“What’s it matter?” I grumbled. “I don’t have insurance information to share, so you’re fucked unless you have some damn good coverage.”
She arched her brows. “I don’t care about insurance. We’re in the middle of nowhere if you have’t noticed, and it’s going to be dark soon. You’re not leaving me here to be ripped apart by coyotes… o-or serial killers.”
“Don’t you have a phone or something? Call for help.” I started walking away from her.
“I don’t have a phone. Do you have a phone?” She rushed to catch up to me.
“Of course, I have a phone. What do you think this is? 1992?” I reached into my pocket and pulled out my phone, but quickly realized that it was busted from the crash. Grumbling, I pressedthe power button and tapped the screen, but it refused to turn on. “Maybe the battery is dead,” I said, hoping that was all the issue was.
“Was it dead before the accident?”
“Not that I was aware of.” I slid it back into my pocket.
“Then it’s probably not dead. It’s probably trashed from the wreck. Didyouhit your head?” Her blue eyes narrowed, and her full, pink lips parted. She was a pretty little thing. Bit sassy too.
“Yeah, damn near knocked me out,” I said, moving my hand to the spot on my forehead. I went to rub it, but pain sliced through me when I touched the knot that was already forming.
She flinched from watching me wince. “It’s probably busted.”
“Whatever. If you’re coming with me, come on. We need to get as far away from here as fast as possible.” I started leading the way toward the wooded area.
“We’re going through the woods?”
“Yeah, it’s the only way we’ll be concealed. I think if someone stumbles upon two wrecked cars and then sees two people walking not far from them, they’ll put two and two together. Or are the people in the middle of nowhere unable to do simple math?”
She didn’t reply, but I didn’t expect her to. After a few minutes, I glanced back only to see how hard she was focusing on her footing. Despite carefully choosing her placement, her ankle still turned, causing her to stumble. She caught herself and managed to stay off the forest’s floor.
I shook my head. “No wonder you couldn’t drive a car. You can’t even walk without tripping over your own damn feet.”
“I know how to drive a car. I just didn’t know how to drive a stick shift. What’s with those things? Why all the extra hassle? And for what? To make douchebags feel superior? Like,oh, I’m better than you because I can drive a stick shift?” She used a mocking tone, rolling her eyes. “Assholes.”
I chuckled. At least she was amusing.
“You from around here?” I asked.
“Not far.”
“Are we moving in the right direction?” I cast a quick look back at her as she stumbled again.
“What direction do you consider the right direction?”
I took a deep breath and paused as she caught up to me. “Are we moving toward civilization? The sun is falling quickly. I’d like to grab some food and maybe find a motel for the night. Take a moment to regroup.” I motioned toward her. “And you need to find a phone so you can call someone to come and get you.”
Her pretty face pinched. “I don’t have anyone to call.”
I shrugged, even though her words bothered me. How could she not have anyone? To be fair, I didn’t have shit for people either, but I preferred it that way.
“Okay, then you can call a taxi, get a ride home,” I said.
She shook her head. “I don’t have a home either. You kind of caught me on an, um, off night.”
“Let me guess: you live with the shit-for-brains boyfriend you caught cheating on you?”
“Gosh, you’re really smart,” she grumbled. “Should give you a gold star.”
I turned away from her to resume our hike. She was definitely a little sassy.
“Alright, let’s just find some food, and we’ll figure the rest out later.”
