Page 5 of Dark Roads
I dropped the tailgate and lifted my bike into the box. He’d switched on his hazards, the red light pulsing across the road, flashing onto my arms and face. He didn’t get out to help, which was a good thing. I needed time to think how I was going to explain this. I opened the door and climbed in. He watched as I pulled on my seat belt, then blasted the heat, adjusting the vents in my direction. He put the truck in gear and pulled back onto the highway.
He glanced over. “Lana said you were going to a movie.”
“We came out to the lake after.”
“Did you tell her that?”
“My phone died.” I rubbed at my cold legs, fiddled with my necklace, carved pieces of elk bone on a leather string. Dadhad given it to me. The last time I’d ridden in Vaughn’s truck was when he’d come to the house to tell me about the accident. He’d pulled in so quietly I hadn’t heard the car engine, just the knock on the door. Then his words like static on a radio.
Went over the bank. Driving too fast. Died on impact.
I took a few breaths, blinked away the hazy dots, and shuffled my feet. They bumped into something. A black tote bag on the floorboards. I moved it to the side.
“Careful. That’s camera equipment.” He looked at me again. I wished he’d pay attention to the road. Every time his eyes met mine, I felt a clutch of uneasiness. “Why were you alone?”
“Everyone’s staying at the campground.” I kept my gaze focused on the white line. “I thought you had a meeting at the lodge.”
“I left early. Got a domestic call.”
“Oh.” I chewed my lip, wondering if I knew the people involved. There were only summer cabins and a few farms past the lake. It was odd that Vaughn hadn’t sent another officer out on the call, considering he wasn’t even in uniform, and I was surprised he hadn’t stopped at the campsite. The Iceman loved busting kids for anything—he didn’t need an excuse to hassle us.
He gave me a hard look. “You been drinking?”
“I’m underage.” I dropped my head against the seat and closed my eyes partway. The seat fabric smelled like oranges, something citrus, but with an earthy undertone. A woman’s perfume? It didn’t smell like Lana. Maybe he’d cleaned recently. The dash and door were shiny. I glanced at him from the side. His square jaw jutting out, that long stare down his nose, his large hands flexing on the wheel. Jonny said Vaughn liked to make people feel powerless, and it worked. Ever since I’d moved into his house, I felt like I had to get everything approved by him.
“Don’t bullshit me. I can smell the beer.”
“Dad wouldn’t care.”
“For God’s sake, Hailey. You know how many girls ruin their lives when they hit your age? They hang out with the wrong guys, drink, do drugs.”
“Not me.”
“Sure.” He laughed. “And Jonny Miller’s a saint. Been a few thefts lately. If we raided his dad’s farm right now, bet you we’d find all kinds of stolen dirt bike parts.”
My stomach did a hard flip. The truck felt hot. Vaughn’s cologne mixed sickeningly with that fruity perfume smell.
He paused, let out a frustrated sigh. “Listen, you think you’re all grown up, but Cold Creek is rough. I’ve seen a lot of bad things, okay? It’s easy to get into trouble around here. Someone like you, a pretty girl without a dad, you have to be even more careful.”
I stared out the window. Dad used to call me pretty, but he didn’t sound like that when he said it. Like it was a bad thing.
“How you look, what you wear, it attracts attention.” Vaughn shifted in his seat. I glanced over. He was looking down at my cutoffs. “People get the wrong idea.”
Heat climbed my throat, my face. Why was he saying these things? My shorts weren’t tight or cut too high. Half the girls in town wore them so the front pockets showed.
“I was only on the highway for a few minutes. I was going to take the logging road.”
“You think someone can’t kill you in a few minutes?”
“Nobody’s going to kill me.” I tried not to roll my eyes, but he must have heard the sneer in my voice, because his head snapped around.
“You think this is funny? Lana’s friend was murdered on this highway, remember? She was just having fun at the lake too, and look what happened to her.”
“She was hitchhiking,” I mumbled. “It was a long time ago.”
“Yeah, and more girls have been killed since, so while you’re living with us, there will be no more parties, and no more lake.”
“Likeever?”
