THE GLORY BUS 15 страница

‘Sounds like you went through hell, Nicki. ’

‘And then some. ’ Nicki smiled warmly. ‘But I’m in heaven right now. ’

‘That explains a lot, ’ Pamela said. ‘But when I knocked Zak cold Lauren had no plans to turn him over to the cops, had she? ’

‘You popped a blood vessel in his brain anyway. ’

Pamela recoiled. ‘You mean I killed him? ’

‘He deserved it. The rat. ’

‘But the police will accuse me of homicide. ’

Nicki shook her head. ‘Pamela, listen to me. The cops will never know. ’

‘They’re gonna get rid of the body? Just like Sharpe did with Rodney, the guy who tried to kill me? ’

‘Oh, they’ll dispose of it properly. He’ll even make a valuable contribution to our little town’s economy. ’

‘You’re going to eat him, aren’t you? ’

‘You’d best wait until you hear what Lauren has to say. ’ Nicki took another bite of her tuna sandwich.

Lauren turned up at the trailer at eleven o’clock. Outside there was that perfect desert darkness. Plus absolute silence. Beautifully cool, too. Lauren looked exhausted.

But she looked satisfied as well.

‘A job well done, ’ she told the other two girls as she eased herself down into one of the trailer’s armchairs in the lounge. She gave a huge sigh that came all the way from the straps of her sandals.

Pamela asked, ‘Could you use a cold beer? ’

Lauren nodded. ‘Oh, yes, please, that’d be wonderful. ’

When Pamela returned with a bottle, white with refrigerator frost, Lauren gave a little moan of pleasure. ‘Oh, that looks good. ’

Nicki smiled. ‘As you always say, on nights such as these God lives in a cold drink. ’

‘Hear, hear. ’ After Lauren had taken a good, deep swallow of amber liquid she nodded to Pamela as she stood by the doorway. ‘Best rest your bones. I’ve got a story to tell. ’

Pamela sat down beside Nicki on the couch.

Okay, she thought. Lauren has hippie looks, but she does things no hippie ever would. Something tells me she’s going to tell me that Pits is a cannibal town after all.

Pamela had a sense that her world would change once again as she sat there in the trailer with Lauren and Nicki.

‘Well, ’ Lauren began. ‘The first news is that we’re going to have some new specials on the cafe menu. We’ll be featuring the Pitsburger Largesse, that’s a double meat patty in a bun. We’ll also be offering double pork steak for the price of a single. ’

‘Zak? ’ Pamela ventured.

‘After using Nicki here for so long, we get to use bad boy Zak for at least the next few days. ’

Pamela couldn’t believe her ears. ‘You mean we’re eating the guy? ’

‘It’s not compulsory for us, ’ Lauren said in a no-nonsense way. ‘But we’re serving him to the cafe’s customers. ’

‘Although Hank likes to make his own-recipe blood sausage, ’ Nicki said. ‘He calls it his vampire bait. Sorry, Pamela. This is all a bit new to you, isn’t it? ’

Pamela gulped. ‘Just a tad. ’

I’m glad it isn’t suppertime. And I don’t want to even think how the old-timer makes blood sausage. . .

‘Okay. ’ Lauren set her beer bottle on the table. ‘Let’s begin at the beginning. Back in the 1960s Pits was a ghost town. Years ago they used to

mine borax here. It was a rootin’-tootin’ son-of-a-gun kind of place. ’ Lauren smiled. ‘A real Wild West town with shoot-outs at the saloon. There was a population of more than five hundred. Then by 1920 the borax was all mined out; people drifted away. Soon it was deserted. Then in 1970 a man settled here. They called him Priest. ’

‘He was the town’s only inhabitant? ’ Pamela asked. ‘Sounds more like a hermit than a priest. ’

‘I guess you could say his was a spiritual calling, ’ Lauren continued. ‘You see, he’d come from a family that was rich in money but poor in love. He believed that building a society where people cared for one another was more important than owning lots of possessions. Priest had drifted round the hippie communes of San Francisco – summer of love and all that. Only he was anti-drug, so the communes weren’t for him. Also they – the people who claimed they were dropping out of society – still wanted to live in the big cities. Priest hankered for wilderness country. ’

‘So he found Pits. ’

‘Indeed he did, ’ Lauren said. ‘He moved into the big house near the cemetery. Of course, it was long abandoned by then. First he fixed it up. Then he went out on the road, looking for society’s casualties. The men and women who’d fallen through the cracks due either to drink, drugs, poverty or mental illness. One by one, he started bringing them in. Some left after a while, some stayed on and found a healing in this place. ’

‘Hank must have been one of the first, ’ Pamela said. ‘He told me he came here in 1972. ’

Lauren nodded. ‘Hank was the ninth person that Priest saved. ’

‘Just like Sharpe saves people now? ’

‘Sharpe stepped into Priest’s shoes when Priest couldn’t continue anymore. ’

‘What’s Hank’s story? ’

‘That’s for Hank to tell. If he chooses. But it’s enough to say that modern life didn’t suit Hank. He opted for something that suits his nature. ’

‘I see. ’

‘Here in Pits we’re all refugees from the modern world – in some shape or form. ’

Nicki added, ‘Pamela knows what happened to me. And about Zak. ’

‘And good riddance to him, ’ Lauren said with feeling. ‘At least he’s going to bring some money into the neighborhood. And as for me. . . I suffered anxiety attacks. It got so I couldn’t ride a bus or walk down a street. Never mind visit a store. I just got it into my head one day four years ago that if I camped out in the desert by myself everything would be fine. Of course, city girls don’t come to a place like the Mojave and pitch their tent under a cactus and everything turns out hunky-dory. I got sunstroke, drank bad water from a spring, got dehydrated, delirious – then, to round off a hell of a month, a snake bit me. I was laid on a sand dune waiting to die when I saw a bus on the road way in the distance. ’

‘Sharpe? ’

‘Yup. Guardian angel Sharpe. My future husband. ’ Lauren gave a weak smile. ‘If he’ll marry me. ’

‘He will. ’ Nicki leaned forward to squeeze Lauren’s knee. ‘Just give him time. ’

Lauren blinked away a tear. ‘How Sharpe saw me from that distance I’ll never know. But I remember lying there being burned to cinders by the sun and seeing this giant with a flat-top haircut walking right through the heat haze toward me. There were times I’d swear his feet never even touched the ground as he walked. ’ She smiled. ‘Or maybe I’m being too romantic for my own good. Anyway, he brought me to Pits. Together we fixed up the cafe. It was just a ruin in those days. Opened it up; we’ve been doing nice business ever since. And some way along the line I stopped being anxious about the world. The panic attacks just vanished. ’

Pamela had to broach a difficult subject. ‘I understand what you’re going to do with the guy I walloped with the frozen pork joint. But I don’t understand why you took to eating people. ’

‘Priest started it before we all came here. He told us that eating human flesh is like a magic rite. ’

‘Magic? Lauren, Nicki, that’s cannibalism. Cannibalism is barbaric. ’

‘It’s misunderstood. ’ Lauren took a deep breath as she explained. ‘Rites of eating human flesh have been commonplace in human history. It empowers people. Eating human flesh cured us of our anxiety attacks, our drink and drug addictions. It even cures people of low self-esteem. You see, if you eat a person’s flesh you absorb their power. ’

‘So all those abandoned cars out in the lot belong to people you’ve eaten? ’

‘Mostly from a long time ago. Priest told us that society chews good people up and spits them out; therefore, we had every right to chew society up. ’

‘Only we didn’t spit – we swallowed, ’ Nicki added.

‘My God. ’

‘That’s how Priest was able to buy the things that Pits needed. He even had the dirt road through here paved with the proceeds of the jewelry and cars he could sell. ’

‘But you preyed on innocent travelers, ’ Pamela protested. ‘You murdered people. Stole their belongings. Ate their flesh! ’

‘I guess we came to that conclusion, too. You have to understand that Priest was a visionary. He had this charisma. Everything he told us we believed. Then, though, maybe his cure for us worked better than he could have dreamed. We realized that we shouldn’t murder travelers and devour them. So we stopped. And –’ she sighed ‘– Priest had to go. ’

‘And Zak? ’

‘Every rule has its exceptions. ’ Lauren picked up her beer. ‘If someone like Zak comes here intending to do us harm, then they’re gonna end up on the menu. ’

Nicki said, ‘And we sell their possessions to add to community funds. Zak’ll have enough gold in his fillings and jewelry to buy us another trailer. ’

‘But what about the guy I saw last night? ’ Pamela asked.

‘Ah, Marvin White? ’

‘I don’t know his name. A curly-headed guy. Sharpe brought him in on the bus. ’

‘That was Mr. White. ’

‘Are we eating him too? ’

‘No. ’ Lauren laughed as if the idea was ridiculous. ‘Mr. White is a geologist. He got lost in the hills. Sharpe found him. He figured it best to bring him here to spend the night. Then in the morning he drove him back to find his car. ’

‘So he didn’t wind up as dish of the day? ’

‘No, of course not. Mr. White is a perfect gentleman with a career and a family. So he didn’t need saving in the sense that we needed saving when we couldn’t live in regular society. And he certainly wasn’t planning to do us harm. So we offered him hospitality like any civilized human beings would. Now he’ll be safely back home in Barstow. ’

‘Hmm. ’

‘You don’t believe me? ’

‘Well, I did see all those shoeboxes in the utility room, full of spectacles and dentures and stuff. ’

‘Oh, they’re years old. ’

‘Back from when Priest was in charge, ’ Nicki said.

Pamela remembered what she’d found in one of those boxes of personal belongings.

‘But there was a diary. Two boys who’d run away from summer camp. They wound up here. . . one claimed that you’d eaten his friend and planned to eat the other one later. ’

‘Oh, that’ll be Benny Loscoff. ’

‘Loscoff. That’s the one. ’

‘Back then, Priest told Benny that was what had happened to his friend Gyp, and that we planned to munch on Benny too. In truth, Priest was getting a little soft in the head. Sharpe drove the boys home. ’ Nicki smiled. ‘We’ve got a letter of thanks from the mothers for saving their sons – we can show it to you if you don’t believe us. ’

‘What happened to Priest? ’

‘Priest’s no longer here. ’ Lauren didn’t add any more about the mysterious guru. Instead she said, ‘In fact, Mr. White said he planned to drive out here with his wife and family at the weekend to have lunch at the cafe. ’

‘Okay, Lauren, Nicki, I believe you. Eating people is a strange notion, but. . . ’ Pamela shrugged. ‘Like they say, it’s a dog-eat-dog world. ’

‘Ain’t that a fact. ’

For a second all three stared at each other. Then Pamela gave a snort. . . followed by another snort. A second later she had a fit of giggles.

Lauren looked at Nicki.

They were relieved. Pamela knew what they were thinking.

Pamela’s all right. She’s one of us now.

They started smiling.

Smiles turned into laughter. Soon all three women were rocking to and fro because they were laughing so hard.

At last Pamela could catch her breath.

Grinning, she asked. ‘Is it true? Do people really taste like pork? ’

None of them could answer. Laughter had them in fits again.

Chapter Thirty-four

The same moment that Pamela, Lauren and Nicki were laughing in the trailer until tears rolled down their cheeks, Boots, Duke and Norman were warming themselves round a campfire.

‘Midnight, ’ Norman told them as he looked at his wristwatch.

‘Is that a fact? ’ Duke was nonchalant. He lay on his side, smoking a cigarette. He was at ease with the place.

Boots sat with a jacket round her broad shoulders. ‘Sure gets cold in the desert at night. ’

‘Sure does, ’ Duke agreed.

‘I guess tomorrow we’ll have to find some way of getting to the nearest habitation. ’ Norman poked the fire with a stick. Sparks flew into the night sky.

Duke yawned. ‘Sure. We need to pick up a new set of wheels. ’

‘And something to eat and drink. ’ Norman thought about sizzling steaks, cold beer, ice cream.

And all we’ve got left is one lousy can of soda.

‘Could use a shower, ’ Boots told them. ‘I’m itchy like I got ants in ma pants. ’

‘Ain’t that a picture to conjure with, Normy? ’

Norman grimaced. ‘Ain’t it just. ’

Hell. The pair irritated the bejesus out of him.

Only it’s not wise to criticize Duke. I sure don’t want another beating from the guy.

Next time it might not be fists.

Tough guy might decide to use the knife.

‘Know what feels good? ’ Duke asked them.

‘Clean sheets? ’ Norman ventured.

‘Nope. Better than that. ’

Boots said, ‘Making whoopee in clean sheets. ’

‘Nope. ’ Duke sat up. ‘Being with your best buds. Just like now. ’

‘Gee, I don’t know what to say. ’ Boots’s piggy eyes filled with sentimental tears.

Norman groaned inwardly. Don’t blow it, Norman, he told himself.

‘I couldn’t agree with you more, ’ he said, with a cheesy smile.

‘I’m kinda thinking it’s like my honeymoon, ’ Boots told them, with a gulp. ‘Only I got two husbands for the price o

f one. ’

Oh, Christ, woman. . .

‘Maybe the King is up there watching over us. ’ Duke’s face was solemn. ‘You know, I think he brought us together like this for some. . . ’ He rooted around inside his brain for the apt word. ‘. . . For some higher purpose. ’

Norman bit his lip.

I wanna laugh.

But if I laugh in his face I’m a dead man.

But the idea of it: Elvis Presley looked down from heaven and decided that the three of us should meet? For crying out loud.

Norman had to bite his lip harder, then put his head down as he sat in front of the fire, his knees pulled up toward his chest.

‘What’s the matter, Norman? ’

Oh Jesus. Duke had seen him choking back the laughter.

Norman kept his eyes closed but he knew his shoulders were shaking as a peal of laughter tried to escape from his body.

He put one hand over his eyes. Duke would be reaching for his knife.

Then something red and wet was going to smear the pristine desert floor.

Then Boots said in a low voice, ‘Poor Normy. Look at him, Duke. ’

‘I’m looking. ’ An ominous tone.

‘The poor pet lamb is crying. ’

‘Crying? ’ Duke sounded surprised.

‘Poor Normy can’t have had no close friends like us before, Duke. He’s getting all emotional. ’

A lifeline!

This I gotta grab.

Now it was suddenly easy to change genuine laughter into fake sobs.

Boots shuffled round to him on her backside to hug him in a mothering kind of way. ‘Don’t worry, Normy. We’re here for you. We’re proper friends – just like that TV show. Here, let me kiss those tears away for you. ’

She kissed his eyes.

Felt more like the lips of a hog snuffling wetly over his eyelids.

Dear God, I’ve gotta get outta this place!

When Duke spoke next his tone was surprisingly caring. ‘This kind of thing’s hard on a college boy. But we’ll take care of him. He’s one of us now. ’

Holy shit. I’m stranded in the desert with a pair of crazies. Them telling me I’m one of them isn’t what the doctor ordered.

Gotta get away from them somehow. Otherwise they’re going to be the death of me.

Chapter Thirty-five

Norman woke with the morning sun shining into his face.

First thing he saw:

Boots taking a pee behind a cactus. Then—

Oh no – it’s not a pee she’s having!

Norman turned over. His bed for the night had been desert sand. Surprisingly soft.

Duke stood by the truck, smoking a cigarette. Sleeping rough had left his dirty blond hair even spikier. Even though he’d been staring out across the barren lands, with nothing but dunes, rocks and cactus in sight, he seemed to know that Norman was looking at him.

Without turning, Duke intoned, ‘Gonna have to move out today, bud. ’

‘Sounds good to me. ’

‘We’re gonna have to do it on foot. ’

Norman was going to point out that he knew the truck’s motor was busted, thank you very much. But he’d learned to be wary of Duke’s mood swings.

Duke said, ‘We should find a motel before long. We’ll check in. Rest a while. ’

Motel? Out here? On a Mojave Desert back road? The guy’s gotta be out of his frigging mind.

But Norman wasn’t going to risk yanking the hard man’s chain. ‘Yeah, we should find one before long. ’

‘All finished, ’ Boots called out brightly. ‘You boys can look now. ’

‘Uh, sorry. ’ Norman looked too quickly. He saw her hoisting her denim cutoffs up over a creamy expanse of skin interrupted only by a strip of dark hair.

She giggled. ‘Oh, you boys. Betcha you were peeping at me all along. ’

‘No, ma’am, ’ Duke said. ‘I wouldn’t watch a lady squirting her nuggets. ’

‘Nor me, ’ Norman added with genuine feeling.

‘Well, maybe I believe you, maybe I don’t. ’ She finished tugging up the zipper. ‘Only don’t go walking near this cactus here or you might step in some twoses. ’

With that Boots came walking toward them with what she must have imagined was her dainty walk. Her grubby white boots chugged through the hot sand.

Man, how those boots must be cooking her feet.

‘Okay, ’ Duke said. ‘Grab your belongings from the truck. Time to hit the road. ’

‘I’ll show some leg and get us a ride. ’ Boots raised one of her thick legs.

Norman saw white skin through the slit in her cutoffs.

Ugh, what makes her so deluded? Only guy who’s gonna give her a ride will either have to be a pervert or desperate for a poke.

Yeah, just like me, Norman thought. You do crazy things when you’re desperate for a woman.

‘What’re you scowling at me for, Normy? ’ Boots asked.

Jeez. He must have been pulling a sour face when she’d been talking about how eager a guy would be to stop for her.

‘Yeah, what you so unhappy about? ’ That annoyed tone crept back into Duke’s voice.

Norman thought fast. ‘Boots is wearing a tank top. ’

‘You gotta problem with that? ’

Boots puckered her lips in a hurt little-girl expression. ‘I like it. Don’t you like it, Normy? ’

Duke grunted. ‘You weren’t complaining when you were aiming to catch a look at her titties. ’

Norman forced a smile. ‘No. Course I like her top. It’s just she’s got bare shoulders and that sun’s going to get pretty hot today. ’

Duke nodded. ‘You gotta point, Norman. See, Boots? He just had your interests at heart. ’

‘Oh, Normy, you’re always taking care of me. ’ Delighted, she kissed him on the cheek.

‘Don’t want that bootiful skin to burn, ’ Duke said. ‘Best cover up your shoulders before we start marching. ’

‘I’ve got just the thing. ’ Boots delved into her big denim bag. She pulled out a huge white T-shirt. ‘I bought this for bedtimes. ’ Beaming, she gave a shrug of her shoulders. ‘But since I sleep naked as a jay in the summer it’s gonna work fine as a shawl. ’ She draped it round her shoulders.

‘Don’t forget your bag, Norman. ’ Duke reached into the truck and hauled out Norman’s rucksack.

‘Thanks, Duke. ’ Norman hoisted it onto his shoulders.

‘Okay. ’ Duke slipped on his shades. ‘Let’s roll. ’

They started walking. Behind them the useless truck receded into the heat haze. In front of them the road shimmered as it cut a line through the wilderness to a distant horizon.

Nothing but cactus and sand.

Man, I’m thirsty, Norman told himself. If we don’t get fluid soon we’re going to die out here. That is if a rattlesnake doesn’t strike first.

From the clumps of cactus at the roadside he heard the rustle of desert critters. No doubt beady eyes were watching the three humans pass by.

Gonna be a tasty snack for all those carrion-eaters out there.

Norman glanced up.

Vultures circled.

Great.

Just great.

If only I hadn’t stopped at that particular gas station Duke wouldn’t have climbed into my car. Would never have met Boots, either.

Or killed those two cops.

I’d have been at home with my parents right now.

Not on the run. Holy shit, we’re not even on the run now. We’re walking through the third circle of hell. We’re gonna dehydrate, then die in the dust at the side of the road.

Gonna have some ugly lizard nibbling on my eyeballs by sunset.

‘Hear that? ’ Duke stopped to scan the arid scenery.

‘Let me know if you hear a motor, ’ Boots said. ‘Then I’ll start flashing some leg. ’

There’s not going to be any vehicles out here, Norman told himself. We’re way off the highways.

‘Sounds like diesel, ’ Duke said with conf

idence. He nodded. ‘Bus or a truck. ’

Norman could hear squat. Nevertheless he joined the other two to scan the terrain. They held their hands above their eyes to shield them against the unforgiving sun.

‘Not a new motor, ’ Duke told them with the absolute confidence of someone who knew engines. ‘But well maintained. New muffler, too. ’

Norman wasn’t going to disagree.

Boots whined, ‘I don’t see shit out there. Only sand and rocks and things. ’

Norman looked hard. Heat haze made the whole world ripple like it was soft plastic. He saw Joshua trees that looked like men waving at him. Then—

‘Hey, ’ Norman crowed. ‘I see something! ’

Boots saw nothing. ‘Sure it ain’t one of those mirror jars? ’

‘Pardon me? ’

‘You know – mirror jars. When you think you see rivers in the desert but they aren’t there. ’

‘A mirage? No, it’s real. ’

‘I see it, ’ Duke said. ‘Way over there to your left. ’

‘I can hear it as well. ’ Norman was pleased.

Salvation!

Norman stared through the distorting effect of hot desert air at a long vehicle perhaps a mile away from them. Dust billowed high behind it as if it was some old-time locomotive throwing out smoke and steam.

‘It’s a truck, ’ he said.

‘Nope, ’ Duke corrected him. ‘A bus. ’

‘Coo-ee, ’ Boots sang out. She waved both hands over her head.

The bus driver won’t see you. It’s too far away, you dimwit. Norman would have liked to spit the words out at her. Then he figured that Duke would disapprove.

He choked back the insult.

Duke said, ‘Still heading east. ’

‘The road will bend round, ’ Boots said, hopeful.

Duke shook his head. ‘These roads are straight. ’

‘You mean it’s not headed this way? ’ Norman was appalled.

‘Damn right. ’

‘Oh shit. We’re never gonna be saved. ’

‘Don’t give up hope. ’ Boots rubbed his back.

‘Never give up hope, ’ Duke said. ‘Unless you wake up dead in your casket. ’

Boots laughed at the joke. Norman thought: Oh, Christ. Gallows humor I don’t need.

I’ve gotta get a drink.

Gotta rest in some shade.

Duke said, ‘Come on. Start walking. ’

They continued along the dirt road. Cactus. Sunlight. Dust. Dunes. Mountains. Plenty of those. But no diners, no houses. No proper freaking road.

Shit. Do I want to die out here?

Not with the gruesome twosome I don’t.

Duke must have read the pessimistic expression on Norman’s face.

‘Don’t fret, bud. That bus was running along a regular highway. You can bet your last dollar that this back road plugs right into it. ’

‘A ride would be good. ’

‘I could sure use a little air-conditioning right now, ’ Boots said, with a sigh.

Duke grinned, the desert reflecting in his sunglasses. ‘In a couple of hours from now we’ll be in a motel room and Norman will be soaping your bazooms in the bathtub. ’

She perked up. ‘I’ll hold Norman to that. ’

Norman pulled a tight smile. ‘The pleasure’ll be all mine. ’

Duke tapped his finger against his nose. ‘But I reckon it’ll be only right if Boots sucks my cream-pump dry first. After getting us out of trouble I reckon I’ve earned it. ’

‘Sure you’ve earned it, Dukey honey. I don’t mind blowin’ you right here. ’

Duke considered. ‘Later. ’

Then all three continued walking.

An hour later saw them at the junction. Now a paved two-lane road ran east and west. In the heat of the midday sun there was no traffic. Not at first. . .

Then Duke tilted his head. ‘Here she comes again. ’

‘Uh? ’ Boots’s face was red with sunburn. ‘Here comes who again? ’

‘Same vehicle, ’ Duke told them. ‘Big old diesel motor. Purring sweet as honey. ’

They peered to the east.

Like a ghost manifesting itself from the ether came a large, shining object. It rippled. Was distorted.

Eerie-looking, Norman thought.

A ghost bus.

Here it comes.

The bus surged by with a blast of hot air and dust.

Kept on rolling.

Boots let out a whistle of surprise. ‘You see that? ’

‘Yeah, ’ Norman said mournfully. ‘It went right on by without stopping. ’

‘It’s an old school bus, ’ Duke said.

‘But not painted yellow, ’ Boots pointed out. ‘It was a funny-looking gray. And did you see the drapes covering all the windows? They were bright yellow. ’

Duke nodded. ‘Boy, that motor was running sweet. Someone loves the old girl. ’

‘It didn’t stop, ’ Norman reminded them. ‘It went on by. ’

Bastard.

Must’ve seen us. Two guys and a gal.

Drying out under a murdering sun.

‘Bastard saw us and left us out to here to die. ’ Norman didn’t stint on words now. ‘He’ll have been fucking laughing at us as he drove by. ’

‘You can’t be sure of that, ’ Duke said.

Norman’s throat felt raw but he still yelled. ‘The bastard knew we were here. He’s fucking laughing at us. Murdering bastard! ’

‘You might want to revise your opinion of said bus driver, ’ Duke said.

‘Why’s that? ’

‘Check out the bus. It’s coming back. ’

Chapter Thirty-six

The bus’s door opened with a hiss.

Norman was ready to fall on his knees.

Thank God!

Thank Beelzebub, Stalin and the IRS man, come to that.

Anyone who brought the bus – the miracle bus! – along the road is all righty by me.

He stood beside Boots and Duke who gazed through the open door at the driver. It was hard to see against the glare of sunlight but he looked like a young guy in sunglasses, boasting a flat-top haircut. A suggestion of lean and fit.

‘Your call, ’ the driver said in a controlled voice after a pause. ‘Ride with me or walk, either’s okay with me. ’

‘Riding’s my bag. Thank you, sir, ’ Boots enthused. She dashed up the steps.

Duke nodded an understated ‘thank you’ at the driver. Then climbed the steps.

Norman followed, half stumbling in his eagerness to get on board. The strap of his backpack caught on the door mechanism, yanked him back.

Could be a sign?

Could be a demon driver.

But he struggled free. Three seconds later he stood in the aisle with his two amigos. They blinked.

In the dull yellow light sat rows of passengers.

‘Not a lively bunch, are they? ’ Duke observed.

‘Please take a seat, ’ the driver told them. ‘Company rules. No standing while the bus is in motion. No smoking. No talking to the driver. ’

‘You’re the boss, ’ Duke said.

‘You’re a nice man, too, ’ Boots cooed. ‘I sure am grateful. Really, really grateful. Know what I mean? ’

‘Thank you, thank you. Oh, Jesus. I thought we were gonna die out there. ’ Norman was close to babbling. ‘Thank you. ’

‘Take a seat, sir. ’ The driver was scrupulously polite. ‘You, too, ma’am. ’

Norman sat alongside Duke and Boots who had taken the long bench seat behind the driver. The sort that faced the aisle.

‘Nice drapes, ’ Boots said, waving her arm to take in the yellow fabric covering the windows. ‘After blue, yellow’s my favorite color. ’

The driver said nothing. Merely released the air brakes. With a whooshing hiss the bus rumbled away. The throb of the well-maintained motor rose smoothly in volume as the bus picked up speed. Duke nodded. He knew a healthy internal combustion engine when he heard one.

Norman leaned forward to try to catch a better glimpse of their driver. There’s something steely about him. Something kinda righteous like a preacher or. . . Norman gulped at his next thought.

A cop.

All he lacked was an officer’s hat. His black hair was cut short close to his head at the back and sides. On top, it stuck up as stiff as bristles on a brush. Norman looked at the man’s reflection in the rearview mirror. The eyes covered by shades revealed nothing.

Nothing, that was, but an aura of steely determination.

The face possessed that aura, too. The features were lean, a little rough-looking. Yet the guy had shaved his strong jaw so expertly that the skin had a glossy smoothness to it.

Yeah, something of steel in that, too.

Wonder who would win if bus-driver man and Duke went head-to-head in a battle royal?

An elbow dug into Norman’s side. He glanced back at Boots. She was making eyes at him.

Not here, woman.

Norman smiled. Nodded.

Then Boots nudged him in his ribs again and made little indicating movements with her head.

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