LUNCH HAD BEEN OVER hours ago. Vince and Julie were getting restless. The scenery along the way—Joshua trees, yuccas, sagebrush—was interesting for the first few hours. Now it all went by in a brown and green blur.
Radio stations faded in and out as they passed through the various towns and mile upon mile of nothingness. They drove on until twilight came creeping up on them, bringing with it a chill wind that erased any of the afternoon’s heat.
Driving east through lava beds and countless dry lakes and over the Nevada state line, they finally saw the town rise out of the desert, its joyously wicked signs flirting with the fading daylight. This was Sodom and Gomorrah of the twenty-first century: Las Vegas.
“Well, where to now?” Vince asked, pulling over to the side of the empty road. “Do
