Sushi (gxg)

Chapter 54

"Did that sign really just say Humptulips?" Kit asked incredulously.

I couldn't help but laugh. "Yeah, that's the name of the town here. I giggle every time I pass through it too, but it's a good sign. It means we're only about another hour or so from the house."

"Good!" Kit said quickly. "I am more than ready to go see your mom again. I don't think this is the meeting I expected with your brother though."

"Honestly, it's okay. I don't know him too well. His mom moved away after the divorce, and I only saw him a few times before my dad died, and then again at the funeral. I never thought we were close, just amicable. But the crap he's doing now is just crazy."

"So, no wedding invite?" she joked.

"Ha. No. I think we are going to have a bigger wedding than I ever planned though, now that we've made more friends in Paris." I could see it now, getting married to Kit would be the highlight of my life.

She looked at me with a happy smile. "I still can't believe you keep saying that. I mean, we really don't know each other well."

I gave her a little shrug. "True. But I don't see you fighting it. You can tell it's right too, I know it."

She leaned across the console and up to kiss me softly on the cheek. "It's exactly what I want."

We were quiet for a while, taking sips of our water and snacking on the pretzels, but the road was dark, and it was calm and peaceful. We'd done well to keep our mood up and minds off the impending danger, but the closer we got, the more we both felt it. Kit was jittery, and I knew both our hands were clammy as we held them together in the front seat. We were less than half an hour away when I pulled over and called 911 with the phone connected to the SUV.

"911, what is your emergency?" came a calm man's voice.

"Hi, yes. I got a text from my brother saying he has my mother held captive, including a picture of her tied to a chair in my kitchen. I'm going home now to try to rescue her, but I really would like some help to make sure he doesn't get away."

"Can I get your name and the address please?"

"My name is Nat, and I'm with my girlfriend, Kit." I quickly rattled off my home address, and there was a bit of silence on the other end.

"Miss, you're not in the covered area for the Sheriff, but I can call the State Police for you. I just can't tell you when they might have a unit in your area. If you can wait for a moment, I'll see what they say."

"I'm going to try to stop my brother regardless. I can't just sit here and wait. So just have them get someone here as soon as you can."

"Miss, my advice is to stay there and wait for the authorities. If there is an emergency, they're the best ones to handle it."

"Yeah, I've already waited long enough. He's had her most of the day, and I don't want to just sit here," I told her, with my voice rising in pitch. We'd never had an emergency out here, so this was the first time I'd run into this problem. It didn't make me too excited about emergencies that required an ambulance though.

"I understand. Give me a few minutes please." The man sounded like he was somehow both half asleep and yet completely steady. With a sigh, I pulled back out onto the road and headed for the house. Hopefully he'd give me some good news while we drove. It took a few minutes, but the operator finally returned the call. "Miss, I can have a pair of state troopers there in two hours."

"Fine. They can clean up whatever mess is there," I told him. "I would imagine things will be done by then."

"I'll let them know. Would you like me to stay on the phone with you?"