You'll Never Be Alone

One Thing After Another

One Thing After Another

Kate and Scott have moved to the back of the RV, sitting around the small table. Richie leans on the counters in front of the, watching their every move like his life depends on it.

Jacob is still driving, looking straight ahead and only moving to turn the wheel. He's been extremely quiet, making me wonder how deep his mind has gone to get away from this situation.

Seth is sitting behind the passenger seat on a long chair that is connected to the wall. His hand is keeping pressure on his wound as he continuously peeks around the seat to make sure we're going in the right direction.

Me? I'm planted on the couch, my bag sitting on the other side of it. My eyes are in perfect view of Seth. If I strain, I can see Kate and Scott, which is comforting to me.

"You got a first-aid kit in this beast?" Seth asks, checking his hand to see that the bleeding has subsides somewhat. Jacob doesn't answer, his movements nonexistent.

Seth clears his throat, his grip on his gun tightening. "Let me explain something to you here, Jacob. Now, there's only one song that we're gonna be singing on this little road trip, and it ain't "99 bottles of Beer on the Wall." The song is called "My way." So if I say make a turn, you're gonna make a turn. If I say don't talk, you don't talk. But if I ask you for a first-aid kit, you're gonna-"

I stop Seth's rant, "I'll get it," I say with a small sigh as I stand. Though I've never been in this RV, I've been in others. Most people keep the first aid kit under the sink or up in one of the top cupboards.

My feet carry themselves over to Seth where I lean out and open the cupboard above him.

"Glad to see someone knows what's going on around here," Seth says, glancing over at my dad. His eyes return to watch me leaning over him, grabbing the first aid kit, and taking a step back to give it to him.

"Thank you," Seth says, taking the kit and getting to work on his open wound. I take that as my cue and sit back on the couch.

Seth notices the passports sitting on the passenger seat and reaches for the top one. He opens it up, chuckling as he seems to smile for the first time. I don't know what's more attractive, him smiling or him not smiling.

"Pastor Jacob Fuller, huh? Guess that explains all that, uh, hellfire and damnation back at the motel, huh? You do know the one about turning the other cheek, I hope," Seth says, throwing the passport back in the passenger seat.

"I prefer the Old Testament," Jacob says, making me roll my eyes somewhat.

As Seth finishes up on his bullet wound, he talks. "Well, this is gonna be real, real simple, padre. We reach the crossing at Acuara, you wave your passports, flash your pretty, corn-fed smiles, and then we're gonna sail on through. Richie and I will close our deal with our guy in Mexico. After that, we go our separate ways. Nobody else is gonna get hurt. You got my word."

"What about that bank teller you took hostage in Abilene? You give her your word?" Jacob asks, his eyes never leaving the road.

And you yell at me for speaking up to Seth! Your digging our grave before we've even died!

Seth glares at my dad, standing up to throw the first aid kit back in it cupboard before sitting back down in silence.

That didn't sound good.

Jacob begins to talk again. "Yeah, well I didn't know you were capable of not talking. Let me help you continue to save your breath. I don't need you to promise my family's gonna be all right. I know they will be. You know how I know that? 'Cause I'm behind the wheel now. And I'm gonna make it my mission, my singular mission, to get us all across that border. Not for you, not for all your riches, but for the only three people I have left in this world."