Bad Company

Regrets and Mistakes

"My word, Joe; I have not seen weather like this since 2004 in Amarillo. From everyone here at 89.4 The Heat, we ask that you seek shelter if you are driving on the roads right now. Streets are washing out in the blink of an eye, and power lines across the southern parts of Texas are falling quicker than a set of dominoes," the radio personality spoke in a thick drawl. Her voice was barely a faint call beneath the sheets of rain slamming against my windshield coupled with the thunder rumbling threateningly in the distance. My windshield wipers brushed buckets of water from Sam's windshield in sweeping arcs, but the speed was nowhere near being able to keep up with the excessive amount of rain pouring onto my car. The harsh wind from the storm pounded against the broad side of Sam whose tires were desperately trying to grab traction on the slick roads, and my heart spiraled into a frenzy with each swerve of the vehicle towards the massive wall of pines bending towards the pavement. "We are now receiving an influx of accident reports across the counties, and it seems as if the number just won't quit growing. Luckily, the storm shouldn't linger for too--what's going on? I'm in the middle of a news update. Are you serious? Folks, I have just gotten an update from my boss that our backup generator is not going to be able to sustain us for much longer. Please do not worry if we suddenly cut--"

Silence filled the cabin of the truck as her voice suddenly dropped, and, as much as I hated to admit it, Don had been right. I shouldn't have been out in that weather, but I had been so angry with him that I was determined to make it back to Colt's house before the storm hit. I was wrong--so, so wrong.

From the passenger seat, my cell phone once again came alive with a series of missed call notifications and a current incoming call. Don's face flashed across the screen, but I was too terrified to release the wheel for even a second to answer.

27 missed calls from Uncle Dusty, Dannie, Colt, and Don.

Fearful tears flooded my eyes as a particularly powerful gust of wind pushed against Sam. A scream tore from my lips and melted into the beginning of my ringtone as Colt's name flashed across the screen. I was terrified shitless, but there wasn't much I could do. The edges of the roads were practically rivers, rendering pulling off to the side of the road useless, and I couldn't stop in the middle of the road in case some other vehicle was somewhere behind me.

It wasn't until Sam's tires skimmed the edge of the road that I threw caution to the wind and scrambled to answer my phone.

"I don't know what I hate more right now--this storm or you," I snapped with a thick waver in my voice. The tears that had been blurring my vision finally spilled over my cheeks in warm streams, and a sob carried over the line for him to hear. My fingers were shockingly pale against the dark leather of the steering wheel as I gripped onto the fraying material for dear life.

"You're okay. Oh God, you're okay." I was stunned into silence at the voice crying into the receiver.

"Dannie? I thought...I thought you were Colt." An uncomfortable feeling spread through my chest as I allowed my body to sag against the driver's seat. Was I disappointed? What the hell was happening? I was supposed to be pissed at him, not craving him. It had to have been because I was riding off of fear, right? I didn't actually want him; I just wanted something familiar to help calm me...right?

A beat of silence filled the line. "Are you upset about that?" It wasn't an accusation nor was it taunting. In fact, Dannie seemed as genuinely surprised as I felt.

My defiance flared, and I sat upright in my seat, ready to fight her on this. The only thing was...I couldn't. I had no argument in my defense. "I--" A surge of panic swept over my body, and another cry filled the cab as Sam's back tires hit a deep puddle, sending the bed of the truck swinging wildly left and right. My cell phone clattered to the floor, and my hands clamped down on the wheel, instinctively jerking the steering wheel to correct the skidding. A blinding streak of lightning flared only yards away, causing a startled scream to pass my lips and my hands to fly to cover my aching eyes.