Everything to Nothing Read Online Free Page B

short skirt he
thought, and then he watched her peer at the keys trying to work
out what key was for the door. He quickly jumped out of the cab of
the truck, ran round the front and up the stairs. There were around
twenty-five keys in the bunch and he struggled to remember which
one was which. David reached Sally and held out his hand. She
mouthed the word sorry to him and he pointed to the truck. She
nodded and took as much time to descend as she had to ascend the
treacherously slick steps. By the time she had reached and entered
the vehicle, he had too.
    As he clambered
in he looked at her and smiled. She returned his smile. ‘Thank you
for doing this.’
    ‘Not a
problem.’ He made some adjustments to the heater console, turning
the heat high. ‘Didn’t exactly have much else planned for tonight.
Might as well help out a beautiful lady, hey?’
    She did not
answer. He looked in the rear-view mirror, saw her turn her head
away and saw the blood rise in her right cheek as she looked out of
the window. He could not help smiling to himself as he slowly drove
out of the garage complex. He maintained a sluggish pace as they
left the forecourt onto the road. He knew this road well and he
usually drove quickly along it, but it was far too wet for those
antics, plus he did not want to scare Sally. ‘How far away is the
car?’
    ‘About half a
mile.’
    ‘On this side
of the bridge then?’
    ‘Yes.’
    ‘Guess you
wouldn’t have waded the flood,’ his mind flashed to white panties
and naked buttocks, ‘but, erm, ahem, you were wet enough for me to
think that you had! But, then again, looking at this rain, it is no
wonder you were so wet.’
    ‘Yes, I think
it was heavier before too. That’s where the man tried to grab
me.’
    They had just
reached the place and David put the headlights on full beam then
asked, ‘What side where you walking on?’
    ‘The other
side. Your side.’
    David tried to
penetrate the rain with his eyes, looking through the rain battered
window. He could not see anything or anyone. As they topped the
rise in the road he could see in the hazy distance the Mini. David
still had the lights on full beam and as they approached the car
they could both see that all was not well.
    The glass in
the front window of the car was not there anymore. Only a few
shattered pieces remained wedged into the frame. There was a big
dent in the bonnet. David stopped the truck nose to nose with the
Mini. They both stared at the battered car. David expected Sally to
get emotional, to start crying. Instead she just sat there
impassively, her jaw set firm and clenched. He witnessed in her
face, in her eyes, a strength that he had not noticed before in
their short time together, a strong resolve and a strong
determination. He glanced at her hands, which were clamping down on
the dashboard in front of her, the knuckles white. ‘Stay here. I’ll
go out and make sure the coast is clear.’
    ‘No way. I’m
coming with you. If there is anyone out there and they do try to
attack us, you may actually end up defending whoever has done this
to my poor car!’
    He was going to
try and object, but then re-noticed the resoluteness in her eyes.
He watched as she unfastened her seatbelt and saw that her hands
were shaking. This time he doubted whether they were shaking with
fear.
    They both
exited the car, him being more hesitant than her as she just strode
purposefully to the Mini. They both walked round it, her going
round the driver’s side, him circling round the passenger’s side,
noting the damage to the car in the lights of the truck. All the
windows had been smashed, not just the windscreen. All the panels
in the car had dents, not just the bonnet, including the roof.
    ‘The bastard!’
Sally strongly stated.
    David was
examining the roof. ‘Whoever did this…’
    ‘I think we
know who did this.’
    ‘He has jumped
on the roof too. Lots of dents on it!’
    Sally seemed
more disheartened as she studied the car.