We zoomed past the border sign for the edge of District 11, and the resulting ding from my toll card woke me up. I yawned and stretched, and saw that Savii was watching me in her rear view mirror.
‘Morning, sunshine,’ she said, grinning widely. ‘How’d you sleep?’
‘Like a fugitive,’ I grumbled. ‘How are you so chipper? Haven’t you been driving all night?’
‘I don’t need as much sleep as– as you,’ she finished quickly.
‘Right,’ I frowned at her, pulling my jumper on and rolling down the back window for some fresh air. ‘Where are we anyway?’
‘Heading into the UV District,’ she told me. ‘So I’d close that window if you don’t want a nasty sunburn.’
‘The UV district…’ I murmured, doing as she said. ‘That means we’re close to the edge of the City!’
‘Don’t get too excited,’ Savii said, locking eyes with me in the mirror. ‘We need a game plan for when we get there.’
‘Why?’
‘Because they’ll be running vehicle inspections, for safety.’
‘Whose safety?’
‘Not ours,’ she said with a tight grin.
‘Do you think they’ll be suspicious?’
‘Of this car? With all its damage and/or missing wing mirrors? Can’t imagine why.’
‘Alright then,’ I grumbled, sliding into the front seat. ‘What’s your plan, abductor-mine?’
‘You’re a very dramatic person, do you know that?’
‘What’s the plan?’
‘Simple,’ Savii said, with a sly grin. ‘We get her fixed.’
‘Fixed? Fixed how?’
‘We find a place close to the border that does detailing work and can make her all pretty again.’
‘You can’t be serious. That’s your plan?’
‘I think we’ll also need someone to do a full car service near Morayfield – she ain’t sounding so hot right now.’
‘Colour me unsurprised,’ I muttered to myself. ‘You know I loved this car, right?’
‘Yessss,’ Savii groaned. ‘You bring it up every time I mildly bump into something.’
‘It was a wall!’
‘Not a full wall!’