Twice Before Bedtime

Chapter 10

 Jenkins wasn't exaggerating when he called the situation a matter of life and death. They all came close to death in this one, a very close call. Cassandra hadn't had a chance to even think about looking at her phone for three days and she spent almost the entirety of the fourth day sleeping. After a long hot shower, she checked her phone.

There were several messages and texts from Jacob. He sounded very worried. Then she remembered she told him she had a family emergency. That would explain the worry. She'd call him and tell him all was well now.

When she called she was sent straight to voicemail and she left a message. An hour went by and she tried texting him. There was no response. She went right to voicemail again when she tried to call him.

This went on for another day, calls straight to voicemail, texts never returned.

She was back in the Library, looking at her phone when Ezekiel came by.

"What are you doing?" he asked suddenly.

She jumped, then sheepishly put down the phone. "It's just Jacob. He left me a bunch of worried voice mails because I told him I had a family emergency. But now he's not responding to texts and every time I call it goes straight to voicemail."

"Uh-huh, does it only ring once?"

"Yeah, I thought his phone was off the first time."

"Sounds like he blocked your number."

"But why would he do that? Things were going really well. At least until the world almost ended."

"I'm just saying. Maybe things weren't going so well after all. You have a terrible track record, you know."

Cassandra flashed an angry glare his way and he raised his hands. "I'm sorry!"

She put her head in her hands. "I need to go there and talk to him. I made a decision about what I want to do about the future. I need to talk to him face to face. I just can't believe he blocked me. Maybe he just is upset because it took so long to call."

"Alright, where is this? Middle of Nowhere, Oklahoma?"

"Ezekiel . . . ."

"Yeah, yeah, hang on, I got it."

"Thanks!"

Ezekiel's dialing wasn't as good as Jenkins and she found herself coming out of a tool shed in a house right outside of downtown.

It was a longish walk but it gave her time to compose what she was going to say to Jacob in her head. She did smile as she pushed open the familiar doors and entered in the store. There was a woman she didn't recognize behind the counter, looking through a manual. She must be the replacement for Mabel. Well that was good that he was able to get someone so soon.

Jacob came out of the back room, talking to someone inside the office. "Thanks Sam, I'll just get that and you can be on your way. Cindy, I need you to . . . ." He trailed off as he looked at Cassandra. His eyes weren't soft and warm like they'd been since they met. No, these were cold and hard, heartbreak behind them.

She froze in place staring at him.

--

What the hell was she doing back here? He'd actually been able to come in this morning and not look for her waiting by the front door for him. He'd told himself over and over that he'd been an idiot and he was lucky they never went beyond a couple of kisses. Told himself that what he'd felt had been just loneliness and misguided attraction not love. If he'd told himself that often enough, maybe he'd believe it. And he thought he might just have, this morning.