Benny was gone. Really and truly gone. He would never hurt anyone again, would never ruin anyone else’s life. While his demise had been necessarily quick, she had made it as painful as possible, being sure to concentrate on those areas of him that had caused her the most grief. Castration had come first, for all that he had raped and used her, then the bullet right between the eyes. She’d had the pleasure of seeing the naked fear in his eyes, and that alone was worth a hundred suspensions. To see that rotten bastard know true terror, that eased her heart somewhat. Oh, she’d never forget the pain she’d endured, or that of her brother’s, but there was definitely some closure in the knowledge that he would never, ever do that to any child again.
She probably should have felt horror over what she had done, but she only felt a strange kind of numbness. She had brought a lot of people to justice over the last eight years or so, but she had never done so with such extreme prejudice. Maybe, just maybe, if it had been only her life he’d ruined she would have been satisfied with some other retribution. But it hadn’t just been hers. And for as long as she lived, the eyes of all those other young girls and boys she’d watched him destroy would haunt her.
Nicki threw her head back and let the breeze whip through her hair. The damp coolness of the predawn hours felt cool against her skin as she opened up the throttle and shot forward.
Eventually Friendly’s became Shoney’s. Wawa’s became Flying J’s. She’d kept her quasi-Ducati; that was her most prized possession and she could not bear to give it up. She hadn’t bothered to change her appearance that much, either. She’d traded in her leather and chains for blue jeans, soft cotton tee-s and hoodies, comfortable shit kickers and a plain leather jacket.
She felt almost lost. For the next three months she had no role to play, no persona to assume. It felt strange. She wasn’t even quite sure who the real Nicki was anymore.
She hadn’t fought too hard against Taser’s direct orders. He was right, as usual. Now that her mother was gone, Nick was on a good path, and Benny was delivered back into the pits of hell, her motivation had become somewhat cloudy. Her life’s goals had been realized; all her “wants” obtained. What was left?
Nicki left the interstate for good somewhere after she passed the border into South Carolina, then began to wind her way slightly northwest up and into Tennessee, following the GPS coordinates Taser had given her. Soft accents progressed steadily into a full, smooth Southern drawl. She’d never been attracted to the sound before, but now found the easy cadence unexpectedly comforting. It made her think of Brookes, and with a sharp pang, she realized she would actually miss him and Fisher in her mandated solitude.
Nicki’s journey finally ended in a little town called Tempest. Located smack-dab in the middle of Nowhere, Tempest was well off the beaten path, nearly a hundred miles from the nearest major thoroughfare. There was an old railway station there. Nicki could easily imagine that at one time, it had been a nice stop on the train routes between the North and the South, but time and progress had long since left Tempest behind.
Nicki took in everything with a well-practiced eye while drawing more than a few curious stares as she cruised down the single main artery. The town proper consisted of maybe three square blocks. There was a diner, a small grocer’s, a gas station with a single-bay garage, a post office, and an Agway complex that dwarfed everything else. With a population of about three thousand (and that was a generous estimate), perhaps thirty percent lived in and around the main street in old but sturdy clapboard houses. The rest dwelled beyond the town proper in the acres of farmland and woods that sat at the base of the western edge of the Appalachians.
A few miles outside of the town was Taser’s personal refuge. Nicki wasn’t quite sure what to expect; with Taser you just never knew. She was as likely to find a one-room underground bomb shelter as a two-story Swiss chalet. The guy’s tastes were eclectic, to say the least.
What she found was a very private, well-stocked cabin set askew in the middle of a clearing, surrounded on all sides by thick, dense forest.
It was clean and spacious. Comfortable, but not fancy, except for the satellite gadgetry. The cabinets were filled with non-perishable canned and dry goods. Even the fridge had been stocked with an array of fresh fruit, cheese, milk, and several six packs. The freezer held neatly wrapped packages of various steaks, burgers, chicken, ribs, and more.
Nicki couldn’t help but smile when she saw the single bedroom closet held an assortment of clothing – all casual, all women’s, and all in her size. Even the bathroom – thank God this place had indoor plumbing – held her favorite shampoos, conditioners, body washes, and shaving gels.
The man knew her better than she knew herself.
Since all she had was a single backpack, it didn’t take long for her to unpack and report her safe arrival, but that was probably unnecessary. She was quite certain Taser had been tracking her all along using the device imbedded beneath her skin. All of the Chameleons had them; it was a requirement, making them locatable anywhere, anytime. At first she resented it, but now, she took some comfort in knowing it was there. With it, she was never really alone.