I entitled this chapter 'Barricade' for a reason... if you're familiar with the 2007 film Transformers then you'll hopefully spot the reference...
It was a brilliantly sunny day, as I described so plainly in the previous chapter, but seemed to have a much better reputation in other parts of the country, where deserts were absent. DJ set his stereo at full blast, singing along to Summer Of '69, and Wingo actually found himself joining in, feeling happier for DJ's positive attitude towards things as of now. It was almost as if the cops weren't after them anymore and all the members of the DRH were cruising along the road in the country on this fine day, having a whale of a time before they reached the next city to party at.
But just as it seemed as if all their troubles were over for now, a sudden rumbling filled the air just above DJ's music. He blinked and narrowed his eyes, straining to listen. He turned his music down almost off altogether and Wingo looked at him, surprised.
'What's up, DJ? You haven't found more evidence, have you?'
It was even better than that… if what followed were not worse.
They both sat in the middle of the road and tried to make out the figure rushing towards them through the violent heat waves. That engine roar sounded very familiar… and when a small flame erupted in the distance as the sound of someone sneezing was audible, both DJ and Wingo gasped in astonishment.
'SNOT ROD!'
Wingo took off excitedly, but DJ hesitated. Why wasn't the Cuda slowing down to meet them? 'Snot Rod?' he called out again loudly.
Snot Rod was yelling something back above his hissing flames and roaring engine. As he drew closer, DJ and Wingo managed to make out what he was saying:
'HIDE! COPS! DRIVE, GET OUT OF HERE, HIDE!'
He flashed noisily past, screaming at them to follow. The other two obeyed automatically, backing up and hurtling after him down the way they had come. There were no police officers in sight, but DJ and Wingo knew from the desperate tone of Snot Rod's voice that there was danger and it was coming, all right.
The muscle car led them down into a worn old ditch just at the side of the road. It was deep enough to let the Delinquents be concealed from view of any cars passing by, with the exception of Wingo's sky-scraping spoiler. The threesome ducked down into the dirt, sinking low. 'Yo Snot,' whispered DJ, 'where are the cops?'
'They're coming from that way,' the Cuda hissed back, nodding down the road.
'From where?' Wingo muttered impatiently.
He spoke too soon: multiple engines echoed from a distance away, higher-pitched than Snot Rod's muscle car appeal but with a somewhat dangerous tone. DJ and Snot Rod tried to stay as still as they could; Wingo shuffled uncomfortably from behind, knowing the tip of his spoiler was exposed.
Two stern-looking police cruisers shot by. One of them was a sleek 2005 Mustang; the other was a hybrid with piercing gold eyes. Neither of them seemed to pay attention to the nearby ditch, or the strange bright green arch just protruding from beyond the edge. The Delinquents listened to them zoom past, hardly daring to breathe.
As soon as the cops melted into the distant heat waves, Snot Rod carefully poked his hood out of the ditch, looking around. 'They're gone,' he murmured.
The three cars pulled out onto the road. 'Damn,' Wingo said, 'we've never had to hide like this before. Is everyone after us now?'
'Everyone who lives in… well… whatever this place is called,' DJ grumbled. 'And where's Boost? Didn't he go with you last night?' He turned questioningly to Snot Rod, who looked at the ground nervously. The Scion watched him expectantly.
'…See… it didn't go quite as planned,' Snot Rod murmured slowly. 'Me and him were hiking through the desert 50 kilometres away from Yarrow City, and then we stopped to take a break even though we knew the cops were after us. And then they caught up with us and I managed to get away but… they got Boost.' He sighed, sniffling in his usual way. 'I knew I shouldn't have left him there, or even stopped in the first place. It's all my freakin' fault…' He glared at the ground ashamedly.
Wingo snorted. 'It was nowhere near your fault, man. If you tried to save him, you both would have been caught.'
'But now we've gotta find him,' DJ said seriously. 'He could be in court or jail or somethin' right now, with no defence. Or they could be sentencing him to death. We can't let that happen to our leader, man.'
'You're right,' Wingo and Snot Rod agreed simultaneously.
There was no need for any further discussion. The three Delinquent Road Hazards wheeled around and set off together in the direction of the desert, knowing that Boost was hopefully somewhere nearby and still alive.
Some say that there are things worse than death. Those people happen to be right.
Epic. ...Ish. Actually this chapter was very boring. But I promise you, it gets better!