Nilla nodded as if this made perfect sense. 'But then you heard on the radio that you should stay away fromLos Angeles .'
Shar nodded and rubbed anxiously at her nose. 'I think maybe I should sit up now. Up front, I mean.' She stared deep into Nilla's eyes and shot her a microsecond smile. 'Thanks,' she said. 'I got so scared.'
'It happens.' Charles pulled over on the side of the road so Shar could get back in the passenger's seat. As she was climbing out of the car the girl brought her face close to Nilla's ear. Nilla closed her eyes to better hear what Shar might say.
'Don't hate me, okay? But you really need some deodorant.'
They didn't stop forBakersfield , though Shar and Charles argued about whether they should until long after they'd passed through the sprawling downtown. Charles got them onto Route 58 after only a few tries and before they knew it they were in the middle of farmland again. Relief overcame Nilla and she shuddered. She really didn't want to stop anywhere populated again but even soBakersfield looked untouched by the dead. Maybe it was just a local phenomenon. Maybe if she got far enough east she would be safe. Was that what her mysterious benefactor on the hill was trying to tell her?
About ten miles past the last houses of the city they started seeing cars coming from the other direction, headed west. A station wagon flashed its lights as it sped by them and Charles looked pensive. 'Yeah, fuck you too, grandma,' he said, and chewed on the hair of his lower lip. When they started to see exit signs of Tehachapi it happened again, this time with a Mazda Miata. A third car honked its horn at them repeatedly.
Nilla stared through the windshield and saw the driver emphatically shaking her head and waving a hand to tell them to stop. 'Charles, maybe we should slow down,' Nilla suggested.
'Yeah, and maybe you should just sit there and not talk to me right now,' he said, turning in his seat, the seat belt tugging at the skin of his neck. She had a momentary pang of desire'she really wanted to put her teeth in that throat of his'but she fought it down. 'I'm kind of busy, and you wouldn't like me when I'm angry, okay, ho?'
Nilla crossed her arms and looked away.
They started to see more traffic heading east and Charles had to slow down anyway to match the prevailing speed. The lanes heading west grew packed and drew to a standstill. Charles switched off the radio and squinted at the road. He didn't like what was going on but he'd already told Nilla to shut up and he didn't want to show any signs of weakness.
Many of the cars they passed honked their horns now and occasionally someone would lean out their window to shout at them. Nilla couldn't understand them'they were moving too fast. She found a map in the pocket of the seat in front of her and pulled it out. Just east of Tehachapi' there. Brown blotches surrounded the road on either side. She studied the tiny print.
Edwards Air Force Base.ChinaLake NavalWeaponsCenter .FortIrwin Military Reserve. Twenty-nine Palms Marine Corps Base. It looked like the Armed Forces owned all the land between them andNevada . She remembered the man in the Army uniform, the one who had almost presided over her execution.
'Charles, listen to me'we have to get off this road!' she shouted. The boy sneered and showed her one fist. He didn't want to hear her but she was far more worried about falling afoul of the Army. 'Charles! There's a roadblock, that's what's happening. Do you really want the Marines to ask you why you're running away from home?' It was a bluff'she still didn't understand what had made him flee his hometown'but it had to be at least partially right.