99
You watch tensely as the bikers ride into the town. You give a silent prayer that they will pass through Eldorado without stopping, and, to your relief, your prayer is answered. With the immediate threat gone, you decide to remain where you are and get a few hours’ sleep before waking Kate and continuing your journey at dawn.
In the clear light of early morning you can see for miles across the rocky plain that surrounds the highway south of Eldorado. Although it appears empty, you remain on the alert every second of your drive to Sonora, the next town marked on your map, for it is in this direction that the Angelinos were heading when they rode through Eldorado last night. You are less than a mile from the ruins of Sonora when you are greeted by the welcome sight of Interstate 10, stretching east-to-west across your path. This is the freeway you hope will take you all the way to your rendezvous with the colony at Kent, and then on through the mountains to El Paso.
You join the freeway and enjoy the feel of a firmer, clearer road surface beneath your wheels as you begin the long drive west. Still you can see no sign of the Angelinos, and Kate voices her hope that they have decided to search Sonora, thinking you may have hidden there last night. You want to agree with her, but suddenly, in the distance, you see something that proves her wrong.
