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Slowly crossing the penthouse retrieving stacks of cash from their hiding places, I filled the duffel bag that I carried, tossed it across my shoulders, and caused the brief power surge that would give me the time I needed to get on to the elevator and escape without having to turn off the alarm.
It had taken me years to put together my first escape. I had made mistakes, though. The biggest was using my phone. That had been how Remy had tracked me down.
I had kept it off for weeks, and during that time, Remy had thought that he had lost me. He had given up checking my phone’s tracker. But as I got more comfortable talking with Dillon, Remy had logged back into the app. It showed him my location down to the inch. That’s when he came and got me.
This time, however, I was leaving my phone in my bedroom. I just had to get from downtown Manhattan to New Jersey without it. That was easy enough, right?
After all, hadn’t people crossed the city before Google Maps? Sure, it was probably by riding one of the dinosaurs that roamed freely back then. But I could do it too.
And considering I was carrying more cash than most people made in a lifetime, it would be easy. I couldn’t imagine how I wouldn’t be able to cross downtown New York City with a duffel bag of cash over my shoulders… especially since I was taking the subway.
Having researched the metro routes before abandoning my phone, I memorized all of the trains I had to take to get to New Jersey. I kept a few dollars in my pocket for the ticket. It was going to be a breeze.
At least I thought it was. That was just the first thing I got wrong. Never in my life had I seen a place like a subway station. It was insane. I was going to die.
Was it because I had more money than most people would make it a lifetime strapped across my shoulder? Surprisingly, yes. Who would have guessed? Should I have just taken a taxi?
Luckily, I didn’t have much time to think about it. With my ticket in hand, I scurried to the platform and my train quickly pulled up. Rushing in, I found a seat. Hiding in the corner, I witnessed a guy rapping, someone else dancing, I think someone was being mugged, and another person who pooped in the train.
Um, was I making a mistake?
Practically running off of the subway as soon as I arrived at my stop, I went over the map that I had burned into my brain. Deciding that it would be harder to find a taxi than just to walk there, I put on as much attitude as I could and marched forward, barely looking around.
On my way, I thought about how this was going to be my life from now on. Unfamiliar streets, people pooping on subway trains, being lost and kind of terrified—this was my new normal. The thought would have pushed me to step into the nearest store and call my brother to come get me if I didn’t then think about the man I was doing all of this to meet.
If this was all I had to do to spend the rest of my life with Cali, I would do it forever. He was worth it. There are times when you can imagine what your life would be if you spend it in someone else’s arms. I wanted that life to be my future.
I would want a life with him, even if we began it with nothing. I didn’t need fancy restaurants or penthouse suites. All I needed was him. I relaxed as I thought about it.
Knocking on Dillon’s door, I was ready.
“Hil!” he said, seeing me in person for the first time in way too long.
We threw our arms around each other. He really was the best friend I could ever have. I wasn’t sure what I was going to do without him. Tears filled my eyes thinking about it.
“When you told me you would be taking the subway, I wondered if you would get here in one piece,” Dillon joked as he ushered me in and chain locked the door.
“What are you talking about? It was nothing.”
He looked at me doubtingly.
“You took the train from downtown to New Jersey, and you didn’t see anything out of the ordinary?”
I remained poker faced.
“No. Like what?”
“Lying does not look good on you. Does your boyfriend know you lie like this?”
“He knows everything about me. And whatever he doesn’t know, he is about to find out,” I said with a hint of nervousness.
“Are you sure about this, Hil? You will be giving up a lot if you go through with it.”
“He’s coming here so you’re gonna meet him. You can see for yourself if he’s worth giving everything up for,” I said confidently.
“Well, I hope he is. And don’t forget, if it doesn’t work out, you have a home where people love you,” he said sadly.
I threw my arms around him again.
