The Ferryman by Amy Neftzger Read Free Book Online Page B

and a security check, they had given Karen the keys. She had the car for twenty four hours, because at the top of Scott’s list was “Driving a Ferrari.” This had been the most difficult item to fulfill, and it had taken the longest for her to arrange.
    “I don’t know,” he admitted. “It doesn’t matter. All I know is that it was fun, and I don’t care. I got hit by a car and I lived. I really lived.”
    “I’m glad you enjoyed it,” she said as she drove down the interstate exit and onto a country road.
    “Do you want to drive it?” she asked as she pulled over on the deserted road. It was a very flat stretch of road with little traffic.
    “Hell, yes!” he said. “And I’m not going to wear a seatbelt.”
    Karen helped him into the driver’s seat and then fastened herself in next to him. The interior wasn’t exactly spacious, but it didn’t matter. Scott wanted to drive really fast in a red Ferrari convertible. It wasn’t an inexpensive activity, but Karen decided it was part of the cost of doing business because she knew how important it was to him.
    Scott took off quickly and kept accelerating. The wind whipped Karen’s hair in different directions, and she wished that she had tied it back as she felt it slapping her face.
    Scott shouted much the same way he did when he was going down the bridge in his wheelchair. He had some difficulty shifting gears, but he managed without help. Once the car was in the top gear he simply accelerated. Karen checked her seatbelt. The incredible speed was both thrilling and terrifying, and she felt the excitement. The speeding car was kicking up the road dust, so much so that Karen could smell it along with the scent of oil coming off the hot engine. She was surprised at how much she was enjoying herself.
    The wind roared as it rushed over them and Karen couldn’t hear very much, but she could see the joy on Scott’s face. He was screaming ecstatically.
    “This is living!” he screamed. Karen smiled and nodded as she pulled her hair back from her face with one hand. “Why couldn’t I have died in a Ferrari? This would be a great way to go!” he said.
    “Then go,” Karen shouted back with encouragement. She squinted to keep her eyes from drying out in the wind as she looked at him. “You have the choice to go now and make this your last memory of earth.” Scott glanced around at the interior of the car and paused briefly to lock eyes with Karen as he considered her words, but it didn’t take him long to make his decision.
    “I will. Thank you,” he said as he let go of the wheel and vanished slowly. His image melted from the bottom up as it disappeared from view. Karen was relieved that she had accomplished this transition and there had been no hint that Scott had gone to hell. But no one was driving. It was dark outside. She couldn’t see if there were obstacles. She was in a speeding rented Ferrari with no one at the wheel. No one. The car was decelerating without any pressure on the gas, but it was still speeding and nobody was steering. Her mind was on Claude and what he would do if she died in a car crash. She had no family to help him, and he would become a ward of the state. The thought panicked her.
    Karen unbuckled herself and climbed into the driver’s seat to take control of the car. Her hands were shaking as she started to break. It took a few minutes to slow the car down enough to stop safely. Karen pulled over on the shoulder of the deserted road and fell out of the car. Her whole body shook, and she paced back and forth to calm herself. She was parched, but the movement was soothing to her. She continued to pace back and forth even though what she really wanted was to sip from the water bottle she’d left in the car.
    “That was risky,” Fate said, appearing before Karen and further unnerving her.
    “I didn’t know it was risky when I started it,” Karen responded. She wished she had one of those little liquor bottles to help calm