Theyturnedrightout of Bells Lane onto SouthportRoad, idling their way alongthe footpath that was separated from the roadway byagrass verge about sixfeet wide.
They were heading down a swath of highway raised out of the wetlands, past a schizophrenic landscape of saw-grass prairies and strip malls, where the road signs warned of panthers and the billboards advertised alligator zoos and other South Florida attractions.