 And now another tale well calculated to keep you in Suspense The fortune is there and they'll kill to get it Truck stop Written for suspense by Peter Fernandez Hey Maggie, where do I owe you for the coffee and drainage? I sent all you should know by now you've been stopping in here almost every night for months Just leave how much you think it is Sure, sure, I know, I just wanted to have a word with you Oh? Anything wrong? Wrong? Oh no, no, man, everything's right Right? That's gold, huh? Yeah, if you say so Well, it might as well clear off the counter Looks like he's company dead tonight, huh? What do you mean? Your boyfriend It's ten minutes after midnight that armored trucker His role's in about 12.15, huh? Yeah, that's right But how'd you know tonight was one of his regular stuff? Well, you're kidding, Maggie, with you all dolled up? Now, look okay, huh? Maggie is a lucky guy You know what I'd do if I was him? Tell me, Benno I'd ask you to come along in that truck of his You and maybe a couple of hundred thousand bucks We'd have a time, wouldn't we? Well, we might, Benno, before the police caught up with it Uh-uh, I'm smart, see, they'd never catch us, Maggie Get up, Benno Yeah Well, I'd better get rolling before your boyfriend comes in and finds we've been making plans behind his back Okay, see ya Yeah, yeah All right, Benno, get in Yup, yeah, sir What time is it? Quarter after twelve The truck should be coming in now Yeah, where is it, Benno? It'll be coming every night for six weeks I've been casin' this It's the time's out, I swear Then where's the truck? Will you wait? Okay, okay, I don't hear from you for two years Ever since Juliette noticed An armored truck, job of all things An armored truck I tell you, if we start small It's something easy No, but you've got to have an armored truck Could you shut up? Now, just look Coming up the highway now The turn blinker's on That's it, sir That's two hundred thousand bucks minimum Sure, sure And two guards and a driver All behind bullet-proof glass And three-quarter inch heavy steel Are we going to get into an armored truck Like that, Benno? Would it can open that? Will you just watch? Just watch everything And I'll show you just how Two nights from tonight When they stop at that diner The next time We're going to get that truck Oh, where's the binoculars? Here Okay, the truck stopped Just keep watchin' Through them binoculars Maybe you'll see for yourself How we're going to do it I stiff That's a long hole From Greenville to here Maggie's coffee better be good And when hasn't it been? But when will I give her this Before you even order? A ring Uh-huh We're really going to ask her tonight What do you think I bought it today for? I don't want some other guy Trying to grab Maggie Before I can stake a claim Well, good luck, son She's quite a girl Do you want me to wait out here Until you ask her? Oh, no Come on in We're used to having you around In these stops You're part of the family Well, okay Hello, Maggie Hello, Frank Hi, honey Charlie, don't come behind this counter If the boss sees us now Oh, by midnight Old man Duncan's fast asleep What'd he be doing out here, huh? Give me a kiss Maggie, I've got something for you I hope you'll like it The store said that exchange it If you don't Something for... Hey, you've got a real romantic Look in your eyes, Charlie Maybe I do, Maggie Now, wait, wait, wait Let me give Frank his coffee And take Sim and soup out to him But, Maggie, I want to... That's okay We can wait, Maggie Oh, I'd rather do it this way, Frank I think maybe Charlie's going to ask me to marry him And this will give me a minute To think up my answer, you see Excuse me, Charlie Sure, honey Take your time I want you to give it As much thought as you need Would you like a danish With your coffee tonight, Frank? With my waistline No thanks, Maggie Okay Here's yours, Frank Knowing you were coming in Any minute I got Sim and his bullion Cubes ready in the cup here So I'll just pour the hot water over him I notice you're handshaking, Maggie Does the thought of getting married scare you? You kidding? Listen, I'm 23 years old, Charlie And I want to get married Maggie, does that mean you... That means give me a minute To bring Sim and his soup And then we can talk, okay? Okay, okay But will you hurry up, honey? There we are Anyway, soup's ready Boy, I think he'd get tired of this stuff He probably is by now He's been drinking bullion Ever since I met him years ago But a doctor once told him Beef bullion is the best thing in the world for him Honey, we gotta schedule Okay, I'm on my way Just hold on to that ring And don't change your mind Before I get back You see, Zo? Just like I said As she comes out of the diner Yeah, yeah I got her in the glasses She's carrying a cup of saucer, Edgy Yeah, I can see them in her hand All right Now, you watch a servant to the guard That's gotta stay in the back of the truck What good's that does? The guy's still behind him Steal walls The only way to get at him And get the doorsteater Blast out William He's using a settling torch right up to... What's that thing doing now? She's not gonna stay in the back door Hey That's how, huh? She gets the guy to open the door Then we move in, huh? That's how, Zo Simmons, it's me, Maggie Hey there, Maggie Here's your soup, Simmons Oh, thanks How are you, Maggie? Oh, I'm happy Tonight I'm very, very happy Oh, Charlie's proposed, huh? Well, it took the big boy long enough To get up to know Now he hasn't yet, Simmons But as soon as I go back in there He's gonna give me an engagement ring Well, then you go ahead, then, girl Don't wait for me to finish this soup You go on in there and accept the man That is if you want to Oh, I want to, all right I'll see you in a few minutes, Simmons Yeah, you better Maggie, Maggie Congratulations in advance There it is, Zo There it is Just like I said The door's open And the loot's sitting right in there So why don't we hit it tonight right now? But what are we waiting for? We're waiting till I say we're gonna hit I wanted you to see the whole setup Know just how and what minute we hit it Okay, so now I know So now I want to grab that door I'll grab it and it's good When, Ben, when? On their next regular run That won't be so long to wait We'll hit that truck two nights from tonight Oh, two whole days from now? I told you I've been planning this for six weeks And they ain't gonna have you loud set up Now we play this real safe The night after next is when? The night after next Okay, Ben, oh, you're the boss The night after next it is Okay, Zo, we're coming to the diner now Yeah, I see the neon blinking up ahead Okay, now remember, stay in the kitchen Don't you come out for nothing Unless I tell you to come out Yeah, yeah And if that gardener truck spots what's going on I'll never open up for it You've been over this a hundred times already I just want to be sure you got it straight That's it, park under these trees A killer lights Oh, look at that place Will you, Ben, oh, two trailer trucks A carload of teenagers How are we gonna pull this off with them? They're clear now You see Man, business comes and goes Chances are it'll be empty by the time that baby pulls in I hope you're right Man, that other trucker's leaving now too All right, now just remember We don't start shooting unless we got it No, I know Just make sure you know I heard how you lost up that Zanesville job Eight years ago with your quick trigger All right, go smooth over here All right, I'm going in now And when you see us serving me my coffee And not until then you sneak in the back Through the kitchen I told you, I know Just remember Good luck, Ben Yeah, when I figured this setup We might not even need luck The kids want anything else? No, that'll be all, Maggie How much we owe you? Well, four soda pops, 40 cents Here's half a buck Keep the change Oh, thanks, Jimmy I'll see you Come on, fellas Hey, why don't you watch where you're going? Sorry, Dad Stupid bunch of kids Hello, Ben, I'm right on time, I see Ah, yeah, yeah, right on time Can you cup of coffee And a slice of that pie there, huh? Coming right up Well, the dress fit the kill, Maggie Boyfriend's stopping here tonight, huh? Boyfriend, nothing Get a look at this, Ben Wow, a ring Good for you And here's your coffee Yeah, thanks Yeah, finally managed to hook the guy Now, if you could just hook a few And then thousands he holds in his truck You'd really have it made, huh? Charlie and me don't need money like that We'll work for what we get Here's your pie This peach Hey, some guy just came into the kitchen He never saw him before Oh, forget him, Maggie Hey, yeah, what do you want? I said, forget him, Maggie Just, uh, give me a clean-up this corner From them customers that just left, huh? Listen, if my boss comes here And finds some guy in the kitchen Your boss is home asleep and you'll know it Everything okay back there, Zell? Okay Yeah, Ben, I can cover the whole joint Through this little window Good, now stay back there, out of sight You're together, Ben, are you and him? That's just set up, Maggie Now, you just stay behind that counter And do your work like usual What's going on? What are you up to anyway? What do you think, Maggie? It's a stick-up That's what it is A stick-up? Oh, come on, you're kidding Just look through that window, it's Zell You see what he's holding? A gun A gun Now, I don't want nobody pulling into the parking lot And see what's going on So just act normal, huh? And just remember, Zell's got his gun on Your one wrong move and you're dead, Maggie There won't be no wedding or nothing Donk and my boss, he left orders and chased the stick-up He said just to give you the money What money? It allows you a few bucks You got in that cash register to keep it We're after the truck The truck? You mean Charlie's truck? That's a one Then we'll let you get near it And quarter after, exact They'll be pulling in any minute Now, you just listen, Maggie And listen real careful When they get here When the driver and your boyfriend Come in here And when they're serving the guy in the truck I'm gonna drop this in it You're gonna poison him? Will you just shut up and listen? Now, this here pill will only knock him out And when you serve him He's got to unlock the door into the truck And this will make sure he leaves it unlocked I better listen Okay Now, stop mocking the counter, Maggie And act like nothing's wrong That's better, that's better And you just remember Zell and me will start shooting If anything goes wrong Please listen to me Mop the counter, go on Oh, Maggie Hiya, honey Hi, Charlie Don't come back here Are you kidding? Old man Duncan's home's sleeping He won't know And I want a kiss from my future wife Charlie, you're now Charlie, sit down, please Hey, what's the matter with you tonight, honey? I thought you'd be real glad to see me, but... Is it because that guy's sitting there? What difference does it make Of a stranger sees us? We're official now It isn't that Well, what then? I can't tell you Okay, but I don't know Go around the counter and sit down, Charlie Yeah, all right, Maggie But at least you owe me some kind of explanation I mean, after all, I can mimic Maggie, I'll take a cup of coffee Okay, Frank And a Danish tonight Never mind my diet, I'm starved Coming right up, Frank And Simmons in the truck, Maggie Don't forget Simmons No, no, I won't Have I ever? Here's your coffee, Frank And the Danish Okay, now that I'm sitting, Maggie Will you tell me what's bothering you? You haven't changed your mind, have you? If there's some other guy... I can't tell you right now, Charlie I... I'll bring this to Simmons Simmons? Oh, you're taking that outside Well, good, I'll walk with you So as we can talk Because I want to find out What suddenly come between you and me I know, Charlie You stay right here No, let's get this straightened out Come on, sit down, Charlie Huh? What did you say? I said, sit down What business is it of yours? Just take a look through that window Into the kitchen and then sit down And shut up Hey What is it, Charlie? Just both of you, stay right where you are There's a guy in the kitchen, Frank He's covering us with a submachine gun Yeah, kid And if you look at my lap here I'm holding this pistol So as the guy in the truck can't see it What do you guys want? You know what we want Well, you better call it off Simmons won't open up for you He'll open up for her We got it all arranged Right, Maggie? I tried to stop him But they wouldn't... Bring that cup and saucer over here to me, Maggie I... I changed my mind I won't do it I'm warning you, Maggie Listen, Maggie What happens to us in that truck Is no concern of yours Do just what he says I don't need no help from you, Charlie Bring me the cup and saucer Okay, then Here Okay I'll just drop this into it There Charlie, I'm sorry I tried to make them change their minds Now take that out to the guy in the truck Just like usual And Maggie, remember this You say more than a couple of usual words to him And we ain't gonna wait to see what happens We blow these two guys' brains out Yeah, I won't say anything I shouldn't I promise to Okay, what are you waiting for? Maggie, when you get out there Getting that truck with Simmons Tell him to lock it up You'll be safe inside One wrong move out there, Maggie And we kill a lover, boy You're keeping a thinking of that out there Listen to me, Maggie Running a fat armored truck is our job That's the chance we take If I don't do what he says He'll kill you, Charlie But you gotta think of yourself You've gotta think of you, Charlie She loves you Forget that, Maggie If I do what he says Then nothing will happen to you, Charlie Don't you believe that, honey? If they can get into that truck They'll shoot all of us They'll have no witnesses Will you shut up, Mac? Come on, make me You and your friends start shooting now And Simmons will know And you'll never get into that truck Well, come on Let's get it over with Maggie She went out to Simmons She's going through with it I told you She loves you She'll do what she's supposed to Charlie If we rush him, we might have a chance We wouldn't get through feet That guy in the kitchen at Mailish That's right Both of you I just keep sitting right there Like nothing's wrong There She's at the truck So now we just wait Simmons It's me, Maggie How are you, Maggie? Fine Here Wait a minute, Maggie Don't go yet Tell me first Have you set a date for the wedding yet? No, no I gotta get back inside What's the matter with you, Maggie? Nothing, nothing at all It's just that Well, there's another customer And I gotta get back to him Excuse me Venom, I swear I didn't say anything about you You think you would? I could be on that car She did what you wanted Now you can let her go Let her go Wait, a warrant of cops? She's in this all the way What are we supposed to do now? We wait just a little more That stuff I put in this cup works fast 30 seconds maybe But we gotta be sure We'll give it a minute You won't get far without money Nobody roadblocks What? Let's go All right, I told you we ain't rushing this And I net it All right, so wait a few more seconds There's no more than that It's my fault, Frank Talking you guys in to break on the rules Stopping here every time we made the run Ah, you're in love But we didn't have to stop We're just as much to blame Simons and me I'm coming out, Venom All right, then come on No, Frank, as soon as he comes out of that door We rush in No, you don't Let's sit just free It's both of you I got him covered too, Venom You guys are lucky I didn't pull his trigger just now I'm warning you There's no spot to warn nobody Let's keep him covered, Zeltel I get inside the back of that truck And give you the okay And you know what to do Yeah, I know You hear that, Maggie? You should have gotten the back of that truck With Simons Now it's too late Maybe it isn't, Charlie He's gonna kill us You heard him Suppose Simons knows what's going on Suppose he's just waiting out there For Venom to reach the truck But how could he know, Maggie? Did you tell him? No But he might know anyhow He just might What are you talking about? He's reached the back of the truck out there And he's swinging the door open Hey, grab him, Frank! Frank! Frank! Let's go! Listen to him, too He's out cold Are you all right, Maggie? Yeah, I'm just kind of shaky, I guess Simons got the other guy He's flashing a torch on him Maggie How could Simons have known? Did you warn him after all? Charlie, I was afraid to say anything to him I just brought him that cup of tea with a pill in it In how many places did he find out these guys were sticking his head? Wait a minute Tea? Maggie Did you say you bought Simons a cup of tea? Yeah Yeah, that's what I said And Simons expected us bullion as usual He hates tea Sure He wouldn't touch his stuff And he knew you wouldn't make a mistake like that, Maggie Venom told me he'd been watching this place And planning the robbery for months But in all that time, I guess he forgot to notice what I served Oh, Charlie Charlie, he ever found out What matters now, honey, is he didn't Frank, will you call the police? Yeah, sure We'll have to forget our schedule tonight At least till the cops make out their reports Listen, while we're waiting, let me get you fresh cups of coffee It must be cold by now Okay, if you feel up to it, Maggie Are you kidding? For a few minutes there, I was scared Really scared that I'd never have the pleasure of waiting on you ever again But two coffees coming right up Suspense You've been listening to Truck Stop Written for suspense by Peter Fernandez Tonight's story were Terry Keane as Maggie Larry Haynes as Benno Mandel Kramer as Zell Frank Butler as Charlie Dan Occo as Frank And Bob Reddick as Simons Listen again next week We return with The Girl in the Powder Blue Jag by Walter Black Another tale well calculated to keep you in Suspense