Well that certainly went right along with Zakk’s suspicion that Dez’s and Winter’s decision to ride had been directly influenced by the issues they had going on with Tripp.
“I won’t,” Tripp said. “I don’t want my brother out there any more than you do. Dez either. Will be safer, and saner to have them in here with us rather than out there with the crazies.”
And speaking of crazies, that same zipping, zooming, high-pitched whining sound Zakk had heard through the phone suddenly sounded like it was right beside them for half a second before it flew past. A horn sounded to the left of them, while it felt like the RV slowed down a little, its distinct horn blaring.
“Fuckin’ assholes gonna kill somebody!” James growled loud enough all of them could hear as the RV bounced and rattled.
“That wasn’t you running them over, was it?” Riley called out.
“Don’t I wish!”
Zakk’s only thought was how glad he was that it had passed Winter and Dez before they’d gotten back on the road.
“I’m um, going to swap movies out if no one minds,” Tavis commented. “Load in the first Shrek movie. I don’t know about Dez’s nerves, but it will help settle Winter’s.”
“It’ll be good for Dez too,” Riley said as he worked on rolling a few fat joints.
Tavis switched the movies out, while Zakk sat next to Tripp, who alternated between bouncing his leg up and down and drumming his fingertips on the table.
“How are you feeling?” Zakk asked.
“Anxious as fuck.”
“I meant physically.”
“Was relaxed right up until the point where you informed us all that my brother nearly got hit by a truck. Throat still twinges from time to time, so you’ll have to excuse me for not smoking, but I’m going to sit right here and laugh right alongside everyone else once the movie starts.”
There was nothing but sincerity in his voice, and that hand that had steadily been tapping out a tune on the table, was now sliding up and down Zakk’s back as Tripp used him as a touchstone, something he didn’t mind in the slightest. It was helping him relax too, though Zakk knew that none of them would be able to settle down completely until they had set eyes on Winter and Dez.
The wail of sirens split the night, the RV along with the cars in the lanes beside them, trying to move as far right as they could go to let the authorities roar by. Traffic degraded to a slow crawl before finally stopping altogether, prompting Riley to scurry to the front of the bus to see what was going on.
“Oh…damn…”
“What?” Zakk called, torn between wanting to see what was going on, and staying right where he was with Tripp’s hand on him.
“Big ass wreck is what,” Riley called back. “We’re stuck for a while.”
“Son of a bitch,” Tripp growled. “Any idea how far we are from the rest stop?”
“Three miles,” James called back.
“Going to be a long-ass three miles,” Tavis muttered.
“Gonna be even longer for Winter and Dez,” Zakk pointed out. He just hoped that the merging traffic, slow pace, and frayed nerves weren’t a recipe for disaster.
Inch by inch they crept along, as ambulances and two fire trucks joined the police officers in painting the night with neon shades of red, blue, and white. It was next to impossible to make out what types of vehicles were among the twisted masses of metal crunched together against the Jersey barricade dividing the north and southbound lanes. One looked like it could have been a jeep, while the other resembled an accordion with jagged bellows of broken glass.
“That’s gotta be three cars, easy,” Tavis commented.
Cocking his head, Zakk studied the mess as best he could through the tinted window. “Pretty sure it’s four, looks like an SUV on top of something way smaller.
“I think it’s five,” Tripp remarked, standing shoulder to shoulder with Zakk as they peered out at the first responders with crowbars and saws, trying to free the people trapped within the vehicles. “Look under the back of that semi.”
Sure enough, when Zakk turned his attention to the back end of the truck’s trailer, he could just make out a small car wedged underneath it, its taillights a bright, angry red. Scarlett tinged the smoke of its exhaust, while a bloom of brilliant orange and gold burst along the quarter panel.
“Holy shit, it’s on fire,” Tripp murmured, his hand coming to rest on the small of Zakk’s back.
“How fuckin’ fast do you have to be going to manage that?” Riley mused.