"Well, what's your plan?"
"I don't know, I thought you had one."
"Well then, I'm knocking." And he knocked. But no one answered, so he rang the doorbell, and after a few rings they heard footsteps inside and someone turned the lights on.
"Who's there?" a man yelled from the other side. It was Kristina's father.
"James Wilson, sir," he said, confident. "I'm here to speak with your daughter."
The man opened the door. He was a short fat old man, and he looked really pissed. He was accompanied by his tall and skinny wife who, unlike him, looked worried. They were both wearing their nightgowns and seemed pretty sleepy, James assumed the man was mad because he had been awoken in the middle of the night, while the woman was more worried about why a young man had such urgency to speak to her daughter.
"What do you want?" he shouted.
"I'm sorry to bother you at this time of night but it's very important I speak to Kristina, is she home?"
"Of course she's home. Where do you think my daughter could be at night? You son of a bitch! You better leave right now or I'm calling the cops."
"Sir, no need to get upset here. We just really need to see Kristina." James tried to avoid insulting the man as well, hoping that acting like a good and well-mannered guy could help him out.
"What did you say your name was?" he said, trying to not yell.
"James Wilson and this is my friend Alex Dunver."
"Wilson, uh? Your sister is the runaway, right?" His face was turning red from rage. "And you really think I will let you talk to my daughter?"
"Alfred, please calm down," the wife said quietly.
"That's it, I'm calling the cops," Alfred said, ignoring his wife, heading to the phone.
"James, I think we should go," Alex said.
"Dad, what's going on?" Kristina appeared on the stairs.
"These idiots say they want to talk to you," Alfred said, as he was dialing 911.
"Do you know them?" Kristina did not reply. They had never met in fact, nor had they ever spoken, but James knew perfectly well that the girl knew exactly who he was. They stared at each other for a few long seconds, then she said, "That's the crazy guy I've told you about," she said, pointing at Alex. "He's been stalking me all week long, daddy."
"What?!" Alex said, "You little bitch!" and without even realizing he took a step forward, setting foot into their house. James grabbed him just before he could take another step, but Alfred was already yelling on the phone with the police accusing two guys of having invaded his property, his wife was yelling and Kristina was pretending to be afraid.
As James turned to the car he noticed Kristina smile triumphantly at him. The Devil hides in the less suspicious beings, he thought.
Chaos still reigned in that house by the time James and Alex were halfway back home.
TWENTY-SIX
Half an hour past dawn, Hayden heard the door of her motel room unlock. Sunrise walked inside, not bothering to move quietly around the room where Hayden was pretending to sleep. She threw her bag on the floor, turned the bedside lamp on, and went to the bathroom to take a shower, leaving the door open so that the sound of the water was clearly audible to Hayden.
"Why are you trying to wake me up?" Hayden asked, annoyed, when Sunrise finished her shower.
"'Cause I knew you were awake," Sunrise said tonelessly from the bathroom.
It was true, as a matter of fact Hayden had spent the past hours just tossing and turning unable to fall asleep.
"Whatever," she said to no one in particular, getting up.
"Listen," Sunrise said while getting dressed.
"If you got something to say, you better say it now."
"What do you expect me to say?" Hayden said, unsure why she was so annoyed. It's not like she had any right to tell Sunrise – a stranger, basically - what was right or wrong for her. Yet she felt betrayed by that lack of self-respect Sunrise had had towards herself.
"Is this how you earn money?"
"Yes, sometimes," Sunrise replied "And don't get all edgy. We now have enough money for a whole week of motels and food and gas, so you should thank me."
"Thank you? Are you serious?"
"Listen, kid, I've been on my own more time than I've been with someone so don't you dare tell me what I should do and how I should live my life, you hear me? This is how things are, if you are not cool with it, you can just leave."
"But it's wrong!"
"Says the runaway girl who cuts," she said without hesitation, looking straight into Hayden's eyes; she replied by looking away. "You think I didn't notice?"
Hayden didn't say anything. What was there to say in her defense? "It's not the same thing," she whispered, not too convinced.
"How is what I do different from what you do?" Sunrise asked. "I degrade myself. I destroy my dignity. I obliterate my person, so that for a few hours I don't feel anything. No pain, no memories, no guilt, no flashbacks, no nothing. And I get paid, which is a great bonus. Why do you cut?"
Once again Hayden did not reply.
"Does it ease momentarily the pain? Does it make you feel better? Does it help you get through the day? And seriously, you're running away from the police! I'll feel ashamed of my sins the day I'll be surrounded by saints." Hayden stood there quietly.
"Everyone's hurting, we just choose different ways to distract our suffering," Sunrise affirmed, turning her back on Hayden. "Don't judge me if you don't want to be judged."
And right then and there Hayden realized why there had been such an inexplicable bond with Sunrise right from the start. They were both lost and empty and fragile, in their own way. But they were still standing.
TWENTY-SEVEN
Somewhere away from home Hayden and Sunrise were welcoming a new day by falling asleep, while back at her house, the Wilson brothers were recovering from an almost sleepless night by getting drunk on caffeine. After leaving Kristina's place at around three am, James had dropped Alex off at his house where George was waiting for him wide awake, hoping for some good news. He then got home and fell asleep on the couch, just after letting his brothers in on the crazy scene Kristina had put on stage, while Jesse J. had passed out on his bed a few hours earlier.
Going to work was not an option they had all even taken into consideration for the past few days, which probably meant getting fired pretty soon: but there was too much at stake to think about that for the moment. So they were all trying to find something to get their minds off Hayden: she wasn't calling, and still no news about her had reached them. Was that a good sign or a bad sign?
As they were getting ready to face a new day, they heard a car pull up into their driveway. Will was the first one to walk out and see who it was.
"James Wilson, what were you thinking?!" Mrs Selling yelled, not bothering to look at who was actually standing at the front door. She was so angry that she forgot to pull the handbrake and the car slowly began to slide backwards. She was quick enough to get back to the car and stop it from smashing into a fence, after cursing a bit.
"Good morning, Mrs Selling," James greeted her, while trying to avoid laughing at that funny scene that he had just witnessed along with his brothers. The social worker looked at her worst: messy hair, no makeup, unmatched clothes and a tired yet angry expression.
"Good morning, my ass," she shrieked. "You Wilsons are going to drive me crazy!"
"What's going on?" James asked, while Mrs Selling let herself into the house without waiting for any formalities. She walked into a messy room, just as Magda – wearing her boyfriend's white t-shirt that barely covered her long legs – appeared in front of her.
Mrs Selling's irritated look reminded Will of the social worker's rules about having women over at night, so he gestured his girlfriend to go hide somewhere. But Mrs Selling was apparently too overwhelmed to have the strength to give them a good telling-off about the girl and the conditions of the house.
"Ser
iously?" she asked in a pissed off tone. "You went to the Calmonds' in the middle of the night? What is wrong with you?" she asked as she placed a formal notice on the table.
"They pressed charges! You know how long it took me to convince Kristina's parents and the officer to withdraw them?"
"I was just trying to get some answers," he explained.
"I don't care! Whatever you do can and will put Hayden in an even worse position, don't you understand that? Besides, you're no good to her in prison! It is not your job to find the truth."
"No one else will!" James protested. "Everyone else is so damn sure she's guilty no one is bothering to figure out what really happened."
"That is not true, James," she said, in a calmer tone. "Everyone I know is on this case, and believe me: there are more people out there convinced that Hayden's innocent than people who believe she's guilty. You have just got to let them do their job, and stay in your place." She continued, "I know you guys don't really believe in the justice system and the police but you've got to have some faith this time."
"Faith is not really our thing," Mike said, more to himself than to Mrs Selling.
"Does the police know that Lorenzo Perez is the main drug dealer in town?" Will asked, challenging her.
"Yes," she replied confidently, proving that the police were actually investigating.
"And that Ashley sold the drugs to Marika's brother? The drugs that killed him."
"They know that too, Will."
"What's the connection between Hayden and Luke?" James asked.
"Did they figure this one out?"
"They have a clue, but it's just a theory," she confirmed. "It will be hard to prove."
"What is it?" James asked, as wonder and worry began to take over.
"Luke Morrison has been charged in the past for sexual assaults and rape," she explained.
"In the last year, five girls pressed charges against him. He was never arrested because, strangely, all the girls withdrew their accusations a few days later, so the charges were always dropped."
"What?" Mike asked, trying to make sense of what she was really stating.
"The theory is that he raped her?" James asked, wishing he had not understood what she said.
"Yes, and that she tried to get revenge," she confirmed. "I know it's hard right now to accept this scenario, but I need you tell me if you think this is plausible. Did she ever tell you anything about it? Has she ever shown any physical sign of abuse?"
"I need some fresh air," Mike muttered, ignoring Mrs Selling's question and walking outside.
"I don't know," James confessed. "She never told me anything about it. If it happened, we don't know." "Will?" Mrs Selling asked. But he just shook his head and looked away.
"Anyway, Luke's awake. So that's some good news, the police will probably talk to him soon," she said while heading out. "I'll keep in touch. You stay out of trouble."
****
As soon as Mrs Selling was gone, things escalated quickly. No one spoke about Hayden's alleged rape: suddenly everyone seemed to be headed somewhere. "I'm taking Magda home," Will said, hurrying out with his girlfriend who kept asking, "Why are you in such a rush?"
James had apparently something extremely important to do at the restaurant. "It's not like I wanna get fired," he said, as he left right after Will and Magda. So Mike had no excuses to make up as he left the house eager to pay somebody a visit.
When Jesse J. woke up in the wrong bed and in the wrong house, he found an empty house and no car keys. Since walking back to his place was not an option, he went back to sleep.
Fifteen minutes later, Mike parked Jesse J.'s car in front of the hospital. He walked inside and headed for the ward map hung on the wall on the right side of the entrance, unsure which floor he had to go to, but a familiar silhouette standing in front of the map startled him.
"An emergency at the restaurant, uh?" he said, approaching his brother. James turned, looking surprised and a bit uncomfortable for being caught lying.
"What are you doing here?" James asked, trying to ignore his mocking question.
"I'm assuming I'm here for the same reason you are."
Right then they heard a well-known voice.
"Excuse me." It was Will, talking to a woman at the information counter. "Can you please tell me where I can find Luke Morrison, I know he's been hospitalized here."
"May I know who's asking?" the woman asked, as she searched the computer's database.
"Friends," James replied, appearing right next to his brother, who now looked startled by their unexpected arrival.
"We are very close friends of his," Mike confirmed.
"Right," the woman said, unaware of the awkward situation that was taking place right in front of her.
"Fifth floor. Department C," she said nicely. They thanked her and walked away. When they reached the elevator, Will spoke.
"What the hell are you two doing here?"
"What are you doing here? You said you were dropping Magda home," James said.
"And I did! Then I came here," he said.
"So technically, big brother, you're the only liar among us," Mike said to James, in a mocking tone.
"Yeah, whatever," he said annoyed.
"Let's just go talk to this asshole."
"You are not talking to anyone," Mike said, as they all walked into the elevator. "After last night I think you should wait outside."
"Not a chance," he said, pressing the button '5', "They wanna press charges, fine. Let 'em."
"James, don't be an idiot! You cause any more trouble, the custody is revoked," Mike stated.
"Don't you get it?" James raged "There is no more custody! So let's just focus on the now." The doors opened and James walked out, followed by his brothers, upset by the unexpected revelation.
It took them a while to find the right room, and even longer to convince James to wait outside.
TWENTY-EIGHT
There was a phrase written on the bathroom wall of the motel that read 'In order to burn you gotta walk through the flames', and Hayden had been staring at it for over ten minutes. She couldn't stop wondering who wrote that. Was is it someone who had successfully survived his walk through the fire, and knew that it was worth it? Or someone who was trying to convince himself to do what was right, still unaware of the consequences? Could a stranger's note on a wall tell Hayden what to do with her life? Only the sudden knock on the door distracted her from those thoughts. "Did you drown in the bathtub?" Sunrise asked ironically.
"Yes," Hayden replied, rolling her eyes and opening the door.
"Come on, hurry up," Sunrise ordered. They had only slept for a few hours, yet Sunrise seemed to be full of energy.
"Why are you always in such a rush?" Hayden asked, while brushing her long hair. "It's not like you have anywhere to be."
"Actually, this time, I'm in a rush to get you out of here," she replied, peeping out the window.
"There are cops everywhere." Hayden ran to the window to see for herself: in the motel parking lot there were two police cars, and a few officers were busy talking to the motel manager right outside his office.
"You think they are looking for me?" Hayden said, panic-stricken.
"I don't know. Probably not, but it's not wise to stay here," she said calmly, closing the curtains. "Get your stuff, I'll wait in the car." Two minutes later, Hayden was sitting in the driver's seat. Trying to keep it cool was not her thing but she finally managed to turn the engine on and leave, without drawing too much attention.
Strangely enough, the cops didn't seem to notice them. Or at least, so they thought.
****
"Do you think I should go back?" Hayden asked as they were sitting on a park bench in nameless town, eating a Subway sandwich. It was a nice spring day for being outside, and they were both enjoying the calmness of the early-afternoon almost empty streets.
"Yes," Sunrise replied after a whi
le, looking at her. "I think running away won't do you any good. You're not meant for this life on the road."
"And how do you know that?" she asked, a bit annoyed.
"'Cause you miss home," Sunrise replied, hinting a smile. Hayden wondered if Sunrise had just given a lucky guess or if she was truly an open book.
"Is that wrong?" she asked, confirming Sunrise's intuition.
"Yes, if you're supposed to never look back."
"I'm not sure I'm ready." The thought of going back and face the unknown terrified her. Her brothers, Mrs Selling, Luke, the possibility of going to jail... It was all too overwhelming.
"Hayden...we grow up when we have to, not when we're ready." "I don't know how to do this. I don't know how to face all of it." "You don't know to breathe either, yet you still do it. No one knows how to live, yet we all manage to do it. Somehow."
TWENTY-NINE
Well?" James asked his brothers as they walked out of Luke's hospital room. They had been in there for over half an hour, and he was getting impatient. "Did he say anything?"
"Oh he spoke all right," Mike chuckled.
"Did you torture him or something?" James asked, worried.
"Do we look like Liam Neeson in Taken?" Will asked rhetorically.
"Who?"
"Never mind," Will said, rolling his eyes. Their father had passed on his passion for movies just to Will, but he never seemed to accept that. "Let's just get out of here."
"He was so freaking scared that he started spilling everything out the moment we walked in," Mike explained, still laughing, as they all headed to the exit. "You should have seen him, scared like a baby."
"Just tell me already!" James demanded.
"Is it true..?."
"Yes," Mike confirmed, turning serious. "He jumped her again that night to remind her to keep her mouth shut, but things got out of control."
"He said Hayden shot him by accident," said Will. "Apparently A.K.A had given her a job to carry out that night: to kill Lorenzo Perez."
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