WILD ONES ━ L. DUNBAR [hiatus]

I

❝A severe thunderstorm warning remains in effect from ten p.m. until two-thirty a.m. for Northern Beacon County. Torrential rainfall and high wind conditions may lead to flash floods and low visibility . . ."

As the weather broadcast—the very same one playing on three different stations—continued to crackle with warnings and predictions, Olivia Nelson leaned forward in the driver's seat of her little white Corolla and apprehensively peered up at the night sky through the windshield. Through a veil of dark, rumbling clouds, the moon shined back at her, bright and full, casting a soft glow of light on the wooded road ahead of her.

Olivia gripped the steering wheel a bit tighter and let out a shaky breath as she settled back into her seat, trying to calm herself down as she concentrated on driving. She had never been a fan of storms—she'd seen the damage of what a hurricane and some heavy rainfall could really do through the news channel—but since she'd lived in Los Angeles for the last sixteen years of her life, she hadn't ever needed to worry about them before now.

The town of Beacon Hills was so different from the city of L.A., Olivia was actually worried she'd traveled too far and accidentally entered another state—like Oregon or Washington—but the welcome sign along the road a few miles back had assured her she was in the right place.

Lightning flashed from above her, followed by a loud crack of thunder that had Olivia nearly swerving off the pavement and into the trees. She felt herself ease up the tiniest bit once the road finally widened and the misty forest melted away as she entered a more residential area.

As she rolled to a stop at a red light, Olivia found her gaze drifting to the time displayed on her dashboard. Her green eyes widened as she discovered it was almost ten o'clock. Her first day of school was tomorrow and she still had to drop by the local hospital, pick up the house key from her aunt, and unpack.

In situations like this, Olivia really wished she was better at planning ahead and had googled the driving time from Los Angeles to Beacon Hills before she started her journey.

The traffic light switched down to green and Olivia pushed down on the gas pedal, listening to her GPS as the device gave her directions to the address she had been tech-savvy enough to program in—Beacon Hills Memorial Hospital.