The Empty Gas Station
The gas station loomed ahead, bathed in sterile white light. He parked the car, the quiet emptiness of the place making his chest tighten. No Adeline. No figure by the pumps. No shadow lurking in the mist.
He honked the horn once, irrationally hoping to summon her back, but the lot was silent.
Inside, the attendant barely looked up. Richard approached him, feeling a strange heaviness in his chest. “You see a woman here earlier?” he asked, trying to keep his voice steady.
The attendant glanced up briefly. “Yeah. She walked off that way,” he gestured toward the road. “She was crying, looked upset.”
Read also
Richard’s stomach churned. “She wouldn’t just walk off,” he muttered to himself, but the words fell flat. He didn’t even believe them.