Small Town USA For The Love of The Earth

The purity men love is like the mists which envelop the earth, and not like the azure ether beyond. Henry David Thoreau

The alarm clock startled Julie, interrupting a nightmare. She was wet with perspiration and glad to be awake. It was still dark outside. She jumped out of bed, plugged in the hotel's coffeemaker, and went into the shower. As she stepped out wrapped in a towel, she took a drink of the fresh coffee, switched on the hair dryer and dried her hair. When her cell phone rang, she dropped the drier and rushed to pick up.

"Ms. Del Rio, this is Deputy Norton. We checked the wreckage. We didn't find anyone down there. Whoever caused this accident wants you to think your partner is dead. Your team should take over the investigation from here. It may be weeks before we can get the car raised, especially with all of our resources devoted to the train wreck."

"Thank you officer. We'll take care of things from here on." Julie breathed somewhat easier knowing Sean might be alive. She glanced at her watch and realized that she had to hurry if she was going to keep her appointment with Rakky. She didn't wait for her hair to be completely dry. The humidity had turned her normally straight style into a mound of knotted curls. There was little time to fuss with it, so she gathered the curls on top of her head and held them in place with a large clip, letting some hang loose around her face. She got dressed in jeans and a sweatshirt and ran out the door.