Chapter Twenty Two
Sawyer
Just as Sawyer had said, he did, in fact, check out the schedule.
He made sure to do it mid afternoon because that was when most were off doing jobs.
Milo was typically one of them. The last thing he wanted was to run into his uncle.
What would he even say to him? Probably nothing good so it was really just for the best.
The schedule was pretty typical. They never sent everyone out at once just in case something happened and backup was needed in some way.
From what he could see, there were a few days in the next week where a good chunk of the bunker would be gone.
Thursday and the following Monday. The earlier they left the better, most likely, but the weather also played a factor. And Cole.
The thought of asking Cole for his car made Sawyer want to vomit.
They weren’t not close but even asking someone you were close with for their whole fucking car seemed like a big ask.
And he doubted that Cole would ever see the car again.
Who in their right mind would just be willing to give that up?
How would he even get home? He supposed that he could just steal the car but that didn’t feel right.
Sawyer wasn’t a car hijacker and Benji didn’t particularly look like one either.
The only thing he really could do was ask. As much as he knew that he should ask Benji about what day he preferred, he didn’t. He just went straight to Cole’s med bay.
Well. Almost.
For a while, he just stood around the corner, trying to hype himself up but it wasn’t really working.
And the more he attempted, the more nervous he got.
Sawyer had half a mind to just turn around and go back downstairs but that wouldn’t help anyone.
So before he did that, he just walked towards the door and knocked on the frame a couple times.
He peered his head in and was so happy to see that Cole was alone.
He lifted his head from the crossword puzzle book he was doing and quirked his eyebrow.
“Didn’t expect to see you today,” he paused, “Or any day, really.” Sawyer didn’t go to the med bay very often.
Usually Cole found him. “How’s that back doing?
” Cole stood up from his seat and presented the bed towards Sawyer.
“It’s okay.”
“Let me take a look.”
“I didn’t–”
“Lay down, Sawyer.” Cole stated clearly then moved to grab some gauze and bandages.
Sawyer obviously hadn’t come to him for that but it probably wasn’t a bad idea to get it cleaned and rebandaged. He closed the door behind him and moved towards the bed, like he was told. As gingerly as he could, he pulled the shirt off his torso and sighed.
Cole came back over and placed the supplies down on a table then put on a pair of gloves and began to gently pull the old bandages off. He hissed and Sawyer turned his head. “Sorry,” he muttered, “Just looks like shit.”
“Isn’t it your job to make it not look that way?”
“I did what I could. You know it’s gonna look worse before it gets better.”
“Do I know that?” Sawyer asked, clearly sarcastic.
Cole shook his head. “Smart ass.”
The two were silent for some time while the medic dabbed at the wounds with some antiseptic and bandaged them back up.
There was a large part of him that was rather curious about how the wounds looked, but he also didn’t want to see it.
It would likely just make him sad. For so many reasons.
He didn’t need that right now. He needed to focus.
Once satisfied with that, Cole grabbed a stool and brought it over so he could sit while he rebandaged his hand.
Sawyer supposed he would get a good look at that one. That would be more than enough.
He kept his gaze steady upon his hand while Cole unwrapped it and the moment he saw it, his stomach dropped and a wave of nausea hit him.
“Oh my God,” Sawyer groaned and closed his eyes with a shake of his head.
The wound looked absolutely horrendous. The outer edges of the hole were scabbed over.
The stitches were barely doing anything.
He didn’t know he had stitches but he supposed that something had to be done about it.
Sawyer was going to need to see a doctor about it sooner than later…
And thinking about it, it was a miracle he could still feel and move his hand at all.
He had noticed that his ring and middle finger weren’t moving like they used to but he would take the three out of five, he supposed.
“Yeah,” was all that Cole said while he shook his head.
Sawyer finally reopened his eyes so he could gaze at the man before him. He wasn’t sure when the best time to ask was but now was as good of a time as any, right? “What kind of car do you drive?” What a way to kick it off…
Cole didn’t think much of it. “A two thousand two Chevy Trailblazer.”
“Oh, yeah. Right, right,” he said with a nod.
“Why?”
“Just couldn’t remember.”
“Feels like a weird thing to want to remember right now.”
He wasn’t wrong about that. Sawyer wasn’t great at being nonchalant, he was gathering. “Yeah, well. I was just thinking.”
“I can see that. What about?” Cole asked, rubbing some more antiseptic on his hand. It burned some but it was okay. Nothing Sawyer couldn’t handle after being beaten with a hot fire poker.
“Just…things.”
The man shook his head but didn’t press anymore. Cole wasn’t much for digging. It was usually appreciated but Sawyer needed the prodding at that moment.
“I was just…thinking about how I-I…I don’t want to–” Sawyer cut himself off and dropped his head with a soft growl of frustration. Why couldn’t he just fucking say it?! The worst Cole could say is no.
Well, actually, no. He could tell Milo.
But Cole wouldn’t do that. Sawyer knew he wouldn’t.
“Spit it out,” Cole said. It wasn’t a harsh statement. It was his way of encouraging Sawyer.
“I don’t want to be here anymore.”
There.
He said it. And just vocalizing it to another person, besides Benji, actually felt really good. It felt like a weight was just lifted off his shoulders. He had no idea how heavily it had really been weighing on him.
“I don’t blame you.” Cole began to wrap up his hand, not taking his eyes off it. “Why would you want to stay here?”
“Exactly.”
“But are you gonna leave?”
Sawyer shrugged a shoulder. “I’d like to.”
“How are you going to do that?”
He didn’t answer that question. He just stared blankly ahead at the wall and hoped that Cole would eventually put two and two together.
At one point, the man did lift his head and looked at him with his one eye.
Sawyer could feel the intense gaze but just continued to look at the wall, refusing to break eye contact with it.
His cheeks grew redder and redder by the second.
He couldn’t possibly look at him. It would embarrass him too much.
“Sawyer,” Cole eventually said, narrowing his eye, “How are you going to do that?” He repeated even though Sawyer was pretty sure had figured it out. He probably just wanted to hear it from him. But he didn’t budge. He just stared. “Is that why you asked about my car?” Cole finally asked.
That got Sawyer to look at him.
“You can’t even drive.”
“He can.”
Cole’s brow raised. “He? Who’s he?” Sawyer’s gaze just shifted down towards the floor then back up to Cole. He did that a couple more times. “The guy in the fucking basement?!”
Sawyer swallowed and nodded. “Yeah.”
The man just dropped his hands into his lap and stared at him like he was growing a second head. “You’re a fucking idiot.”
“Cole, c’mon,” Sawyer sighed, “He’s in a bad spot too.”
“I’m not saying he’s not but you’re an idiot for plotting this with him,” Cole rolled his eyes, “Which I assume that’s what you did.”
Sawyer wobbled his head and said, “Well, yeah.”
“I thought you’re not supposed to talk to them.”
“Shit happens, I don’t know what to tell you.”
He huffed and folded his arms across his chest. “Why do you want to help this one?”
That was a bit of a loaded question but a valid one.
He couldn’t very well just come out and say that Milo had the wrong person and that Benji was being set up by his family in some way they weren’t entirely sure of yet.
He also couldn’t admit that he liked Benji.
He thought he was nice, despite the shitty situation he was in.
Sawyer shrugged again. “I’ve wanted to help them all.
This one…I don’t know. I guess it was just the straw that broke the camel’s back. ”
Cole nodded his head a bit, seeming to somewhat understand what Sawyer was saying. He was silent for a bit, tapping his foot against the ground, which he was honestly thankful for. He wasn’t sure he could handle complete silence. “You think about where you’re going?”
That caught him by surprise. “Uh…yeah, a bit. He said there’s a safehouse we can go to. He just needs to contact someone about it.”
“You trust him to do that?”
Another valid question. In their business, it wasn’t smart to trust people that weren’t your own.
People betrayed people all the time. And even in their business, it could get risky trusting your own.
Benji had and look at what happened to him.
And yet, even with that, Sawyer nodded. “Yeah, I do trust him.”
Cole chuckled, “That’s bold.”
“Yeah, I know…” Sawyer sighed.
“And you think it’s a good idea?”
Another good question. Cole was just full of them.
“I don’t know. It’s not like staying here is a good idea either.
I haven’t been happy in years, Cole. I’m tired of Milo.
I’m tired of taking care of practical corpses in a basement.
I’m just…tired.” Every day, it got harder and harder to find a reason to wake up in the morning.
It wasn’t like Sawyer was suicidal or anything.
He just didn’t want to be awake anymore.
But meeting Benji and speaking with him, getting to know him.
He was giving Sawyer a reason to want to wake up again. And he wanted to keep it that way.
Cole’s gaze stayed upon Sawyer for a few long minutes before he licked his lips and shrugged. “When are we leaving?”
“What?!” Sawyer immediately asked. Did he hear him right?
“I said when are we leaving?”
“I-I…I don’t–” Words were escaping him. So many thoughts were running through his head. Cole wanted to come with them? “Seriously? You want to come?”
He shrugged again. “I mean, I have to now, don’t I? You made me an accomplice in this whole thing.”
Sawyer’s jaw slacked a bit and he stammered some more, unsure what to say. “Cole. I-I’m sorry.”
The man waved his hand and stood up from the stool so he could move towards his worn out office chair by his desk. “Nothing to be sorry about. Can’t say I care much about this job. Just do it because it pays alright. But I got enough of it,” he looked back at Sawyer, “When we leaving?” He repeated.
“Um…well, I was thinking about this Thursday or Monday… That’s when most of the bunker is out.”
“Smart, yeah. The less sneaking we have to do the better because no offense, boyo, you probably aren’t going to be the sneakiest in your condition.”
Sawyer couldn’t even be offended because he was probably right. “Yeah. He’s not too great downstairs either but he’s on the mend.”
Cole nodded. “Let’s do Monday. It’ll give you some more time to heal up.”
“Uh, yeah, okay. Sure.” He wasn’t going to argue.
Whatever day Cole wanted, they would go with.
They were really at his mercy. The only unfortunate thing with waiting that long was that Benji would have to endure another round or two of Milo.
But he was sure that he would deal with it if it meant they were leaving.
“Is the plan just to sneak out of here when they’re not watching and get to that safehouse you mentioned?”
“Yeah. He just needs a phone, he said. Then he can contact whoever and they’ll help us.”
“Got it. You think about what if we’re caught?”
Sawyer blinked and shook his head. “No. Not really. I’m just hoping we won’t be.”
“We’ll probably have to fight. Maybe kill,” he paused, “Likely kill.”
He figured as much. “Yeah.”
“Can you do that?”
He shrugged. “Don’t really have a choice, do I?”
“No. Not with this plan of yours.” Cole ran his fingers through his hair. “Can’t believe I’m doing this,” he muttered.
Sawyer stood up and moved closer towards the man. “I-I really appreciate it, Cole. Seriously. I don’t think there’s anything I could do to repay you.”
He smirked. “Probably not,” Cole shrugged. “But you don’t have to repay me. Getting out of here and starting over sounds kind of nice.”
It really did. The more and more Sawyer thought about it, the more excited he got. He was excited to learn more about Benji. He was excited to start life anew. He was excited to learn who he was without the lurking doom of his uncle around. All of it sounded incredible. “I agree…”
“I bet you do,” he chuckled then huffed. “What’s the kid's name in the basement?”
Sawyer blinked a couple times. Technically, he was Andi to the bunker but knowing their plan, he could probably know his real name. “Benji. But don’t mention it to anyone. They think he’s Andi,” Cole’s brow raised. “It’s a long story.”
He just nodded. “I won’t question it.”
“Thanks, Cole. Seriously.”
Reaching out, he gave Sawyer a soft squeeze on his forearm and smiled. “Any day, boyo.” With a new found vigor, he moved back towards the door and threw it open. As he did so, Cole just turned back towards his paperwork like he was none the wiser.
Now they just had to survive until Monday.