She looked at his Georgia driver's license under the beam of his phone's flashlight, which was apparently still at 10% because she had rationed it. He realized, then looked at his face, then looked at the license again. Marcus Darnell Reed, she read aloud. 4407 Piney Grove Road, Smyrna. That's me.
Smyrna is 20 mi from here. 22. You were driving home from Meridian. Just finished the late shift. She looked at him once more, that calculation running behind her eyes.
"You got a work badge?" She asked. He pulled his Meridian medical supply badge from the clip on his jacket and held it out. She took it, studied it, turned it over. "Your photo looks terrible," she said.
"I know. You look like you just got released from somewhere. I had just come off a double shift. I looked exactly how I felt. The tiniest ghost of something not quite a smile, not quite, but close crossed her face.
She handed both the ID and the badge back to him. I don't live far from Smyrna, she said carefully. Where you headed? She hesitated. That's still being determined.
He didn't push. He just said. Nearest hotel is the Comfort Inn off Route 278. I can get you there, she considered it. One more long moment.
Okay, she said quietly. Okay, he said. He grabbed her suitcase before she could protest. Not aggressively, just efficiently. the way you grab something because it's the practical thing to do and loaded it into the truck bed. He opened the passenger door.
He went around to the driver's side. She was already buckled in by the time he sat down. You can use my phone, he said, handing it to her. Passcode is 2714. Lily's birthday.
She took it. Paused. Who's Lily? My daughter, Clare typed in the code. She tried to load her email, then her contacts.
She stared at the screen for a moment. What's wrong? He asked. I don't I don't have anywhere I need to call, she said. And she said it like it surprised her.
Like the realization was arriving for the first time. There's nobody waiting on me. Marcus didn't say anything to that. He just pulled back onto the highway. He didn't make it to the Comfort Inn not because he drove her somewhere else.