still naked, his groin blazingly hot as it came to settle against Zach’s ass.
“Looks like hell out there,” Austin grumbled.
“Slow and steady,” Zach said. “We can make it. I’ll put on the chains.”
Austin snorted. “
I’ll
put on the chains. You hunt up some breakfast.”
“You want to eat here again?” Zach asked. He turned around and caught
Austin’s grimace. “I don’t think I can take another corn dog.”
“Good point,” Austin said. He glared at the snow. “But we don’t want to make
many stops now. We should drive through to Boulder. The weather is only going to
worsen.”
“Yeah.” Zach kissed Austin. “I’m glad you’re here with me.”
Love Ahead: Expect Delays
49
Austin’s mouth curled into a crooked smile. “I’m glad I’m here too. You’d fuck
up those chains.”
“I can put chains on a car,” Zach protested.
“Have you tried this brand of chain? They’re a real bitch to get on. The good
news is that they aren’t going to come off.”
They dressed and packed quickly, and in the daylight Zach was able to make
out a minimart just up the street. He fetched donuts and coffees and fried chicken
for lunch. When he returned, Austin had the chains on, and his jacket was wet from
the snow.
They headed east on I-90 with a steady fall of snow blurring the horizon. The
world was quiet and deadly. To stay fresh and focused, Zach and Austin switched off
driving every two hours.
Zach had found a few cassette tapes for sale at the minimart, and they rotated
through the offerings of
Phantom of the Opera
, Whitesnake, and Phil Collins in a
jarring musical cycle.
But the weather worsened to a point where music was nothing but a
distraction. A multicar pileup blocked a lane, and the backup stretched over a mile,
although they couldn’t move much faster, given the whiteout conditions.
The travel time between Billings and Boulder was normally eight hours, but
nine hours into their day, they still hadn’t left Montana. The wind increased, and
Zach considered pulling off at the nearest motel. But the radio reported a worsening
storm front behind this one, and they decided to keep driving through the night if
necessary, in the hopes they could reach Boulder in advance of the second storm.
It was close to midnight by the time they reached Buffalo, Wyoming, and
turned off I-90 to head south on I-25. Snowplows were out in force on I-90, but I-25
hadn’t been plowed for a while, and the road was treacherous. Thick snow drifted
across the lanes and whited-out all markings. Zach’s senses twitched with nervous
tension as the snow shifted into freezing sleet, and snow-caked patches of ice
overtook the cement.
50
Astrid Amara
To its credit, the Spectrum handled the bad roads admirably. The chains gave
the car the traction it needed, and the heating vents kept the windows clean,
although it was necessary to keep the heat cranked on high. Twice Austin had to
lean out the window in the freezing sleet and scrape off ice collected on the
windshield.
In the small town of Kaycee, they switched seats once more, and Zach took
over from Austin. Austin reclined the passenger seat and fell asleep almost
immediately. Zach hummed random songs to himself to stay awake but found his
mind drifting. He then tried to recite
Les Misérables
in its entirety, but without an
orchestra his rendition lacked…everything.
As Austin began to snore, Zach tore his eyes from the road for a moment to
take in his slumbering form. The temperature in the car was broiling, and Austin
had stripped down to a short-sleeved shirt. His arms, bulging out of the sleeves,
crossed over his chest as if he were a slumbering vampire. His sleep-tousled hair
darkened in the winter. In summer it would bleach nearly white, but now it was a
yellowish gold that gave his pale skin a warmth that shone even in the midst of a
blizzard.
Zach loved Austin, he realized. He recalled that when he’d first met him, he’d
assumed Austin was the one guy in the world Zach wouldn’t connect with. He’d
dropped his car off at Austin’s shop, and Austin had looked him over, given him a
rakish grin, and asked him if he wanted to go on a date.
Zach had expected one date, a night together, and an end.
Yet here he was, six months later, in love with the man. Still, the altercation
at Coeur d’Alene cautioned Zach as to how temperamental Austin could be.
As the storm raged outside, and Austin snored quietly, Zach recalled those
lazy Saturday mornings lounging naked in bed, drinking coffee, and reading and
making love. He remembered the dinners when Austin would randomly stop by
with a couple of steaks, and the two of them would fire up the gas grill on Zach’s
balcony and eat and make fun of whatever was on television, or wander the Capitol
Love Ahead: Expect Delays
51
Hill neighborhood, arguing or shopping or laughing. The mundane moments
together were what made Zach love Austin, and he realized love overpowered even
the memories of his times with Aaron and Ed. Zach trusted Austin.
The red glow of hazard lights flashed on the shoulder ahead. Zach slowed. He
saw a man beside a disabled vehicle, bundled from eyeballs to toes, frantically
waving his arms.
“Poor bastard,” Zach said under his breath.
Austin’s eyelids snapped open. He sat up. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. There’s a car stuck on the side of the road.”
“Pull over,” Austin said. He rubbed his hand over his face to wake himself up.
“What? He could be dangerous.”
Austin rolled his eyes. “It’ll be fine. Besides, when was the last time you saw
another car on this road? We can’t leave him out here to freeze to death. We have to
help.”
Zach pulled behind the large silver Lincoln Town Car. The Spectrum swerved
as its wheels slipped on a long sheet of ice on the shoulder. For a moment Zach’s
heart froze in terror, but then he got the Spectrum to stop.
The man rushed forward, looking relieved. He waved as he approached. The
severe redness to the man’s cheeks hinted at how long he’d been out there. “Hey,
can you help me?” he shouted.
Austin rolled the window down. It protested angrily, squealing and resisting,
ice crunching at the base.
“What’s wrong with your car?” Austin asked.
The man pulled off the scarf that covered the lower half of his face. He looked
grizzled, but he smiled warmly.
“Damned if I know!” he said. “Engine just fizzled out, and now it won’t start!
Can you give me a lift into Casper?”
“Sure,” Austin offered.
52
Astrid Amara
“Thank God! I really appreciate this, man. My name’s Dave.” He offered his
hand through the open window, and Austin shook it.
Zach smiled back. “Looks pretty cold out there.”
“
Damn
if it isn’t miserable!” Dave chuckled.
Austin unlocked the passenger door and reached for the handle.
Dave yanked the door open all the way and grabbed Austin by the collar of his
T-shirt. He pulled a pistol out of his pocket and forced the barrel of the gun hard
under Austin’s chin.
“Change of plans, boys,” Dave said with a smile.
Love Ahead: Expect Delays
53
Chapter Six
Monday, December 6
Austin was dragged out of the car by his collar. Dave grinned as he shoved
Austin down into the ditch alongside the highway.
Austin landed hard, a sickening pain crunching through his left ankle. He
scrambled up the bank, snow burning his bare arms and neck as he slipped in the
deep ravine.
“Austin!”
He heard Zach cry out. Fury rushed through him, and he clawed at the ice and
crawled over the lip of the pavement. He charged Dave.
Dave pointed the gun at Zach’s head. “Back off!” he told Austin.
Austin froze, hands up. His glance flickered to Zach. Zach’s nose bled, and he
was wide-eyed and pale as a ghost.
Dave cocked the hammer of the pistol, and Austin felt vomit rise in his throat.
“Don’t!” he gasped, breathless. He limped backward.
Dave nodded. “Good decision.”
“You hurt him, I’ll fucking kill you.”
“Bye-bye.” Dave sat in the passenger seat and shut the Spectrum’s door.
Austin saw Dave aim the gun at the side of Zach’s head but couldn’t hear what
he said.
54
Astrid Amara
Zach turned and looked at Austin. His eyes were wild, but Dave must have
said something else, because Zach faced the road, released the parking brake, and
hit the gas.
The Spectrum’s tires skidded on the icy shoulder, squealing as they sought
friction. Austin watched in dread as they drove away without him. Austin limped
after them until he slipped on the ice and fell to his knees.
“Fuck!” he yelled to no one in particular. His teeth chattered forcefully. His
entire body shook, and his palms were vivid red from the chill and rough surface of
the ice.
His sweater, coat, and cell phone were all in the Spectrum. He was going to
freeze within minutes.
But worse was the horror that Zach would be killed by that bastard. The fear
in Zach’s eyes was a knife in Austin’s gut. He never wanted to see Zach look like
that again.
Austin screamed in fury, but no one heard him. He shivered so badly he could
barely keep standing.
Austin noticed Dave’s abandoned car still had its lights on. He walked to it and
sat inside, grateful to at least be out of the wind.
The silver Lincoln Town Car was a limited edition, with a rich, camel-colored
leather interior and a wood-paneled steering wheel and dash. The plush inside
reeked of cigarettes. A set of keys with a picture of two young children attached
were in the slot. Austin turned the ignition, but the engine stalled. The battery
worked, but the car was dead.
Austin sat there for a few minutes, curled tightly until he got his shaking
under control. He turned on the overhead light and saw a map on the passenger
seat.
It was a road map with a circle around Shoshoni, Wyoming. An address was
scrawled in barely legible writing on the front.
Love Ahead: Expect Delays
55
Austin could only assume that was where the bastard was headed, but there
was no way to get there unless he got a ride. Or fixed the car he was in.
He dreaded the idea of going outside again. He leaned back and rifled through
a paltry collection of personal belongings in the backseat, finding a few items that
looked like they belonged to an older woman.
He tried on a woman’s cardigan, but he couldn’t get his arms through the
holes, so he settled for tying it around his neck like a scarf. In the glove box, he
found matches, a weak flashlight, and registration and proof of insurance for
someone named Margaret Wheatlock.
Austin popped the hood, then braced himself for the cold. He grabbed the
flashlight and stumbled outside, the sleet slicing into his exposed face and arms like
needles. The cold numbed his extremities.
Austin surveyed the car under the hood. As he looked over the engine, he
realized the problem, if it was the only one, was an easy fix. The fuel line had
broken loose. Pressure had spewed gas over the inside, but the line itself wasn’t
cracked.
He fumbled with frozen fingers as he struggled to reconnect the valve without
tools. He couldn’t tighten the bolt quickly. He forced his frozen fingers to bend and
work the clamp, the image of Zach’s terrified face blocking out the pain in his ankle,
the burn of the cold.
Once he reconnected the line, he slammed the hood and limped back inside.
The car engine started beautifully, and he cranked the heat.
He toggled off the hazards, turned on the headlights, and pulled the car onto
the highway. Shoshoni was west, so Dave would have to get off I-25 at Casper and
take Highway 20 to reach the town. The real question was whether he’d bother to
keep Zach alive or if he’d simply toss him from the car and go on alone.
With his focus split between the blizzard-whitened road and the shoulder for
signs of Zach, Austin headed south.
56
Astrid Amara
And he’d never thought he’d be grateful for an old Lincoln Town Car, but the
bottom line was this: it was faster than a 1989 Geo Spectrum.
* * *
He was more frightened than he’d ever been. Having a gun pointed at his neck
made many things difficult, like remembering to change gears, concentrate, or take
deep breaths.
And the bloody nose didn’t help. He couldn’t lean back and still drive, but blood
continued to drip from his swollen nostrils.
When Dave had smashed the butt of the pistol into his face, Zach’s first