Nine
The sensation of jouncing along the forest road in Sean’s big Toyota Tundra truck was so exhilarating, Deirdre almost wanted to laugh out loud. As she drove, she recognized far too many landmarks that she’d already gone by multiple times on foot, but now they passed quickly enough, eating up ground in minutes that had taken her more than an hour to cover. Despite Amaal’s reassurances, she couldn’t help continuing to glance in the rearview mirror or out through the side window to see if any djinn followed her, alerted by the dust trail she was leaving behind, but the skies remained clear, as did the road in front of and behind her.
Sooner than she’d expected, she pulled into the outskirts of Running Springs. She’d already gone through the one grocery/general store here, but she’d alw
