I sat rigid in the back, clutching Tommy against my chest, and demanded again that Lambert take the wheel.

Bernice shut it down.

"He finally gets a chance to practice and you can't even let him have that?"

"You just look down on us. Admit it!"

Lambert frowned and said:

"Let him drive a little longer. I'm watching him—nothing's going to happen."

I was frantic. "This isn't about looking down on anyone! Safety comes first! If something happens, none of us can afford the consequences!"

Bernice just laughed, completely unbothered. "So what if something does happen? The car's yours. They'll come after you, not us. We're not responsible."

I was so stunned I couldn't speak.

She actually thought that way.

To squeeze in more time behind the wheel, Morton blew right past the second rest stop without slowing down.

I barely survived until the third one.

I told them I needed to make a bottle for Tommy. They needed the restroom anyway.

A taxi happened to be parked at the gas station.

I grabbed the car seat from the trunk, scooped up my son, and ran for it.

This time, nothing in the world would get me back in that car with them.

The moment I sank into the taxi's backseat, the tension drained out of me in one long exhale.

I'd barely gotten Tommy settled when my phone erupted—call after call, all from Bernice and Lambert.

I hesitated, then picked up Bernice's.

Her voice was sharp with accusation. "Astrid! Where are you? Get back here, we're about to leave!"

"Don't wait for me. I already took a cab."

"Took a cab?"

Her tone flipped to fury in an instant.

"What's that supposed to mean? If you didn't want us in your car, you could've just said so instead of sneaking off like a coward! You're making it look like we forced you out! If my brother hadn't begged me, I wouldn't have set foot in that piece of junk in the first place!"

Then Lambert's voice cut in, dripping with reproach.

"Astrid, you're being ridiculous. Bernice and her family just needed a ride. Was that really so much to ask?"

"Come back. We'll all go together."

I let out a cold laugh. My voice was ice.

"Say whatever you want. I'm not coming back."

"And one more thing—keep an eye on Morton. Don't let him drive. Unless you want to be crying over something you can't undo."

I hung up.

I was certain Morton didn't have a license.