“For now.”
They ended the call, and Noah tried the ignition again. The thing didn’t even gasp; it was deader than the granite peaks surrounding them. An ominous quiet settled in like a shroud, and it occurred to him no vehicle had passed in the last twenty minutes.
“Maybe it’s the battery?” Hailey offered.
“Which doesn’t help. I’ve got jumper cables, but I can’t get my truck up here, and rolling yours down the embankment is too risky.”
Hailey wrapped her coat tightly around herself and made to leave the cab.
“Where are you going?”
“Into the backseat to check on Rover.” She slid out the passenger door and in through the back passenger door. Folding a seat down, sheperched on the edge and reached toward the dog, whose only sign of life was the rise and fall of his chest. “I can’t tell if he’s hurt. Maybe he needs water.”
She began rummaging around when Noah’s phone rang.
“What’d you find out?” he barked at Charlie.
“Micky … all night … law enforce … other wreckers … crashed.”
“Dude, you’re breaking up!”
“… tow … pull ... jacked up.”
“Our connection sucks.”
“… bad … shut … Coal ...”
Noah gusted out a frustrated exhale. Though he hadn’t heard all of Charlie’s words, the gist was clear. He and Hailey would be stuck for a while.
“Charlie, if you can hear me, I’m not alone.” He glanced at the rearview mirror, and his eyes caught on Hailey’s pale ones staring right back at him. “I have Bailey, er, Hailey and her dog. She broke down.”
“ … beacon … safe …” Charlie’s voice crackled and finally stopped.
Noah yelled his name into the phone, but the call was over. Behind him, worry lines furrowed Hailey’s forehead. With her slight mass, she would soon be chilled to the bone. “Let’s head back to my truck. It’s our best shelter.” Why hadn’t he filled up his tank before heading up the pass? He’d been too anxious to get home and cocky enough to believe he could make it on what he had.
The deepening pleats between her brows had him rushing to add, “I’ll fire up the engine, and we can run the heater and charge our phones.” They were going to need them.
“What happens if you run out of fuel?”
“I should have enough to get us through the night.”
Her eyes widened. “You think we’ll be here all night?”
“It’s a possibility. I’m pretty sure the road’s closed—which explains why we haven’t seen any traffic—and this storm’s just getting started. I’ve got a go-bag with some supplies—”
A shiver rippled through her. “So do I.”
“Good. We’ll bring that too. Meanwhile, have you got anything bright we can tie to your antenna?”
She slid a hot pink bandanna from a pocket and handed it to him. “What about the dog?”
Noah dropped his head, raised it again, and offered her a half-smile. “After all the trouble you went through to save him, it wouldn’t make sense to leave him behind and let him freeze to death.”
Her stiff shoulders seemed to melt, as if a great weight had left her body. “Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me yet.”
Chapter 7
