Stranger in the night

Stranger in the Night ~

A strong wind blew drops of rain on the windshield of the blue Malibu. Marcia squinted through the gloom at the bumpy dirt road. The car jolted, splashing long-cold coffee from the cheap paper cup to the floor of the car.
Marcia looked around warily. The area was secluded and dark shadows that shrunk away from the car's headlights made it mysterious and foreboding. Rain poured like nails on the roof.  Put-put-put.... The engine was making threatening noises. It sputtered and coughed, suddenly stopping altogether. Marcia moaned.
"Don't do this now. Not now."
The vehicle slowed and stopped. Marcia turned the key. Vrr-r-r-r-r-r-r-r-r-r-r. Vrr-r-r-r-r-r-r-r-r-r-r-r. The motor was dead.  Glancing nervously around, she became more and more aware of her dangerous situation. Marcia was an attractive young woman, broken down in a secluded area miles away from just about anything, and virtually helpless should someone dangerous come along, with no mechanical skills whatsoever. She sat looking into the pouring rain for a moment, considering her options. 
Walking was out of the question; she would be much more vulnerable out in the open night, and it was pouring so hard she could hardly see twenty feet.  She would most certainly be lost to the night.  At least, she thought, I'm in the safety of my own car.
Settling across the front two seats, Marcia drifted into an uneasy sleep. Tap-tap-tap. A noise jolted Marcia from her dose. She stiffened. The hairs on the back of her neck began to rise and her pulse quickened a pace as the gut feeling you get when you're being watched crept slowly up her spine. She slowly raised her eyes to the drivers' window, afraid to move or even breathe.  A face filled her window. It was dirty and unshaven. The man it belonged to wore grimy, ragged clothes. Marcia screamed.
The man grunted and shoved his fingers through a small crack in the window, and she grabbed the window crank and turned it as quickly as she possibly could. The bum yelped and ripped his hands away in pain.  But he only pressed his face to the window, his breath fogging up the glass as he panted and made a low moaning sound.
Marcia shuddered and yelled, "I don’t have any money! Just leave!"
Suddenly, the man turned and limped into the brush. Startled by this sudden retreat, Marcia stared after him shaking.  A few long minutes passed. Still no bum. Could he be gone? Marcia thought hesitantly. There was a rustle in the bushes to her left. Marcia's snapped her head around, eyes probing the brush on that side of the car. So this is what its like to be hunted, Marcia thought bitterly, I may never eat deer again. Then, when the reality of it dawned on her, she thought, If I live to eat deer again. The brush rustled again, and this time she could pinpoint the movements. She watched in horror as the man emerged, limping from the bushes with a large rock, which he dragged along, coming closer and closer….
"No! Please! No…." She began to sob uncontrollably. There was no hope now. Her chance at life was gone as quickly as it had come. Before her jumbled mind could sort out what was happening, she heard a crash and shards of glass poured down on her shaking body and the car's leather interior like the rain that had stopped just minutes before. Marcia emitted a choking gasp as she saw the man's hand reaching for her. Suddenly, her senses came pouring in, and she sought to evade her attacker's grasp. She tried rolling into the back seat, panicky thoughts rushing through her mind; could she make a run for it if she got to the door? Would the man's limp keep him from following?
But too late, for the man's dirty hands were clasped onto Maricia's ankles as he attempted to pull her from the car.  Marcia twisted and grabbed at the steering wheel, clutching onto it for dear life. The man, who had surprising strength, gave one hard yank, and she lost her death grip on the steering wheel. Marcia saw no way out as she hit the muddy ground with a force that knocked the wind from her lungs. She watched the car descend as she was dragged through the mud.
Finally at a halt, Marcia lay on her stomach, still. She had given up.  She vaguely thought that the bum should have jumped on her by now, but when she turned to look at him, lying in the dirt behind her, she saw he made no move toward her. He was just lying there, breathing hard and staring at the road.
Marcia looked in the direction of his gaze. She saw a blurred vision of light appear suddenly and grow quickly in the dark. WHOOOOOO-WOOOOOO! The train's horn blasted a warning as, with a crash and squeal of metal upon metal, and a shower of sparks, Marcia watched in horror as the freight train sweep away her now ruined blue Malibu.
Her car had been parked on the train tracks.
A wave of shock swept over Marcia as she realized what had actually happened. Marcia weakly twisted to look at the dark figure on the ground behind her. This man----- this stranger…. Had saved her life.