Love Ahead: Expect Delays (8 page)

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.”

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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