No more waiting, today is the day.
I cram everything I own into my duffle bag, packing every bit of clothing and all of my few personal possessions. I stuff my money inside a pair of my socks deep inside my bag, and hang my moms necklace around my neck, tucking it under my shirt.
I pull my hooded black sweatshirt over my head, and throw the bag strap over my shoulder as I exit out the door. I turn to take one last look at the room I grew up in before closing the door.
Whatever happens...I'm never coming back.
I climb up the stairs, meeting Maka at the ground floor, an anxious bounce in her foot as she waits for me. Bag also slung over her shoulder, she sighs as she sees me. Silently telling me to hurry up, no doubt anxious about getting out of here. I walk past her without a word, and she follows behind me just as quietly. Neither of us want to risk someone picking up on what we're planning...especially now that we're this close.
We get into the car, and I start driving towards the edge of the territory and to the gas station me and Sapphira chose to meet at, since leaving the parked car at her home isn't a good idea...and neither is leaving it at the place we're meeting Tony. We don't want to give Samson any leads to where we've gone. The less he knows, the better off we are.
After crossing into town, Maka finally relaxes, letting it a heavy sigh.
"I can't believe we're actually doing this Kane."
I chuckle nervously, flitting my eyes to hers before turning them back to the road.
"Neither can I, honestly. But I'm not going back now..."
"And I'm not either...I can't wait until we're finally free..."
Pulling into the gas station, I notice Sapphira's truck at one of the pumps, the bed of it covered and tied with a tarp. I park and I take my bag with me as I exit, walking up to her truck calmly. Wearing her red hoodie and black jeans, her back faces me as she fills her tank. After she puts the nozzle back, I gently grab her by the hips...making her jump in surprise.
"Hey Button."
She turns around and smiles, jumping into my arms and planting a quick kiss on my lips.
"Kane! I missed you!"
"I'm happy to see you too baby."
I plant a kiss on her forehead, and she blushes. The sound of Maka clearing her throat breaks us out of our little moment, and I chuckle. Turning us both to face a lightly scowling she wolf, raising an eyebrow at the two of us.
"It seems I've forgotten my manners, Sapphira, this is Maka. Maka, this is my gorgeous mate Sapphira."
They shake hands, and Maka smiles.
"It's about time we were officially introduced. Kane's done nothing but talk about you for the past six months."
Sapphira blushes, and I notice the time.
"We can continue this on the way, we need to meet with Tony."
They both nod, and my mate gets in the passenger seat while Maka sits in the back with our bags. I run to the pack SUV for minute, sitting a folded piece of paper over the keys on the seat divider, its contents being a well written letter to Alpha Samson of all the things I've wanted to say the past few years. The only thing I'll regret about writing it, is that I won't be here to see him read it. That will definitely be a show.
I jog back to my mates truck and get in the drivers seat, buckling my seatbelt before I crank up and exit the station. We drive through town, all of us deciding to eat later, after we've left the county.
We reach the county line after about thirty minutes, and I see Tony sitting on the side of the road at the county sign, leaning against a blue Rav 4. I pull over on the side of the road behind him, and he jogs towards us with a black object in his hand. I roll down the window, and he leans in to talk.
"Glad you guys made it. I'm Tony, and you must be Kane's mate, right?"
Sapphira nods shyly, and Tony smiles before looking to the backseat.
"And you must be Maka. Glad I could talk you guys into rebelling, I promise it's worth it."
"Trust me, we know it's worth it." I reply, interlocking my fingers with Sapphira's as she leans into my side.
"Great to hear. Okay, here's how it's gonna work. You guys will follow behind me, and we'll drive for a couple of hours before we stop for something to eat. Oh, and here."
He hands me the black object, which now I now see is obviously a walkie-talkie. Since we don't have cell phones, and still have to communicate, they'll be necessary for passing instructions on the road.
"I'm gonna need a shotgun rider, so which of you lovely ladies would like to volunteer?"
He teases halfheartedly, and I scowl at him while holding Sapphy's hand a little tighter.
"Looks like it's me, cowboy." Maka mutters, the amusement in her tone obvious as she hops out the truck with her bag.
"Have fun lovebirds, don't do anything crazy while we're gone!" Tony teases as they walk quickly towards the car, and I roll my eyes at his antics. Though I have to admit, it's good to see him so happy... he didn't have that when he was in Black Sun.
My eyes flicker to Sapphy before we start driving, me and Ares excited by the fact that we'll be spending the next couple of days traveling together, in a truck all to ourselves...all the time in the world to talk and spend time together...no time limits or restrictions. Just us.
"This is Rebel one to Rebel two, you ready to roll?"
Me and Saph just look at each other for a minute, giving each other an 'is he mental' look before she tries to answer back, but from the way it looks she can't find the right button.
"Try the blue button sweetheart."
She presses it, and I let my growl rumble loudly before talking into the thing.
"Don't call my mate sweetheart, got it Tony?"
"Ooh, someone's territorial."
"Lets get moving."
"Grumpy too, but alright Rebel two, follow me. First stop, Prescott."
~~~~~~~~~
We drove for a couple of hours before stopping to eat in Prescott, then we continued onward for another hour or so until we stopped at the Grand Canyon, Sapphira taking pictures with her Nikon camera to document our first visit. Exploring for a while before reluctantly moving on...and finally crossing the state line with my mate snapping photos and talking to me along the way.
As much as Tony pretended to complain about stopping and slowing down for photos and sightseeing, I can tell he's enjoying it just as much as we are.
After stopping for a late lunch just inside Utah, we continue on, until Tony calls us to a stop in the middle of Gunnison. Saying there was something he wanted to show us. We park at a strip mall looking place, and all three of us follow him to a shop called Rebel Ink.
"When I left Phoenix, I came upon this place. And one of my first freedoms I enjoyed was getting my first tattoo. This place is popular with rogues so I got it at a discount."
He says as we walk in, pulling up his sleeve to show the dragon tattooed around his wrist. Me and Maka look at each other while grinning, then I look down at the intrigued eyes of my mate. And we didn't have to say a word. Omegas weren't allowed to get tattoos in Black Sun...so this would be the ultimate show of defiance.
"You guys take your time, pick the one you like and we'll get to work." The woman upfront says, her arms and shoulders completely covered in ink.
Me and Sapphira look at a book of ideas together while Maka looks at the ones on the wall. As much as I would love a tattoo, I have no idea what I want to get...other than something that symbolizes my new freedom...
I look to Sapphira and it hits me, she's the reason I'm starting over...so that would be the perfect one to get.
"Tell me which one you like the best Button."
She looks at them for a moment before pointing to one near the back of the book. A white elegant looking flower with green leaves around it.
"It's an Iris...they symbolize wisdom, valor and royalty...and the white color stands for purity...they are my favorites."
I smile, and Ares rumbles in agreement. It's perfect.
"Then I'll get this one."
She looks at me in surprise.
"Really? Are you sure?"
"Of course, I want my first tattoo to be special. And having it mean something to you makes it extremely special."
She bites her lip, that shy demeanor returning for a moment.
"Then...will you choose mine?"
Now it's my turn to be shocked.
"You want one too?"
"Yeah...I've always wanted to get a tattoo, but I never had the nerve to get one before now. And I want it to be special as well..."
I smile, pressing a kiss to her forehead before turning back to the book, flipping back to a particular page that caught my eye. Landing on it, I point to it, and she grins widely.
"I love it, it's so perfect!"
She stares excitedly at the design, the black wolf with its head thrown back and howling at a blue crescent moon, and I have to agree.
Making our choices, two female tattoo artists get to work, one etching the white iris over my heart, while Sapphira gets hers on her left arm. Much to my surprise, it doesn't hurt as much as I thought it would, even Saph barely flinched.
After the work was complete, we admired the ink as we waited for Maka to finish getting hers, a tribal eagle on her back, the wings stretch across the entire width of her shoulders and went halfway down her back. A true symbol of freedom.
As impressive as it is, I'm more preoccupied with the feeling of my mates soft fingers lightly caressing my bare chest, tracing around the white flower delicately...and it doesn't hurt that her eyes keep wandering down my chest, stirring my blood as her gaze lingers...the sparks making tiny explosions underneath my skin.
"You enjoying yourself Button?"
She grins. "Maybe..."
"All right you two, save that for later. We need to drive for a couple more hours." Tony scolds teasingly.
I groan, already feeling the tiredness kick in. After paying for our services, we go back to our vehicles and head back out on the road, driving under the moonlight sky. I honestly could use a good run, it's been a while since I've shifted and really stretched my muscles. But, that'll have to wait until we reach some neutral wooded territory.
We keep driving until we reach the state line, stoping at the rest stop for the night. After eating a late dinner at the drive through nearby, we opted to sleep in our vehicles in the rest stop parking lot instead of hunting for a motel, and we planned on getting up the next morning around 8 am.
Crawling into the backseat of the truck, I lay on my back with my head against the pillow, motioning for Sapphira to join me.
"Kane, I don't think there's enough room for-"
Her words are cut off by a squeal as I grab her hand and pull her on top of me, and her face turns the most gorgeous shade of red as she looks up at me from my chest.
"I think this is pretty cozy, don't you baby?"
She bites her lip again, and I growl at the sight. Instead of answering at first, she just wiggles around until her head is tucked under my chin, cuddling against me. Even though this isn't technically a bed, and it's far from the most comfortable sleeping areas, I've wanted this for a long time...sharing sleep with her, cuddling against each other on cold nights...
It's perfect.
"Well, you are very warm..." she finally murmurs against my neck, and I chuckle.
"It's a werewolf thing...I'm glad you enjoy it."
I say while brushing my fingers through her soft hair, and her loud yawn makes me laugh.
"Go to sleep Button, we got a lot of driving ahead tomorrow."
"Mmhm..." she mumbles, and I can tell she's already gone.
Following her lead, I close my eyes, and slowly drift off to the sound of her soft breathing and the beat of her steady heart.