The Long Road (away from) Home (Open)

[Khadaji2002]

"As far as other names...I'm Nick. I use aliases when I don't want my movement traced, that's all. So call me Nick in private, but I'm Bryan for right now to the outside world." He glanced at her then back at the road. "You...have an identity problem that you need to figure out, lady. Sharks like this Nathan seems to be smell that indecision and home in on it." Like he wanted to...

"I'm not suggesting any particular solution. For now...what IDs do you have? Pick one of those names. That's what I'll call you. It'll keep us consistent. You can figure out who you really are as we go."

He stopped talking. She was exhausted and fighting to stay awake. To help him? Because she thought he'd take advantage of her? Probably both and more. Dammit. Being stuck in the car with her was making him uncomfortable in more ways that one. She was walking wounded mentally and spiritually. Predators would pick that up any time they met her. So he'd need to stay alert.

And watching her made him...twitch. She was attractive enough, but there was something under the surface that made him want her. And made him want to learn about her, who she was and what she wanted. He wanted to possess...yet protect her. That duality was turning him on. A lot. He'd have to lock himself down, sexually. She needed a protector, not a fuck buddy.

The miles rolled on, and very early in the morning he pulled the truck off yet another two-lane macadam road and onto a driveway resembling a cart trail. After winding back more than a mile the cabin came into view. Solidly built with a single powerline coming in from somewhere off in the distance. Trees stood around the cabin, but none nearer than 200 yards. The circle around the cabin had no bushes, nothing taller than uncut grass still not more than a foot high.

"Nice to see Gary's still taking care of the place." He got out, pulled his duffel from the cab and got his rifle bag out of the toolbox in the back. "Come in when you're ready. I'll get the lights on and the water heater turned up. You should be able to take a shower in 30 minutes or so." He walked over the to the cabin. Sitting right on the ground there was no porch or patio that she could she from here. The door looked fairly standard. He unlocked it and disappeared inside. Soon a couple of lights came on.

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[Ginfizz]

Basically, he'd just said "Lady, you're a flake," and while she agreed, she sank into her seat a bit more, curving around the little pocket of other such observations one could have - and had- made of her. He was right, though. Whereas he was changing names, he only "wore" them as uniforms for respective jobs. She'd tried too hard to become someone else, so that she had no default. She was scattered.

It didn't seem like that much longer, and the soft bank and crunch of tires alerted her to their having reached one of who knew how many destinations. She had dozed after all, and reflected that it was easier than stilted conversation that just gave her more chances to irritate him. She nodded to indicate she'd heard Bryan, then took her time climbing stiffly from the cab, stretching and yawning quite hugely, and then breathing in deeply of the dewy late-summer air.

The place was beautiful and remote, someplace she'd have loved to live, but she reminded herself not to dick around or she wouldn't be alive to do so, and reached for the duffel bag and empty coffee mugs.

Inside, the place was as Spartan as she'd expected for a safe-house, but it wasn't necessarily primitive. She'd meant to check it out more, but she also wanted to get her stuff squared for a shower. Inside one end zip-pocket was a small zipkit of travel potions: shampoo, toothpaste, the basics. She produced that, and another pair of jeans, a black tee-shirt, underwear, and socks, then a longer tee and shorts for sleepwear. The bag was big enough to hold a week's worth of clothing and then some, designed for truckers, towboaters and the like, but it only held two more of each article of clothing, and the rest of why she was running to start with.

With a soft sigh, she unfastened and removed the small holster and pistol, letting it carefully drop to the couch-arm. The safety was on, so she didn't worry. "Is there anything you need me to do?" She queried, not having sighted him yet.

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[Khadaji2002]

"Nope, I'm just finishing setting up the coffee maker to start brewing in seven hours. Best alarm clock I know. We don't have much for breakfast, but we can scratch up what we've got and hit the road. I know the temptation is to hit fast food all the time on the road, but we should do at least two sit-down restaurants a day. Better quality food and a chance to stretch our legs. Makes it a bit harder for a tail to stay unnoticed, as well."

He emerged from the kitchen. He watched her unpack, nodding at the simplicity of her gear. But mostly...he watched her. She wasn't a skinny woman, but wonderfully curved. Green eyes just a bit paler than emeralds. Hair that screamed, "I'm Irish, so fuck me!" Freckles dusted across her face and neck. He wanted to kiss his way down that trail to see where they stopped-

He broke that line of thought off, hard. She was in essence his client now. And those thoughts weren't appropriate for a client. So....down boy. Dammit, down!!

"Water should be getting hot enough for you to shower. I'll shower after you're done. Rack out on the bed, I'll do the same on the couch." He didn't move, waiting for her to head for the shower.

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[Ginfizz]

She had absolutely zero objections to ditching McDonald's. Sure, it had been her survival go-to along the way, and eating absolute trash wrapped up so enticingly in a little paper wrapper had been quite a novelty, but she was quite ready for something a bit more real, after having the chance to do her own cooking at the bar for a little while.

Pausing, she took barely a second to think of the kind people who'd just lost their livelihood because of her, not to mention the other wanderers who came and went who'd found what they needed at The Rose of The Roadside. Then, she drew a slow, shaky breath, pushed it all down, and disappeared into the bathroom before her eyes could betray the worry for what she'd just dragged Bryan into.

Long, steamy showers with hot jets of water that pelted the day's aches and fatigue from her muscles were no longer possible, if she didn't want the cabin's owner to freeze parts he thought important off, so she washed hair and hide quickly and stepped out before the steam had the chance to properly blanket everything. After she dressed, she cleaned everything up and wiped the surfaces down to rid the room of traces of her, namely those coppery stray strands like the ones she now braided over her shoulder. She grimaced briefly as she remembered straight, silky hair wouldn't be an option... The iron was still in the hotel, and it'd have taken too long for someone on the run anyway.

"I got some granola bars, if you want one? They tide me over when I'm too busy for real stuff, or just don't want a whole lot," she offered as she sat down on the couch to re-assemble her bag. Her eyes wandered over to her host, and unbidden, the blurred mental image of him showering came to her, water rolling over his life-hardened body, his hands sluicing his warm skin. He'd smell like steam, soap, and that undefinable scent that was his own personal signature that hadn't escaped her notice.

Blinking, she continued placidly taking stock nd refolding things, though her palms had gotten faintly sweaty-gross- with her mental wanderings.

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[Khadaji2002]

Her shower was surprisingly short. He'd figured he'd be doing the seaman's shower: Get wet, turn the water off and soap, turn the water back on to rinse, fast. Rosie...Maggie...whoever she would be thought about that. Damn, she was all over the map. Hurt, scared, withdrawn, beautiful, thoughtful, sexy-

"Granola will get us a little bit down the road. I can fry up some bacon from the freezer. I've got freeze-dried eggs. Not the best in the world but fried up in the bacon grease you can almost forget they're green and rubbery." Without waiting for a reply, he went into the bathroom with his clean boxers and shorts. He too took a quick shower, noting the care she'd taken to leave no trace of her here. He wouldn't bother, of course. If someone tracked them here they'd know who he was.

He got out, toweled off, and walked into the main room. "Bedroom's back there," he pointed to the door off the kitchen. "Rack out if you can, get some rest either way. We'll leave after breakfast." He spread out a sleeping bag, unmindful of the fact that in just shorts a person could see two bullet-scar puckers on his left abdomen, obvious through-and-throughs. Or the jagged scar along one thigh. Or the weal of newer scar tissue running a short distance down his left pectoral. He lay down and covered up. "Lights for the kitchen are by the door to the bedroom. Mind turning 'em off as you go?"

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[Ginfizz]

Not that she was really anal about organization, but making sure everything was in working order and accessible was important in her situation. As Bryan emerged from the bathroom, she'd perched on the arm of the couch and was putting a few things from her duffel beside her into her purse on her lap. She was focused on that until the sleeping bag's roll came to a halt right over a tube of BBcream she quickly rescued. After she picked up her bags off his makeshift bed, her eyes traveled up his partially bare legs, pausing here and there over some of the marks she saw... And then lingered on his torso as he spoke.

Plenty of men were lean and muscled, even Nathan had a boytoxed bowflex body that had appealed to her at one time in the past, but there was something different about that kind of natural-sitting, familiar bulk of musculature that comprised a working man's body that cosmetic endeavors never, ever could achieve. Was it wrong to look? Bad timing? Reddening slightly, the corner of her mouth turned up a shadow as she ventured a half-hearted protest. "Are you *sure* you wouldn't be more comfortable back there? Chivalry aside- and don't think I'm not grateful- it *is* your bed," she pointed out, her eyes traveling from his back down to the scarred-over bullet tear. He had been banged up and knocked around, but his body was in great (fucking *fabulous*) shape... Still, though, she knew from experiences in the youth before Nathan that old scars could still hurt like a bitch if folded wrong. She flat felt guilty being comfortable, if someone around her wasn't. Not that she was aware of it as a shortcoming- or even at all- but what a critical button the wrong person could- did- push...

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[Khadaji2002]

Nick watched her looking at his body, aware now that she was looking not just observing. Oh, yeah. This was going to make things complicated. So now he not only had to ride herd on his own hormones, he'd have to watch for her actions as well. Alright, that was doable. Maybe.

"You aren't as light a sleeper as I am. At least, I'm not betting my life on an unknown like that. I'll sleep with my gun under the couch. Please, just take the room and get some sleep. And...given that we both like how the other looks, we need to lay down some ground rules. Tonight isn't the time though. We'll talk about it on the road tomorrow. Hit the sack. We've got miles to go."

He mutters, "Though if I were ten years younger..."

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[Ginfizz]

Immediately, her eyes flicked away and she adjusted her handle on her things. "No, it's fine... We can do it right now, it'll be better. You won't have any problems from me," she assured him in a contrite murmur. "I just want to find my feet and start over again." Again.

She'd wondered if guys would do that. They seemed to have a radar for "Okay, but baggage", and she'd actively, though politely discouraged any potential interest from bar patrons and tentative friendly acquaintances- she could put Bryan in that box, too.

It seemed like the blink of an eye, and her phone began to quietly vibrate the alarm. Dazedly, she sat up and glanced around, but nothing looked familiar. Before her heart stopped hammering, memory filled her in, and she got up to quietly complete her morning ritual and dress. Bryan hadn't lied- when she toed open the door so she could tell when he'd need the bathroom, she smelled the coffee brewing. She finished braiding her wet hair and folded it up out of her way with a menacing-looking hair-clamp, then padded barefootedly toward the kitchen to start breakfast, taking care not to interrupt her host.

The area was beautiful, and she wished for a porch on which to sip her coffee... And of course, different circumstances too... But that wouldn't happen. Wistfully, she recalled again the place she'd left, before she'd even gotten a chance to truly love it. Would she ever get a chance to stop like that again? It was time to think about where she was headed, what alias she'd take, where her life was going. She had a few ideas... Hiding within the folds of more crowded societies in the hills of warmer climes, maybe... What if the US in its entirety was off-limits?

She wanted to google for any news of last night, but the signal wasn't trustworthy here. Besides that, granola would suit her fine, but it wouldn't dent her impromptu protector.

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[Ginfizz]

Immediately, her eyes flicked away and she adjusted her handle on her things. "No, it's fine... We can do it right now, it'll be better. You won't have any problems from me," she assured him in a contrite murmur. "I just want to find my feet and start over again." Again.

She'd wondered if guys would do that. They seemed to have a radar for "Okay, but baggage", and she'd actively, though politely discouraged any potential interest from bar patrons and tentative friendly acquaintances- she could put Bryan in that box, too.

It seemed like the blink of an eye, and her phone began to quietly vibrate the alarm. Dazedly, she sat up and glanced around, but nothing looked familiar. Before her heart stopped hammering, memory filled her in, and she got up to quietly complete her morning ritual and dress. Bryan hadn't lied- when she toed open the door so she could tell when he'd need the bathroom, she smelled the coffee brewing. She finished braiding her wet hair and folded it up out of her way with a menacing-looking hair-clamp, then padded barefootedly toward the kitchen to start breakfast, taking care not to interrupt her host.

The area was beautiful, and she wished for a porch on which to sip her coffee... And of course, different circumstances too... But that wouldn't happen. Wistfully, she recalled again the place she'd left, before she'd even gotten a chance to truly love it. Would she ever get a chance to stop like that again? It was time to think about where she was headed, what alias she'd take, where her life was going. She had a few ideas... Hiding within the folds of more crowded societies in the hills of warmer climes, maybe... What if the US in its entirety was off-limits?

She wanted to google for any news of last night, but the signal wasn't trustworthy here. Besides that, granola would suit her fine, but it wouldn't dent her impromptu protector.

Tag- hope this doesn't double post

 

[Khadaji2002]

Nick came back inside from a short run he saw Rosie...Maggie...her finishing getting her breakfast together. "Good morning." He smiled. "Told you brewing coffee is one of the best alarm clocks out there. I'm going to shower quick, then we can be on the way as soon as I get myself on the outside of some breakfast."

He disappeared into the bathroom and the shower started up. Less than five minutes later he was out again in clean boxers and A-frame shirt (aka wife-beater). After donning jeans and a t-shirt from the duffel he'd brought in Nick make a quick breakfast for himself, taking a cup of coffee for the meal and splitting the rest of the pot between the two thermoses.

"Today you're driving first leg. You can go for however long or short you'd care to. Only rule is that if you're getting tired we switch off. And we'll head west today. You pick our ending spot any time after 4pm." He finished up his breakfast, washed the dishes quick and put them away, then went in back and turned off the water heater. Returning to the main area he grabbed his duffel and headed for the door. "I'll be out in the car whenever you're ready. Oh. Please pick a name you'd like me to call you. I'm not going to avoid using names for you, especially in public."

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[Ginfizz]

Not that she was a kiss-ass, but she always felt obligated to accommodate, and when Bryan didn't even give her a chance to fix up a plate for him, she felt out of place. When she remembered that it wasn't meant to affront, that he was just more independent than the people she was usually used to being around, it didn't bother her anymore. She made herself a plain bacon and toast sandwich, burning her bacon a little, because she *hated* soft bacon, and ate it quickly.

She nodded at his instructions, and expedited her clean-up efforts so as not to take any more time than needed, but was again stopped by her identity crisis. In the end, she realized how stupid and useless it was to go by any other name but her own. It certainly hadn't slowed Bryan (she referred to him as that so as to keep the lines he'd sharply, clearly drawn from smudging) down in coming right for her. It was kind of a relief, really, to not feel so much like hiding... Well, while she was, you know, running.

When he left her to her own thoughts, she wasted no time in hauling ass out the door. Climbing nimbly into the driver's seat, she quietly put her sunglasses on, buckled in, and in short order, got them on the road.

Conversation was sparse, with Maggie mumbling an apology for not figuring out the cruise control right away, she decided not to try to talk his leg off, and let him direct conversation or silence either one. During the silence, she took a quick check of things. She had her passport, cash, so going wasn't the problem. Stopping was. What if she just never stopped? Did people do that? At some point, her escort would leave, and she wanted to be prepared for that. Living with Nathan had definitely skewed her thinking, and she hadn't realized just how sheltered she'd really been... This was an odd awakening. Glancing at her passenger, her mouth formed a thoughtful line... It probably wasn't paradise for him, either.

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[Khadaji2002]

Nick leaned back and rested for the first hour or so, awake and watching where they were but not on high alert. Since she'd decided to go with her given name, he started thinking of her as 'Maggie' again, and she was a good driver. Cautious but ready to take openings. Courteous and fluid. He wondered how much of that was restricted to driving. He thought most of it applied to the rest of her life. He noticed her look, and the thoughtful expression crossing her face.

"Maggie, we need to clear the air. We've both been dropped in a pot of shit, though I've come to realize you've probably been swimming in it a lot longer than even you really know. We're both trying to clear our past out of the way so we can move on. To top it off, you've never really been out on your own. You haven't said that...but your actions speak of long practice finding the will of someone over you."

He looked at her, watching her face. "I watched you watching me last night. You wanted my body on yours. And you were ashamed of that. I'm getting the sense you hate to have or want anything that might be denied you. I'm also sure you saw me looking at you. And yes, part of me wanted to throw you across the couch and have my way with you." He grinned ironicly.

"I'm no knight in shining armor. The best I could claim is tarnished armor, and some would question that. I've done things I'm not proud of, found aspects of who I am that are dark, maybe scary. Your behavior triggers some of those aspects. Just an fyi, mind you. I don't subscribe to the school that says if you feel it you should do it.

"You've been under someone's thumb for a long time. The traits and habits you need to live on your own in the wide world are rusty. I can teach you some of that, but you'll have to learn a lot by doing. And you need to decide what you want. Do you want to keep running? Or would you really like to settle down and build a home somewhere?

"You can walk away from me any time you like. I'll make no effort to find you, and I'll refuse any contract to seek you out. You're officially free of me stalking you. On the other hand, you can ask for my help in getting clear of Nathan, which is your best option if you want to settle down ever. I'll do my best to get you clear of him and anyone that might help him. Just know that if you stay close to me, you're near someone who wants you. Who will take whatever you offer without asking if you're sure. Who will push the boundary now and then to see if your 'no' really means 'no'. But who will never. EVER. take anything you don't give up willingly."

He kept looking at her. Weighing her reactions...and waiting for her response.

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[Ginfizz]

When Bryan started to speak, she sat a bit straighter, concentrating but listening also. He had a way of clubbing the truth right over the head that made warmth creep into her cheeks, then drain completely away as his conversation took paths she perhaps still fought within the limits of her own mind.

"I *had* a place," she said softly, glancing at a side-mirror to maneuver past a slow truck. "I wasn't good enough at covering my tracks, so now it's just going to have to sit there." She'd passed a place a few dozen miles back that reminded her of the place she wondered if she'd ever see again. "I'll try to get back to it," she had decided, but felt she needed to say it aloud.

Her fingers curled around the steering wheel a bit more tightly as she toed off her shoes. Maggie hated to feel all bound up and unable to move freely, and being barefoot usually solved that problem. How was it she couldn't use her head unless her feet were happy? She swallowed another drink of lukewarm coffee when talk of him wanting her made her mouth go dry and her pulse start to thump in her ears. Yes, she had looked... But that was all she would do. Now wasn't the time to blur and complicate things by adding sexual tension to the undertones of wariness and feeling each other out. Sex, in her experience brought out the worst in people, almost like a Black Friday sale. Crowded, sweaty, uncomfortable, and a god-awful wait to disappointing results.

Briefly, it occurred to her to question as to if she'd ever actually been wanted in regards to the rest of the package beyond her body. She'd always thought she was "all right" in appearance, but maybe she just hadn't been "enough" beyond that to hold someone's interest. Nathan thought she moved well enough to take to parties, the camera liked her when she wore nice things, but beyond their initial, superficial flirting, humor, sharing, that had all died eventually. That someone could just look at her and feel... Something?... Well, she didn't know how to process that.

Looking at the man beside her, she recalled last night. Her gaze had taken in his body in one sweep, she'd felt guilty, as if she'd taken something she wasn't supposed to, that hadn't been offered. Like him, if someone didn't freely offer something of themselves, she wouldn't make them feel obligated to surrender it. If she didn't deserve it, she could live with it. But... He'd been interested, her mind reminded her. He'd said so, and she'd felt that spark of desire that made her skin prickle with heat. She felt it now, too, and she fiddled with the ac vent pointed at her.

What she'd taken from Nathan, however, what had led to her flight... She hadn't even realized the severity of what she'd done until she'd parked for a night and took inventory. If she had it to do again, she didn't know what she'd have done differently, but she was torn about what to do now. Turn it in, take a stand, and blow the lid off of something truly disgusting of which she'd unwittingly assisted? It was something she would have to share with Bryan, even if things drastically changed.

"Nathan... Was into something bad. I know what I need to do, but it will be hell if I can't get the pieces to fall just right, and I think you will likely know how to do that," she began. "When I took his money, I took some insurance... Something I *thought* would just be mildly damning. It turned out to be worse than that, and I didn't realize how bad until I'd already hung myself." Like shoplifting, then trying to sneak it back in and still getting caught. "I'll show you tonight, and you can probably figure out the crossroads I'm at," she frowned and worked her shoulders to unkink them. It wasn't fodder for road conversation. Just thinking about it made her stomach roll uncomfortably.

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[Khadaji2002]

Nick's mouth quirked in what might have been a smile at her fidgeting but the smile never appeared in full. Her body language was all over the map. She resented what Nick had prevented her from enjoying, even if that enjoyment would have been short-lived. Perhaps even fatal. And yes, she had some of the same feeling he did sexually. Like him she was smart enough to understand the complications that would visit on them. But this last point, the new one....she was angry and scared.

"Alright, I'll watch whatever you show me. I won't say anything until you have a chance to explain and ask me for my opinion or advice." Nick left it at that. Some things just needed to be done, not talked about. And whatever she had to show him made her so nervous he thought she might get sick. Whatever it was, serious only began to touch the matter.

Nick let the miles roll until just after 1 o'clock. About then they were passing through a smallish town with a diner on Main St. "Stop here. We can have lunch, stretch our legs a bit and get back on the road." When she'd pulled over and parked he got out, eyes flicking around and taking in the feel of town. The rush of locals would be over. That was good in having fewer eyes on them. The restaurant would be mostly empty, which was bad as the staff would have a better memory of them. Well...chances had to be taken. He waited for her to get out, then strolled with her into the diner and into a booth. Ordering the catfish, corn and salad he sat back and enjoy sitting on something not moving.

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[Ginfizz]

Marginally, Maggie relaxed, and renewed full concentration on the road before she could as what had amused her travel-mate a moment or so ago. Curiosity, after all, could and had killed many a cat with more lives than she.

Parking the truck was daunting, especially with its owner present, but he said nothing as she tried a couple times before getting a good fit, even after they were inside the cool, dim diner. Like many, it was an old building with cheap wainscotting, stained ceiling tiles, and scarred booths, but that kind of longevity indicated to Maggie a quality most chains didn't have.

The catfish caused one nostril to wrinkle delicately, but she said nothing as she debated between the usual, and the sizable open-faced roast beef which caught her eye on a passing tray. In the end, she settled on the turkey and dressing with candied carrots and mashed potatoes, with a sizable glass of iced tea. Thanksgiving wasn't for about four months, but she could be thankful she was alive, right?

"I missed places like this for a long time," Maggie mused as she pulled out her phone nd made a list of things she wanted from the drugstore, either then, or later. "Even if a place in SoCal advertised the same kind of grub, it just never tasted the same." She'd gotten wholly sick of square plates with artful squiggles, perfectly-shaped leaves, and nearly-raw stuff better suited for photography than ingestion. At least she had been able to slip out on "maintenance day" for onion rings and chili dogs, unless she'd had a tagalong frenemy. Unfortunately, she'd found out that starlets and harlots tended to rove in packs, if only so they could store up fodder for gossip on one another.

 

[Khadaji2002]

"One of the reasons I moved back to this area. Couldn't wait to get out of rural Wisconsin growing up, and couldn't stand the thought of another northern winter when I got back from the sandbox. This area is the best mixture of what I was looking for."

Nick scanned the area easily, as any newcomer would be looking around to see what the place looked like. Nothing her that could be called 'decor', yet that was its own type of decor all the same. He noticed the gal behind the counter on her smartphone. Did everyone have one of those things now? He didn't, mostly to control when and where people knew his approximate location. Too many smartphones had GPS in them these days, and asking about having one without raised eyebrows. Not a good way to stay out of memory.

"We're about four hours east of a small city. That's where we'll stop for the night. We can go shopping, pick up supplies and get a night's sleep." He paused. "We can get seperate rooms, but that's going to raise eyebrows some places. I'll put everything on a burner card I carry for situations like this. Not untraceable, but it'll make someone work to find us through it. Once we're settled for the night you can show me your insurance policy."

Nick broke off as he saw their server, the gal behind the counter, coming with their food. Once they'd been served and the lady back behind the counter he said, "Once I've seen whatever you show me I'll make plans."

Unknown to either of them, the girl behind the counter was a fan of celeb gossip columns. She posted on her Facebook page, "OMG, you'll never guess who's in my diner today!"

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[Ginfizz]

Nodding, Maggie reached for the salt and pepper shakers, first dotting her food liberally with pepper, then taking the same effort with the salt. When she was anxious, she craved salt, needed it to pierce the blandness and make her brain and taste buds focus on something besides sharing a room with a stranger, driving all over the map to cover their tracks, and what had to be done.

Her hand wavered a little with the salt-shaker, but she agreed with him- all his points were valid, and after all, who'd botched their own escape? She had. "I have a couple papers on some things, and then the rest is on a jump-drive," she was saying, stirring her seasonings into her potatoes with the other hand and fork. She wanted a pack of smokes, but she'd never smelled it on him, so that probably wasn't an option. Something had to crack the tension between her shoulder-blades, but she didn't want her senses dulled if she had to think on the fly.

 

[Khadaji2002]

Nick watched her nervously add pepper and salt to her food. The line of tension between her shoulders was all but lit in neon, and her discomfort with whatever she was going to show him made her movements jerky, unsettled. He left things alone while they ate, paying when the bill arrived in cash with a generous tip. He went to the washroom to deal with nature's call and wash up, noticing the girl was still looking at her smartphone. That made him nervous for some reason, but he couldn't exactly demand she show him what she was doing. Time to get on the road.

Once they were on the road he laid back and let her drive west, telling her the town he wanted to stop in. He dozed off for a while, still mentally alert enough to tell if they veered off course. He reviewed the events of the last month, still wondering how he'd found himself here. The Buddhists were right, dharma was a long, slow wheel. Rolling over anything and everything in its path. Now here he was guarding someone who'd been his target 72 hours ago to repay a debt to someone long dead and disposed of.

His thoughts kept circling around to the knot of tension between Maggie's shoulders. He really wanted to rub that knot out for her, taking her shoulders in his capable hands and releasing the tension stored up. Smoothing the muscles in her back out and down, caressing her all the way-

He chopped that thought off. He was having a hard enough time without entertaining fantasies. They had enough on their plate. Once he had an idea of what Maggie had on Nathan he'd be able to make plans with some basis in reality. Patience was needed now. Waiting was, to quote (or misquote) a Heinlein book he'd read. The clearing was ahead, and his quarry was in the clearing. Patient stalking led to the trophy, not crashing through the bush.

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[Ginfizz]

Truly, Maggie hated herself for being so transparent and nervy at the same time, and worked harder at not being so obvious about it. Nobody but Bryan would catch on, but she still couldn't help the odd little tug in her gut that said something wasn't right. Still, they finished their meal with some fake small-talk about current events and TV shows, and Maggie fully relished her first "real" meal in some time, given the circumstances.

"Something wasn't right," she finally said, an hour or so into the silence. Had he known that old trick, of just biding one's time until the truth came out? "I mean... that girl, the one with the chipped OPI last spring nail polish and the iPhone 4? She was..."

Maggie's phone gave a muted chirp from the console between them. She'd charged it up so she could keep up on things while in flight, and when she saw the Facebook notification, she was quite glad she did. The phone dropped and she fumbled for it, almost dropping a wheel onto the rumble-strip before recovering and handing it to Bryan. "We were made," her voice was thin, her fingers tight around the wheel again.

'You were tagged in (1) Photo by (SparkleGurl84)". She used a different app besides the stock one, because the original was abysmally slow and a terrible resource hog. This one was far more thorough and reliable with alerts and the like. She'd programmed it to catch all tags, hashtags, and the like from her first night on the road. In several months, it was the first time anything of consequence had come up.

A picture of Maggie standing to go wash up, her fingertips trailing just an inch or so from Bryan's shoulder across the back of his booth (she'd expected him not to put his back to the door) was telling in a lot of ways. One, her updated physical description. Two, her head was turned to eye him as she passed while he seemed unaware, his eyes on the check instead.

She tried to straighten and square herself, drawing slow, deep breaths, but relaxation wasn't anywhere near. "I mean, *dammit*," she swore, then blanched. "How desperate *are* people to mooch off drama? I'm *nobody*," she shook her head, her hair starting to frizz and come loose from her braid near the nape of her neck as she broke into a cold sweat.

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[Khadaji2002]

Nick listened, then nodded. "That explains the hinky feeling I got about the situation inside. Alright, we've been made which means anyone seeking us has a start point. Might even get our direction of travel from the locals." He reaches into the glove box and pulls out a current Thomas Guide of the state. "Change of plans. Turn north onto the next paved road. We'll be driving a couple hours more, but we can hit another decent-sized town up north. Same plan, different city. You'll need to change up your appearance a bit. Some hair color, maybe some shades...mostly, different attitude. Damn, if it weren't likely to be so awkward we could pretend to be married. That'd take most of the gossip-hounds off the track. As for you being nobody...Norma Jean was a nobody, but everyone knew Marilyn Monroe. Which was the real person? You're in the same boat now."

He leans back, considering. "Alright. For tonight I think we should stick together. One room, I can sleep on the floor by the door. Tomorrow we double-back a ways, rent a car and then we head out of the state for a bit. By then I'll know what you do about your insurance plan and we can see how deep the water is in sharks. Then...we figure out how to take the chase to Nathan." And I figure a way into your- He kills the thought.

 

[Ginfizz]

Why guys always thought they had to be devious to take something a woman would freely offer them without the pretense of subterfuge and manipulation was beyond Maggie, but she wasn't inside Bryan's head to know what he was thinking. She was only inside hers, and it was plenty crowded there with thoughts of "but maybe after?"... Or maybe not. Pushing that aside was "What's going to happen *wnen* Nathan comes around?" It wasn't a matter of if.

Altering their route, Maggie processed the checklist in her mind. The last public appearances she'd made had been in Stella McCartney. She'd been recognized in jeans and a tee-shirt. Well, she could hit the Goodwill stores for some different stuff and change it all up, and they had to stop at a drug-store anyway. How he could be so calm about it... but then, she reminded herself, he was usually the one putting people in this state of mind. He was a grim reaper of sorts.

The town their route took them through *was* a nice one. It was laid out visitor-friendly, and all of the things they needed were together. They'd decided on resupply- or rather, Bryan had and she'd agreed, so they found themselves under the bright lights of a Walgreen's, Maggie with a plastic shopping basket into which she tossed some make-up, toiletries, and hair-dye. She'd only been light-brown with blonde highlights and her natural red before, so she didn't know what to go with. She'd picked a drab brown "With Argan oil for extra shine!", and snorted "What's the point?" as it clattered into the basket.

Reluctantly, she ran her fingertips over a pair of packaged trimming scissors next to the other hair stuff and bit her bottom lip. It *could* be done, she guessed... but then she saw the plastic clips that would just was it all up. Glancing around, she looked as if she hoped for an answer, and picked them up anyway.

In the liquor aisle, she picked up a pint of Wild Turkey- which would be about what it otherwise would have taken to get her to cut it again. Desperation was the facilitator of many a drastic change, however.

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[Khadaji2002]

Nick headed for the hair dye area as well, shearing off when Maggie headed there first. No reason for them both to buy the dye at the same time. He could come back and buy some after shift change, or at another store. He hated coloring his hair, but it was time to go back under the radar and a nice walnut or black would be just the thing. He'd suggested the resupply to Maggie thinking she might have forgotten something, but it looked like all she was going to buy was the hair stuff.

He covertly watched her trying to choose between the hair clips and the scissors, and a wild impulse hit him. Using the skills he'd picked up overseas he snuck up to her, and whispered almost directly in her ear, "It'd been a shame to cut it yet. Color and style change might be enough. It's too pretty to cut yet."

 

[Ginfizz]

Yes, she started, jerking back against him from the sudden surprise- of course she did, but Maggie could roll with a lot, and quickly overriding the spook instinct was the identification of someone safe. Hot on its heels, however, was the warmth and scent of a man to whom her body, if anything, was attracted, and the feeling of his warm breath on her skin. Her breath caught and shivers raised little prickles on her skin, but she'd picked the scissors up from her basket and hung them back on the hook, leaving the cheapo make-up and liquor, and the dye of course, behind.

"Good," she remarked lightly, but she didn't move away. "I'd hate to have to gather all of it up off the floor and find a place for it. What about you?" she said, turning to take a stray, short piece of his hair between her fingers before releasing it. "Need me to trim it or anything?"

She'd never been a stylist, but it was a skill one picked up along the way, like changing oil or cooking a certain dish. Besides that, it'd have put her closer to him, and that was something she was curious about testing., if they were going to be around one another, having to pretend to be something they weren't.

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[Ginfizz]

Yes, she started, jerking back against him from the sudden surprise- of course she did, but Maggie could roll with a lot, and quickly overriding the spook instinct was the identification of someone safe. Hot on its heels, however, was the warmth and scent of a man to whom her body, if anything, was attracted, and the feeling of his warm breath on her skin. Her breath caught and shivers raised little prickles on her skin, but she'd picked the scissors up from her basket and hung them back on the hook, leaving the cheapo make-up and liquor, and the dye of course, behind.

"Good," she remarked lightly, but she didn't move away. "I'd hate to have to gather all of it up off the floor and find a place for it. What about you?" she said, turning to take a stray, short piece of his hair between her fingers before releasing it. "Need me to trim it or anything?"

She'd never been a stylist, but it was a skill one picked up along the way, like changing oil or cooking a certain dish. Besides that, it'd have put her closer to him, and that was something she was curious about testing., if they were going to be around one another, having to pretend to be something they weren't.

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[Khadaji2002]

"A trim would be good. I'll buy some dye later tonight, maybe at another place. Didn't think it smart for both of us to be getting hair dye at the same place." He stayed where he was, enjoying the feel of her so close. Her initial startled jump brought body contact. He hadn't realized how long it had been for that kind of touch until now. The thought of her standing near him, cutting his hair...touching him...bodies grazing... He inhaled deeply, then took a step back, now looking at her basket.

"Hmmm, the make-up might be a good choice as a distraction, but why the cheap stuff? If you'd like a drink, let's buy something worth drinking. Easier on the body, too." He hesitated, then gently took her free hand. "Shall we, my lady?" He offered her escort to the counter for checkout, trying to hide the sudden tightness in his pants.