Peripheral Vision: A Supernatural Thriller(13)
“Oh, thanks Nick, but I’m actually driving out to the house tomorrow.”
“Oh right. When are you heading over there?”
“First thing in the morning. I just couldn’t drive anymore tonight, and from the looks of the map, it seemed better to wait until the morning anyway. I didn’t want to get lost.”
“Yeah, the river roads can be confusing, especially if you haven’t been out there before.”
They climbed the steps to the second floor of the motel and stopped in front of her door. “Thanks again for walking me.” Sarah said as she fiddled in her purse for her key.
“No thanks necessary. Ya know, I’d be happy to take you out to the house tomorrow if you’d like? It’s pretty tucked away, and since I know my way around...” Nick trailed off and waited for her answer. He didn’t have to wait long.
“I’d like that.” Sarah said with a half-hidden smile.
“Great. Happy to help. I’ll meet you here in the morning, we can take my truck if you want. That way, I can still take you to lunch at some point?”
“Sounds like a plan. Say around 8?”
“I’ll be here. Good night, Sarah.”
“Good night, Nick.” Sarah turned the key on her door and went inside. She fought the urge to steal one last look at Nick as he walked away. It seemed like a great idea, but, she quickly closed the door behind her. Play it cool, girl. She leaned up against the closed door and let out a deep breath.
“Emma’s gonna love this.” She whispered to the empty room. She pulled her cell phone out of her purse and began texting her best friend.
Chapter 6
The Handyman & The House
It was exactly eight o’clock the next morning when Nick, while balancing two coffees in his left hand, knocked on Sarah’s motel room door. After a few seconds, Sarah was standing in the open doorway looking refreshed and put together. Nick was the one taken aback this time around, but after a short moment, he quickly found the words he’d been searching for.
“Good morning.”
“Morning, Nick.” Sarah flashed her best smile back at him. “Oh, coffee. Thank you!”
“You’re welcome.” Nick replied with a big dimpled grin. “Ready?”
“Yeah.” Sarah said and swung her bag over her shoulder. “Let’s do this.”
They walked across the still relatively empty parking lot of the Wagon Wheel to Nick’s truck, a new, silver F150. He opened the door for Sarah. There’s that chivalry again, Sarah thought, and then their eyes met for a moment and she felt herself blush. She turned to the window to hide it, but was sure that he’d seen. When Nick got in the driver’s side, Sarah’s stomach did a little flip. There was something intimate about being in a vehicle alone together, especially after just meeting. The bar had been loud and there were a lot of people and distractions there. But now, it was just the two of them, and Sarah was not good at dating, or flirting. Part of the reason she never dated. She was just bad at it.
They pulled out of the parking lot and headed down Green Street. Sarah noted the name on the street sign and then quietly took in the small town on the other side of her window. They passed the deserted buildings and Grand Stand of the county fairgrounds, a small white First Baptist Church, the Homewood Cemetery, a number of empty lots, and finally the Homewood High School, before turning right and heading out of town on Highway 4. It didn’t take them long before the small town was just a tiny speck in the rearview mirror.
At mile marker 19, Nick slowed and turned his truck off the highway and onto the narrow, gravel road. There was a crooked sign on the side of the rode that stated that Berry Crossing was 14 miles ahead.
Nick maneuvered his truck along the dusty, twisting, dirt roads rather effortlessly. Sarah sipped on her coffee, as she tried to note the different intersections and turns as he made them. The road signs were few and far between, and at times it took all her effort to keep from bumping her head on the ceiling as the truck bounced over large ruts in the road.
“You were right. These roads are a little confusing. Thanks again for driving.”
“No worries. There used to be a few signs out here that made it easier, but they haven’t been replaced since the last storm.”
Sarah spotted a newspaper next to Nick’s metal thermos on the seat between them. She picked it up.
The headline read: The Search for Missing School Teacher Continues. There was a picture of a pretty, young woman with red hair under the headline.
“Wow, that’s terrible. Do you know her?”
Nick looked away from the road and realized what Sarah was reading.
“Emily…yeah.” His eyes crept back to the gravel road and he shook his head slowly from side to side. “Well, kinda anyway. She hasn’t lived here that long. We talked a couple of times at the bar. Third grade teacher. Her first teaching job. Nice girl. The whole thing is pretty crazy.”
“Yeah, I bet. In a small town like this, I can’t imagine. I’m sorry…” Sarah trailed off and a short heavy silence filled up the cab of the truck. Sarah liked the silence even less than their present conversation and quickly broke through. “How big is Homewood anyway?”
“About 3000 people… But it’s not even that.” Nick stared out the window.