He pulled the keys from the package and handed them to me with a smile. Where the hell was I supposed to go? The contents of my package only had information about the banks and my identities. I didn’t know where I was supposed to go in this car.
I got in the older car, and the black SUV pulled out and left me alone. There was another package in the passenger seat, along with a brown leather purse. I sat there forever trying to pull myself together. I was scared. I didn’t know what was out there. I had lived in a bubble my entire life. Could I really do this? It was a little too late for that. I was there. If I went back now, Drew would kill me for sure. I had been gone for over three hours. I was sure that he was beside himself.
I noticed the little black GPS stuck right in the middle of the windshield, took a deep breath, and opened the new packet of information. There was another phone and papers, paper clipped together. I rummaged through the purse and smiled a little. Lipstick, mascara, fingernail clippers, a tiny little mirror, and a wallet. I opened the wallet to my new identity. Riley Murphy, 1712 Long Gate Road, Misty Bay, Maine. Was this where I was going?
Did Ms. K expect me to drive clear across the United States in this car? I pulled out my driver’s license and wondered who had taken the picture. I knew that it was taken at the library even with the blue background. I was wearing the same outfit that I had worn there not too long before. I had a credit card, an insurance card, a social security card, and a registration to the car, all with my new name. I must be Riley Murphy, and that would be the last name that I would have from my multiple identities.
I turned on the GPS, and it was already set for my destination. I was nervous about driving. I hadn’t really driven much, but I did just fine and was out of that city and on to the next. I actually turned on the radio and felt myself relax. I was free. I couldn’t believe it.
It was at that moment that I realized that I never got the chance to thank Rebecca. I would never see her again, and I owed her so much. I wondered if Drew would make her leave. I assumed that he would. She was kept there to babysit me. He didn’t need her anymore. I hoped that he wasn’t too hard on her. I knew he would be trying to get information out of her. I was glad that she didn’t know anything.
My new phone rang after a couple of hours of driving. It was Ms. K, telling me that the rest of my trip would be left up to me. I had already figured as much. She told me not to get off track and to go where the GPS took me. It was already set for food and the hotels that I would check into. She told me that she would call the next day and not to answer the phone unless it was that number again.
I was scared that first night in the hotel. I should have just kept driving. I didn’t sleep a wink, waiting for the door to burst open and find Drew or Derik. I took a shower and pulled on the clothes that had been sent with me. The duffle bag with my designer pant suit was left in the second car that I had been driven in, and this was what I had to work with. Three pairs of jeans, a couple of sweat shirts, new panties, socks, a few shirts, and a box of brown hair dye. I was happy to see that. I hadn’t seen my natural brown hair since the first week that I was at Drew’s house.
I hadn’t realized that I was talking for so long until I looked at the clock. It was almost midnight and Dawson, and I both had to get up for work the following day. I looked up to him, and he smiled, kissing my lips.
“And that was almost two years ago,” I said kissing him back.
“I’m glad you’re Riley Murphy,” he said as we both slid down into the bed.
“Me too,” I agreed, snuggling my back to his front.
I lay in Dawson’s arm contemplating on where I had been and where I was. I was by no means looking for love when I ran from Drew, but that was exactly what I found. I couldn’t imagine loving anyone as much as I loved Dawson Bade. I had never felt the security that I felt with him, and I knew that he truly did love me. Who else would have loved someone as messed up as I was? I wasn’t always going to be screwed up. I was getting stronger and better every day, thanks to Starlight, Lauren, and my sheriff.
I had to open the shop earlier the next day because Dawson had to drop me off. I didn’t mind, and I was happy to ride the short drive with my hand in his. I kissed him, and he waited until I had the front door unlocked and was inside before waving and pulling out.
It was fairly slow that day. I wasn’t surprised. I wouldn’t have gone out in that cold either if I didn’t have to. Dawson came in around one and brought me a hot roast beef sandwich and a bowl of broccoli cheese soup from Millie’s. He ate with me, and we sat at the table in the empty shop, right in front of the window.
“Charlie thinks you need a starter,” Dawson said as we ate.
“Is he going to get it fixed today?”
“No. He said it would probably be a couple of days before he could get to it. He’s coming to tow it later on today. What? You don’t like being escorted to work in my cruiser?” Dawson teased.