Gabe squinted against the harsh afternoon light. Even with his wrap-around shades, the glare off the furnace-hot asphalt was too intense. The sun beat down on him, seemingly trying to bake him in his leathers. The air coming in through the mesh vents felt like an open oven.
He'd normally never ride through the Mojave in the middle of the day in July, but circumstances had conspired against him. A work call on his one damned weekday off this entire quarter had pushed the start of his ride back, and then road work had caused a bunch of traffic around Vegas. He'd have lane split his way through, but ten cars from the tail of the jam he'd spotted the deep blue of a Nevada State Trooper and filed back into line. The utter bastard cop stayed ahead of him for the entire jam, two hours of stop and go traffic that would've taken him twenty minutes across the border in California.
When the blue Ford finally took an exit right as traffic started speeding up again, Gabe said a silent prayer for the cop's AC to fail next time he was stuck in traffic trying to catch poor motorcyclists.
Now, away from the city and out in the Mojave proper at the hottest time of day, all he could think about was how comfortable that fucking cop was right now, sitting in his air-conditioned cage all day. He twisted the throttle out of frustration, the engine roaring across the empty land around him. He winced at the raw note of his engine and backed off again, slowing to well below the speed limit. The heat was affecting his bike as much as it was him.
When the pinging started, he knew he was in trouble. He had water, of course, but he didn't relish waiting for the engine to cool in direct sunlight, and there wasn't a lot of damned shade to be found in the desert. He slowed even more, barely crawling along at thirty, hoping beyond hope that the next rise would reveal any shade at all.
Much to his surprise, it actually did. A small gas station, abandoned by the looks of the boarded-up windows and the one pump on its side in the dirt, but with a small awning offering enough shade for a couple of bikes and a tired rider, if the interior wasn't accessible.
Coasting down hill, he spotted a figure lounging under the little awning on a discolored plastic lawn chair, legs up on an overturned oil barrel. The heat shimmer made it impossible to tell more than that they were human. A rusty looking sedan sat a couple dozen feet away, the hood up, a plume of white smoke reaching skyward.
When he was close enough to see it was a woman in jeans and a t-shirt, he gave what he hoped was a friendly couple of honks to let her know he was coming. Sneaking up on someone wasn't his style, and he was aware of the reputation leather-clad bikers could have.
If she was worried or scared as he rolled into the unpaved gas station, she didn't show it. Auburn hair clung to her brow, and there was a smear of grease under her left eye. Her hands were filthy, and her jeans had a big, unfashionable rip in one leg.
"Heya. Mind if I share your shade?" Gabe called out from a dozen yards away.
"Not my shade, but you're welcome to it. Not like I can go anywhere in a hurry."
He walked his bike under the awning and settled it on the kickstand, hanging his open-face helmet on the handlebars. The strange woman watched him nonchalantly as he took his jacket off and draped it over the saddle. He set his gloves on top.
She ignored his outstretched hand as he introduced himself.
"Gabe."
"Hazel."
"Yours overheat too?" Gabe nodded at the Camry, still smoking in the burning sun. He leaned against the sheet metal wall next to his bike, about as far from Hazel as he could while staying in the shade, just to give her some space.
"Worse." She tossed a chunk of metal at his feet.
Gabe wasn't an expert, but the chunk of metal had clearly been part of an engine.
"Have you called anyone?" Gabe could hear his mother's voice admonishing his sisters to never, ever admit to a strange man you were alone. He cursed himself for the bluntness of the question, but he'd just been trying to make conversation.
"Nah. My phone broke weeks ago."
He blinked. He'd expected an evasive answer, or an ETA for a tow truck, or something, but definitely not this casual denial.
Gabe listened to his block tick as it cooled, watching the heat shimmer on the road. He couldn't just abandon her here. He wouldn't if she was another guy, but he definitely couldn't just abandon a lone woman in the desert. He also didn't have a passenger seat on his bike, or a spare helmet, let alone leathers for her to wear.
"I can call someone for you, if you want? AAA or a tow truck? Or just a friend to pick you up?"
She shook her head. "I'll be fine."
Deciding not to push for now, Gabe sank down and sat on the ground. The heat was intense, even here in the shade. He could feel it radiating off the metal awning, a reminder of what was waiting for him back on the road. If his sense of direction held true, this place would be in the shade for the rest of the day though.
"Were you going anywhere in particular?" Gabe cursed his lack of filter. Everything he asked seemed aimed at figuring out if she was alone, and if anyone knew where she was. Ultimate creep-questions. He'd just meant to make small talk.
"Just driving, really."
"I'm heading to Barstow to see some friends."
She laughed, sounding bright and genuine. "Barstow? That hole in the ground?"
He grinned. "Mm-hmm. College buddy moved back home. I'm heading over to stay the weekend and hang out with his family."
"On a Harley, through the Mojave, in the middle of July?"
"Hey, I was supposed to be there already. I got stuck in traffic around Vegas."
"I thought people rode those, so they didn't get stuck in traffic."
"Cops in Nevada hate lane splitters. It's illegal, unfortunately."
"Hmm."
"So you're hitchhiking home, then?"
"What?"
"You don't want me to call anyone for you, and your car's clearly fucked. I'd offer you a lift, but I don't have anywhere on my bike--"
"Oh, I'm gonna fix my car. Just waiting for it to cool down."
Gabe glanced down at the chunk of metal still sitting on the ground by his feet. "You must be a hell of a mechanic."
"Is that so hard to believe?" Her tone was suddenly defensive.
"Sorry, didn't mean to imply... It's just, I'm pretty sure if bits of the block start falling off, that's gonna be a rough fix out here."
Hazel stayed quiet, staring off at the horizon. Feeling incredibly awkward, Gabe scrolled through his phone only to realize he had zero reception out here. Not even a single bar. Not even an "emergency calls only", just nothing.
Frustrated, he stuffed it back into his pocket and kicked at a rock. "Is there anything in the building?"
Hazel just shrugged.
"I'm gonna go check it out."