I finally had an inspiration to continue this story. And I just read the next installment in the MR series, Angel. Lets just say that someone need to punch James Patterson in the face. His plots are so predictable. He has turned the series into a joke. (Not to metion we all know books 4-7 are ghost written)...but yeah. anyway. back to the story. I spent quite some time thinking about how to portray these last few chapters. Hope you like them.
Fang POV:
I woke up early feeling tired and anxious. I hoped the woman wouldn't notice the bags under my eyes. I was just so tired of searching and working to support the flock. I almost preferred being on the run…Almost. I washed my face, ran a hand through my hair with some water to smooth it down, and threw on some clean clothes.
I walked into the kitchen to see the flock go silent suddenly. They were talking about me again. I tried hard not to worry them, but sometimes the mask slipped.
Nudge looked at me and said "Morning Fang," with a smile. I nodded in reply and grabbed the box of frosted flakes and a bowl from the cabinet. I opened the refrigerator and poured some milk into the bowl of cereal.
"Did you sleep well?" Angel asked. I turned to see if she was talking to me.
"Yeah, fine," I said, even when she gave me a look knowing full well that I didn't.
The rest of breakfast pretty much ensued us sitting there, crunching awkwardly on our cereal in silence. Such fun.
I tried to keep my mind off of the meeting with the woman later today. I didn't want Angel to read my mind and to give them false hope. I could already see that they all worried about me. I didn't want them to worry. I was supposed to take care of them.
Fang, everyone needs someone to worry about them. Angel's voice popped into my head. Oh crud. I shut her out of my mind. I looked at the clock, 9AM. I had to meet the woman, the possible key to finding Max, in an hour in a coffee shop the next town over.
I put my bowl into the dishwasher and grabbed my coat. "Well I'm going to work, see you all later. Be careful." I stepped out and closed the door without looking back.
Flock POV:
Fang shut the door with a thud. Nudge turned to Angel. "He looks awful."
"He didn't sleep hardly at all last night. I think he was having nightmares," said Angel sadly.
"I really think someone has to get through to him."
"I just don't know how to get him to open up. His thoughts are so closed to me. I only get snippets now and then." Angel trailed off, and the silence grew to an unbearable level.
Gazzy poked Iggy "Can we work on the new explosive—I mean uh, um, truck today?" Angel had shot him a look.
Iggy winked in the Gasman's direction. "Sure thing, kid." Nudge got up and stuck her bowl in the sink.
"I'm going back to bed for a few more hours. Angel, it's your turn to wash the dishes." Nudge crawled slowly back up the stairs and disappeared around the corner.
The boys donated their cereal bowls to the pile and headed out the door to the old barn out back. Inside the barn was nearly the same sight as would be seen at a junkyard. The flock took turns working on making another jigsaw car to use around town besides the truck Fang used for work. He has gotten a new job out on a farm across town.
Angel washed dishes and put them away. She straightened the kitchen and swept off the porch. She was glad Fang hadn't made them go to school. That had only ended in disaster the first time. He had made them promise to take some classes and do educational stuff online, which with some hacking provided by Nudge, was a promise they all tried their best to keep.
Angel headed out to the barn to check on the guys. Just as she expected, they were nowhere in sight. They were probably out in the woods or near the creek a few miles from the house. She got out a few tools from the toolbox and began to fit pieces of the car together, testing if and how they worked together. Nobody knew it, but this was what Angel came to do when she needed to relax or think when she needed to be alone. Right now, Angel really needed to think.
Max POV:
I pried my eyes open to sun streaming through the window of my hotel room. I glanced at the clock. 9:45AM. Aw crap. I'm gonna be late. I leapt out of bed and ran into the shower. After the fastest shower I've ever taken, I threw on the new clothes I had gotten from Wal-mart. I think they flattered me. I think. I was never really concerned with all this girlie stuff before, but today could be special. I decided to reveal me as well…me, then I wanted my family's first impression of me not to immediately worry them.
I wore my hair down. It curled sorta around my face. I didn't even try makeup. It wasn't worth it, and I would just end up looking silly anyway.
I raced out of the hotel room with my beat-up car's keys and belongings. I didn't have much to pack up. I was halfway down the hallway when I realized I wasn't wearing shoes. Oops.
Eventually I got to my old sputtering car. When I turned it on, the clock radio read 9:56AM. It was a 25minute ride to the next town, and then I had to find the coffee shop again. I hope Fang didn't get impatient and leave. Oh god. Fang. I felt queasy and nauseous. Butterflies bounced all around my stomach. This was going to be a long car ride.
Fang POV:
I walked into the coffee shop right on time. I sat down at a booth near the exit after scanning for possible threats. After sitting for a while, a middle-aged waitress came over and asked me if I wanted anything.
"I'm waiting for someone," I replied. "But I guess I'll take a….Oh just surprise me." When she returned a few minutes later with some type of coffee looking drink, she looked at me.
"Are you waiting for a girl?" She asked me right out. I nodded. She left and I sat there, sipping whatever it was.
Fifteen minutes went by, and then twenty. The longer I waited, the more anxious and impatient I got. By the time 10:45 came around, I was near about ready to punch someone. Anyone. When 11 finally rolled around, I was wound tighter than a spring.
Another hour of mindless waiting passed. I looked around. I didn't see any women sitting alone. This didn't make sense! The woman on the phone must have heard how desperate I was. How could she do this to me? I hadn't gotten any closer at all. I put my head in my hands. After a while of inward despair, I felt a hand on my shoulder. I looked up to see the restaurant deserted and the waitress staring at me with concern.
"I'm really sorry, but I don't think she's going to show up." She said softly.
I looked at her. "It's ok. Not your fault. Thanks…" I grabbed my coat and got up to leave.
Max POV:
I finally pulled my car into the parking lot at 10:50. I officially hate traffic. Especially since I have wings. I walked normally to the window of the coffee shop, trying to keep my heart from coming out of my throat. Fang. That was all I kept thinking. His name. I looked in a scanned the crowd, and not seeing him, almost threw up. But…no, there! Near the door he was sitting at a small table for two near the entrance, drinking a cup of coffee. I pressed my face against the glass. I had finally found him! He was wearing black (of course). His shaggy dark brown hair fell into his eyes the way I had missed so much. A little too long. He needed a haircut. And he was tall. So tall. He was way taller than me. He was more muscle than I remembered, and he looked so much older, even though only three years had gone by. He didn't look like the ropy teenager that I remembered. He was a man.
And all I had to do was stroll in, say, "I am Max!" and have this big happy reunion, just like in my head. My heart almost beat out of my chest. The tugging on my heart was pulling me in his direction. It was extremely painful now that I was so close to him.
He glanced my direction and I ducked. He looked healthy. And happy. Well, at least as happy as Fang could get. How could I come back into his life and ruin it? How could I ruin my family's lives? I just stood there for almost and hour, smiling like and idiot and standing there, outside the glass, just watching him, his body move as he picked up his cup to throw it away, or to shift into a more comfortable position. It was as if I had never left. I could still read his body language perfectly. We were made for each other. But I wasn't sure if I could totally uproot all I could see he had worked for. He looked clean and healthy. And he probably had a job and a home.
At that point, I came to a decision in my mind. This would be the hardest thing I would ever have to do. No. I couldn't do that to him. I loved him too much. I would rather be away from him and I be miserable rather than to make him miserable by destroying all he'd worked for.
A tear slipped out of my eye as I turned to leave, brokenhearted. But then, out of my peripheral vision, I saw him put his head into his hands, and his face fall. Hope found its way into me. Maybe some part of him did care for me still. Maybe.
As he got up to leave, I decided to follow him, and see if he really did need me. He walked out the door and I ducked behind a trashcan. I thought about the best way to follow him.
He climbed into a rusty of pick up, and started the engine. I decided to trail him by car. I climbed into mine and it sputtered to life. I pulled out into the road behind him, careful to keep enough distance that he wouldn't become suspicious.
Fang pulled his pickup onto the main highway. I tailed him, making sure I kept him in my sight. But then he started to gain speed. I had to try to keep up with him. There wasn't a lot of traffic so trying to blend in was really just a failed effort. He turned off onto an old dirt road. I followed.
Fang POV:
Someone was following me. I was almost sure of it. I hadn't noticed the weary old little car until it had pulled off the highway behind me. This was an 6 mile long dirt road that led to creek and several local farms. Not many people come down it. I followed the road past the two first farm turn offs. I turned left onto the gravel road leading to the farm at which I worked as a farmhand. I glanced in my mirror in curiosity and suspicion when I saw the car turn off behind me. I got this feeling in the pit of my stomach. I kept telling myself, Maybe the Grahms are having company over. But no. Mr. Grahm, my employer, and his wife rarely had company over. Not to mention the fact that there were no cars in the driveway, and the garage door was closed.
A sense of dread came over me. I thought all my days of running were over. Now, something, or someone, was after me. My truck bumped along the gravel road, and I sped up to try and outrun it to the property. As I swung around the corner to the driveway, my tires slung gravel and the truck slid halfway off the road. Luckily, with some quick maneuvering, I returned the tires to the rocks.
I screeched quickly to a halt and threw open the door. I made a dash for the woods.
