The beams from her headlights penetrated the gloom only a few feet ahead of her, and wavered with every rut she drove over. Deep shadows encroached from the side of the road, shrouding her vehicle in darkness as she struggled to keep sight of the clay road. Savannah glanced through her windshield at black clouds churning overhead. Occasional flashes of lightning split the sky, followed by deep rumbles that made her car windows rattle. The dreary, grey surroundings served as an external indicator of her sour mood. Just once, why couldn’t things go her way? A nice sunny day, where she could let the top down on her convertible and allow the wind to blow through her hair as she drove—was that too much to ask for? Her trip had been fraught with nothing but problems since she’d left Atlanta. Her mother’s admonishments repeated in her head on a loop: Young ladies do not travel alone. That was her mother being nice. Savannah snorted, as if her age would make a difference in her situation.
