Chance Of Rain (20 page)

“It was a light color. Not white but maybe tan. It was older. Four doors.”

“This is more than what we had. Thanks for coming forward,” Trent managed to say.

As they walked off, Trent turned to Mark. “If that was her, then it means she knew her kidnapper. Otherwise she wouldn’t have willingly gotten into the car.”

Mark and Trent were about to get into the Challenger when Bri pulled up in a rush. She had the roof down; a brightly colored scarf was tied around her head, and she was wearing her huge sunglasses.

“Good, you’re still here. I was afraid I might have missed y’all.” She stepped out of her Chevelle and approached them.

“I’ve been racking my brain, and I know I’m reaching here, but…” She inhaled deeply. “I remembered Ash telling me how one of the girls here, Erica, has been bugging her to do something with her outside of work.” Bri shrugged. “I mean, maybe she’s perfectly sweet, and she just really wants a friend, but her persistence was really starting to annoy Ash. She was relentless—no matter how many times Ash told her no. If you decide to question her, don’t say I said anything.” Bri smiled half-heartedly.

Mark asked, “You wouldn’t happen to know what kind of car she drives, would you?”

“Sorry, no. She hasn’t been working here that long. I haven’t paid any attention.”

“Thanks, Bri,” said Trent.

She waved and turned to go inside. Trent got on his cell and called Mack.

“Mack, this is Officer Trent Novak. We didn’t get the name of the employee who was absent today.”

It took Mack a few minutes to sort through the mess on his desk. A moment later Trent jotted some notes down on his pad. He thanked Mack for his time then turned to Mark.

“Her name is Erica. Erica
Summers
. I’ve got her address. Let’s take a look.”

XXXVI

Wednesday Night

“I
t’s dark out, so I’m gonna go get the money now,” Anthony told Erica.

“I have to hurry before they start connecting the dots, ’cause when they realize you’re involved, I’ll have to get us another car.”

Anthony left. I paid attention this time when he did. I noticed he didn’t lock the door behind him. I also saw he had tucked his pistol in the back of his waistband. I wondered if Erica had a gun as well. Surely he wouldn’t leave her unarmed.

Erica saw me staring at the door. She walked over to it and sat down in front of it. “Don’t get any ideas.” Then she pulled up her pant leg and pulled out a pistol that was strapped to her calf.

Well, that answered that; my hope vanished. What if, after Anthony got the money, he made us leave and go somewhere out of state or to Mexico or Canada? I might not ever see my family again.

Don’t cry! Think! Think! Maybe he’ll get caught at the bank
.

It wasn’t long until a photo of Erica was splashed all over the local news along with a description of her car.

Anthony could have used any ATM, but he chose one that was a good distance away from the fairgrounds. He was going to go into a convenience store, but then he saw an automatic teller machine in a drive-through at a bank. That would work even better.

He was allowed to take out a maximum of five hundred dollars, so that’s just what he did. He eased the car up next to the machine and stuck in his card. He typed in his pin and made a few selections. In less than sixty seconds, he was on his way.

He drove straight back to the fairgrounds and parked behind the hall. He covered the car up with an old tarp and went inside.

Erica and I had been sitting in complete silence until Anthony finally returned.

“I got it,” he told her as he patted his back pocket. “Piece of cake. I heard them talking about us on the radio, though, so I’ll find us another car tomorrow, and we’ll get outta here.”

He looked at me; he knew I was listening even though I wasn’t looking at him. “It’s too bad, though. I was looking forward to having some fun with her mom and maybe even that fat little friend of hers.” He laughed.

I can’t let them take me from here. I’ve got to get away. Please, God, help me!

XXXVII

Thursday Morning

B
ri awoke just as dawn first broke. It had been so hard for her to fall asleep last night. All she could think about was Ash.
What is she doing?
she wondered.
Is she OK? When will she be back? What if…she doesn’t come back? She has to come back; today is her birthday
.

Though Bri was upset, she had been extremely positive the last couple of days. She always had focused on
when
, but sadly
if
was now slithering its way into her thoughts.

She had made so many plans that involved Ash.
All
her plans involved Ash. She wanted to throw her a birthday party. They were supposed to go to homecoming and prom. There were formals to buy and dances to dance and pictures to be taken. Who would ride with her to school or work? There was absolutely no way she’d ever set foot in Fit City again. All the fun times they’d spent at the fairgrounds and the Road House would soon just be memories.

Bri could no longer stand being alone inside her head. She forced herself out of bed and got ready for school. She tried her best to curl, tease, and primp, but she just didn’t feel like herself. She had lost her flare.

She gave up and resorted to pulling her hair back in a French braid. She put on very little makeup, and her clothes were far from blingy. She gave herself a once-over in the mirror before walking out of her room. She was a robot getting through her routine.

“Hey, Mom.”

Nina turned around. “Hi, Brianne. I’m glad you’re up. I have to leave a little early today. I thought I was going to miss you.”

“I’m up but not by choice.”

“Couldn’t sleep, huh?”

“No. I won’t be able to until Ashley gets home.”

“I know, sweetie. I feel like a zombie myself.” Nina walked over to Bri and put her arms around her. “I can’t even imagine how Beth and Mark are feeling right now.” She let Bri go and headed to the coffeepot. She grabbed her favorite mug from the cabinet and poured herself a cup.

They stood in silence for a moment.

Nina glanced at the clock on the wall then took one last sip. “I gotta run. J.T. is starting a big job today. I promised I’d get there early and help make sure things run smoothly.”

“Have fun,” Bri said with mild sarcasm.

“See ya tonight.” She gave Bri one last hug and left.

Bri made herself some toast and a cup of coffee. She read the front, back, and both sides of a box of cereal that was sitting on the table. When she was done, she put her dishes in the sink and headed outside. She didn’t have much of an appetite. She actually had lost a couple of pounds from worrying.

To her surprise Cole was sitting in the driveway waiting for her. He got out of his car as she approached.

“You may not want to be seen with me today,” Bri said, pouting. “I’ll forgive you this one time if you want to turn around and get back in your car and leave.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” said Cole.

Bri choked up a little at his response. She was always making jokes, but she was in a lot of pain right now. “I’m just not feeling like myself,” she managed to say.

Cole stepped forward, and she fell into his arms. She tried not to cry, but it was no use. She’d been fighting the tears back for so long.

When she was finished, he held her face in his hands., “I think you look beautiful. And I’m going to drive you to school today.”

He gave her another long hug then walked her to the passenger door. Once he got in he reached into the backseat and grabbed a brightly colored bouquet of flowers.

“Cole.”

“It’s going to be OK.”

“OK,” Bri said, falling into his embrace once again.

XXXVIII

Thursday Midmorning

T
rent drove his cousin’s wife, Kate, to the hospital to see Travis. Her mother would be up later and give her a ride home.

They rode in silence. She was lost in thought about her husband, and Trent was drowning in his sorrow for Ashley.

“Any word on Ashley?” Kate asked.

Trent shook his head.

He’d had another restless night. He’d driven the streets all day yesterday, asking everyone he saw if they’d seen anything. Then he drove the streets all night, hoping he might see Anthony come out of hiding.

When he shut his eyes, he was tormented with nightmares that wouldn’t end. They were always the same—he frantically searched for Ashley and could hear her voice. She was so close, but he never could reach her. And then there were the other dreams where his Uncle Chase or Mark approached him in silence, and with a mere look from them, he’d know that Ashley was dead. He’d wake up in a sweat whenever he had this one.

He looked over at Kate and felt a little guilty for being so consumed with his own misery. He had neglected her. He wanted nothing more than to have his cousin return home to her. Travis and Kate had been together since they were kids and had been married for three years. They’d been talking about starting a family when he was shot. For the past few months, Kate rarely had left his side. The doctors said he had brain activity, and there was a good chance he could wake up one day. Kate was counting on that, and so was Trent.

XXXIX

Now or Never

A
nthony finally left. I pretended to be asleep when he and Erica had spoken earlier. He was going to leave her vehicle in a crowded lot where it wouldn’t be noticed and hot-wire another to get the three of us out of town.

I had to do something. It was now or never. I lay still long enough to hear Anthony drive off. I didn’t know how long he’d be gone, so I had to act quickly. Neither he nor Erica had locked the door. Erica didn’t have her gun where I could see it, so it must have been strapped to her leg. I had to be careful.

I barely opened my eyes—only enough so I could see Erica was sitting on the floor, leaning against the wall. She had her head back, and her eyes were closed. I guess she figured as long as I was still asleep, she would relax too. I inched my hand to my waistband and pulled out the little tube of pepper spray my mother had given me. It was dark, so I had to feel to make sure I was holding it correctly.