thought it was due to potholes in the parking lot, but it continued even after we were on the road. I suspected that at least one of our tires was flat.
When we were far enough from our pursuers, Sara stopped the truck so I could get into the cab. I climbed down out of the bed then walked around the truck to see how much damage had been done.
“Both back tires are flat,” I said, climbing in. “We’re going to need another vehicle.”
“This one will still drive,” she said.
“Yeah, I know. We don’t have to do it this instant or anything. The county line isn’t more than four or five miles. We can make it that far. Just take it slow.”
CHAPTER 14
We proceeded north past hundreds of acres of farmland and woods. Then, practically in the middle of nowhere, there was a cross road lined with bars and liquor stores.
“Now leaving Grace County,” I said.
Sara took a right onto the cross road then pulled up to the first establishment. It was appropriately named County Line Liquors. From the outside it looked like it had been hit by looters. The front windows were broken, and there were lots of broken bottles on the ground. We went in anyway, hoping something had been left. Nothing had. Every bottle of beer, wine, and liquor had been taken. Shelves were overturned, and there was nothing left inside the building but torn boxes and broken bottles. The other three stores and two bars were the same. We did find four decaying corpses in one of the bars, but they’d all been shot in the head. Aside from them we saw no one else neither living nor dead.
There was old cargo van in the parking lot of the second store that still had keys and a little gas in the tank. We transferred our haul from the convenient store into it. We were about to leave when Sara pointed toward a plain, windowless, block building on the other side of the highway away from the other stores. The sign out front was very discreet. It said: THE VEGAS CLUB.
“What about that place?” she said. “Is that a bar?”
“Yeah,” I chuckled.
“What’s so funny?”
“It’s a titty bar,” I said.
“You mean like strippers?”
“Yeah.”
“I thought that was illegal around here,” she said.
I shrugged, “Beats me.”
“Did you go there often?” she said, a grin playing at the corners of her mouth.
“I’ve never been there,” I said. It was the truth, but I could tell she didn’t believe me.
“Well,” she said, “we’ve driven all this way. We should check it, too.”
I nodded.
“I’ll let you lead the way since you’re a regular there,” she said dryly.
I started to deny it again, but I figured it would turn into one of those methinks-thou-doth-protest-too-much situations. I don’t even know why it mattered; I probably would have gone in there if I’d had some friends to go with, but Blaine never went to places like that, and I didn’t want to be one of those creepy guys that went to a strip club alone. Besides, I was getting the impression from Sara that she didn’t really care anyway; she was just ribbing me about it. I didn’t know if this was a new development with her, or if she’d always been like that. I had made presumptions about her because of her age and because she talked about her church so much after we first met. She’d had such an aversion to drinking at first, but she’d come around out of necessity. Then there was that first night she and I had spent alone…. She definitely hadn’t been a prude that night.
The building was locked. That was a good thing. It meant no one had been in, and we would likely find plenty of alcohol inside.
“These doors are solid,” I said. “We’ll have to drive the van through them.”
Sara nodded then opened the van door.
“Try not to hurt our escape vehicle this time,” I said.
“Okay,” she grinned. “Next time, I’ll let them get you.”
She backed the van against the door. The engine roared and the tires squealed and smoked as she
When we were far enough from our pursuers, Sara stopped the truck so I could get into the cab. I climbed down out of the bed then walked around the truck to see how much damage had been done.
“Both back tires are flat,” I said, climbing in. “We’re going to need another vehicle.”
“This one will still drive,” she said.
“Yeah, I know. We don’t have to do it this instant or anything. The county line isn’t more than four or five miles. We can make it that far. Just take it slow.”
CHAPTER 14
We proceeded north past hundreds of acres of farmland and woods. Then, practically in the middle of nowhere, there was a cross road lined with bars and liquor stores.
“Now leaving Grace County,” I said.
Sara took a right onto the cross road then pulled up to the first establishment. It was appropriately named County Line Liquors. From the outside it looked like it had been hit by looters. The front windows were broken, and there were lots of broken bottles on the ground. We went in anyway, hoping something had been left. Nothing had. Every bottle of beer, wine, and liquor had been taken. Shelves were overturned, and there was nothing left inside the building but torn boxes and broken bottles. The other three stores and two bars were the same. We did find four decaying corpses in one of the bars, but they’d all been shot in the head. Aside from them we saw no one else neither living nor dead.
There was old cargo van in the parking lot of the second store that still had keys and a little gas in the tank. We transferred our haul from the convenient store into it. We were about to leave when Sara pointed toward a plain, windowless, block building on the other side of the highway away from the other stores. The sign out front was very discreet. It said: THE VEGAS CLUB.
“What about that place?” she said. “Is that a bar?”
“Yeah,” I chuckled.
“What’s so funny?”
“It’s a titty bar,” I said.
“You mean like strippers?”
“Yeah.”
“I thought that was illegal around here,” she said.
I shrugged, “Beats me.”
“Did you go there often?” she said, a grin playing at the corners of her mouth.
“I’ve never been there,” I said. It was the truth, but I could tell she didn’t believe me.
“Well,” she said, “we’ve driven all this way. We should check it, too.”
I nodded.
“I’ll let you lead the way since you’re a regular there,” she said dryly.
I started to deny it again, but I figured it would turn into one of those methinks-thou-doth-protest-too-much situations. I don’t even know why it mattered; I probably would have gone in there if I’d had some friends to go with, but Blaine never went to places like that, and I didn’t want to be one of those creepy guys that went to a strip club alone. Besides, I was getting the impression from Sara that she didn’t really care anyway; she was just ribbing me about it. I didn’t know if this was a new development with her, or if she’d always been like that. I had made presumptions about her because of her age and because she talked about her church so much after we first met. She’d had such an aversion to drinking at first, but she’d come around out of necessity. Then there was that first night she and I had spent alone…. She definitely hadn’t been a prude that night.
The building was locked. That was a good thing. It meant no one had been in, and we would likely find plenty of alcohol inside.
“These doors are solid,” I said. “We’ll have to drive the van through them.”
Sara nodded then opened the van door.
“Try not to hurt our escape vehicle this time,” I said.
“Okay,” she grinned. “Next time, I’ll let them get you.”
She backed the van against the door. The engine roared and the tires squealed and smoked as she
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