They married within six months of his graduation from Missouri State and had a few happy years together before he died. And that’s when she’d put her life on hold. She hadn’t meant to, but over the years, being a widow had become her identity. A recent windfall in her life had changed all that, for which she would be forever grateful.

She glanced at the time as she put the car in gear and tried to remember what she had at home in the way of leftovers. There was leftover baked ham, but beyond that, she couldn’t remember and decided to go to Granny’s to eat instead.

Today was Monday, which meant the Curl Up and Dye was closed, and she was thinking about giving Ruby a call to see if she wanted to join her for lunch. But then she glanced at the time as she braked at a stop sign and decided it was too late for that spur-of-the-moment call.

She turned right onto Main, accelerating slowly, and was just getting ready to turn left into the parking lot at Granny’s when a car came out from a side street without stopping, ramming into her at full speed.

The impact threw her against the door, then yanked her back as the car spun around in the opposite direction. Her seat belt kept her from being thrown out as the driver’s side door flew open and then slammed itself shut from the momentum of the spin. Glass had already shattered as the airbags deployed. Steam and smoke began coming into her car from somewhere beneath the dash, along with tiny fingers of flames.

For a few seconds she was so stunned by what had just happened that she couldn’t think, but then smoke began to billow up inside the car, and when she saw flames coming out from beneath the hood, she panicked and reached for her seat belt to get out. To her horror, it wouldn’t unlatch.

“No, no, no, God help me,” she mumbled, and then began trying over and over to unlatch it, even pulling and tugging on it without success.

She didn’t know she was screaming until someone yanked open the driver’s side door.

Chapter 2

Sully was running at top speed and within ten yards of the car when he saw the flames and heard the woman’s screams. Without hesitation, he yanked the door open and felt for her arm. She jerked at his touch but stopped screaming.

“Lady! Can you move?” Sully asked.

Melissa couldn’t see him, but she could feel his hands on her shoulder.

“Help me! It’s on fire!” she cried.

The tone of his voice was more urgent now. “I know! I see it. Can you move?”

“Yes, yes, but my seat belt…the latch… I can’t get it open.”

She felt his weight against her as he leaned across the steering wheel. She felt him fumbling for the latch, and then suddenly she was free.

“Put your arm around my neck,” Sully said, and when she did, he slid one arm beneath her legs and the other around her body and pulled her out. The moment they were clear of the car, he tightened his hold and turned and ran—straight toward the parking lot at Granny’s, trying to get as far away from the wreck as he could before it blew.