Cole watches it all slide by with detachment, thankful only for the ease of driving the new location provides. Gone are the seven degree declines and runaway truck ramps, replaced by wide open fields and white board fences stretched out in all directions.

  Easy enough to keep his hand atop the wheel and let his eyes glaze over, his thoughts everywhere but inside the car.

  Since eating her apple, Ruby has not said a word. Her arms are still folded across her chest, her face drawn into a blank stare.

  Outside a large green sign slides by, announcing the town of Lexington is just ten miles away. Cole’s gazes takes in the announcement and drifts down to the manual clock imbedded in the dash, the hands on it stating it is just after six. For the first time he notices the sun dipping towards the horizon in front of them, the shadows growing long across the road.

  “How much farther do you want to go today?”

  Ruby responds without any visible reaction, her lips the only thing to move on her body. Even that is more than the previous three hours combined.

  “How far have we gone?”

  “We’re coming up on Lexington.”

  “Kentucky?”

  “No, Massachusetts,” Cole says, biting sarcasm in his voice.

  The comment evokes a similar response from Ruby, who rolls her gaze over to glare at him. “If you’d been doing your job all day I wouldn’t have to ask.”

  Cole starts to reply, but backs off, closing his mouth and shaking his head. He waits a beat before trying again, ire creeping into his tone. “Do you want to stop or not?”

  “What time is it?”

  “Six.”

  A blue sign announcing food and lodging options drifts by along the roadside. Cole reads over them as it passes, recognizing some of the names, having never heard of the others.

  “That’s fine,” Ruby says. “500 miles is a pretty good day.”

  Cole grunts in response, maneuvering the car towards the exit. He falls in behind a pair of rusted out pickups, dropping speed fast as they swing off the freeway and onto the edge of a suburban strip. “Where do you want to stay?”

  Ruby shifts slightly so she is facing forward. There is still a concerted effort on her part not to lean into the middle space of the car or to look straight at Cole, but she has pushed into neutral territory for the purpose of logistical discussion.

  “What are our options? I’ve budgeted $50 per person per night for rooms.”

  Cole shakes his head in disgust, rolling past a Hampton Inn and a Marriot. He considers a Holiday Inn before pushing by it as well. “So, a shit box.”

  An involuntary wince creases Ruby’s features. “No, not...” Her voice drifts off, unable to repeat the words. “Just not the Four Seasons.”

  Cole smirks. “Four Seasons? Hell, $50 a night ain’t even the Best Western.”

  Ruby matches the smirk. “Funny, you don’t strike me as the type that needs a fancy hotel.”

  The Cutlass rumbles on towards the end of the strip. Cole spots a dilapidated motel sitting off the roadway, a cracked parking lot with weeds showing serving as the front lawn for the C’Mon Inn. It is aged, with a faux wooden exterior and outward facing doors painted green.

  A pair of neon signs announcing the rate at $39.95 a night and Vacancy hang in the window.

  “How the hell would you know?” Cole asks. “You haven’t even laid eyes on me.”

  “I don’t need eyes to see you.”

  Silence falls between them as they both stare straight ahead, defiance on their faces. Cole turns off the main road and into the lot of the C’Mon Inn, pulling to a stop right outside the front doors. A smattering of mini-vans and aging sedans dot the parking lot, though for the most part it is empty. He turns the engine off and leaves the keys in the ignition, sliding down low behind the wheel.

  Ruby waits in expectation before turning to face him. She pauses another moment, waiting to see if he’ll pick up on the cue, before saying, “You’re going to have to help me here. I can’t exactly see where I’m going.”

  The glare Cole gives her could melt granite. He keeps a stare leveled on her for several moments before groaning his displeasure and getting out. His boots click against the pavement as he walks to the front door and holds it open, making no attempt to help her along.

  He watches her exit the car as well and stand in place, turning from side to side, trying to get her bearings.

  It’s all he can do to keep from laughing.

  “Over here.”

  Ruby turns to the sound of his voice, her hand distended in front of her. She pauses a moment, determining exactly where his voice is situated, before walking on towards the door.

  “Thank you.”

  Ruby steps forward into the lobby until her feet leave linoleum and step onto cheap fringe carpet. Again, she pauses.

  The lobby is small, decorated in a barnyard motif, with a wagon wheel table and rustic artwork on the walls. To the right is a counter, an older man with beefy forearms and bushy eyebrows seated on a stool behind it. A half-eaten bucket of chicken sits on the counter beside him, the aroma filling the space.

  He stares at Ruby as she enters, a small smirk on his face that slides away as Cole enters behind her and pretends to browse a rack of pamphlets for local attractions.

  “Help you folks with something?”

  Ruby turns towards the sound of his voice, a smile on her face. She keeps her left hand stretched out as she walks, her purse clutched in the right. She walks until her fingertips touch the counter before saying, “Yes, please. We’d like two rooms for the night.”

  A curious look passes over the man as he stares from Ruby to Cole and back again. He pauses, considering the situation, before slapping his grease coated hands together in front of him. “I think we can manage that. Rate is $49.95 for each.”

  In the back of the room, Cole looks up from the pamphlets to see the neon sign still flashing $39.95 in the window. His eyes focus on the bright red letters, his face twisted in consideration, before he tosses down the paper he is reading and steps outside.

  Cole’s elbows rest against the hood of the car, his thumbs drumming out a beat against the burgundy metal, as Ruby exits the front door. She takes two steps straight ahead and stops, a key with a green keychain in either hand.

  Cole leaves her standing there for a moment before speaking.

  “Right in front of you, six or seven feet.”

  A look of momentary relief crosses Ruby’s face as she begins walking again, shuffling along a half step at a time. “Do you want room number seven or eight?”

  The question forces Cole’s eyes closed, his head dropping to face the ground. “Seven.”

  On either side they climb back in, Cole moving the car down to the far end of the row and parking right between their rooms. They step out in silence, Ruby still holding the keys as he unloads their bags from the trunk.

  “This way,” he mutters, slamming the lid closed and leading her into the room. It is a standard motel set-up, the furnishings old, the décor outdated by at least three decades.

  Ruby’s bags land with a rattling sound as Cole tosses them on the bed. “That all for the night?”

  Behind him Ruby stands just inside the door, hands by her side. “Can you tell me what I’m working with here?”

  It takes a moment for Cole to realize what she is asking, the request met by another heavy sigh. When he speaks, his voice could not be more bored. “To your left is the bathroom, in front of you the bed. On the right is the television. Remote’s on the nightstand if you want to listen to it.”

  Fire flashes on Ruby’s face.

  Just as fast it passes, aided by a deep breath. “Gee, thanks.”

  Cole ignores her. “What time are we leaving tomorrow?”

  “Is it okay if we get started a little earlier? Say, eight?”

  Cole responds with a grunt, already moving past her for the door.

  Ruby can sense his movements, tracking his progress as he goes. “Any idea what you’re doing for dinner?”

  Cole waits until he’s outside to respond, letting the door swing closed behind him.

  “Dinner? Right now I need a drink.”

  Big Al’s advertises itself as the best pizza in Lexington, guaranteed to be delivered in twenty minutes or less. There was no way for Ruby to verify the veracity of the statement, but the spokesman in the commercial seemed adamant, so she gave it a shot.

  The box with just a slice missing on the bed by her feet proves the first half of that claim was wrong. The fact that she had to wait over an hour for it to arrive disproved the second part as well.

  As far as Ruby is concerned, Big Al is nothing more than a liar.

  After a day of inactivity in the car, Ruby doesn’t really mind as she lays sprawled across the bed, her appetite not much to speak of. Her waif-like frame is enveloped in a thin cotton nightgown, a pillow folded up behind her head as she lays atop the comforter, the phone pressed to her ear.

  In the background the television is playing an old rerun of How I Met Your Mother, the volume just a notch or two above mute.

  “Yes Memaw, everything is going fine,” Ruby says, her voice relaying a happiness that is overstated at best, contrived at worst. “We’re in Lexington, Kentucky right now. I just ate dinner and am watching some television before turning in.”

  “You just had dinner? Does that mean he’s there with you?” Esther asks into her ear.

  Ruby pauses, her lips parted, contemplating how to answer the question. She has no reason to protect Cole, but still feels the need to do so to her grandmother.

  For herself and her trip more than him anyway.

  “No. He wanted to take a walk after being cooped up in the car all day. I told him to go ahead, there’d be other nights.”

  “Hmm,” Esther responds. Just from the single syllable Ruby can hear the displeasure in her voice, can picture the look on her face. “How’d it go today?”

  “It was okay. He’s a little quiet, but then, I am too.”

  Ruby holds her breath and waits, hoping her grandmother won’t press her too hard for the details. The break in conversation seems to go on forever.

  “Alright,” Esther says. “Just remember, you’re not too far that you can’t turn back. I’m more than happy to drive you myself if you’d rather.”

  Ruby pushes out a sigh of relief.

  “I know, and thank you for the offer, but we’re doing just fine out here.”

  Three minutes later Ruby hangs up the phone and stares at the ceiling, playing the conversation back in her head, hoping she sounded more convincing than she actually felt.

  It’s early in the night and Fall semester hasn’t started yet, but that doesn’t keep the Wildcat Saloon from already being half-full. Most of the seats in the room are taken, groups of guys huddled up around pool tables, not-so-covertly checking out the female clientele. A rough-hewn pine stage is set up in the corner, a house band just starting sound check.

  An oversized oak bar stretches along the entire back wall, curled around in a horseshoe, various scribbling and scratches etched across it. The remainder of the space is filled with the usual tavern staples - tables, billiards, shuffleboard, dance floor.

  A hue of metallic red and blue washes over the entire space, the result of a dozen neon signs announcing alcohol of every kind hanging on the walls.

  At the corner of the bar, alone, sits Cole. An almost empty beer glass and half-full basket of food sit in front of him. His gaze is slanted up at a football game on the television above the bar, but he’s not paying attention.

  Try as he might, he can’t help but keep wondering how he found himself here in the first place.

  At the other end of the bar, the front door swings open and a trio of girls walk in, led by Cherry. Her long blonde hair is teased up into a pile on her head and she is wearing too much makeup and not enough clothing. The first thing she does while waiting for the bartender to give them their usual drinks is scan the bar, looking for strays.

  This is not the first time she’s be here, her routine long since honed into perfection.

  She knows what she is looking for and finds it in Cole.

  The bartender hands all three girls cranberry vodkas and moves on to the next drove of thirsty patrons, the ladies turning to find a place to sit. Cherry lets her friends go on ahead, offering only a perfunctory, “Hey, I’ll catch up with you guys, okay?” as they go.

  Both friends have seen this play out enough times to know they’re on their own for the night. They wish Cherry well and disappear into the crowd, shaking their heads.

  The irony in their voices is lost on her.

  The straw in her drink finds its way to the corner of her mouth as she ambles over, ignoring a pair of ogling freshmen. She sips at the drink and pulls up just short of Cole, extending a manicured nail down towards the stool beside him.

  “This seat taken?”

  For the first time, Cole shifts his attention away from the screen to the overdone co-ed beside him. The look on his face relays that he’s not quite repulsed, but far from enthused. “Not that I know of.”

  The message goes right past Cherry. “Mind if I join you?”

  Cole’s only response is a shrug as he picks up his beer and takes a swig.

  “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you in here before,” Cherry coos, dropping herself down onto the stool, turning her body to face Cole’s. Her knees press against his hip, her intentions even more clear than they were just a moment before.

  Cole pretends not to notice. “You haven’t.”

  “Trying someplace new tonight?”

  Cole doesn’t even try to hide his eye roll. He’s seen this play out far too many times not to know where it’s going, though it is the first time a woman’s ever tried it on him.

  “Not from around here.”

  “Oh!” Cherry says, her facing lighting up. “So where you from?”

  Cole raises his stare back up to the game. “Alaska.”

  Cherry takes another sip of her drink and glances up to the game, oblivious to the signals Cole is sending her. “So what brings you to our little corner of Heaven?”

  A deep sigh rolls from Cole, a mix of frustration and disbelief. “Just passing through.”

  “Where could you possibly be going that would bring you through here?”

  “California.”

  A playful slap hits his forearm. “Oh wow. Don’t suppose you have room for an extra passenger do you? I’ve never been to California before.”

  The final, foamy dregs of his beer twirl in the bottom of the glass as Cole spins it, making a point to look anywhere but at Cherry. She has now shattered the touch barrier and tried to invite herself along for the trip.

  Still, his interest level is lukewarm at best.

  “Sorry, but I’m the extra passenger on this trip.”

  The words sit heavy between them as Cherry goes back to her drink, crestfallen. In the corner, the band begins to pick up, the first broken chords of a bad guitar solo wailing out.

  Cherry looks over at them, back to Cole, and leans in close. She presses tight against his arm, her breasts touching his elbow, her moist breath in his ear.

  “Well, shoot, I guess that means hello and goodbye all in the same night, doesn’t it?”

  A loud thud against the wall behind her headboard shakes Ruby from her sleep, snapping her eyes awake. She lies on her side with her body curled into the fetal position, a pillow balled up in her hands. Breath comes in ragged gasps, her heart pounding, body bathed in sweat.

  The sound rings out again, a bang so violent it shakes the wall.

  Ruby’s first thought is the sound is coming from next door. That’s Cole’s room, and it sounds like a tussle. She bolts upright and rolls to her side, reaching for the phone to call the front desk, have them send someone to make sure he’s okay.

  A second sound penetrates the wall, stopping her hand inches from the phone, causing a sinking feeling in her stomach. It is the unmistakable sound of two people in the throes of passion.

  Heavy kisses, loud panting.

  Ruby’s jaw sags open as she drops back down onto the bed, returning to the fetal position. She stares straight into the darkness, listening as Cole and his new friend have sex less than three feet away. After a few moments she takes the pillow from her hands and smashes it against her head, sandwiching it over her ears, trying in vain to block out the sounds of passion.

  It is no use.

  There is no way to escape it, nowhere for her to go.

  It takes a full twenty minutes for the tryst to end, both parties climaxing with a mighty moan before falling silent.

  By the time they are done, Ruby’s pillow is soaked wet with tears.

  The morning air in Kentucky is a touch less humid than in Virginia, though every bit as hot. It hits Ruby in a wall as she steps outside the door of her hotel room, bag in hand. Three minutes earlier the front desk informed her it was five minutes before eight. She is dressed and ready for the day, a resolute expression on her face.

  She stands in the early morning heat, an ear cocked to the wind, listening. There is the unmistakable sound of traffic crawling by on the highway, an occasional cicada sounding off in the distance.

  The scent of coffee floats by on the breeze.

  The door to room eight bursts open beside her, snapping her head towards the commotion. From it spills Cherry, stumbling, pulling on clothes from a second early morning go-round. Her hair is tousled and a line of mascara snakes down her cheek.

  She sees Ruby standing there and giggles, adjusting her prodigious assets back beneath her shirt. “Morning.”

  “Good morning,” Ruby responds, her tone curt.

  Cherry senses the tone, her features clouding over. “Cole said if I saw a black girl with a corncob up her ass to tell her he’d be right out. I’m guessing that’s you.”

  The words do nothing to Ruby’s expression. “Please tell Cole I’ll be waiting right here whenever he’s done putting the trash out.”