Chapter 7
W atching the blood leave her body and the life leave her eyes, I’m fascinated and intrigued. My head tilts to one side and then the other, just taking in everything. Storing the visual for later, when I can truly appreciate its beauty.
Jackson begins shuffling things around on the desk, looking for her keycard. I didn’t see it on her when we first came in, but then again I wasn’t really paying attention to that. We have to find it in order to get out of here.
I’m registering what he’s doing, but my mind is still focused on watching the blood slowly drip down from her throat onto the floor. There is a puddle forming beneath her already that I’m finding quite fascinating.
“Help me find the keycard so we can get the fuck out of here,” Jackson growls out as he shoves Christina’s lifeless body onto the floor, breaking the spell I was in watching her. “See if it’s on the floor. I will check the drawers.”
Nodding, I crouch down where she’s crumpled on the dirty carpet in a heap and check her pockets and around her body. Pulling her cell phone from inside her back pocket, I make sure to keep hold of it. It could come in handy.
I bend down, looking under the desk, seeing her wallet as well, when I finally hear Jackson. Reaching out, I grab it, palming it with the phone.
“Got it,” I hear him exclaim. I lift my head, looking over the desk at him to see him holding up his arm with the little card on a wide strap. “Let’s get the fuck out of here.”
Jackson moves to the door as I quickly step up behind him.
Opening the door slowly, he peeks out to make sure there isn’t anyone out in the main area still.
We move swiftly through the door. Jackson turns back around, locking the door from the inside and closing it.
Hopefully, no one will realize what we did right away.
We don’t need them chasing us before we have the chance to really escape.
Moving from behind the nurses’ station, the phone on the desk begins ringing right as we pass. Stopping just in front, we look at each other. Stepping back, I reach over the desk and lift the phone to my ear, and try to mimic how I’ve heard them answer before.
“D Ward,” I say into the receiver of the phone. Jackson rolls his eyes, but a smirk lifts the side of his lips as he shakes his head.
“Hey…We are locked in the cafeteria and can’t get a hold of anyone,” an orderly says.
“Oh no! I will be right there. Let me grab the keys,” I respond quickly, then hang up the phone laughing. “That will give us a little extra time.”
Jackson nods with a smile, and we head in the direction of the laundry room.
Once inside the laundry room, we both find new, clean clothes to wear, since the ones we both currently have on look like we’ve been in a massacre. We find several sneakers that belong to either the nurses or orderlies.
Setting several out to find our closest size, we eventually are able to get some shoes on as well. They aren’t stylish, but then again, neither are the fucking clothes. But they will do to hide the fact we’re escaped patients from the fucking insane asylum.
Balling up our old uniforms, we shove the old, bloody ones behind one of the machines so no one can find them. We scan the card, with our fingers crossed that no alarm will be set off.
When no warning bells go off, we step out into the dark, closing the door quietly behind us. The long gravel road laid out in front of us seems to go on forever into the obsidian night.
We walk fast, making sure to stay in the shadows as much as possible. They never expect one of the patients to escape, so they don’t have too many guards roaming the grounds. But better safe than sorry.
The longer we go, the darker it seems to get. There doesn’t seem to be any light pollution out here, but thank goodness my eyes have adjusted to the tenebrosity.
As we briskly walk, a shiver runs over my body, making me cross my arms over my torso trying to hold the heat in. Now that the temperature is starting to drop at night, there is a chill in the air, and since I’m also sweating from the exertion of walking so fast, my body feels a little cold.
The long, gravel driveway that runs into the asylum ends at a desolate looking highway with no lights on either side. Jackson and I stand at the end, looking both ways.
“Which way should we go?” Jackson asks.
“I say we go this way,” I say, pointing to the left. “I remember when they brought me in, we turned right on the gravel road before parking.”
“You can fucking remember that?” he asks incredulously with his brows raised in surprise. We start walking, but try to stay near the wooded area on the shoulder of the two lane road, in case we see headlights and need to duck under cover.
“Yeah,” I say with a boisterous laugh. “I knew when I was ready to leave, I had to.”
Jackson laughs along with me.
We walk for what seems like hours, when I feel a vibration in my pocket, reminding me I stole her phone. “Shit…I completely forgot,” I say, lifting the too big T-shirt and pulling it out of the dark gray joggers I stole.
Jackson looks over my shoulder. The screen reads ‘Wellard’ and I quickly swipe the red button at the bottom and promptly turn it off. We need to preserve the battery, since I don’t know when I will be able to find a charger.
“When did you grab that?”
“It was in her pocket when I was checking her for the keycard.”
Walking around the bend, we see lights up at the end of the road, making us both look at each other, then back again.
We speed up our walking just a bit, excited to get back to civilization and blend in with the population, where it’s a little more difficult to find us. Doesn’t matter how exhausted we are.
The small town we come across, has a bunch of little stores and offices all along both sides of the main road. People are milling about, probably closing up to get home. It’s late, so most of the places are closed, but there are still cars parked along the side of the road.
My stomach rumbles, reminding me we haven’t eaten properly since lunchtime. Jackson looks over to me with a smile. “Hungry?” he asks, making me nod with a little chuckle. “Yeah…me too.”
We keep walking to a little corner store that’s still open, the lights shining bright out to the street. A few people move in and out of the front door. Pulling the bitches wallet from my other pocket, I nudge Jackson’s arm to get his attention. “Let’s eat then,” I say, with a devious smirk.
Jackson barks out a laugh, pushing the door to the business open and holding it for me. “You’re just full of surprises,” he says, shaking his head and making me smile.
Resting my hand on his shoulder, I lean into him as he scoops up a basket to put our items into. I pull him down a bit to whisper in his ear as we walk down the aisle with the chips and snacks. “Just wait until you see me hotwire a car.”
We both burst into a fit of laughter as we start grabbing different bags of chips, cookies, and pastries. “Damn girl…a vicious killer, a talented thief, and drop dead gorgeous. I could easily fall in love with you…if only you had the right equipment.”
Gasping loudly, I press my hand over my heart as if I were offended. “My equipment is perfectly fine just the way it is, thank you very much. Just because it’s not right for you…” I say, pointing my finger at his chest laughing.
We walk over to the coolers, pulling out a couple of sodas each. We know we’re stocking up for at least a day or so. We have at least a three hour drive back home to Stull. We both know what we have to do there. And then once we’re done, we’re heading to Jackson’s place in Kansas City, Missouri.
He said his house is empty, but his estate is making sure the house is kept up and taken care of by the house staff.
He told me I can stay with him for now, until we figure out exactly what our plans are for everyone on our lists, plus eventually they are going to figure out we’re missing from Wellard.
Turning around to head back to the front of the store, I’m not paying attention, and I run into a guy who is standing directly behind me. My arms, holding all of my stuff, hit his stomach, and I take a quick step back. His fucking abs are hard as steel. I’m lucky I didn’t drop anything.
My eyes move up from his wide chest that is directly at my eye level, to his massive shoulders stretching his black T-shirt to capacity until I finally reach his face.
A face with a golden tan, prominent cheekbones, a jaw that could cut glass, and eyes…
holy shit are those his real eyes? They are the brightest blue I have ever seen and they are staring directly at me.
My mouth drops open in shock at his sheer beauty. “Excuse you, asshole. Have you ever heard of personal space?” Jackson curses, wrapping his arm around my shoulders and pulling me around the tall stranger.
As he guides me to the front of the store, I take a quick glance back over my shoulder to see the stunning stranger watching us walk off. He’s absolutely gorgeous.
His eyes glaring between my eyes and where Jackson has a hold on me. But I can’t seem to take mine off of his brilliant blue orbs. That is until I’m pulled around the corner to the register.
“What the fuck was his problem?” Jackson asks, dumping his stuff on the counter.
“I don’t know,” I say, my voice barely a whisper as I keep checking over my shoulder. “But fuck me, I want to find out.”