Page 63 of Refuge for Flora

“Shit! I’m on my way! Where are you?”

“Headed back from DawsonSprings. I met with BudGriffin and talked to him about this. I’ve gotta call in reinforcements, but right now, I need you to make sure she’s safe and stays that way until I can get there.”

“You got it. I’ll be there in under twenty.”

“Thanks, Kirby. Give me a call if you need me.” He hung up and pressed Flora’s contact again.

“Hello?”

“Babe, Kirby’s coming that way. He’s going to find a place to hole up and watch the house, okay? You’re safe and you’ll stay that way.”

“Could he be, you know, in with?”

“Kirby? No. Absolutely not. He’s as trustworthy as they come. You just sit tight. Everything’s gonna be fine.”

“O-o-o-okay. Barrett, I… I… I…”

“I know, babe. I feel the same way. Just hang on. I’m coming. Bye, baby.”

“Okay.”

The last time he’d told her he was coming had been the night before, and it sure hadn’t been in the truck as he raced toward home, terror filling every nook and cranny of his being. Flora was in danger, and Bud was right. He had nothing left to lose. His first call when he got there would be to Conor. His mistake? Thinking he had plenty of time to take care of the situation.

It looked like time was running out.

* * *

“Girl, sit down. Yore makin’me nervous,” Mrs.Murphy barked as Flora paced back and forth, back and forth.

She’d spent the thirty minutes prior explaining the whole story to Mrs.Murphy, who nodded along and asked questions here and there. To Flora’s surprise, when she was finished, the old woman said, “Them boys need killin’. They come here, that’s what they’ll get.” There was no doubt in her mind that Mrs.Murphy meant every word she’d said.

The big question in Flora’s mind was simple: How had they found her? She hadn’t and wouldn’t tell Rissa, and besides, it seemed that they’d been there for a little while. Hell, she hadn’t even known where she’d wind up when she left Pikeville! It was only by sheer luck that she hadn’t run into them somewhere. Of course, their version of shopping was shoplifting, and a decent restaurant probably wouldn’t let them in. She’d been to the gas station, though, and to the grocery. Yeah, Paducah was bigger, but the western part of McCrackenCounty was pretty small and most folks knew each other. She’d been to the dollar-type store down the road a couple of times, but she wouldn’t go there again.

A glance out the window told her nothing. She knew Barrett had said Kirby would be out there somewhere, but where? It would be nice if she was sure he was there. There hadn’t been a chance for her to meet Barrett’s coworker or get to know him, but knowing that he thought enough of Barrett to honor the request of surveillance and protection for her was good enough in her mind. Kirby had to be a good guy. Was he married? Barrett had never said. She hoped she’d live long enough to eventually find out.

The afternoon was wearing on and still no sign of Barrett. After looking through the cabinets and pantry, she decided she just didn’t have the concentration skills needed to cook something. She didn’t know what they’d eat, and she didn’t care. All she cared about was Barrett being there and being safe. Everything else was irrelevant.

It was well after four when she heard the sound of tires in the driveway and saw his truck through the sheers at the windows. “Oh, thank god,” she whispered.

“’Zat Barrett?”

“Yes, ma’am. It is.”

“Good. Maybe he can calm you down,” Mrs.Murphy grumbled as Flora headed to the door.

The view she got was a little surprising?it wasn’t his work truck that he’d rolled up in. “What, you went home before you came here?”

“Glad to see you too,” he said and stooped to kiss her cheek.

“Yes. I’m glad to see you. But you went home first?”

“Babe, I went home to swap out trucks. I really don’t think having folks see a KDFWR truck in the driveway is something we should do.”

“Oh. I guess you’re right.”

“Besides,” he said as he pointed out the door at a thicket across the road, “Kirby’s right over there.” The minute he said it, she could see something moving, and then it stopped. “He’s parked back on SwitchbackRoad. Walked in. Thought that would be best. I was inclined to agree.”

There was no stopping it. Flora dissolved. But she didn’t fall as her knees buckled?Barrett caught her under her arms and stood her back on her feet. The tears were coming so fast that she couldn’t see, and she was so choked up that she couldn’t speak. Instead of telling her to hush, he just crushed her to him and held her as she sobbed.

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