Chapter 23

We’d been forced to wake up by Nate at 3:00 am; way earlier than we had agreed upon the night before and I was so tired I could sleep standing up. John had left out over an hour ago to get some supplies while Nate was outside hunkered over the engine of the rusted bucket of a car we’d be travelling in.

Beside me on the cushion-less couch, Kyle lay fast asleep once more and I found myself wondering for about the hundredth time, why we had to get up so early if we weren’t even going do anything. It was only Nate’s grumpy disposition that kept me from asking.

It was still very dark outside and so cold my joints were beginning to ache. It had been just hours since we’d left the prison and I had no idea what was going on in the world at large, I found myself wondering if our pictures were being circulated and if we’d made the breaking news on TV; I wasn't even sure I wanted to watch; it would only serve to make the situation feel more real.

I heard the loud clatter of metal objects hitting a hard surface as if a tool box had fallen and pushed up from the chair to go investigate. When I reached the open doorway, I paused taking in the sight of Nathan bent over the spilled tools and cursing under his breath, flashlight in hand and pants riding low. His hands were greasy, as was the plain white shirt he wore and I smiled at the sight of him.

“Need some help?” I offered as he continued to gather the tools. He looked around at me briefly, our eyes meeting before he turned back to his mess.

“No go back inside.” He said gruffly and I bit my lip.

“Nate-”

“Riley, this entire situation is hard enough without you giving me any trouble alright? Go back inside.” He said adamantly and choosing not to give him the opportunity to make me feel even shittier, I turned away from him and reentered the room where Kyle still slept, oblivious to the shit storm tearing at my heart.

It was ten minutes before Nate entered the room, going straight to the bathroom and a moment later I heard the running of water.The worst part about Nate’s foul mood was the fact that I had no idea if he was just pissed off at the whole situation or if he was like this because he regretted even coming in the first place, so despite being comforted by his very presence, a few times already, I’d caught myself wishing he’d never even come.

I knew I was selfish, ungrateful, irresponsible, possibly even every name anyone could think to call me, but at the end of the day freedom mattered more to me than what anyone thought and I could practically taste the tangy flavor of liberation, so much so that every time I closed my eyes that’s what I saw and every time I harbored second thoughts, it brought me back to my senses.

I’d been framed and I would go down fighting for my freedom, the time for sitting in my quiet little corner like a scared mouse was over. I’d taken the first step and with the help of my friends-because that’s what they were to me, whether they agreed or not- I was going to succeed.

“Kyle.” Nate’s voice interrupted my musings and I moved to shake Kyle awake.

“What?” came his sleepy response and I pointed to Nate who stood across the small room, cleaning the blade of what looked to be a pair of scissors.

“Come here.” He said before disappearing once more into the bathroom and I watched as Kyle pushed up from his seat n confusion, stifled a yawn and followed Nate into the tiny lavatory.

I followed because there was nothing else to do, but mostly because I was curious. When I got to the door my brows furrowed in confusion and I leaned against the frame watching the scene play out before me.

Nate stood behind Kyle, who in turn stood before the small sink, looking at himself in the mirror. I watched as he took the scissors, gathered Kyle’s dirty blond hair in his fist and proceeded to chop the silky strands.

“What are you doing?” I asked when another clump of hair fell to the floor.

“You’ll need to alter your appearance if you don’t want to get caught.” Nate said simply and the strands continued to fall.

“I’ve always wanted a Mohawk, no don’t cut that part Nate.” He instructed and Nate followed.

“Yeah right there, cut that part lower and make sure you get the hair line…no lower-”

“He’s not your hairdresser Kyle, take what you get.” A booming voice said behind me and I jumped.

It was just John. I took a breath, watching him deposit the bags onto the floor behind me, then coming to stand next to me in the doorway. In his hand he held a much smaller bag which he handed to Nate.

“Hey Johnny, did you get my lip balm?” Kyle questioned, gazing at John in the mirror with a lopsided grin.

John grunted as he reached into one of the other bags and pulled out a lip balm packet of three, which he threw into the sink and Kyle snatched up with a grin.

“Hurry it up Nate we don’t have much time.” John said then and I turned my attention back to Nate’s progress, watching him pull what looked to be a straight edge razor from the bag John had handed him. In no time he was done with Kyle and I could barely recognize my friend.

Nate then extracted a small bottle from the bag and handed it to Kyle “Follow the instructions.”

It was hair dye.

“Here.” He said handing the scissors to John as he went by us and after making me sit on the only stool in the room, John began and a moment later I was watching my black tresses fall at my feet. When I glanced up once, I caught Nate watching as John hacked off the curls he had always seemed to love running his fingers through late at night when he thought I was sleeping but the moment he caught my eyes he turned away and began rummaging through the bags.

I lowered my head, my gaze resting on my hands which were clasped tightly in my lap.

“I look evil.” Kyle announced a few minutes later when he entered the room and I looked up. Gone was the dirty blond, his head was shaved low at the sides and what was left of his hair was as black as the night. With that uncharacteristic Mohawk, if he’d had just a little eyeliner, some black leather clothes and maybe a piercing or two he’d look like a gothic rock star.

“You’re dripping all over the place.” I pointed out and he shrugged.

“Alright your turn.” John handed me a full bottle of dye and I proceeded to the bathroom. I didn’t know how to feel when I caught sight of my reflection in the bathroom mirror. It was all gone; probably the length of a fingernail. The last time I had my hair this short was probably when I was a baby; I hardly recognized myself. I glanced down at the bottle and apparently I was going be a Blondie from now on. Platinum blond.

Great.

It took me two bottles to get the right color, the first time I tried, it came out in some weird orange-brown shade that was likely to bring more attention to me than away, the second time however it came out the way it was supposed to and I dyed my eyebrows too just to carry out the effect.

I didn't even bother looking at myself when I was done; everything was just becoming too real. We were actually doing this, we were actually going to try. I deposited the bottles on the table and John scooped them up, throwing them, along with my discarded prison uniform into the fire he’d started in the large metal garbage can.

He handed each of us a knapsack which contained a toothbrush, toothpaste, a few underwear and a couple shirts. When we were all dressed in our new clothes we were ushered into the car and by 5:00am we were on the road in our shaky rust bucket, making our way to wherever John and Nate decided we needed to go.

“I just don’t get why you guys don’t hafto disguise yourselves too, you could get caught just as easily as we could.” Kyle uttered the exact words I’d been thinking and it was John who answered him.

“We have our reasons.” was all he would say and with furrowed brows I pulled off the pair of fake test glasses they’d given me to wear and fidgeted with it in my hands.

As always they were hiding something; no real surprise there, but as long as they were still set on helping us; I couldn't care less.

……………………………………….

~Nathan’s POV~

Three hours, two stops and thirty two minutes later we were pulling into a motel that looked like it had never seen better days. While John went to check in, I instructed the guys to lay low while I went to find the nearest pay phone. The operation had gone bust since the minute that fight had broken out which meant after two years stuck in that hell hole with the likes of thieves, rapists and murderers we had failed.

I imagined the team was being briefed right about now and with John and me missing it wouldn't take very long for the others to realize what had happened. If our names somehow found its way to the outside world, which I highly doubted it would, we would be considered fugitives who had aided the escape of convicts and if caught, would be sent packing with the rest of them; just like that, our lives would be over and everything we had worked for would have been for nothing.

It was a thought that would keep anyone up at night and it was that thought among only a few others, that had me so determined to succeed in this particular endeavor. The other determinant would be Riley, but thinking about him only caused the anger to rise and that would get us nowhere.

I deposited the coins into the slot of the only payphone on sight and dialed the number that had been ingrained in my head for years. It rang once, twice, three times then;

“Chief Hayes.” the gravelly voice answered.

“It’s me, I have a bit of a problem.”

A brief pause.

“Where the hell are you Greyson?” he barked out, “You and John better drag your asses down here this very second or it’s your jobs on the line-“

“Can’t do that chief, it’s more than our jobs we have to worry about right now…” and I told him everything; how we thought Riley had been framed and how he had escaped and we had gone after him. I told him that we would solve the case and get everyone back home safely and then I asked for his help because we couldn’t pull it off without him.

He took his time responding, then after taking a deep breath he continued. “I’m sure I don’t need to tell you what’s at stake here, but I hope you understand that even if you do manage to clear his name, it’s not as simple as that. There’s speculation that he and his friend helped plan the prison break; that’s personal injury charges, destruction of state property, obstruction of justice...do I need to go on?”

“I understand all that sir, we all do and we’ll just have to figure everything else out when we get to that point, but right now I’ve got a kid who doesn’t deserve what he got and I can’t focus on much else right now.”

“Then you also understand that the only reason you and John aren’t all over the media as accomplices is because technically the operation never happened, which means you were never there? A handful of people knew about it which means a handful of people are now aware that you’re missing.”

“Yes sir.”

He sighed “I’ve worked with you for years Nathan and I trust your instincts and I respect your judgment. You’re one of my best agents and if you’re sure about this then I won’t stop you, but if you get caught before you can figure this all out you’re on your own. There’s a line even I won’t cross; not even for you.” The chief continued, his tone subdued.

“I understand that sir.”

There was a brief pause before he spoke again. “Alright then, I’ll hold down the fort here for as long as I can and I’ll keep your name out of it, but eventually everything will be out in the open so you’ll need to act fast. You know where my private cabin is. You can rest up there for a while. It’s fully stocked and as long as you’re careful you should be safe there.”

I nodded to myself, knowing full well he had no chance of seeing the action. “Just one more thing…what can you tell me about Eddie.” At present, the only thing I knew was that he’d been shot and even John hadn’t had much to say about him, but I couldn’t go on until I knew for sure what his status was.

The chief sighed and I knew the answer before he spoke his next words. I felt as if my heart had just plunged into my stomach. “The doctors don’t think he’ll last the night.” He said quietly and I swallowed, then nodded.

“Thank you sir.”

“Good luck Greyson, I can only hope you two come home in one piece.”

When the call ended I stood there for a minute gathering my strength, then when I managed to push the news from my mind, I inserted a few more coins into the slot and called up a restaurant. We’d be having takeout for breakfast

……………………………………………….

~Riley’s POV~

It was crazy how the hours flew by despite the fact that Kyle and I had done absolutely nothing but laze around while John and Nate made plans. The dump of a motel had nothing but two full sized beds and a nightstand, yet I was grateful to be there and free rather than locked up. None of us had left the room all day which meant with nothing to do I’d spent most of it sleeping or talking to Kyle, who spent most of his day pestering John.

It was interesting to see how much the bald guy had changed in the months I’d come to know him. He no longer looked at me with contempt or annoyance and the name calling had all but stopped ever since the day I’d begged the crew for a quarter to make a phone call.

Even so, it felt as though it was really after Kyle squeezed his way into his life that John really started to mellow out and I was finally able to see the kind of guy Nate had always said he was; rough around the edges but with a giant-sized heart. One that clearly beat for Kyle even if he fought tooth and nail not to admit it.

Then there was Kyle, who despite our serious predicament seemed to be bubbling over with happiness just because he was able to be with John. That kind of love was beautiful to see play out and I hoped I was around to witness John crumble under Kyle’s attention. I smiled as I watched Kyle stake his claim on the bed John was to share with Nate. It was kinda cute how he drove John crazy and I wished I could be like him; filled with so much confidence that he could go after the one he wanted without giving a damn about the consequences.

I transferred my attention to Nathan who was now moving toward my bed after having given up on the other one across the room. Kyle seemed to have won that right. As he approached I felt myself go warm all over and I placed my hand over my heart as it pounded in my chest.

If it were possible, I felt an even deeper connection to him now than I did locked away in our cell which I couldn’t understand. We’d barely spoken a proper sentence to each other since the escape, yet here I was still hot and bothered by the thought of him climbing into bed with me.

I took a breath and released it, then very bravely turned onto my side so that I could face Nate when he stuffed himself under the sheets. He rested on his back, hands behind his head as he stared at the ceiling and I lay there watching him, taking in as much as I could of his features before he turned away and completely shut me out.

I was dying to say something to him and a few times I even got my mouth open, but fear of what he would say once I managed to start up a topic had me snapping it shut once again.

“Just spill it Riley.” He spoke then and I froze, eyes wide and my entire body blushing red.

“I…just wanted to say thank you for doing this…I know it’s a huge risk for you but you decided to help me anyway and it means a lot to me.” I managed to get the words out without much of a stutter and after a brief moment of silence he turned to face me and I braced myself.

On the other inside of the room I could still hear Kyle and John arguing about something that went along the lines of ‘respecting personal space’ and I bit my lip and tried desperately to drown out their words as Nate opened his mouth to speak.

“Don’t look at me like that.” Nate said then and my eyes widened in confusion.

“Like what?”

“Like I’m about to rip your throat out or something...like your terrified of me.” he trailed off, his eyes narrowed but for once, not harsh and I swallowed.

“I’m not, I just…I don’t want you to be mad at me. I’m really sorry for all this.” I told him sincerely, hoping that by some miracle we could somehow put all this behind us and our relationship could be like it was before, but then even I couldn’t go back to that. It wouldn’t be right.

“I’m not mad at you. I’m just...pissed at what you’ve done. You didn’t have to run and now you’re in over your head.”

I chuckled without mirth. “I think that still translates to you being pissed at me and I know everything’s bad now but it was bad then too and to be honest it doesn’t feel much worse. I just know I can solve this Nate and with you guys helping me I can be free again.”

“Things won’t ever be that simple Riles.” His voice had gone soft and his eyes took on a gentle glow. I’d missed my nickname on his tongue.

“Kyle has no case to solve, he’ll still be considered a fugitive and so will John and me and if you manage to get off on one charge...escaping is a crime on its own. Things are never that easy.” He didn’t growl the words which was a start but he looked very tired, almost like he’d reached the end of his rope even though we had just began and I felt so guilty I could cry.

I understood the enormity of the situation, but telling myself that everything would work out could get me by each day like nothing else would and I needed that positivity like I needed air.

“I know. I didn’t think ,I just ran and now I can’t bear to go back and I’m sorry, I swear I am. Ther-”

“We’ll figure it out somehow.” Nate cut me off and I nodded, gazing at him like he was my lifeline because to be honest; he was. He was everything to me and I hoped I wasn’t dragging him and the others to their doom.

When Nate reached over to rest a gentle hand on my cheek I closed my eyes, absorbing his comfort and loving the feeling of his flesh against mine. I missed this and even though he had been in my presence every step of the way, I missed him and I told him as much.

He gave me that amused half smile that I loved and I all but melted into the mattress. “I’m right here.”

Then he pushed himself up onto his elbow and inched closer to me, lowering his lips to mine so that when they touched I felt an explosion of feeling erupt in my veins and I just wanted to pull him into me and never let go.

It was a miracle I was able to think in that moment, that I still had my senses and my resolve, because I managed to push him away before he could deepen the kiss and when he looked down at me, the confusion written all over his gorgeous face I reached up and ran my fingers through his hair, loving the feel of the strands against my palm, but soon I was pulling away.

“I told myself I wouldn’t do this with you anymore.” I whispered.

“Do what?” he moved to rest on his elbow once again, still watching my every expression.

“This...us, kissing, everything. You already know how I feel about you Nate and to be honest it doesn’t get any better. I can’t just get over it, I’m not built that way and it’s wrong for me to do this to myself.” I explained.