"I wonder how I can get my car back on the road," she mused, and felt relieved when his attention returned to the car.
After studying the car thoughtfully for a few minutes, he confidently assumed authority.
"Go up the hill and watch for cars so you can warn anyone before they get to the curve. I'll ride back to the house and get my car and a chain."
He turned to his horse and mounted in one smooth movement. Without another word, he turned the horse and kicked it into a trot in the opposite direction.
She climbed the hill with dragging steps. What a fool she had been to come here. It was nearly dark and she was a good fifty miles from home.
Five years hadn't changed the wild hills of Madison County, but she had forgotten how truly remote the area was. It would be dark by the time they got the car off the edge of the cliff. If it would still start, she'd head straight back home and forget this futile mission.
By the time she reached the top of the hill, the muscles in her legs were aching. A large rock beside the road provided a place to rest while she listened for vehicles. Her car was in full view. The sight made her stomach roll again. Had her family known the same terror in their last moments of life? The car rocked slightly with a gust of wind. Her stomach rolled and she looked away. She rubbed her legs and stared up at the sky. It was getting late and the air was taking on a chill.
A grinding noise jerked her attention back to the car. The front end was slowly sinking down as the ground gave way. She jumped up and gasped in horror as it slid forward. It poised for a moment and then took a dive off the cliff. Its course down the cliff was marked by the cracking of limbs. Seconds later it crashed into the trees below. She counted the seconds in tense silence, waiting for the sound of an explosion, but the only sound was a car approaching from below.
She darted down the hill, reaching the bottom as a perfectly restored blue '72 Monte Carlo came to a halt. The man stepped out and those piercing blue eyes questioned her silently from under furrowed bows.
Her knees were trembling as if they were going to give way at any moment, and her face felt devoid of blood. "It just started rocking and then went over the edge. I think a gust of wind got it started and then the edge of the cliff gave way."