by Thianna D
Roy disconnected and stood. “Dahlia, can you come in here a moment?” His secretary, a new arrival in Corbin’s Bend, had replaced Sam’s employee who had retired when her boss did. The curvy brunette peeked in the door, and he smiled at her. “I have finished what’s on my desk, and the storm is getting worse.”
She scooted closer in a lunge, as if he might bite her, and he stifled annoyance. Only the Board knew her story, what made her behave the way she did, and Brent Carmichael had asked him to hire her. Timid but efficient… He’d described her to a T.
“Yes, sir.” Dahlia gathered the folder and another stack of printouts and blinked at him as if facing a firing squad. “Will there be anything else?”
“I’m going to head out and try to get to Denver while the highway is still passable. Sam is in town but won’t be coming into the office until tomorrow. Go on home and hang the closed sign on the door. The answering service will forward any calls, and I do not expect customers in this weather.” The window behind him rattled in a strong gust of wind.
“Yes, sir.” God, couldn’t the girl say anything else? Roy shook his head. She did her job, a secretary/paralegal with excellent skills. Teri thought she must have some great tragedy in her past, but hadn’t managed to pry it out of her, despite taking her to lunch several times, once with her sidekick, Kirsten. If they couldn’t make her talk, her grouchy boss wouldn’t be able to.
And it was none of his business as long as his office was neat, briefs typed, and filings ready on time. She also made terrific coffee.
Teri held all the family curiosity.
“All right, then. Tell Sam I can be reached on shipboard in an emergency, and I will see him when I get back.”
A furrow formed between her brows. She couldn’t be afraid of Sam…
“You’ll like him, Dahlia. He’s a nice old guy and knows everyone in town. Maybe he can introduce you around.
She paled. What on earth was eating the girl? Corbin’s Bend was the friendliest place he’d ever had the pleasure to visit, much less live in.
He’d have to talk to Brent—or maybe Father Henry—on his return. Whatever haunted her, he hated to see her so unhappy. In her early twenties, lovely as the flower she was named after, but so much more subdued. Dahlia’s misery took the shiny edge off his days at work and certainly off her own.
Shrugging the quandary aside for later, he donned his coat, scarf, and wooly hat—Teri’s first effort at knitting and not quite symmetrical—and headed for the front door. Opening it, he shivered at the blast of wintry air chilling his face and hands, and squinted at the snowflakes bombarding him. He fumbled in his coat pocket for gloves. Tonight, they’d be on shipboard in Florida, ready for departure to warm, warm places. It couldn’t be soon enough.
Chapter Four
Roy opened the back of the SUV and pulled out his snowbrush. In the few hours he’d spent at his desk, the light flakes providing a pretty winter landscape had become a heavy, wet fall. If it got any colder, they might be in for an ice storm, according to the forecasters.
If so, the trip was off, and Teri would be heartbroken. He shoved at the accumulation of snow on the car, his face chapping in the rising wind, ears aching with the cold despite his cap, which covered all of one and half of the other. Back in the City, he’d left his vehicle in the underground lot and cabbed it to work on snowy days. He’d driven Teri’s new SUV today because she wouldn’t be leaving the house and he had wanted the four-wheel drive in case the weather did—what it had done.
He blessed their ability to have nice cars. As the temperature dropped past the low twenties, an older vehicle had a tendency to be cranky, as well he remembered from his less-affluent youth. The engine roared to life as soon as he turned the key and, checking the mirrors, he backed out of the nearly deserted parking lot and drove onto the main street of town. Most of the residents must have decided to avoid the weather, and while the storefronts were brightly lit, few cars parked along the curbs. So far, they’d had what his neighbors called a light winter, but February 13th seemed determined to make up for the lack.
Making a right instead of left, he headed to the edge of Corbin’s Bend and onto the highway to see if the road to Denver was clear and moving. He clicked on the local news channel and learned planes were taking off and landing, for the time being. The Mile-High City’s airport handled winter weather than most, but even its facilities had their limits. He intended to drive only a short ways, but, concerned with the snow buildup soon found himself halfway to Denver. Was the road safe enough to attempt? Did he want to take Teri out in this? He flicked on the news, but the weather report still showed things open and clear. If this was clear, Colorado had a different definition. In New York, everything would have been shut down by now, but the Western citizens seemed to be of hardier stock. Fluffy flakes piled up on the hood, sticking instead of falling off. Wet, heavy snow.
Not looking good.
Suddenly, a furry blur raced across the road in front of him and, distracted, he did exactly what he knew not to do and slammed on the brakes. He hit a patch of ice, and the car sailed across the road into a spin, heading for a tree, no, a ditch, no a tree… Roy held onto the wheel, steering into the skid until the whirling snow followed him right into the shallow ditch at the side of the road.
The howling wind gave the illusion of motion even after the SUV stopped, and, thank heavens, the lack of impact with anything in particular had precluded the airbags. If they had activated, he couldn’t have used the car again until it was repaired, and his little sports car wouldn’t be up to the drive into Denver.
Which seemed less likely all the time.
Damn coyote. The stupid things didn’t have the sense to stay in their dens in a snowstorm. He longed for his own cozy den, as he eyed the white landscape, visibility down to almost nothing.
Roy stepped out of the car and up to his knees in snow. Nice. Wet pants. He’d be chilled in no time. His winterized boots at least offered some protection from frostbite. Stumbling around the vehicle, he determined that the snow appeared to have cushioned the landing, no damage or dents visible—saving him some of his wife’s wrath. They’d traded in her late sister’s minivan for it a month before and she treated the shiny black SUV like a second child. Even he refrained from eating or drinking in it for fear of marring the interior.
Climbing back in, he commanded the in-dash system to call roadside service—a plan included with the vehicle—and listened to the company’s idea of relaxing music while waiting for an operator to take his call. All the tow trucks in the area would be busy jumping batteries and dragging idiots out of ditches. He winced. How long would he have to wait?
A car went by on the highway above him then another, but he didn’t expect them to see him well enough to realize his situation as they whizzed by. Finally, headlights approached in the distance, a slow-moving single car, and he slogged through the snow, clutching his phone in one gloved hand. Why hadn’t he headed there sooner? By the time he scrambled up the slope, the taillights of the vehicle had disappeared into the snowstorm. He’d have to return to the SUV, where he could at least stay warm and maybe dry off a bit, until someone from roadside service came for him. After he reached them.
Roy turned, slid down the slope, then stood upright and started for the car. He shivered, and moved faster, anxious to warm up as soon as possible. But the calf-deep snow hid an indentation and when his foot landed in it, his leg buckled. Roy waved his arms trying to regain his balance and stop his fall and lost his grip on his cell phone. It flew—he had no idea where—as he tumbled into a heap next to the front passenger-side tire of the car.
Shit.
* * * * *
Teri peered out the window—again. Eleven-thirty. Roy should be there anytime. But the swirling snow piling up on the front porch didn’t hold much promise for their vacation. If he didn’t arrive home soon the roads would be a mess. When they’d been making their plans, he’d suggested they leave the night befor
e and stay in a Denver hotel, but she hadn’t wanted to take an extra day away from Ben. When would she learn she didn’t have all the answers?
The TV news showed scene after scene of snowy landscapes, roofs piled with buildup, and traffic jams. They also showed planes still landing and taking off at the airport. If they could get there and on their flight, and if it took off, they’d be home free.
Where was Roy? If they missed this trip because he got caught up at work…
Teri dialed the office, and Dahlia answered. “Good morning, Simms Law Offices.”
“Dahlia, this is Teri. May I speak to my husband, please?”
“Hi, Mrs. Simms.” She couldn’t get the new secretary to call her by her first name. “Mr. Simms left about an hour ago.”
Teri’s breath stalled. An hour…they lived a few minutes by car from his office. “Did he have to go by the courthouse on the way home?” Please say he did. The wind picked up, rattling the front window.
“No,” the secretary’s voice pitched even higher, “in fact, he told me to go home, too, but I got a call from a client who had me take down a long message and…don’t tell him I was still here, he might be angry.”
Why was the girl so panicked? Roy was nothing but kind to her and seemed satisfied with her work. But every time a man so much as looked at her, she crawled into her shell like a frightened turtle.
Dahlia needed to take a chill pill or get help, but Teri’s usual sympathy faded in her concern for Roy. Rattling the nervous Nellie any worse would solve nothing. “I’ll call his cell. He probably had to run an errand on the way home.” Although, what it could be, she had no idea.
“Mrs. Simms, you won’t tell Mr. Simms I didn’t leave right away?”
Praying for patience, she schooled her voice not to show her irritation. “Not a word. You go right home.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Ma’am! They were almost the same age.
“Bye, Dahlia,” she said with a sigh.
“Good-bye, Mrs. Simms.”
Teri disconnected and dialed Roy’s cell number, her heart thudding in an erratic rhythm. He’d been so anxious to get going. She paced from the front door to the staircase and back again while the phone rang a half-dozen times.
“You’ve reached Roy Simms. Please leave a message at the tone and I will return your call promptly. If this is an emergency, you may reach my answering service at…”
Beep.
“Roy, where are you?” Outside, the wind picked up again and the branches of the tree in the front yard swayed, heavy with snow, menacing in the dim daylight. Teri pressed her face to the cold window glass. Dark clouds hovered over the rooftops of the neighborhood, sending down thick, wet flurries of snow to pile on the lawn and cover the cars in the neighbor’s driveways. She swallowed her fear to try to keep her voice even. “Honey, Dahlia says”—crap she wasn’t supposed to tell him Dahlia had still been at the office—“that is, I’m worried. It’s nearly noon now and the weather is getting worse. Are you coming home soon?” She took a deep breath. “Call me, okay?”
She disconnected and paced to the stairs again, ending up facing the door, willing him to enter. To be there with her. She’d become used to the three of them and their little family, and with Ben at Kirsten’s, the empty house spooked her
Back at the window, she stared out at the snowscape. Light glowed from across the street, and she could see, through the whirling flakes, figures moving around the living room. Home and safe, together.
The phone rang and she punched the answer button, “Roy!”
“This is an automated message from Corbin’s Bend Elementary. We will be dismissing the children early today due to the storm. They will be ready to go home at noon.”
Ben.
She disconnected and dialed Kirsten’s number.
“Hi, Teri. Are you on your way to Denver?”
Any voice soothed her nerves. “Hey, Kirsten. No, Roy isn’t home yet.”
“I guess you got the call about the early dismissal?”
Teri nodded at the phone. “Yes, can you make it to get the kids?”
“I’m already at the school, waiting. Even if they hadn’t decided to close, I made an executive decision.”
“Whew.” Across the street, someone pulled the drapes closed and cut off the light.
“Hey, you’d better get going. The roads will be a mess. Is the airport still open?”
Teri glanced at the flat-screen television where the local newscasters still babbled on about winter weather. How unusual for Denver. Although New York got its share of snow, the vehemence of this storm seemed so much more ominous.
Not helped by being on her own, without her husband and son close by. Well…they weren’t far off, but they weren’t with her either.
And she wanted them to be.
“So far, the airport—”
“Hang on, they’re starting to let the kids out. Okay, the big ones. Not our age group yet. So, go on?”
Teri sank into the sofa then leapt up again, unable to sit still. “Anyway, so far as I know, the flight is still on, but I’m starting to get worried. Roy left the office a while ago, according to Dahlia.”
“That girl still afraid of her own shadow?”
Teri rolled her eyes, another invisible gesture to the person on the other end of the phone. “Yeah. But, Kirsten, he left over an hour ago. Even in this weather, it’s a ten-minute drive max.” She took up her pacing again. Door. Stairs. Door. Stairs.
“Did he have any stops to make, maybe?” Kirsten’s calm voice helped. A little.
“No, I don’t think so. And he’s not answering his phone. I’m frightened. What if something happened to him?”
A long pause on the other end.
“Kirsten?”
“Give me a second.” She heard the click of a door and the chatter of voices as Ben and Suzanna piled in the car and Kirsten got them buckled in. Then she spoke again. “Yes, got the kids fine. I’ll be home in a couple of minutes, and then I’ll call you back, okay?” The line went dead.
She gripped the phone tighter, not wanting to let her lifeline go, but also glad Kirsten wouldn’t talk to her even on speaker while driving in severe weather. Maybe Roy hadn’t answered for the same reason. He might be home any second.
After fifteen long minutes, the phone rang. This time, she glanced at the display before answering. Kirsten again. Her second choice. “Hi.”
“Hi, Teri. I didn’t want to talk in front of the kids, so it took a few minutes to settle them at the kitchen table with crayons and cocoa.” Kirsten always put her to shame—she’d probably also served them homemade whole-grain animal crackers or something. And fruit. “I don’t suppose Roy has arrived yet?”
“No,” she gulped. Tears, an all too common state of affairs since Melinda’s death, blurred her vision. “I’m worried.”
“I know, honey. I called Ronnie a moment ago, and he offered to drive around and search for Roy.”
“I hate to ask him to leave the office. Do you think I should call the police?”
Kirsten said something muffled and she heard laughter in response then quiet again. “Just checking on Ben and Suzanna. They’re happy as clams. Ronnie says he planned to head home early anyway. Let me call back and confirm Roy hasn’t returned, and he’ll head right out.”
“I’m going to look, too.”
“Teri, you can’t go out in this alone.”
“I can’t sit here and do nothing, either.”
“And I can’t have you come over here, or Ben will know something’s wrong. He thinks you’re already on your trip and I didn’t correct him.”
Oh God…Ben had lost two parents in a car accident a few months before. What if…
“Teri, Roy will be fine. Maybe you can go with Ronnie instead?”
“Can I?” Anything but waiting, afraid and alone.
“Let me ask, and I’ll call you right back.”
Teri began to protest and realized arguments wouldn’t fly w
ith Kirsten. Ronnie’s HoH position in their home was unassailable and, while she’d make the request, her husband’s answer would be final. And if he said no, she’d do what she had to do.
“Thanks. I’ll be right here.” Where else would she be? At least until she knew whether she would be going with Ronnie or alone.
To her great relief, Ronnie agreed, and Teri scribbled a note and pinned it to the refrigerator.
Roy,
I got worried so Ronnie and I are taking a look around in case you had a breakdown and your phone isn’t working. Call me from the house phone when you get here.
XOXO
Teri
Bundling into her heaviest coat, snow boots, scarf, hat, and gloves, she waited by the door until a car stopped in front of their house and then grabbed her purse and ran down to hop in Ronnie’s jeep.
Chapter Five
Roy groaned and pushed himself to his feet— or foot. His right ankle sent searing pain up his calf when he tried to put weight on it. Sprained. At least. Grabbing for the door handle, he jerked open the passenger door, since the driver’s side might as well be on the moon with the way his leg felt. And he wouldn’t be driving out of the ditch anyway.
Maneuvering into the seat, he remembered his phone. Flying off into the snow somewhere. Even if he knew where to look, he couldn’t make it on his injured leg. Crap. Crap. Crap.
Pulling the door closed, he surveyed his clothing and grimaced. In the warm car, the snow would start to melt, he’d be wet, and uncomfortable. But standing up was out of the question, and while he was seated, it throbbed but nothing he couldn’t handle. Perhaps it wasn’t broken. But it would really put a crimp into their vacation plans if he had to stay in the stateroom all week with his foot propped up on pillows.
The possibility of their making the trip became slimmer with each passing moment. Not just waiting for a tow truck, at this point, he’d need an x-ray for the ankle before he could consider flying anywhere.
