The three hourdrive had already stretched into its fourth hour and he was still milesfrom home.Another bolt of lightning flashed, striking a radio tow...r just a shortdistance ahead. It lit up like a strobe light and Jerry saw spots. Whenhis vision cleared he was already well into the curve and heading off theroad. In a panic, he cut the wheel hard and the trailer fishtailed behindhim. The truck spun around wildly and finally came to a stop in theditch, pitched at a very steep angle.Jerry killed. We just never clicked.As Mrs. K turns to head back in the house, she holds the door open and directs me inside, saying, “Make yourself comfortable.”“I haven’t actually been in your home before. I wouldn’t know what to do besides wait by the door.”“Don’t be silly. The sitting room is through there.”I do as directed and take a seat on a couch. A couple minutes later, Chloe enters from the opposite direction, saying, “So you finally decided to come for a visit.”“I know. I’m sorry. It just seemed. It will be beautiful. I plan to put a deck in that wraps all the way around and continues out over the water in the back, narrowing into a dock. Maybe someday we'll have a boat.We? Fuck! I was picturing JJ again. This time he had his arm around me. I am a silly teenager with a crush. "Get a grip, Rutherford."The truck is in position, so I lower the flatbed. It's quiet. He must still be asleep. Pulling open the Escort's door, the overhead light comes on. No keys, shit!I glance at my watch—6:57.. They all were. It loomed, filling her entire view even as she slammed her thrusters in reverse.We're within a kilometer, Julia realized belatedly, redundantly. There was screaming over the radio, but she couldn't focus on anything but the Drake's eyes. They weren't the eyes of a dumb creature, or even a creature of instinct or learned cleverness. The eyes that looked down at her, with an amused wrinkle in their corners, were evil. They were malevolently intelligent. They were laughing at the.