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"You still doubt what I told you," I say

In htly to look at h with hiates it I never will be

But he doesn’t answer

Ato get to you in case you have any pity for ence, just like Izel had at one point, but this ismyself from her accusation I want hio on, finally looking at hiain

"But you never had any pity for e hiive up and lay ainst the car

"I know you’re not a whore," he says

CHAPTER FIVE

It’s been on rare occasion that I sawthe day, other than the co, or an early Sundaydrive I spentwhen Lydia and I were relocated with the other girls before other dangerous drug lords ca us ‘safe’ in case a deal went bad But ays traveled at night, so despite the predicament I’m in now, I find ht Mexican landscape flies by

We’ve been driving for two hours

"I’ry," I say

A few quiet seconds pass before he answers

"I have nothing to eat in this car"

"Well, can’t we stop soet hi my questions like that, I’d al to run off," I say, turning sideways to better see hi to eat since earlyyesterday Please"

"There are no drive-thru’s here"

"Where is here, anyway?" Suddenly, er has taken the backseat "At least tell me where I’ve spent the last nine years of n severalI’ve seen on the ain, h school textbook from 1997

"We are now five h, frustrated withany idea where that is, either

"You’re less than two hours from the United States border," he says and stunsfully on the seat, ainst the car door

"But you said I was--you made it sound like I was days from the border"

"No I simply stated the distance was farther than I wanted you as rily over ry at all with so myself quickly of where I aain

"Is that where we’re going?" I ask "Is this man you’re supposed to kill for Javier in the United States?"

"Yes"

Silence

I burst into tears They cohbecause I’e, stoic personality and one-word answers are enough to uratively shootwith everything else buried inside: relief that I’ve finally gotten away, fear of being sent back there again, worried about how badly Izel will beat Lydia, theeasy to solve, the hunger inhad a bath in two days now, the fact that I could die at anyI can account for is that I am, in fact, still alive and not as far away froht I was

I feel the car veer off to the right as he pulls onto another highway

I look over at hi back the rest of my tears I reach up and wipe , he doesn’t try to console me or ask questions He doesn’t seem to care and I don’t care much, either, that he doesn’t I never expected hi up to the front of an old roadside convenience store Only one truck is parked out front, a white Ford with rust along the doors