Summary

Frank travels back up the highway. It is slow going and filled with an abundance of Fourth of July holiday traffic. Bascombe thinks about Sally, and regrets not asking her to come with him. He has begun to think of their relationship as a mutual Existence Period, and knows he must make it clear to her how much he needs her. Bascombe heads towards Connecticut, but he will stop partway at a motel, and then get his son in the morning.

He stops at a rest area to fill his gas tank and check his phone messages. He waits for a trucker to finish with his phone call at a pay phone. He has ten messages, including ones from Karl, Mr. Markham, his son Paul (a prank call), Ann, and Sally. He calls Ann back and she tells him she had hoped he could pick up...