The Last Ride Page #4

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I apologize for the

delay, Your Honor.

Are you all right?

Touch of the flu.

Well, we're almost done here.

So you're pleading guilty

to the trooper's charge?

$100 or 10 days in jail.

What about the car?

Are you the owner?

Yes, I am.

Show me the proof, and I

reckon you're free to go.

Mr. Wells, sir,

I ain't got any money.

I was just doing

like you asked.

Just pay the

damn fine, Sorbonne.

You gotta get me to Charleston.

He's just doing his job, like you boys.

It's my fault.

Well, how 'bout you boys slowin'

down and enjoyin' the ride?

Lot of drunks out there

on New Year's.

We'll do that. You all have a

happy New Year now, all right?

You all take it easy next time.

Had you goin' for a minute

back there, didn't I?

You don't look so good.

I just need to

take a nap, is all.

We better get gem'. We

got some "me to make up.

Yes, sir.

Turn on the radio.

Bristol.

Virginia on one side of the

street, Tennessee on the other.

This here's the cradle,

Sorbonne.

Sir?

Country music.

Jimmie Rodgers and the Carters,

they brought it down from the

mountains, turned it into pure gold.

Is it really 1:
00?

Yes, sir. I mean, yeah.

We ain't gonna make it, are we?

Not by 7:
00. Maybe 10:00 or

11:
00 if the road stays clear,

but it's clouding up again.

It might snow.

Damn.

A lot of people counting on ol' Luke, boy.

A lot of people.

Take the next left up here.

Flight 892 is now boarding.

AH passengers please

proceed to the gate.

Flight 892 is now boarding. All

passengers please proceed to the gate.

No more flights to

Charleston till tomorrow.

Closest I can get is Wheeling,

and that flight

doesn't leave till 8:00.

Let's find us a charter.

Yes, sir.

Just give us five minutes, we'll get

her all fueled up and ready to go.

Sorry about the rush.

Hell of a way to

spend your New Year's.

Well, you're paying

for the privilege, hoss.

You ain't never been on a plane

before, have you, Sorbonne?

Well, it beats

grease-monkeying

for that a**hole Ray,

though, don't it?

Where are we?

Right on top of Charleston.

It's all socked in

with snow and fog.

Can't land anywhere

for 100 miles.

Okay, so?

Sorry, hoss. We're gonna have

to turn around and head back

or we're not gonna have enough

fuel to get back to Bristol.

Just get me into Bristol.

Roger.

Well, it was fun

while it lasted, Sorbonne.

Now there's only

one way you're gonna find peace.

There's only one way

you're gonna find happiness.

There's only one way

you're gonna find joy.

Now, let me tell you...

Here comes the hook.

He's gonna ask

for money right now.

Folks, this Bible-thumper

can only tell it like it is

and spread the good word.

Now, I ain't much

asking for help.

But the good Lord

gave me the word,

and I can't do his work

all by myself.

And that's where you come in.

Now, you may be

asking, "Preacher,

Turn that polecat off.

"How much does God

want me to give?"

Well, how much you think...

He said the world was

gonna end in '49, too.

Said it in Tuscaloosa right

after 'Bama lost to Tennessee.

Folks there

thought it already had.

Can you turn that

heat up any more?

Yes, sir.

Sorbonne.

Sir?

If you call me sir one more time,

I'm gonna go get my pistol.

You all right?

I just need to eat something.

We gonna have to

make us a phone call.

Will you do it

for me, Sorbonne?

Yeah. I will.

"Signs following."

How's that?

Well, that church back there,

the message board said "Signs

following." What does that mean?

Oh. It means they dance and

shake with the Holy Spirit.

Oh.

And they handle rattlesnakes, too.

It's a hell of a show.

Smell meat.

Sure hope it ain't squirrel.

Might be possum.

Well, I wish I was in London

or some seaport town

I'd put my foot on a steamboat

and I'd sail the ocean 'round

While sailing 'round the ocean

while sailing 'round the sea

I'd think of handsome Molly

wherever she may be

Help ya?

How 'bout some grub

for the weary travelers?

Got some soup going.

How's that suit you?

That suits us just fine.

How y'all doin' today?

What do you call

these parts 'round here?

Muhlenberg County.

It's God's country, ain't it?

Y'all mind if I warm my

hide by that stove there?

Come on in.

Here you go.

Thank you.

You play that thing

pretty good now, don't you?

I find my way around it.

Well, let's hear it,

if you don't mind.

I don't mind.

You want a blast?

Help take that chill away.

Why hell, I was wonderin'

when you was gonna ask me.

Colder than a polar bear's

tit out there

and you damn Virginians make a

Alabama boy beg for some sunshine.

You like hillbilly music?

Yeah, I like hillbilly music.

Yeah, I'll accept the charges.

Where are you, son?

Virginia, about

an hour north of Bristol.

We ran into a little trouble

outside of Knoxville.

What kind of trouble, Silas?

Police trouble.

We ain't gonna make it

to Charleston by 7:00.

Yeah, I kind of put that together, son.

Thank you very much.

I'm really looking forward to this

next call I'm gonna have to make.

Damn it, boy!

I thought we'd left

all this stuff behind.

Four thousand people waiting

to see him on New Year's Eve.

I think you got a bigger

problem than that, sir.

What do you mean?

I mean, he's powerful sick.

Oh, hell, he's just hungover.

No, sir, I know hungover.

I've seen that my whole life.

This is much worse.

I think he better go to a

hospital or come home.

It's that bad?

Yes, sir, it is.

This business is killing him.

And quittin' it

would kill him quicker.

What do you want me to do?

Well, there's no point

in going to Charleston.

They'd probably just

lynch you two anyway.

Tell you what. Get him to

Ohio for the matinee tomorrow,

and I'll meet you there.

Yes, sir.

Thanks.

He had a wife and six kids,

and he ain't never

comin' out of that hole.

Not even 30-years-old.

That's a damn shame.

That ain't the worst part.

What do you reckon the company

give his family? $100.

A man's life's only worth $100.

Trouble, leave me alone

Trouble, leave me alone

You were in that bar

in Arkansas

Every bottle in East Tennessee

You left a trace

in the lines of my face

in the gutters

of Bourbon Street

Trouble, leave me alone

Why must you torture me?

I wish you'd find another home

I wish you'd just let me be

Trouble, leave me alone

Oh!

I need something, Sorbonne.

It's bad.

Okay. Let me get you to a doctor.

No.

There's a town just up ahead.

I just need me some

Pepto-Bismol, is all.

Here you go.

I gotta get you to a hospital.

What's the damn point?

Mr. Wells...

It's Luke.

My name's Luke.

Nothin'.

How far is it to Canton, Ohio?

About 300 miles.

You know, there was a time when I

didn't dream about nothin' but this.

So be careful what you wish for, Sorbonne.

It might just fall on you.

What do you dream about?

Nothin', sir.

Do me a favor.

Stop being respectful

and kissin' my ass.

Don't treat me like a boss man

and don't keep quiet just 'cause

I'm the man in the backseat.

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