Road To Nowhere Read Free Page A

church.”
    “You were joking when you said he was a priest, weren’t you?”
    “Nope.”
    “Do you really want to see him on the way up?” Teresa asked. “The reason I ask is we'll definitely have to take the coast road then and it will take us longer. But I don't mind. I was thinking of going that way anyway.”
    “Do you want to see him?” Poppy asked.
    Teresa chuckled. “Why would I want to see a priest?”
    “He could listen to your confession.”
    Teresa shivered, although she still felt hot. Her shirt was damp with perspiration. “I have nothing to confess,” she said.
    Poppy closed her eyes. “We all have something to confess.” She took a drag on her cigarette and coughed. “Some bloody thing.”
    Free reappeared a minute later. Teresa was surprised to see he had the two six-packs of beer with him. He explained that he had found his licence. He set the alcohol on the front seat and casually topped off the gas tank. Then they were back on the road, back on the freeway. Heading north, with no clear destination in mind.
     
     
    CHAPTER TWO
     
    They didn’t reach the coast until an hour and a half later, after they had driven through Ventura. On the drive up Free drank four beers, Poppy two, and Teresa one. Closing on Santa Barbara, the black Pacific on their left, they finished the last of the doughnuts and milk. Finally the air tasted fresh and salty. Free dazzled Teresa with more card tricks and was in a jolly mood the whole time. He did one trick where he had Teresa name a card and then – he said he definitely used magic this time – made it appear in the back pocket of her trousers. Try as Teresa might, she couldn’t figure out how he had done it.
    “I could have made it show up in your underwear,” Free said as he took the card back and slipped it into one of his deep pockets.
    “I'm beginning to believe it,” Teresa said, blushing. She was easily embarrassed when it came to talking about sexual matters, particularly with a cute guy. She had begun to like Free – his outrageous charm, the pleasure he took in everything she said, his exaggerated displeasure with everything Poppy did. Of course, Poppy didn’t say or do much of anything, except smoke and stare out the window at the rain-washed night. Teresa almost wished that Free had been hitch-hiking alone. She didn’t actively dislike Poppy, not really – the girl just had problems that Teresa couldn’t deal with.
    Free fidgeted in his seat. He simply couldn’t sit still. “So, what are we going to do next?” he asked.
    “Do you want to listen to the radio?” Teresa asked. She loved to crank the music up while she drove and drown out her thoughts. But so far they hadn’t turned on the radio once. Free brushed aside her suggestion.
    “I’m not into canned entertainment,” he said. “I need something live, something that’s got guts. Hey, I know what! Let’s tell stories.”
    Teresa frowned. “What kind of stories?”
    “Ghost stories,” Free said. “Horror stories. Real life stories. Anything, I don’t care. Poppy and I do this all the time while we’re on the road. It helps pass the time. Doesn’t it, Poppy?”
    “The time always passes without our help,” Poppy said.
    Free turned round. “You’re in a lousy mood tonight. You should be the one to start. Come on, Poppy Corn, tell us the story of your life. Tell us how you became a big star.”
    “I would rather hear a story I haven’t heard before,” Poppy said.
    Free raised an eyebrow. “Such as?”
    “I would like to hear Teresa Chafey’s story,” Poppy said.
    Teresa giggled uneasily. “I don’t know any stories.”
    “No,” Free said. “Poppy wants to hear the story of your life.”
    “I’m eighteen years old,” Teresa said. “It would take all night to tell you everything that’s happened to me.”
    “We have all night,” Poppy said.
    “Don’t pressure the girl,” Free snapped. He spoke to Teresa gently. “Why don’t you tell us