towel appears in front of me. I take in gratefully and continue to wipe. “How bad is it?” I finally ask, pointing to his arm. It actually doesn’t look bad at all. Just a small round hole with a trickle of blood running down over his bicep. “It’s a flesh wound. It just needs to be cleaned out so it doesn’t get infected. I’ve had much worse believe me.” “Yes…you have.” “I can’t believe you shot that guy.” He remarks. “I can’t either. D-did I k-kill…” I can’t finish my sentence. “No. You shot him in the thigh and I shot him in the chest. He’s dead but you saved my life Jen. You gave me the two seconds I needed to recover and shoot him. Otherwise he’d have blown my brains out.” “What are we going to do now? This place is a war zone in here.” “Did you use your own name or ID when you checked in? Did you use a card or cash?” “I just gave cash and they didn’t ask for any ID.” “Why don’t you get yourself cleaned up and I’ll do some cleaning myself here. We don’t want to leave any evidence that either of us were ever here. Then we’ll go our separate ways. You should find yourself another motel like this one. Don’t leave any kind of paper trail wherever you go. Someone obviously knows you’re in town and wants you dead.” I really don’t want to take a shower with Mark here but I guess it’s safe. If he wanted to rape me or otherwise harm me he’s had plenty of chances. If I don’t take a long hot shower I’m never going to stop vomiting. Blood is caked in my hair and dried on my clothes and skin. “I’ll take a shower.” I say to him. “Fine. I’ll get things cleaned up here and when you get out we’ll leave.” Forty-five minutes later I stagger out of the shower and get dressed. I had planned on taking a ten minute shower but once I got under the hot water I couldn’t stop scrubbing. I only stopped because my skin was getting red and raw. I still feel like I have blood and guts on me but I do feel much better. I’m not sure what Mark was doing while I was in the shower. Things look pretty much the same. “Don’t touch anything.” He instructs me. “I’ve done what I could to get rid of any prints you may have left behind. I’m also taking the pillow cases and the bed sheets. I don’t want you leaving any DNA evidence behind. Why don’t you go to the shower and make sure you didn’t leave any hair in the drain and put the soaps you have used in this bag.” He hands me a plastic trash bag so I go to do as requested. “Aren’t you going to take a shower too?” I ask. “I can do that at home. For now I’ll just wear my jacket over my vest. No one will notice.” Next he hands me my purse and my gun. Closing the door behind us we leave my room. While I head for the elevator he takes the stairs and that’s that. The nightmare is over, and what a night it’s been. I glance at my watch. It’s nearly 2:30 in the morning. I’m tired and hungry. Instead of finding a motel at this time of night I opt for the first all night restaurant I can find; Denny’s. I collapse into the bench at a table in the back of the restaurant and look over the menu. I wonder how much time will pass before someone tries to kill me again?
Chapter Eight Awakening
“Ma’am?” My head snaps up and my hands reach for my purse. Standing in front of me is a way too cheerful waitress for the time of night it is. “What?” I ask sharply. “Would you like anything else to eat?” “What?” I look around me at a string of empty plates and platters. Holy crap, did I eat all that. Wow, I have really been out of it. “No… I’m fine thanks.” I murmur. “Well here’s your bill. Feel free to just sit and relax until you’re ready to go.” “Uh… yeah I’m ready thanks.” I grab the bill and get to my feet and a thought hits me. I grab my purse and feel around in it. “Fuck!” “Excuse me?” My