Chapter 13 #2
He was so thankful to hear from his brother—and honored to be asked to be his best man.
That never would’ve happened only a few months ago, but they’d traveled light-years from when Blaine first insisted Deacon come to the island after he was arrested in a bar fight defending the honor of a female friend.
He’d always thought of Deacon as a fuckup, but he’d become a friend and valued colleague.
While Blaine wasn’t looking, his little brother had grown into a fine man and an outstanding police officer.
He’d been a great addition to Blaine’s team.
Even though Deacon was Blaine’s most recent hire, the younger guys looked up to Deacon, who’d done ten years with the Boston Police Department before a knee injury had forced his early retirement.
Boston’s loss was now Gansett’s gain. Deacon had a level of experience that even Blaine would be hard-pressed to match, which was why Blaine had put him in charge of training as well as being the harbor master.
Those things didn’t usually tax Deacon’s injured knee.
It’d been a long few hours, filled with worry since Julia first informed Blaine that Deacon was overdue.
Getting the call that he’d been found by Joe and Seamus had been one of the best calls of Blaine’s life.
He slowed the vehicle to a crawl as visibility became more impaired by the second.
The storm was nearly upon them, and the rain was coming down harder than he’d ever seen on the island.
After having grown up there, he’d seen his share of storms.
As he crept along, he kept a careful eye out for fallen trees and power lines.
It’d taken them more than two hours in the pouring rain to deal with the massive tree that’d been blocking the road on the north end.
Even in a hurricane, they had to keep the roads open so emergency vehicles could respond if needed.
Only because he was driving so slowly did he spot something by the side of the road.
What the hell was that?
He turned on his emergency lights and pulled off the road, keeping his headlights trained on the object.
After tugging the hood to his foul-weather coat over his head, he got out of the truck and fought the elements as he made his way toward the thing he’d spotted.
As he got closer, he realized it was moving.
“Hello?” he called, speaking loudly to be heard over the roar of wind and rain.
The person startled and looked up at Blaine.
A woman sitting hunched over. And was that a child tucked up against her body?
“What’re you doing out here in the storm?”
“I… We were staying in a cottage, but the wind… The whole place was shaking and then the roof blew off. I was frightened, so I decided to leave, hoping I’d find someone to give us a ride into town.” Her teeth were chattering so hard, she could barely speak.
“Let’s get you into my SUV and warm you up.”
“I… I don’t think so.”
“You can’t stay out here in a hurricane.” He was shouting to be heard in the storm and noted that she recoiled from him.
“It’s a hurricane?”
He nodded. How could anyone not know that? “I’m Blaine Taylor, the chief of police on the island. I can take you somewhere safe. Please let me help you. If you stay out here, you and your child are apt to be killed.”
“C-could I see your b-badge?”
Blaine fished it out of his pocket and used his flashlight to light it up for her.
“O-okay.”
As she kept a tight hold on the sleeping child, he helped her up and put an arm around her when her legs wobbled under her.
Once she was steady on her feet, she stepped away from him, but followed him to the vehicle.
He held the passenger door for her, suspecting she wouldn’t release the child for any reason, even to secure him or her in the back seat.
After he got in, Blaine shut off the passenger air bag and helped her buckle the two of them in. Under normal circumstances, he’d insist she properly secure the child, but he wasn’t about to argue with an obviously traumatized mother during a hurricane.
Since he didn’t want to have to come out this way again until the storm had passed, he continued the long way around the island on the way back to town while trying to think about where he could take his passengers.
He kept coming back to one place—home with him.
He and Tiffany could give them a safe place to stay until the storm passed. Then they could figure out next steps.
“Do either of you need medical attention?” he asked.
“I… I don’t think so.”
“With the storm raging, there aren’t a lot of options for shelter. I could bring you to my home. My wife and I can provide a safe place for you and your child to stay during the storm.”
“I-I wouldn’t want to b-be a b-burden.”
“You wouldn’t be. We’d be happy to have you.”
“I-if… If you’re sure.”
“I am.” He had so many other questions to ask her, but now was not the time.
They needed to get her and her child somewhere warm and safe before the worst of the storm hit.
Blaine put a call in to Officer Wyatt Abrams, who’d volunteered to stay at the public safety building during the storm so the others could be home with their families to get some rest after days of frantic storm prep.
The entire department would remain on call via handheld radios in case they lost cell service.
“What’s up, Chief?” Wyatt asked.
“I’ve just done a final patrol and am heading home. Call me if anything comes up.”
“Will do. Be safe.”
“You do the same. Don’t leave there without calling me first, you hear?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Thanks for taking one for the team. This’ll be remembered at evaluation time.”
“Why do you think I volunteered?”
He laughed as he pressed the button to end the call. Cheeky bastard. Blaine hadn’t mentioned the passengers he’d picked up. For now, he’d tend to them himself until he knew more about where they’d come from and what they needed. As he drove home, he called Tiffany on the Bluetooth.
“Hi,” she said, her voice having the usual effect of raising his spirits.
“Hi there. I wanted to let you know I’m on the way home with a couple of guests who got caught in the storm. I thought they could use our guest room.”
“Sure, no problem. I’ll make the bed.”
“Thanks, honey. Be there shortly.”
“See you soon.”
As he headed for home, he couldn’t wait to see Tiffany and to hunker down with her for the storm. He hoped the addition of houseguests wouldn’t complicate things, but he had no regrets about offering up their home to people in need.
“I’m surprised you hadn’t heard about the storm,” he said tentatively, hoping he didn’t come across as harsh in any way.
“We were staying in a house without television or internet, and I couldn’t get a good signal for my phone.
” Her teeth had stopped chattering once the heat in the SUV had kicked in.
“I had no idea a hurricane was coming until the roof blew off, and I was afraid it would fall down around us. I thought it would be better to leave, but that didn’t work out so well.
Thank you for stopping when you saw us.”
“I’m glad I spotted you and didn’t drive right past.”
She shuddered, as if thinking about what could’ve happened if he hadn’t seen them. “I feel so stupid.”
“You didn’t know. I can see how that would’ve happened.
” Although it’d be a cold day in hell before he was ever cut off from the outside world for any reason.
As chief of police, he was always reachable.
He’d heard other high-ranking police officers say they had a hard time unplugging even after retirement.
He’d be the same way. Maybe it was time to insist that rental houses on the island have landlines for when cell service was interrupted.
The thought of how many other island residents might be cut off from help during and after the storm made him anxious. He would send officers to every home on the island after the storm.
He could feel the wind increasing as he drove through the deserted downtown area on the way home, relieved to see the outside light on when he pulled into his driveway a few minutes later.
“What’s your name?” From what he could see in the faint light, she had dark hair that was plastered to her head from the rain.
“McKenzie, and this is Jax.”
“How old is he?”
“Nine months.”
“We have two daughters. One is six, and the other is about his age.”
“I’m sorry to be a bother. I’d go to a hotel, but I can’t afford it. I used the last of my savings to get to the island.”
Everything she said left him with more questions to be dealt with another time.
“Let’s get you inside and warmed up. I’ll come around for you.
” He got out of the SUV and battled ferocious wind as he rounded the front of the vehicle on his way to the passenger door, which was nearly ripped off when the wind tried to take it.
He held out a hand to McKenzie, who kept an arm tightly around her son as they made their way up the stairs to the back deck.
Tiffany opened the door for them and then stepped back to let them in.
Wind and rain followed them in before Blaine could wrestle the door closed.
“It’s getting wild out there,” Tiffany said.
“Wilder by the minute,” Blaine said. “Tiffany, this is McKenzie and her son, Jax. McKenzie, my wife, Tiffany.”
“Welcome to our home,” Tiffany said.
“Thank you for having us.”
Blaine stepped aside to let Tiffany assist McKenzie and the baby, while hoping he’d done the right thing by bringing strangers into their home.