Sierra Hearts (Part One) by Ash Elko Read Free Book Online

her
nose. Danny stood up and looked down the road into the distance.
She instinctively stood up behind him. She could barely make out
headlights coming down the road.
    “There,” he said. “A car’s coming this way.” He
started to wave his arms to signal the car.
    Jenn, unsure of what to do, did the same. After a
few seconds Jenn recognized the vehicle. It was her dad. She felt a
mixture of intense relief and of embarrassment. Mick MacKenzie
probably got nervous that his daughter had taken so long to get
home, so he got in the car and headed towards Danny’s house. He
would probably want to make sure that everything was alright, and
then probably make a groan inducing joke at Jenn’s expense.
    Mick pulled up to them and rolled down the window.
He looked first at Danny, then Jenn, before finally settling on
Danny.
    “What happened?” he said, gravely.
    “Some tourist shithead ran us off the road,” he
said. “Flipped the Subaru. Jenn is alright.”
    Mick nodded. “You OK?” he said to Jenn.
    Jenn nodded, unable to speak.
    “Are you OK, Danny?” Mick asked.
    “Got knocked out. Should probably get it checked
out,” he said, matter-of-factly.
    “What kind of car was it that ran you off the road?”
Mick asked.
    Jenn perked up. “Dark colored luxury sedan,” she
said. “It was speeding,” she added.
    “Black Lexus,” Danny said. “Last three numbers of
the plate were 719.”
    Of course Danny knew what kind of car it was and got
some of the license plate.
    Somewhere deep inside of Mick Mackenzie a mission
started. His eyes narrowed. He grunted. He was going to make it a
point of letting everyone know to be on the lookout for the car
that almost killed his daughter.
    “OK, climb in,” he said. Jenn recognized the look.
Mick was overall a soft and gentle family man, a good neighbor, and
a friendly bartender. But when it came to his family he was a
deeply protective force to be reckoned with. And this was a small
town. The driver of the black Lexus would be found.
    Luckily, it was a short drive, only a few miles
away, to the medical clinic. Danny insisted they did not need to
stay once he was checked in. Her father and Danny shared a brief
look. Her father nodded. Danny nodded. Some kind of unspoken
communication had passed between them, and she was unable to
decipher it.
    Out in the parking lot, her dad asked, “Are you sure
you’re OK sweetheart?”
    She said, exasperated, “Yes, Dad.”
    I’m tired of being treated like a little
girl , she thought.
    “ Come on,” he said. “Let’s go
home.”
    The ride home was similarly quiet. As they were
pulling in to the driveway, she asked, “Dad, how come you had me
deliver groceries to the Williams house?”
    “Huh? What do you mean sweetie?” he said.
    “I don’t think anyone there is sick. Plus, Danny had
a car so he could have just as easily driven to the store to pick
up what he needed,” Jenn said. “Usually you don’t deliver groceries
to anyone who can’t otherwise make it to the store.”
    The statement hung there for a moment. Neither of
them spoke. Finally her dad was the one who spoke.
    “I thought it would be good for you to see Danny,”
he said.
    She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Was her
dad seriously playing matchmaker? She wanted to pull her hair
out.
    “Dad!” Jenn bellowed. “Why would you do that?”
    “Oh come on Jenn. I thought it would get you out of
your funk.” She thought about it some more. This was probably why
her mom had been so insistent on her helping out with groceries
this morning. She groaned out load. The two of them! Her parents,
working together to make up an excuse for her to see Danny. She
couldn’t believe it. No, that wasn’t true. She could believe
it, which is why she was groaning.
    At the house, her dad ran interference and shielded
her from her mother and the inevitable questions. She practically
ran up to her room for sanctuary. At the top of the steps, she
stopped. She realized she