"Nope, but I know how to call for help, and you've got Triple A." She flashes a lipstick smile at me.
"True." I sigh because now we won't get to our destination until after dark. Plastic cards slip through my fingers as I search for the right one. "Got it."
Sierra's nails click on her phone as she types in the number I read to her. She wanders off as she talks, and I'm left to stare out at the Connecticut landscape. It's kind of ugly in an industrial way, and I imagine living just outside of New York City isn't very pleasant. When she's done talking Sierra returns and says, "Some guy named Taylor will be here in about fifteen minutes."
"Great. Let's take our stuff out to get to the spare."
The sun has heated up the car, and the salty fried odor of road food wafts towards us as we throw our bags out of the trunk and onto the asphalt beside the car. The tightly woven carpeted trapdoor is rough in my hands when I pull it up to reveal my spare. It’s an oddly small-looking thing, and rubber is pulled away from the rim. "Crap on a cracker, it's flat."
"Well, that sucks. Guess we're buying you a new tire." Sierra sits on the bumper next to me and leans against my body. "Hey, this could be so much worse. What if we were on the side of the road?" She places her hand over her tattoo. "They're watching out for us. I can feel it."
"Really?" I squint at her in frustration and stand. "Because I'm not feeling a thing. If these guys really want us to come to them, then why aren’t they sending out their bat signal? Huh?"
I kick a tire on my car, and pain shoots through my toe. “Ouch!” Through my blurry vision I see something dark move by the side of the diner. I’m tempted to go see what it is, but with the way today is going, I’d probably get mugged.
Sierra gives me time to cool down. "Okay, no, I’m not getting any sign either. But there's no use in getting upset over things we can't change. Let's just roll with it." She grins. "Roll with it, ha!"
I smirk. "Cute." I'm glad Sierra is with me to defuse my anger. She takes things in stride, and I do need to learn to roll with it. I watch her leaning over the side-view mirror to apply lipstick. When she smacks her lips I chuckle because Taylor has no idea what’s about to hit him.
10
Chapter 10
Carly
The tow truck clanks its way into the parking lot fifteen minutes later. The lumbering body that gets out of the truck is no guy, though. While tall and large, Taylor is most definitely female. Wild auburn hair is tucked into a filthy-looking baseball cap, and I expect to see grease on her face. Instead, a pair of the prettiest green eyes I've ever encountered appear to laugh at me.
"Taylor?" My questioning voice makes her break into a big grin.
"I get that a lot. It never gets old."
Taylor is dressed in loose jeans and a blue cotton work shirt with her name embroidered on the front. Sierra makes a show of looking her up and down and says, "Well, aren't you just a surprise waiting to happen."
Laughter bursts from the girl, and one can't help but smile in response. "Can't say I've gotten that one before. So you ladies got yourself a flat tire?"
I answer, "Yup, and a flat spare too." I'm grateful for the useless extra tire because I would be embarrassed to admit to this woman I couldn't change a flat.
Taylor says, "Well, all-righty, looks like we need to hook you up and take you in to the shop. The front's gonna be tight, but I think we can all fit." She gets back in the truck to move it into position. She makes short work of hooking up my car, and before we know it, we're squashed into the cab making small talk as we ride to the garage.
The open windows let in a breeze that blows hair around my face, and I smell the pungent odor of mulch in the air. Sierra asks, "So how did you end up driving a tow truck?"
“My dad worked in this business, and since it was only the two of us, I spent most of my life under cars. It's all I ever wanted to do, and when he died of a heart attack a couple years ago, I decided to open that business he was always talking about. I got myself a silent partner and did it." Her face falls for a moment, and I wonder if it has to do with missing her dad. I sure miss mine.
Sierra cocks her head at me and points to my wrist. She turns back to Taylor. "I'm sorry to hear that. Both Carly and I lost parents too."
Catching her drift, I lift my arm to hold the handle above the window of my door, making sure my tattoo is visible if Taylor looks over. Is being a single woman without family one of the requirements for our strange club?
"Did you now?" Taylor purses her lips but says nothing.