Running With The Tiger

by Bonnie Burrows

  She slid into the car and buckled her seat belt.

  “How are you feeling?” Tom asked, though his voice held no hint of concern.

  “I’m starting to feel better. Hopefully, that will last.”

  “Well, try to keep your shit under control long enough for us to get out of Kansas. We should have hit the Colorado border by now.”

  “I’m sorry. I’ll do my best.”

  Tom grunted and threw the car into gear, all but pealing out of the graveled lot and back onto the road. He entered the highway already at the speed limit, pushing the car until it was just under five miles above the posted speed limit. Cambria laid her head against the window, trying to get some rest while she could. Her next opportunity to flee could come at a moment’s notice, and she was exhausted.

  CHAPTER 14

  Tom shook Cambria awake roughly. She looked around, blinking her surroundings into focus before her gaze landed on Tom. Cambria nearly jumped in shock, but managed to catch herself in time.

  “This our last stop for a while so you need to go to the bathroom and grab a light snack if your stomach can handle it.”

  Cambria looked at the clock, shocked to see that it was only four in the afternoon. “Where are we?” She was trying to milk the sleepy passenger bit for all it was worth to give herself ample time to take in her surroundings. Luckily, Tom fell for it.

  “We’re at the border of Colorado, Kansas and Nebraska.”

  “All three states touch?” Cambria didn’t have to fake surprise. US Geography was on the long list of things that she’d never learned.

  “They do here. Get out. We don’t have much time. I want to hit Wyoming by nightfall. We only have a small corner of Colorado to drive through. If you hurry, we can make it.”

  Cambria didn’t know what happened at dark, but she didn’t like the sound in his voice. He had a plan; she just didn’t know what it was. She got out of the car, heading straight for the external bathrooms. Tom was on her heels, passing her when she stopped at the women’s door and shouldering his way into the men’s bathroom.

  A rest stop employee was in the bathroom cleaning after the lunch time rush. The girl was the same age as Cambria, if not younger. She smiled shyly at Cambria as she finished wiping down the last of the bathroom mirrors. Cambria walked up to her, slipping another hundred dollar bill she’d pulled out of her jacket lining at the last stop out of her pocket. She grabbed the girl’s hand, looking into her eyes.

  “There’s going to be a man named Egan asking about me. I’m leaving him a message on the mirror. Please don’t erase it and please stay in the bathroom until I’ve left.” Cambria kept her voice soft, hardly above a whisper the entire time she spoke. “The man who has me won’t hesitate to kill you if he suspects anything so please, wait five minutes after I leave the bathroom before you do. Do you understand?”

  The girl nodded, her eyes widening when Cambria removed her hand and she saw the money Cambria had left in her palm. Cambria hurriedly drew the same message on this mirror as the last, hoping that Egan would end up at this rest stop. It was a long shot, but he was drawn to her energy so hopefully that led him part of the way there. Luck would have to do the rest.

  She walked out of the bathroom at the same time Tom did and she smiled brightly at him, reaching out for his hand. If Tom was surprised by her affection, he hid it well. He squeezed her hand and led her into the convenience store. He sailed down the aisles quickly, loading her down with snack foods and candies before going to the counter to pay. He threw a wad of bills on the counter and ushered Cambria out without waiting for his change, or for them to ring up his purchases.

  The cashier who almost as young as the girl in the bathroom, stood with his mouth open, but didn’t say anything. Cambria held her breath, hoping that they would get out the door and to their car without the foolish boy running after them to give Tom his change. Cambria didn’t relax until the pulled out of the lot and back onto the highway without incident. She thanked her lucky stars that nothing bad had happened even as she watched Tom begin to pack away his second candy bar since they’d entered the car.

  Cambria timidly reached for the bag of beef jerky she’d purchased, trying to keep Tom’s attention on his snacks. He was already opening a bag of potato chips, alternating bites between it and the chocolate.

  She ate in silence, taking slow bites and chewing thoroughly. She wondered what it was that Tom was taking out of the orange prescription bottle, but she couldn’t see the label without touching the bottle. Even if she could, she wouldn’t be able to read it. She slumped in the chair in frustration, violently ripping at her food and washing it down with some cola she’d picked up.

  All at once, Tom stopped binging and took a long swig of his highly caffeinated soda. “That’s much better.” He turned and smiled at her, his face sporting several smudges of chocolate and his shirt littered with potato chip crumbs. “I was so hungry.” He rolled his eyes in ecstasy and went back to driving the car. It was almost as if the last five minutes hadn’t happened.

  Tom continued speeding through traffic, careful to keep the speedometer close to the posted limit so he didn’t attract any unwanted attention. Cambria slumped down in her seat, trying to get a little more rest. The car pitching to and fro as he wove in and out of traffic made it nearly impossible to sleep, so she closed her eyes and tried to calm herself. With every mile, Cambria was feeling more and more panicky. The longer she was with Tom, the more certain she was that she wasn’t going to get out of this alive.

  She watched the miles go by, wishing she was back at the campsite with Egan. If only she’d gone with him. A single tear slid from beneath her tightly closed eyelid and down her cheek. For one sweet week, life had been good. And now, now it was hell again. The car slowed to a stop and Cambria looked around in surprise. She hadn’t meant to fall to sleep, but it had happened.

  “Where are we?” she asked.

  “We just crossed into Wyoming. We’re going to bed down here and start fresh in the morning.” He squeezed her thigh and looked into her eyes, licking his lips and raking his gaze down her body crudely. “I could use a little refreshment to get me through the night, if you know what I mean.”

  Cambria smiled at him, trying to push back the urge to scream and run. She was going to have to think of something fast. She bit her lip and looked at the zippered front of his jeans. “Sounds good to me. Do you want me to run in and pay for the room?”

  “No. I called in a favor. The room is already paid for.”

  He slid the car into park in front of the door and stepped out. A small, bulletproof glass window gave customers access to the cashier when the doors were locked for the night. Cambria was surprised to see that it wasn’t quite dark and the doors were already locked tight.

  Apparently this wasn’t the best neighborhood. Maybe someone will kidnap me, she thought and laughed aloud at herself. If only.

  Tom jumped back into the car and pulled to the end of a long row of single story hotel rooms. He put the car in park and reached behind the seat to get his overnight bag. “Didn’t you bring anything with you?” he asked.

  Cambria stared at him. Was he serious? Had he forgotten that he’d removed her from the woods at gunpoint and had barely allowed her time to put on her shoes? “No. I guess I forgot. Sorry,” she said, stumbling over the words and hoping she’d said the right thing.

  “It’s no big deal. When we get home to Montana tomorrow, all your clothes will be there. What’s one night?”

  His smile sent a chill up her spine. Any doubt that she’d had before that Tom was completely out of his mind faded right then and there. At some point, their entire story had changed for him. Who knew what he would remember upon waking tomorrow, and if he would wake up blaming her for everything that had happened.

  Cambria got out of the car, looking around the parking lot and walking slowly towards the hotel room door. Tom shoved the key roughly in the lock and opened the door. A wave of stale ci
garette smoke washed over them, but Tom was oblivious. Cambria on the other hand was overcome with nausea.

  “Can we open the windows? I want to let some fresh air in.”

  Tom handed her his bag and moved to open the windows, grinning broadly as if he’d done something grand for his love. He took two steps towards her, his hands out to cup her cheeks as he leaned in to kiss her.

  “Wait.”

  He pulled back, looking at her quizzically. “What’s wrong, my love?”

  “I’m so hungry that I feel nauseous. I really need to eat real food or I may throw up again.”

  That did the trick. Tom jumped back a few feet dramatically, his face twisted with disgust. “Do you think eating is the right thing to do?”

  “I’m not sure. I need to lay down. Maybe you can get me something to eat and bring it back here? I was thinking I could rest up, then eat so I can be ready for you.” She took a step towards him and grabbed his waistband, pulling him closer. She looked into his eyes, her hazel eyes soft with longing.

  “I could try to go to bed with you now, I’m just afraid that I’ll get sick again—"

  “No! No, that won’t be necessary. What do you want to eat?”

  “I didn’t see any of the restaurants when we got here. Is there a taco place nearby? I think I’d like something along those lines. Or maybe a salad.”

  “I think I saw something a few miles back that could’ve been a taco shop.”

  Cambria licked her lips slowly, pitching her voice low and moaning seductively. “That sounds so delicious.” She winked at him, “Almost as delicious as you.”

  Tom gathered up his keys and grabbed his wallet out of the overnight bag. “Lock the door behind me and don’t answer it for anyone, you got that?”

  “Of course I won’t. You have a key and I’ll be asleep.”

  Tom kissed her forehead. “Get some rest. You’re going to be busy tonight.”

  Without another word he was gone, backing quickly out of the parking space and turning right onto the divided two lane highway that ran in front of the hotel. Cambria pressed her face against the glass and watched his taillights disappear.

  Cambria slipped out of the hotel room, closing it casually behind her and walking towards the road as nonchalantly as possible. She was still dressed all in black. She hoped that it provided some measure of cover and that darkness came soon. If not, she was going to be screwed.

  She reached the gravel path that ran along the road in place of an actual sidewalk and looked forlornly to the left. Tom had gone right for a reason; most of the businesses were located in that direction heading into town. To her left, there were lights, but they were further away. It didn’t matter, she couldn’t risk going the same way as he did.

  She went left, pulling the hood of her coat over her head and taking up a light jog. She kept her eyes on the ground in front of her and tried to keep her pace steady. There were several homes and apartment complexes in this area, so a jogger that was running towards traffic wouldn’t be an odd sight in this neighborhood. She didn’t want to draw any attention to herself if she could help it, at least not before she got somewhere with a lot more people.

  Tom had mentioned calling in a favor, but he hadn’t been very specific. She didn’t know how many friends he had in this area, or if a friend of a friend had helped him. Regardless, she couldn’t be too careful.

  The lights from the distant business were growing closer and Cambria was starting to feel a glimmer of hope. She wasn’t more than a half mile from the nearest business, a small mom and pop burger shop from what she could tell. She heard tires screech and knew without looking that it was Tom. Across the highway, on the other side of a low, concrete barrier he had slammed on his breaks. His face was incredulous and even in the gray light; she could see his rage.

  He floored it, spinning the tires and barreling towards the open turn lane almost a quarter of a mile ahead. Even if she ran, she would never make it to the business before he did. She turned around and ran the other direction, heading for a gated apartment complex she had passed minutes before. If she could get there fast enough, she might be able to hop the wrought iron fence and disappear into the complex.

  She was so close, pushing herself as hard as she could. Tires shrieked behind her as Tom took the u turn much too fast. Horns blared and tired locked up in an effort to avoid a collision. An engine revved and Cambria pushed harder, grabbing the top of the fence and pulling herself up with all her might. Tom was coming after her, and he wasn’t letting anything get in his way.

  THE FINAL CHAPTER

  Egan cursed under his breath when the tire iron slipped, slamming his knuckles into the asphalt. He tightened the last of the lug nuts quickly, tossing the blown tire in the trunk and jumping into the car. He checked the time and cursed his bad luck. He was now at least forty-five minutes behind them, if not more. He pulled back into traffic, shoving the accelerator to the floor and praying that there were no cops on the road.

  His car ate up mile after mile, but the feeling that he was nearly out of time ran through his mind. Every minute she was with Tom was a minute too long. He’d already wasted so much time, pulling into a gas station that he’d felt compelled to visit. A quick chat with the cashier confirmed that Cambria had indeed been there. The man had even directed him to a message on the bathroom mirror and had given him a partial license plate and description of the vehicle.

  But the picture was smudged and hastily drawn. Egan couldn’t make sense of what she was trying to say. If only he’d given her a cellphone he could trace, or any other way of contacting him. But he’d been so sure of his plan, he hadn’t even considered any other alternative.

  He slammed his fist into the steering wheel, furious at himself for every misstep. So many “what ifs” were running through his mind that he couldn’t keep up. But the outcome was the same: Cambria was gone, and he didn’t know where she was headed.

  Coming up on the border Kansas shared with Colorado and Nebraska, he faced a dilemma. The interstates split several different ways here. The magnetism he felt for her wasn’t an exact science. More than once, he’d taken the wrong exit for a few minutes before realizing that he didn’t feel the drive anymore that came along with her energy. So he would turn around, wasting valuable time retracing his steps just to pick up her trail again.

  A large rest area was up ahead, and Egan hoped that this place would yield more clues. He parked haphazardly and jumped out of the car. A young girl walked around the grassy area, using a bucket and a long stick with a sharp point to pick up litter around the grounds. Egan went directly to her, inexplicably drawn to her.

  “Miss, can I ask you a question?”

  She nodded.

  “My name is Egan. Have you seen a woman here, about this tall, brown hair and-”

  “She left you a message in the women’s restroom. I made sure no one cleaned it off.” She set her bucket down, leading the way to the exterior bathrooms. She set an “out of order” sign on the door and let him in.

  The same crude drawing was on the mirror, though this one wasn’t smudged.

  “Did she talk to you?”

  “She did. She said that you would come looking for her.”

  “Did she say anything else? Anything at all?”

  “Not to me, but she was talking to herself. She kept saying “Wyoming” to herself. She held a pencil over the glass but didn’t write. She just drew that picture and left.”

  Egan looked at the picture again, realization suddenly dawning on him. They were going to Montana. He was sure of it. She’d mentioned wanting to live in Montana before. But either direction at the split would eventually lead them to Montana, either by way of South Dakota or Wyoming.

  “Are you sure she said Wyoming?”

  “Yes sir.”

  He thanked the girl and ran from the bathroom. With a renewed sense of hope, he entered the highway and went northwest, heading into Colorado on his way to Wyoming. He flipped the vis
or down to block the low-hanging sun and rummaged through the center consul for a pair of sunglasses. A sign informed him that he was less than one hundred miles from the Wyoming border. He would be there just before nightfall at this rate.

  Egan pushed the car harder, willing the miles to go faster as he went. As the miles flew by, he felt her presence more strongly than before. He was close, closer than he had been in some time. He was going to find her. He just hoped that he wouldn’t be too late.

  Egan’s phone rang and he hit the speaker button, his brother’s voice filling the car. “Any news?” Sable asked.

  “She’s been leaving a trail of breadcrumbs. They’re heading to Montana via Wyoming.”

  “Why?”

  “I don’t know. I think she’s trying to tell me something. The other day she told me she’d always wanted to live in Montana. I’m hoping she somehow convinced Tom that Montana was as good a place as any to go. Or it’s just a coincidence.”

  “Why do you think that?”

  “I don’t know, Sable. There was no sign of a struggle. It was like she just walked out with him. I want to believe that she didn’t, and that the things she told me before she disappeared were true.” Egan took a deep breath before continuing. “But she admitted that Laskin planned to use her to get to me if his plan with Grace backfired. She all but said he expected her to use her body to manipulate me and to get to you.”

  “Do you think that’s what happened?”

  “I don’t know what to think. I just don’t.”

  “Where are you now?”

  “I’m about forty miles from the Wyoming border. Every mile I drive, I feel her more strongly than before. She’s here, Sable.”

  “What if she doesn’t want to come with you?”

  Egan had considered that, and the possibility broke his heart. “I don’t know. I’m starting to think that kidnapping her wasn’t the right plan.”

  “If you hadn’t, she’d be in jail now, or possibly even dead.”