“You still worried your dad will come looking for you?” Elise asked.
“I know he will. There’s no way he’s just going to let me go.” Leaning my head back against the headrest, I let out a breath of exasperation. “I just have to stay a couple of steps ahead of him for the rest of my life.”
“Well, he will have to give up eventually. We got rid of everything that links you to your old life, so I don’t even think he’s following you now. And if he is, there’s no way he knows where you are,” Elise replied.
A humorless chuckle escaped me. “You don’t know him like I do. And now that he is a cartel lord, he has more resources. I hope you’re right, but I’m not holding my breath.”
The sun was setting when we made it into Roswell. “I wonder if any of the museums are still open.”
“If they’re not, we can check them out in the morning before we head to the Grand Canyon.”
I had a specific timeline in mind, and I wanted to make it to the Grand Canyon the next day and Vegas the day after that. “It’s almost an eleven-hour drive to the Grand Canyon. We don’t have a lot of free time tomorrow.”
Elise chuckled. “Hey, this is supposed to be a fun road trip. We don’t have to stick to a strict schedule.”
She wasn’t running for her life. “Well, I want to stay ahead of my dad, and if we’re staying extra days in Vegas, we have to make up for it somehow.”
We pulled into the hotel we’d reserved the day before. “Hey, I have an idea,” Elise said as she parked.
I was a little anxious about the timeline, so my tone was clipped as I replied, “What?”
She tapped on her phone. “Well, it looks like it takes the same amount of time to get to Vegas as it does to get to the Grand Canyon.”
I smacked my tongue. “I don’t want to skip the Grand Canyon, Elise.”
“I’m not finished yet. We could go to Vegas and take one of those Grand Canyon helicopter tours they have all over the place. Best view there is.”
I pursed my lips to the side as I thought about her suggestion. “You know, that’s not a bad idea.”
She clapped her hands. “I have some good ones from time to time.”
We unloaded our bags and checked into our room. “Hey, there’s this cute Western cafe down the road from here. You want to grab something to eat?” Elise asked.
“Yeah. I wasn’t too impressed with the diner we stopped at earlier. Hopefully they have some good food here.”
There wasn’t much to do in Roswell at night. So after we ate, we went to a local bar and grill for Elise to find her hookup in Roswell.
“I don’t think it will matter if you have sex with someone in Roswell. This is a small town,” I pointed out before taking a sip of my drink.
Elise shook her head, smacking her tongue. “I’m a woman of my word. Every city we stop.”
Rolling my eyes playfully, I laughed. “Whatever you say.”
“Did you think more about what I said about the Grand Canyon and Vegas? I’d like to know a game plan before I’m occupied for the night.”
“I think going to Vegas from here is a good idea. I did some research, and we have a choice of several tours we can take from Vegas.”
Elise clapped her hands. “So when we check out, we’ll get some breakfast, then head to Vegas.”
I nodded. “Not looking forward to that drive, though. It will take us almost twelve hours.”
Elise groaned. “Maybe we should add another stop. That is a long drive.”
I shook my head. I didn’t want to add any more time to our trip and give my dad an opportunity to catch up to me. “No. I think if we switch halfway like we did today, we should be fine. Six hours each isn’t bad. We did that from Miami to New Orleans.”
Elise pouted. “I guess. You’re the boss.”
I laughed as the bartender slid up two shots; shots we didn’t order. I arched a brow, and the bartender said, “From the guy at the other end of the bar.”