Just
Shut Up and Drive
by
Chynna Laird
Genre:
Coming of Age, Contemporary
One
teen, one cranky old man and the open road. What could go wrong?
Eighteen-year
old Wil Carter can think of more than a fistful of things he’d
rather do than go on a road trip with his ninety-five year old
grandfather. But when Gramps Wilf barks an order, you listen or get
an earful of grief.
Wil
lost his parents in a horrible car accident when he was five. Gramps
has been the only parent he has ever known. Now that he’s ready to
go off to college, the old man says he has things Wil needs to learn
to be the man he’s supposed to be. But the trip turns out to be
more than he bargains for.
Along
their week-long road trip across the Canadian Prairies, Wil not only
learns tidbits about his own life, but realizes the grandfather he
thought he knew has mysteries of his own. With each stop they make, a
new layer of emotional truth is revealed…for each of them.
Will
Gramps teach Wil what he needs to know before the journey ends? And
is Wil strong enough to hear it?
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"Good grief, boy!" Gramps yelled.
"You drive like an old lady on a Sunday afternoon drive. Don't be afraid
to push down on that gas pedal."
"Gramps," Wil sighed. "I'm
going the speed limit. Anyway, what is the hurry?"
"The hurry is I hate being a passenger,
especially yours," he said, emphasizing each word. "And watch your mouth,
boy. You aren't too old for me to give a whoppin' to."
"You're just ticked because they won't
let you drive anymore. It's your own fault for not taking care of your eyes.
And for the record, I'm not exactly thrilled at the moment having you as a passenger."
"You better watch your attitude, or I'll
take this truck back."
"Correct me if I'm wrong, but it was
Dad's, right? And I think you told me he wanted you to give it to me. Guess
that means it isn't yours to take."
Gramps got a sour look on his stern face, like
he'd just sucked on a lime. "Don't you be talking to me like I'm some
crazy old coot who's lost his mind. I remember what I said. Shoulda charged you
for it, considering the lip I have to put up with every time I'm gonna be in
here with you."
"And what makes you think I'm going to
drive you around everywhere in this beautiful truck? I'll chauffeur you around
in my car."
"That piece of crap? Hmph. Forget
it."
Wil stared at the road ahead of them.
"You could take a cab, you know. Or the bus." Sam Hill help the poor
drivers.
"Nah," Gramps said, slugging back
the rest of his coffee and shoving the empty cup in a plastic bag. "I get
much more pleasure out of torturing you than I would a stranger."
I noticed. "Alrighty, then. So you got a
plan for us, or are we just going to keep going until we run out of
gas?"
Gramps crossed his arms over his chest and
looked out his window. "First stop is gonna be Elie."
Wil released a sharp breath and squinted.
"Seriously? There's, like, 100 people living there."
"Six hundred and fifty."
"Close enough. And I'm sure the census
people were able to gather them all in one place and count them at once. C'mon,
Gramps. What could possibly be in that small town worth checking out? If we
drive straight on, we can get to Portage la Prairie for lunch—"
"Just because a place isn't all lit up
like Vegas doesn't mean it shouldn't be visited," Gramps interrupted.
"Some places need to be seen because they're gold mines for memories.
We're stopping at Elie."
Wil had a smart-butt retort clinging to the
tip of his tongue, but he held it there after giving Gramps a side-glance. The
old man rested his chin on his right fist and stared out his window.
"Fine. I guess we're stopping at
Elie," Wil mumbled.
Like my vote even counted.
CHYNNA
LAIRD – is a psychology/criminology major, freelance writer and
author living in Edmonton, Alberta with her husband, Ryan, three
daughters [Jaimie (fourteen), Jordhan (twelve), and Sophie (eight)]
and baby boy, Xander (ten). Her passion is helping children and
families living with Sensory Processing Disorder, mental and
emotional disorders and other special needs.
You’ll
find her work in many online and in-print parenting, inspirational,
Christian and writing publications in Canada, United States,
Australia, and Britain. In addition, she’s authored an
award-winning children’s book (I’m Not Weird, I Have SPD), two
memoirs (the multi award-winning, Not Just Spirited: A Mom’s
Sensational Journey With SPD and White Elephants), a Young Adult
novella (Blackbird Flies), an adult Suspense/Thriller (Out Of Sync),
a Young Adult Suspense/Paranormal (Dark Water) and a contemporary New
Adult novel (Just Shut Up and Drive,). She is presently working on a
sequel to Not Just Spirited as well as the next book in the Dark
Water series. Stayed tuned as Chynna has several Works-In-Progress on
the go.
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