Page 29 of Burn Point

“You’re right. Just…”

She waited patiently. It was one of the things I liked best about her. She just listened and was patient and calm about so many things. Losing her house and all her belongings hadn’t destroyed her or sent her into a tailspin. She was the most resilient woman I’d ever met.

“Just be careful about it.” I took a swig of beer to buy myself a moment. “Don’t put yourself in harm’s way, okay? You survived a tornado, for Christ’s sake. Don’t get crazy and get offed by some serial killer because your wanderlust over-powered you.” I tried to make it sound like a joke, even though my gut churned at the thought of her leaving.

She watched me for a minute, her steady gaze cutting through my bullshit like a knife. Then she hit me with a grin.

“I promise, I’ll be careful.”

How could I refuse her anything when she sat there looking at me with all her hopes and dreams written across her face? I wanted her to be happy.

This woman was dangerous for me.

“She just needs a battery and she’ll run like a top.” The scruffy old guy pulled the hood open, clipping a metal rod in place to hold it up.

I looked over the engine of the commercial van I’d noticed while running a call. It was clean, the hoses looked to be in good shape, no dry rot. I backed my head out from under the hood and perused the rest of the vehicle. It wasn’t too old, no body damage. Needed new tires, but that was a given.

“What did you use this for?” I asked.

“My wife used to have a mobile dog grooming business. When my son didn’t want to take it over, the wife and I decided to sell the business and retire. Guy who bought it already had a set-up nicer than this one. He just wanted some of the equipment and the client list.”

The van was the perfect size. Not too big for Jordan to handle on the road, but bigger than the conversion van we’d looked at a couple of days before.

“I saw this in your yard when I was running a call, but I’m just helping a friend shop. You mind if I bring a battery and see how it runs?”

“No problem. We aren’t in a hurry. Haven’t advertised it anywhere or anything.”

If this thing ran, it would be perfect for her. “Okay, I’ll stop by later with my friend.”

I fired off a text to Jordan before hitting the road.

Nate: Hey, You busy?

Jordan: Just reading through a project. What’s up?

Nate: Can you take a break? Got something you need to see

Jordan: Sure

Nate: Be there in 10

Jordan was standing on the porch waiting on me when I pulled up, bouncing on her toes with excitement. Dashing down the steps, she had the truck door open before I got the thing put in park.

“What is it? Did you find one?” she cried as she flung herself into the seat.

Her enthusiasm was contagious. I flashed her a playful grin. “You’ll see.”

I tortured her by making her close her eyes while I went to the barn and grabbed a spare battery I used for fishing and tossed it into the bed of the truck.

She bounced in her seat the entire ride. Her exuberance was fucking delightful.

When we got close to the address, I looked over at her and said, “Okay, close your eyes one more time.”

“Ugh,” she huffed, but closed her eyes.

“Now, keep them closed for a minute,” I warned and got out to get the battery. I went around to her side of the truck and opened the door.

“Okay, Skippy. Open your eyes.”

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