Chapter 6 Oliver
Oliver
We took a corner booth at the restaurant.
We both ordered coffee to start. Then I went with a plate of biscuits and gravy, a pound of bacon, and half a dozen eggs, while she opted for a short stack with a side of bacon. The waitress rushed off to put our order in and left us alone.
There was a small TV in the corner of the diner, tuned to the local news.
Old timers were sitting around the counter, sipping their coffee and eating their breakfast. Some held newspapers in front of their faces, while others seemed happy, watching TV and chatting.
It seemed nothing ever happened in that town because everyone was talking about the stolen vehicles the news reported on the day before, the stolen truck left at the gas station, or the goat that was going around town and terrorizing everyone.
“We need to get out of town as soon as possible,” I mumbled.
“Now who’s paranoid?” she asked, smirking, perfectly happy trying to get under my skin any way she could.
“This town is way too small for all the entertainment we’re providing. I’m surprised someone hasn’t pointed us out already,” I said, feeling anxious. I was never anxious, so it was eating at me.
I felt like I was being watched, and I couldn’t shake it.
I’d glance around the restaurant and then turn my attention to the window.
She watched me as I took in every face, from the cars that were passing by, to the people at the gas station across the street, and the people who would pull into the parking lot at the restaurant.
“So, where did you grow up?” she asked, stealing my attention.
I looked over at her with confusion on my face. “What? Why?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know. We’re sitting here with nothing to do, and we’re going to be spending plenty of time together. Instead of arguing, I thought we could have a civil conversation.”
I took a deep breath as I turned my attention back to the window, to think it over. Finally, I wet my lips and said, “I grew up in upstate New York.”
“Wow. What brought you to this area?”
I shrugged. “Work. Moving around and trying to find my place, I guess.”
“Do you have any siblings? Family?”
“None that I talk to.”
“How come?”
“Because I wouldn’t allow them to stuff me in the box they wanted me in.”
Her brows knitted together.
I leaned forward, resting my forearms on the table.
“I’m an only son, so my dad had high hopes for me.
He expected me to take over the family business, and I didn’t want to.
I went against everything he tried to force on me.
In high school, I caused trouble and got kicked out.
I had to go to another school. Repeat offender.
Eventually, no school would take me. The plan was to ship me off to one of those schools for troubled youth, an all-boys school, but I was out of there before wakeup call. Haven’t been home since.”
“Wow.” She bit her lower lip. “Don’t you miss them, though?”
“Who? My parents?”
She nodded.
I shook my head. “Fuck no. My mom was never around. She was always at this retreat or in some recovery center for her cocaine addiction. And dad, well, I didn’t see him unless he was beating my ass for the trouble I caused.”
“I’m sorry,” she said quietly.
“You have nothing to be sorry for. We’re all dealt a certain hand in life. That was mine.” There was a pause for a moment before I spoke up again. “So, what about you?”
“Me?”
I just looked at her, refusing to reply because we both knew what I meant.
She took a deep breath and swallowed. “I’m an only child, as far as I know.
My mom ran off some years after I was born, leaving my dad to raise me.
He was a good man. He worked hard, but no matter how hard he worked, he never made enough to provide a comfortable life.
We were always struggling. That’s what led him to crime.
He would steal, sell drugs, guns, whatever, in order to make a buck.
That’s how I met my cheating ex. My dad and his dad were basically partners in crime.
Alex and I grew up together, and we started dating in high school.
For the most part, he felt like the only person I could trust. He knew how hard it was growing up the way we did. ”
I took in the sad look on her face. It pissed me off to see it there. The girl was too vibrant to let some fucking shit-for-brains drag her down this way.
The waitress brought over our food, and I grabbed my fork to dig in. “You were with that guy for that long, and he still treated you like shit?”
She just shrugged and turned her attention to her pancakes.
“If you ask me, he deserves more than a wrecked car.”
She looked up at me with a sad smile. “Well, he may have gotten it. Rumor has it that my so-called best friend has the clap.”
We both started laughing, and it felt like the moment of seriousness had been lightened.
Once we finished breakfast, we started our hike down the two-lane highway that led out of town.
To my surprise, she was rather quiet on our walk.
There wasn’t much traffic coming into town, and there was even less leaving it.
We walked for a solid hour before she finally demanded a break by sitting in the gravel on the side of the road.
“What are you doing?” I asked, turning back to look down at her.
“I need a break. We’ve been walking for an hour, and believe it or not, these boots aren’t the best for long walks. I think my blisters have blisters.”
I shook my head. “Fine, take five, but then you’re going to have to get up. We need to make it to the next town so we can find a car.”
She groaned and threw her head back. “Can’t we just rent a car?”
“You got the money to do that, because I sure as fuck don’t—not since you wrecked my payday.”
She just rolled her eyes and sighed. “Fine. Let’s go.” She held out her hand for me to help her up.
I acted annoyed, but I took a couple of steps and grabbed her hand, pulling her to her feet.
The wind blew, and it sent the smell of her my way.
I had no idea how she smelled so good, considering we’d both used the same motel-provided products, but I inhaled her sweetness deeply, and I savored the few seconds her hand was in mine.
I couldn’t let her know that, though. She’d been nothing but bad luck and a major pain in my ass since we met.
Once she was on her feet, her eyes met mine. I got lost in her brilliant blue irises. With the way the sun was hitting them, they lit up like stained glass. If I didn’t know any better, I’d think I could see her soul. It felt like mine was being extracted, as if something were being exchanged.
I cleared my throat and released her hand before turning away and continuing on my walk, neither of us mentioning the weirdness of the moment.
Luckily, we didn’t have to walk much further before we found ourselves stumbling into the next town.
“Thank God,” she cheered when a dollar store came into view. She picked up the pace, going from a slow walk to a quick jog.
I chuckled and shook my head, but took off jogging behind her.
I walked into the store just a few seconds after she did, but she already had a basket over her arm as she darted down aisles. She grabbed a pack of two toothbrushes and turned to me.
“You get one, I get one. No more sharing. Got it?” She arched her brow.
I showed her my palms. “Fine,” I agreed.
She tossed them into the basket and then reached for a tube of toothpaste.
In the next aisle, she grabbed a pack of disposable razors and a deodorant stick.
I grabbed a roll for myself and tossed it into her basket.
She frowned at me, but didn’t say anything as she moved on.
We both got a package of underwear and socks.
I stood by while she looked through every bra, complaining that none of them fit her size.
“Listen, a bra is always optional with me. I don’t want you feeling like you have to wear one,” I teased.
She rolled her eyes but finally gave up once she realized that she wasn’t going to find one that wasn’t three sizes too big.
The next section of the store had hanging clothes, but nothing you’d actually want to wear.
All the men’s shirts had animals on them, like a deer, turkey, or fish.
And everything for women was covered with “live, laugh, love.”
“I’ll just grab some sweats and a stupid t-shirt so I can, at least, change to sleep.”
“What? I thought you liked our sleeping arrangement last night?” I teased again, smirking.
She rolled her eyes, her cheeks bright pink. “No. I didn’t.”
She walked away, leaving me laughing behind her.
She kept walking through the store, grabbing a drawstring bag to put everything in, and who knows what else.
I got bored and wandered to the front of the store, where I looked out the glass doors.
I noticed a blacked-out SUV pull into the gas station across the street.
It stopped at the pump before two guys, dressed in suits, got out.
One started filling the tank with gas while the other looked around, as if searching for something.
My heart leapt to my throat before galloping to a race.
It wasn’t just anyone in that SUV. It was my boss’s henchmen.
I slowly backed away from the doors, not wanting to draw attention to myself.
Once I was far enough away that I was sure they wouldn’t be able to see me, I turned and moved through the store to find Crash.
I was sure Hail had caught wind of the stolen Aston Martin, found wrecked and abandoned, and he sent dumbass one and two looking for me.
I figured they probably had orders to find me and bring me back, but I wouldn’t have put it past them to kill me and throw me in the nearest river.
I’d seen them kill people before, just so they didn’t have to mess around with bringing someone in.
They were too close, and I needed to put as many miles between them and me as I could.
The only problem was that I didn’t want her to know.
I thought it was weird how easily she accepted the news of me being a car thief until breakfast, when she told me how she was brought up.
She was used to being surrounded by illegal activity, but I could tell that she didn’t thrive on it as many did.
She wanted out. Just like me. I wasn’t sure why, but I couldn’t turn my back on her.
I couldn’t walk away. I knew if I were to leave, she’d only feel like she had to go back.
I didn’t know much about her life before, but I knew she was too good for that.
The moment she came crashing into my life, she became mine.
She just didn’t know it yet.
I found her sniffing fucking candles.
“Come on. Let’s get out of here.”
“What’s the rush?” she asked, putting the lid back on one and picking up another.
“I told you, we need to get a move on. Let’s fucking go.” I took the candle from her hand and set it back on the shelf.
“Alright, you don’t have to be mean about it.”
“I’m just eager to get out of here.” I nodded toward the checkout.
While she unloaded her basket for the cashier, I moved back to the door and glanced out as I pretended to try on sunglasses.
I watched both guys walk out of the gas station with a drink and a slice of pizza.
They climbed into the SUV and took off, going the same direction we’ve been heading, telling me we needed to head east rather than south.
“Alright, grouch. Where to now?” she asked as we walked out of the store together.
“We have to find a car and get back on the road.”
She nodded. “Alright, just let me open this stuff and put it in the bag I bought so I’m not toting around all this extra packaging.
” She had stopped at the outside trash can by the door to open items and drop them into her drawstring bag.
While I waited, I couldn’t ignore an older lady who was talking on her cellphone as she looked over the clearance items stacked up beside the door.
“…The doctor said he probably won’t get released for another week. The pneumonia was bad, but his body is responding well to the medication. I just have to go by his house every day to feed his cats, and I’m so allergic that I can barely breathe by the time I leave there.”
I rolled my eyes.
“Would you hurry up?” I asked, watching her open each item as if something precious was inside.
“No, you don’t have to do that,” the older lady said to whoever she was talking to.
“What’s got your panties in a wad?” Amelia asked.
“Really? You wouldn’t mind?” the old lady asked.
The longer I waited, the more anxious and overstimulated I became. I just wanted to hit the road and get the fuck away from it all. I began rubbing my temples as a headache formed. “I have a headache.”
“Oh, good. I bought Tylenol.” She shook a bottle at me, and I grabbed it.
“I really appreciate that, Jules. The cats all eat out of the same bowl, so you just have to pour in the remeasured pouch, morning and night. The address is 1276 East Herron Drive, and the key is hidden under the mat.”
My head popped up as an idea hit me.
“That’s right. Eleven in the morning and seven in the evening,” the old lady told Jules.
“Let’s go.” I grabbed Crash by the wrist and pulled her away from the store.
“Where are we going? And why do you act like you know where you’re going?”
“I do know where we’re going. I just have to figure out where it is first.” I was walking faster than I’d walked all day, but finally, the bad luck was wearing off.
“Care to clue me in?”
As I approached the street corner, I noticed a couple of teenagers playing basketball across the street. I looked up at the sign and over to them.
“Hey!”
They stopped and looked back at me.
“Where is East Herron Drive?”
“About three blocks that way,” one of them said, pointing to my right.
“Thanks!” I turned the corner and pushed on.
“Okay, what’s going on?” Amelia asked as she caught up to me.
“That old lady basically just told us that there is a house on East Herron Drive that’s completely empty because whoever lives there is in the hospital.”
“OK?”
“OK, so we’re going there, and we’re stealing this person’s car. That’ll give us days before we have to worry about it being reported stolen, rather than hours.”
She slowed to a stop, and I turned around to face her.
“What are you doing? Come on.”
Her eyes were full of guilt. “I don’t know if I can steal another car, Oliver.”
“You’re not stealing it. I am. Now let’s go.” I grabbed her wrist and pulled her along.
She resisted, but like always, she fell in step anyway.