Rick sits in a town car that John had called for him. The car service was prompt and he was whisked away within seconds after he gave the driver his home address. He's leaving his publisher's building because they accomplished a lot in a short amount of time. If all went right the schedule for the next book would be out just in time for this year's Christmas season. He never thought that his experiences as a kid would ever make him money like this. He would be on easy street by the time the next book was published.

His mind goes back to when he was younger and he used to travel the country sort of being like an itinerant. He would go from city to city just to soak up the history, culture, and people. He would work odd jobs to support himself but he would never stay in one place that long because there was nothing to tie him down. He remembers the look on chef Carlos's face when he told him that he was moving on.

"Rick, why are you leaving us?" He asked in his form of broken English.

"Chef, I've done everything that I have set out to do in this city. There are more people to see, places to explore and museums to visit. It's all out there for the taking you just need to do is go out and get it."

"Well in that case I wish you luck. I will never forget you Rick Rogers you have been a bright ray of sunshine in a rather dreary place. But don't tell Bonnie, she'll get mad at you." they both chuckle at his comment because they both know her too well.

"Thank you, chef Carlos. When I have the time, I will try to write to you. Until then stay safe my friend."

With that said Rick turns and leaves the kitchen going up to the front office to talk to Monica to get his last paycheck. After that's finished he leaves the eatery never looking back.

Xx

Kate returns the work about an hour and a half early the next day. She does this because when she was reading about him the time flew by. At least this way she can read a little more before the boys get here. She logs into the NYPD search that she had performed yesterday and the page she was on springs to life once the monitor powers up. She takes her coffee cup, sits back in her chair, and starts reading where she left off.

After leaving Houston he heads North up to Chicago. He was about 45 miles north of the city in a small town called Waukegan. She expected to see him working in a food service capacity but what she realized is that he had found employment with a Honda dealership as a porter. He would clean cars that were being taken in as a trade for a newer model. He did this job for about eight months before he picked up and moved once again.

His next stop was moving East towards Pittsburgh. Once in Pittsburgh, he became a salesman at a sporting goods store. The manager of the store liked him so much because he was friendly towards all the people he sold merchandise to. And the usual simple sale of a compound bow or a camping tent had the customer buying all sorts of different things for the item they were buying. Rick would upsell whatever the customer wanted and they were usually happy about buying what he had suggested. For some reason, he was very knowledgeable about sporting equipment and he loved to talk to people. The manager wanted to know how he did it and his response was,

"Robert, all you need to do is spend the time and listen to what they are saying. If you do that you'll have a better rapport with them."

"Rick, you sound like my father. He always told me to shut my mouth and open my ears."

"Now that Robert is sound advice. You should consider it some time it might do you some good to stop and listen to their needs."

"Thanks, I think I will."

Kate reads on to see that after he leaves the sporting goods store his history seems to dry up. There is no mention of his whereabouts anywhere. She scours the other reports she has on him and can't find out anything. It's like he disappeared off the face of the earth.

Xx

Rick gets back to the loft and makes a quick dinner. His second manuscript is in the safe and he needs to send that to John tomorrow morning. Once he finishes eating and has the manuscript packed up, he makes arrangements for the messenger service to pick it up first thing in the morning. He sits down at his desk. He has an idea for the third book and opens a new document on his laptop. He uses one of the many instances where he used his power for good well at least it started off that way. He never told his mother about the good deeds he had done or the ones that brought him pain either. He never did tell her knowing that she was going to punish him for what had happened. Whatever he had done if it was good she would milk it for all it was worth. If it was bad he never wanted to be on the receiving end of her wrath. He remembers one time when he and his friend Roger were climbing a very large oak tree not far from the fairway. Without realizing it they started climbing and had gotten high up into the tree, about eighty feet off the ground. He was getting the feeling that something wasn't right so he stopped climbing. He dropped into a Fuchs state and scanned three minutes and twenty-two seconds into his future. He watched as he and Roger climbed higher and by the time he was about fifteen feet from where Rick was now, he watches as Roger places his foot on a rotted branch. It looked like it was solid enough to support his weight, but Rick knew better. The second he opened his eyes he saw Roger just about to step on the rotten branch. If it wasn't for Rick telling Roger to move his foot at the last possible second he visions him stepping on the branch and falling to his death. In the end, it wasn't the fall that killed him but a part of the tree branch that pierced his back and driving through his chest killing him instantly.

"Roger, DON'T TAKE ANOTHER STEP!" Rick yells.

"Why Rick?"

"Because that branch will not support your weight. It will snap and you will fall."

Roger looked at him as if he was crazy and if he thought about it his friend was some kind of nut case. That's when he decided to test his friend's theory and place his foot on the branch ever so lightly just to scare him. What he never imagined was that his friend was telling him the truth. The second his foot touched the branch his weight shifted by accident from one foot to the other and he put more pressure on the rotten branch and it fell along with him a split second later.

Rick never had the time to react. His vision was based on what happened when Rodger had fully stepped on the dead branch, not if he had barely touched it. When Roger did this his current three-minute twenty-two-second vision had taken a different path. In essence, Roger had changed his own future. Rick tried to grab Roger as he dropped past him but the collar of his shirt ripped and while he was able to grab his shirt, he couldn't hold on to him. He watched in terror as one of his best friends fell to his death.

Xx

Rick looks at the blinking cursor on the screen of his laptop as he comes back to reality. His daydreaming has hit him hard and he regrets what happened to his friend. If he only listened to him Roger would still be alive to this day.

Xx

Kate can't find anything concerning his whereabouts for the next four and a half years. She doesn't know why he doesn't show up on any other search from 2001 to 2005. Maybe a blink here and there to talk to people he knew would be in order.

She can't tell if he even has a driver's license, but how he moves from town to town makes her believe that he does not have a driver's license. He more than likely hitchhikes or he walks from where he is to where he wants to go. In a way, she can understand the fact that some people need solitude, and traveling the way he did gives him the peace to think about where his life is going.

She finally catches a break and reads a separate report that has him in New York City now. She can determine that he makes a pretty good income based on his annual income tax returns. She reads further and sees that he makes about three times what she makes in one year. That's a lot of cash. Now if she can only figure out how he makes his money….