Blown Away (15 page)

“Trouble in paradise?” Tex asked from the passenger side of my truck.

“Fuck off.”

“What's she mad about? I could tell when she asked me to switch with her that she was really pissed.”

“None of your business, you nosy bastard.”

He cracked his knuckles. “Is she still pissed about the waitress? That's a load of shit. It was never your place to tell her about that.”

“Shut up about it or I'm dumping you on the side of the road.”

He leaned back and tipped his hat over his face. Hopefully he'd sleep the rest of the way to Alabama, where we were chasing today. We'd be on the road for hours and would probably end up staying there, where I'd room with Tex and Murph. The last thing I felt like doing was talking to either of them about Drew.

I'd fucked things up bad with her. Seeing her get emotional over Colby making love to her for the last time had tipped me into a dark, angry place.

When she was with him, I'd never even hoped she'd give me a second look. I'd accepted that I was meant to worship her from afar a long time ago. But Colby's death had upset the equilibrium. Then she
had
looked at me, and I'd gotten even more hooked on her.

But Colby would never really be gone. He'd always live in her heart as the man she wanted to spend her life with. I was second choice, and even though I told myself that was enough, it wasn't.

I hadn't meant to start something with Drew, but jumping on top of her in that ditch had led me to a place I couldn't look away from. My feelings for her had spiraled out of control. In the back of my mind, I'd been rearranging my class schedule to work in some time for us once we got back to Lipton.

But then she'd brought up making love to Colby and my hopes had been stomped to death. I wanted her to feel the same way about me that I felt about her. Consumed. Helpless.

I was just a sex partner to her, though. Ironic that I was being treated the way I'd been treating women my whole life. I deserved this, but it still fucking hurt.

We chased in one big group, ending up in the middle of a nasty thunderstorm that never spawned a tornado. Drew wouldn't even look at me.

I took the couch in the motel room, closing my eyes before I was asleep to avoid conversation with Murph and Tex. My misery would only get worse if I tried to put it into words.

Murph furrowed his brow at the GPS unit in the Funnel Finder.

“I
did
turn left back there,” he said to the automated female voice.

We were lost in the middle of nowhere, but Murph wouldn't acknowledge it.

He gave me a reassuring smile. “Just got turned around a bit. We'll be back on the highway in no time.”

I forced myself not to cringe. He'd been taking a “shortcut” to a town with a gas station so I could go to a bathroom, and I
really
had to go.

“I
did
turn left back there, didn't I?” he asked me.

“You know, I don't remember.” I squeezed my thighs together and stared at the Funnel Finder's maroon dashboard.

“Hmm,” he grumbled. “These dang GPS devices aren't worth a hoot out here in the country.”

“I'm sorry, Murph, but I have to pee
now
. Can you pull over so I can run into the woods?”

“We'll be back on track here in a sec and I'll take you to a place with toilet paper and a sink,” he said, punching buttons on the GPS.

“It's been almost thirty minutes. I had two huge iced teas this morning.
Please
pull over.”

“Okay.” He edged the station wagon over to the side of the road. “Do you want me to come with you in case of snakes or anything?”

I held back a smile. “No, I'll be okay.”

“I mean, I wouldn't watch or anything…I didn't mean it like that.”

I squeezed the door handle, waiting for him to stop talking.

“I think I've got some napkins in the glove box,” he said, reaching over.

I opened the car door. “I'm fine. I'll be right back.”

He was calling something after me but I didn't hear him because I'd broken into a run.

As much as I didn't want to be around Aiden right now, Murph was worse. Today was my second day with him, and he talked nonstop. Yesterday I'd at least had Millie and we'd taken turns pretending to listen, but today she'd stayed back at camp to take an exam for her online class.

It was me, Murph, the open road, and the knowledge that Aiden was right behind us. I'd been back and forth between sadness and fury all day. When Murph had slowed on the highway and motioned Aiden to go around us so we could take the “shortcut” to the gas station, I'd glanced over at Aiden as he passed us. I'd tried to give him an impassive look, but he was focused on the road.

Had he been arrogant and horrible all along? I didn't think so. Something seemed to have set his feelings for me in a new direction, and I still hadn't accepted the shock of his sudden change of heart.

Once I got past the edge of the woods, I had to push through an area of trees too thick to allow me room to pee. Then I found a clear spot, but saw poison ivy just as I started to unbutton my shorts.

I groaned, my bladder at its breaking point. Looking around frantically, I dashed into another dense group of trees until I came to another small clearing.

No poison ivy. No creepy crawlies in sight. I did my thing, sighing with relief.

As soon as I stood and pulled my shorts back up, I checked the pocket where I kept my phone to make sure I hadn't lost it. And sure enough, it wasn't there. I scanned the ground to see where it had fallen.

I bent down to look closer, really hoping I hadn't just peed on my phone. But all the dead leaves I searched through turned up nothing.

Damn. My phone had lots of photos, including the selfies Aiden and I had taken on this storm-chasing trip, and the video I'd taken of him shooting his probe launcher. And with the bad turn things between us had taken, those photos were more precious to me now. We wouldn't be snapping any more pictures of us on an old wooden bridge, bright green trees our backdrop as he wrapped his arms around my waist from behind and smiled the happiest grin I'd ever seen from him.

I had to find it. Murph would just have to wait for me. I headed back to the poison ivy clearing, knowing I'd dig my phone out of poison ivy if I had to. Happy memories were too few and far between to let go of so easily.

As I was searching the ground for my phone, I realized something was off. There was no poison ivy. I looked up and turned, scanning the forest in all directions.

Just great. I was lost. Or as Murph would say,
turned around
.

How big could this forest be? I chose a direction and started pushing through the branches and weeds.

It turned out to be bigger than I thought. My internal clock told me more than half an hour had passed, and I was no closer to getting out of here. I wondered if Murph would come looking for me. Then we'd both end up lost.

Instinct told me to stop and wait. Murph knew I was in here and he knew something was wrong. Help would eventually come. But it was late afternoon, and I couldn't stand the thought of darkness falling while I was in here. I already felt like the trees were closing in on me, surrounding me from all sides. A clawing need to escape rose inside me, and I kept moving.

Had to keep moving. If I didn't walk back into the clearing where Murph was waiting, I'd probably end up at some nice farmhouse where I could call someone to get in touch with Murph. This was just another one of the adventures I'd look back on from my storm-chasing season. I'd be laughing about this with Jackie and Shayla when I was shampooing my tenth client of the day this winter.

“All right…what now?” I said softly to myself, ducking beneath a low tree branch.

I slowed down as I saw a steep ravine ahead. When I got to the edge of it, I looked over at the small creek running through the bottom of it.

One misstep could send me sliding down there, so I stepped back. I turned to head the other direction and felt movement by my feet.

It was a snake. Not just a snake, a big one, and it was
looking at me
. I screamed and jumped away, panic sending my heart rate into a tailspin.

I lost my balance and tripped over a rock. My ankle twisted, wedged between the rock and a tree trunk. I'd fallen over it, and my weight pulled me down the steep hill, my ankle breaking free as I tumbled head over feet.

The trip to the bottom took only a few seconds. I landed near the creek, my lower legs and feet in the water.

I caught my breath and ran my hands over my head, neck, chest, and legs, searching for damage. Nothing but soreness and a few scrapes.

My left ankle was another story. It was throbbing with the worst pain I'd ever felt. I scooted myself back, cringing as I dragged my legs from the water.

One way or another I
had
to get out of this ravine. I turned onto my stomach and crawled, digging my elbows and knees in and dragging my lame ankle. The pain brought tears to my eyes. I stopped, panting with exertion.

The bright sunshine wasn't breaking through the canopy above anymore. It would be dark soon. My fear turned into terror. If only I had my phone.

They'll come looking for me, their fifth member who can't even pee without things turning disastrous.

Would Aiden be worried about me? They probably all would be, but he was the only one I pictured as I rolled over and pulled myself into a sitting position. My ankle was on fire. I knew I should take off my shoe and sock and assess it, but I couldn't. From how swollen it already was, I knew it wasn't good.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Staying calm was important. I'd never been in a more vulnerable position, but help would come. Hopefully I hadn't gotten so turned around that it would take them a long time to find me.

All I could do was wait.

We were a couple hours away from the campground and I was lost in thoughts of Drew when Tex spoke.

“Uh…Murph just texted and said he needs our help.”

“With what?”

“I don't know. He just says to call him.”

I pushed a couple buttons on my truck's Bluetooth and dialed him. The ring of his phone echoed in my silent truck cab.

“Aiden,” he answered. “I need you guys to come back here. Drew's gone.”

I lowered my brows in confusion. “Gone?”

“Yeah.” He sighed into the phone. “We were looking for a gas station because she needed to go to the bathroom. I got turned around and she went into the woods to go. She never came back.”

“How long ago?”

There was a beat of silence. “More than an hour. I looked for her at the edge of the woods but there's no sign of her.”

“Fuck, man. It's getting dark. She could be hurt.”

Tex interjected, “How do you hurt yourself taking a piss?”

I glared at him and he gave me an apologetic look.

“We're on the way,” I said, doing a quick turnaround in a parking lot. “Where are you?”

“I'll text it to you.”

I pressed my foot down on the gas pedal. “Murph, how the fuck did you get lost with all that GPS equipment in your car?”

He paused before answering. “I'm worried about her, too.”

I took a deep breath and reminded myself to stay on task. Getting pissed and venting wouldn't help find Drew.

“Call the local sheriff's department,” I said. “And move your car so it's pointed at the spot she went into the woods. Turn the lights on and leave them on so she can see them if she's close by.”

“Okay.”

“Text me your location first.” I pushed the button to end the call and pinched the bridge of my nose.

“She'll be okay,” Tex said.

“How would you know?” I snapped. “She's vulnerable out there, wearing shorts and a tank top and probably those damn flip-flops.”

“She always wears tennis shoes when we're chasing.”

He was right, she did. But my mind was all over the place right now.

Focus, O'Neal. You've rescued lots of people from bad spots. This one's just a lot bigger than you're used to.

“Why wouldn't she call one of us?” I handed my phone to Tex. “Call her.”

He did, and my hopes sank when he left her a voicemail.

“I've got a bag packed with rescue gear in my truck toolbox in back,” I said. “We'll both go into the woods in separate directions and search. Hopefully the sheriff's department can spare some people, too. You're up for searching alone, right?”

“ 'Course I am. We'll find her, man.”

“I just hope she's okay. This wouldn't have happened if she'd been with me. And she'd have been with me if I hadn't been such an asshole to her.”

“You can't blame yourself for this.”

“No, really.” I gave Tex a knowing look. “I wouldn't have gotten lost looking for a fucking gas station. And if she'd gone into the woods to pee, I'd have been in there looking for her after five minutes. I know how to track. She wouldn't be lost right now—”

“Stop. We'll find her and it'll be fine.”

I nodded. “I hope so. She probably thinks I won't come since I pretty much told her I don't care about her.”

Tex laughed softly. “She knows you'll come, you dumbass. And she knows you care.”

I looked in the rearview mirror and stepped on the gas, pushing the truck up to ninety.

“I'll be all business when we get there,” I said. “It's just goddamned hard to be stuck in this truck right now.”

“Murph sent me the location. I'm putting it into the GPS.”

“Sorry if I was an asshole earlier.”

Tex shrugged. “You're always an asshole. It's part of your charm.”

I gripped the steering wheel and ran a mental inventory of what I had in my backup rescue bag in the back of my truck. I already knew everything I'd need was there, but it kept my mind busy.

I had to think of something—anything—other than my last conversation with Drew, when I'd told her I was only about sex. I'd been unforgivably cold to her. But I wasn't even hoping I'd be lucky enough to get her forgiveness right now. I just wanted her to be safe.