6. Chapter Five

Chapter Five

Amelia’s heart was thumping, and her fingers were gripping the covering of the floorboards tightly. They’d been driving for hours, or it felt like that. One trucker kept telling her she was safe, and they were almost there. When she finally felt them pull over to the side of the highway, the sound of a multitude of cars speeding past let her know they were on the highway.

The doors opened, and the truckers got out. “You can come out now, little miss.”

She lifted her head and looked around before slowly getting up. Her back cramped from staying low to the floorboards for so long.

“We didn’t know which way you were going,” the trucker with the oh-so-beautiful voice said while he handed her keys back to her.

“We also needed to catch up with our rides.” She turned to see three eighteen-wheelers parked behind her little car.

“I don’t know how to thank you.” She’d been right to put her trust in Maddie.

“No thanks necessary. You try to find a safe place to live free,” the third trucker said. This was her first time hearing his voice. Even in the car, he hadn’t spoken. “Maddie’s my wife. She doesn’t take to everyone the way she took to you. Some say she’s different. All I can see is my beautiful witch. She takes care of me and the boys. If she wants you protected, there’s nothing we won’t do for her.”

There hadn’t been a chance to look at them when they were getting her to freedom. Now she could see the family resemblance. She also had a feeling that when he said Maddie was a witch, he meant the magical kind.

“Tell your wife that not only does she have a friend in me, but that I owe her a favor.” She opened the car door, but her boots wouldn’t move. There was a thought in her mind and a vision in her eyes that she couldn’t ignore, even though she wanted to.

“Tell Maddie that in five and a half months, there might be another female who walks in looking kind of like me. She’ll have natural black and white hair. Like me, she’ll need help. Thank you.”

She got into the car, pointed it straight, and started driving. Trouble was about to find her cousin. All she could do was put in a word with Maddie. It would have to be enough because she had her own trouble to outrun.

Amelia drove for two days, stopping at truck and rest stops where she could grab two hours of sleep and then wake to start driving again. She felt like the hunted. There was the feeling of eyes on her, like she was being followed. She knew it even though she hadn’t caught another glimpse of the wolves, they were closer than she liked.

She woke in the backseat of her car to the sun making its way over the horizon. A gasp left her lips. She’d slept for too many hours. Amelia gave her phone an unforgiving look. Instead of her heartbeat pushing her to go faster, it was steady. It took her minutes to realize that the hunted feeling was gone. Had they given up after chasing her so long and not catching her? Had they entered another’s pack’s territory where they weren’t wanted? That was possible. It didn’t matter to her. She could feel the relief of freedom under her skin.

She drove to one of those human machines to check the balance on her bank card and gasped before pulling money out and then her card. There was no doubt in her mind. Her father had been growing the account for her since she’d been a baby. The zeros were making her eyes wide, and she wasn’t going to have to worry about money anytime soon. She got a room and took a long shower, feeling… she wasn’t sure how she was feeling. Should she say human or shifter?

Once she checked out, she found a place to eat. It was nothing like Jack’s. Then she was on the road again. She chuckled because she heard that song on the radio. She didn’t know who sang it, but she liked it.

When she changed directions, she knew she was on the last leg of her journey. Where would it end, and what would she do? That was all a mystery. She was excited to get there. She took a deep breath and danced in the driver’s seat. Her pack stacked the odds against her, but she beat them and lived past her naming day.

Amelia felt a tug that felt like a drumming need that was coming from deep inside. She had to take the next exit. Changing lanes on the highway still scared her unless the lanes were empty. Those big eighteen-wheelers could make her swear off ever driving again. Highway driving wasn’t like driving in her small town. If her life wasn’t on the line, she might have never done it. Now she needed to merge to be in the right lane. Deep breath. She flicked on her turn signal and cautiously merged. Someone gave her the middle finger. Screw you, buddy. She’d done it.

It took longer to get to the exit than she expected. What worried her was that she was the only one who took it. She traveled down well-paved roads for about an hour before she felt the need to turn. Soon she was on a bumpy road that reminded her of her small town.

She slowed down as she approached a large sign on the side of the road. It read, “Welcome to Huntsville.” Then it gave the population, which she didn’t care about. All she noticed was that the population was more than one and less than a city.

Reaching the town took longer than it would take to reach the small town she left behind. What kept her attention was the abundance of trees and the thick canopy. It was the definition of what a forest was. She wanted to explore, but she needed a place to spend the night first.

She drove through some streets, looking at the houses. Most seemed older, but they were large, with lots of land and well taken care of. Her next turn took her onto what she assumed was Main Street. It was busy as people moved from place to place. It was also friendly. They were calling out to each other and waving. She found a parking spot and pulled in. She scanned the area, looking for a place to eat and hopefully a place to stay.

There was a diner called Just Eat. It was down the street. As she got closer, she saw they advertised they had the best beef in Huntsville. That was the place to be.

The awning was blue, and there was a glass front door. She had to admit she missed Jack’s, probably because it was the first place she went to on her own. Or maybe because there was magic in the air. There was no magic in this place. A bell rang as she went in. There was a teen slouching against the podium. Probably the owner’s child. He stood up tall, then stared at her like he was seeing a ghost before finally shaking his head and putting on a smile.

“Welcome to Just Eat. The place where all your culinary desires will come true.” Well, that was a heck of a sales pitch. “Table for one, or are you waiting on others?”

“Not today.” He picked up a menu and took her to a nice table close to the back exit.

That was weird, right? She pulled out her phone and cautiously looked around to find several people looking at her. Their gazes shot away when she caught them looking. What was it about her that was different?

She looked at the menu. As much as she wanted two entrées, she settled for one. When her server came back, she’d put in another order for carryout.

“Ready to order?” Her server stood in front of her. He was also a male, but older than the one that met her at the door.

“Yes. Can I get an order of your spaghetti and steak? I’ve never tried that combination before, and I bet it’s wonderful.”

“It is. You’re going to love it.”

“Can I also get the 16 oz. porterhouse special to go with fries and coleslaw? I’ll take a coffee and a glass of water too.” As much as she wanted another glass of soda. Shifters needed large quantities of water to keep their bodies in shape.

“Sure.” He hesitated, looking at her.

“Ask.” She wasn’t sure of where the authoritative voice came from. It worried her, but she pasted on a smile. That was her issue, not his.

“Your hair is white, and I’ve never seen eyes that color before.”

He didn’t deserve an answer to those questions. She knew he was asking for the diner, and whatever she said would be all over town before she was done eating. If she didn’t answer, then everyone would draw the wrong conclusion and if she did answer, some would still draw the wrong conclusion.

She laughed, inviting him to join in the joke with her, and then her smile turned upside down, her sadness radiated from her body, her silver eyes looked almost gray.

“My dad said when I was born, my hair was a dark brown. Then mom died. Two days after that, it was white. He said I went into mourning for the mother I’d never know. My mom gave me her eyes, something to do with her genetics. Her eyes were silver, too.” The look in his eyes said that he could feel her sadness, and so could the rest of the room. Passing along a feeling wasn’t something she was good at, but it had kept her from the end of a fist more than once. Her cousin, though, she could make a room feel what she felt, and it would linger for hours.

“I’m so sorry, and that was rude of me. I’ll tell you what. Dessert is on the house.”

She beamed at him. It was a slow transition as she pulled on the sadness and gradually allowed genuine delight to take its place. She could see how he felt at the end. She probably shouldn’t play with the humans, but if they were going to ask intrusive questions, she was going to defend herself.

“Dessert sounds great. Is there a place a traveler can lie her weary head around here?”

He directed her to a bed-and-breakfast and then went to put in her orders. She looked around the room and saw most of the people were talking and eating. There were one or two people who were watching her, but there were always going to be a few.

This small town might be the place she was looking for. There was a part of her that wanted to run in the forest on four legs. What the hell?