Endless Night Part 37

"Do you think so?"

"I know so. He hated the whole idea of leaving." Jody groaned at the thought of Andy arriving at the house, only to find it deserted. What would he do? "I'm beginning to wish we'd stayed home," she said.

"You'd be going crazy at home," Dad said. "This way, we're doing something."

"I know, but ... Is anyone still watching the house?"

Dad shook his head. "I doubt it. Ryan was awfully eager to free up the manpower."

"But Andy won't know where we are, or anything."

"He'll be all right," Sharon said. "If he's the sort of kid who can make it back to your place in the middle of the night, I bet he'll find a way to get inside. Then he'll just settle down and enjoy himself."

"I don't know. I sure hope so."

Chapter Twenty-six.

Jody woke up. She'd heard something.

Though her eyes were open, the room was very dark.

For a moment, she thought she was sleeping over at Evelyn's house. But she wasn't in her sleeping bag on the floor of Evelyn's room; she was in a real bed.

Then she remembered what had happened at Evelyn's.

She remembered everything, and finally knew where she was.

Indio. This is that motel-the Traveler's Roost across from the Texaco.

But what had woken her up?

She lay on her back, gazing at the dark ceiling, and listened. She heard the loud hum of the air conditioning unit. Nothing else, though. Dad usually snored, which could drive her crazy when they stayed at motels, but tonight he was quiet.

Thank goodness for that, anyway, she thought.

She was sure there'd been a noise, though. Something loud enough to ruin her sleep.

Maybe a door had slammed or someone had yelled or ...

Probably nothing important.

Last night, Evelyn heard breaking gla.s.s. And I didn't think it was anything important.

The sheet covering Jody suddenly seemed heavy and hot. She flung it aside. Better. She would feel even better without her nights.h.i.+rt, but she couldn't take it off with Dad sharing the room. At least her arms and legs felt cool, now.

Whatever I heard, she told herself, it probably wasn't breaking gla.s.s.

We're safe here. n.o.body followed us all the way to Indio. n.o.body knows where we are.

She folded her hands behind her head. The short hair back there was damp with sweat. She shut her eyes.

And jerked quick and hard as someone pounded the door.

Three sharp raps.

Maybe it's not our door!

It is our door.

"Dad!" she gasped. "Dad! Somebody's at the door!"

He didn't answer.

She swung her feet to the floor. Ignoring the pains, she stumbled through the darkness toward the other bed.

Maybe it's Sharon, she thought.

What if it's not?

She bent over the bed and reached for her father. Her hands found the rumpled blanket and sheet on an expanse of flat mattress.

He's gone?

Staggering sideways, she searched for the lamp fixtures on the wall between the two beds. Her fingers b.u.mped a cool, metallic shade. Moments later, she found the switch. She jabbed it inward. Sudden light rammed the darkness away. She groaned and squinted.

Dad's bed was empty, just as she'd thought.

Is he in the bathroom?

"Jody?" The voice came from outside. It was hardly more than a whisper.

She sighed. What a relief! "Jeez, Dad." Hobbling toward the door, she realized that he must've gone outside and forgotten to take his key.

Dumb.

He almost never goofed up.

Jody found herself smiling.

He'll never hear the end of this.

"Neat play, Dad," she said, and swung the door wide open.

And knew she had made a mistake. A big mistake like walking outside with the platter of burgers, completely forgetting Dad's warning to stay in the house.

She should've made sure it was him before opening the door.

A mistake like this can get me killed, she thought.

Not this time, though, thank G.o.d.

It wasn't her father on the other side of the door, but it wasn't a killer, either.

"Andy!"

She gasped and leaned out and grabbed him by both his arms and pulled him inside fast. Then she leaned out again. She checked both ways. The motel's long balcony looked deserted.

"n.o.body saw me," he said. "I was extra careful."

She shut the door and locked it. She faced him. He was grinning.

"You creep!" she blurted.

"Me?"

Then she grabbed him and hugged him.

Hugged him hard, mas.h.i.+ng him against her body with all its sc.r.a.pes and cuts and bruises. It hurt her, hugging him this hard. She knew it must also be hurting him; he'd been banged up awfully bad too, last night.

Good, she thought. I hope it hurts a lot.

But he didn't protest. He kept his face pushed gently against the side of her neck, and moved his hands slowly up and down her back. He didn't try to get funny, though. He never let his hands stray lower than her waist.

"You little creep," Jody whispered.

"Aren't you glad to see me?"

"I oughta ..." She almost said, "kill you," but stopped herself in time. "Man, you're gonna be in big trouble."

"So what?"

She eased herself away from Andy and held him at arm's length. His face looked flushed and dirty. The red s.h.i.+rt that she'd given to him was unb.u.t.toned and open. His chest and belly were s.h.i.+ny with sweat. Jody could see where he had lost a couple of his bandages. The exposed wounds looked raw, but not b.l.o.o.d.y.

The blue denim shorts hung low on Andy's hips, lower than his tan line, and Jody blushed as she remembered that he wasn't wearing undershorts.

His right knee was still wrapped with an Ace bandage, and he still wore the white socks and Keds that she had given to him. The brand new laces on the Keds were now almost as dirty as the shoes themselves.

"You're a mess," Jody said.

"You should've thought of that before you hugged me."

She glanced down at herself. Her nights.h.i.+rt had been spotless white. Now, its front was grimy. "Doesn't matter," she said. "We've gotta figure out what to do with you before Dad gets back. I don't know where he ..."

"He went to room 238."

Sharon's room. "When?"

"A few minutes before I started knocking. Boy, you sure are hard to wake up."

"He went to Sharon's room?"

Andy shrugged. "I don't know. A big gal, and I mean big. Stacked, you know?"

"Cut it out."

"Her hair's even shorter than yours. Short like a guy's hair. But man, what a babe!"

"It was Sharon. She's in 238. She's another cop. She drove over with us. She's really nice. Dad went to her room?"

"Yeah. That's what I said."

"And she let him in?"

"Sure did."

"Did she look like she was expecting him?"

"How would I know?"

"What was she wearing?"

"Some kind of robe. It was blue and s.h.i.+ny. Pretty short, too. "

"My G.o.d."

Andy raised one side of his upper lip. "Is this good or bad?"

"It's good," she said. "It's great. I think."

"You think he went over there to boink her?"

"Jeez, Andy!" She gave his shoulder a rough jab, and he laughed.

"He's probably boinking her right now."

Jody tried not to laugh, but couldn't help it. "You've got such a dirty mind. Now, quit it or I'll throw you out of here. I'd forgotten what a pain in the b.u.t.t you can be."

"Did you miss me?"

"We thought you might've gotten kidnaped or something. Or even murdered. How could you do a thing like that?"

"I hate that guy. Is there something around here to drink?"