All Sam had wanted was a ride.

He's grown up in the Mid West, eaten his breakfast from cereal cartons plastered with the faces of lost children, so he knew the dangers. Still, it was raining. The weather was crap, and out of the falling rain the white ambulance had come like an angel of mercy. It's flashing lights were off; only the fog lights cut through the gloom, shining on him like a halo.

"Want a ride?" called the driver over the water's roar.

Indeed, he did. His goal, simply to get from point A to B in relative dryness and safety, ran counter to those of the driver. He pulled himself up into the passenger seat and offered his hand. "Thanks! I'm Sam," he said. "I've never ridden in an ambulance before. You been driving them long?"

"Hey," said the driver, casting a look over his shoulder. The previous driver's body did not move from is plastic confines. "As a matter of fact, tonight's my first night."