The Truth Berries

XLII

       Miguel woke up twenty minutes before it hit twelve of the midmorning. He opened his eyes slowly and felt the steady pulsating pain back on his wound. He closed his eyes and he took a deep breath as he pulled himself upwards to a proper sitting position. He took a look outside the window and he determined that she has gone relatively far already. That brought a smile to his face for a few kilometers more and they would reach their destination. Helen was driving with her face only inches away from the windshield and she did not notice him waking up already. And so when she felt a gentle hand on her right shoulder, she was so frightened that she stepped on the brakes with such sudden force and it sent them fishtailing to the side of the road. Miguel was thrown hard against the back of her seat and he could not help himself from giving off a long groan of suffering. They both heard a series of horns blaring as they passed them and Helen was shaking with that near-death encounter.

       “Are you out of your mind now?!”

       Miguel was still struggling at the back trying to return to his seat. Helen turned to face him with two shaking clenched fists and an expression of pure anger and annoyance.

       “If you have a death wish, go find it on your own. Don’t ever think of involving me in your stupid suicidal thoughts. I still want to continue living my own life, though you’re trying to make it a miserable one!” she screamed at him breathlessly.

       “I’m sorry. I did not mean to scare you”, he found himself apologizing as he was getting back on his seat.

        “Well, you obviously did a very poor job!”

       “Again I’m sorry. But I just wanna thank you for taking my place while I was stealing some sleep. I just want to tell you that I really appreciate what you did there. I just never thought my idea would send you jumping out of your seat”, he smiled amiably.

        His words seemed to melt away all her anger and she managed to give him a light chuckle after that.

      “Maybe you should start thinking of other ways of expressing your appreciation. Or else we won’t be so lucky next time.”

       Miguel thanked her again before he got out of his seat and opened her door.

       “I’ll take it from here, Miss Sandoval.”

       She gave him a nod and then she took her seat at his side. He looked at her with curious eyes but she just gave him another of her ‘I don’t give a damn’ look. Miguel saw no way to talk her into sitting at the back so he just took his place behind the wheel and turned the car around.

      “Are you hungry now?”, Miguel asked her sideways.

       “Sort of. I’m glad you asked.”

       “Alright then. We’ll enter the next drive-thru that we pass by. Don’t worry, it’s on me.”

       Helen grimaced when she heard what he wanted to do.

       “I really like how you wanted to take all the responsibilities, but don’t get me wrong, okay? Can we have at least a decent meal this time?”

       “I’m sorry but that’s impossible at the moment. Wait until we reach my place. I promise you that the woman living with me now cooks the best of everything that you could imagine. But until then, you’re gonna have to live like a fugitive, just like the man you are travelling with right now.”

       Miguel heard her mumble her silent protests for a short time. He secretly watched her as she kept on acting like a small child and she unexpectedly reminded him of Nadia. No wonder now that they became such close friends, he thought to himself. Miguel made a turn when he saw a fastfood store which offered drive-thru services. He ordered two pieces of chicken with rice meals, two servings of orange juice, two large fries and two pieces of cheeseburgers. Helen wanted something else but she could not complain with what she got. Once they got their orders, they carried on their journey. She ate her food without paying attention to anything or anyone so she still did not see him watching him closely with his frequent looks to her. Miguel ate his fries piece by piece as he watched her devour the piece of chicken with her bare hands. Then, she took a big swig of the orange juice before she left some of it to wash her hands clean of the grease. She finished her meal with a loud burp that made him choke on a piece of fries upon hearing it. He tried to grab his cup of orange juice as he coughed continuously but he found it hard to do it on his own. He was considering stopping the car for a while until he was okay again when he saw her reached for the cup and she took off the lid. Then, without a single word, she lifted it towards his lips so that he could drink without taking his eyes off of the road. Miguel thanked her for the strange act, but she told him not to make anything out of it.

       “I just want you to not lose your focus while driving.”

       Fifteen minutes after his last fries, Helen was starting to nod herself into sleep. She almost bumped her head twice to the car’s dashboard, only that she always seemed to wake up at the last moment. Miguel felt pity for her. He was the reason that she had to endure that long journey, all because of his personal vengeance in mind. He promised himself that if he would still be alive after all of this, he would take his time knowing this strange but amazing woman beside. He was having some nice ideas on how to thank her someday when he heard her speak out of a sudden.

       “Can we talk? I hate sleeping during long trips. You’ll never know what could happen to you when you are sleeping. But I can’t quite keep myself awake right now. And I don’t think we’re getting there in the nearest time. So, can we talk?”

       Miguel welcomed the thought of someone to talk to, because he also felt his eyelids were starting to fall once again.

       “About what?”

       “Well, you can tell me anything. I’ll just listen.”

       “I’m not good at telling people stories. How about this? You ask a question, I’ll try my best to answer it truthfully.”

       She made a face at him.

       “Sounds like you’ll be lying all the time, huh?”

       Miguel laughed at her doubtful stare.

       “Go on. I’ll answer them, I swear.”

       Helen’s face suddenly turned into an accusing one.

       “Why did you do it?”, she asked him bravely, without having any second thoughts.

       And then it was Miguel’s turn to give her his dead-serious look.

      “I did not do anything to her. I could never do such a thing to the only person who really matters the most to me. “

       “Then how come they all point their fingers at you?”

       “I was at the right place at a later time. The guy has gotten to her before I came to see her. And then my former partner came just in time to see me pull the knife out of her. That’s how I came to this. And the only person that could help me answer all the questions I have in mind is no other than you, Helen. So forgive me if you had to go through all of these because of me. But I’m telling you that I did not kill Nadia, for she was the only love I have ever known.”

        Helen watched his tears rolled down his cheeks as he spoke and she knew at once that he was indeed telling the truth. The man was no murderer. He was just a victim of unpredictable twists of fate. Helen knew she had to help him. But she also knew it was too late now,

       For she had placed the call to the police when she was still at the boutique buying her clothes. Soon, they will be coming for his head. And it was all thanks to her.