The Open Road

Chapter 23

Bob

The lorry was slowing down. I darted my eyes between Jack and the back of the vehicle. What if I jumped and broke my leg or worse, my neck?

Then you would die, fool.

Once again, I darted my eyes between Jack and the rusty metallic barrier that was separating me and my freedom. Landing safely was something that could happen given the slow pace of the lorry. But, could I really manage to do it? Had I not read about thrill-seekers who wound up spraining their ankles due to poor landing…

“What are you doing? Jump! Jump now!”

I closed my eyes momentarily and made my way to the exit. Two other men were leaning on the metallic plate, looking for a way to exit the vehicle. The first one carefully went over the barrier and leaped onto the road. He groaned upon landing, patting his left knee with a cringe on his face. I watched him half run half limp towards a series of shabby shops. When I turned to look at the second man, I found him intently watching me.

“You look familiar…”

“I have a common face…people say I look like Obama.”

“Who the hell is Obama?”

A high-pitched sound blared through the air. A whistle? Yes, a whistle. Was NTSA approaching the lorry?

“s**t…I know why you are so familiar…Shit! You are that guy!”

Adrenaline is a funny thing. It completely masks everything that you feel in a given moment. It is like demon possession or schizophrenia, when you are no longer in charge of your body or your mind. I landed on my feet and instantly felt the impact of my choice. A sharp pain shot from my feet to my back, scorching tears filled my eyes. For a few seconds, I remained in that position. Feet slightly apart, back slightly bent and my face looking ahead into nothing. When the pain reduced, I scouted the area for a good hiding spot and made my way there. From my shadowed corner, I watched Jack grab Marie's and saw shock flash on Marie’s face. They then proceeded to leap from the back of the lorry. My eyes widened as they straightened up from their crouched landing position and began making their way towards the sea of kiosks. Wait, had they not felt the impact of landing? Maybe their shoes were better equipped for the action.

Maybe you are soft.

Shut up.

I swept my eyes over my surroundings. No one was paying attention to this area. Everyone was busy doing something; vendors were rushing to make evening sales to customers who were probably headed home…to their families. I could easily imagine myself choosing groceries for dinner. I could see myself wave my hand in dismissal when the vendor offered a lower price, ready to haggle. I could hear Sue giggling at the action, shaking her head in mock disappointment. She always said that the vendors overpriced their goods because they want to be able to make good sales during a haggle. I never listened to her, not because she was not right but because I simply did not know how to haggle.

“Jesus Bob, you could have waved or whistled or something!”

“Keep your voice down.”

“Don’t tell me what to do! You are not the boss of me-”

“Really? Tell me, why have you lowered your voice then?”

“Are you guys going to have s*x?”

For a moment they just stared at me. Marie’s cheeks were flushed and Jack was donning his signature smirk. They both spoke at the same time.

“No way in hell, lightskins are a turn off-"

“Yes, that is the plan-"

“Wait, what!”

I bit my lower lip to prevent a chuckle from escaping. If I was a betting man, I would definitely pick the odds of them sleeping together. But sadly I have never been a fan of gambling and I did not have any money. How were we going to make it back to Naivasha with no money?

“Well you two can figure out all that later…Now we need a plan. We cannot board public vehicles…we need food, sleep, and money. Jack, is there someone who can help us with all this?”

Jack c****d his head and ran a hand through his hair. After a short while, he fished for his phone, pulled it out, and started to punch in a phone number. He too owned an outdated phone. It was tiny with eerily organized buttons. I wondered if he had ever owned a smartphone. I wondered if he had ever been at a point in life where he had not needed to hide from someone, or something.

"Darren is probably beating her to a pulp in order to locate us."

The words were uttered nonchalantly. How long had this been going on? Why were they okay with it?

“Why can’t she just leave Darren? Is money really important-"

“If I were you, Bob, I would shut up before I said something that I was going to regret.”

“Is the child theirs?”

“Yes.”

No hesitation. No flinch or squirm. No tell tales of a blatant lie. Why was Marie lying to me? Who was that child and why were they protecting her?

“We have to get Sue away-"

“No Bob…All you need to do right now is clear your name. There is nothing you can do right now that can help her.”

“But-"

“But nothing Bob. Save yourself first then you can think about saving her.”

She was right. Darren had extensive connections and the finances to guarantee loyalty from these individuals. Right now, there was nothing I could do to help the woman that I loved.

"My friend says it is okay, we can crush at his place for the night. But we would have to walk and it is far, the Kamba version of far."

Marie and I shrugged our shoulders in response. It was not like we had much of a choice.

Five years in prison and I still had not hardened enough for the outside world. Forty-five minutes later, my breathing pattern had become uneven and my clothes were drenched in sweat.

"Can we take a break?"

Jack and Marie whisked around. I was bent over with my hands on my knees. They both broke into chortles of laughter.

"You spent five years in prison!" Marie commented in between chokes of laughter.

"And escaped. If you didn't walk all the way from Nakuru prisons how did you end up in Kanu Street?" Jack inquired, laughter bubbling in his throat.

Wait, that was bizarre. How did he know about me being in Kanu Street? I had not been spotted, had I?

"Jack do you have Wafula's phone number?"

Jack looked at me quizzically. It took a few seconds for it to dawn on him who I was referring to.

"You mean Tommy? I haven't talked to him lately. He vanished that night in Naivasha. I tried calling him after your captivity to no avail, got his voicemail.”

I sighed before gesturing for them to keep walking. We arrived at East Lands sometime later, all of us exhausted from the long walk. Jack fished out his phone and dialed his friend's number. A speeding car emerged from nowhere and I smiled at how resourceful Jack was. My smile fell, however, when I noticed that Jack had not ended his phone call yet this fast-moving car was nearing our position. Jack was still being given instructions on how to get to the person’s home.

Something was not right.

I angled my head to address Marie. I instantly noted that had turned ghastly white.

“Marie move!”

I grabbed her arm and yanked her towards me but she would not budge. Did she recognize the car? I tried calling out to Jack but he waved me off, his attention utterly on the conversation he was having. The car came to a sudden halt. My heart sank to my stomach when three men in suits alighted from the vehicle. Each of them was holding a g*n.

"Jack go! Get out of here!"

If these were Darren's men, there was no use in all of us being captured. Jack looked torn but after a few seconds, he sprinted away. One man ran after him, I prayed that he would not be able to apprehend Jack, or kill him. We were soon forced to the ground on our knees. A car door opened and a heavy-boned man with a tall frame alighted. He approached us and to my surprise crouched to Marie’s level.

"Well well look at what we have here… if it isn't my wife harboring an escaped convict."

Did the guy just say, wife?