For the life of me, I couldn't remember how I ended up in this position. The road stretched on, seemingly endless, as the tension in the car felt like it could be cut like a cake. But it was one of those deceptive cakes, where it looked all sweet and frosty on the outside but on the inside it tasted salty and disappointing.
Yeah, that kind of cake.
Cakes aside, Victor had insisted that he come with me on this little road trip. And so, of course, Logan insisted he go as well. I outright refused, but my attempts to run out the door and jump in the car before they could catch me were immediately stopped by Victor's arm around my waist.
So, being bitter, I locked the doors to the front seat and forced them both to sit in the back. They were less than pleased, especially since they had no desire to be within five feet of each other, let alone the width of a tiny, shabby car.
Yes, we took mine. I didn't exactly think it through, and my poor car was rattling apart. I simply turned up the radio to drown the suspicious tapping sound emanating from the engine.
Ironically enough, as I felt Logan's eyes staring into my back, Silver Springs was playing.
Lovely.
Despite the odd irony this song captured, I sang along, because who doesn't love a good Fleetwood song?
Sounding like a drowning banshee, I wailed along to the song, hitting the high notes so perfectly, it wasn't even difficult.
"Time cast a spell on you," I sang, raising my hands from the wheel, "But you won't forget me!"
The car swerved slightly, hitting a pot hole. I caught the wheel, letting out a stream of curses to the beat and melody of the song. Never lose the spirit.
Huh, was that knocking sound always that loud?
"Jesus, Jane!" Victor complained, "I love your singing voice as much as the next guy but keep your hands on the wheel!"
"Hey!" I blindly pointed behind me, "Leave my driving alone!"
I turned the radio up some more, to drown out both the engine and my annoying boyfriend, and attempted to hit the high note on the next verse. My banshee noises have improved.
I glanced in the rear view to see Logan shaking with silent laughter, and Victor glaring at me. I shot him a wink.
"Someone's in a bad mood today! Huh, Logan?" I yelled back, seeing as I wasn't going to turn the music down for anything.
What he said sounded like a garbled mess.
"What?" I screamed. "I can't hear you!"
He waved his hand at the mirror, grinning. It was nice to have him actually smiling for a change.
Shrugging, I shrieked along to the song, and just to piss of Victor, I swerved to the beat. He was rigid in the back seat the whole way, hands holding onto anything he could.
"I'm driving home!" He yelled at one point, and I just laughed.
We exited the highway, and wound down a road that hadn't been serviced in probably fifty years. Houses were spaced miles apart, and properties were a little...run down.
There we came upon the "Junk Yard." That's what I liked to call it. It was code for Finn's place. Hundreds of cars sat, some destroyed, some in pristine condition. He was off the radar, save for one phone that very few had the number for, and traced back to Kansas. He claimed to "collect" cars, and has fixed up more than I could count, hence the junked cars lying about. He had a lot of connections, most that he made you pay a pretty penny for.
Victor still had no idea what we were doing here, simply because I spoke in code the entire conversation. And who could understand,
"Grandma's in the hen house with five eggs in the basket"?
That's code for, "I'm in trouble and I need a couple bail outs."
Bail outs meaning decoys.
I pulled into the driveway, made by countless cars driving in, and spotted Finn standing on the porch. I lifted my hand, and he grinned. That's Finn, alright.
A hulking man, he stood at six feet. He had a scruffy beard that didn't quite reach his chest, but was still long enough to braid - if he would let me, dammit. His hair was long as well, like a man stuck in the seventies, it was thick and went down to his shoulder blades. He usually kept it under a cowboy hat, or had it back in a loose tail at the nape. He was in his late forties, but even now I could tell he was a handsome man back in his day. He reminded me of a grandpa...who had gone to jail for ten years. So he reminded me of a jail-hardened grandpa.
He stood in a stance that reminded me of a veteran - at attention, hands behind his back. But he was smiling, so I knew he was at ease...as at ease as he could be, at least.
pulling in next to his car, I threw mine into park, and turned around to look at the two in the back.
"Stay here."
Grinning, I opened the car door. little did they know, I had flipped the child lock on.
Stepping out, I listened as they began to fiddle with the door knobs. They quickly realized what I'd done, and I slammed the door just as their protests started up.
"Well hello there, Darlin!" He greeted warmly, stepping off of his porch with arms outstretched.
I accepted his hug with one of my own. "It's been a minute, Finn. What've you been up to?"
He pulled back, letting out a laugh. "Usual business. Who're your friends in the car there?"
"Overprotective morons," I replied, rolling my eyes.
"Ah," He stared into the car with slightly narrowed eyes.
"And," I sighed, "One of them happens to be a cop."
There was a few seconds of silence, as his eyes narrowed on the car for a little longer, before they widened, and he turned to me. "What?"
I held up my hands, "Hold on a second, let me explain."
"You brought a cop here? Honey-bun, I'm sorry to ask, but've you gone nuts?" He exclaimed.
It was nice that he wasn't accusing me of selling him out. Even if he thought it was crazy - he knew that I would never do that on purpose. It made me smile.
"He's a friend. A boyfriend, actually," I explained, glancing at the car. Logan was half over the seat, trying to fit his other half through as he tried to get out through the front. Victor had apparently attempted to crawl through the seats with him, and they were both stuck, pushing at each other and arguing. I pressed my palm to my forehead, sighing out, "He insisted on coming along."
"You? Dating a cop?" He set his hand on my shoulder and let out a booming laugh, "How in sam-hell did that come about?"
"Well...long story short, it wasn't my idea," I answered, thinking about how hard I fought my feelings in Florida. Seemed a life-time ago.
"Hmm," He murmured, and we both glanced at the car. Logan and Victor were too large to get out, and they were stuck in between the chairs. "And the other?"
"Logan. The other protective moron. Brother to moron number one," I replied. "He's harmless."
At least, to Finn he was. To me he was anything but.
"Alright. So you can convince the cop to stay silent?"
"Victor?" I scoffed, "Of course I can."
"Well then," He slapped me on the back. "Get 'em out here before they hurt themselves."
I grinned, shooting him a salute, and then walked over to the car. They watched me miserably as I slowly approached, just to piss them off. Victor glared daggers as I pretended to have trouble with the knob, and as soon as I opened the door, they began to complain.
"Are you crazy-?"
"How could you-?"
"Get us out-!"
"Open the doors before I-!"
"Alright!" I yelled, rolling my eyes. "God, Mom and Dad, you're embarrassing me in front of my friends," I complained in a teenager voice.
They both glared, and I grinned.
"Alright. Hold on."
I reached down, and lifted up the handle for the chair. Without warning, it flew forward, smacking Logan in the face, in the process. I was too pissed off at them not to be amused, as I leaned over, laughing my ass off.
"Are...are you...okay Logan?" I wheezed out.
"I'm fine," He replied, clearly pissed.
I tried to hold it in as I opened the door, but it released in a snort as the image of his dumbfounded face appeared in my mind. Both of them stepped out of the car, ignoring my laughter, and brushed themselves off.
I led them over to Finn, still grinning, and introduced them.
"Victor, Logan, my good friend Finn. Finn, Victor and Logan."
"Nice to meet you boys," he said to them, staring them down with an intimidating gaze.
Ah geez. Does everyone have to be an overprotective moron? I'm not that frail and weak!
"So," He turned to me, eyes warming as he grinned once again, "You said you needed decoys?"
"I've always wanted to be in two places at once," I told him, nodding.
His smile dimmed slightly. "From what I know of you, you wouldn't call in a favor unless it was serious."
Of course, he was right. I didn't like it when people owed me, especially people I liked. Calling in this favor wasn't exactly something I was doing willingly, but a trip to back Mexico would cost me, and Ike wouldn't fall for it this time. I let out a heavy sigh, slumping my shoulders.
"Yeah. You know the situation with Ike, I presume?" I asked, not caring that my voice sounded as exhausted as I felt.
His hand on my back, he led me up the stairs, and over to the two rocking chairs he usually sat in.
"Your dad stopped by a good while back. Told me to take care of you if I needed to."
I sighed, knowing that questioning Finn about Dad's whereabouts would get me nowhere. Dad only ever revealed his whereabouts in code, and it was only a guess since our code-names translated to here or there. We were over-careful with his location.
But, instead of staying silent, I asked anyway, "He say where he was going?"
"Ah," he said, looking up as he thought, "Somethin' about Phoenix."
Phoenix Arizona - code for either Colorado or Michigan. Hot equals cold.
"Geez," I groaned. "How long ago was that?"
"Least...a month or two ago."
A month or two. He moved around frequently, and never settled down anywhere longer than two to three weeks. Changed his appearance every other week, and never went to the same place twice, unless it was a place of "Business."
Victor and Logan leaned on the railing, a few feet apart, watching my face.
"So, anyway, want to explain?" He asked, the old, rickety rocking chair squeaking as he leaned back in it.
I leaned back in my old chair, letting out a sigh. "Ike's got my location. Probably tracked me down by scouring any and every convenience store, and gas station, and showing my picture around to every local in a ten mile radius. Ike may be stupid, but he's smart," I muttered, causing Victor to raise an eyebrow, "He knew I'd have to stop sometime, and that I wouldn't fly. He tracked me back here by witnesses. He already knew my hometown, so by the time the rabbit trail started to grow cold, he had already guessed where I was going."
"So," Finn began on a sigh, "Why not just skip town?"
I shook my head. "I can't do that. Not yet, at least," I murmured, "I have some business there that I'm not finished with. I'll probably have to dye and cut my hair-," I noticed Victor tense, and Logan straightened up, so I backtracked, "Or wear a wig, but if I just convince him that I have skipped town, I'll at least have enough time to get what I need and then skip."
I didn't look at Victor's expression, nor Logan's. I knew what they were both thinking, and I didn't want to face them right now. I'd discuss my plans with them later. Whether they disagreed or not.
"Well then," Finn said, leaning forward again, "I got three candidates inside. Not many got your hair color so I had 'em die it instead. Long hair, like you asked, and I had 'em get a leather jacket. About the same height, although few were exact."
"Good," I sighed, standing up, "Let's go meet Me."
Finn stood up, stretching before heading for the front door, I followed him halfway, before I was stopped by a hand on my arm.
I looked up to find Victor, and I knew he wanted to talk to me.
"You guys go on ahead," I told Finn and Logan, "We'll be right behind you."
"Sure. Don't be long, now," Finn said, smacking a hand onto Logan's shoulder and dragging him along.
Logan stared at us, at me, until he was out of sight, and I turned to Victor with arms crossed. "Yes, oh Protective One?"
He set his mouth into a thin line at that, but sighed instead of commenting on it. He took a hold of my shoulders and dragged me close, pressing a single kiss to my lips. I responded in kind, despite still being annoyed with him, and opened my eyes when I felt his hands tighten on my shoulders ever so slightly.
"Are you really alright?"
I blinked, not expecting this question. I'd expected him to ask about what I'd said earlier, or to warn me away from Finn. I expected him to try and convince me to go back home, and let him protect me. I didn't expect that he'd be concerned about my well-being.
"What?"
He let out a soft sigh. "I know that the whole thing with Ike hasn't been easy on you. When you were getting dressed, Logan said you weren't yourself on the way back to the hotel. He said that your expression when you ran into him-," I pressed a finger to his lips.
"I'm fine now," I murmured. His expression turned dubious, and I smiled, "I promise. I just...needed some reassurance." I studied his face for a moment, knowing that the only reason I was fine was because of him. If he hadn't held me in that moment, I would have run around in circles until I broke down.
I reached up, wondering how I'd stayed away from him for so long, and pressed a palm to his cheek. He had no idea the effect he had on me. Or maybe he did. Either way, I was fine in knowing that he would always be there for me.
"Let's go inside," I said, before I got any more sappy then I was.
Victor, his expression puzzled at what I meant, let me pass him, following me silently into the house.
"Oh another one!" A voice squealed, and two more heads turned in our direction.
I paused at the scene in front of me. Finn was leaning against the wall behind the couch, with a stoic expression, as he watched Logan stand awkwardly in the middle of the living room, surrounded by girls. I raised my eyebrow at him, and he shrugged.
"I'm more afraid of a bunch'a girls than I am a band of hit men," He told me, "I ain't about to say anythin'."
I shrugged, knowing that his caution was warranted. Girls are scary.
As one of the women approached, Victor inched his way behind me, causing me to grin. "What's the matter, Victor?" I asked him in a low voice, "Afraid of a few women?"
"Deathly. I already have you to contend with." He replied, squeezing my shoulders.
"Hi!" The girl greeted, eyes moving right past me and focusing like an eagle on it's pray - which happened to be Victor. "I'm Johanna."
"Victor," He replied in a blunt voice, "Have you met my girlfriend, Jane?"
Rolling my eyes at his obvious attempt to take the attention off of himself, I stuck out my hand, as she finally set her gaze on my own, which would have pierced my skin had it been a knife. "Jane Harison. You're my decoy," I said, grinning.
Clapping his hands, as Logan tried to inch his way away from the girls, Finn shrugged himself from the wall. "Alright, girls. Let's get down to business."
Johanna put her hand in mine, her mouth set in an unfriendly smile. "Nice to meet you."
Finally, I thought, an annoying woman in my life.
***
I know.
I know.
I haven't updated in ten thousand years.
I am a horrible person.
I humbly apologize to all of you for my laziness.
BUT ON ANOTHER NOTE, I START COLLEGE THIS YEAR. YEAS.
In other words the updates are probably going to be slower. Psh what am I saying how could they get any slower?
I'll try my hardest to updated through the semester, and to update MORE FREQUENTLY. I WILL FINISH THIS BOOK. I WILL. I PROMISE.
Well guys, enjoy. like that shit. Who am I kidding, LOVE that shit. Or something.
Love you guys! STAY AWESOME, BEAUTIFUL FANIONS.
See you next time!