© August 2012

Part Six of Eleven

Chapter Six: Don’t speak to strangers

    They were on the road early the next morning and had covered some distance before Nicole stopped for breakfast. Nicole made Samantha and Sara wait in the car while she checked the diner out and made sure everything looked okay before she went back to fetch them.

     “Why do you keep looking Nicole? Wouldn’t we have seen something by now if they were still following us?” Sara asked.

     “It’s better safe than sorry.” Nicole replied. “The odds actually increase on someone finding us the longer we’re out on the road.” She explained.

     “But mum and I look totally different now.” Sara argued.

     “That still doesn’t mean they won’t find out who the two of you are.” Nicole tried to explain, but she couldn’t blame Sara for asking questions. Nicole had the answers because she was normally the one doing the tracking down and killing, but Nicole never would have taken a job like this. It was normally total psycho’s that took on the hits where families were involved and the killing of children was needed. Nicole only ever took the high paying jobs that involved crooked business men, or a snitch willing to sell out someone. Nicole had never given any thought to killing a snitch until it was Samantha being classed as one.

    Sara had more questions she wanted to ask Nicole, but they couldn’t talk more about it until they were back on the road again, so they all played the happy family until they were back in the car and on the road again.

     “How would you go about tracking us down if it was you coming after us?” Sara asked as she sat forward in the seat and rested an arm on each of the front seats and leaned between them to look at Nicole while they spoke.

     “Sara, don’t ask questions like that.” Samantha said.

     “No, it’s alright Sammi. She has a right to ask.” Nicole said in Sara’s defence, which made Samantha smile as she saw that Nicole was beginning to thaw towards her daughter.

     “So where would you start looking?” Sara continued her line of questioning.

     “I’d start with the parents and other family you many run to for help.” Nicole explained.

     “That will be a waste of time for them then.” Samantha said with a sick sounding laugh. “Sara’s never seen my parents since she was one, and they wanted me to let Jason’s parents take him, so I could return home to them.” Samantha explained.

     “Jason’s parents thought you were having his child?” Nicole asked with some shock in her voice.

     “Yes, but they soon backed off when they looked into Sara’s eyes and saw you looking back at them.” Samantha smiled at the memory of the look on the faces of Jason’s parents when they realised that she’d had Nicolas’s child and not their sons.

     “Where were you living when all this happened?” Nicole asked.

     “I was living with my aunt, but she passed away a couple of years ago, so it’s just me and Sara now.” Samantha said with pride as she turned a little further to look Sara in the eyes.

     “And you as well.” Sara grinned as she turned to look at Nicole.

    Nicole could have argued the point about her leaving once they were safe, but she didn’t want to keep going in circles with the two of them, so she just smiled and returned to looking at the road again.

     “What would your next move be, once the family lead didn’t work?” Sara asked as she tried to get back to the subject of how Nicole would go about tracking them down.

     “Credit cards, ATM’s and police scanners would be the next step after the family, as well as checking for any other information from your past.” Nicole explained.

     “Won’t that lead them to you though?” Samantha asked looking worried.

     “No, just a grave belonging to Nicolas Johnson, who died eleven years ago.” Nicole reminded her. “I’m not that person anymore, and no one will ever find a match between Nicole and Nicolas.” She added.

    Samantha looked a little hurt when Nicole pointed out she wasn’t the boy Samantha fell in love with anymore, and she just didn’t feel the same way she did back then, and the sooner She realised that, the sooner Nicole could get them to safety and then move on with her life.

     Sara spent some time asking Nicole question after question about how she’d track down different people, and Nicole would answer most of them, but Sara soon learned when she’d hit on a subject Nicole wasn’t happy about, and she was soon having a real conversation with her former father.

    Nicole was glad when Sara ran out of questions to do with her being an assassin and started talking about her being transgendered instead.

     “We need to get you on some blockers to start with.” Nicole said after Sara asked where she would need to start with her own transition.

     “What are blockers?” Samantha asked.

     “That’s what they give children like Sara to stop them starting male puberty.” Nicole explained.

     “How do you know all this stuff?” Samantha asked as she saw how happy Sara was to be talking about her future with her new aunt.

    Samantha and Sara had managed to talk Nicole into letting Sara call her Aunty Nicole, or Aunt Nikki for short. This made Sara even happier being able to call her Aunty Nikki, and it made Nicole smile when she heard Sara say it as well.

     “I had a lot of time between jobs, so I do a lot of research into the way I was feeling, and I took the blockers for some time before I had the surgery.” Nicole explained.

    Sara was soon pleading with Nicole and her mum to let her do some shopping at a mall when they entered a city on the way to the location of the cabin. Nicole tried to argue that it was a bad idea, but soon gave in, if only to stop Sara sulking in the back seat and she thought that no one was going to realise that the woman with the short brown hair and a sixteen year old daughter could be Samantha and Nicolas Kaye.

     “Alright, we’ll go do some shopping, but we stick together, and if I say we go, we go. Do you understand me?” Nicole asked Sara more than Samantha, as she knew that Sara would be the rogue element to try and keep an eye on.

     “I promise Aunty Nikki, I promise.” Sara said excitedly from the back seat as she watched Nicole pull into the mall parking area.

    Nicole parked the car and then she and Samantha took an excited looking Sara into the mall to enjoy an afternoon of shopping.

    Sara was soon trying on clothes and pouting at her mother and Aunty when they tried to stop her wanting them. Nicole not being used to the look Sara would give them though, she was soon buying Sara whatever she wanted. Nicole was happy she’d got plenty of cash on her, so as not to leave a trail for anyone to follow.

    They had been in the mall for a couple of hours when Nicole noticed a couple of men she’d seen close to them a couple of other times as they seemed to be looking around for something, but at the same time they looked puzzled as well, like they couldn’t find what they were looking for.

     “I need you to stick close to Sara for a bit, while I go and check something out.” Nicole warned Samantha just before she slipped through the crowd of shoppers as she made her way over to where the two men were stood looking around the clothes shop. The thing Nicole found weird was the fact they were in a women’s clothes shop, and neither of the two men looked like they were out shopping with their wives or girlfriends. Nicole thought they looked like ex military.

    Samantha lost sight of Nicole, but she went over and warned Sara they may need to make a run for it at any minute. Sara looked worried, but did as she was told as they waited for Nicole near the exit.

    Nicole got behind the two men and she could now see that one of the men had what looked like a cell phone, but it was actually a screen for locating someone with a tracking device. Nicole wasn’t a hundred percent sure they were there looking for Samantha and Sara, but she needed to find out, and she also needed to find out what could be carrying a tracking device on either of them.

    Samantha looked worried when she saw Nicole appear before them looking a little angry as she frowned at the two of them.

     “What’s wrong Nikki?” Samantha asked.

     “I think they tracked us down somehow.” Nicole warned as she led the two of them from the shop and down the aisle to the ladies rest room.

     “How were they able to track us down? I thought you stopped them from being able to do that?” Samantha asked with worry in her voice.

     “I thought I had, but it looks like they have a tracking device.” Nicole explained. “Do either of you still have your cell phones or something that anyone gave to you since the trouble in that diner?” Nicole asked.

     “One of the detectives bought Sara an MP3 player to help her pass the time.” Samantha pointed out.

     “And you still have this MP3 player on you know?” Nicole asked as she looked at Sara.

     “Yes, it’s in my purse.” Sara said as she went to open her purse, but Nicole stopped her.

     “Don’t get it out here, or we may give them a clue as to who you are.” Nicole said as she made Sara place it back in her purse. “We need to get the two of you some new clothes, so I can take everything you have and get rid of it before we leave the mall.” Nicole explained as she went into another shop and started helping Samantha put a couple of new outfits together.

    Once they had clothes, shoes and new purses, Nicole led them the rest of the way to the rest room and then left them in the large disabled stall while she left with all their other stuff packed in a couple of shopping bags to see if she could lead the men away from Sara and Samantha.

     “Whatever you do, don’t speak to any anyone and I’ll meet you at the car.” Nicole said just before leaving the restroom and heading back towards the shop where she’d last seen the two men.

    Nicole didn’t get too far before she saw the two men walked towards her. One of them looked excited as he looked around, which let Nicole know that they were using something on either Sara or Samantha to track them, and they were picking up on the signal coming from one of the shopping bags. Nicole was grateful that there were enough people around to make it too hard for the two men to pinpoint which shopper had the tracker on them. She managed to walk right past them and then she started moving faster, in some hopes of leading the men away from Sara and Samantha.

    The two men fell for Nicole’s trick, and were now following her away from them. Nicole followed the signs for the parking area on the other side of the mall where she soon found a couple of what looked like lumberjacks loading up their truck. Nicole waited until they finished loading up the back of the pickup truck they were driving, and then she slipped the shopping bags in with their stuff before slipping away and watched as the two men ran to another parking area to get their own car and follow the tracking signal, thinking they were still on the trail of Samantha and Sara.

    Nicole panicked when she finally got back to the car, but couldn’t see Samantha or Sara in it to start with, but she soon let out a sigh of relief when she saw their heads pop up. They both looked happy to see her as well. Nicole got in the car and took the keys from Samantha and starting the car before she pulled out the parking area and headed off in the opposite direction to what she’d seen the two men drive off in.

     “How did you lose them Aunt Nikki?” Sara asked excitedly from the back of the car.

     “I dropped the bags in the back of a pickup that belongs to a couple of rather large looking men that looked like they could take care of themselves, and they look nothing like you and your mother.” Nicole explained to a worried looking Samantha and Sara, when they thought two more people might die because of them.

     “What if they managed to get more of these tracking devices on either of us?” Samantha asked looking worried.

     “Do either of you have anything left on you that you had at the safe house?” Nicole asked as she pulled over to the side of the road, ready to jump out and get rid of it before they got too far away from the place the two men last had a strong signal from the tracker.

     “There are just the clothes we packed up when you first rescued us.” Samantha said after giving it some thought.

     “We better play it safe and get rid of it all.” Nicole said as she got out and then helped Sara and Samantha to get out and go to the trunk and remove all the clothes and even the bags from the trunk and then throw them in a dumpster. Nicole flicked open a lighter and then threw it into the dumpster and watched it go up in flames before they got back in the car and drove away.

     They were soon back on the road and putting some distance between them and the two guys that found them at the mall. They just drove in silence for some time as Samantha and Sara could both see Nicole was deep in thought, and after they were nearly caught, they wanted Nicole on her game.

     “If they were able to track us, then why did it take so long to catch up with us?” Samantha finally asked when the silence got too much.

     “It would have taken them some time to catch up with us. Chances are they would have found us the next time we stopped for the night, so it was actually a good thing we stopped at that mall after all.” Nicole shrugged.

     “So do you think the two men at the mall were working with the pizza guy from the safe house?” Sara asked.

     “No, you have more than one fixer looking for you, but I’d say the two we saw today are working with the detective that gave you the mp3 player. Nicole explained with a little too much excitement in her voice.

     “I’m sure some people would be excited to have more than one hit man after them, but I’m finding it a little hard to get all warm and fuzzy inside.” Samantha said heavy with sarcasm. Samantha frowned and then started grinning when she saw that she’d made Sara and Nicole start giggling at her.

     “I don’t see what’s so funny about all this Sara! We have assassins after us.” Samantha said as she found herself laughing now.

     “It’s a little funny when you put it that way mummy.” Sara said between giggles.

     “Sara does have a point; you did sound kind of funny.” Nicole added as she giggled.

     “Shouldn’t we be more worried if the police want me dead as well as this drug dealer?” Samantha asked when they all stopped laughing about her comment.

     “It’s not the whole police force that’s after you, but it could cause some trouble for us, having this detective looking for the two of you. He has access to more information than the other fixers will, and two goons willing to carry out his orders.” Nicole thought out loud.

     “How could that detective do such a thing? He’s supposed to protect people and uphold the law.” Samantha said with shock in her voice.

     “Not all of them remain on the right side of the law.” Nicole pointed out. “Mounting debt, bed bets, or just being blackmailed into breaking the law can soon blacken their heart to what’s right and wrong, but the biggest deciding factor I’ve found, as always been money. Most people will do almost anything if the price is right.” Nicole added with a shrug like it was no big deal.

     “What do we do now then?” Sara asked the question that was also on Samantha’s lips.

     “We carry on like I planned, but we need to switch out the car again. It won’t be long before they realise what happened and then they will return to the mall and start looking for us on the stall security cameras.”Nicole explained the plan.

     “Won’t they need warrants or something like that?” Samantha asked.

     “If they are working for a detective, then I doubt it will be a problem for them to get all the help they need.” Nicole warned.

     “Is it still safe to go to this place you told us about?” Samantha asked looking worried for Sara more than herself.

     “Yes, the place we are going to isn’t on any map, and is so far off the grid, that without a satellite they won’t find it, and I don’t think the people looking for you, have that kind of money or influence.” Nicole grinned like she knew people like that.

    Samantha was still worried about everything, but she did like the idea of Nicole being one step ahead of them, and she felt safe knowing that Nicole would do everything she could to keep Sara alive.

    Samantha and Sara were both a little puzzled when Nicole pulled into the parking area of a train station.

     “I thought we were going to switch cars, not get on a train?” Samantha said as she looked at Nicole for an answer.

     “That is what we are doing, but the car isn’t in this state, so we need to get on a train to take us to it,” Nicole said as she parked the car and then got out and helped Samantha and Sara to get all the bags together before they entered the station.

    Nicole had removed the blonde wig while still in the car, so she was now not wearing a disguise of any type as she walked up to the counter and bought her and Sara tickets, while Samantha bought one for herself.

    Samantha couldn’t help smiling as she saw Nicole and Sara sat side by side. They looked more like mother and daughter than her and Sara ever did, even before Samantha cut and dyed her hair and started doing her makeup differently.

     Nicole had to give Sara a teen magazine to stop her looking in Samantha’s direction all the time and giving them away if anyone saw the security footage once they found the car.

    The train finally arrived and they all got on it and Samantha sat close to Sara and Nicole, but not to close. The journey took a couple of hours, and thankfully it was a quiet trip.

    Once at the station they needed to exit at, they got off the train and then Samantha went to a hotel Nicole had told her about, while Sara went with Nicole to pick up the car from long term parking where Nicole had stored it some time back.

     Nicole and Sara soon had the car and made their way back to the hotel that Nicole had sent Samantha to with some fake ID she’d made up so Samantha could get a room. Sara ran over and hugged her mother and they all settled down for the night and some much needed rest after a long day on the road and train.

     “Did you have any trouble getting the car?” Samantha asked as she hugged her daughter back.

     “No, we got the car just fine, and it’s only a short trip now to the place I know to be safe for you both.” Nicole said as she handed out the food her and Sara had grabbed on the way to the hotel after they got the car.

    Nicole waited for Samantha and Sara to get ready for bed, and then she got changed and settled down in a chair facing the door ready for trouble, just in case it came along through the night. She would feel safer once she got to the cabin. Nicole also needed to get in touch with Ferret and see what he could dig up on the detectives looking into the case involving Samantha. Neither Samantha nor Sara could remember the detective’s name that gave Sara the mp3 player, but Nicole was hoping Ferret could send her some photos for the two of them to look at.

    With the last stretch of their trip to the cabin ahead of them, Nicole was soon enjoying some sleep, while Samantha and Sara slept on the bed cuddled up close together.

 

To Be Continued Next Sunday  

 

Story by SaraUK

 

Edited and Posted by SamanthaK

    EDITORS NOTE: Please Comment and/or leave Kudos and let Sara know you like her work please, Any comments on spelling, grammar or the layout of the story please PM me “Samanthak” not Sara. Thank you