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“What are you saying? That they could be working for him ?” He shook his head. “No way.”
    “But he knows we would never suspect two girls driving in that piece-of-crap minivan. It’s the perfect disguise if you think about it. He might be the Devil, but he’s also smart.”
    Jim frowned as he glanced backward. He hoped that Ben was just being paranoid. “I think you’re wrong. And you’ll just piss them off.”
    “Probably but better to find out now than later, right?” Ben said rhetorically as he applied pressure to the brakes.
    Jim sighed. “I was hoping we might make some friends.”
    “Okay, I’ll try not to piss off your future girlfriend…which one?”
    “The brunette,” Jim answered without hesitating.
    Ben smiled to himself. “Fine with me.”

Chapter V
    C harlie was asleep in the backseat of the minivan as Andy drove, her eyes staring dully at the taillights of the truck in front of them. She was exhausted. The day had been endless.
    She looked over at Morgan sitting beside her and was surprised to find her still awake. “Aren’t you tired?” she asked quietly so as not to disturb Charlie.
    Morgan rolled the back of her head against her seat. “My body’s tired, but I’m not sleepy.”
    “Really? I’m exhausted.”
    “Want me to—?”
    Morgan didn’t finish. Instead she sat up and made a face that Andy could barely make out in the waning daylight.
    “What’s wrong?”
    “Can you stop the car? I feel sick.”
    Andy immediately applied the brake without noticing that the truck ahead was doing the same. The sudden deceleration awakened Charlie in time for him to see his sister leap out of the van.
    “Is she okay?” he asked.
    “Yeah, just carsick.”
    Andy stepped outside as the two boys approached.
    “She okay?” Jim asked.
    “Just carsick,” Andy repeated.
    Morgan recovered quickly and apologized to everyone.
    “Don’t be sorry,” Jim assured. “You need water or anything?”
    “That would be great, thanks.”
    As Jim returned to the truck, Ben took advantage of the moment. “So, where are you guys coming from?” he asked, trying to sound casual. “Before Washington, I mean.”
    “Bermuda,” Charlie quickly answered.
    Ben couldn’t have been more surprised had the answer been the Moon. “Are you joking?”
    “Nope,” Andy replied as she placed a comforting hand on Morgan’s shoulder. “We were there for five years. Ever since the virus.”
    “What were you doing in Bermuda?”
    “Vacation,” Andy answered.
    Jim returned with a glass bottle filled with water. He handed it to Morgan, who thanked him.
    “So you guys sailed here from Bermuda?” Ben continued.
    “Bermuda?” Jim repeated, sounding amazed. “Wow, what’s it like there?”
    “Not much different than anything we’ve seen here so far,” said Andy, purposely vague. “Just add some ocean.”
    “When did you leave?” Jim asked.
    Andy looked at Charlie. “What, about a week ago?”
    “Yeah. It was your birthday, remember?”
    “Oh, right.” Andy shook her head. “The days are blending together. Until today, we’ve been on a boat most of the time.”
    “Where are you two coming from?” Morgan interjected, wanting to change the topic from anything involving the last month.
    Ben and Jim exchanged looks.
    “New York,” said Ben flatly.
    “New York City ?” Andy inquired.
    Ben cleared his throat. “Yeah.”
    “I’ve never been to New York, even before the virus. “What’s it like? Any better than DC?”
    Ben looked down at his shoes and kicked at a stone. “Not really.”
    “Just a lot more people,” Jim added, rather hastily. “That’s actually why we left. Not enough food and too many people. You know how it is.”
    Andy looked back and forth between the two. “Yeah. We know how that is.”
    Ben glanced at his watch. “Let’s get moving. I hate driving in the dark.”
    The group separated back into their respective vehicles.
    “What d’ya think?” Jim asked after Ben