Page 45 of Their Haunted Hearts (Detectives Kane and Alton #27)

Forty-Four

Always a little jittery about flying since the plane crash, Julie walked up to the check-in counter and handed them her ticket. The woman tapped away on the computer and then looked up at her and frowned. “Is there a problem? I only have carry-on luggage.”

“Not with the flight, no, but I have a note that says Black Rock Falls has suffered significant storm damage and there is no power or phone reception at this time.” The woman met Julie’s gaze.

“Do you have someone meeting you at the airport because you won’t be able to call anyone for transportation. ”

Not worried about a power outage, Julie nodded. “I left my truck at the airport. I’ll be fine. I only live a short distance away.”

“That’s good to know.” The woman handed her a boarding pass.

Butterflies were having a festival in her stomach by the time she took her allocated seat.

There were only two other people on the small aircraft, and she sat alone at the back.

Her preference to sit in the rear of the plane had saved her life not long ago and she always continued to take the seat nearest the tail.

She glanced out of the window as they took off and saw one lone motorbike weaving its way through Helena toward the college and wondered if it was Rhett going home.

She stared as the motorbike got smaller and smaller.

The plane climbed above the clouds and she leaned back and closed her eyes.

It had been an incredible couple of weeks.

She met many new friends and had considered all her options for her future.

It had been easier when Rhett had joined her.

He seemed to know all the right questions to ask.

She wondered if she would ever see him again.

It’s not as if they had started a romance or anything but he’d been the only boy she’d ever been able to sit and talk to for hours.

They had so many things in common. They liked the same music, which was a variety of country and rock.

They enjoyed the same food and she had to admit that after watching her dad and Kane spend hours rebuilding old Harleys, motorcycles had become her passion. She would own and ride one in a second.

The flight became unnervingly bumpy just before they landed in Black Rock Falls.

As she pulled her suitcase toward the parking lot, darkness crept in all around her.

Only two small light posts illuminated the entrance to the parking lot but she found her truck without much trouble.

She glanced up at the sky. Black clouds still obscured the moon and the smell of rain and dampness hung heavy in the air.

It would be good to get home. She dumped her bags on the back seat and then climbed behind the wheel.

As she drove out onto the highway, a wall of black surrounded her.

It was only a little after eleven and yet the highway was completely deserted.

This was very strange as Black Rock Falls was a busy town and traffic passed through on the way to Blackwater.

Her headlights picked up the damage from the storm.

Broken tree branches, leaves, and pine cones littered the highway and long lines of Halloween bunting littered the edge of the road as if they’d been picked up and carried for miles.

Deep water swirled along the gullies by the side of the road and in some places water had spilled across the highway, causing her to slow down and test the way.

Relieved when she picked out a small glowing light at the Triple Z Roadhouse, she accelerated a little.

In about fifteen minutes she would be home and then the engine gave a cough and splutter.

She stared down at the gas gauge and moaned.

The needle was just above empty but she should have enough to get her to the roadhouse where she could get some gas.

They had lights, so maybe they had a generator to work the pumps.

Only five minutes away the engine stopped and she rolled to a halt.

Something in the back of her mind reminded her of a conversation she had with Kane about her truck.

He had insisted that she never let it run out of gas because it might be difficult to start.

He had shown her how to spray something somewhere and then start the engine so it could suck the gas through or something, but she really didn’t take too much notice because she always had her dad or Kane to come and help her if necessary.

She climbed out and went to the back seat to pull out a pair of hiking boots from her luggage.

She’d worn a pair of fancy cowboy boots to go to dinner with Rhett.

She dragged on her thick raincoat and pulled the hoodie over her head.

After grabbing the flashlight from the glovebox, she headed to the roadhouse.

It didn’t take too long before she climbed up the driveway.

Bedraggled Halloween decorations hung limply around the roadhouse.

Garbage bins overflowed with trash and rainwater.

One side of the roadhouse held a line of pumps and a convenience store with a variety of items from milk to gas cans.

It was a kind of one-stop shop, although the prices were much higher than normal.

She walked up and down the aisles until she found a gas can and took it to the counter.

The weird aroma of coffee, roadside food, and gas seemed to move around her.

Tiredness dragged at her. She needed a cup of coffee to keep her awake.

The coffee likely tasted like mud, but if it had caffeine in it, it would do.

“Are your pumps working?” She looked at the skinny, oily haired man standing behind the glass partition and held up the can.

“I need this and a gallon. I ran out of gas. I’ll take a coffee from the machine as well. ”

“Yeah, you can pay here and fill the can as you leave. Pump number two.” The man gave her a disinterested stare and pointed at the card scanner. “Scanners out. You got cash?”

Julie nodded and pulled bills from her pocket.

Carrying cash was another of her dad’s rules.

She took the change and pushed it back into her jeans pocket.

The door behind her slid open and footsteps echoed on the tile.

She turned as a tall broad man wearing a cowboy hat that appeared a little too large for him walked up behind her.

She ignored him and headed to the coffee dispenser.

As she filled her coffee, the flickering neon sign outside cast erratic shadows across the driveway but beyond that everything was pitch black.

She waited for what seemed like ages for the coffee to fill the cup and then fitted a top to the to-go cup.

She sensed someone beside her and turned suddenly, cup in hand, to see the man in the cowboy hat collecting a cup and fixings from the display by the machine.

She bent to pick up her empty gas can and somehow, they collided.

The cup tumbled from her grasp and hot liquid splashed across the floor and all over the man’s polished boots.

Horrified, Julie looked at him. “I’m so sorry.

” She grabbed napkins and thrust them at him.

“Here maybe you can clean the coffee from your boots?”

“It was my fault. I wasn’t looking where I was going.” The man ignored the napkins. “I insist you let me replace it.”

Too tired to argue, Julie nodded. As the coffee machine dripped slowly into the man’s cup, Julie climbed onto a stool in front of a narrow counter overlooking the pumps.

To her surprise, he placed the fixings on the counter beside her and then turned back to the machine.

She stared out of the window at the truck alongside the pumps.

She guessed it belonged to him as he seemed to be the only person around.

She cleared her throat. “It looks like a massive storm went through here. Were you here at the time?”

“Yeah, it was nasty.” He handed her a cup.

“The town took a beating. There are a few trees down here and there and water all over the roads. Halloween decorations and displays are strewn all over Main. The power has been out for hours and we have no phone service, so I don’t know if anyone was injured.

People seem to be staying close to home.

” He gave her an inquiring look. “I don’t see a vehicle.

Did you walk here or did you come in on the last bus? ”

Figuring he was just being neighborly, she sat and sipped her coffee. With luck, she should have the energy to walk back to her car in a few moments. “I ran out of gas. I’ll drink this and then fill up this can and walk back to my truck. I figure it’s only about a quarter of a mile away.”

“My wife does that all the time.” He chuckled and stirred sugar and cream into his coffee. “I’m forever driving out to rescue her.” He raised one eyebrow. “Don’t you have anyone in your life to come and rescue you?”

The coffee was sending a warm glow right through her and she wanted to sit and drink the entire cup.

Roadhouse coffee wasn’t as bad as she imagined but she needed to get home.

“I do but I don’t have any way of communicating with them right now but I’m a big girl.

I can handle carrying a can of gas for a quarter of a mile.

” She slid from the stool, tossed the half-filled cup into the trash, and picked up the can. “Thanks for the coffee.”