Droplets of rain began to pepper her skin. With a deep sigh, she flung open the passenger door behind the driver’s seat and climbed in. At least she could put her feet up there while she waited out the storm. And she could do something to quiet her uneasiness and her rumbling stomach.

Juliette pulled her bag of snacks onto her lap and removed a bottle of water from her stash in the cooler. If she was going to be stuck here for a while, she’d at least eat well and stay hydrated. She leaned forward and slid her purse through the armrest opening and pulled out her Kindle. Nothing like a forced break from the dreariness that was Middle America to allow her to catch up on her reading. Her fingertips on one hand were turning orange from the Cheetos she was consuming at a rapid pace as she turned the virtual pages on the machine with the other.

Lightning flashed in the distance, and the rain splattering on the windshield became more intense. Juliette raised her eyes from the book, her concentration interrupted. The storm was rolling in quickly, and grayish-black clouds now darkened the entire sky in front of her. Great. Now she’d have to fend off the corn children in the dead of night. Uneasiness threatened to turn into panic as it settled in, big-time. She jumped out of the backseat and climbed behind the wheel. She didn’t care if it seemed stupid, she turned the key once more, praying for a miracle. Nothing. She pummeled the steering wheel with her Cheeto-ed fingers as she assessed her situation. She was in a broken-down car on the side of the road, in Kansas, Nebraska, or Oklahoma with monster children about to emerge from the surrounding fields. Oh, and yes, a storm was rolling in. Could things get any worse?

A steady clip-clopping sound broke into her tormented thoughts. She glanced into the rearview mirror and spied a horse and rider coming up the side of the road behind her car. You’ve got to be kidding. Help had finally arrived, but it was in the form of a cowboy, wearing a black hat and a duster coat? And he was on a horse. Oh, yeah, she was a long way from civilized Ohio. The sun burst forth behind him in a last hurrah as the dark clouds raced toward them. Terrific. Evidently, things could get worse. Much worse.