“Hope it’s not too bumpy back there,” Sanjay said. “This road sure is twisty.”
Her car sickness was definitely Dramamine-worthy, but at least the rough road and the loud music had masked her flub. “Totally fine.”
Sanjay chatted amiably about Devin’s new Jeep (not very practical in the city but perfect for here!)and the increased fire danger (my throat is starting to bother me, how about yours?) He also kept checking the phones to show her they didn’t have service.
“Sorry the route is taking us further out of cell range,” he said, seemingly trying to ease her mind about being in a car with two virtual strangers.
She couldn’t express just hownotworried about them she was, or how downright happy she felt to be sitting in a vehicle heading swiftly away to anywhere.
As Devin slowed down to navigate a tricky bend with a steep drop-off on her side of the car, Cara slid over, just in case she had to make a quick exit. After a while, the road straightened out and they rolled into a tiny town with a gas station, a crystal shop offering tarot readings, and a country store. It gave her an idea.
“I’m sure there’s a place I can make a call around here,” she said. A fake call to connect with her “boyfriend” enabled herto make an excuse and say goodbye. That would give her some breathing room to figure out where to go and who, if anyone, she could trust to help her. Her rescuers had moved her precious miles away from her pursuers, but she couldn’t stay with them much longer. And she had thirty dollars to help her survive the day. It felt like a fortune.
Sanjay pointed to a roadside café and gift store called Grits ‘n’ Gifts. “Let’s try that diner. I’m hungry, anyway.”
Devin pulled in and parked.
One step inside the place and Cara was nearly overcome by the dizzying aroma of burgers, fries, coffee, and pancakes with maple syrup. It was all she could do to stop herself from opening the rotating dessert case and face-planting into a slice of chocolate cream, Dutch apple, or strawberry rhubarb pie.
“Do you have a pay phone?” Devin asked the hostess before she could.
“In the hallway between the restrooms, but someone’s on it,” said the hostess, whose youth and purple hair reminded Cara of Bree. “Table for three?”
“Yes, please,” Sanjay said.
“You don’t have to feed me,” Cara said. That definitely wasn’t part of the plan. “I’ll just wait here and?—”
“Drool over pie?” Devin said. “Come on. Sit down with us.”
The purple-haired girl grabbed three laminated menus and led them into the crowded, wood-paneled restaurant. Cara had no choice but to lower her head, doing her best to hide her swollen eye, and follow her hiking companions. She was hoping for a table in the back, but their booth was right up front. Cara slid into a cracked brown Naugahyde bench with her back to the hostess stand.
Sanjay and Devin sat down opposite her as a waitress appeared with a black plastic carafe. “Coffee?”
Sanjay nodded and she put it down on the table. “Be back in a sec to get your order.”
Cara had given up caffeine and dairy three years ago, but after the first sip of perfect diner coffee, she couldn’t remember why.
“Chicken-fried steak for me,” Devin said after briefly scanning the menu. “I mean, when in Rome...”
“Et tu, Karoline?” Sanjay asked.
“I’m thinking the all-day country breakfast.” She looked up at the clock and noted it was just after two.
“I’ll order for you so you can make your call. How do you like your eggs?”
“Scrambled, please.”
“Sausage or bacon?”
“Bacon. Thanks.”
Cara stood up and headed for the front hallway.
The OG payphone hanging from the wall was so authentic, it even had a worn phone book encased in an aluminum cover hanging from a metal cord. Sanjay and Devin couldn’t see her from their table, so she spent the time it would have taken to make a call to instead go into the ladies’, where she washed her hands and face—and as luck would have it, scored a tampon from a woman who was on her way out.
When she returned, only Devin was at the table.
“Where’s Sanjay?” she asked.
