Page 43 of Their Haunted Hearts (Detectives Kane and Alton #27)

Forty-Two

Black Rock Falls

Trees bent and the rain lashed at the Beast as they headed back to Stanton. Jenna winced as tree branches flew through the air inches from their truck. As they approached Stanton, all they could make out was a wall of traffic. Everyone was trying to get back to town. “Oh, a traffic jam. Now what?”

“We go back and take the fire roads.” Kane turned the truck around. “The Beast can handle the mud, don’t worry.”

Staring ahead at the streams of muddy water, Jenna shook her head. “I’m not worried but the storm is getting crazy.”

Wild wind swirled debris around them as they headed along the fire road and then in a rush hail bounced off the Beast like buckshot, ricocheting into the windshield.

The wipers moved back and forth in fast motion, but ice piled up on them, slowing them down.

Visibility dropped to almost zero as a wall of rain battered them.

Fear gripped Jenna and she clung to the seat as lightning flashes and rolls of thunder came simultaneously.

The trees bent over, struggling against the massive gusts of wind, and stuck in the middle with no place to hide, Jenna glanced at Kane, hoping he could get them out of trouble.

The storm surrounded them like a giant entity hell-bent on destruction.

A blinding flash of lightning zigzagged so close it startled Jenna.

It cracked like a whip and in a puff of smoke struck a tall pine, splitting it in half and sending the smoking fiery top hurtling toward them.

It crashed down across the road and sizzled in the fast-flowing water.

As Kane slammed on the brakes, Jenna gripped the seat. “Oh, no.”

“Hang on.” Kane spun the wheel, taking the Beast off road, and they bounced through thick vegetation alongside the fire road to bypass the smoking tree. “We can get back onto Stanton at the end of the next fire road. We should be close to town and hopefully be able to overtake the traffic.”

Starting to worry about her kids, Jenna looked at him. “This is real bad. I hope the boys and Raya are okay.”

“She knows to go into the panic room if there’s a problem. The house could blow apart and that would still be standing.” Kane squeezed her hand. “They’ll be fine. I figure this is just wind and hail. It’s not a tornado. You gotta trust me, Jenna.”

Holding tight as Kane negotiated around more fallen trees, she looked ahead and breathed a sigh of relief as the lights of town came into sight, but the full force of the wind and hail hit them when they arrived at Stanton.

The forest had shielded them to some extent, but all around, the damage was evident: trees down, road signs ripped out and tossed to one side, debris spilling across the highway.

Vehicles lined the side of the road, some with their windshields broken, others with drivers too afraid to continue in the deluge.

Others, their lights blazing, continued a slow procession into town.

Jenna wanted to stop but she needed to get help.

“There’s too many for us to assist. I’ll call out emergency teams.” She made the calls.

“We need to get back to the office and start organizing help.” Kane hit the lights and sirens and they hurtled along the wrong side of the highway. No one headed toward them. Everyone was trying to get back to town.

As they reached Main the street lights flickered on and off but the sidewalk was deserted.

Thank goodness, everyone had taken shelter.

The traffic moved faster in town with more people heading along side streets.

Soaked bunting littered the blacktop and small jack-o’-lanterns bounced along the sidewalk like grinning orange balls.

The wind howled and intermittent flashes of lightning made the Halloween decorations come to life in grotesque displays.

The next moment, in sprays of white like a firework, a transformer exploded, followed by three more.

Alarms sounded and then darkness came in an instant.

The town fell eerily quiet. In another flash, Jenna gaped in horror as the wireless tower exploded.

She stared at Kane. “This means we have no communication.”

“The satellite phones will work.” Kane drove into the sheriff’s department parking lot and stopped beside the back door. “I can see everyone’s vehicles out front. We’re the last back.”

To Jenna’s relief, her dark office suddenly lit up like a beacon, the emergency generators had come online. “I’m so glad you upgraded the generators. Will we have enough power?”

“We stored power in our solar batteries all summer.” Kane pushed down the rim of his hat and climbed out. As they ran to the door he smiled at her. “We’ll be fine.”

Coat swirling in the wind, Jenna stood at the door, hoping the retinal scanner would work. She leaned in and the door clicked open. In the hallway they met Rio, flashlight in hand. She stamped her wet boots on the mat and looked at him. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah, but we were wondering how we were going to get out of here, before the generator kicked in.” Rio frowned. “An alarm sounded and then all the doors locked at once.”

“We’ll be okay for a time but go through the office and turn off any lights we don’t need.” Kane removed his hat and slapped it on his wet jeans. “Just keep the light on in the main foyer for Maggie and we’ll all work in the conference room.”

Jenna headed for the front desk to speak to Maggie and Rowley. “I’ve contacted all the emergency services on the way in and everyone is aware of what’s happening. We’ll only have satellite communication. Call your families to make sure everyone is okay. They all have satellite phones, don’t they?”

“Yeah, I called Sandy before the blackout.” Rowley smiled.

“The moment she noticed the storm she took the kids into the storm shelter. It was the old root cellar but we made it comfortable after last year’s crazy weather events.

” He held up his satellite phone. “Everyone has their phones switched on. Apart from a few broken windshields, I don’t figure anyone has suffered any major damage. It seems calm now.”

“Don’t hold your breath.” Kane dropped his wet Stetson onto his desk and shrugged out of his soaking jacket. “I figure we’re going through the eye of the storm.” He turned to Jenna. “You need to get out of those wet clothes. I’m going to take a shower.” He headed for the stairs.

Nodding, Jenna looked at Rio. “Did you find out any information about Gabby Turner?”

“I did.” Rio leaned against the counter. “Her mother reported her missing this morning from Butte. I called her for more details and she’s sending a DNA sample by courier. Gabby has been constantly abused by her boyfriend. Her mom believes she ran for her life.”

Sadness gripped Jenna. How many times had women believed in a happy-ever-after only to discover the man they loved was a monster?

She pushed wet hair from her face. “Okay, I’ll get changed.

We’ll wait out the storm and then see what happens.

If by seven no one is calling for assistance, we’ll need to go home and check our families.

If any calls come before seven, figure out if we can help, if not pass them on to the right department.

The mayor assured me he has all hands standing by. ”

“That’s good to know.” Rio headed through the office switching off lights. He glanced over one shoulder. “Seems to me, the weather is the least of our problems. With everyone blacked out, the killer is going to get free rein for his next victim.”