Red Barchetta
"Well today's Sunday, April 2nd- your 18th birthday. You're going to see your uncle. He says he's got this gift he wants to show you Daniel". the coyote's mother told him as they packed their belongings up for a one-hour bus ride out of the big city to see Gerald Crayton, the coyote in question. A farmer of humble means, this coyote, like many of his species, had an interesting cunning about him, a fascination for the old things which others had long given up, a "pack-rat" mentality which led to saving things, and plenty of experience in life,as evidenced by the whitish-grey fur now growing on his face and head. He also like many others hated the Motor Law. In many ways, the Motor Law, a piece of legislation invoked by an environmentalist faction of the senate had added to the frustration of the general public.
No longer were people allowed the luxury of owning private automobiles- instead, the people were now jammed like sardines into baby blue-colored Public Transportation Vehicles which were unanimously hated. The government had provided plenty of these for every major city but the quality of the buses were so poor that virtually no one used them- they were liable to break down on the roads and then the people riding them would break down as they realized they were halfway between Point A and Point B with no help, other than a squad of overworked police officers, the only profession that still was allowed to have cars. And yet, when anybody tried to use their cars the police were compelled to arrest them. When this proved too difficult, the police cars became known as "bumpers"- extremely large cars, larger than Hummers, whose sole purpose was to cause damage to anything else in their path. They were girded with large bumpers, to not hurt whoever was inside but these things were massive as tanks- fatalities by running over fleeing suspects was disturbingly common.
This was another bad trip on the bus for Daniel. Nothing to do, too many people, and the bus broke down midway through the journey. Thankfully, a tiger with some mechanical engineering skills ressurected the baby blue rust-bucket so that it could complete its journey from Des Moines to the outlying countryside, an Iowa which still grew corn, though not at the same rate as before the hated law- some farmers had licences to drive cars but only for transporting crops and after paying a fee, which caused many of the farmers to become even more upset.
Gerald, the coyote, an old dog of about 50 years was one of those farmers and he was also Daniel's uncle- once removed. On the bus visits there by the Crayton pack, he would always guard this large, decrepit barn, baring his fangs and snarling whenever anyone even suggested that he be given a look inside. But the eccentric old coyote, who seemed to dote over Daniel as though he were an adopted son (he himself was childless and widowed), had summoned his cousin for some reason, presumably to look at what he had been guarding. Carrying his suitcase, Daniel walked into the humble home of Gerald, immediately taken aback by the smallness of this house in comparison to his own.
"I see you've turned 18. When I was younger, that was the age at which a person could learn to drive. I have something to show you in the barn," Gerald said over some coffee and homegrown vegetables from his garden before setting a course to the barn, right beside his abode.
"The barn is nothing more than a farm- or well it used to be, until the other farmers started entrusting me with something before the Motor Law. They knew it was going to pass, they knew I was the poorest of the farmers, and they knew that barn was huge enough to accomodate...", Gerald said as he and Daniel opened the large doors to reveal a startling sight.
"...all their cars!" An entire garage filled with old cars, all meticulously maintained by Gerald. The Motor Law had been in effect for at least a decade so these cars had not seen the light of day for a long time. Fords, Chevys, farm trucks were all there but the one that caught Daniel's eye was an older model car from the 1980's, manufactured by Ferrari.
"What you're looking at is a 1981 Ferrari Barchetta, an exotic sports car. I'm old and I realize I may not have time to wait for the repeal of the Motor Law so today we're going to drive in it, laws be damned." At first, Daniel tried to resist him but it was no use. Soon, he found himself sitting passeneger side of the Italian-made race car- any complaints were silenced as the car went out the door, which Gerald got out to shut and started down the road across the Iowa countryside. Gerald had preserved these automobiles for at least a decade, possibly more and to make sure they were still functional for however long the Law would last, was his dream.
In no time, uncle and cousin alike were feeling the adrenaline rush of driving and a fast car at that. The engine worked, the tires rode down the road, and the two men now criminals were enjoying their time behind the wheel, as few had experienced since the Motor Law came into effect. They could feel the well-weathered leather as they drove across the now-deserted farms in Iowa- the smell of the corn harvest was in the air. The wind was in their fur as Gerald expertly handled the turns as the farms gave way to unsettled land, filled with curves and rolling hills. Though these roads desperately needed reapir, they were still functional enough to ride on.
It was at the height of this wonderful experience when they saw them- the police officers and their "bumpers". Occupying both lanes of oncoming traffic, they forced the coyotes into a hasty U-turn, causing the tires to shriek loudly as they excuted their turn. Gerald would need to out run these cars in a valley which led back to the barn where they came from. The policemen were still behind them in their land barge of a car and gaining on them- these "bumpers" were pretty fast for large automobiles but an exotic sports car should have easily been able to outrun them, assuming that it didn't run out of gas, More cars were joining the chase of this automobile, trying to destroy the beautiful car but none could catch up. Gerald and Daniel were two very nervous coyotes inside that car, trying to keep their auto safe. They hoped that nothing would happen to it, they'd make it to the barn but they feared for their lives.
The road leading back to Gerald's barn was just one bridge away but already they could see "bumpers" lined up on the roads leading up to the bridge. There was now a group of cars behind them and giving up now would be suicide. There would be only one way out now- driving as fast as the car and the driver would allow. The accelerator was hit hard and the top speed went to 140 mph as they neared the bridge. The two "bumpers" were closing at the bridge, their drivers hoping to sandwich the Ferrari between the two. So, with Gerald and Daniel as worried as two coyotes could be, they ran against time and the cops. The threat of a deadly collision was very much imminent as the two neared the bridge, with the "bumpers" closing in.
But today was a lucky for the birthday boy and his uncle- the Ferrari escaped by mere inches immediately before the "bumpers" hit each other, creating a major pile-up of five cars for the officers and the two rode safely home. All the police in the area were located on the other side of the river and they were blocked off by the collision itself and couldn't hope to catch them- they easily strolled at a leisurely pace to conserve gasoline, which was a comodity in the post-automobile age.
'There was a time when a man could experience that thrill without having to worry about the law", Gerald said, stroking his beard-fur as he left the car.
"That was too much fun. This can't possibly stay illegal forever", Daniel responded.
"You're right about that". And so the two coyotes dreamed of a day when people could ride their automobiles again. The older member of the Crayton pack dreamed of selling back the cars he had been trusted with, which would make him very wealthy indeed. And the younger one dreamed of driving.