~PART THREE~
Perhaps, it was too much to hope against all hope that Peter would make it to that small town right outside of Philly in time to catch Olivia there.
He was fortunate enough to find the information he was looking for while at Olivia's place. It was the address of her sister, Rachel.
He parked the car and decided to walk down the block in the dark to remain inconspicuous. Carefully he used his eyesight to pursue the correct house…
Until he looked across the street.
The fading streetlights revealed a skinny figure clad in black, wearing sunglasses and a baseball cap pacing on the sidewalk in front one house in particular. But what was more noticeable was the long blonde hair hanging in a large bun behind the head.
Olivia.
Peter watched her as she made no attempt to approach her sister's doorstep, which he found to be awkward. Could it be that Olivia was to frightened to say goodbye to her family?
Whatever the reason, he now had his chance to approach Olivia…and finally confront her.
But before he could make a move, Peter heard what sound like an explosion and a trashcan came crashing down near him.
His heart raced as he saw Olivia looking everywhere for the source of the noise. Another bang was heard and she started sprinting away down the road. She must not have seen him.
Another bang and a tree next to Peter was struck.
They were gunshots…gunshots targeted at him.
Peter dashed down the street trying in vain to get himself out of the neighborhood...with the gunman in hot pursuit. He needed a safe place to get his gun out and fight back against his pursuer.
He had his chance as he was running towards a bridge...but in his desperate attempt to get under it, Peter tripped and crashed to the ground in a painful thud.
Barely able to move Peter looked up and saw the gun pointed at his very skull and the cold face of the man who was about to finish him...
But a sudden jolt like thunder caused the man looming over him to freeze for one moment. And the next...he had collapsed to death by Peter's side.
He caught a glimpse of his savior before they turned and started fleeing and that was enough for Peter to leap from his pain and grabbed their arm to prevent their escape. A gun fell to the ground and soon the two were wrestling each other angrily to the ground.
Her cap and her sunglasses came off and her long blonde hair fell loose as she struggled beneath Peter's grip.
"Let go of me, Peter!"
The struggle was in vain as Peter managed to grab Olivia with both hands and turned her face him.
"You just left? Just like that? I don't get as much as a letter or a decent goodbye from you?"
"It was safer this way."
"How is running away without saying when or where you're going any safer?"
Olivia broke free from Peter's grip angrily. "Because I knew you would do this! I knew you would try to keep me from going into hiding alone."
"You're damn right, Liv. Because what you're doing…it's not helping anyone."
"It helps everyone, Peter. You saw me didn't you? I couldn't even say goodbye to Rachel without thinking she could get killed for even speaking with me. And how do you know that man tracked you on his own? He could've known you were coming out to find me!" She ran her hands into her hair in exhaustion. "He could've killed you, Peter. That's exactly why I have to do this alone."
"Have you forgotten that being Walter's son, I'm practically in the same mess you are?"
"I know Peter, but you have to go your own way without me…because I don't want to be the reason you get hurt."
"That's too bad, Liv…because I'm already hurting."
Olivia looked at Peter and saw his words reflected the painful look in his eyes.
"I thought I was worth as least some sort of goodbye or some hint as to where you were gonna go. But you were just going to leave me...without giving me any kind of hope that I would ever see you again."
She sighed. "You don't know that, Peter. This whole thing could blow over in a matter of…"
"Stop that, Liv. I can see it all over your face that you're worried. We both know we could be running for a very long time. Even I had a hard time saying goodbye to Walter...because I...I'm scared this might be the last time I'll ever see him."
As hurtful as this was for her to hear, Olivia had to stand her ground and keep her resolve. "Look, this is for the best whether you like it or not. If all you want out of me is a good-bye…then…goodbye, Peter."
This time Olivia was going to walk away for good. But Peter caught on to her quickly, and almost by reflex he grabbed her arm with the firmest grip possible. The tightness of the quick grip caused Olivia to yell out in pain. At that moment, Peter realized what a mistake it was to grab her like that, and he quickly let go.
"Oh god, sorry Olivia."
Even though he let her go, the pain in her arm was enough to keep herself rooted to the ground.
"What is that?" she asked as she watched Peter pull a paper brown bag out from inside his coat.
"Some gauze and antibiotics. I know you got shot. I was over at your place earlier and saw the bodies. Was that you?"
"Yeah," Olivia said looking down and blushing. "That was me."
"Good job then," Peter smiled.
"Thank you."
Olivia could only remain where she was and allow Peter to look at the bullet-wound on her arm. The bandage she first put on there had already turned red and crusty. She hadn't had time…or maybe she hadn't felt the need, to change it. It stung a little when Peter applied the antibiotic, but Olivia allowed him to keep going. It made the both of them feel better to know that the wound was clean and freshly bandaged for now.
A long silence had passed between them by the time the process was complete and then Peter broke it. "Why do you do this to yourself, Liv?"
"Do what?"
"Go through shit alone like this? It's not what you want and I know it's not what you deserve."
"I never have a choice Peter."
"You do now."
His voice was serious and Olivia did not know if she could face Peter or be able to deflect his next choice of words.
"If this goes on forever you don't want to spend forever doing this alone do you? Having to watch your back everywhere you hide? Having to feel like the world is going to turn on you every second without someone around you can trust? You know I can take care of myself, Liv. I know you can take care of yourself, too. But I'm just asking you why? Why do we both have to be alone, Liv? Why can't we do this together?"
She began to slowly back away from him...shaking her head...hoping to refuse in advance the proposal he was about to make.
"Run with me, Liv."
She tried to turn her head away from him hoping to create any means of refusing him. Logic dictates…Peter would get hurt if she went with him. But Peter, for all his genius, was not listening to logic this night.
Instead, he held her face in his hands and forced her to look into his eyes.
"Run with me."
The shaking in his voice, the desperation in his eyes was overbearing her.
Clear to Olivia, he wasn't going to take "no" for an answer. He wasn't going to leave this murky under bridge tonight without her.
Soon she began to choke back on her sobs in defeat, and Peter was going to give her no choice but to let him in.
He held her and that was enough to assure Olivia that she could have this…
She had nothing to fear or to lose…
But she would be devastated if she should lose Peter in this venture they were about to take part in. Yet should she lose Peter tomorrow...at least...at least she would've had his company for one more day.
A half hour would pass and the police would arrive to investigate the body in the river. The commotion of the gunshots woke everyone in the nearby neighborhood including Rachel and Ella…
…but that body would be all the police would find. The two souls who had made a commitment to be together, had long vanished into the night.
one last chap