“She is in her twenties with long black hair. She has this piercing over her eyebrow and a huge-ass tattoo down her arm. At first I thought she was a teen just hanging out in the street until she got closer. She seems really nice, though. Adam and Faith met her.” He explained how he had given her a ride to Faith’s place to make a call to her aunt. Her car had broken down a mile out of town.
“Kate needs the company. Dale has been gone a year and she is very lonely,” Noah remarked. The lights went out and it took a few minutes for the generator to kick in. It left the room in a dim glow. They sat still, listening for clues as to what was happening out there. It sounded quiet but they both stayed put, waiting for the all clear.
“Thank God I talked Carlos into buying that generator last summer. I feel better knowing they aren’t sitting in the dark,” Noah muttered. Drake knew Noah was wishing he was there. Carlos was his father-in-law. Noah’s parents had died years ago along with Adam’s high school sweetheart in a car accident. Noah was very close with Alana’s family.
They sat silently for another ten minutes and the radio declared the storm had passed them and moved north.
“I’m nervous about seeing all the damage.” Noah sighed, standing up and trying the phone. He shook his head and put it back down. “It’s going to be a long-ass night. We need caffeine, lots of caffeine.”
Drake nodded. “I’ll use my cell and call the Smith boys in first. Then Greg and Sam.”
“I’ll check in with Alana and Adam,” Noah said, getting right to business. “We might need Hugh Wilson and Kyle Sands to help out.”
Hugh and Kyle worked parttime for Noah. Crime was pretty low-key in Red Hook, but Noah liked having them on the payroll for times like this.
Drake wanted to call Kate’s house and make sure they were okay, but he knew business came first. First chance he got, he was going to check on them. Hopefully he would find them safe and sound.
Chapter 4
Jasmine and her aunt held hands as the house shook and rattled. They heard glass break and loud sounds. Hail fell loudly on the roof and the sides of the house. It was a scary moment. Kate looked pale and had tears running down her cheek. Jasmine jumped in fright a few times herself. She had never been in a tornado before and she hoped this was her last one.
“I wish Dale was here. He was only fifty-seven. He should have had many years left,” Kate cried, leaning her head on Jasmine shoulders. “We were supposed to grow old together.”
“I know, Aunt Kate. Life is so unfair.” Jasmine sighed. Dale had been driving home from taking a friend to a neighboring town when a drunk driver ran him off the road. His injuries had been serious and he passed away the same night. Jasmine had come for the funeral but had rushed back to Fort Worth. She had been so much under Grant’s thumb and hadn’t even realized it. Now she was ashamed she had let herself be taken over so much by Grant’s wishes. Kate and Dale had been so kind to her after her mother passed away from cancer four years ago. She should have stuck around and helped Kate more. She was determined to make up for it now, though.
“I should have stuck around longer, Aunt Kate. I let Grant boss me around and I couldn’t even see it,” she said bitterly. “I wasted three years of my life with him and it was all for nothing. He could throw it all down the drain, chasing women behind my back. Boy, was I dumb.”
Kate patted her hand. “Oh darling, the main thing is your eyes are ope
n now. I am so proud of you for making a clean break away from that jerk. I never liked him and neither did Dale, but you are an adult and we hesitated to interfere. Maybe we should have.”
Jasmine smiled at her aunt. Her aunt and uncle had not been impressed with him the few times they met. They did their best to be supportive despite their reservations. Grant had taken over her whole life. She worked but if she worked late, he questioned her and checked her cell phone messages. Yet if she questioned him he would get mad and storm out of their apartment. He picked out her friends and she thought it was because he cared about her so much. She had ignored that small voice that told her it wasn’t right or healthy to live that way. Three months ago she had found out he had been cheating on her. The woman showed up at her work and told Jasmine she was tired of being the “other” woman. She claimed Grant loved her and was embarrassed by Jasmine’s grubby appearance. She said she worked with Grant and had been sleeping with him for months now.
Jasmine had been devastated and went right to Grant, hoping he would tell her it was a lie.
He told her it was true but it was just a casual fling that meant nothing to him, just a bit of excitement. He claimed the woman was lying about it going on for months. He promised to end it, but Jasmine had been heartbroken and moved out. A friend from work let her stay on her couch. Being away from him had allowed her to realize she had been the only one to compromise. She changed for him and he did whatever he wanted. He harassed her constantly, blowing up her cell phone with texts and calls, demanding she come home. He showed up at her work until she got fired. He found out where she was staying and showed up there too, demanding she quit throwing a fit since his affair was over. Finally she took her aunt up on her offer and headed for Red Hook.
“I probably wouldn’t have listened.” Jasmine sighed. “From now on I am concentrating on my career. Maybe I will be successful and rich and just forget about men.”
Kate laughed. “You will heal and things will get better. Don’t condemn yourself to a life of loneliness because of one bad apple.”
“A rotten, bad apple,” Jasmine added. They stayed silent for a minute, listening for any clue of what was going on.
“The radio says it’s over.” Kate sighed with relief, wiping her tears away. “I’m scared to go up there. Isn’t that silly?”
“No,” Jasmine replied. “Let me go first and make sure it’s safe.”
Jasmine climbed slowly up the steps and opened the door carefully. The house was dark so she knew the power was still out. She stepped up the stairs and took a look around the kitchen. “It’s not too bad, Kate.”
Kate followed behind her and they both lit some camping lanterns. The kitchen window over the sink was broken and a large tree branch was hanging halfway in the kitchen. The furniture was fine, at least. A few leaves lay on the floor.
“Oh my,” Kate whispered, putting her hand over her heart. “Let’s check the living room.”
Jasmine took the flashlight out of her pocket and turned it on. She shined it on the hardwood floors. “Be careful. There is glass all over the floor.”
Jasmine shined the light over the dark room. “One broken window. Luckily we brought your rocking chairs inside or they would be firewood.”
Jasmine opened the front door, afraid of the damage she might see. Broken potted plants were scattered all over the porch. A large tree had been uprooted in the front yard and was tilted on its side.