The middle of the night soon came and Amelia realised that she couldn't hold it in any longer. She'd woken up to see her head resting on his arm and he was still stiff, but sleeping. She doubted relaxing was in his vocabulary. She'd been rather disturbed at first, the darkness engulfing them and the only light came from a small streetlight by the side of the motel which only just reached the hidden cab.
Amelia sat up, her limbs still numb as she dropped Jackson's jacket from her shoulders and tried to open the cab door. But, she had no luck. She sighed once, looking over to him before realising that she needed to wake him. Preparing for his crabby state was easy as she placed her hand onto his arm and shook it.
"Jackson," she whispered his name and his eyes opened instantly, becoming accustomed to the sights around him.
"What?" he hissed.
"I need to use the bathroom," she complained and he rolled his eyes, shifting in his seat as he did so. He stretched quickly, his head pushing to the side to loosen his neck.
"You'll need to use the dumpsters over there," he spoke to her and she made them out a few metres away, looking revolted as Jackson shook his head, assuring her there was no room for negotiation. "You're not going inside anywhere. Everything is locked up and your face is probably all over the news by now. I can't risk anyone seeing you."
"Jesus," Amelia complained, picking up the tissues from her bag as she did so, glaring at him as he unlocked the cab doors. "So you expect me to go to the side of some bins and squat?" she checked and he nodded.
"Got it in one," he said lazily and she shoved the car door open, moving over to the bins over the sandy dirt lane, almost tripping over the stones due to her heels. She reached the bin and looked around, making sure she was hidden from view before she lifted her skirt up, bunching it in her hands until it came to her waist. She groaned once before realising that she should just get it over with.
Jackson remained seated in the cab, unable to see Amelia as she went to hide behind a dumpster and he tapped his fingers on the steering wheel, feeling emotionally drained as he thought about where he was going. His safe house was in Texas. The fake passport, ID, money was all there. No one knew about it. Not even the firm. He figured he had to something as a backup plan. Once he reached there then he would leave Amelia. She couldn't tag along with him whilst he was on the run. He was sure that the firm would kill her. He supposed she may get away with her life if she convinced them to spare her. It was a rare thing, but not unknown.
Jackson was suddenly interrupted from his thoughts as a crashing noise was heard and he remained frozen, wondering what it was before he climbed from the car, following Amelia's footprints in the sand to the dumpster she was hidden behind.
"Try not to make a noise," he hissed, looking at her before following her gaze to the dumpster where something sat, scouring through the rubbish. He rolled his eyes, noting that it was a fox and Amelia looked petrified of it.
And then he saw her for the first time. Her panties were protecting her modesty, yet the same could not be said for her skirt. Jackson coughed once and she looked at him before she caught his gaze on her backside and she quickly pulled her skirt back down haughtily, managing to fix it in place as he grinned, vaguely amused.
"It's a fox, Amelia," he mumbled. "You don't need to look so scared."
"Won't it attack?" she wondered, backing away to stand by Jackson's side and he shook his head.
"Not unless it feels threatened," he mumbled, turning on his heel. "Come on."
Amelia turned, her feet moving too quick for her as the heel of one shoe caught on the heel of the other and she lost her balance, bumping into Jackson who watched as she toppled to the floor, a gasp escaping her lips as he grinned once again.
"Tonight really isn't going in your favour, is it?" Jackson spoke, one hand moving into his pocket and the other bending down to help her. Amelia took it from him, allowing his cold hands to haul her to her feet as she glared at him.
"The past two days haven't been going in my favour," she barked back and he pressed a hand over her mouth to keep her quiet.
"You'll wake the residents," he said and she rolled her eyes, tempted to bite his hand as his other arm snaked around her waist, holding her body flush against his as he glared at her. "You need to keep quiet. Do you understand me?"
"Jesus," Amelia spoke from under his hand. "I doubt there's anyone even staying in this crap hole."
Jackson struggled to make out what she said from underneath his hand before he gave his blue orbs another roll and continued to glower at her.
"Regardless," he hissed, "keep your voice down."
His hands instantly left her body and he made his way back to the cab and Amelia followed him, resuming her previous place and dropping her tissues back into her bag before finding out her hand sanitizer and squirting it onto her palms. Jackson watched her with vague amusement, wondering what else was in her Mary Poppins sized satchel.
"We may as well carry on driving," Jackson suddenly said after he checked his watch, just about making out the time to be four in the morning. "The sun will be coming up soon and I want to be on the way."
"You're driving then," Amelia told him, finding his jacket and wrapping it back around her. The way she looked at it was that she was cold. His jacket was available and he didn't care. It made perfect sense. Jackson managed to find the highway again as Amelia took to sleeping, her light snores echoing through the cab and keeping her awake as Jackson remained determined to get to Texas by nightfall.
Amelia awoke every now and then, watching Jackson drive until she decided to take over just before they reached Texas. He could deal with driving when they reached the city. Her glasses remained securely on her eyes and her bangs pushed to the sides so that they didn't get in her way or annoy her. Jackson didn't sleep; instead he stared out the window, wishing for time to fly until they got there.
Eventually, his wish came true and they swapped places again, Jackson driving steadily until he reached the safe house which he owned. Well, it was an apartment to be precise. Situated in Austin. He abandoned the cab on the sidewalk and grabbed his bag from the backseat and handed Amelia her case as they reached the sidewalk. He pulled his keys from the bag and began to move into the small apartment building, checking his mail holder as he went which was empty. Amelia looked around, dragging her case up the steps as Jackson stormed ahead, not bothering to help her until they reached the second floor and he waited for her, seeing an old woman walking down the hallway.
"Jackson!" she exclaimed once seeing him and he looked at her, remembering the time he had helped her bring her shopping upstairs. "Honey, how long have you been gone on business this time?"
"Just a month, Mrs Mathewson," Jackson said, his most charming smile coming into play and the old woman grinned. Clearly he wasn't on breaking news or the most wanted list. Then again, no one really knew who had taken Amelia except for his firm.
"And who is this pretty little thing?" she asked and Amelia remained mute, looking at Jackson and expecting him to come up with the answer.
"This is Danielle," Jackson said, the lie slipping from his tongue as he did so. "She's my girlfriend."
"Oh!" the old woman exclaimed, her hands clapping together. "Very nice to meet you, Danielle!"
"You too," Amelia spoke back as Jackson's arm wrapped around her waist, drawing her closer to him and Amelia gritted her teeth together. At least he managed to be convincing. She looked like a hostage. Well, she was. She thought she was. She didn't know anymore.
"Well, I'd best get this one inside," Jackson said gently, his hand squeezing around her waist, urging her to look more convincing. His eyes glanced down devotionally at her and she looked up to him, her smile sarcastic to his eye. "We've had a long journey and she's wiped out."
"Oh yes," Mrs Mathewson agreed. "I need to go and do my shopping. It's very good to see you both!"
"You, too," Jackson said and he began to lead Amelia up to his apartment as the elderly woman left them.
"Get off me," Amelia muttered, snatching herself from his arm and he gladly let her go, unlocking the door to his apartment and dropping his bag onto the floor whilst Amelia looked around, her hand still on her case. Jackson acted quickly, rushing into his bedroom and dropping to his knees, opening his wardrobe and then pulling the hidden panel off to find his safe.
Amelia looked around at the clinical apartment. All it had was a built in kitchen, dining chairs and a leather sofa. There were no books, no TV, nothing personal.
He clearly didn't live here. And if he did, well, she'd be impressed at the lack of things he had. She'd get bored easily.
"Jackson," Amelia spoke up, walking through to the bedroom where he was depositing cash onto the floor besides a passport. "What is this place?"
"It doesn't matter," he replied hastily, standing up and walking back to grab his bag before throwing the money into it and the passport into his jacket pocket.
"What are you doing?" Amelia asked.
"Leaving," he spoke to her. "I need to get out of the States before something happens."
"Before they kill you?" she checked and he nodded.
"Here," Jackson spoke, handing her the spare phone he kept. "Call your parents and tell them where you are."
"I thought you said that I'd die?" Amelia checked and Jackson looked at her as he placed the bag back onto his shoulder, glaring at her as he did so.
"You're not my responsibility," Jackson told her. "I've kept you alive this far. It's up to you now."
Amelia remained slightly confused at the sudden change of mind and she continued to stare at him before she looked down onto the phone.
"So, that's it?" she checked and he shrugged.
"I don't know what you want me to do," Jackson replied to her. "I can't exactly take you with me. You might survive. The firm might allow it."
"Might?" Amelia checked with him, her voice hoarse as she did so. "I need something a bit better than might!"
"Well, I can't give you that," Jackson hissed. "You're not my responsibility, Amelia. I need to go. Call you parents," he told her again and she shook her head at him as he walked past her to the door. He looked back at her as she continued to stare at him and he wondered if he should say something to her. It wasn't in his place to do anything. He'd failed and that was it. He'd helped her. His good deed was done.
"I'll see you around," Jackson mumbled before leaving his apartment and walking down the steps. Amelia remained stood where she was, dropping down onto his sofa for a moment before dialling her parent's number into the phone.
"Mom," Amelia's voice quivered when her mother picked up.
"Amy!" her mother exclaimed. "Where the hell are you? What's happening? We've been so worried! Your brother has been taken into protective custody! Someone tried to kill him! Where are you, honey?"
"Texas," Amelia whispered. "Somewhere in Austin, mom. I'm scared...mom..."
"I know, sweetie," her mother sighed as her father stood close by the phone. "Are you okay? Are you hurt?"
"No," Amelia shook her head. "He never hurt me. He's gone. He told me to call you. I didn't know what else to do."
"Okay, it's okay, Ames," her mother promised her. "Stay on the phone to me and your dad will call the police and they'll have someone trace you, okay?"
"Okay," Amelia agreed, gulping once and sighing. But, she didn't get much of a chance to think. A sudden shot was heard echoing through the corridor and Amelia jumped up, looking around and moving to the door as she did so.
"Amy, what was that?" her mother worried.
"I don't know," Amelia replied before the door flung open again. His eyes scanned the room before he looked onto her and grabbed her wrist. "Jackson, what the hell is happening?"
"They found us," he hissed, snatching the phone from her hand and slamming it onto the floor, destroying it as Amelia managed to grab her satchel.
"What?" Amelia snapped and he pushed his free hand through his hair whilst looking at her and holding onto her hand tightly, dragging her onto the corridor and then down the hall to the fire escape. "How?"
"I don't know," Jackson snapped, slamming the door open before quickly moving down the mesh steps. Amelia followed him, her satchel slamming against her legs as she did. Finally, she managed to place it over her shoulder, quickly keeping up with Jackson as another gunshot was heard from the top of the staircase. She shrieked loudly again before they reached the alleyway and Jackson rushed down it, looking for more of them. Amelia began to feel her heels falling off her feet and she allowed them to, accepting the fact she couldn't run in them.
"Keep going," Jackson urged her, his grip increasing whilst she heard shots whizz past them and they quickly turned the corner.
"Taxi!" Jackson suddenly yelled, jumping out to stop a travelling car. It did as it was asked and he opened the back door, pushing Amelia in first before himself, the pair of them ducking down in the seat.
"Airport," Jackson demanded. "Now."
"Okay, man," he replied, sensing something had wound him up.
Amelia looked across to Jackson, completely breathless and he nodded back at her, dropping his hand from hers.
"You came back," she mumbled to him and he looked out the window.
"I guess I did."
...
A/N: Words cannot explain how much fun I am having in writing this! I loved Red Eye and couldn't resist doing it in the end! Anyway, thank you to ShatteredMirrorReflection, esolo, LivinJgril123 and trudes193 for reviewing the previous chapter! Do let me know what you think!
