Page 4 of Slavic

“IsthisJanet?”

“Dependson who’s asking and where you got this number?”

“Myname isRuby.Ifound your number on an old phone book cover and my sister andIare in trouble.”

“Thenyes,I’mwho you’re looking for.Justso you know in advance,I’mone for being cautious and many depend on me, do you understand?”

“Yesma’am,Ido.”

“Ihave no idea where you’re at, butIhave multiple places we can meet up.Areyou coming from the north or south?”

“We’releavingOhioright now, so tell me where to go and we’ll be there.”

“There’sa place calledTheTruckStoponI-40 right before theTexasborder.Callthis number when you get closer, andI’llmeet you there.Don’tdo anything to bring attention to yourself.Asa matter of fact, there is probably no way you can make it that far today.Iwant you to head toward a roadside motel inArkansascalledJJ’s.It’salso next to a truck stop and should be about halfway.Ihave friends there,I’lllet them know you’re coming.”

“Thankyou,Janet.”

“Don’tthank me yet, let’s get you here first.Payattention to your surroundings and no matter what, stay away from crowded places.Thereare eyes everywhere and you can trust very few of them.Seeyou tomorrow.”

Chapter Three

RUBY

Thehoursand the miles seem to go by in a daze.SeveraltimesI’vetried to getRowanto talk to me, but it’s like she’s only a shell of who she was.Thelittle sisterIremember who was quick to smile, with a huge heart, has been replaced by this quiet, withdrawn woman beside me.

Idon’t know who to be mad at.Myself, for not getting her out of there sooner, those bastards for doing this to her, or evenRowanfor staying as long as she did?ThegirlIgrew up with wouldn’t have let anyone mistreat or abuse her.Especiallyto the point where she felt like she had no other options.Whatthe hell was he holding over her head?Theone thingI’velearned is that looking back never pushes you forward.Mehounding her won’t fix the problems we’re facing now.

Mymind and body are tired, mainly becauseI’ddriven all night to get toRowan’s, and it’s been nonstop since.Irub my eyes as the headlights from the other cars coming our way are giving me a headache.Theirlights are beginning to blur together the further we drive.WhenIknowIcan’t go any further without a break,Idrive through aMcDonald’sgrabbing some fries and afrappe, hoping the cold drink and the caffeine will keep me going just a little longer.Passinga road sign,Iglance over at the map.Weshould be coming up on the hotelJanetwas telling us about.

Rowanis sound asleep and has been for the past couple of hours.Ifshe hadn’t been,IswearIwould’ve screamed for victory whenIsaw the exit coming up next.Hesitantly,Ipull off the interstate, following the signs showing all the hotels at this exit.JJ’sis off the main drag; it’s older, but it looks clean.Thankfully, it doesn’t seem to be very busy.It’slate, but there is still a light on in the front office.Reachingover,Igently shakeRowan. “Hey, wake up, we’re at the hotel.I’llbe right back.”Shejust nods her head.

Abell rings whenIopen the door, and an older woman gets up from an easy chair behind the counter.BeforeIcan say a word, she says, “AreyouRuby?”

“Depends.”

“Myname isEdith.Youcan relax child,Janettold me you were coming, and that you were driving in fromOhio.Youmade good time;Ididn’t expect you for another hour.”

“We…Idrove straight through.”

“I’msure you are all tuckered out, so let’s get you settled in for the night and hopefully things will look better in the morning.Here’syour key, and the room is around back, in the corner.It’sthe only one without a number on the door.Makesure to back your car into the parking space.Ifanyone is tracking you, they will hesitate getting those tag numbers, if they have to get out of their vehicle to see them.Theroom has two separate beds.I’vealso left some extra clothes and you’re welcome to anything that fits.Thereare sandwiches and drinks stocked in the fridge aswell.Thebathroom has a bunch of complimentary toiletries, so use what you need.”

“Howmuch for the night?”

“We’lldiscuss that it in the morning whenIbring you breakfast at eight.Noneed to worry about all that nonsense tonight, you have enough on your plate already.”

“Thankyou for your kindness,Ma’am.”

“Weall need a helping hand now and then, youngin.”

Sheshoos me out the door andIhead straight for theSUV.WhenIget in,Rowanlooks up at me like she’s expecting trouble. “Lookslike we have a room in the back.”Onceagain, she just nods, and this kinda aggravates me.IthinkI’dfeel better if she showed some kind of emotion.

Pullingaround,Ifind a spot in the corner between two other cars.Hoppingout,Ipop the hatch to get one of my smaller bags.Rowanopens her door but just stands there like she doesn’t know what to do. “HereSis, take this room key and find the door with no number on it whileIget a few things out of the car.”Isee her hesitate to walk away from me. “Holdup,I’llcome with you.”Therelief on her face is instantaneous.

Draggingmy bag behind me, the wheels squeak lightly.Wewalk down the sidewalk in front of the rooms, quickly finding one with no number tucked away in the corner.Rowanlooks up at me andImotion for her to swipe the card.Themoment she does, the light turns green, andIpush my way through the doorway, thankful for whatIsee inside.

Theroom is spacious and decorated in calming colors of light blue and yellow.Twofull size beds with matching comforterstake up the majority of the space, but there are other doorways on each side of them.Ithrow my bag down on one of the beds asRowanlocks the door behind us.Istart exploring the rest of the space and the doorway to the right has a small kitchenette and a sitting room with aTVon the wall.Theopening to the left, has me gasping.

Inthe middle of the oversized bathroom sits a huge, claw-foot tub.Twovanities line the far wall, and the other holds a walk-in shower.Rowanwalks in behind me andIsee her eyeing the bathtub. “Hey,I’mgoing to take a quick shower and whenIget done, you can go ahead and take a nice long bath.Edithsaid we’re welcome to use anything in these rooms, like the clothes or any of the personal care stuff.ButIhave some extra things in my bag that should fit you if you’d rather use them instead.I’mgonna grab something out of the fridge to eat and then watchTVfor a little bit until my mind calms down while you’re taking a bath.Shealso said that she was going to bring us breakfast around eight.I’llneed to get to bed soon ifI’mgoing to finish the drive tomorrow, because we still have quite a ways to go.”

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