Chapter 11
This certainly wasn't the way this little vacation was supposed to go! First, MaryAnn had played at being the little Virgin Princess. And, now Tony was laid up with something Karla couldn't even pronounce but which ended up being a cracked (broken?) shoulder. And after a whole day of following Tony around the hospital in Tidesdale (the doctor at Denning Creek had insisted they drive the additional hundred miles to get to the more sophisticated equipment), Karla was driving back to the cabin-without Tony. Tony was done up in a cast that went from his waist to his neck, lying in a hospital bed and looking suitably apologetic.
Karla glanced down at the illuminated dials of the car clock. Jesus, but it was already past two o 'clock in the morning! By rights, Karla should have gotten a motel in Tidesdale and slept over. Driving this whole distance, after everything else that had happened today, was probably a bit silly.
However, Karla had been none too thrilled with the idea of staying in some sterile motel room without a man to keep her company. And while she remained wide awake, she had been a little too tired to go through the routine of cruising any of the local bars, looking for a stud for the evening.
Besides, MaryAnn was probably worried as hell. MaryAnn was a natural worrier. And, Karla had promised she would be back that same night. Of course, she had made that particular promise only because Tony had been adamant that whatever it was that was wrong with him was nothing too serious. Well, chock up one black mark against male intuition!
Karla did some mental computations. She was already past Denning Creek. Actually, she probably wasn't too far from the cabin. Another half an hour maybe, especially if she kept up her present rate of speed-which was a bit over the posted limit. However, Karla really wasn't worried about getting stopped. She couldn't imagine any highway patrolmen lying in wait in this stretch of deserted wilderness. Actually, Karla had seen no signs of life since Denny Creek-if one could call Denning Creek a sign of life. When she had zipped through there a little over two hours ago, the place had looked deserted, its sidewalks long rolled up for the evening. Even the doctor's house had been pitch black.
There had been that lone car awhile back, pulled over by the side of the road. Maybe a hunter off looking for game? Karla wondered if it was hunting season. Or, maybe the poor sucker had broken down out here in the middle of nowhere. Wasn't that a cheery thought? But if the latter was the case, Karla could hope for the best, since she had seen no hitchhikers between the empty car and Denning Creek. So, she could assume that the unlucky traveler-had he indeed been unlucky-had at least been picked up by someone and was probably back in Denning Creek, wondering how he was going to get himself and his car back to civilization in the morning.
Karla let her foot go heavier on the gas pedal. The darkness of the forest zipped past on either side of the road. As it did so, Karla was mentally running through the list of likely candidates to replace Tony for the time she had remaining. As much as Karla was fond of her sister (MaryAnn was, after all, the only sister Karla had), the idea of spending another week alone with MaryAnn was just a little more than Karla thought she could endure. If MaryAnn weren't so inhibited, the girls might have made due with a few days of girl-girl fun and games. But, Karla knew better than to even suggest anything so risque to MaryAnn. Karla thought her sister would go immediately into a fit of apoplexy if Karla even let hint that such an idea had ever crossed her mind.
"Incest!" Karla could just hear MaryAnn squeal.
Karla laughed at the thought. Oh, MaryAnn was such an innocent! She certainly didn't know what she was missing!
So, maybe Karla would call Tim Morrow and see what he was doing. If she remembered correctly, Tim wasn't quite up to the standards of Tony, but he would do in a pinch. He had a big cock, and....
"Oh, Christ...." Karla suddenly groaned, realizing that she was going to be hard-pressed to call anyone, since there was no phone at the cabin. Which meant there would have to be another six-hour drive (three hours to and three hours back), to Denning Creek, before Karla could bring in any substitute bed partners.
Why in the hell did Tony have to butch it up and break his goddamn shoulder! He had really fucked things up royally!
Karla checked the speedometer and eased up on the gas, deciding that she was possibly going just a bit too fast. Who knew, maybe some wild and woolly animal would come bounding out into the road from the forest at any minute, making Karla's car hit the damn thing broadside. And, wouldn't that be just what Karla needed: a wrecked car and a dead (or, more likely a dying-it would just be her luck to have the damn thing carry on its death throes for hours on end), deer, out here in the middle of nowhere.
Shudder! SHUDDER!
The road made a series of stiff curves en route up a medium mountainside, then leveled out for a short stretch. Around the next turn, the car lights illuminated a figure, Karla seeing the man. The guy was probably just as surprised to see her as she was seeing him, because he didn't even get completely turned around to get out his thumb before Karla had zipped on past him. Karla immediately put her foot on the brake, bringing the car to an inglorious, screeching, rubber-burning stop.
Wait a minute here, Karla! Wait just a fucking, goddamn minute! One just didn't go around picking up hitchhikers in this day and age, did one? A Good Samaritan could soon find her throat cut and lying in some gutter-or worse. And, out here in the wilds, it would take forever to find her body-if it was ever found.
Still, the poor sucker certainly needed some kind of assistance, didn't he? Jesus, but there was no one or nothing within miles.
Karla vaguely suspected that the guy might possibly belong to the deserted car she had passed earlier. And if that were the case, the man was certainly heading off in the wrong direction, wasn't he? And let's face it, Karla would certainly have appreciated a helping hand if she were stranded miles from anything.
Oh, hell, you had to take risks sometimes, didn't you? Only she wished Tony hadn't risked doing his fancy dive off the rocks into that pool!
Karla leaned over across the seat and. unlocked the door on the passenger side, simultaneously hearing the crunch of gravel outside as the man, panting somewhat from the sprint he had made to reach the parked car, came abreast of the automobile.
Karla felt a sudden surge of exciting anxiety as she heard the door click and come open.
"Thank God for the rescue!" Roman Crandale said, scooting into the car next to his flabbergasted niece.