by Seven Steps
We slog through country song after country song, while Vanessa bounces and shimmies seductively in the front seat.
I keep my hands in my pockets so I don’t reach around and try to choke her.
“So, Eric, do you like country music?” she asks.
I roll my eyes.
“Some.”
“Who’s your favorite artist?”
“Garth Brooks, I guess.”
“He’s kind of old for me, but I still like his music. My dad loves him. He performed for his fortieth birthday. It was all over social media. Did you see it?”
Eric shakes his head, his eyes focused on the road. “No.”
“But you know who my dad is, right? Charles Uma? The quarterback.”
“Yeah, I’ve heard of him.”
“Heard of him? You’re a quarterback. You must’ve studied his every move. Everyone else has.”
“Well, he’s not my favorite player.”
The comment deflates her, and she pouts a bit.
“Hey, how’s the navigation going?” he asks.
As the new co-pilot, it’s Vanessa’s job to watch the map on Eric’s cell phone. She hasn’t picked up the phone once since she’s gotten in the car.
“Fine.” She makes a big show of picking up his unlocked phone and reading the map, but I can see she’s minimized the screen.
She freezes, her fingers hoovering over the screen as if about to click something.
Eric’s wallpaper is a picture of us sitting at Turtles and Soup. The sweetness of it makes me bite my inner cheek.
“Ugh, when was the last time you updated your wallpaper?” she asks.
I watch as she finds his camera, flashes a selfie, plays with some filters, then updates his wallpaper to her face.
“There. Now that’s a picture.”
Eric’s jaw tenses, but he doesn’t reply.
“Uh, so, Vanessa, how did you get stuck at the convenience store again?” Bella asks.
“I told you. I went in to grab some snacks and the bus left without me.”
“I thought you went in to go to the bathroom,” Cole says.
“Yes. Snacks and the bathroom.”
“Don’t those busses usually have bathrooms?” Bella asks.
“Does it matter?” Irritation colors Vanessa’s tone. “The point is that this little bit of bad luck turned into something amazing. Eric and I have been so busy these last few days that we couldn’t plan our date. Now, we have an entire weekend to spend together.”
Eric’s jaw ticks again.
Then her eyes catch mine in the rearview mirror, and she places a hand on Eric’s knee.
I bite down so hard my teeth hurt.
Eric shifts a little in his seat, moving his leg away from Vanessa’s eager hand, while keeping his eyes on the road.
She doesn’t take the hint.
Her hand goes back to his leg, and he wrenches it away so violently he misses the nailed board in the middle of the road.
The truck rolls right over it, then fishtails to the right. I can feel our tire ripping open before going flat.
The remaining three tires swerve left, sending my body flying to the right.
The car nearly swerves a third time before Eric finally regains control and rolls us to the stop on the side of the highway.
My heart beats fast. My head fogs with adrenaline.
This must be what a near death experience feels like.
“Is everyone okay?” Eric yells.
“Jeez, Eric!” Vanessa cries out, wiping away a few crumbs that have spilled from the pretzel bag and landed on her leg. “I have a swim meet on Friday. You could have killed me!”
He jumps out of the car to survey the damage, and I hear him groan.
“I’d better go help,” Cole says, climbing out of the car too.
Vanessa’s head swivels around to face me. Her eyes are full of accusation.
“Have you ever seen anyone drive so carelessly? Jeez, we could have been killed.”
“Maybe if you didn’t grope him while he was driving, he would’ve been able to concentrate,” I yell back.
“It’s not my fault he can’t resist my charms.”
“Don’t fool yourself, Vanessa. He’s disgusted by you.”
“Oh yeah?” She smirks. “He sure cleared your stuff out quick to make room for me up here.”
“You cleared your own stuff out. And, for the record, he’s just being nice.”
“Yes, Ariel. Keep telling yourself that.”
I sit on my hands to prevent myself from jumping out of my seat and wrapping them around Vanessa’s neck.
The trunk pops open behind us, and Eric and Cole begin shoving bags aside.
I need air.
I climb out of the car, and Bella follows.
“We can’t drive on a donut all the way to Orlando,” Cole says, pressing on the jack. The car rises up on one side.
“We’ll stop by a Firestone or something and get it swapped out,” Eric replies.
“Dude, you got enough cash for that?”
Eric leans against the car. “If me and you pool our money, maybe.”
Cole looks incredulous as he continues pressing the jack.
“And what about gas, food, and a hotel?”
I step forward.
“I have credit cards we can use. It’s no big deal.”
“No credit cards,” Eric says quickly.
“Why not?”
“Because credit cards can be tracked. If any of us use a credit card, they’ll know exactly where we are.”
“Then the road trip will be over,” Bella says.
My eyes widen with the realization.
“So you all have cash?”
“Cole and me,” Eric says.
“I’m just the broke girlfriend, along for the ride,” Bella chimes in.
Cole squints at her in the morning light.
“Babe, I told you. It’s my treat. Our two-month anniversary present.”
They smile at each other in an insanely cute sort of way.
“I wish someone would have told me,” I say. “I would have stopped by an ATM.”
“Yeah, well, I guess this was more of an in the moment sort of thing,” Eric replies. The car starts up again, and the windows all roll up. I assume Vanessa’s turning on the heat. It’s the middle of January after all.
“Look,” Eric says. “Everything will be fine. We’ll get the tire fixed and see what we have after that.”
Why does that sound so ominous?
We watch the guys swap out the old, torn up tire with a new, smaller one.
It’s barely twenty degrees outside. My face feels like a giant icicle’s growing on it. But the bitter weather is preferable to being stuck in a car with Vanessa for one more second.
When we’re just about done, a cop car pulls up right behind us.
My heart beats hard.
What’s he doing here? Did my father send him?
My fight or flight instinct kicks in hard, and I step closer to the car.
A heavy, older man with a blue police jacket climbs out of the cruiser. He says a few words into the radio on his shoulder as he approaches.
“You kids all right?” he asks.
He has a friendly, grandfatherly sort of face. Still, he’s a cop, and I can’t help but wonder if he’s here to help us or retrieve us.
“Yes, sir,” Eric says. “Just a flat tire.”
“Where are you headed?”
My brain seizes up, but Eric is quick on his feet.
“Just down to Virginia for a family reunion,” he says. “Me, my brother”—he points to Cole—“my sister” He points to me. “My brother’s girlfriend and her friend in the car.”
Eric is a genius. The three, black-haired, white kids would look like siblings to the cop.
The officer nods.
“All right. You sure you don’t need anything?”
“Yes, sir, we’re sure.”
“Well then,
I’ll wait around to get you going, and then you can be on your way. Enjoy your reunion.”
“Yes, sir.”
He tips his hat to us and turns to walk back to the car when his radio crackles.
“We have an AMBER Alert for four teenagers. Last seen in their homes on Tuesday evening. They may be separated or together. The first is Eric Shipman, six-foot tall, black hair, blue eyes…”
The officer looks at Eric, then scans the rest of us.
“Ariel Swimworthy, five foot six, recently dyed black hair with green eyes…”
“Get in the car,” Eric whispers.
My feet don’t move.
“Get in the car, now!”
Finally, my body wakes up.
Eric, Cole, Bella, and I flee back into the car, pull the doors shut behind us, and speed off.
“What’s going on?” Vanessa demands.
“We’ve been spotted!”
A bevy of horns sound as we cut a station wagon off and pull out onto the highway. We’re tossed left, then right. Finally, Eric gains control and guns the engine, making the car roar forward.
Behind us, the policeman’s sirens scream.
I struggle with my seatbelt, clicking it into place and holding onto the back of Vanessa’s seat.
“Why are the cops chasing us?” Vanessa demands.
No one answers.
“You people are crazy! Let me out of here!” she cries. “I didn’t sign up for any police chases!”
Eric jerks the wheel to the left, throwing us all to the right. He zooms down an off ramp.
Ahead, a mini cruiser appears on our right. It must be going at least seventy down the street. If it keeps up their speed, and we keep up ours, it will T-bone us.
My chest clenches. I can’t look away from the mini cruiser. It’s coming closer, and neither one of us is slowing down. In less than five seconds, we’re going to be crushed.
“Speed up, you idiot!” Vanessa screams.
The engine roars, and we speed past the mini cruiser with only a second to spare. Eric makes a hard right to avoid getting back on the highway, and we zoom down the local streets.
The police cruiser is still behind us, but it’s early, and the streets are nearly empty. I gather my courage.
“Where are you going?” I ask.
“I don’t know,” Eric says. “I’ve never been in a police chase before.”
“They’ll catch us if we stay on the main roads. We have to find some place they can’t follow.”
I haven’t been in any police chases either, but I’ve watched a butt load of action movies at Bella’s house. There are only two ways to lose a cop: sharp turns and paths requiring off-road vehicles.
Eric grabs his phone from Vanessa and hands it to me.
“Find us somewhere to go.”
“On it.”
I pull up the local map and scan it, desperately looking for cover.
Tires screech and horns blare as Eric drives through red lights and cuts down side streets.
My heart pounds so hard I’m sure the entire car hears it.
I have to calm down. I have to think. If I don’t, we’ll be back in New York before dinner.
Finally, I find it. Trees. Miles of them. We just have to find a way to get inside. Then we could lose the cop in the woods.
“Make a right here,” I call out. “Then the first left.”
Eric complies, and we race over concrete, the sirens still close behind.
“Now a sharp right here.”
The car swings right so viciously I think we’ll tip over.
We scream as Eric struggles for control. Finally, the car is back on four wheels, and we’re speeding forward again.
The sirens begin to fade. The cop has sped past us, not able to stop in time.
But we don’t have long. It will only take him a minute to turn around and find us again. We have to move quickly.
We turn down another street, between two buildings, and the concrete abruptly ends, leaving us on a dirt road and driving straight into the woods.
“Find a place to pull off, then cut the engine,” I say.
I’ve seen that in a movie too. If we had a black tarp, we’d be in business.
Eric slows down, creeping deeper into the woods in a zigzag pattern. Finally, he stops behind a grouping of trees and turns off the engine.
We don’t talk.
We don’t breathe.
All we can do is sit quietly and wait for the sound of sirens.
With the car off and no wristwatches in sight, I have no idea how much time has passed. A few seconds? A minute? An hour? I try to count the minutes but keep getting distracted by the faint sound of sirens. They blare in the distance but don’t come any closer.
Finally, after what feels like forever, I let out a breath.
“I think we lost them,” I say, leaning my forehead against Vanessa’s seat.
“Not for long,” Eric replies, gathering his things. “They’ll come back. We have to leave the car and continue on foot.”
“What?” Vanessa screeches.
“They know the car we’re driving and the license plate number. They’ll catch us.”
“Uh-uh. I’m not leaving the car to walk through the woods to freeze to death or get eaten by a bear. No, not me.” She crosses her arms over her chest and plants herself firmly in the seat.
“Fine. I’ll leave you the keys. There should be enough gas for you to stay warm until they find you. Just, don’t tell them where we’re going, okay?”
Her arms slam down to her sides.
“You mean, you’re leaving me here?”
“Yes.”
“By myself?”
“You’re free to come with us,” I say, making my voice high and sweet.
“It’s cold and I’m in a forest. No thanks.”
“Fine. See you at Tri-State… Hopefully.”
Vanessa turns toward Eric with pleading eyes.
“Eric, you can’t just leave me here alone!”
“Sorry.” He zips up his jacket and pulls on a pair of thick gloves. “No choice.”
“What do you mean, no choice? Of course you have a choice. Wander off into the woods or wait in the car with me until the police find us. That is your choice.”
“Sorry, Vanessa.”
“What does that mean? You’re talking like an idiot.”
“Look. Do you see that girl back there?” He points to me. “She has a dream, and that dream starts at Tri-State. I promised her I’d help that dream come true, and I never break a promise. So, either you stay in the car until someone finds you, or you come with us and we’ll try to figure this out.”
Vanessa sets her chin stubbornly, then snatches the keys from of Eric’s hand.
“I’m not going anywhere,” she growls.
“Fine. Give us a head start. Then call nine-one-one. Tell them your car broke down and use the GPS to give them your location. You should be picked up in an hour.”
He climbs out of the car and slams the door shut, cutting off Vanessa’s protests.
I climb out and join him in the back of the car, where he’s pulling out our duffle bags.
“You don’t have to do this, Eric. I don’t want you to get hurt out here.”
“I promised you, didn’t I?” he asks, throwing his duffle bag around his shoulder and adjusting his scarf around his neck.
“Yes.”
“Then we’re getting you down to Florida.” His smile is confident. It makes me confident too. “Don’t worry. It’ll all work out.”
“But how do you know?”
“Because I’m Batman. And Batman always wins.”
I burst out in laughter. He laughs too. And, in that moment, I know that as long as Eric and I are together, everything will be okay.
We quickly pack our things and bundle up as best as we can. I find a motel/bar about ten few miles away. With any luck, we’ll get there by night fall.
That is, if my phone battery doe
sn’t crap out on me.
And if we don’t get lost.
And if a bear doesn’t eat us.
“All right,” Cole says. He has his bag on his back and a guitar case in his hand. “Let’s try not to die.”
We don’t wave at Vanessa as we leave, and she doesn’t wave at us.
I wonder if she regrets her decision to stay in the car alone while we walk through the cold woods.
I wonder if I’ll ever see her again.
47
“We should bang sticks together,” Bella says, stepping over a mossy tree trunk. “I hear sticks keep mountain lions away.”
“Are there mountain lions in DC?”
“We’re in the woods,” she says. “I’m sure there are mountain lions everywhere.”
“I’d be more scared of bears than mountain lions,” Cole says.
“How do you keep bears away?”
“Hard work?” Eric says with a chuckle. He stops chuckling when he sees our perplexed expressions.
“Grim used to make me watch Yogi Bear when I was a kid. It was a Yogi Bear joke.”
“Ooh.” Cole laughs. “I get it now! It makes sense. It was just a bad joke.”
Eric chucks a stick in Cole’s direction. The throw goes wide, but I think he did that on purpose.
“Did you find out what the room rate was at this motel?” Bella asks me.
“Their website only gave an hourly rate.”
She cringes. “Ew. It’s one of those motels? Gross. They probably have water beds and smell like cheap cologne.”
“And other things,” Cole says with a grin.
Bella shoves him. “Yeah, like STDs. No one sit on the bed. You might get the clap or something.”
I laugh out loud, stepping over a largish black rock. The sun’s high, and it’s freezing, but we’re also close to, if not already in, Virginia, which allows the temperature to rise a bit higher.
I’m thankful for the added warmth.
“So, how much is the hotel per hour?” Eric asks.
“Fifteen.”
Bella makes a wrenching sound behind me. I ignore it.
“So, if we stay overnight, then that’s”—he does the math in his head—“about one hundred and fifty bucks. Maybe a little more. We have that covered. The problem is, how are we going to get the rest of the way to Florida? We can’t walk.”
“We can steal a car,” Cole says.
We stop and look at him.
“I may have picked up a thing or two growing up.”
