Page 60 of Out to Get Her
Could she really become a person who was excited about hanging out with people? Better yet, a person who actually had fun?
“They were there when I came in,” Connie said. “And I’m pretty sure I saw them when I left for the funeral.”
That pit made a reappearance in Samantha’s gut. She did not have a good feeling about this.
“Did anyone besides us come through here this morning? Did you lock up before you left for the funeral?”
“No, Chief stayed here,” she said. “We were going to go to the service together, but…” She paused to frown. “His meeting with Deputy Fonseca ran late, so he told me I should go ahead to the funeral without him.”
The pit in Samantha’s stomach widened.
This really did not smell good. Not. At. All.
Samantha’s brain scrambled for a plan. She didn’t want to alert Connie or Dustin that she was suspicious of Jordan. Not yet, at least.
“I’m sure he’s holding it in his office, then. I’ll just check base with him on it later. There’s enough to keep me busy here.” She patted her bag of files and lifted the straps onto her shoulder. “I’m gonna head out and grab Dexter before things get too dicey. Y’all stay safe tonight!”
Connie and Dustin both wished her the same, hollering at her back as she hurried out of the door and down the street.
Panic and conspiracy theories ran amok through her head as she sprinted to her car. All her excitement about the upcoming evening blew away with the wind gust rushing down Main Street.
ChapterTwenty
Erin foldedthe last of the freshly washed towels and placed the stack on their shelf in the hall bathroom. Her clothes were in the dryer now, so all the laundry was clean in case they lost power for a few days. Despite Zach’s nagging, Erin decided that was all the cleaning she planned to do ahead of this storm.
She joined Trey and Zach on the porch to see how they were doing with the outside prep.
“That’s the last of them.” Trey wiped his forehead and took off his gloves. “I’d better head out.”
“You sure we can’t convince you to stay?” Erin asked. “Sam said she might have plans for a scavenger hunt now.”
“Amurderscavenger hunt? Trapped here during a storm?” He curled his lip. “That sounds more like some escape room junk. No, thanks.”
“Chicken?” Zach teased.
“No, I just prefer non-murdery slumber parties is all.” He smiled and handed the gloves to Zach. “If you guys are all set, I’ve gotta help Dad with a couple more things at our place.”
“Thanks for all your help here,” said Erin. She could have handled putting up the boards with Zach herself, but Trey and Zach took care of everything much faster than she ever could. They turned out to be a well-oiled storm prep machine. “And thanks for the ride home.”
“No problem.” Trey waved to them both as he got in his car. “Holler if y’all need. Be safe!”
“You, too!” Zach shouted over the engine. After the car backed out of the long gravel driveway, he said, “He seems all right.”
Erin gave him a sideways glance, similar to the ones he’d given her over the last few days.
“Nope,” Zach said. “Still straight.”
“Just checking.” Erin grinned as the car drove off down the road. “I like him, too.”
Zach smacked the gloves together in a clap. “What’s next on the list?”
“I don’t know, you tell me.”
It had been a long time since she’d had to do any of this. And she’d never had to figure it out on her own. She only did whatever Grandpa had asked. Thankfully, Zach knew where all the boards were and had helped Grandpa over the last couple of years, so that part was covered.
“I know you went through storms in New Orleans,” Zach said.
“The last time I went through one of these, my job was to pick the Netflix series to binge and make sure we had enough wine. Renting in the city has its benefits.”
