Two Kings

Chapter 15

My eyes open and the orange glow of an indicator light flashing in the darkness is enough light to see the old man hunched over the steering wheel. I gasp and then slowly lean forward, my mouth agape and the cuff digging into my wrist as I take in the front of the crumbled SUV pinned to a large tree.

My next thought is the older man. "Hey. Are you okay?" I wait a moment for him to respond, but when he doesn't, I tap him on the shoulder. "Speak to me. Let me know you're, ok?" He doesn't utter a word, not even a heavy breath.

"Please, talk to me. I'm scared and not sure what to do?" I need to do something, but I am not sure what. So, I reach out with my uncuffed arm and touch his neck in search of a pulse, but after several attempts, I can't find one. That's when I realize, he's neither fine nor about to sit up and speak to me.

A flood of warm tears trickles down my cheeks, and an eerie feeling of death overcomes me. Only a moment ago we were talking, and now I'm sharing a car with a dead man. I sob, not only for him, but for me being trapped and unable to free myself.

Sometime later, after a long cry, I wipe the condensation from the window with my sleeve of my jacket and stare out into the darkness. I'm in no hurry to escape the car, since I'm more concerned with what's creeping around outside. It's weird, but when you're on your own and your only companion is dead, the slightest noise freaks you out.

A shiver runs the entire length of my body, and I tuck my knees under my chin, trying to find some warmth. I hate the cold and I hate that I'm unable to warm myself, and the longer I sit here with no heating, the colder I get. How long before a car passes? It could be hours. No doubt he took this lonely road to avoid traffic, and avoid it we have.

As I clench and unclench my fingers to keep the blood circulating, my eyes connect with the lights flicking in the distance. It doesn't take long to figure out it's an approaching car. As the dim lights get brighter, the vehicle takes the wide bend a few hundred meters ahead. That's when I sit up, pulling the soft curve of my spine into a straight line.

The car's moving fast. Which means it hasn't seen our vehicle blocking part of the road. So, I brace for the impact; my nerves up around my throat as the other vehicle's headlights hit the wreck. Suddenly, it swerves, fishtailing it across the road before hitting an embankment and coming to a thumping stop as a haze of dust engulfs the car.

As I stare out the back window watching in shock, a worrying thought hits me; what if the person or persons occupying the other car aren't the good Samaritans I'm hoping for? The sudden prospect of being trapped in a car on a lonely road with a strange person terrifies me. I yank on the cuff again, more desperate than ever to free myself as it pinches and pulls at my skin.

The moment a car door shuts, I attempt to squeeze my hand through the cuff, franticly trying to free it. But it's useless and the more I try, the more it hurts. Even if I wasn't cuffed to the door, I wouldn't get far since I don't have night vision.

The sudden crunching of stones has me stopping all movement to listen. Oh fuck! I gulp, not sure if I'm trembling from the cold or from nerves. But it's the bright light suddenly shining through the side window that has my heart thumping. As I shield my eyes from the glare, I hold my cuffed whist up and say, "I'm cuffed to door and can't free myself. Please, I need help. Call the police!"

"No, police."

The familiar male voice has me gasping. "Rico... is that you?" The back door opens and his face comes into view. He's the last person I was expecting to come. Either way, I've never been more grateful for a familiar face than I am right now.

"Yeah, it's me. Are you Ok?"

"I guess. Just cold and scared. But he's," I cough. "Dead," I cough again, my throat now dry and in need of water. "I checked him for a pulse but felt nothing."