I wrote this story more than 15 years ago, and it was the first thing I ever wrote that caught the attention of editor John Joseph Adams when he was the assistant editor at F&SF.  We batted around the story for many years, thinking about how we might fix it up and get it into publication, and now, here it is, finally published in Wastelands: The New Apocalypse.  Early on, it was an attempt to capture a more frenetic style of writing; my attempt to keep the words from slowing down the action.

In the post-apocalyptic wasteland, the only things that matter are how fast your car can go and whether or not you think it’s cool to eat an entire box of kittens.

The protagonist in this story doesn’t think that is cool at all.

Jetting down the highway at 120, near flat out, just pedal to the metal, all cylinders firing, wide open, frame vibrating to pieces. Thoughts jumbling around in my head like the kittens in the box on the bench seat behind me.