Six Hours Away

by Kay Correll

  The wind still howled outside as a testament to the raging storm outside the walls of the community center. At least they were safe in here. Or relatively safe. He glanced around at the crowded room. He hoped they were all safe here. It was too bad the bridge was closed and they couldn’t all have gotten to the mainland.

  Sara came up to him and pressed a cup of coffee into his hands. “Here, drink this. You’ve been going nonstop for hours.” She kissed his cheek and smiled at him.

  “I’m hoping the worst of the storm will soon be passing over us. I’m not getting a signal on my phone to see how it’s tracking.”

  “Sherriff Dave came in a bit ago. He and his officers are staying inside here for a bit. Said it was too bad out there to continue their rounds. They’ll head back out when the worst is over.”

  Noah scanned the room. “Have you seen Zoe? I haven’t seen her in a while.”

  Sara frowned. “No. I haven’t. Maybe she’s in the kitchen?”

  “Maybe. I think I’ll go check. I’d just feel better if I can keep my eye on her. I know she’s all grown up now, but old habits die hard.”

  “Go check then. And maybe sit down for a few minutes. You look exhausted.”

  He nodded but really had no plans to sit down. There was still too much to do. He hurried off to the kitchen and found Lillian and Dorothy there, but they hadn’t seen Zoe in a while either. He frowned. It was silly to get worried. He knew she was here. Somewhere.

  But where?

  He turned around, left the kitchen, and started looking for Zoe in earnest. Soon, it was evident that no one had seen her in quite a while. He tried to steady his racing pulse. Of course, she was here, somewhere. She wouldn’t go out in this. She knew better.

  Didn’t she?

  But hadn’t Robin run out after the dog? And no one had heard from her or Jay. He just hoped Jay had found Robin and they were holed up somewhere safe.

  He hurried off to his office, hoping maybe she’d gone there for some peace and quiet. But the office was pitch dark and no Zoe.

  Fear took hold of him. Where was his niece? Why hadn’t he kept a better eye on her? He was running out of places to look for her.

  Then he noticed the quiet. The winds had subsided. But he knew. It was just the eye of the storm passing over. They still had the backside of the storm to contend with. He hurried back to the front door to make sure no one headed outside.

  Chapter 17

  Robin slowly woke up, not sure where she was, or what had changed. Then as she opened her eyes, she realized. It was quiet now. The winds had died down. She fully opened her eyes and saw Jay was right there, holding her, a smile on his face.

  “Hey, sleepyhead.” His voice was low and soothing.

  “I can’t believe I fell asleep. How long was I out?” She blinked a few times, trying to clear her mind.

  “Couple hours. Sounds like the worst of the storm has passed. The eye passed over and then it started in again. But now, I think it’s lessening. Still can’t get a signal on my phone to check, though.”

  “They should do the siren after the sheriff has had time to make rounds of the town and see if it’s safe enough to go out. It might be awhile. Normally if we had evacuated it might be a day or so before we could come back. But with everyone stuck here on the island? I’m not sure what they’ll do.”

  “I’m okay here with you.” He reached over and pushed a lock of her hair away from her face. “Very okay.” He leaned down and kissed her.

  For a bit they sat there, kissing as she cuddled in his arms. He was right. She was okay with just being here with him.

  Finally, though, she pushed off the couch, reluctant to leave Jay’s arms but wanting to look outside. She peered through the window with the clear hurricane shutter but couldn’t see out well enough. “I’m going to open the door and look out.”

  Jay stood and strode over. “I’ll get it.” He opened the door and slowly slid back the hurricane protection.

  She peered around his shoulder. A steady rain pattered down from the sky, but the dark clouds overhead were already beginning to break up.

  He turned back to her and smiled. “Looks like we made it through okay, Robs. I told you that we would.”

  She walked into his arms as they stood looking out into the soaked courtyard. “You did say that.”

  He let out a little chortle. “Well, I’m glad it came true. Would have hated to be lying to you.”

  Zoe woke up, unsure of her surroundings in the pitch dark. She couldn’t see a thing. Nothing.

  Slowly she remembered. The storage room. But where was the lantern light?

  She noticed the quiet, though. The pounding on the metal roof had turned into a gentle drumming.

  She moved slightly, feeling trapped. Her legs were pinned. She struggled to put all her scrambled thoughts together.

  Mason.

  She and Mason were locked in the storage room. She moved again, feeling his strong arms tighten around her as she shifted. He mumbled something she didn’t quite catch.

  She wondered how long they’d been in here. Surely Uncle Noah would have been looking for them. She moved slowly, yet again, trying to disentangle herself from Mason. Though… he was very comfortable to rest against…

  “You awake?” Mason’s low voice drifted through the darkness.

  “I am. Can’t believe I fell asleep.” On him. Tangled up with him.

  “We didn’t get much sleep last night with all the hubbub of the storm.”

  “How long have we been here?” She shifted against him, feeling the smooth texture of his shirt and the firm muscles of his arm.

  “Not sure.” He rustled beside her.

  She reached out one hand, searching for her phone. It had been right next to her. You know, before she’d fallen asleep all tangled up with Mason. Her fingers slid over the face of her cellphone and she grasped it, turning it on.

  “Two hours. We’ve been here two hours. Why hasn’t Noah found us?”

  “Maybe he’s been too busy and hasn’t noticed you’re missing?”

  “I don’t know. That doesn’t sound like Uncle Noah. More likely he’s gone into a panic that he couldn’t find me.” She hated thinking about Noah all worried. “Now that it’s not so noisy with the storm, maybe we should try pounding on the door. Maybe someone will hear us.”

  “We probably should.” Mason agreed, but reached over and pulled her into his arms again. “Or, we could just stay here and kiss some more.”

  That didn’t sound like a half-bad plan…

  But, no. Noah would be worried. But, maybe just one kiss.

  Which led to another kiss. And another.

  Suddenly the door swung open and an arc of light cut through the room. “Zoe, thank goodness. I’ve been looking everywhere for you.” Noah stood in the doorway, a lantern held high. “What are you doing? I’ve been so worried.”

  She hastily jumped up and struggled with straightening out her clothing and pulling back her hair, feeling like a teenager caught necking on the couch. “We came looking for more blankets and got locked in here.”

  She glanced over at Mason and his face held the same look as her feelings. Guilt at being caught kissing.

  “It opened for me.” Noah cocked his head.

  Mason jumped up beside her. “No, sir. The door was locked. We tried everything.”

  “It is a bit tricky sometimes.” Noah looked from her to Mason and back to her. “But you’re okay?”

  “I’m fine.” She started to walk toward Noah, then turned around. “Wait, we need to find Sunny.”

  “Who?”

  “Sunny. Robin’s kitten. She’s in here somewhere.”

  Noah held up the lantern and she spied Sunny stretching and arching her back on a pile of blankets, looking annoyed that they’d awakened her. She scooped up the kitten and turned to her uncle. “Has the storm passed?”

  “It has. Just steady rain now. The sheriff went out a few minutes ago to check on things.�
��

  Mason gathered up a stack of blankets. “So, now what happens?”

  “We wait until we get the all-clear that we can leave the center.” Noah grabbed some of the blankets. “Let’s head back to the main room. Still a lot to do.”

  She hurried after Noah and grabbed his arm. “I’m sorry to have worried you. I didn’t mean to. We were just trying to help. Getting more blankets. Then that silly door just wouldn’t budge.”

  Noah hugged her with one arm. “I know. I was just so worried that something had happened to you or you’d gone out in the storm. Didn’t think of this old storage room until just a bit ago.”

  “Well, I’m glad you found us.” And she was glad he wasn’t mad at her. But, to be honest, was she glad they were found? It had been awfully nice all cuddled up alone with Mason…

  Chapter 18

  Lillian turned to Gary. “I wish the phones were working. I’m worried about Jay and Robin.”

  “I’m sure he found her and they’re holed up somewhere, waiting for the all-clear.”

  “You’re probably right.” She stared at the phone, willing it to get a signal.

  Noah, Zoe, and Mason came walking up.

  “There you are,” Lillian said. “Gary was wondering where you two got off to.”

  “We got locked in an old storage room, but Noah found us.”

  “You okay?” Lillian looked them over, but they looked fine. They looked… She smothered a smile. They looked more than fine. And she was pretty sure that was some whisker burn on Zoe’s cheek. Looks like the two of them found a pleasant way to pass the time.

  She turned at the sound of the door opening. Sheriff Dave came in, shaking off water from his rain slicker as he entered. “Well, good news. Only found one downed power line out by the bridge. Hopefully, power can be restored soon. There’s some localized flooding in our regular low spots. Looks like a few buildings have roof damage. Lots of branches down and a few trees are blocking some streets. We’ll get those cleared up as quickly as possible.”

  “So it’s okay to leave?” Lillian asked.

  “You can go check on your businesses and homes. But there will be a curfew after sunset. We don’t want people moving around in the dark until things get all cleared up. I’ve radioed about the bridge and we’ll get that checked out soon. In the meantime, I’m trying to arrange for one of the ferries that goes to Whisper Island to shuttle from here to the mainland.”

  She turned to Gary. “I really want to go check on the inn.”

  “I’ll go with you,” Mason offered.

  “Me, too. I can help.” Zoe glanced at Noah. “Is that okay?”

  Noah frowned slightly but nodded. “The center will stay open for those folks who need it. Some will probably stay until the electricity is back on.”

  “We’ll all go together, then.” Lillian turned back to the sheriff.

  The sheriff held up a hand. “The lot is blocked off right now. We need to cut a downed tree that’s blocking the entrance.”

  “We could walk,” Lillian suggested.

  “Still a pretty steady rain,” the sheriff said.

  “I’ll get the chainsaw.” Noah nodded and headed away.

  “I’ll help Noah, then we’ll head out.” Gary gave her a quick hug.

  “I’ll go check on Etta, but I’m anxious to get back to the inn.”

  She left the men to deal with the tree and went to find Etta. She was sitting up with her leg propped up on the chair across from her. “You feeling okay?” Lillian asked.

  “Okay as can be expected. A little sore and bruised. Dr. Harden said to stay off my feet as much as possible.”

  “We’re going to go head out and check on the inn. Are you going to be okay here?”

  “I will. Noah said he’d send someone over to check on my house. If it’s okay, he said he’d drive me home.”

  “Are you sure you’ll be okay at home?”

  “I’ll be fine.”

  “Okay, but I’ll check on you.”

  Etta nodded. “Thanks, Lillian.”

  Lillian turned and headed back to the front door, hoping the men had cleared the tree and they could go to the inn. She just hoped the inn had survived without much damage.

  She looked at her cell phone again. Still no service. They needed to find Jay and Robin, too. Jay was resourceful, and she hoped they were fine, but she wouldn’t take a deep breath until she knew for sure.

  Jay slipped on his still-damp shorts, contemplating jogging to his house and getting some dry clothes as soon as it was safe to do so. He opened the door and walked out into the gentle rain just as Sheriff Dave pulled his car up in front of the bungalow. The sheriff rolled down his window when Jay approached.

  “There are going to be lots of people glad to see you, Jay. Robin with you?”

  “She is. We holed up at her bungalow. Couldn’t make it back to the community center by the time I found her.”

  “Did she find Mrs. Gleason’s missing pup?”

  “She did.”

  “They’ve given the all-clear for people to go out and check on their property, but we have a sunset to sunrise curfew in place. Be careful if you go out.”

  “Will do. I’ll go check my place, then head over to the inn and see if Lillian needs anything.”

  The sheriff nodded, rolled up his window, and pulled away. Jay trotted back inside the bungalow.

  “Robs? We can leave now. I want to go check my house, then go check on the inn.”

  Robin came walking out of the kitchen looking impossibly adorable with tousled hair, loose t-shirt, and bare feet. Not to mention she was right here where he could see her, not out in the storm with him frantically searching for her. He couldn’t resist it. He pulled her into his arms.

  She leaned against him. “We should bring Barney with us. He’s still kind of shaken up by the storm.”

  “Good idea,” Jay agreed as he reluctantly let her go.

  “But leash him up. The last thing we want is to go chasing after him again.”

  They closed up the bungalow and walked over to Jay’s house, avoiding the clumps of fallen branches, broken items that had been tossed about in the storm, and the areas of deeper pools of water. Barney walked along beside them but didn’t look very happy about it.

  Jay checked out his house, pleased to see that except for the messy yard, it looked like everything was intact. He put on dry clothes and found Robin standing by the window, looking out over the bay. “It looks almost peaceful out there now, doesn’t it?”

  He came up behind her and slipped an arm around her waist. “It does. And the rain has stopped now.”

  “It looks like the sun is trying to come out, too.”

  “All that’s left is the cleanup.”

  “Until the next storm. I never really get used to this. We were lucky this time.” She leaned against him and he took in her warmth, balancing her against his side. She belonged there. Next to him. A surge of gratefulness swept through him. For the fact they’d finally realized what they meant to each other, for the fact that he’d found her safe from the storm, and for… well, for the opportunity to just stand here by her side, holding her.

  They stood like that for a few minutes, enjoying the peace, before he let her go. “I think we’ll take Barney with us to the inn. Lil won’t mind. I don’t think he’s ready to be left alone.”

  “I don’t think he is either.” Robin nodded.

  He clipped the leash back on Barney and they headed out to the inn. They passed a few people on the street who waved as they hurried to go check on their homes and businesses. He heard a chain saw in the distance and someone nailing something further down the road. The familiar sounds of Belle Island awakening from the aftermath of a storm.

  They got to the inn and entered, hearing voices coming from further inside. “Lillian?” he called out.

  Lillian hurried up to him and gave him a hug, then released him and smothered Robin with a hug. “You’re here. You’re both okay
?”

  “We’re fine.” Robin hugged Lil back. “Jay found me and we stayed at my bungalow. The storm had gotten too bad to get back to the center. There was no cell service so I couldn’t let anyone know we were okay.”

  “And I see you found Barney.” Lillian nodded at the dog.

  “We did. He’d gone back to Mrs. Gleason’s.”

  “Well, I’m just glad you’re okay.”

  “How’s the inn?” he asked as he ran his glance around the main room.

  “We’ve just started checking. Mason and Zoe went up to the top floor and they’re checking each room. Gary and I are checking things out down here. We have a bit of water leaking in the kitchen. Through that old window. You know the one? We need to replace it.”

  “I’ll go check in there and get things cleaned up.”

  He and Robin headed to the kitchen. He propped open the door from the dining room to the kitchen and told Barney to sit there. The dog sat in the middle of the opening and didn’t take his eyes off them as they looked around the kitchen.

  He checked on the generator, and thankfully it had come on automatically and the fridge was running, so no loss of food. Hopefully, the electric would come back on soon, though sometimes it took days after a storm for it to be restored.

  He cleaned up the water on the floor and looked around. Everything seemed fine. Lillian and Gary came into the kitchen with Zoe and Mason following behind.

  “Robin, there you are. You’re okay?” Zoe rushed up to them. “I have Sunny up in my room. She’s sleeping on my pillow last I checked.”

  “Thank you for taking care of her.” Robin smiled.

  “Looks like we were really lucky. We’ll have lots of clean up on the property. Lots of branches and palm fronds down. The sand has covered the walkway to the beach. Lost a palm tree, too.” Lillian bustled further into the kitchen. “But now. How about we scrounge up some food for everyone?”