"His tattooed covered knuckles..."

The view ahead was a seemingly endless stretch of red dirt road, repeating itself in the view of the rearview mirror. Nothing moved in Hopes line of vision aside from the cloud of dust stirred up by her tires and the heat that seemed to escape in waves from the pores of the desert surface. It was 98 degrees in Texas today, the temperature not much different from the Louisiana heat. However, this heat felt pleasant to the skin. It wasn't muggy and suffocating like the boggy weather of New Orleans. Hope had to admit, she preferred the dry heat over the humid heat.

Hope had strayed from the interstate some ways back. She had grown bored of the constant view of crammed traffic and the annoying idiocy of incompetent drivers. Some might mistake her annoyance for a hatred towards humankind, but that wasn't necessarily the case. It wasn't that she didn't like people, she did. She just didn't like stupid people.

She had left Grapevine, Texas not long ago and it hadn't occurred to her, at the time, that she and her car were running on mere fumes. She quickly thought back to the last time she had eaten and made a face, realizing it had been 6:30 that morning. It was no wonder her stomach was growling for her attention. Glancing down at the gas gage she made another sour face before pulling off to the side of the road. She had been needing to stretch her legs anyway.

As she stepped out she let out a soft sigh of relief when her long legs were able to release from their cramped position. Driving for eight hours certainly had its effect. She removed her phone from the back of her rather revealing jean shorts and checked for any notifications. After replying to the few she had she opened a map app and searched for the nearest rest spot that didn't involve her having to drive all the way back to Grapevine. Luckily enough there was a little diner with a few pumps a couple of miles down the road from where she was stopped. It would be the perfect place to reevaluate and freshen up.

Quickly, she examined her car, making sure there weren't any scratches from flinging pebbles on the road. The black exterior didn't appear to have any damage, aside from a light dusting of red that she would need to be cleaned off later. Pleased, she slipped back into the driver's seat and adjusted her black t-shirt, so her skin didn't touch the already scorched interior. She turned on the air full blast and continued her drive forward.

Not long later Hope could make out a little building in the distant dusty horizon. As the image came into a clearer focus she was relieved to see there were a couple of cars including a green pickup parked in the lot in front. Well, at least she wouldn't be entering some completely desolate place where horror movies take place.

She pulled up at the first pump she saw and stepped out, boots scuffing the ground as she checked for a credit card slot. There was none. Hope glanced up at the pump number before walking towards the diner. She had a sophisticated confident walk. Confident, not cocky.

The inside diner was exactly how she assumed it would be. The scent of fresh coffee on the burner and fried eggs wafted her direction, making her mouth water. Hope put on a pleasant smile and walked towards the front counter where a plump woman with short red hair was wiping down the surface after what looked to be an orange juice spill. She looked up and grinned brightly.

"What can I do for ya, hun?" she asked in a thick Texan accent.

Smiling she responded, "I'd like to put a few on pump three," she said, using her own Louisiana accent. Hope was particularly talented with different accents for whatever occasion she needed. Naturally, she held her mother's northern accent, accompanied by the occasional London and Louisiana twang she'd picked up from her surroundings and the rest of her family. The stretch of masks she could wear conveniently helped her to fit into most places she visited.

"Alrighty, and what about anythin' to eat and drink ya, darlin'?" she asked as she took out a pen from behind her ear and withdrew a small notepad from her front apron pouch.

Hope slipped a twenty from her wallet and handed it to the woman before looking at the menu, which was taped to the counter itself. "How about the special and a coffee?" she asked.

"Comin' right up. You go ahead and get yourself some gas and by the time you get back it'll be ready for ya" the friendly woman answered.

With a nod and smile Hope went back out into the scorching heat to fill her tank up. It didn't take long to finish, she even took time to sponge off some of the red on her car, and went back inside. Her baked skin greeting the cool air with relieved goosebumps. There, on the front counter was the meal she ordered, and it took a lot of will to pass it by without taking a bite to wash up in the bathroom first. Hope was impressed by the cleanliness quality of service of the place, despite being so far out of reach from the closest city.

When she sat down to her meal she could practically hear her stomach thanking her for each bite that slid down her throat. As she ate, she suddenly became aware of the chatter amongst a group of people in a far-off corner of the cramped diner. Regulars, she thought to herself as she reached for the white ceramic mug of dark coffee. She raised it to her lips when she froze immediately. A very familiar scent made her heart skip a beat. Looking down at the murky liquid she closed her eyes and breathed in the steam, which burned her nose and made her eyes water. Her suspicion had been correct. This coffee was laced with vervain.

Carefully she set the mug back down on the counter just as the woman who served her was passing by "Somethin' wrong hun?" she asked, "Coffee ain't burnt is it?"

"No," Hope covered immediately, "It's all great, thank you." Her eyes didn't hold the same warmth as her words tried to convey. The people in this diner served vervain in their coffee. This bit of information lead Hope to believe they must know about vampires, and thus this was not the place she should be in. She noticed the diner suddenly grew quiet and her eyes flitted across the room to see the group in the corner had stopped talking. They were watching her. A couple of them smirked while others held hard gazes. In particular, one large biker looking man with a shaved head cracked his tattooed covered knuckles in obviously threatening manner.

This was what her family had warned her about, what she had tried so very hard to prove she could handle on her own. She could do this, she could take care of herself. This would be her first test. First, search for all the exits in case anything got out of hand. There was the front entrance, the rather small window in the women's restroom, and she was certain there would be a back exit as well for the employees. Now it was time to decide her course of action. Stay here and finish her meal, or pay the bill and split.

The logical portion of her brain screamed for her to ask for the check and leave, you couldn't kill what you couldn't catch. But the stubborn, stupid side of her brain - which she was almost certain she'd gotten from her father - told her to sit where she was and finish her meal. To her own partial dismay, the logical side won over.

"Can I actually have a box to go. I should be getting on my way…" Hope just had to act naturally until she could get out to her car.

The woman looked back at her, a glint of something nasty in her eyes, but she quickly covered it up with a smile "Of course," she said, sliding a Styrofoam box her way taking the ten-dollar bill from Hope's hand and giving back the change, "You take care now" she said, an almost wicked essence hidden behind her friendly tone. There was something unsettling about the way she looked at her. Perhaps it was nothing, but it still made the hair on the back of her neck stand on end.

"Thanks…" Hope responded slowly, casting one last glance at the table of gawkers, her heart missing a beat before she could tear her eyes away and walked outside. She embraced the heat because for now, it meant she was safe. She didn't stop to ponder any unanswered questions as she hopped into her crossover and started the engine. Panic washing over her for a moment when the engine only sputtered and then roared to life. Hope puffed out a shaky breath and shook her head, adrenaline still pumping through her veins as she pulled onto the road again, leaving the shady diner behind. She put as much distance between them and herself as she could before she was able to relax a bit more in her seat.

Hope drove for another twelve very long, very tedious hours. Stopping for gas only once in that time, and not daring to venture inside anywhere. By midnight she could hardly keep her eyes open and knew the smartest thing to do was find the nearest motel. She was plenty far enough away from that diner and its people to feel safe pulling into a Super 8 parking lot.

Checking in wasn't an issue and soon Hope was in a room on the first floor, keeping an escape route hidden in a back crevice of her mind. After a much-needed shower, she leaned back on the bed and set an alarm on her phone. Tomorrow was another day and she only had seventeen more hours of driving left, then she'd be in Beacon Hills where, when she decided to go back home, she'd purchase a plane ticket for her travels instead. She'd had enough exploring and adventure for one night.

Getting into a comfortable position Hope quickly drifted off to sleep. Her body ached from her time sitting in the car, and her thoughts raced back and forth about how today's events could have ended differently. She didn't want to think of other possible endings where more than likely she had a stake driven through her heart. Tomorrow would be better. It had to be.