Free Upstate Uproar by Joan Rylen

over her shoulder to the other
three girls standing outside the SUV. Kate turned to the side,
showing off her baby bump. Austin wagged his tail.
    “I sure don’t, ma’am,” he said and reached
for his radio, “but let me call someone for you.” He told dispatch
he needed a locksmith pronto. He turned back to the girls. “We
don’t want you stranded out here. Strange things have been known to
happen on this stretch of road.”
    Kate, who had been watching Austin sniff a
pile of leaves, snapped her head toward Dawson. “What sort of
strange things?”
    He shook his head and sighed. “Oh, I
shouldn’t have said anything. It’s just a legend, but I’d feel
better if you were out of here before dark.”
    Vivian took a step closer to the SUV, wishing
she could somehow transport herself through the door. “Is there a
giant man-eating bear in these woods?”
    “It’s Bigfoot, isn’t it?” Lucy asked.
“There’s a show on Discovery Channel, I’ve been watching it. I knew
he existed!”
    Dawson looked solemn. “No Bigfoot, but what
I’ve heard is just as scary. Years ago a young woman was sexually
assaulted, beaten, then dragged behind a car ’til she died. People
swear her ghost runs up and down this stretch of road at night,
screaming to get away from her attacker. No one in their right mind
walks or bikes through here at night.”
    Vivian took in a sharp breath. “Oh my god!
Did they catch the guy?”
    “Yes, and he hinted, but never confessed, to
murdering several others. Though they investigated some missing
persons cases, the detectives were never able to prove
anything.”
    Vivian shivered. “We won’t be out here at
night, you can count on that.”
    A white paneled van with JD Locksmith painted
in navy block letters stopped behind the girls’ SUV. A tall guy
with a beer gut, brown hair and a scraggly goatee got out and
walked over. “Did you call for a locksmith?” he asked.
    He and Dawson shook hands. “Hi, Jeremy, this
is the vehicle we need you to pop the locks on.”
    Jeremy peered into the driver’s window, then
opened the back doors on his van and dug around. He came back with
a deflated bag with a tube coming off one end and a black ball on
the other end to pump it up. In his other hand, he held a long,
thin rod with a hook on one end. The girls stood back as he pried
the window away from the frame enough to slide the flattened bag
through. He then began pumping the black ball, and the bag
separated the window and frame wide enough for him to slide the
thin rod through. He hooked one edge of the driver’s lock and
gently pulled it back toward him. The rod slipped a few times, but
he had the door unlocked in less than a minute.
    “Wow, that’s impressive,” Vivian said. “I’ve
never seen a thing like that. Good work.”
    Jeremy tipped an imaginary hat to her and
opened the car door. “Hope you don’t need my services again, but
here’s a card in case you do.” He reached in his front pocket and
handed a card to Lucy, who stood closest to him. “I perform other
services as well.”
    Lucy turned red and took the card but didn’t
have a comeback other than, “What do we owe you?”
    “Let’s see, for 45 seconds work, plus gas,
let’s say fifty bucks.”
    “You take credit cards?” Lucy asked.
    “Nah. I’ve been meaning to get that Square
card swiper, but haven’t. How about I give you my ‘damsel in
distress’ discount. Shall we say twenty bucks?”
    Lucy pulled a twenty out of her backpack and
handed it to him. “You’re sweet. Thanks.”
    Jeremy laughed and walked back to his van.
“Enjoy your stay,” he called, then got in his van and drove
away.
    The girls said goodbye to Deputy Dawson, and
Kate got behind the wheel. She drove to the nearest gas station for
a pit stop. Once back in the car, she said, “We’d better go by the
shelter and drop Austin off.” She put it into drive and pulled in
front of the shelter a few minutes later.
    The faint glow of a