finished the route and we were on our way back to our home terminal when Ben cut loose about a problem he had. He had a vacation home in another state and some time last year he invited one of his friends to it for a weekend of drinking beer and goofing off in general, or so he claimed. Turned out that this friend was a cocaine dealer. Ben said he knew about it and didn't have a problem with it as long as the guy did not bring the stuff around him and his home. Well, the drug dealer friend turned up at Ben's vacation home with enough dope on him to keep Jim Morrison happy for a year. The really bad news was that the drug dealer had been followed to Ben's place by law enforcement who raided the place not long after he entered it. Ben was looking at years of prison time. He was still working, though, while awaiting trial.

Then Ben asked me not to tell anybody about it. He said he hadn't told anyone about it at work- not even the management. That was about mid-January of this year. And I kept my mouth shut until now. I was also aware that there were some curious aspects to Ben's story. The same night of the confession he was telling me all about his vacation home, and the hot rod he was building, and his extensive music library along with his collection of vintage guitars. This guy was making $140 a night on his job and he was single. I make quite a bit more than that now and I still can't afford one house let alone a vacation home. I'm sure you see what I'm insinuating.

Well, a couple of weeks ago Ben went AWOL from his job. It was found out that he was in jail in a different state and he naturally lost his job. But Ben knew it was coming. He told a guy who had been riding with him the night before he was to go to jail the same story that he told me. That rider told everyone about it when Ben went missing. I was going to spill the beans, too, but I was going to wait until I knew for sure that Ben would not be back.

I can gossip with the best of them, but I won't say anything to anybody that another person wouldn't tell anyone else. When it comes to secrets I'm like that German guard on Hogan's Heroes- I know nothing.

[TZ]

1. yikes

The problem with this is that you run the danger of being drawn into this guys problems by keeping his secrets. I think there are a lot of people in jail because somebody they knew messed up and went to someone they believed would keep a secret to "help" them, while manipulating these self same friends into taking the rap for them.
Its a very fine line between not being a snitch and watching out for yourself so that somebody doesn't use you for their own ends...
Out of curiosity what would you have done if Ben had told you that someone had gotten "hurt" during this weekend and it was an accident so don't tell anybody...Thats why I think keeping secrets is a very slippery slope..the road to hell IS paved with good intentions.....:yoiks:

[Droopy]

2. I draw the line at violence

Say this guy was to tell me that he had hit his wife or something like that. Then it's time to call in the calvary. But as far as I could tell there was no harm in me keeping his confession a secret, and, besides, he was already in trouble with the law over the matter.

You are right in that there are times when one should speak up. But I don't think Ben's was one of those times. Let's say that I told the boss about it as soon as Ben told me. The guy could have gotten fired long before he went to trial and he could have been found innocent.

[Droopy]

3. kick

[Suich]

4. I keep my mouth shut.

If it turns out the secret is not true, and you repeat it, you look foolish.

:)

[CaliforniaPeggy]

5. My dear Droopy...

As usual, another well-told story...

Whew...

You done good, keeping his secret.

Thank you!

:hug: