Most people wouldnt like that much.

Very true.

Anyways, do they arrive where theyve been trying to go or do they have to visit another hotel?

Not yet. By noon they'd passed through Oklahoma and were heading across the Texas panhandle. It was just absolute flatness here--the sweeping, empty expanses of burnt-looking grass, stretching out for miles to the unbroken line of the horizon. The sky soared above them, looking about ten times larger than usual, and grain elevators peppered the landscape. Every dusty little town seemed to have one, though often there wasnt a single person in sight.

The cat seems to enjoy the ride. Sometimes it meows, sometimes it naps. At one point it even hops onto his lap for a few minutes.

He proceeded to ignore it.

A mile or so after they left Fonda, Alex looked in the rearview mirror again, his gaze lingering. "I think weve got company," he said.

ure enough, there was a silver pickup truck cruising along behind them.

She glances back at it. However, she doesnt say anything.

Alex floored the accelerator and the Mustang shot ahead, its engine roaring. It was miles between towns out here; they were in the middle of nowhere, with only flat, scorched land and endless skies. The highway was a run-down road, almost empty of traffic. Behind them, the silver pickup accelerated, too, eating up the distance between them.

She just sits there. The cat starts meowing loudly.

The pickup drew closer, gaining on them with almost comical speed. Then they were right on their tail, almost bumper to bumper.