27. Now what?

I began coughing; my natural instinct was to roll over so that I didn't choke on my saliva. I instantly regretted it as I was laying on my left shoulder. I bit my lip and pain and kept coughing. Two arms snaked around me and pulled me to a sitting position. I stiffened in their arms and gasped as I finally stopped coughing. "Ow," I murmured, trying to pry myself away.

"Well that's one way to wake up, I suppose," a voice mumbled behind me. I froze. Did I know that voice? Why was I in bed with a guy? Everything hurt. I began to panic and my breathing got even more shallow. "Breathe, Annette. Breathe. You're safe," the voice murmured as his arms tightened around me.

"Where am I?" I rasped as another coughing fit took over me, causing me to double over. "Ow." 

"Yeah. It sucks. You're okay, Annette. I'm not going to hurt you, stop trying to move away, you're going to hurt yourself. Figure it out. Where are you?" The voice asked kindly as he pulled me upright again and rested his head on my right shoulder. I flinched away took a deep breath and let it out slowly, only to have another coughing fit take over my body. "Take it easy. Nice even breaths. I'm holding onto until calm down. Both my legs are just resting beside you. Because they're on your right side, you can know I'm not going to try and pin you with them. My hands aren't going to move around and touch you, but I'm going to hold you in place. So stop trying to squirm away; it's for your own protection. Good. You can trust me; I won't hurt you. Now close your eyes and take some calming breaths. When you feel centered, tell me where you are. I'm not going to hurt you or force you to do anything. You're safe, honey. No. Shh. Annette, stop shaking and calm down or you'll pass out." I nodded and closed my eyes, leaning away from him. He sighed and pulled me in closer. His left arm held onto my waist as his right arm held onto my shoulder. I froze and began to cry. "Shh, honey. You're safe. I told you, I'm just holding onto you for your own protection. I'm not going to hurt you, nor am I going to let you hurt yourself." I tried to calm down but it wasn't happening. I began to mentally hum. The first song that came to my mind was American Dream by Casting Crowns. He moved his head closer to my ear and took some deep breaths as I started another song by Green Day, followed by Taylor Swift. "Good job, 'Nettie. Your breathing as evened out again. Now where are you?" The voice whispered behind me. I opened my eyes and looked around the room: single bed, a low dresser with a tv on top, and a window.

"Hotel room?" I asked as I took another breath. The head nodded. I scooted away and looked over at him. "Tyler?!" He grinned. "Why are we in a hotel bed?" 

"Catching a few extra z's. You were fast asleep when I came back. I made a spot on the floor then you started to thrash about on the bed. You untucked your crown with all your thrashing; Jess might be disappointed. I sat at the head of the bed, rested your head in my lap, and I gently tugged your braid until you calmed down. As I set your head back on a pillow, you scowled. So I laid by your side, stroking your hair. I must have dozed off. Your coughing woke me up. What is the last thing you remember?" He asked kindly as he pulled me back onto his chest, his left arm holding me under my sling, his right arm resting on my shoulder as he played with my braid. I leaned into his shoulder and thought for a second taking another deep breath. Everything came back and left me dizzy.

"We met a monster; he scared me but I had to protect you. Mikayla helped bring me to this hotel. You gave her the wrong number, said we were being followed," I recounted. Then I panicked, speaking rapidly as I leaned forward, "they're going to follow us? Can we leave? I can't go back! They're going to kill me. Why did I have another memory lapse? How could I forget I was hurt?!" 

"I don't know why you forgot you were hurt, honey. Calm down. I don't have an oxygen tank here. Shhh! I'm going to help you get away safely. We'll be okay," he murmured. I took some deep breaths as I leaned into him. "There you go. Once again, you scared me, sister dear. Can I look at your shoulder?" He asked kindly as he turned on the lamp beside him. On the table was a single red rose. I gave him a curious glance. He followed my gaze and grinned, picking up the flower. "I saved the red rose from the dozens of pink roses. I figured it was special," he explained as he gave it to me. I put it to my nose, closed my eyes, smelled it, and grinned. "Annette?" 

"Hmm? My shoulder, right. Yeah, you can look at it. How can I help?" I asked as I lowered the flower onto my lap.

"Just let me know how bad it hurts," he instructed as he unfastened the clips. He cradled my arm as my sling fell off, locking my right arm under his. 

"Aren't you on the wrong side?" I teased as I looked over my right shoulder at him. He smirked and shook his head.

"There's a method to my madness. This way you can't slap me if I end up hurting you," he teased back as his left hand pressed softly on my shoulder blade. I winced and looked at the tv, dropping my hand to the bed so I didn't accidentally destroy the flower. Right now, that was the only thing that wasn't a fuzzy memory or one that I had to strain to recall. "Plus, you have a really bad habit of not letting people know when you're in pain. Like this, I can feel you react and can get a better grasp of what we're dealing with. This might sting a bit," Tyler whispered apologetically as he lifted my arm, supporting it both in the front and back. I leaned into him and bit my lip, scrunching the sheet between us. He brought my arm back and picked the sling up again. After securing it in place I sat forward and looked at him. He gently wiped the tears from my eyes. "Are you okay, 'Nettie?" Tyler asked, his voice dripping with worry and concern. 

"I think so," I admitted. "Are we ready to go now? Or what's the plan?"  

"It's only about 10:30. Are you ready to go now? We can still sleep if you rather," he stated. I stretched my arm, yawned, and hissed as I winced. "Sleep it is," Tyler confirmed.  

"I'll sleep later. Let's go. The further away from your dad we get the safer I'll feel," I stated with determination. I swung my feet off the bed and picked up the rose off my lap.  

"Where do you think you're going, young lady?" Tyler chuckled pulling me back onto the bed. 

"To get stuff ready to go. Duh," I retorted as I fell back with a sigh. I grabbed my chest again, trying to ease the discomfort. I looked at him and grinned. "However, my brother is being a stick in the mud and won't let me help. For some reason, it's apparently better for me to lay down," I pouted.  

He leaned over, caressed my cheek, and kissed my forehead. "It's for your own good, sister dear," he chuckled. "Now stay put," he ordered as he stood up. I gave him a salute and grinned. 

"Yes, sir. But can I please sit up? I can't watch the tv in this position," I begged. 

"Umm, no. Complex rule number one: if a lady is in bed she should be on her back, don't you know? Good thing we aren't there anymore," he teased as he lifted me up to a sitting position. "No tv. Can you do this instead?" Tyler asked as he gave me the sudoku book and a pen. I took it and grinned at him. He began to gather the miscellaneous items up from around the room. 

I picked up the rose again and softly brushed the petals. "I promised I would call when we got released. However, if we were being watched, how do you plan to get us out of here so that we aren't being followed?" I asked, genuinely curious. I continued to touch the petals as I looked up at him.

Tyler paused his frantic scurrying about and looked at me. "I told you. Jess is on it."

"The numbers?" I asked. 

"The numbers," he confirmed with a broad smile. "403 is obviously Dad's here get out. She immediately came back here and got herself and Noah away. She does have the car. We had a rule that whatever method we used to get the memo out, only that line could be used again to touch base, in case he tried to copy one of our phones. He did; he got mine. You were smart and had your phone hidden. All it takes is a brief touch, phone to phone. Mine was in my right pocket as we walked by him. So I had to still speak in code on your phone in case he overheard anything. And since your number and our sibling numbers were programmed into it, you can bet that Dad is monitoring those numbers too. The benefit of this particular spying technique is it only works if the tech is in use and only has a five mile radius to the original phone. So since we aren't calling out or texting, he won't know anything. Even them, he can see who we call, but not hear what has been said. I know this because I designed it; I incorporated several hoops - per say. Then Noah tweaked it more. The levels of encryption are intense to say the least. I would miss some if I went back to find them all and disable it. A super computer might be able to get through it, but that tech isn't available to my dad. Your phone is the only one we have to worry about, kinda. Once we are out of range, the connection is lost forever. Okay, so 16-42 is looking for plan b, heading your way. She replied with 15-3. Asking me if I could just go out the back," he explained.

"To which you responded with can't," I replied. He nodded.

"Then she asked 82 - when were we leaving. Now. I told her. Then I used 74 for stay safe. There's no rhyme or reason behind the way we did that with the exception of 143." 

"I love you?" I guessed. He nodded and looked shocked. 

"I guess I really shouldn't be surprised. You sign, you know morse code, why shouldn't you pick up on simple numeric codes? I mean look who we're talking about here," he chuckled. "You really are amazing, Annette. And I mean that in the most big brother way possible. You're an amazing kisser too, I'll give you that, but promise me you'll never bring it up again." I blushed.

"You're the one who keeps bringing it up, but for the record, so are you," I murmured as I blushed deeply. He sat down on the bed and gave me a side hug as he kissed my forehead again. 

"Thanks. So it's dropped. Anyways, I dropped my phone in one of the flower vases on the way over, and then you suggested to give them to the housekeeping staff. Brilliant. And they loved them, by the way. Jess will be switching her number, so that's a plus. Now Pat and Janell's numbers are in your phone too, but Dad will only know if one of the other numbers in my phone light up; I don't have either of their numbers so they're safe too. Now there's a bus that leaves shortly after noon, just down the road from us. We have to set up a diversion and go out the window. Dad has goons on the doors. We're in a blind spot from both doors on this side. About five feet away from the bus stop, we're in the open again. Lucky for you, you are not the first person I've seen over here with a cast; it'll play to our advantage," Tyler explained hastily as he rounded up the final items. 

"How do you plan on getting us out without being spotted? This is a lot of stuff to carry," I stated, looking at all of the items on the bed. 

"We aren't taking all of these, 'Nettie. You are all that's important," he stated as he rounded up more items. I stared in wonder at him and picked up a digital camera. 

"This has to be easily over $800 worth of stuff! Probably more! Why are you just going to leave them behind?" I asked in bewilderment. He took his sweatshirt off and replaced it with a black t-shirt. He then took the camera out of my hand and handed me the teddy bear and picked me up.  

"Believe it or not, we'll get them all back. We always have a few plans in motion. Come on. Time to go," he stated as he dropped the key on the bed and walked us out the door, went down three doors and opened another door on the opposite wall. I gave him a confused look as we walked inside and he shut the door behind us. "Precautions," he stated as he shrugged his shoulders like this was normal. I pursed my lips and nodded as he carried me into the bathroom. He took the three things out of my hand and left. "Try. I'll be back in a minute," he stated. I rolled my eyes and listened to him, surprising myself with the amount of fluid I released; I didn't even feel like I had to go! I was pulling up my shorts when he knocked. "Decent?" 

"Just a second," I said as I turned around and flushed. He came in immediately and carried me to the sink. "In a hurry? I thought noon was our goal?" I teased as I washed my hand.

"Annette, not everything is for joking. You wouldn't feel rushed if you didn't have to spend twenty minutes trying to place where you were. Now let's go. Not another joke until we meet up with Noah," Tyler warned. I put my hand up in defeat as He sat me on the counter. He pulled out a yellow tube sock. "How's your pain?" He asked as he began to put the sock over my cast. 

"Becoming more and more intense, but at least I'm not coughing at the moment," I admitted as he cut the toes off the sock and pulled it up to the edge of the cast. My blue cast was now completely covered and looked like a yellow cast. He pulled out something similar to wax paper with drawings on it and wrapped it around my cast. Then he took a hair dryer and turned it on, running it over my leg. When he was done, he removed the wax paper and my new cast looked like my friends all loved me. "Do you have pain medication? Are you going to drug me?"

"No. I need you on your feet. Remember, Jess took your prescription order, but we'll get you some pain medication soon," he promised as he carried me to the bed, sitting me in the middle of it. He moved over to the dresser, dug around some, and finally held up some foundation powder as he looked back at me.

"Makeup? I can try, but I'm not very good with it," I insisted. He opened it and set it on the bed. 

"Do your best. Bruises on your legs and face," he ordered as he began to undo my hair. I nodded and picked up the makeup brush -starting with my left leg- and began to cover my bruises.

"This isn't working very well," I confessed with a scowl as I moved to the next bruise. He massaged my scalp and sat down beside me. He picked up a second container of the foundation and began working on my face. Finishing all of the bruises I could see on my left leg, I covered the ones on my right leg above my knee. 

"The curls look good. You can pull them off all the time," Tyler complimented with a smile. I blushed. "Roll over. I need you to lay on your stomach," he ordered as he took away my foundation container and the brush. I nodded and rolled to my left hip with great difficulty, crossed my right arm over my body, rested it on the bed, and slowly lowered myself face down onto the bed. Tyler braced my shoulders against his arm and it helped me ease onto my stomach. He quickly removed his arm and then began to cover the back of my legs. He grabbed my right shoulder and my left leg and flipped me over, then helped me sit up. He tucked my hair into a bun and secured it place with a pen before looking down my body and nodding. "You really do look free of bruises now. Okay, Annette. One more thing. We're switching your shirt. Take it off the same way Mikayla told you to put it on," he instructed as he unhooked my sling and gently set my arm on a pillow. "I'll give you a couple of minutes. I'll just be around the corner." I nodded and looked at the new top I was to put on. It was a lime green single shoulder top; it looked like it would be tight on me. I bit my lip. "I have this black top for you to put on over it. It will hide the bruises on your arms," Tyler murmured as he noticed my hesitance. He was holding a thin three-quarter length sleeve, black button up blouse. It had more lace than anything and was held together by a sheer material.

"I think my ace bandage will roll up under that shirt. It's hooked behind my back," I stated. He nodded and helped me take my shirt off. He unhooked my ace bandage and kissed the top of my head as he walked around the corner, allowing me to get dressed in peace. I gingerly unwrapped the bandage and attempted to put the shirt on. I slid it over my left arm and put it on with relative ease but I was unable to pull it down all the way. I groaned in frustration as I tugged on it. "Tyler, I think I need help," I finally admitted defeat. I had managed to pull it past my breasts, but I couldn't adjust the back and it was stuck. I turned on the bed so my back was towards him. He came around the corner and pulled my shirt the rest of the way down. 

"Better?" He inquired. I nodded. "Here. Sling first then we put this on." He grabbed my sling and placed my arm gently in it then fastened the buckle around my waist before buckling the one on my shoulder, helping me support my arm the whole time. Then he helped me slide into the black blouse and removed the pen from my hair again. He ruffled my hair as it cascaded down my back. "Can I button you?" I nodded and turned around and faced him. 

"Tyler!" I exclaimed, studying his appearance. "You grow hair fast! The 'stache suits you. The beard, eh," I chuckled as I pat his cheek now covered in a fake beard. He had also cut his hair, it was no longer spikey. "I didn't hear an electric razor," I accused. He smiled and buttoned the top three buttons on the blouse for me. "Now what, sir?" 

"I can carry you to the door, but in order to pull this off, you have to hop. Don't worry, you won't actually be using these," he insisted as he pulled out a pair of crutches and a backpack. I noticed all of my get well cards were in the backpack and grinned. 

"You're very thoughtful. Thank you," I replied sincerely. He nodded.

"Bear, book, and bandage goes in here. Rose can go in your hair. First, can I color it?" Tyler asked, as he held up a can of black hair spray.

"That means another shower," I whispered. I bit my lip; I wasn't ready for another water adventure. He set the spray down on the counter. 

"We won't worry about it then. Your hair is full of life and body here; curly, thick, and shiny. Old video feeds will show straight, limp, and greasy hair. Now. I need your hand empty. Is the rose going in your hair or in the bag?" He asked kindly as he stuffed Noah's bear and the unwrapped ace bandage in the backpack.

"Hair," I confirmed as I broke part of the stem of the rose off and stuck the flower behind my ear, it fell down. He sighed and pulled out three bobby pins. 

"Here I was hoping I wouldn't have to do fix your hair," he teased. I grinned, twisted a lock of hair around the stem, and held it in place as he pinned it. He then stuffed the sudoku book in the backpack along with another pair of clothes for both of us.

"Since I refused the hair color, will I stick out like a sore thumb? I mean is there a lot of blondes with broken legs here?" I asked looking up at Tyler and praying I wasn't messing things up.

"Don't worry about it, honey. You're disguised to their eyes. Unless they have a picture of you with curly hair from the restaurant?" He asked meeting my eye. I shook my head; when I worked, I always had my hair up in a ponytail or bun, rarely a braid, and never down. "Okay good. So if Dad brought men from the complex who have never been allowed to spy on you at work, he would have used a screen grab from one of the cameras. They will be looking for that girl. They will know that she's badly injured and riddled in bruises. Jess is ahead of the game; we didn't have good makeup to cover up the bruises at the complex so they won't even think of that. If they do, they'll expect the bruises to still show through partially; we got you covered pretty good. Dad did pay attention and seemed to make a mental tally of your injuries though. Since we're hiding the sling, that'll help too. I did see a few phones pointed in our direction as we walked to the hotel, but please don't worry. I will protect you. And nobody else will be taken. He wants me and you; they won't take somebody else because that'll draw unwanted attention. Final touches," he said as he pulled out a bedazzled flip flop and put it on my left foot then he pulled out a pair of large, black, round sunglasses, with rhinestones on the top of the frame. "Unfortunately, I can't do anything for your bloodshot eye, but these should hide it." He placed them on my face; they covered my eyebrow to my cheekbone. Then he pulled out a pair of sunglasses for himself. They hugged tight to his face. "There, now we're unrecognizable," he beamed. "Time for the distraction." He picked me up and my props and walked out into the hallway. He pulled the fire alarm as we walked by, ducked into a nearby stairwell, and paused for a minute. When a crowd of people began to form, he got in line behind them. "Once we're outside, you have to lean on one crutch. I'll be on your left side. We have to give the illusion you're using them," he whispered in my ear. I nodded and looked at him.  

"I trust you," I whispered as we stepped outside. We got to the sidewalk and he set me down and handed me a crutch. I put it under my right arm as he stood by my left, the crutch squeezed between our bodies as he wrapped his arm around my waist. I was impressed the crutch didn't fall and was barely leaning against me. The way he made it look like I was using it. I thought for sure it would have tripped him. However, his gait never changed and he made it look easy. "You're good in the art of deception," I praised in a whisper. He grinned. 

"Protection, sister, that's my game. I've had years to convince others that my sister was untouchable. I had a week to plan for you. I got you. I won't let you fall. I will keep you safe. Come on, let's go to the bus. We have seven minutes to catch the one in front of the hospital. Noon isn't our timeline, 11 is. Come on, we have to hurry," he whispered softly in my ear. Nobody around us could hear what he said. To any passerby, we would look like lovers. He guided me as we hobbled along the way. I took a step with my left foot and placed the crutch down. Tyler picked me up on my off step and moved me one step at a time, but always had me leaning into him. "You know, it's a shame that fire alarm went off."

"I know," I played along. Behind my glasses, I was shooting Tyler a confused look. "Guess it's a good thing we were already checked out. What do you think's going on?" I asked. He gave me a small smile.

"I don't know. I hope nothing serious," he admitted. I grinned and leaned into him more. "Okay, they're outta ear shot. Good job," he praised. I nodded.

"This is difficult," I admitted as I took a deep breath. Every step felt shaky and I felt like I was going to pass out.

"You're doing just fine. Look, there's the bus stop," Tyler pointed out, the bench was within reach, my small steps were making it difficult to obtain the goal quickly. I looked up at him and smiled. "Five more steps. You're doing great, Sarah. We made it," he exclaimed. 

"All thanks to you, Danny. Ready to go home?" I asked, taking his lead, as I turned toward him. He smiled and wrapped his arms around my shoulders. I buried my head in his neck and he supported most of my weight. "Are they following us?" I whispered. He nodded. 

"But they don't recognize us. We are one of several couples that left the hotel and aren't waiting around. You are really good about picking up on cues. We had three of them by us earlier when I mentioned the alarm, now we have one and a second one that's kinda lingering between him and the hotel. I have a feeling they're going to bump your shoulder. Hang in there. We're almost home free. Don't you dare pass out on me," Tyler whispered. He pulled apart, leaned the crutch against me, stood beside me, and asked in a normal voice, "why don't you take a seat, sweetheart. You look beat. And do you mind holding my bag? I going to grab us a cup of coffee." I smiled, leaned slightly making the crutch fall to the ground. I bit my lip as I sat down and picked up the crutch and placed both of them next to my right leg. He took the bag off and set it in my lap, bending over and kissing me on the cheek as I wrapped my left hand around the strap. Now it wouldn't look so strange with me being one handed. He pressed his cheek against mine. "Don't let them see your pain. It's necessary for me to leave; otherwise they'll continue to follow; I know how Dad works. I'll be right back. Two minutes tops," he whispered. 

"I can't stop the tears from falling," I confessed in the same tone. 

"Then start crying now," he teased in a whisper, pulled back, and kissed my cheek again. "I can fake slap you if that'll help." I looked up at him, shook my head, and scowled. "You'll be fine. They can't see through these glasses, just no full on sobbing." He patted my back. He stood up tall and loudly voiced, "so that's a no on the coffee for you?" I shook my head no and he walked away. I watched him over my left shoulder. I sighed and faced forward and began to count. 

62-63-64, strong squeeze on my left shoulder. I bit my lip, quickly blinked my tears back, turned around, and smiled. The guy looked disappointed but he removed his hand and asked, "excuse me, miss. Could you tell me how to get to the highway from here." 

I shrugged my shoulders and replied nonchalantly, "I'm sorry. I'm not from the area, but if you follow this road down, I'm sure you can find it. I usually immerse myself in a book as soon as we get on the bus. We take this shuttle, I guess is the best description for it, to the actual bus depot then go home. We're on our way back to Great Falls. I never pay attention to what's going on around me, but I just had to come in for my latest check up. Healing up great," I boasted as I lifted my leg with a big smile. He smiled politely and moved on. Thirty-seven seconds later, Tyler sat down beside me, put his arm behind my back, took a sip from his coffee as I buried my head on his shoulder. "Ow," I whimpered. 

"Just a while longer. Once we get on the bus, you can cry," he whispered as he rubbed my back. Just then, the bus pulled up. He helped me stand and took the bag back. I placed both crutches under my right arm. "You first, sweetheart," Tyler said gesturing to the bus. "I'm right behind you, take your time," he whispered before downing the remains of his coffee. I hopped up to the bus and braced myself, trying to keep my balance, but knew I wouldn't be able to hold it long. I took a deep breath and looked at the stairs; they looked menacing. Tyler spoke up behind me, "do you mind if I carry her up, sir? It'll make the line go quicker." The bus driver nodded his consent as Tyler picked me up around my waist and hoisted me to the top stair, set me down and took the crutches. "Go find a seat, darling. Here you go. Fare for two. Thank you." I hobbled my way through the aisle until I found two empty seats on my right. I scooted all the way over to the window. Tyler sat down and kissed my cheek. "Well done." 

"Did he get on?" I whispered. Tyler looked around. When he was facing me again, he pushed his glasses on top of his head and I copied him. 

"I think we're good. There was another couple that got on but they're sitting at the front of the bus. No lost tourists. We'll see who gets off with us. Come here, 'Nettie. You can cry now. I didn't see the pain register on your face. You did good," he murmured into my hair. I leaned into his open arms and softly wept. He pulled out the phone and opened the pictures. He pulled up the one I took earlier. "This is stunning," he stated. I sat up and wiped my eyes and took the phone from him. 

"Oh wow! I didn't look at when I took it. I just planned on taking a photo of the hillside when I realized I had accidentally called Pat. He told me to make sure I captured myself in the frame because I sounded truly happy. I had no idea I was so photogenic. I'm speechless!" I stated, studying the picture. It was almost like a silhouette. The right side of my face was dark, but my smile was luminescent. The left side of my face had caught the soft pink and radiant gold highlights and seemed to be bursting in light. Even though my eye was purple, the picture showed no bruises, just a little shadowing. My jawline couldn't be seen, but I was certain that bruise wouldn't have shown up either. Behind me, the sky was lavender with vibrant orange clouds, it looked like an halo. "I took this?" I gasped. Tyler grinned at me. 

"Send it to him. No names in the text itself. It was an excellent idea," he suggested. "Half an hour or less, we'll be on the road." I nodded numbly.

"Can I change the name from #1.2 to Pat after I send this nessage?" Tyler chuckled at me and nodded. I grinned and sent Pat a message. "Thought you would like to see my panels at work. On the road in 30-ish. ~A." I studied the picture again. "I took this?" I repeated in surprise. Tyler laughed at me as I changed the contact info. 

"Yeah. You did good. Maybe waking up so early isn't a bad thing. Your tears ruined your makeup. I see your bruises again," he whispered as he dried my residual tears. I bit my lip. "Don't worry about it. You can wash it all off soon. There's nothing we can do about it now. So who is Danny?" He asked with a grin.

"Noah Daniel. My brother. I couldn't think of anything else on the spot," I replied with a blush. Tyler grinned then looked around. 

"That's better than mine. Tyler Ulrich. Although if you knew that, and called me Ulrich or anything related to it, they would've stuck around," he murmured as he held onto me. I closed my eyes and rested on his shoulder, ready for bed again. "Did you fall asleep on me again?" I opened my eyes and sat up. He grinned at me and rubbed my back softly. "Good. Here's our stop, sister dear. The other couple that got on at the hospital got off two stops ago," he whispered. I nodded and tucked the phone into my sling and put my glasses back on as he led the way down the aisle, as he held the backpack and crutches. I used the seats as my brace as I hopped down the aisle. He gave the driver a $20 tip for his services and helped me off the bus and gave me one crutch. I tucked it under my right arm. Nobody else got off with us. I sighed in relief. "Hungry? Would you like to have some stir fry?" He asked gesturing to the sign behind me. I grinned.

"That sounds delicious. I love Hu Hot! How did you know Mongolian? Never mind. Thanks," I replied. We hobbled that direction - in the same way we left the hotel, with him carrying every other step. It looked realistic I suppose; nobody was gawking. I bit my lip in frustration. I felt ready to collapse; my body was completely drained of energy. I looked over at Tyler. "I don't know if I'm okay with you guys spending so much money on me. Also, there's only one way in and out of here." 

"You're family, 'Nettie. We're happy to help take care of you. Money's no object. I know; this isn't for an escape route, it's for lunch. We weren't followed. No car has turned in or drove by again or anything like that," Tyler insisted and he squeezed my hip. I let out a strangled cry. "Sorry, honey," he said softly as he let go slightly. He opened the door and we walked through. "Back corner table," he whispered. I nodded and we made our way back there. Jess and Noah sat against the wall.

"Hey 'Nettie," Noah murmured, pushing a plate my direction as I sat down. Tyler went and got his own food. "I think I've got everything you like: chicken, noodles, broccoli, carrots, pineapple, jalapenos, and green peppers, covered in sweet and sour and teriyaki sauces."

"Sounds delicious! Thanks. I'm sorry you were awaken so early," I apologized as I took a bite. 

"All good, kid," he mumbled as he took another bite himself. "You and Tyler are heading to the safe house. Jess and I still have some work to do at the hotel. Er, well, hotels."

"We got your back, sweetie," Jess replied.

"And I've got yours," I insisted and looked at my plate, pushing my noodles around on the plate as Tyler came back in the room.

"Good. That's what families do. Tyler divulged a plan after you fell asleep. He broke the rules as he took precautions and we talked on the hotel phones. You have nothing to worry about. You look like you're in pain," Jess insisted and slid me a bottle of pills. I nodded.

"And I'm tired again," I admitted. She smiled softly at me. 

"These should help you with that. You can rest, you should rest often. No more than two pills a day. Got it?" I nodded and took another bite. I looked over at Jess and Noah's plates, they were almost empty. They smiled warmly at me and finished their food in silence. Tyler stood up and went back for seconds; I had yet to finish half of my meal. When Tyler sat down again, Jess and Noah stood up. 

"Hate to eat and run, but we have to make sure no tails followed you, 'Nettie. Stay safe," he whispered in my ear as he gave me a hug from behind. I leaned into his cheek. He stood up and looked at Tyler. He dropped some keys into his hand. "Here's the keys to the car. We picked up her rentals from the hospital already. The wheelchair is in the trunk and the oxygen tank in the back seat. We'll see you soon," he stated as Jess walked around and kissed the top of my head. 

"Thank you for saving my brother," she whispered as Tyler and Noah exchanged some final notes. "You never have to speak of it. It never happened. Noah doesn't know and I won't tell him. You don't have to if you don't want to." She kissed the top of my head again, and fixed my hair around the rose. "We love you, 'Nettie. Bye, sweetie." 

"Bye, guys. Love you," I stated as Jess and Noah walked away hand in hand. I ate my food in silence. I looked at the pills and handed them over to Tyler. "Will you help me please? I'm done with the pain." He grinned and opened the lid and gave me one, then put the rest away in the backpack. I took a drink of my water and popped the pill in my mouth. "I can't keep too many secrets from my brother," I whispered.

"I'll tell him about the kiss. You don't have to keep any secrets. Finish your lunch and we'll go. Has Pat responded?" Tyler asked. I shook my head in surprise. I had forgotten all about the phone again.

"I'm not used to my own phone yet," I admitted as I pulled it out. "I forgot that I was carrying it."

"Told ya doll. Pure moment of joy. Definitely the view of the day. I'll meet you here at 1. Safe travels," I read out loud to Tyler. He grinned.

"Sounds good. Are you ready for another nap? Your head and eyes are drooping," Tyler remarked as he pushed his empty plate back.

I nodded. "Pain is killer on the body. Sleep apparently is my best defense. I honestly thought I was going to collapse with all the walking I did. It wasn't much, but it tuckered me out," I confessed with yawn, wincing.

Tyler nodded, left some money in the bill holder, and stood up. He placed his hand on my back and helped me stand up. "Let's go, sister dear. We've got a long journey ahead of us," he remarked softly. I nodded and took another sip of water. "Same protocol for leaving. Ready?" I nodded wearily and glared at the crutches as I picked up the phone and tucked it into my sling. "Come on, dear. Time to tuck you in." I nodded and let him take me to the car. He opened the passenger door and helped me sit down. He gave me a wipe, buckled me up, leaned the seat back slightly, and gave me a pillow. I left the pillow in my lap as I started to scrub off the makeup on my face. He shut the door, walked around car, and loaded up. He looked at me tenderly as he took the wipe out of my hand and placed it in a garbage sack. "Will you please wear the mask for a little bit? I'd rather play it safe, you look fine, but still." I nodded again.

"Strong opioids," I slurred. "Stupid drugs." He laughed and kissed my temple as he put mask on my face and turned it on. 

"Don't sleep yet. Do you know where I'm going?" He asked as he put the car in reverse and drove away. 

"West. Exit 18. Can't miss it," I slurred, pulling the mask away from my face for a moment so he could hear me. I quickly covered my mouth back up and looked at my hand, my tongue and whole body felt weighed down, but my hand felt like there was a fifty pound weight sitting on top of it. Giving up, I closed my eyes. He patted my leg.

"Rest, 'Nettie. You've earned it. I need the phone please. It's the only method of contact we have. Do you mind what music I play?" He asked. I shook my head and pointed to my sling before I let my hand fall limply to my side. His fingers reached inside my sling and the phone was removed. "Okay. I have the phone. Rest, 'Nettie. You're safe. Love you, sis," his voice tapered off as the car swayed and rocked me to sleep.