| Chapter Two "Five months ago I met a woman, through someone I work with. It was kind of a blind date, anyways...we started casually seeing each other when I was in town. It'd been five months this past weekend and for a change I was in town..." Kevin stopped abruptly, wondering if he should tell her about his career. Liz patiently waited while Kevin struggled with himself. " "Does this have anything to do with you being a Backstreet Boy?" she asked softly. Kevin's eyes widened in surprise and then he answered, "Not directly no. Although it did play a part in my ignorance. I traveled alot, and I didn't know she was mixed up in the things she was." Kevin paused, taking a sip of his tea and then he resumed his tale. "So I was in town for some promotions and we decided to go to dinner. When we went to leave, she said she forgot her wrap at our table. I volunteered to go for it. I never thought twice about it. I was almost to the door when I heard a loud pop. Something, I don't know what, made me turn around. I saw her laying on the ground, blood pooled all around her. I happened to look up and this guy was pointing a gun at me. I dropped down, it saved my life. The bullet shattered the glass door behind me. "I ended up at the police station. I described the guys who shot at me, and whom we assumed had killed Mattie. I went through mug shots and finally found the guy. They then explained that Mattie had been mixed up with drugs, dealing and trafficking. I had no idea. We'd only gone out a few times. Like I said, the relationship was casual. Because I was a witness to attempted murder, and murder they placed me in protective custody. I left the station with an officer. We were almost to the safe house, when this car comes flying up behind us. Bullets started flying and Officer Kenwood was shot. He lost control of the car and we went over an embankment. I checked to see if he was alive, he wasn't." There was a long pause as Kevin seemed to relive the events of earlier that night. He shuddered as the horror of what he had seen washed over him. When he continued, his voice was low, almost a whisper. "I managed to get out of the car, I could hear voices above me on the road. I ran. I guess they spotted me, because they started shooting. I got hit in the arm, but I kept going. I found a small cave on the other side of the lake and hid. A little bit later, they passed by me, and after more time passed, they came back. I could hear what they were saying. They were talking about killing me, and how the boss wasn't going to be happy about a lose end. They finally left. I waited until I heard the doors closed and the car drove off before I headed out. I didn't want to stay there in case they came back. I was half way here when the rain started. The rest you know." Liz thought about everything he had told her, and what she already knew. Things weren't sitting well with her and right then she had more questions than she had answers. "Do you want to call anyone? Maybe the police, or your friends? They need to know you're okay" she said reaching behind her for the phone. "Oh God! I haven't even told them anything. There were news trucks outside the resturant, covering the shooting. I've got to call my friends" he stated agitated as he reached for her out stretched cell phone. "Calm down. The cell has a scrambler on it. Its safe" she reassured him. Kevin quickly dialed the seven digits. "'Lo." "Rok, its me...I'm fine for now. No just listen to me. You and the guys need to get out of town. Don't argue, I don't have time to explain. No don't go to Kentucky...Wait a minute Rok" Kevin said as he covered the mouthpiece and looked to Liz. "What is it," he asked. "I know somewhere safe you all can go. Tell him to get plane tickets to Charelston, South Carolina. Stay in the Holiday Inn by the airport. I'll go pack and we'll drive up there. We should make it there by tomorrow morning." Kevin nodded and relayed the message to Brian. Although Brian was confused, he agreed and hung up. Liz quickly threw her things in her suitcase and began closing up the house. She glanced at Kevin resting on the couch in his wet pants, no shirt and wrapped in the quilt. It was then she remembered Robert had left some clothes there. She ran into the spare bedroom and grabbed some clothes, stuffing the extras in her suitcase. She carried a pair of jeans, a shirt and some socks into the living room and handed them to Kevin. "These belong to a friend of mine. I hope they fit" she said as he took them from her. Kevin smiled up at her gratefully. He took the clothes to the bathroom and changed quickly. Half an hour later they were in her Jeep Cherokee heading north. Kevin gave into his exhaustion and fell asleep. Liz turned on the radio and rolled down the window, letting the music keep her company and the wind keep her awake. She stopped to get gas and some snacks. It had been hours since she had eaten and by the story Kevin told, it had been even longer for him. When she returned to the Jeep, she found Kevin wide awake. "Here" she said as she handed him a can of Coke and the bag of snacks. "I didn't know what you'd want, so I bought a little of everything" she smiled sheepishly at him as he looked down in the bag. "Half the store is more like it" he joked and pulled a Twinkie out. He groaned appreciatively as he bit into the sweet treat. "Thank you! I didn't realize how hungry I was" he said and took another bite. "How far are we from Charleston," he asked as he finished chewing. "About two and half hours. We just crossed the state line. Is your arm hurting?" she asked when he winced. "Yes" he hissed as the pain shot up his arm and into his shoulder. With her eyes on the road, Liz dug into her purse and pulled out a bottle of Tylenol. "Can you take these?" she asked as she held up the bottle. "Yeah those are fine" he whispered through his pain. She uncapped the bottle and poured two into his hand. He downed them with a sip of his Coke. "Take the wheel" she said and then reached over the back of her seat and lifted the lid on the small cooler she had packed. "Put this on your arm" she directed as she handed Kevin an ice pack. "Better?" she asked. Kevin only nodded as the cold seeped into his arm. She smiled when she glanced over at him and found him asleep again. |