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“Shit.” The beams of a car’s headlights suddenly swept onto the square. The car hurried and came right up behind the pickup. “Cops,” whispered Elro.
Looking back, I could see the bubble on top. “Go slow,” I said. Then, remembering the trouble Bunny had had on Sunday, I added, “But not too slow.”
“Shit,” said Elro again. He was rattled and kept looking back over his shoulder at the police car.
“Don’t turn around,” I said. “They’ll suspect something.”
“Shit.”
As we looped around the square, the police car stayed behind us, its headlights bathing the cab of the truck in brightness. “That old lady must have called them,” said Elro. “I knew she was trouble.”
“Calm down. Just turn off.”
“Where?”
“Anywhere.”
We passed the old, boarded-up Ward’s building, a somber black wall, and Elro turned right on South Harrington. Suddenly, the cab was dark again. The police car continued on around the square.
“Now we’re going the wrong way.” I said.
“Huh?”
“We’re headed south. Wisconsin is north.”
“Just shut up for a minute,” Elro said. “Just shut up and let me think.”
“Okay.”
“Shut up.” He drank some more whiskey and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.
The excitement of escaping had given me a temporary lift, but now the dread came back, a deep familiar ache. For a moment, I imagined that I was trapped in this pickup with Elro, that I was condemned forever to glide the streets of Katydid, pursued by the police.
“The Dells,” said Elro. He sounded calmer.
“The Dells?”
“The Wisconsin Dells. I’ve always wanted to go there.”
“Okay.” Better humor him, I thought. Keep him calm.
“Ride the ducks.”
“What?”
“Ducks. They’ve got these amphibious vehicles called ducks. They go anyplace—on land or water. They’re left over from World War Two. You see billboards for them all over Wisconsin. I always wanted to ride one.”
“Sure.” Was he drunk already?
“Anyway,” he added, “there’s lots of people there. No one’ll ever notice us.”
Suddenly, I realized Elro was right. The Dells was the perfect place for us—a big tourist attraction, with people coming and going all the time, lots of kids around, a favorite date spot. We’d blend right in. Why, we could probably even get work. Me as a waitress, and Elro—well, maybe in a gas station or something. The Dells was perfect.
“Great,” I said. “That’s a great idea.”
He looked at me and smiled. “We’ll get a motel room.”
“Okay,” I said, and I turned to stare out the window as the houses of Katydid passed in the darkness.
