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“Derek, thanks so much for this. We owe you big time.” Derek, of course, that’s his name. What does she mean “we owe him,” what is happening? “This is my girlfriend Poppy and my little brother Bobby.” I struggle to not glare at her.
“It’s lovely to meet you all, and I’m very sorry to hear about your troubles. Not to worry though, we’ll get you to safety.” I am completely lost.
“Oh, aren’t you pretty?” The beige woman is talking to me now. I smile and thank her. She notices my voice. “Oh, are you deaf, dear?”
“Meryl, that’s not very polite.” Derek says.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to offend.” Alright, I’m over this already.
“No offence taken.” I put on my most polite voice.
“Do you think we could go, Derek? I’m not feeling great about sticking around much longer.” Callie has taken a step forward, backing Derek and Meryl into their van. Chris follows. He’s been silent throughout it all. I’m the last one to board.
The vehicle is one of those huge motorhomes, the ones that are the size of a coach. Sure enough, every surface has a doily on it. I smirk to myself. Meryl sits us down on the sofas. Derek climbs up front and settles in the driver’s seat. In a few seconds, the motorhome roars to life and we’re off.
“I’ll put the kettle on. You all relax.” Meryl leaves us alone. Thankfully, the kitchen is at the other end of the bus. I turn to Callie and raise my eyebrows in question.
“Derek and Meryl think we are on the run from our homophobic dad. I told them he found us and I was worried what he would do if he got hold of us.” Smart.
“How the hell did you know that would work?” Chris asks. He must be whispering because he’s got closer to us both and has hunched his back. He clearly doesn’t want to be overheard.
“They have a rainbow flag in the back window. I spotted it last night. This morning I heard them talking in the restaurant. They’re nice people. My gut said they would help us.” Callie glances at Meryl to make sure she’s not in earshot. “It’s better that we tell them something as close to the truth as possible. That way, it’s not difficult to keep track of the story.” She’s right. Wearebeing tracked and wewouldbe in danger if we were caught, so we aren’t lying, really.
Honestly I don’t care what story we have to spin, as long as we are safe and together.
Chapter 13
Callie
That all went pretty well! Nothing like a good escape from danger to get the blood pumping. It chaps my ass that I didn’t get to finish my Spanish omelette. Why can’t bad guys be more considerate? Like I know you have a job to do, evil goon, but at least wait until I’ve had my coffee and breakfast.
To Daisy and Chris, the situation probably seemed pretty dangerous, but in all honesty I’d had a “planned get away” from the moment we arrived at the motel last night. It comes naturally to me now to scope a place out and have an extraction plan ready.
It was unsettling to see Chris so worked up when he came into the restaurant. The poor kid looked scared to death. As for Daisy, well, she looked concerned but not overly panicked. I like to think she had faith in me to get us out of it.
For a moment I considered sending Daisy and Chris away while I lured whoever was after us away. I can’t stand the thought of them in danger. The thing is though, I need them. Not just because they’re both helping me get the book, but because I can’t be on my own again, not now.
While Chris and Daisy set off to do their part in the plan, I did mine. That involved me slinking out another toilet window. I hate thatthatis becoming my thing. It’s not very James Bond, is it? Anyway, it took me all of five seconds to spot the guy who was looking for us. It wasn’t a nephew, that was for sure. This guy was a professional, but I’d wager new to the job. Someone should let him know that sitting in his car with a pair of binoculars is a dead giveaway.
It took me ninety seconds to break into our rooms. I like to time these things; it keeps it entertaining. Thankfully, we are all travelling light. I stashed our stuff and moved on to the next stage of the plan.
I’d already banked on Daisy, ignoring my instructions. She’s too cerebral, and I knew she would think I was going to do a runner, leaving them behind. I just needed her out of the way and safe for a little while. I can’t get us to safety if my head is worried about her.
Once I’d identified Captain Obvious in his spy wagon and got our belongings, I approached Derek and Meryl. It’s true what I said to Daisy, I had spotted their motorhome last night. This morning, before I spoke to Daisy, I happened to overhear them talking. They’re the kind of people that any gay person could only wish to have as parents. Derek was discussing their son and his upcoming nuptials with his boyfriend. He spoke with so much pride I nearly welled up. That’s when I knew they could be our saving grace.
My initial plan was to get us away from the motel and hitchhike. The car was burned. Whoever the guy was, I’m sure he would have noted the make, model, and licence plate of our rental. Stowing away in a luxury motorhome definitely seemed like a better idea than thumbing it across Spain. So in that moment I became Laura, a runaway lesbian with her girlfriend and little brother. Trying to outrun our evil father. I hope Chris doesn’t mind I stole his story.
Derek and Meryl hadn’t hesitated when I asked them for help. I bet they would be the type of people to show up at a gay wedding and walk the groom or bride down the aisle in lieu of their absent homophobic parents.
Chris had done a fab job with the fire. He’d made sure the bin he lit up was far enough away from the building that there was no danger it would catch fire, but it was big enough that the restaurant couldn’t put it out by themselves. As soon as smoke started clogging the air, our mystery man gave all his attention to it. Just like I wanted.
The firefighters turned up much quicker than I expected. I hedged my bets that I could get a spare uniform from one of the rigs. I entered chameleon mode and slipped in without anyone noticing.How did you dress so quickly?I hear you ask. Well, I had a fabulous long weekend with a firefighter a few months ago and we did a lot of role play. I can don the uniform just as quickly as a professional now. And thank god because Daisy didn’t leave me much time. I’d just finished putting the trousers on when I saw her exit the motel, in the world’s worst maid’s outfit. Seriously, all my fantasies went right out the window.
Chris wasn’t far behind, so I got into character. No one stops a firefighter to check credentials when there is an emergency. A quick look over to Captain Obvious told me he was distracted by the chaos. That allowed me to get to Daisy and Chris. I need to have a word about their “Stranger Danger” awareness. Neither of them questioned being whisked away.
Derek and Meryl knew to expect us. I hadn’t filled them in on the plan, just that I would create a distraction and would meet them at the motorhome. As far as escapes go, it wasn’t very complex or dangerous. My adrenaline did spike, but nothing to get my knickers in a twist about. Hopefully, we would be far away by the time the dude in the car realises we’re not there.
Back to our current situation and this beast of a van. The first thing I’m going to buy when I’m home is a motorhome. They are fucking awesome. Derek and Meryl have everything they could ever need. It’s a literal house on wheels. According to Meryl there are two double bedrooms and a single. A full bathroom with an add-on to the master suite. A beautiful kitchen area and a lounge section that sports a fifty-inch TV and motorised recliners. This thing must cost a friggin’ fortune.
