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“I’ll send you my location, my c-car broke down on the side of the road.” My voice starts to shake. I hear commotion on the other end, like David is moving hurriedly.
“You’re breaking up a little bit, can you say that again?” David says, his voice close to frantic.
“My car broke down,” I say again, praying he can hear me, “I called my road assistance company for help and this guy is here but he’s making me really uncomfortable,” I finish in a whisper, as if he could hear me from outside through all the rain and wind.
“Okay, send me your location. Stay on the phone with me, okay?” he asks, his voice calming but fierce, that edge still there.
“Okay,” I whisper and put him on speaker. My hands shake while I work on sending him my location. “My service isn’t the greatest.”
“It’s okay, I’m going to find you, okay?” he assures me.
“Okay,” I say. “It’s not sending, oh my God,” I start to panic.
“Ana, it’s okay. It is going to send. Can you tell me where you think you are? I’ll start driving in your direction,” he says, and I hear the open and close of a car door on his end.
“I got off exit 12 maybe three miles ago and I’m on Route 143 now. I think I’m close to the strip mall that has the really good steakhouse next to it? I can’t remember the name of it. But now I can’t see a damn thing, and I wasn’t paying close attention so I’m not exactly sure,” I say, trying to will strength into my voice. I watch the text of my location straining to send and when it finally says ‘delivered’ I say, “It sent!”
A pause before, “Okay, I got it. You’re not too far. I’m on my way. I’ll be there as soon as I can,” he promises me.
“Okay,” I say again. The mechanic comes around now to my window and knocks on it with dirty knuckles. I roll it down just a few inches this time, realizing after the fact that opening my window all the way earlier was potentially and most definitely a stupid idea.
“I’m going to get some tools from my van, beautiful, I’ll be right back. You just stay right here for me okay?” His hands grip the window and he tries to lean in. I keep my face strong and straight, bored.
“Okay,” I say in a dead voice, hiding the hysteria building in my throat. “I’m going to keep this closed so I don’t get wet,” I add, motioning to the window.
“You don’t like getting wet?” he jokes, his words full of perversion and insinuation. I immediately feel nauseous. I start to roll it up and he jerks his hand away, laughing.
Something that almost resembles a growl comes out of the phone from David. He curses then says, “Don’t open the window again.” He sounds desperate. I can almost hear how fast he is driving.
“Please be careful, don’t go too fast,” I say, voice breaking. “Don’t get hurt.”
“I won’t. I promise,” he says, his voice gentle but still strong. “I’ll be there in just a few minutes. Stay on the phone with me.”
“Okay,” I say once again. I take a deep breath. God, I’m always taking these useless damn deep breaths. “I have pepper spray. And a self defense keychain,” I say suddenly, remembering.
“Hold them both. Just in case. You’re okay, but it’s good to be prepared,” he says.
I put my phone into its holder and then grab the small pepper spray bottle out of my center console and with shaking fingers I unhook my self defense keychain that looks like a cat head from my ring of keys still in the ignition.
“I have them,” I whisper.
“Good. I’m almost there,” David says and I try to focus on his voice. I try to focus on how I know he is coming to me right now. He will be here soon. He’s coming.
I look out the window again and I see the man peering around the hood, watching me. No regard for the rain that is soaking him, but just watching me with a malicious glint in his eye. “David, he’s staring at me. Please hurry,” I say, hearing my voice break, shutting my eyes to keep the tears in.
“I’m coming, sweetheart, I’m almost—” A tiny burst of static and then the call drops and I cry ‘no!’, trying to press on his icon again to call back. It doesn’t go through. I press and press, but nothing happens. I try not to panic. I watch the clock as time seems to stand still. It feels like ages when only five minutes pass. Fear like I’ve never experienced before comes over me like a heavy fog as I try to focus on my breathing. In, one…two… Tap, tap, tap.
I jump at the sound and look at my window. The man is now standing there, smiling and pressed up against the glass. He likes that he scares me. I can tell. He starts motioning for me to lower the window. I put my most serious and bored face on, my face that says ‘don’t mess with me’, and stare back at him. I shake my head no. He makes that motion again.
“No,” I yell loudly, enunciating each word. “Do what you have to do, and go.” He must not hear me over the rain because he keeps knocking. “Please get away from my car,” I finally yell.
Then he starts pulling on the door handle. I curse. “Get the hell away from my car,” I yell at the top of my lungs. He pulls and pulls on the door handle but it doesn’t give. Then he starts ramming the side of his arm into the window. I scream once and grab my phone and call 911. The call doesn’t go through. I press again and again, but nothing changes. I curse again.
Headlights flash from behind me and then a large vehicle pulls up beside me, right in the middle of the road. The man pauses his attack on my car and turns to watch a massive figure jump out of the new vehicle and run over towards my car. The sky is almost completely dark now, but I can still see David's face—soaked in rain with fury like I’ve never seen on him before. He towers over the guy, grabs him by the jacket and violently jerks him away from my car.
David then turns to look at me, rage still etched on his face, but fierce relief in his eyes as he mouths, “You’re okay.”
I can’t hear them but I feel those words. I read his lips as he says, “Call 911.”
