Chapter 10: Kindness and Trust

He had a long and never-ending path ahead of him, surrounded by the colorless sky above the road. All the streetlights along the empty highway made the journey fell monotonous. Each mile they traveled was another mile close to what ever it was they were going to, and another mile farther from the life they knew. Lloyd could feel his eyes grow heavy; it had been a grueling day. As the car traveled down the highway, Lloyd's mind began drifting away.

"Genis wake up," he said softly.

"Huh, what is it?" Genis said as he was slowly waking up.

"I'm sorry, but I'm having trouble concentrating on the road."

"Think we should stop for a while?" he suggested. Genis knew that Lloyd would keep pushing himself to continue, and feared what it could lead them to.

"I want to keep going, but I just need someone to talk to," he said through a yawn

"Lloyd, it's three in the morning," Genis said looking at the clock of the broken radio.

"Yea, I know. We crossed the border about an hour ago."

"You really think this is safe?"

"Talking to you should keep me awake."

"Okay Lloyd, so what do you want to talk about?" There was no response. "Lloyd?" he said again. Still no response. Genis could feel the car accelerating and slowly drifting to the side. He turned to Lloyd and noticed he was beginning to lean forward and his hand was slowly pulling the wheel to the side. "Lloyd!" he screamed and the driver reawaked with a jerk that slammed the gas petal to the floor and pulled the wheel to the side. In a fraction of the second, the car flew off the side of the road and began rolling down a hill. The car was about to crash into several trees and Lloyd was slamming on the brakes but he could not stop the car in time. The collision slammed Lloyd's chest into the steering wheel forcing his head into the dash and Genis flew through his seat belt and out of the window, colliding into the tree.

_

"I'm so sorry I parked in front of the tow away zone Mr. Bryant."

"Stacy, as I have told you a hundred times before, don't worry about it. We all make mistakes." Regal was driving home from his shift at his hotel. Even though he was quite a wealthy man and could easily get by letting all his employees do the work, he enjoyed being part of the daily workings of the hotel.

"Yea, but is just so embarrassing to have my boss have to take me home," Stacy said. She was one of Regal's younger employees. She had worked for him during the past few summers in various possessions, and was now being trained in some of the management responsibilities. She contemplated complaining about the boring ride and her boss' taste in music, but thought now was not the time. While gazing out the window, Stacy noticed several lights beside the rode in front of them. "What is that?" she said pointing toward them.

As they passed the spot, Regal joined in her gaze and they could make out a truck that had collided with a tree. "I hope they were all right," Regal said.

"Think we should go check?" she asked.

"It couldn't hurt," Regal said as he slowly pulled the car beside the road and they walked over to the crashed truck.

The first thing the noticed was the boy lying on the hood of the car. Blood was covering most of his body and had begun to spread from the spot he laid upon. "Is he?" Stacy couldn't bring herself to finish her question.

"Sadly, I don't see how he could be alive." Regal reached to the blood-covered boy, expected no signs of life. Instead, he found gentle breathing and a weak, but continues pulse. "How are you still alive?" he said out of shock.

"W-wait, h-he's alive?"

"I don't understand this, but yea he is. "

"There is another person in the car," Stacy said. When they reached him, they noticed a large gash on his forehead with blood running down onto his face and steering wheel. There were also various cuts and bruises along the rest of both bodies. Regal checked for a pulse, and once again found one.

"These kids should be dead after something like that."

"What should we do?" Stacy asked.

"Take them to a hospital. It's a miracle they survived this long, but in their condition, we better find a doctor." Regal had to carefully consider the best way to get them to the hospital. They could call an ambulance, but that might take too long. "Stacy, help me get them into the back of the car and then you drive them. I'll stay in back with them and see to it they aren't injured further."

"Wait, you want me to drive your prized car? I only got my license a few months ago."

"People's lives are more important then any vehicle. Besides, I have good insurance." They carefully laid the unconscious teens into Regal's luxurious car while Regal stayed in the back seat with them, to keep them from falling. "Stacy, there is a reason this car has so much power and this is it," he instructed. She went with Regal's instruction and floored the pedal, accelerating the car at immense speed.

Regal's car was a Dodge Charger, a car known for its power. With an empty road in front of them, and a straight path, Stacy pushed the car to its limit. Even the normally composed Regal, was nervous at the teen's crazy driving. He couldn't blame her, she was just following instructions.

After a short and enjoyable drive, Stacy pulled of the highway and began taking the streets to the nearest hospital in Toronto. She somewhat recklessly weaved along the roads until finally reaching her destination. The relieved hotel owner got out of the car and quickly alerted the hotel staff.

Several nurses rushed out to help the boys, setting them each in a stretcher and carrying them into the emergency room. They did not know what they would find, but after just one look, they knew seconds could make the difference between life and death.

Once the boys were being operated on, a nurse came out to ask Regal about them. "What are there names?" she asked.

"The older one is Lloyd Irving and the younger is Genis Sage." Stacy looked up wondering how he already knew their names.

"And you would be their legal guardian?"

"No, but their parents are out of town now."

"Are you related to them?"

"Yes, I am their uncle," Regal lied flawlessly. Stacy once again looked up at him, trying to figure out what he was doing. He gazed back at her, telling her that this was not the time for questions.

"Ah, I see."

In the operating room, the doctors were amazed to find, that beneath all the blood and wounds, there was little serious damage, especially considering the cause of their injuries. At first, they guessed Lloyd would have a major concussion along with brain damage and that Genis wouldn't even survive. After only an hour of operations, Lloyd's head wound was stitched up and Genis had several gashes that would take time to heal, and a broken arm from hitting the tree, but nothing worse..

_

"Stacy, I need you to stay here at the hospital while I go check on something. I will take you home as soon as I can."

"Sure, but did you really know them?"

"No."

"Then why lie to the doctors?"

"I have a suspicion about those boys, but I can't know for sure until they wake up. I'm certain though, that they weren't just normal travelers."

_

"My head is killing me," Lloyd said softly feeling like his head was going to explode.

"Well that would make sense. Hitting your head that hard would cause severe cranial discomfort," a doctor replied.

Thoughts and memories flowed back to Lloyd. He remembered leaving home, driving along the rode, crashing into the tree, Genis screaming, "Genis!" Lloyd yelled trying to climb out of the hospital bed. He didn't get to far when his head started hurting worse due to the sudden movement, causing him to trip on the side rail and fall onto the floor, knocking several instruments over.

"Careful, Lloyd. You may made miraculous progress, but that doesn't mean you should overexert yourself," the doctor said helping him back into bed.

"Is Genis alright though?"

"Well, he will recover, but it will take a while." A feeling of relief came over him. "Your uncle is with him now."

"My uncle?" Lloyd asked. No had known they had left except maybe Raine and Dirk, and even they didn't know where they were going.

"Yea, he was the one who brought you here. I'll go get him," the doctor said leaving the room.

A few seconds later, the doctor reentered with Regal behind him. "I'm glad to see you are awake Lloyd," he said calmly. He then went to Lloyd and whispered in his ear, "I know I'm not your uncle and don't know what's going on, but I'm here to help." Regal then got up and thanked the doctor.

Lloyd felt it was unusual for this stranger to come and help them, and wondered why he was posing as their uncle. Then it hit him, that guy must be from the government agents wanting to capture him and Genis. Being trapped in the hospital in this condition, meant that there was no way to escape. Maybe Genis could think of a plan.

"Is my friend awake yet?" Lloyd asked.

"Yea, I was just talking to him," Regal responded.

"Could I see him?"

"It would be unwise for you to move in you condition," the doctor said.

"Would I be able to take him their in a wheelchair?" Regal asked.

"I suppose that could work for a short time."

"Thank you," Regal said. He then helped Lloyd to not trip getting into the chair, and then rolled him to the next room.

"Thanks," Lloyd said, "You mind leaving us alone for a few?"

"Not at all," Regal politely said and then left the room.

"Wow Lloyd, they finally put a brain in there?" Genis said noticing the large amount of bandages around Lloyd's head.

"You must not be in too bad of shape in insult me like that."

"I could be worse."

"We have to get away from that Regal guy, I think he is working with those government agents to capture us."

"Lloyd, I think you have it wrong. He is the one that found our wrecked truck and brought us here. He is the owner of the Lezerno hotel here in Toronto."

"Wait, what?"

"Yea, he explained who he was and how he found us when I woke up. He even agreed to pay all our hospital bills and let us stay at his hotel for a few days once we get out of here."

"Sounds too good to be true," Lloyd said.

"You have a point," Genis replied, "But for now, we need him."

"I don't want to be walking into a trap though."

"I know how you feel," Genis said looking down. "We have to be careful, but if we let such an opportunity get away…"

"What do you think we should do?" Lloyd asked.

"Well let's accept his kindness for now, but make sure we have a way out if we need to. If we had to, I think we could fight are way out of this, but that would be attracting way too much attention."

"Fighting sounds like something I would come up with."

"We have to consider all options," Genis said, "With my fire and your sword, along with the surprise we could probably get away from most things they could throw at us."

"For now, just focus on getting better," Lloyd instructed as he rolled himself out of the room. While Genis never said anything to him, Lloyd knew it was all his fault they were in this situation. Once again, his recklessness nearly caused the death of the one he cared about most. He knew that Genis would forgive him, he always did, but that didn't alleviate the guilt of his latest mistake. The worst part was, it was his desire to get away from the danger, which led them to the crash. Desire alone would not be enough; he needed to think through his decisions now. Only then, could he keep his friend safe.