What is the importance of the mountain road in the novel, Tony and Susan?

The mountain road is where Lou drives Tony to get him away from Laura and Helen, and to leave him until Ray comes back to kill Tony. The mountain road becomes symbolic of the journey that Tony undertakes which transforms him from helpless victim to predator by the end of the novel. Tony’s emergence from the road is his emergence from the tragedy of that night –and the slow but sure beginning of his transformation.