Najia yawned. Her lungs ached, but they welcomed the air. She pulled the blanket that Shane had given her around her shoulders and stared into the flames. Shane had driven the Hummer through the rest of the night as she slept in the back seat under Harvey’s watchful eye, stopping just long enough for Gil and Marlon to have their coffee.
As they sat around the fire, she had learned the names of the two prisoners they were able to rescue; Penny and Morris. Penny was quiet - shy. A preschool teacher back in the city. Morris a manager at JoJa Mart. Najia liked Penny, but Morris was an arrogant ass - even more so than Shane. She found herself cringing when he spoke.
Shane handed her a mug of coffee and smiled when she met his gaze. She accepted it without a word but did not drink it. She realized that everyone was looking to her, as if waiting for an answer.
“Maybe not,” Gil muttered.
“Sure,” Alex said. “We can all just squeeze into two cars. No problem at all. It’s not like we don’t all reek or anything.”
“What?” Najia finally spoke.
“Give her a break,” Harvey said. “She’s had a long night.”
“There were some abandoned cars not far from here,” Marlon said. “Before we found their little headquarters there.”
“Oh,” Najia said, then quickly, “Sure, yeah, I can hot wire them.”
“Listen, kid,” Gil started. “If that chokehold was too much for you-”
“I said I would take care of it,” Najia barked at him.
They fell silent. Uncomfortable, Najia stood and forced a smile. “Chokeholds,” she tried to laugh off. “Kinky.”
She made her way back to the car, sliding into the back seat and let her head rest against the head rest.
“Are you feeling okay?” Harvey’s voice asked her.
Najia peered at him and closed her eyes. “Yes.”
“You could have suffered a concussion,” he muttered. “Does your head hurt? Open your eyes, lemme see-”
“I’m fine,” Najia cut him off. She met his gaze and smiled. “Really.”
Harvey pinched his lips and nodded. “Okay. I just worry.”
“You don’t have to worry.”
“It’s my job to worry about my patients.”
“Well,” Najia started. “I’m not a patient, and you don’t have a job.”
“I’m certainly not getting paid,” Harvey mumbled.
Najia dug through her bag. “I can pay you in my last chocolate bar,” she offered.
Harvey smiled. “Nonsense. I’m joking. Saving lives is what I do.”
Najia shifted uncomfortably. “Well,” she said. “I guess I owe you thanks.”
“I’m not really the one you should be thanking,” he admitted. “Anyone can do CPR.” Harvey straightened as Shane approached. Shane shook a bottle of aspirin in his hand.
“We ran out of bitch pills,” he said as he leaned against the car.
“Don’t let her take too many,” Harvey instructed. “I can only do so much out here. Brain bleeds are out of my control.”
“Got it,” Shane said. “Only ouchies that can be fixed with a band-aid.”
Harvey smiled. “That would be appreciative.” He made his way back to the fire.
“So, I have to thank you?” Najia asked, taking the bottle from him and popping a pill.
“Depends,” he started.
“For saving my life.”
“Oh, that,” he said with a shrug. “Nah, that was Harvey. I only, you know, kicked a shadow bastard’s ass.” He paused. “If I had known you were into chokeholds, though, I wouldn’t have bothered.”
“Funny,” Najia muttered, pushing passed him and getting out of the car. She looked down the highway, into the darkness, and sighed.
“What’s wrong?” Shane asked, sounding aggravated with her.
“Tired.”
“Well, cut the shit,” he said. “We’ve gotta get moving, and I don’t want to be stuck in the car with those morons.”
“Who said I wanted to be stuck in a car with you?”
Shane feigned being hurt, his hand on his chest. “And I thought we had something special.”
Najia met his gaze and smiled. “I know, Sweetie, but I don’t get tied down to no one.”
“Players gonna play,” Shane said, shaking his head.
*****
Just as Marlon said, they found a group of cars abandoned just off the interstate in a large parking lot. They waited patiently as Najia and Shane hot wired three more vehicles, bringing a total of five vehicles into their convoy. They split themselves between the vehicles; Shane and Najia in one, Penny, Abigail, and Leah in another, Marlon, Gil, Alex, and Harvey in the Hummer, Demetrius, Sebastian, and Maru together, and Morris bringing up the rear. Gil took the lead in the Hummer, which surprisingly still pushed on despite its forceful entrance the night before, with Shane at the wheel behind them. They drove in silence for a while before Najia finally spoke.
“You know how they say your life flashes before your eyes when you die?”
Shane hesitated. “Sure.”
“It’s not true.”
Shane smiled. “Maybe you’re life was just really boring.”
“Maybe I’ve been dead this whole time.”
“Plot twist.”
“If I could do one thing differently,” she started, “I probably would have gone to college and slept with more people.”
“Are… are those two in the same category?” Shane asked.
“Well, why else do you go to college?”
“Touche.” Shane paused. “I never went, either.”
“Virgin.”
“No,” he said quickly. “Definitely not.”
“Slut.”
“I prefer the term bachelor.”
“Lonely slut.”
“Look who’s talking.”
“I just said I would have slept with more people. Therefore, I can’t be a slut.”
“Smarty-pants slut.”
“At least I wasn’t a lonely arrogant ass.”
“You’re more arrogant then you realize.”
“Here we go again.”
Shane turned to her and smiled. “Just like old times.”
Najia rolled her eyes. “Are we there yet?”
“Yes.”
“No, we’re not.”
“Well, that sucks.”
Najia looked through her window, trying to imagine the landscape. The coast couldn’t be far. Couple days, tops.
“What do you think we’ll see?” Najia asked.
“Honestly?” Shane hesitated. “Maybe some bodies.”
Najia turned to him. “That’s morbid.”
Shane shrugged. “Welcome to war.”
“What about Marnie and Jas?”
Shane did not answer her.
“What will you do if they’re not there?”
“They’ll be there,” he said, not taking his eyes off the road.
Najia settled into the seat and looked out the window. They’ll be there. And they’d go north and find Stardew Valley, where her grandfather would be waiting, just as he promise.
Anya is live and ready to show you everything. Watch her strip, dance, and perform exclusive shows just for you. Interact in real-time and make your fantasies come true.
✓ Live Streaming✓ Interactive Chat✓ Private Shows✓ HD Quality✓ Free Actions
Free to watch • No registration required • HD streaming
