Part II: Read Part I First

Returning the utensils to his pocket, the man stood up and wiped the sand from his pants. He never bothered to wake his companion, who dozed off under the man's shadow, taking advantage of the rest. The gila monster quickly awoke however, no longer protected from the wicked rays of the sun. Looking around, the gila shook the sand off his back and caught up to the man who had only traveled a short distance further. He looked at the man with a look of betrayal but the man didn't notice. The two continued walking, silently. The man looked down at the gila, who was staring straight ahead, trying hard to keep up with the man who had a much wider pace. Noticing the awkward silence, the man looked into the horizon, inquiring "Where are you headed?"
The gila looked up at him briefly but returned his gaze ahead of him and continued walking.

"I'm sorry I left you back there," the man replied, "I didn't want to disrupt your sleep. You haven't gotten much since we started together. I can't imagine we're going to the same place anyway. You probably would have been better off. I have nothing to offer you."

With that, the man stopped dead in his tracks, hearing a steady rattling noise. Ahead and to the right, the snake coiled and raised its venomous head. The gila, who had been traveling on the man's left, scurried around the man's heels and in front of him to his right side, quickly taking a defensive stance against the deadly counterpart. Opening his mouth wide, the gila let out a deafening hiss and the snake glared back, uncoiling its body and slithering away into the dunes.
The man, embarrassed by his inability to defend himself, straightened his suit and continued walking. The gila once again joined him on his left. The man glanced back at the spot where the altercation took place and realized for the first time in days how this journey would end. His eyes moved up to the horizon and no sign of the man's vehicle was to be seen. In fact no sign of it was to be seen since the first day and now the man was beginning to doubt he ever even had one. He turned again, and with a shrug of his shoulders, took a few more steps before sitting once again. The gila sat with him. Opening the briefcase, the man pulled the lone, conspicuous key from the corner and buried it in the sand. Then he bent down low to the dune and sniffed the earth. Sticking out his tongue, the man dragged his face across the sand. He sat up, chewing. He locked the briefcase again, stood, and continued without pause.