From the sky, it look like a pipe had burst, as the water pour down, blurring and hiding the world from anyone. Not being able to see even to the end of the hood of the car at this point the young women in the car pull the car to a little rise on the side of the road, hitting the hazard lights, and turning it off. There was no use in trying to go forward anymore, at this point the world had just become one shimmering wall of rain.
Resting her head against the headrest, she to figure out her next move. This wasn't how the day was supposed to work. She wasn't suppose to be stuck in a monsoon in the middle of a desert, with a sleeping child.
Looking over at her young son, who had fallen asleep just as the rainstorm had started. He was one of the few goods things that had happen in her life. She wouldn't give him up for anything. Now, only if the rainstorm would stop.
Almost as if it was mocking her, the rain that seem to start coming down even harder. Glaring at the outside, she had to wonder what she did in life to be stuck in the middle of nowhere, waiting a storm out that didn't seem to want to stop anytime soon.
Glancing outside one more time, she spotted a light shining though the world of water around her. She was able to see it due to the dark night that was falling. Peering at the light, for short second the rain lighten enough for her to see that the light was from a small stone church.
Resting a hand on her son, she could feel the faint shivers from him and then she felt a cold shiver crawl up her spine. Staring at the small church for a moment, she finally made a decision. Reaching around the car, she grab the things she knew she would need for the rest of the night.
Finally, when she had everything in a bag, she slung over her shoulder. She wrap her son in a small blanket, open the door, shutting and locking the car, then rushing to the small old church. Reaching the small overhang over the front door, she bang on the door, hoping to get someone to open it, and was surprise when the door creak open.
For a second, she hesitated.. Just as she was about to head back to the car, a bright spear of lighting seem to strike, lighting the world around her. Closely follow by a loud growl of thunder, sounding like a large animal come to hunt he With a deep breath, and no choice, she push open the door, letting it shut behind her. She walk inside the warm and inviting interior of the church.
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Making her way into the church, she could feel some of the tension that was in her shoulders and back bleed out. Looking around she notice that even through there was a warm fire going, and candles lite around the main room, making the place seem safe and cozy.
Placing her sleeping son on one the of the pews that had a cushion on it near the fire, she listen to the sound of the rain pinging off of the roof of the building.
Tearing her eyes away from the fire, she look around the church, trying to peer through the shadows to see if she could see anyone. After while when no one appear, she stopped trying to look, figuring that if she shouldn't be here that someone would shoo her away.
As the heat of the fire, dried her clothes, the long day finally caught up to her, and with one hand on her son, her eyelids got heavier and heavier, until with the lull of the rain and the crackle of the fire, she too fell asleep.
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The harsh cawing of some crows jerk the woman awake. For a second she panic, as she found herself waking in a strange place, but then the events of the night before came crashing down on her, the rain, the light, the church.
Stretching her limbs, to get the stiffness out form sleeping on a pew all night, she look over at her young son, who for once was still sleeping. Taking a moment to take in her sleeping boy in the sunlight, she finally with a slight sigh, move her hand to his shoulder and with a soft squeeze, she call out. "It's time to wake up."
For a moment, the boy didn't seem to want to give up sleep, but finally with a slight sigh, his eyes open and took in the his mother. Smiling, he sat up and look around the room he found himself in and frown. "Where are we?"
"In a small church, we stop in front of. The rain was so heavy that the car couldn't be driven anymore through the rain, I saw this little church, it had a fire going and was much warmer then the car. But now, it is time for us to go."
"I want to explore!"
"We don't have time, we are already behind schedule. We shouldn't that far away from the next town, and we will stop and eat there. Do you need to go?"
For a second the young boy look like he was going to protest more about leaving so fast, but he didn't instead he just said. "No, I don' need to go, are we leaving now?"
"Yes, I'm just going to leave a note, then we will leave."
With that the woman quickly grab a scrap of paper from her bag and pen and wrote a quick note, thanking whoever own the church for the use of it. Signing her name and her's son's name. Leaving the note in plain sight, on a nearby table, the she and her son headed out of the church, into the new morning sun.
As the two settle in the car, the woman took one more look at the church, started her car and left, needing to get back on the road, so they could get to where they were going on time.
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Reaching the next town, Bellmead, the woman as promise stop at the first diner that was open for breakfast, as the two made their way in and settle at a nearby table, the waitress came over to gt their order greeted them. "Well, good morning, didn't except to see anyone this early with all the rain and such. Where are you all heading to?"
The woman smile at the waitress. "I have a job offer in Las Vegas. The rain put us a little behind schedule."
Nodding, the waitress frown for a second. "Where did you stop? In Hettick? You must of gotten up early in the morning to get here."
The woman shook her head. "No, we were already on the road, I was trying to drive through the rain last night but it got too heavy. I had pull off the road, up a small hill, and there was this little church. It was open, had a fire going. Never saw anyone else, but we spent the night there."
Frowning, the waitress shook her head. "I don't know of any small churches, you sure you stayed in one. The only thing resembling a church is a ruin one, all that is left of that is some rubble. I highly doubt you stay in there."
The woman shrug her shoulders, trying to ignore the shiver of something that crawl up her spine, she had other worries, then of a church that shouldn't have been there. "Maybe someone rebuilt it, or you're mistaken.."
The waitress shrug her shoulders, 'you could be right. Good thing you stop though, and up on a hill. The road flooded last night from all the rain, you would of swept off somewhere. Well, what would you and the young like?"
As the woman gave her order and her son's, and the waitress left. She thought for a second on what the woman had said about the road flooding. Taking a deep breath on how lucky she was, that they had stop. She turn her attention to her son, and with the other worries, the near miss of death was soon forgotten.
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Many years in the past, at the same place as the woman stop with the young boy at the church in the rainstorm, two men came arrive at the church, not a pile of rubble, but of a sturdy building, looking just like it did when the woman spent the night. As they got off their horses, Vin pause as he look down at the ground and frown. "Josiah, were expecting any visitors?"
"No, not that I know of. Why?"
"There are some strange tracks next to the church here. Looks like some kind of wagon stop here, I don't see any horse tracks though, and the wheel pattern is wider and something I haven't seen before."
Josiah was silent for a long second, the shrug his shoulders. "They aren't here anymore at least. It may have been they just needed a place for the night."
Looking at the tracks that the cart left, Vin frown. "Still where did they go? The tracks just seem to melt away after a couple of yards, like they were never here. And why does it seem like it had only rain in that spot that the cart had stopped at?"
Josiah was quiet for a second then smile slightly. "Who knows, maybe it was just a traveler that needed a place to sleep for the night. Doesn't look like any harm came from them resting here."
Vin wanted to argue but it had been a long week, and he was just too tired to really wonder about a disappearing stranger. "If you are sure. You want me to check the church for ya?"
Josiah shook his head. "No, I would assume that whoever rested here, is long gone. But, they may have left a note, should we go look?"
Nodding in agreement, the two men enter the church. Josiah quickly spotted the white paper sitting on a the nearest table to the door. Picking it up he read the note and stare at it for a few moments. Vin frown as he watch Josiah read the note and not say anything. Finally, he had to ask. "What does it say?"
Shaking his head, Josiah answer. "Well, it seem whoever stay here, thank me for the use of the a safe place to stay in the rain."
"We haven't had rain in a week or so. Did they sign it?"
"Yes, but whatever they use to write it seem to have gotten yet. The only names are smudged. I can make out is a last name of W and a B- something for the other name."
Vin look around the church to see if he could find anything out of place. Finding nothing, but a a few melted candles, he turn to Josiah and ask again. "You sure you don't want me to try to find whoever stay here. This is all odd."
Josiah shook his head. "No, whoever stay here did no harm, and it look like they needed a place to stay. The lord works in mysterious ways. This is just one of them."
The End
Notes:
For those that didn't figure it out. The modern people that stay at the church was Buck's mother and himself on their way to Las Vegas
As for the mysterious church, that was really rubble. Follows along many ghostly/folklore encounters, of someone in some sort of car trouble, needing a place to stay the night on a raining night or other poor weather night and finding a home that takes them in. The person feels safe and warm, has a good night sleep. Gets up in the morning before the owners, who may or may not have left breakfast for their guest, the guest then will leave coin and a note of thanks.
They get in there car and leave, and then stop down the road at some point and learn that the place they stay at, burn down, got destroy years ago. They usually get back in their car and head back to that place to see the truth.
They get back to it, to find the place burn down, with just a few pieces of burnt wood and their note and coin left where they had place them on the burnt table or dresser.