The American Humvee pulls up beside Matt.
"I got him." Jim lines up Pieter's escaping bike.
"Let him go," Books orders.
Jim lowers the M2. "What's your thinking?"
"We'll let him head somewhere we might want to get to."
The Americans watch Pieter disappear into the distance.
Matt says, "What took you guys so long? I thought you'd stopped at a Howard Johnson's or something?"
"Hey, shithead, we stick together—remember?" Sophia says.
"Guess it's the racer in me."
"Testosterone overload, you mean. Jeez, men and their dicks."
"Hey, I like my dick."
"Well, just keep it in your pants next time, okay?" Sophia nods toward the laser fence. "What happened?"
"The guy on the yellow bike had nowhere else to go. He went through the laser, then kissed his ass goodbye."
"Hope that case is still good?" Cutter looks worried.
"Not sure. It's still on the bike. Fuck knows how we're gonna get it." Matt looks through the laser fence at the destroyed yellow KTM.
Books turns to the group. "Anyone ever been fishing?"
"Sure—why?" Jim asks.
"Because we're gonna throw a line out. Take us over to that laser tower, kid."
Jedi drives the Humvee over to the pylon and parks up alongside it. They all disembark.
A low-pitched hum comes from a large metal box bolted to the foot of the tower. Thick cables lead from the box to several lasers bolted to the pylon's thick steel legs. Above the box is a sign with a painted skull and crossbones on it with the words DANGER - DO NOT CROSS, written in large red letters.
"What the hell!" Lloyd exclaims.
"Nothing to worry about," Jedi tells him.
"Tell that to the dead guy over there." Lloyd points over to Carlos' strewn body.
"What I mean is, nothing to worry about as long as we don't stray over the lasers," Jedi says.
"Trust me, kid, when I say I ain't straying anywhere."
Jedi walks up to the pylon and stops in front of it. He looks both to his left and right. The laser fence stretches out in each direction to far horizons.
"Incredible!" Jedi says, stunned.
"I could think of several superlatives, and incredible isn't one of them," Matt says.
"Yeah. What we got here is just one big mother of an open-air prison, with thirty-foot guards." Cutter points to the tower. "Think he should've waited for his parole hearing first." He nods toward the mutilated Carlos.
"Question," Jedi says. He looks down at the skid marks made by the South African's bike, then at Matt.
"Yeah, kid?" Matt asks.
"The second bike—the pink one—what happened?"
"One lucky guy. He just stopped in time."
"His front wheel went through the laser, right?"
"Yeah—then he backs up—real gentle."
"Interesting."
Books hops into the Humvee and drives it forward, then reverses the big machine toward the laser fence. He parks the Humvee twenty yards away from the tower. He jumps back onto the salt pan and walks toward the rear of the truck.
