The next thing Alex knew was that he was waking up in a glaringly white room with the sounds of beeping machinery all around him.

Great. A hospital.

He blinked a few times before carefully pushing himself upright, feeling his head thumping slightly in protest. He ignored it and sat back in the mountain of pillows, looking around him at the small room as he racked his throbbing brain to remind him what had happened.

When it finally came rushing back to him, he put a hand to his head, feeling a gauze patch taped tightly over where the wound was. A glance out the window told him it was the sometime in the afternoon, so he'd obviously been out all morning.

But wait, where the hell was his brother's car? How was he here, when the last thing he could remember was him being a bumbling idiot sitting at the Aston Martin's steering wheel, bleeding all over the place. He was going to be put off Aston Martins for life now.

Alex looked around him again then snatched up a button next to him, which was used for calling for assistance. He began to hammer it repeatedly with a finger until a woman hurried into his room looking a little flustered.

"How did I get here?" Alex asked before she could say anything, "The car. Where's the car?"

The nurse frowned at him, "We found you unconscious in front of A and E. There was no one in sight, no cars. We suspect someone found you unconscious and dropped you off here for us."

"Voices," Alex blurted suddenly, "Drag? My head?" he ran a hand through his hair, forehead creasing in confusion, the bandage crumpling over the wound.

"You hit your head fairly hard by the looks of it," the nurse eyed him up, trying not to look too much like she thought him crazy.

"There was a voice talking to me, said it was called Drag," Alex mused out loud, ignoring the nurse momentarily, "I swear that voice and car were in it together, trying to kill me. It was him, the car. It was definitely male, it was adamant about that. The car is male, and the voice is male. Drag, male, car. Drag the car," he muttered everything he was thinking, even in his broken and disconnected thought pattern.

The nurse was looking like she now didn't want to be right there with Alex and began to back away slowly, "I'll get you some sedative pills," she muttered.

"No wait," Alex quickly put his hands up, snapping out of his thoughts, "Sorry, I'm just a little tired and confused about what happened. Don't mind me," he took a deep breath to make it look like he was calming himself, knowing that if he didn't act too crazy, he could be let out fairly soon and check out his brother's car again. He supposed it had gone home to his fathers. His father and brother wouldn't care about him vanishing in the middle of the night if he just pretended that he'd chased someone out of the fields and wound up knocking himself unconscious by tripping over his own feet. Or he could have just got a little drunk at the local bar that happened regularly enough that his father had given up on lecturing him. If the car, somehow, was still ok, he'd just pretend that nothing drastic had happened.

But he still needed to tell someone, just in case he was insane.

He looked back the nurse who was still watching him warily, "It's ok, I just need a moment to make a call, I'll be out of here soon enough, since no ones said I have concussion," he leant over for the phone on a nearby table.

"Well ok," the nurse muttered, "If you're sure you're ok," she didn't wait for an answer and darted from the room.

"Just dandy," Alex muttered to himself as he punched numbers into the phone rapidly.

He didn't have to wait long before the dialling tone was cut off and was replaced by a voice as a woman answer the phone,

"Hello?"

"Hey, Billy, it's me," Alex tried to sound casual.

There was a pause before the woman responded, "Have you been drinking again Alex? You sound out of it. You always call me when you've been drinking."

"No, not this time," Alex grunted, rolling his eyes and scowling, "I hit my head."

"Sure, like I haven't heard that before," Bill sighed loudly on the other end of the line.

"It's true!" he insisted, "I stole my brother's fancy ass car, took it for a ride, but the brakes went, then suddenly came on. I hit my head real bad on the window. I'm in hospital, no idea where though. But the car, it was talking to me," he added, dropping his voice slightly.

"I believed you up until the car started talking to you," Bill sounded irritated, "You really need to stop calling me when you're drunk. Sober up, then maybe I'll talk to you," she snapped.

"Hey, Bill no, don't. Give me a -." he was cut off by the sound of her hanging up on him, "Minute," he finished as he threw the phone onto the bed, "Maybe I am drunk out my mind. Talking cars? Who the hell am I kidding? Sounds as stupid as that NEST crap… And now I'm talking to myself!" he grunted loudly and rubbed his eyes with the heels of his palms, "Drunken idiot."

He lay back down on the bed, conceding defeat, and was about to close his eyes when another nurse entered his room. He sighed and glanced at her expectantly.

"There's a car outside waiting for you, to take you home," she explained.

"Oh?" Alex frowned, wondering if maybe his father did know where he was and had sent someone to pick him up, "See the driver at all?"

"No, sorry," she shook her head, "The windows were tinted and he didn't waste anytime talking to us."

"Oh right," Alex sighed, sitting up once again, "I feel fine," he lied, "Am I allowed to get out of here?"

"I should think so," she nodded, "The doctor who saw you last night said you may just have a bit of a headache. There's no reason for us to keep you here. Nothing lasting."

"Great, ok, thanks," Alex nodded, "I'll get some proper clothes on then be on my way. You'll handle all the paperwork won't you?" he turned on the charm, smiling at her suggestively, "I'm sure you'd get through it fair quicker than me."

She giggled slightly, flushing, "Well, ok. I'll sort it all out."

"Thanks," he winked at her, causing her to giggle again and hurry out the room. Once she'd left, Alex sighed dramatically and slipped out of bed, checking their was no way the nurse might be able to see him getting undressed, before gathering up his clothes, pulling off the horrible nightdress he was stuck in.

He'd just get on and pretend nothing odd had happened last night. Crazy stuff happens, that's life, he told himself.

Once dressed, his white shirt only showing a little blood splatter on the collar, Alex casually sauntered out of the room, trying to look like he knew where he was going. He didn't recognise this one, to be honest, so he wound up getting lost a few times. But he did eventually pass the main desk, pausing briefly to smile at the nurse again where she was obviously filling out his documents. He then made his way out into the sunlight and thick, humid heat through a set of sliding double doors.

He fanned himself briefly with a hand, without much effect however, his head beginning to throb again. Hopefully once he got home, he could relax in the cool air-conditioned house, get some food and get down to recovering.

Luckily it was easy for him to find his ride home, since it was the only car waiting in the picking up bay at the front of the hospital. The vehicle was a large Cadillac Escalade, black in colour so that the tinted windows almost merged into the paintwork, the only colour being the Cadillac badge on the front and the chromed grill. Not really Alex's choice of car, but it was big and therefore a reasonable choice of transportation in his eyes.

He didn't recognise it, but it had seemingly become a habit of some people to change their cars virtually twice a year, so he went over to it all the same. People in his area of Texas were generally laid back, good neighbours and willing to help, so for all he knew, it could have been someone from a neighbouring farm who'd just updated their car. They may have heard about him from someone else, or his father had found out and sent them.

Whatever happened, he'd just have to go with it. It was his fault for messing around last night, after all.

Once he reached the passenger door, he opened it quickly and slid into the cool filtered air in the cab, sighing with relief. He then religiously shut the door and put clicked his seatbelt on before sitting back, looking at the drivers seat.

However, it was empty, the driver having vanished.

"Oh great," Alex grunted, "Where the hell they got to?"

He gave another sigh and ran a hand over his face, trying to get comfortable as he prepared to wait. They might have just gone off to get a coffee while they had been waiting for him to turn up.

However, after a few minutes, without warning, the engine suddenly roared into life of its own accord.

Instinctively Alex tensed and sat up straight, watching in horror and confusion as the parking brake was let off and was put into drive. He glanced behind him at the empty back seats, before grabbing hold of the door, scrambling at the lock in vain.

"Not again!" he swore under his breath as the Escalade moved off, just as if someone was driving it.

Alex had no idea what to do. How often did one get trapped in self-driving cars? Apparently he was just unlucky to have it happen to him twice in less than twenty-four hours. After last night with the DBS, Drag, whatever it was, he was sure the brakes wouldn't work. It seemed cars had turned against him. Maybe stealing something like his brother's Aston Martin had been the final straw. With all the technology in cars nowadays, he wouldn't be surprised if the 'Kill Alex' chip had been activated in them all.

He continue to try and get the door open, occasionally bashing the dash in frustration, while demanding to be released, as if that might work.

But the car kept going, following others, changing lanes, stopping at traffic lights, all other drivers oblivious to Alex scrambling around wildly behind the darkened windows, pleading for help. To any observers, the Escalade was a perfectly normal car. To Alex it was like reliving a nightmare. At least the previous night had taken place in an Aston Martin. He could have died in style. Not in this huge beast of an SUV.

"Let me out, Goddamn you!" Alex yelled yet again as he kicked the door, while they trundled casually down the street through another set of traffic lights. He was half hoping the Cadillac would answer him like the DBS, but he also hoped this was all just a terrible drunk induced dream and he'd wake up sprawled across a bar at four in the morning.

But as they paused at yet another set of traffic lights, then pulled off once they were green, Alex soon realised how real things were and that his mortality was suddenly in some very real danger, because as he looked to his left, the equally black and hulking great flatbed Dodge Ram speeding towards them looked deadly enough.

Alex barely had time to think about people jumping lights and them being moronic dicks, then cling onto the door for dear life before the huge truck slammed into the empty drivers side of the Escalade, easily shunting it all the way across the crossroads.

Alex couldn't quite be sure, but he hoped he wasn't screaming like he wanted to.

He knew the Cadillac wouldn't topple; it was an extremely sturdy vehicle, but the Ram was doing a brilliant job of living up to it's name, continuing to drive into the side of the Escalade, which was unable to move free, its front left wheel and wing twisted from the force of the truck's impact.

All around them, cars were swerving violently out of their path, horns blaring loudly as the Dodge continued to push them, almost casually, down the incorrect side of the road.

Cars were definitely trying to kill him, Alex was sure of that now.

Eventually, after a few blocks, the Dodge finally eased off and rolled back a little way from the Cadillac before beginning to rev its engine threateningly instead.

The Escalade seemed in no state to do anything, its engine whining pathetically now. But luckily the driver's door appeared to have been damaged in the collision too, and had twisted open slightly on the hinges.

After a moments hesitation, and once he was sure the Cadillac wouldn't bolt off, Alex unbuckled himself and crawled across to the driver's side. A good well placed kick caused the damaged door to swing open, exposing Alex not only to freedom, but also the rumbling and intimidating Ram.

Alex stared at it, unable to make out a driver at the wheel, causing him to feel a little nauseous. He really wouldn't come off very well if the Ram went for him. He'd just be a mark on the pavement.

He hesitated again, the lack of a plan springing to mind making him nervous, but he eventually steeled himself before throwing himself out of the Cadillac, making a break for it and running for the safety of the sheltered sidewalk.

He didn't bother to look behind him as he heard sirens approaching. Hopefully the cops would find out whoever was behind the two crazy driverless cars, and arrest both them and their vehicles before they did succeed into killing him.

However, had he bothered to even glance over his shoulder while he ran, he would have seen the Dodge casually begin to trail after him as if nothing had ever happened, keeping a fair distance between them, not looking at all like it might attack him.