by Claire Adams
“Ana, are you sure what you saw was real?”
The question would have infuriated me if I hadn’t thought it myself. I wasn’t sure. But only because the night the raccoon pillaged through the garbage, I had felt like it was so real. I didn’t trust my own mind at all, and as much as I wanted to think everything I had seen was real, I couldn’t be one hundred percent.
“I think it was. I’m sorry. I really do, but after the other night I don’t know.”
“What color were the curtains? You said you had to look through a window. What color were the curtains?”
“They were blue.”
“Okay, finish packing as quickly as possible. It will take me three minutes to grab the essentials, and we will leave. Don’t go outside the door until I am ready. Just pack your things and wait right here.”
I had no idea why the color of the curtains seemed to matter to Nate, but I was happy he believed me and we were leaving. I grabbed all my things and threw them into the suitcase and then stood in the hallway as I waited for Nate.
He had a black pack under his bed that was already packed with things, but then he went into his closet and grabbed a second bag that he filled with items, including the cashbox that he had on the floor. I also saw him grab what looked like a gun out of his nightstand. He flung both black duffel bags over one shoulder and we headed toward the front door.
Nate took a minute to look out each direction from the house before he went out to the Jeep and dropped it right up to the front door. I closed the door to the house and locked it before I rushed to his Jeep and got in.
My heart was pounding with the excitement of what we were doing. I couldn’t help but think that it was entirely possible that we were being followed though. But I knew I was in good hands with Nate. Even if my own paranoia wasn’t letting me see what was going on in a clear light, I knew Nate could see what to do.
“Are we going to Jordan’s house?” I asked as we pulled onto the main road.
“No, if they are following us, we can’t go anywhere near Chase and Jordan. It’s not safe. I’ll buy a burner phone and get a message to Chase through his assistant though.”
The way Nate talked was incredible. He was calm and seemed like he knew exactly what to do. I wished I could think so clearly in times of stress. But for me, stress often brought about such confusion that I didn’t do anything but freeze. This happened to me long before everything went down with Stephano. I just was never really able to handle stressful situations.
I always longed to be one of those people who could be a private investigator or a security officer like Nate was. I loved watching spy movies and imagining what it would be like to run and escape the evil guys. I just lacked the skills and confidence to ever do such a job. Nate was right about one thing: I was just a skinny blonde who didn’t know what she was doing and it wasn’t likely I could save myself, and certainly not anyone else.
“So, where are we going?”
“Let’s just wait and see. I can’t be certain this car is safe. We need to get rid of it.”
“What? What do you mean this car isn’t safe?” I asked as I looked around the vehicle in search of a bomb or something.
“I just think they might have a tracker on this, so they know where we are at. I’ve got a friend who owns a car dealership. We will leave this one at the police station and then walk to the dealership and get an inconspicuous car. Are you good to carry your bag?”
Nate looked at me and knew I was exhausted. I wasn’t exactly sure how far I had run out to the meadow and back, but my legs felt like Jell-O. It didn’t matter. I would do whatever was necessary to keep up with Nate and get to wherever we needed to go.
“I’m fine.”
“I’ll need to run into the police station to make a quick phone call when we get there. You can grab some water and use the restroom. I’m not sure how long we will be on the road and I won’t want to stop.”
His words were firm, and I could tell I would need to have a delicate balance between staying hydrated and using the restroom. I certainly didn’t want to have to make him stop for a potty break when we were on the run from men trying to kill me. My thoughts started to swirl as I tried to remember when the last time I ate or drank anything was. But then, as if reading my mind, Nate grabbed a bottle of water from behind his seat and handed it to me.
“Drink this now, then fill it up at the police station. I’ve got a protein bar in the bag; find it and eat it now. How long was your run this morning?”
“Probably ten miles or so.”
“Yeah, eat something, please, and drink that water.”
I did as he asked and then sat quietly as he drove us straight to the police station in Atlanta. I had expected him to take twists and turns to avoid being followed, but he didn’t seem to think it was necessary. I trusted Nate. No matter what was coming for me, I knew I was in the best hands possible.
Chapter Fourteen
NATE
I trusted the information Ana had given me. She might not trust her brain at all, but I knew that if she had seen and remembered the color of the curtains, it was real. A visual hallucination didn’t have colors or details that people could remember. What I didn’t know was how Stephano’s people knew where we were at and why they hadn’t attacked us or tried to hurt Ana yet. It didn’t make sense to me why they were just watching, unless they had been waiting to grab Ana again.
I hadn’t left her alone much, and if they weren’t constantly watching the house, they might not have even known I had left her at all. I didn’t like the idea of them getting so close to her. I hated the idea of leaving her in the U.S. while I went to my job overseas in just another day. It was agonizing to think of, and I couldn’t figure out a plan where I felt like she would be safe.
We made it to the police station and I parked my Jeep right in front of the building. With Ana close behind me, we went inside and I got my friend to come talk to me for a minute while Ana used the restroom.
“Hey, Leon,” I said as I saw him down one of the hallways. “I need your help.”
“Sure, what’s up, Nate?”
“My Jeep is out front. Can you take it over to the impound lot for me? I need it somewhere safe.”
Leon laughed at me. It wasn’t often that someone asked to have their vehicle impounded. But it was one of the safest places for me to store my Jeep and not have to worry about it being messed with.
“Sure, where is it?”
“It’s right out front. You can just report it and have it towed if that’s easier.”
“I’ll make sure it gets there. Is everything all right? You safe?”
“Yeah, I’m good. Can’t stay and chat long though. I appreciate you, man.”
“Let’s show that appreciation by actually showing up to poker night sometime,” Leon yelled after me as I walked back down the hall.
“I’ll be there next month if I can.”
It was a commitment without committing, something I was excellent at doing. Leon was one of my friends who had known my brothers and me since we were all children. He had joined the military but never made it into the Special Forces and ended up being hit by an IED while on his last deployment. He wasn’t on disability, but he walked with a limp, and he was alive. He probably could have given up and gotten on disability, but that wasn’t Leon. He wanted to work and he found a job he loved at the police force.
I used to feel bad for Leon because he was a janitor and couldn’t work in the action of the police force, but he knocked some sense into me. His life was simple and perfect. He had a wife and three children, a good paycheck, and great benefits. I often found myself jealous of his life instead of him being jealous of mine. The freedom to truly relax and enjoy his life was the gift that Leon got when he was injured.
I called my friend at the car dealership from the payphone at the police station. He found me a nice, four-door, inconspicuous car and had it gassed up and waiting for us when we got there 30 minutes later.
I was impressed with how well Ana kept up with me as we had walked the two and a half miles rather quickly. Our pace had to be fast enough that we could get there as quickly as possible, but not so fast that we drew attention from people as they drove buy. Ana did great, especially considering she had run ten miles only a few hours before.
My gut said we should go north instead of south, so that was the way we drove. I stopped to grab a couple burner phones from a gas station and put Ana to work programming them and adding each other’s cell numbers into each of the phones. If I was separated from Ana, I wanted to have a way of reaching her. Although I couldn’t imagine being separated from her at all. I wasn’t going to let her out of my sights. I couldn’t risk something happening to her.
“Are you still going to Syria?” Ana asked as we drove north.
I didn’t know how to answer her. Of course I was still going. There were six families in a war-torn city trapped in their building. The company that had hired me was desperate to get them out and I couldn’t just abandon them. But I couldn’t abandon Ana, either. I had to find a solution. I had to figure out something that could keep Ana safe.
“I don’t know,” I lied to her.
I wasn’t much of a liar. That had never really been my thing. I preferred the truth in almost every situation; I just didn’t think it was right for what was going on at that moment. One thing I did notice, though, was that Ana’s hands weren’t shaking. She wasn’t panicked at all and she seemed very focused. It surprised me. Especially after all the struggles she had been having, I had expected I would have to comfort her and guide her through our escape, but I hadn’t had to do any of that. Ana listened to me and she did exactly as I asked without asking questions or hesitating. It impressed me.
The look in her eyes told me that she didn’t believe my answer at all, but she let it go and didn’t respond. I just didn’t have the energy to discuss my trip to Syria at the moment; I had to concentrate on getting Ana to safety. There was no way I could get my assignment completed when I got to Syria if I was constantly worrying about Ana’s safety. So, I had about 24 hours to get that figured out. My concentration had to be totally on Ana and how to ensure she was in the best location possible.
We drove for at least five hours before I had to pull over and get some gas. It was a quick stop; I filled the vehicle up with gas and we grabbed some snacks and used the restrooms. America was pretty amazing when you were on the road. You could stop at rest areas and get back onto the road in less than five minutes.
“Where are we going?” Ana asked.
“Washington D.C.”
“Why?”
“I know people there.”
That was all I needed to say, and Ana was quiet again. She looked out over the countryside as we made our way toward the capital city. We were silent for a good hour without saying another word, but then there was something I had to tell Ana.
“I’m sorry for how I talked to you last night. That was uncalled for and I didn’t mean it.”
“Okay,” she said without looking at me.
If only Ana knew just how hard it was for me to actually apologize, maybe she would have reacted differently. But it didn’t matter; I had apologized because I hated that I had actually talked to her like that. I didn’t want Ana to go away and I certainly believed she would be an asset to me anywhere she was at. Ana was stronger than I gave her credit for and my jerk reaction had most likely ruined any chance that we would be anything other than friends.
But that was what I did. I ruined the prospect of real relationships so I could avoid any feelings or connections. It was so much harder to do my job if I was connected to someone. It was impossible to risk my life if I was worried about making it home to someone I loved. The only solution I had found was to avoid loving people, avoid caring about people, and just be alone as much as possible.
Yet, I still felt like shit.
Ana was making my mind think of all sorts of things. I imagined what it would be like to keep her around for longer than just a couple of weeks and I liked it. I hadn’t met a woman who liked to run as I did or wanted to learn how to actually kill people. She was unique and like no woman I had ever met.
The fact that she had horrible PTSD didn’t make me like her any less. In fact, I admired her for how hard she was working to overcome what she had been through. Ana was tough, much tougher than she gave herself credit for, and I shouldn’t have underestimated her.
“We are going to a friend’s house here. I’m going to say you’re my girlfriend,” I told Ana as we pulled into the city.
“Okay, do I get to kiss you again?” she asked with a smile.
It caught me off guard. I expected that she was still angry with me. I hadn’t expected any sort of flirting like she had just done. My stomach was in knots like a teenager who had just been flirted with by his crush.
“If you want.”
“I want.”
I had to keep my eyes on the road, but I reached over and grabbed Ana’s hand. I didn’t have anything special I wanted to say, but it felt comforting to have her close to me. I desperately needed to figure out a way to keep her safe while I was in Syria. There was no way around it; I wasn’t going to let anything bad happen to her.
“Whose house is this?” Ana said as we pulled into a residential area of Washington D.C.
I didn’t respond to her right away as I tried to navigate the roads and find the house I was looking for. It didn’t take me too long though and I pulled into the driveway and got out quickly. I grabbed all three of our bags and opened the door for Ana to follow me up to the house. It was after midnight by the time we got there, and I knew they wouldn’t be expecting us.
“It’s my boss’s house,” I finally answered as I ran the bell.
“What? Why are we here?”
“Because I know you will be safe here while I’m gone.”
We heard the barking noise of what sounded like it was a huge dog. Shortly after, I saw my boss as he looked out the window and then quickly opened the front door. He had a handgun in one hand and was holding onto his pit bull with the other.
“What the hell are you doing here?” he asked in total surprise.
I’m sure he didn’t even realize that I knew his address. My boss had actually done a very good job of hiding his assets under his wife’s maiden name. But when I had been checking into him and researching the company before I came to work for him, I made sure to investigate every aspect of his life.
River Blankenship was a good man. He sucked at running a company and would soon be bankrupt, but he was a good guy and I knew he did the best with the resources he had. Unfortunately, his best wasn’t that great, and when I opened up my company, I would surely drive him into total bankruptcy.
“She’s being hunted. There’s a hit on her and I can’t keep her with me anymore. She’s my girlfriend and I need to know she will be safe or I can’t take the job tomorrow.”
I was putting him in a horrible position and I knew it. He couldn’t back out of our job in Syria; he had probably already accepted the very large payment. But having someone in his home who had a hit out on her would put his whole family in risk. I didn’t have another option though. Putting Ana’s safety at his feet was the best option I could think of to ensure she would be protected.
Mr. Blankenship opened the door wide enough for us to come in and then he locked it and set his alarm code. He pulled his dog with him and into a back bedroom and then sat us both down in his living room. I didn’t like the look in his eyes, but I was prepared to stick out whatever it was he wanted to say. His home, with his family, was the safest place for Ana and I knew it. No one else would have as much to lose as he would.
“Nate, my wife and kids are here. What are you thinking bringing her to my house? Were you followed? Tracked? How do you know you’re safe?”
I went through the events of the night to try and reassure him that I had done everything that needed to be done
to ensure we had not been followed. I told him about leaving the car at the police station, getting a new one, the throw-away phones, and paying cash for everything. He really should have known I wouldn’t have done anything stupid and I knew how to disappear without being tracked, but I understood his concern and obliged him by answering his questions.
We talked for a good twenty minutes before he brought Ana and I to a spare room in his basement. He had reluctantly agreed to allow Ana to stay there, but he wasn’t sure yet how he was going to explain it all to his wife.
Ana had sat quietly through our conversation and followed me into the bedroom when we got downstairs. She didn’t say a word until my boss had shut the door and made his way back upstairs.
“A dungeon bedroom again for me,” she said softly as she laid down on the bed.
My heart sank at her words. The room certainly did look an awful lot like the room I had rescued her from at Stephano’s house. There was only one small window high up on the wall and nothing else in the room beside a bed and one dresser. I hated that she would have to stay in that room while I was gone and I could only hope that my job wouldn’t take very long. If everything went as planned, I could be back and by her side in less than two weeks.
“You are safe here. That’s what really matters. I’ll have him get you a treadmill and some weights so you can work out. As well as a television to keep you entertained.”
It all seemed like very little in consolation for being trapped in a basement for her own safety.
Chapter Fifteen
ANA
I didn’t really mind the basement room that Nate’s boss had given me. That wasn’t what was on my mind. What I didn’t like was being made to feel like I was helpless in taking care of myself or that I needed to hide. I didn’t want to give up my life and hide from Stephano. I wasn’t going to give him that kind of power.
Whether Nate liked it or not, I couldn’t stay in that house and just sit there and wait for him to get back from his job. Something inside me had been building over the last few weeks and I felt more powerful than I had ever felt in my life. I felt like I could take on the world.
