All That Blooms in Spring Ch. 02

None of those people had cared about me, or my feelings. I decided they probably still didn't. They were like most people - selfish. That made my decision so much easier.

The second night came, and I snuck out to the vehicle after midnight. Earlier, Ann had placed a few heavy blankets in the vehicle. It was a fitful night, and I slept with one eye open. When I woke up, Ann was placing a suitcase, a duffle bag and backpack next to me. She mouthed, "Don't move."

The drive passed surprisingly quickly. Our next stop was the first and only gas super-center, where the pass road intersected California Hwy 395. Ann had been talking to me the entire time. She'd felt watched the previous night too, but hadn't seen anything to indicate we'd been followed as we'd fled up and over the mountains.

"I really need to pee," I told her, with a screwed-up smile. "And maybe buy some junk food."

"I think it's safe," she replied as she pulled around back by the truck wash. "I'll give you cash. When you come out, I'll go in. I'll even let you ride up front with me for the rest of the trip."

She was so cute. I went inside and almost ran to the head. It felt like my bladder was going to evacuate through my dick hole. Finally, relieved, I washed up and was really looking forward to a bag of chips and a shitty packaged donut.

As I stepped out of the restroom, there he was. In the few seconds it took me to recognize Dalton, he grabbed my arm and pushed me back into the head. I quickly looked around, and amazingly, there weren't any others in the restroom with us. That was fascinating, considering the dozens of people I'd encountered between the car and the restroom. I was about to struggle against his grip when he locked eyes with me.

"You wife wants you to come home, Peter," he said with plenty of emotion. "She wants you to know she loves you and wants you to come home."

"Yeah," I spat at him, "I don't want to go home. Tell her she can have her friends to keep her happy and warm at night. Just tell her to leave me alone!"

"It's not that simple," Dalton retorted with equal venom. "A lot of people spent a lot of time and a great deal of money to look for you. Now we know you're alive, and you need to make things right."

I tried to push my way past him, but he was expecting it. We struggled - me trying to free myself from his grasp, and Dalton looking to position himself between me and the door. At some point during the struggle, I lost my footing on the slippery floor. I remember the side of my head hitting the sink, and then looking up into Dalton's worried face from the floor - just before everything went black.