With the support of the Sisters, almost all of Kathryn’s wounds were healed, but she could never love anyone again. Not the way she loved her husband. Her partner. Rather than resume her engineering role, she decided to keep the rig and continue his legacy as a long hauler. She felt closer to him that way.
Kathryn continued on the phone with Myra, “Everything alright?”
“Yes, everything is alright with us, but Lizzie got a call from a friend who had some issues at Sunnydale in Tempe, Arizona.”
“Oh, I’ve heard of that place. Senior living or something like that.”
“Correct. It’s the ‘something’ that Lizzie wants to discuss.” Myra paused. “She is coming here tonight to give us more details, and my gut is telling me something is rotten in Arizona.”
“Your gut is never wrong!” Kathryn bellowed. Her voice was as loud and as deep as she was tall. There was truly little she could not physically manage, unless it was three to one, although no one would bet against her now. What those men took from her, she regained in strength.
“I’m acting on a hunch. For Lizzie to bring this to us, I believe we are going to be busy for the next few weeks.”
“Anything you need, I’ll be there.”
“That’s just it. We may need you to bethere. Do you have an itinerary?”
“Nope. I was going to take a few days and do some hiking out here. It’s beautiful this time of year.”
“I don’t want to pull you away from your well-deserved time off.” Myra was sincere. She could never understand how her friend could drive an eighteen-wheeler for days on end, sleep in a cab, and eat truck-stop food most of the time. Not that Myra disliked diner fare. She often craved French fries with brown gravy. But she thought it was a tough life, and Kathryn more than deserved a break.
“Aw, come on Myra. You can’t expect me to take somemetime when we have to do sometheytime, whoevertheymight be. Whaddya need me to do?”
“Can you sit tight until we get the lowdown from Lizzie and see what the others have to say?”
“Absolutely! I was going to rent a cabin for a couple of days. I can sit tight there until we figure everything out. I could use a comfortable bed and some serious running water. As much as I love this, I can get a little road weary.”
“Totally understandable. Honestly, I don’t know how you stand it for as many days as you do!” Myra chuckled.
“I’m a tough cookie.” Kathryn chortled.
“You won’t get an argument from me.”
Kathryn gave her hearty laugh. “The place I’m renting is not far from the main roads, and there’s ample Wi-Fi for my laptop.”
“Perfect.”
“Keep me posted.”
“Will do. Thanks, Kathryn.”
“No thanks necessary.”
Charles entered the atrium just as Myra was signing off. “Kathryn?”
“How did you guess?”
“I’d like to think I know a tad about the way you think.”
“She was planning to do some hiking in Utah, so we wouldn’t be pulling her off any runs. She rented a cabin with Wi-Fi that is convenient for her to hop back on to the highway.”
“Splendid.” Charles was standing with a plate of ham. “Jamón ibéricoorserrano?” He rolled a slice of each. “Open wide.”
Myra humored him as he placed a slice on her tongue. “Mmm. This is good.”
“Try this.” He slipped the other kind into her mouth.
“Either, Charles. I trust your judgment.”
