Executing the Plan

That next morning, the Happy Trails caravan was going to leave for the east in two days, and I used that info to make my move fast. The night we were scheduled to leave, I was going to leave a note, my suits, and the last two paychecks I got from the Bishops in our room as a gesture of good will. Then, Sophia and I would link up with one of the other caravans going south under a different name. It wasn't the most brilliant plan, but it was all we could come up with. I never been to the NCR, but I figured if they had a "Covert Ops" or whatever Detective Paul was part of; they'd probably have the ability to keep a mob runaway and his wife safe. Our plan was set, and the time to act was fast approaching. However, I still couldn't shake the bad feeling of ditching the family from my mind. So, I decided to at least say goodbye to the only friends I had in New Reno… Really just Vincent.

I woke up early for my shift the night after planning with my wife, still groggy from the few hours of sleep. Being sleep deprived and in a bad mood only made my job as a thug more convincing though. The next day went on business as usual, but the second day, the day before leaving; I made plans to grab a couple drinks with my buddy Vincent. After the next thug crew relieved us at the Shark Club entrance, I went up to Vincent's room where he was still recovering after the Chop Shop shootout. I met with the hulking thug and headed down to the bar on the casino floor.

Now, Vincent was a Bishop thug through and through, so I had no plans of telling him exactly what I was up to, but I wanted to at least say goodbye, even if the message was lost in the moment. After taking a seat at the bar and being a few drinks deep, I asked the guy;

"So, how's the arm?"

He lifted his arm in the sling and brought the bottle to his lips saying, "Got some movement in it now. So that's good, Haha!"

I asked genuinely hoping to satisfy a question I had since arriving in New Reno, "How do most of you New Reno born thugs get so fucking huge?"

He took that as a cue to flex with his other arm, nearly bursting the seams of the tight blue sleeve. He responded with a grin, "There's a genetic modification facility that snatches New Reno orphans below the streets, and spits us out… Then we're up for grabs by whatever family can recruit us first."

I was fairly buzzed and didn't catch the sarcasm, so I responded, "Wow, I had no idea!?"

He laughed, "I'm just pullin your chain, brother! Haha! What you been up to? Hadn't had a chance to really hang out with ya since you woke up, Haha!"

I was a little bummed that he didn't answer the question, but my buzzed mind moved right along as I responded, "Just the usual…"

Then, something came over me and I decided to try my hand at acting. I asked, "You ever get some news that kinda brings you down?"

He raised an eyebrow and asked, "What you mean? Lady troubles? Sophia aint knocked up is she? Man, Tuco's gonna be pissed if he ever comes back to town and finds you married and knocked up his sis, Haha!"

I said, "Nah, nothing like that… Just got some news about my parents back home, few days back."

He looked puzzled again and said, "I thought you left your family like 6 years ago or something? Some place called, 'Idaho' right?"

He took another long swig from his bottle of pure moonshine, and when he placed it down I answered, "I met a guy some days back, who said he came from Idaho up north… Fucker's the only guy I ever met out here who's even heard of the place I grew up…"

Vincent blinked rapidly and shook his head trying to better focus on me (Anyone who's ever been drunk or had a conversation with one understands that gesture) but I continued, "Guy described my parents to a God Damned T; saying, 'couple mix race tribal lookin Muthufuckas in the plains of fuckin nowhea'… That's gotta be a sign, right?"

He made the "drunk guy focusing gesture" again and said, "Wow man! You're a mix race tribal lookin muthafucka! Hahaha!"

I laughed and continued my completely fabricated encounter with the imaginary Idaho waster, "Yeah man! Haha! And fuck, Idaho is in the 'plains of fuckin nowhea' It's gotta be them, right?..."

Vincent drunkenly thought for a second before bringing the bottle to his mouth again and nodding in agreement. Then I got serious, "Guy said he stayed with my folks a few days and said my ma was sick with something… Couldn't say with what though. All he said was that it didn't look good…"

Vincent said through sympathetic and drunken slurs, "Shit, man… That blows pretty hard…"

I wiped an imaginary tear from my eye and looked at the ground, "It's been so long, and they aint heard from me since I left… Just bringing up a lotta memories, you dig?…"

I gave a distant gaze, shook my head in worry, and added a sad, "Shit, man…" for extra emotion.

The giant threw his good arm around my shoulder and said, "I feel ya, bud…"

I fabricated the perfect diversion story in my drunken recollection of a false conversation. The seeds were planted and a reason to suddenly depart from the Bishops was set. Everyone can sympathize with someone suddenly abandoning their plans or not showing up to work to see their sick mother. After sobering up a little, I felt bad with the idea of creating a sick mother just to abandon a group of people who treated me so well. But for all I knew, my alibi Could've been real. I hadn't seen my family in maybe more than 6 years at that point and my parents could have died a long time ago.

Then I realized that I wasn't too upset about the fake situation I made, and that I didn't actually miss my parents. My parents taught me a lot and kept me alive for the first 12 years of my life. Whether they were cannibalistic or not, I didn't (And this will sound messed up) I didn't really have any more love for my parents. They taught me to read, write, and talk, but I survived the last 6 years of my life by putting myself through the trials and lessons alone, and away from their shelter. Whether all my experiences and struggles were overcome by fate or luck, I was my own person and destined for something else. I stumbled my way through life to end up in the hands of the Bishops, and into the company of Detective Paul all by myself. I was ready for the next step.

After another hour or two with Vincent, I made my way back to the room where Sophia was readying herself for the road. At this point, she was excited, especially since she never left New Reno her whole life. So, the prospect of going literally anywhere else was exciting to her, regardless of the ramifications for being my wife. When I got back to my room, I wrote the letter and brought out my savings.

To: Whoever is reading this

I recently heard word that my mother back home was sick with something bad. So, I'm taking my wife with a caravan out east towards Utah and then up north to Idaho. The family has been great to me, but my departure will likely put a price on my head. Mr. Bishop and the rest of the family have treated me the best, and I served you all to the best of my ability, but I have to do this. I am leaving all the money I can with the family as a gesture of good will and hope you all can understand my reasons for leaving. Goodbye

-Sean Combs

I know the letter wasn't much, but it was made in hopes to save some of my dignity, thank the family for all they did, and hopefully lessen the inevitable price on my head. So, I placed the letter on my desk, placed my two paychecks worth of cash on top ($600), and was ready to leave the next night. I went through work that next day, and thankfully wasn't assigned any random tasks. When I got off, it was 5pm. I went up to the room, threw on some of my old road gear, grabbed my wife, and headed out.