Chapter Thirteen
~ Radalf ~
I knew stopping wasn't a good idea, but I still couldn't prevent the sigh of relief that left my mouth when Ajag pulled off the road and stopped in front of a small roadside cafe.
We'd been driving for hours, passing through three states. We'd left New Mexico, crossed the bottom corner of Colorado, and now we were somewhere in Utah. We still had a couple of states to get through before we reached the ranch.
It was taking us a little longer to make up miles because we were avoiding the main highways. I knew eventually we'd have to hit the highway, but I wanted to stay on the side roads as much as possible.
Still, I was glad we were stopping for a bit and taking a break. My ass hurt, my hands hurt, and if I didn't have a full facemask helmet, I'm sure my face would hurt, too.
I parked my bike next to Ajag's jeep, turned off the engine, and then pulled my helmet off. After swinging my leg over the bike, I set the helmet on the seat and then shook out my legs and rubbed my sore butt.
When Ajag opened his door and climbed out, I walked over to him. "Everything okay?"
"Yeah." He gestured to the backseat with his hand. "Sy needs to use the restroom and he's hungry. I figured we could grab something he could eat in the car once he's used the bathroom."
"Why don't we just park around back and we can eat here?" Val asked as he walked up to us. "If there's any problem, we can just go out the back and get on the road again. Besides, I think we could all use a break."
I was all for that.
"You grab Sy and take him inside," I directed. "I'll park the Jeep around back."
"I'll move the bikes," Val said as he walked away.
Ajag went around the car and unbuckled Sy before lifting him out of the car. I waited until he grabbed his hand and walked inside the small cafe before hopping in the Jeep and driving it around to the back of the building.
As soon as I parked, I climbed out and hurried through the back entrance of the cafe. I stopped for a moment, scanning the interior, not just for Ajag and Sy, but to make sure no one else was in the place that I needed to be wary of.
There were a few patrons in the place, but they all looked local.
When Ajag and Sy walked out of the small hallway to my left, I sent him a small smile and then gestured for him to proceed me. Ajag walked to one of the bigger booths, for which I was grateful for.
Val and I didn't easily fit into the small ones. We were big guys. I think it was the dire wolf in us. We tended to be on the bigger side because we were born to be warriors and protect our pack. I wasn't sure what we were supposed to do when our pack was wiped out, which was why I was a rogue wolf.
Well, I was. I guess now I belonged to a pack.
Still not sure how that happened.
I took the menu from the waitress when she came by and then leaned down closer to Sy. "What do you want to eat, little man?"
I opened the menu and then pointed to a couple of the pictures. There weren't many. I glanced over the menu looking for the kid's section. Once I found it, I began reading off what was offered.
"Chicken strips," Sy piped up as soon as I said it.
Man after my own heart.
"Good choice," I told him.
We were primarily meat eaters after all.
"He needs some vegetables or fruit with that," Ajag stated.
"It comes with a fruit cup."
I didn't know much about raising kids, but I figured a fruit cup would suffice. That didn't mean I wouldn't get Sy some ice cream if he ate all of his food.
Ajag gave a single nod.
I ordered a bacon burger for myself along with a cup of coffee. I figured I could use the caffeine right about now. I also ordered three bacon burgers and some chicken strips to go. I knew there was a cooler in the back of Ajag's Jeep because I'd put it there myself.
Our meal was pretty reserved, only Sy's chatter and the low murmur of the other patrons breaking up the silence. I didn't know if it was because Ajag had nothing to say or if he was afraid to say anything at all.
"We need to consider finding a place to sleep at some point," I stated as I glanced at Val. "Any ideas?"
"There are a couple of places off the beaten path up by Moab that we can spend the night as long as none of you mind camping out under the stars."
"I've been camping for the last couple of days," Ajag stated. "Can't be any different."
"Just so you know, these places aren't registered campgrounds," Val pointed. "Like I said, they are off the beaten path, but I doubt anyone would find us there."
Ajag snorted. "Sounds like my kind of place."
"Then eat up," Val said. "The quicker we get there, the quicker we can get some rest."
I was all for that. I just wished we had more than one tent. It looked as if Val and I would be sleeping out in the open. We might even be sleeping in our fur.
Wouldn't be the first time.
We finished eating, grabbed the food to go, paid the bill, and then headed out back. Ajag loaded Sy up in his car seat, and then we were on the road again.
We rode another two hours down the road before Val turned onto a side street. It was another twenty minutes before he turned onto a dirt road that led up into the canyons. By the time he pulled over, we were all dusty. I was pretty sure I had dirt in places I'd rather not think about.
Upside, the place Val had picked was next to a river.
"I found this place a couple of years back," Val said as he climbed off his bike. "Of course, I was running for my life at the time, but it was a good place to hold out for awhile."
Considering how far back in the canyon we were, I'd say he was right. You couldn't even see the vehicles from the dirt road. We were totally hidden from sight, which made this place perfect.
Val rubbed the back of his neck, wiping away the dirt that had gathered there no doubt. "We shouldn't unpack a lot in case we need to leave in a hurry."
"Hopefully, we won't need to," I stated. "I'm sure we could all use a little downtime."
While Sy was chatting away and pointing to the river, Ajag seemed to be barely able to move one foot in front of the other.
"Can you take Sy down to the river to wash up?" I asked. "I want to speak to Ajag for a moment and it's not a conversation for little ears."
Val's eyes rounded and I swear I saw pure panic in them.
"Rad, man, I don't do kids."
"He's not going to bite you, Val." Well, he might. He was a wolf pup after all. They were known to bite things a lot. "Just take him down to the water for a few minutes."
Val rolled his eyes before walking over to Sy and holding out his hand. I saw Ajag frown when Val said something and then started leading Sy away. I quickly stepped over and grabbed his arm.
"Hey, I asked Val to take Sy down to the river so I could talk to you for a minute." I brushed my hand over the side of Ajag's face. "I wanted to make sure you were okay."
"I'm okay."
I doubted it.
"You don't have to put on a brave face for me, Ajag. I know all of this is a lot to take in and you don't know which way is up. It's okay if you feel like you're falling apart. I'll be there to pick up the pieces and put you back together again."
Ajag gave me a weak smile, but it felt real. "I'm ready for this to be over, but I don't know how to stop it all."
"I think we need to talk with Val. He knows some stuff about your situation that you may not. Between the three of us, I'm sure we can figure something out."
Ajag nodded as he leaned into me.
"Let's get Sy cleaned up and then settled for the night. Once he's asleep, we can talk. Okay?"
"Okay," Ajag whispered.
I wasn't sure we were going to be able to figure this out in one evening, but maybe we could come up with a plan to get us through the next few days.
I held Ajag's hand as we walked down to the water to join Val and Sy. I sat down on a nearby rock, pulled off my boots, and rolled up my pant legs. I wanted to wade in the water a little, but I had no plans on running through it like Sy was. The kid was totally off the rails, running through the water at the edge of the river and laughing his little head off as if he'd never seen water before.
We actually had a bit of fun as we cleaned up and played in the water just a bit. By the time we headed back to the vehicles, Sy was the one that was lagging. He weaved just a bit when Ajag started to dress him in clean clothes. He was practically asleep on his feet when Ajag laid him down in the backseat of the Jeep and tucked him into his sleeping bag.
I sat on the ground leaning back against a log. When Ajag walked toward me, I held out my hand to him. "Sy go down okay?"
Ajag nodded as he sat down beside me. "I think playing in the water was good for him, but he is so tired. I'm pretty sure he'll sleep through the night if there are no interruptions."
Hopefully, there wouldn't be.
I wrapped one arm around Ajag's shoulders and pulled him close to me. I couldn't prevent a smile from crossing my lips when his hand landed on my thigh. "What about you? Do you think you'll be able to sleep through the night?"
Ajag shrugged, but didn't answer verbally.
I guess that was an answer.
"Val, can you tell Ajag what you told me about Elder Payne?" My brows snapped together when Ajag instantly stiffened. "Ajag, do you know Elder Payne?"
Ajag swallowed tightly, his hand tightening on my thigh. "Sy's biological father."
Holy shit!