Six Hours Away

by Kay Correll

  She stood, knowing the drill. “I’ll get my purse. And Sunny. We have to take Sunny and Barney.”

  He nodded. “Of course we will. You find Sunny and I’ll get Barney’s leash.”

  “I wish I had time to go home and grab some things in case we’re trapped off the island for a few days.”

  “Sorry, Robs, no time. I’ll grab a few things, though, and some food and water.”

  She went out to the front room and looked at where Sunny had been napping. No sign of her. “Sunny? Where are you? Kitty, kitty, kitty.” She walked around calling for the kitten. Still no sign. She looked under the couch, behind the chairs, anywhere she could think of.

  “Jay, I can’t find Sunny. We can’t just leave her,” she called out to him, a bit of panic racing through her. She didn’t rescue the kitten only to have to leave her behind if she couldn’t find her.

  Jay strode into the room with the kitten in his arms. “Found her sound asleep on the pillow on my bed. Hope she doesn’t think that’s her new place to sleep. Because it’s not…” Though the softness of his expression contradicted the sternness of his words.

  She reached for Sunny and held her close. “Good kitty.” She stroked Sunny’s back and the kitten began to purr.

  “I’ll load up the car, then we’ll leave.”

  Within a handful of minutes, Jay had the car loaded and they headed out. As they drove down the road, the rain began in earnest with the wipers barely clearing the windshield for them to peer out. Her heart pounded in her chest as they slowly drove with Jay straining to pay close attention to the road.

  An alert from her phone grabbed her attention again. She slipped her phone out and read the alert. “Jay, the bridge. It’s closed. It was damaged. The city alert said to go shelter at the community center.”

  He glanced over at her and nodded, a frown creasing his face. “The bridge damaged? That’s not good. Okay, we’ll head to the center.” He turned and headed back toward town, soon joining a line of cars pouring into the parking near the center.

  He found a spot, leashed up Barney, and she snuggled Sunny close to her. He nodded as he slipped out of the car and raced around to open her door. She slid out and he wrapped an arm around her as they hurried to the door.

  They got inside and she shook the rain from her hair, still careful to keep a hold on Sunny.

  Sara greeted them. “There you two are. Good. I’ll put your names down. Charlotte just got here with Ben. They’re already inside. Go on in. There are blankets and towels so you can dry off.”

  Robin was glad to hear Charlotte had made it safely here, too. She followed Jay and Barney into the main room of the center and soon they were swallowed up by the crowd of townsfolk.

  They dried off and Lillian came hurrying up to them. “I checked with Sara, and Etta isn’t here. Have you seen her? Maybe she slipped in without Sara getting her name down?”

  “Haven’t seen her.”

  “I sent Zoe to search the crowd. I’m worried about her. She lives alone. But surely she got the alert.” The worry was clear in Lillian’s eyes.

  Just then Zoe and Mason came up to them. “I’ve looked everywhere. I don’t see her.”

  Robin thought for a moment. “You know, I think I saw the light on at the historical society as we drove past. That’s kind of unusual, isn’t it? She would have closed it up and gone home. Though maybe she just forgot and left a light on.”

  “I tried calling her, but I didn’t get an answer. She hadn’t made any plans to leave the island last time I talked to her.” Lillian turned and searched the crowd again.

  “Let me go check the historical society building,” Jay said. “If she’s not there, I’ll run to her house.”

  “I hate to have you go out in this.” Lillian frowned.

  “Won’t take long,” Jay assured her.

  “I’ll go with you,” Mason offered. “Just in case you need help.”

  Jay kissed Robin quickly and handed her the leash. “Here, take Barney. I’ll be back soon.”

  “Stay safe.” She frowned, not pleased that he was going back out into the storm. But someone really did need to check on Etta, and of course, Jay wanted to help allay Lillian’s worries.

  Mason turned to Zoe. “I’ll be back. You stay here. Stay safe.”

  Zoe nodded but didn’t look very pleased that Mason was heading out into the storm, either.

  “Ready?” Jay asked.

  Mason nodded.

  She and Zoe stood side by side and watched as the men left. Jay knew how to be careful. He’d be fine. Just fine. But still, an uneasiness slithered through her. She turned to Zoe, a reassuring smile plastered on her face. “They’ll be fine.”

  “Right. I’m sure they will.” But Zoe’s voice sounded as uncertain as hers did.

  Chapter 12

  “We’ll take my car.” Jay led the way to where he’d gotten a parking spot at the far edge of the lot. The rain poured down, drenching them, and his clothes stuck to him as they hurried along.

  Mason grabbed his arm. “Look. The entrance to the parking lot is flooded and a tree fell across the drive.”

  Jay looked over and let out a sigh. “Looks like no one is getting in or out of this lot anytime soon. It’s only a couple of blocks. You up for a quick jog over there?”

  “Not seeing we have a choice.”

  He and Mason jogged through the pelting rain, sloshing through puddles and trying to avoid the flooded areas on the streets. They got to the historical society and Jay tried the door. It swung open easily. “Etta?” He called out as they pushed inside, dripping water everywhere.

  “Etta?” He tried again, louder, so his voice could be heard over the howling winds.

  “I hear something back that way.” Mason pointed.

  They hurried down a hallway. “Etta?” He called out again.

  “Back here. Help.”

  They rushed into a back room and stopped. A large bookcase had tumbled over, and there, pinned under it, was Etta.

  “Oh, Jay. Thank goodness. I didn’t know when anyone would come to find me. I’m stuck and can’t get out. And of course, I didn’t have my phone on me. I was trying to put some documents up on the top shelf to keep them safe if we get flooding and then the whole bookcase fell before I could get away from it.”

  “We’ll get you out. Don’t worry.” He surveyed the damage, trying to figure out how to move the case without causing more harm.

  Mason walked up beside him. “We need to prop that end up. Move those boxes so they don’t fall, then we’ll lift this end off of her.”

  Jay glanced and saw that Mason had come up with a good plan. He nodded as they sprang into action. “Okay, Etta, you ready? We’re going to lift this off of you and then you try to crawl out.”

  “Okay.”

  They lifted the heavy wooden bookcase and he saw Etta try to get loose.

  “I can’t. I’m still stuck.”

  “I’ll go prop that end up more. We’ll try again.” Mason went over to work on finding something to help stabilize the end of the case.

  Jay bent down near Etta. “Don’t worry. We’ll get you out of here. Everything is going to be just fine.”

  Etta nodded but he couldn’t help but notice how pale she looked.

  “Okay, let’s try this again.” Mason returned and they leveraged up the bookcase and he slid a wooden box under it.

  Jay reached down, gently took hold of Etta, and helped her slide free. He stood to help her to her feet.

  “Watch out,” Mason called as the case began to totter.

  Jay grabbed Etta and hurled them both backward, just as the bookcase crashed to the floor. He and Etta landed in a clump on the floor, inches away from the bookcase.

  “You okay?” He looked at her closely.

  “Yes… I’m just glad you found me.”

  “We’ll help you up.”

  He rose and he and Mason reached down for Etta. She tried to stand, but he could see the pain on he
r face. “My ankle. I don’t think…”

  “Not a problem. We’ll just carry you to the community center. You’re going to get wet, but you’ll be fine.”

  She nodded.

  He gently lifted her in his arms. “Clear the way, will you, Mason?”

  Mason moved some boxes and cleared a pathway to the door. He looked at Mason as they stood in the doorway to the building. It was almost impossible to see through the sheets of rain. “Stay close. We don’t want to get turned around in this.”

  Mason nodded. “Hey, you’re the one who knows the town. I’ll be stuck like glue to you, buddy.”

  “Don’t forget to close the door,” Etta said.

  Jay chuckled. “No, ma’am. We won’t.”

  Lillian paced back and forth, waiting for news about Etta. She tried to busy herself delivering hot coffee to the stranded townsfolk, but her mind was filled with reasons why Etta wasn’t here now. And none of the reasons were good ones.

  She walked over to the door to check with Sara, just in case Etta had arrived and she’d missed her. Sara looked up at her from the check-in desk and just shook her head, no.

  The door swung open again and Lillian looked hopefully in its direction. But it was Delbert Hamilton ushering Camille inside. “Come on, honey. Let’s get you inside and dried off.”

  “But I don’t want to sit here with a bunch of strangers.” Camille’s voice came out in a petulant whine.

  “They aren’t strangers. They are the people who live here. We know most of them. And we can’t get off the island now. You heard the bridge was closed.” He turned and smiled at Sara.

  Sara smiled back at him. “I’ll add you two to the list. Glad you made it here. The storm is taking a nasty turn toward us according to Sheriff Dave.”

  “We were going to ride out the storm at Camille’s family’s house, but then we got the alert to evacuate.”

  “And I, of course, needed to pack my essentials.” Camille frowned. “But Delbert only let me bring two suitcases. Certainly not enough.”

  “Well, darlin’, it took you quite a bit to just pack those up.”

  Camille walked a few steps over to the opening to the main room. “We’re supposed to stay in there? With everyone? On… are those cots?”

  “Not sure there are any cots left now. You’re the last people to get here, I expect. The alert went out quite a while ago.” Lillian looked at Camille, annoyed at the woman’s attitude. Annoyed she was even here. Camille should be grateful the town had a safe place like this for people to come to now that the bridge was closed. But then, Camille was Camille. Always.

  “I don’t know why the weathermen got the forecast so wrong. If we’d known it was going to get this bad, we would have headed back home to Mama’s house in Comfort Crossing.”

  “Hurricanes are unpredictable at best, Camille.” Lillian tried to keep the irritation out of her voice. She was worried about Etta, and a little inconvenience wouldn’t hurt Camille. And it wasn’t like any of the other people here weren’t going through the same inconveniences. Storms were tough on everyone.

  Lillian sighed. And, she freely admitted, Camille got on her nerves.

  “Well, you’d think they could predict better than this.” Camille shook out her hair. “I need to dry off. Are there at least towels here? Or Delbert, go out and get my suitcase. I have a hairdryer in there.”

  “I’m sorry, Sheriff Dave wants people to stay inside once they get here.” Sara looked at Delbert, not Camille.

  Delbert took Camille’s elbow. “Come on, let’s see what we can find. Get you dried off and warm.” He turned and smiled at Lillian. “We’ll be fine.”

  “But Delbert, I need my things,” Camille’s eyes flashed with defiance.

  “Later, darlin’” Delbert headed toward the main room with Camille letting out a streak of complaints the whole time.

  Lillian turned to Sara. “I don’t know why that man stays with her.”

  Sara laughed. “Good luck to Delbert keeping her happy while held captive here at the center. She sounded like this storm was all his fault.”

  “I think I’ll just keep a wide berth from her.”

  “Good plan.”

  Lillian headed off to the kitchen to see if The Yarnies needed more help passing out coffee and cookies, though she’d see if someone else would volunteer to bring it out to Delbert and Camille. She’d already hit her fill of the woman. She should go and check on Lucky, too. Make sure the pup was doing okay in the crowded center.

  At least helping out in the kitchen and checking on the dog would keep her mind off of Etta.

  Maybe.

  Where was the woman? She couldn’t help worrying about her.

  Robin paced around inside the center waiting for Jay to return. She’d lost count of how many times she’d glanced at her watch. Barney walked by her side as she juggled the kitten in her other arm.

  Zoe walked up to her. “Any sign of them?”

  “No, not yet.”

  “Want me to watch your kitten while you walk Barney around?”

  “That would be great.” She handed Sunny over to Zoe. “Sunny. Her name is Sunny.”

  Zoe stroked the kitten as it settled into her arms, purring. Zoe laughed. “She’s a noisy little thing.”

  “She’s a purr monster, that’s for sure. The storm and the hubbub haven’t seemed to bother her one bit.”

  “I’ll watch her while you give Barney some exercise.”

  “Thanks, Zoe. Let me know if you see the guys come back.” She walked away, out of the main room of the center and down a long hallway, trying to escape some of the crowd. Barney was beginning to look a bit anxious. Whether it was the storm or the crowd, she wasn’t sure. She circled twice around inside the center and ended up by the front door yet again.

  Sara looked up from the table and shrugged. “Sorry, they’re not back yet.”

  “I hope they found Etta and I wish they’d get back here.” She didn’t know how many more laps around the place she could do before she went crazy with worry.

  “I’m sure they’re fine,” Sara said encouragingly.

  “I’m sure you’re right.” But she wasn’t sure. She still had this nagging feeling and just wanted to lay her eyes on Jay and know he was okay. Then maybe she’d feel better. Or some better. The storm had her on edge. She let out a long breath, trying to steady her nerves.

  The door swung open and a group of people entered, crowding through the door, trying to get in out of the storm.

  With all the commotion, Barney tugged on the leash unexpectedly and pulled it right from her hand. She lunged for the leash but wasn’t quick enough. Barney rushed past the people and headed toward the door. “Barney, come back.”

  She pushed through the people to get to the door and to her dismay, the dog rushed out into the storm. She whirled toward Sara. “I have to get Barney. He got out.”

  “No, don’t go out in that.” Sara jumped up from her chair.

  “I have to.” Her heart pounding, she raced out into the storm just in time to catch a glimpse of Barney running across the parking lot, his leash trailing behind him.

  She had to catch him. Had to. Or Mrs. Gleason would never forgive her.

  And Jay probably wouldn’t either…

  Chapter 13

  Jay and Mason hurried through the storm. Jay tried to shield Etta as best he could from the drenching rain. But at least they’d found Etta and they were getting her to safety. They finally made it to the community center and Mason battled against the wind to open the door. Jay maneuvered through, careful not to bump Etta’s hurt ankle.

  Lillian and Zoe came rushing up to them. “You found her. Oh, Etta, are you okay?” Lillian’s eyes were full of concern.

  “She’s hurt her ankle. Looks pale.” Jay set Etta down carefully and she leaned against him. He wrapped an arm around her waist to steady her.

  Lillian touched Jay’s arm. “Thank you so much for going and finding her.”

&nb
sp; “It was no problem.” He was always glad to help Lillian after all she’d done for him.

  “I saw Dr. Harden here. I’ll go find her.” Zoe sent a quick look at Mason as if checking to make sure he was really here and safe, then hurried away.

  Gary showed up with a chair for Etta and she gratefully sat down.

  “What happened?” Lillian asked.

  “It was silly of me. I was stashing some records up high on the shelves, just in case there was any flooding. I climbed a ladder, but lost my balance and grabbed hold of the bookcase. The whole thing tumbled over. My leg was caught and I couldn’t move the bookcase. It was too heavy. Luckily Jay and Mason found me and were able to get me free.”

  Ashley Harden hurried up to them, doctor bag in hand. “I hear Etta needs to be checked out.”

  “Ashley, yes. Etta was trapped under a bookcase.” Lillian hovered over Etta.

  “It’s my ankle.”

  Ashley checked out Etta as Jay’s gaze roamed the room, looking for Robin. He turned to Lillian. “Have you seen Robin?”

  “No, not for a bit. I’m sure she’s here in the crowd somewhere.”

  He noticed Zoe was holding Sunny. “You have her kitten?”

  Zoe smiled and petted the kitten. “I’m just holding her for Robin. Last I saw Robin she was walking Barney around.”

  He scanned the crowded room yet again and frowned. He just wanted to set his sights on her. See her. He really wanted to kiss her or hug her, but he’d settle with just seeing her smile.

  Sara came rushing up to them and grabbed his arm. “Jay, there you are. You have to find her.”

  “Robin?” Concern swept through him at the sound of panic in Sara’s voice.

  “Yes. She was walking Barney near the doorway and a group of people came in. Barney got away from her and ran out the door. I tried to stop her but she… she ran out after him.”

  “She went out in this storm?” Now his own voice was filled with panic, and fear gripped his heart.

  Sara nodded.

  Jay whirled toward the door. “I’ve got to find her.”