DOCUDRAMA

Chapter 9

By now it was obvious to both Ben and Bailey, that the strange object in the sky was clearly following them. In hindsight, Ben sorely regretted his decision to drive straight home, instead of staying over in Montreal.

"Maybe we should stop, Ben. Turn around and go back to Vermont. There was a motel outside of Brattleboro. It's not all that far." Bailey said nervously.

"No! We keep driving. We're not far from home. That thing can't follow us forever." Ben insisted stubbornly, his white-knuckled fists gripping the steering wheel for all they were worth.

Ben was desperately trying to ignore the strange craft in the sky, but it was nearly impossible. Sweat broke out on his forehead. He pried his left hand loose from the wheel and shakily groped for the window handle. Cranking down the window part way, Ben breathed in the crisp autumn air.

With a slight whistling noise, the frigid night breeze streamed into the interior of their Chevy Nomad. In the back of the station wagon, Little Joe sat upright. Pricking his ears forward, he sniffed. Then whining, the dog lay back down, curling himself up into a furry ball. He worried eyes roved to and fro, watching first the top of Ben's head, then Bailey's.

"Jeez! It's cold out there tonight. Looks like we might get our first snow of the season." Bailey shivered. "Do ya' have'ta have that window open? Never mind the alien menace. You're gonna' wind up giving me double pneumonia."

"Whatever you want, sweetheart." Ben sighed. Begrudgingly, he rolled the window back up. "I just needed a bit of fresh air."

"Wait!" Bailey pointed out his window. "We just passed a rest area. Looks like it has some kind of phone booth. It said 'police' on it. Turn around and go back. Maybe we can call for help."

"And tell the cops what? That we're being chased by a flying saucer?" Ben snorted. "Yeah, Ben. I'm sure that'll get them out here. To arrest me."

"Arrest you?" Bailey echoed back to him incredulously. "For what?"

"Oh, I dunno'. For making a prank call. Wasting police time. Drunk driving. I'm sure they'll think of something."

"Drunk driving? Right, Ben. Now you're just being melodramatic. They can't arrest you for that. We only had a six-pack of beer. And that was yesterday." Bailey shook his head at Ben's thickness. "Look. We've passed the rest area. But according to my map there's a town up ahead. About..." Bailey squinted at the map, trying to read it by the lights of the car's dashboard, "...seven, maybe ten miles down the road. We can...Ben? Why did you stop the car? Isn't that dangerous? We're right in the middle of the road, for pete's sake!"

Bailey was greeted by silence. Ben didn't answer, he was frozen in place. His face turned pale and he began to shake all over. With eyes stark with terror, Ben stared into the car's rear view mirror.

"What's going on?" Letting the map slide to the floor, Bailey shook his boyfriend's arm. "Ben, talk to me. Are you OK? Why have you stopped the car?"

Ben struggled to find his voice. His mouth felt dry as sandpaper. "I didn't stop the car, Bailey. The car stopped all on its own. Look for yourself."

And it was true. Ben's foot wasn't on the brake. The indicator on the dash showed that the car was still in drive. And the motor was running. However, the car was standing stock still. The headlights had dimmed significantly, however. So dim, that Bailey could barely make out the double yellow line in the middle of the highway.

"Maybe the battery's going dead?" Bailey suggested hopefully. Though he knew little about cars, since he didn't drive. "Or a fuse is on the fritz. Cars do have fuses, don't they? Ben? Ben? What the hell's going on? Say something, will ya'?"

"Oh my God." Ben whispered, still staring into the rear view mirror. "They're here. They've coming for us."

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