“Yeah, you’re welcome. But yeah, we gotta listen to it now, and I’m preparing you, it’s probably going to become my whole personality afterward.”
“I don’t even know what that means.”
“It’s okay, you don’t have to.” She tucked her knees up to her chest and closed her eyes. “I’m hitting play.”
“And you’re closing your eyes because….?”
“Preparing myself. Focus on the road, Monroe.”
“Yes, ma’am.” I fought a grin as the familiar narrator’s voice filled my truck and the intro keys thudded. It was a chilling effect—on purpose, I was certain—and Lorelei’s face scrunched together in a wince. “You okay?”
“Yup. Hate the music, that’s all. My pulse is pounding.”
“For real, come on, let’s stop it.”
“Luca.” She opened her eyes, her large brown ones boring into me. “Ineedto listen now that I read the premise. If we don’t finish on the trip, then I will at home by myself, and that would be worse.”
At one point, Lorelei gasped and stared wide-eyed out the window. Her face paled. I paused the interview with the guy himself. “Hey, you okay? Have a snack?”
“My food.” She shook her head. “I forgot I brought the snacks. Here, eat puppy chow.”
“I’m fine, but you seem pale. Are you scared?”
“What if…your grandma disappeared for years without reason? I can’t… what happened to him? It is terrifying! What! Like, my mind is spiraling right now.” She rubbed her temples. “I’m thinking time travel, right? I mean what else…“ She shivered. “What do you think? I need every thought you have.”
“Honestly? I don’t have any.” I shrugged. “Digesting it, I guess.”
“Oh my god,” she yelled. “You don’t have a million things going on in your head at all times? Like, what if the truck veered off to the right or what if I ran out of snacks or had to go to the bathroom, but there wasn’t a place to stop for miles or if a deer ran out, and we hit it or if we got a flat tire?”
I sucked in a breath. “Jesus, Lo, why are you thinking all that?”
“If I knew, I’d stop it.” She rested her head back, closing her eyes. “And throw in my suspicion about time travel.”
I snorted. “Well, if this helps, the tires were rotated this summer and are in great condition, but if we veered, it’s just open plains, so you’ll be okay. I have a spare in the back and learned how to change a flat, so no big deal. If you need to stop, there is a gas station in twenty minutes. And I try to keep an eye out for deer. My grandma hit one once, and I scared the shit out of us.”
She exhaled. “Okay, those plans sound great.”
“I’m good at reacting to plays. Way better at reacting than thinking ahead.”
“Interesting as you’re on offense.”
“I know.” I sighed. “But I stand by it. I react to the team, to Dean, to the opposition. I become what the team needs. I guess I’m that way in life too. I don’t think about what’s going to happen, I wait for the event to occur, then respond.”
“I wish I was that way, damn. I worry so much all the time before things happen, and most of the time, they never do. It’s an exhausting use of my mind.”
“You’re not—” Shit!
A fucking deer ran out in the road, and I veered right. The tires screeched, and we lurched forward. I stuck my right arm out, shoving my hand against Lorelei’s chest. Then we spun out.
CHAPTERFIFTEEN
Lorelei
My heart about fell through my ass. I gripped the side of the truck like my literal life depended on it, and something heavy shoved against my chest. The seatbelt tightened and dug into my neck, and the sound. Ugh. The high-pitched squeal would forever be stuck in my mind, replaying over and over. We spun in a full circle, and a loud horn blared in the distance.Oh my god, another truck.
I closed my eyes, the terror of dying seizing me.
The pressure on my chest deepened as the heavy roar of the truck grew louder. We lurched forward, then slowed. The wind knocked out of me, and I couldn’t move. My limbs grew twice their size, the heaviness of the almost-crash making each breath difficult. The narrator’s voice carried on, talking about cults, when suddenly, the truck stopped.
