She peered through the snow-spattered windshield at
the neon sign and hoped like hell there was room at the inn. Pressing harder on
the gas, her Prius fishtailed on the slippery road, and the much smaller “no
vacancy” sign hanging between the looped garlands of holiday tinsel became
visible in the glow of her headlights.
“Why am I not
surprised? It’s been that kind of day.” Isabel Bright glanced over at her traveling
companion who had his nose pressed against the side window. “Who’s kidding whom?
It’s been that kind of month.”
Gritting her teeth
as her tires slid again, she wondered why she hadn’t had the foresight to buy
chains before embarking on this insane trek. Maybe because I didn’t exactly plan ahead. The last-minute decision
to drive cross-country to Amanda’s bachelorette party instead of flying had
been sheer idiocy considering the weather, but she’d wanted to use the time alone
to clear her head. Make a few decisions about her future.
“How’s that
working out for you?” Her voice rang with sarcasm as the flashing neon sign
above the sketchy-looking motel disappeared behind her in a swirl of snow on
the lonely stretch of road. Why stop now when she could put a couple hundred more
miles between her and her jerk of an ex-boyfriend. Even if the weather was
better suited to a sleigh than her pint-sized car.
Beside her, Lucky
panted, fogging the windshield. Isabel turned up the fan on the defroster,
which was fighting a losing battle against the Irish Wolfhound’s heavy
breathing.
“If we keep
driving, maybe we’ll outrun the storm. Who knew it snowed in Arizona?”
She’d expected
cactus, sagebrush, and balmy temperatures for this segment of her trip, not
pine trees and a blizzard. The northern part of the state and the southern half
might as well have been on different planets.
Lucky turned to
look at her and whined, then scratched the door.
“Seriously? You
have to go now? We’ll both turn into popsicles.”
He whined again
and added a low woof for good measure.
“Oh, for crying
out loud.” Isabel slowed to a stop in the middle of the empty road. Deserted
because she was the only one stupid enough to be driving in a snowstorm. If she
pulled to the edge, she’d probably wind up in a ditch. “Fine, you can get out to
pee.”
When she opened
the door and stepped into ankle-deep snow, a blast of arctic air hit her in the
face and penetrated her faux-fur jacket, which would be plenty warm for spending
Christmas in Las Vegas—if she ever made it there. Obviously, it wasn’t designed
to withstand real winter weather.
“Come on. I’m not
walking around the car to let you out.”
Lucky squeezed his
way over the center console and landed beside her with a thump. He gave his
massive head a shake and sniffed his way down the road in the direction they’d
come. Wagging happily, he was obviously thrilled with the situation.
At least one of us is enjoying this.
“We aren’t here to
play. Do your business, and let’s go!” Her shouted words whirled away on the unrelenting
wind.
A rumble sounded
in the distance, growing louder as lights appeared around the bend. Isabel
shielded her eyes against the glare and breathed a sigh of relief when the
oversized pickup stopped before running over her dog. Not that anyone could
miss seeing him since he was as big as a small pony.
“Lucky, move!” She
shuffled forward in leather boots with slick soles, struggling to stay upright.
Swearing beneath her breath, she finally reached the driver’s side door of the
truck where her dog stood with his front paws planted against the window. “Oh,
my God! Get down!”
When Lucky ignored
her completely and whined, the driver lowered the glass a couple of inches. “He
probably smells the ribs. I was in the mood for decent barbecue and brought a
rack home with me for my Christmas Eve dinner.” The deep voice held a hint of
amusement.
“I’m so sorry.”
Grabbing Lucky’s collar, Isabel pulled with all her strength. When he backed away
without warning, her foot slipped out from beneath her. She landed on the icy
pavement, sprawled on her backside. “Ouch!”
“Are you okay?”
The door opened with a creak, and a big male in a puffy jacket bent over her,
his face a blur in the darkness.
Lucky sniffed him
and licked the side of his neck.
“I think so. Move
it, you moron!”
Hastily, the man
backed away. “I’m sorry, I—”
“Not you, my dog.”
Isabel could feel her face heating with embarrassment as she tried to scramble
to her feet.
He put a hand
beneath her elbow and lifted her effortlessly before steadying her at her
waist. “Careful.”
“Thank you.” She
let out a puff of breath in the frigid air as she slapped snow off her backside.
“I apologize for Lucky and for stopping in the middle of the road. I’ll go move
my car out of the way so you can get past me.”
“Your dog doesn’t
look like he fits in that thing.”
“Just barely.” When
Lucky lifted his leg to pee on his truck tire, she cringed.
“Uh, not to
question your judgement, but you should put on chains.” The chatty stranger gestured
toward the rear of her Prius, illuminated by his headlights. “The road
conditions are only going to get worse as you climb.”
“Climb?” Her voice
squeaked. “We’re still going up?”
“I’m afraid so,
and the road crews won’t be out to plow anytime soon since this isn’t a major highway.”
“There was a
pile-up on the freeway. I was lucky to get off when I did, and my GPS showed
this road connecting to I40 in another thirty miles or so.”
“Thirty miles of
winding road that climbs over a thousand feet. Maybe you should go back into
town to wait out the storm.”
“There’s no room
at the inn. Motorists who got off the freeway ahead of me must have filled the
place.” She wrapped her arms across her chest and tried not to shiver as
snowflakes dampened her hair. “I don’t have chains. I wasn’t planning to drive
through a blizzard.”
“You travelled all
the way from Virginia without carrying chains?”
She scrunched her
brow. “How did you—oh, my license plate.”
“That’s quite a
road trip.” When Lucky nudged his hand, the man patted his head. “Where’re you
headed?”
“Las Vegas. Bachelorette
party for one of my oldest friends right after Christmas.” Her teeth chattered,
and she clamped them together. “I planned to get there a couple of days early. Sorry.
I’m still blocking the road. I’ll move my car so you can go home and eat your
dinner. Come on, Lucky. You aren’t getting those ribs.”
“I wouldn’t mind
sharing. I certainly can’t eat the whole rack by myself, and I don’t like the
idea of leaving you on the road without chains. The snow is really coming down
hard, and you won’t get much traction with street tires. Chances are, you’ll
wind up in a ditch.” He reached out to touch her arm, and she instinctively backed
up a step.
“I’ll be fine.” At least I hope so. What kind of idiot
was she, hanging out alone on a deserted road with a strange man. With
her recent luck, he was probably a serial killer.
Seemingly reading
her mind, he held up both hands. “Hey, I’m harmless. I promise.”
“I’m sure you are,
but—”
“Do I look like a crazed
killer? I’ve been told I have a baby face.”
“I can’t see your
face in the dark. Anyway, what does a serial killer look like? I doubt they all
wear creepy white masks à la Michael Myers.”
“I expect you’re
right. Most probably look like normal guys—” He broke off. “I’ll shut up now. I’m
sure this conversation isn’t reassuring you. If you take it slow and stay in
the middle if the road, you should be fine. It’s not like there’s any traffic
tonight.”
“True. We seem to
be the only morons out driving.”
He grinned. “I’ll
follow behind you until I get to my turnoff in another mile.”
“Okay. Thank you,
uh . . .”
“Joe. Good luck
with the rest of your drive, and have fun at the bachelorette party.”
She summoned a smiled.
“I’m Isabel, by the way. I’ll do my best. Have a merry Christmas, Joe.”
“You, too.”
Amazingly, Lucky
deserted the truck and the ribs to follow her when she headed back to her car.
Even more surprisingly, she didn’t fall on her butt getting there. Maybe things
were looking up, after all. A minute later, both she and her dog were inside
the car. She shifted into gear and gave the engine some gas. Her wheels spun
but finally caught, and the car lurched forward.
“Yes!”
With her wipers
slapping the fat flakes pelting her windshield, she leaned forward and peered
at the stretch of pristine white emptiness in front of her. No tire tracks to lead
the way, but if she didn’t stray from the center of the road, she should survive
the next thirty miles.
Behind her, the
glow of Joe’s headlights was comforting. Until, with a double tap on his horn,
he turned right and disappeared.
Her heart thumped
in her chest as she let her foot off the gas. Who was she kidding? No way was
she driving miles and miles through a blizzard when it had taken her five
minutes to go a measly one. And if by some miracle she made it to the freeway, it
would probably be closed when she got there.
Turning, she
stared at her dog. “What do you think? Should we go back to the inn with the no
vacancy sign and beg for a place to spend the night, even if it’s only a shed
out back? Or do we throw ourselves on the mercy of Joe—who hopefully isn’t a
serial killer—and help eat his ribs while we figure out what to do?”
Lucky let out a
low woof.
Isabel put the car
in reverse. “That’s what I thought you’d say.”
* * * *
Is Joe a serial killer? Does Lucky get those ribs? To find out what happens next, come back tomorrow for part two. Don't forget, my latest book, HIDDEN SECRETS, is available in digital and print. Pick up a copy at your local Barnes & Noble or download it HERE. Happy reading!
19 comments:
Here’s hoping Joe isn’t a serial killer, or any kind of killer for that matter. I’m thinking she made the right decision. :-)
She definitely made the right decision to get off the road. Great beginning, Jannine.
Margo, I guess you'll have to come back tomorrow to see if Joe has homicidal tendencies...
Diane, she definitely has the wrong car for the road conditions! Maybe her dog could pull her out of a ditch since he's the size of a moose!
It's snowing here in southern Virginia as I read this. Pretty, yes, but I definitely don't want to be driving in it. I never did well in snow. I hope Isabel makes out better than I typically did. And I hope Joe is a decent sort. One nice thing, she has a body guard with her. Great beginning!
I want ribs now!
I drive in the snow all the time, Vonnie. I'm not a fan of it, either!
Robin, I wanted ribs while I was writing this. lol
Oh, Vonnie, really? The dog loves barbecue...he licked the guy's neck already. I'm not seeing a guard dog here. Great Part 1, Jannine. This woman has a great deal to think about...what a long road trip! Ex-boyfriend must be an extra large jerk.
Rolynn, she is sort of pushing her luck. Hopefully this story won't turn into a bloody Christmas tale...
Ohhhh...what a fun start. I love the hook...what will she do...? (As if I don't know. :)) And, while I enjoy a good serial killer, I'm hoping Joe isn't one. Looking forward to part 2!
Ha, that would be a twist if he is a serial killer, Ally!
I have a feeling the and Lucky are both getting ribs...and a whole lot more. LOL. Great start!
Alison, Lucky may just get lucky! We'll have to see if he's the only one!
It's all Gallant for me for a couple of days. Halfway through Hidden Secrets and I have to find out about Joe!
Love this beginning! Really wish I had planned to make ribs tonight...
Hey, Quentin and Joe have something in common, Brenda--they both cook ribs! I hope you don't get tired of either of my heroes!
Chris, after ODing on turkey, I figured we could all use a dose of ribs!
I love Quentin and I'm sure Joe will be equally tasty. LOL
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