SUCH IS DESTINY - PART 8

Upon exiting the saloon with Dalilah next to him, Carter glanced up at the night sky and took a deep breath of the cool, damp air, feeling the fresh scent of rain and earth settle within his lungs.

The normally inky star-lit firmament was a blank canvas of white. It was swaddled in puffy cumulus clouds ladened heavily with rain. It had been pouring on and off, drenching the tiny town of Wintershold since before the card game began.

He could hear the distant rumble of thunder, and see the occasional flash of lightning illuminating the underlying surface of the clouds, a brilliant color of blue.

He turned to Dalilah and said, "It's going to rain again. We should get to where we are going soon."

The streets of Wintershold were deserted. Most of the townsfolk were taking shelter from the foul elements. The only sound heard was the patter of raindrops on the wooden boardwalk and the occasional creak of a loose shutter when the winds would pick up.