Runaway Mate

Chapter 11

Nessa/Raine

The sun was beating down hard; there was not a cloud in the sky. The ocean water was as clear and blue as the sky, as the waves crashed against the sand.

All along the beach, people were appearing, setting up towels and parasols; reserving good spots early before the crowds started to flock there.

Raine sat on a bench just above the sand watching the sea as it crashed ashore. She sipped the straw from her plastic cup, enjoying the cool fizzy juice as it slid down her throat. She was beside a fast food joint that opened early for breakfast before the lunch rush started. She wasn’t hungry though, just thirsty. It had been a while since she had felt heat like this and she liked it.

‘It feels like home…’ She thought, taking a deep breath of the warm sea air and letting the melancholy wash over her.

She glanced down at the phone sitting beside her on the bench. A message popped up, alerting her that Fidelia had replied to her previous message. She happily tore herself away from the scenery and opened the phone to reply.

It felt good to be able to speak with Fidelia, even if they could only communicate over messages and had to put rules in place just to be able to. Though she kept calling her ‘Nessa.’

Raine had tried to tell her that she no longer went by that name, but Fidelia refused to stop, claiming she needed to be able to call her something, so Raine let her away with it; for now at least.

Like always, it had taken her a while to get used to her new name, but it was necessary. As far as she was concerned, her name was Raine Cross and Nessa Valentine was dead and gone, no longer in any association with Raine. Except for her communications with Fidelia, for now.

As she finished replying to Fidelia, she thought about everything that had happened after she officially became Raine. At first she wasn’t very sure about agreeing to let Sylvia travel with her. After all, the were-cat seemed a bit odd and it was quite creepy how she had a dream about Raine before they had even met. But she was glad now that she had accepted; being on the run was a lot more exciting and fun with company. Even if that company had a tendency to get her in trouble.

They had spent the first week at the diner. Raine helped Agnes with her diner, mostly doing the dishes so she wasn’t in the spotlight as a waitress. Sylvia lazed around on the other hand, waiting to be told when they would leave and getting on Agnes’s last nerve.

It turned out that Raine was right in her assumption that Agnes knew that Sylvia was a Were-cat. Apparently, both Agnes and her brother Glenn were human but had ancestors who had practiced magic in ancient times. Both of them were able to use magic, but on a lesser scale than a witch or warlock. They liked to refer to themselves as mages and decided to best serve those in need, like Raine, by using their small amount of magic abilities to help and protect them.

Raine was very surprised when Agnes told her that both of them knew that she was also not human, though they couldn’t be sure what she was exactly. Raine didn’t share the information about her origin or species with her, but Agnes seemed okay with that. She didn’t like to pry and was just happy to help her. She shocked Raine even more by explaining that Glenn’s bus being at the bus stop right when she needed it was no coincidence either. Apparently, Sylvia came to them after having her dream and explained that Raine was going to need help in escaping a threat and that she needed to meet her. Glenn did not hesitate to drive his bus hundreds of miles to their destined meeting place.

At first, Raine was confused at how he knew where exactly they were destined to meet, but Agnes was quick to explain that as well. She showed Raine a compass that had been gifted to them through their mother. It was passed down throughout their family and could be bewitched to suit the user’s needs. Glenn had bewitched it to find those in need and when Sylvia had her dream, Glenn took the compass and it led him right to the bus stop by the woods that Raine would emerge from.

It took her a while to digest all of the information. But it made sense. Sylvia had a dream of Raine running from Orion Valley. Glenn showed up with his bus; a mode of transport that Raine would trust; and the reason he hadn’t stopped anywhere else or had any other passengers suddenly made sense as well. It was over-whelming to realise they had all gone through so much trouble to get her away from danger and help her hide. It had been a while since she had felt so looked after and cared about, and this was before any of them even got to know her. It was a good feeling and she didn’t want it to end.

Unfortunately, they couldn’t stay at the Crossroads diner forever and even staying that one week was longer than she would normally have stayed. But she just felt so grateful for Agnes and Glenn’s help, that she wanted to be around them a little extra longer.

When she announced her intentions of leaving, Agnes did try and convince her to stay. She even confided in Raine that the entire diner had wards that made anyone with evil intentions unable to see them. That way, the people they rescued wouldn’t have to worry about nasty exs or other unfriendly beings tracking them down. And, although she was tempted to stay, Raine had to put her foot down and leave.

The day they were leaving, she wondered if Glenn had an actual bus route and whether they could get a lift with him, when he appeared with a huge surprise for them. He rolled up to the diner on a black motorcycle. Raine ran outside and gawked at it. It was beautiful. It was black and sleek and her eyes fell in love as she drooled over it. It was brand new and gorgeous.

She was even more shocked when Glenn got off the bike and handed her the keys. She tried to give them back. There was no way she could accept such an expensive gift but he refused and told her it was to help her and Sylvia out. She even tried to pay him for it, but the swine wouldn’t tell her how much the beautiful bike cost. Even Sylvia was drooling over it and seemed a bit raging when she found out there was only one and they didn’t get her one too. Agnes chided her by telling her it was for those who were helpful, like Raine, not lazy cats that lay in patches of sun drinking all the diners’ cream.

Raine couldn’t thank them enough, it was worth way more than a week of washing dishes, but she was thankful. It had been a long time since she last got to ride a bike, and she was itching to get on it and take it out on the open road. And if the bike wasn’t already enough, Agnes also gave her an envelope full of money to start them off. Again Raine tried to give her it back but the old miser refused to take the money back. It was overwhelming, they had already done so much for her and it felt like her heart was going to explode from joy. So she decided to stop refusing their generosity and gave them both big hugs and couldn’t stop thanking them for everything they had done for her.

It felt like too soon she was packing the few things that both Raine and Sylvia owned, most of which were donated to them by Agnes, in the bags strapped to the bike. They wished them a final farewell and Raine did something she had never done before. She promised Agnes and Glenn that she would let them know when they had settled down somewhere and would even try and visit them again at some point.

They put on their helmets, black like the sleek motorcycle and gifted to them alongside it from Glenn; Raine got on and felt the familiar feel of the bike and Sylvia hopped on behind her, wrapping her hands around Raine’s waist. And then they were off, barely able to hear Agnes and Glenn calling goodbye over the bike's engine.

It had felt amazing to feel the rush of the wind, the sound of the engine, the speed of the bike as they zipped through traffic. More than once Raine heard Sylvia cheer and call out in her excitement about being the fastest thing on the road.

They spent the next week driving, with no real destination in mind, just going wherever the mood took them. They would stay at cheap motels during the night, but never stayed more than one night. They could have stayed somewhere more expensive. Honestly, money was no issue for Raine. She was a smart girl with various bank accounts and stocks; she was quite wealthy but chose to stay under the radar where she felt safest. High end hotels liked to keep records, whereas cheap motels were fine with cash in hand and no questions or answers needed. Just the way she liked it.

Raine was snapped out of her reminiscing thoughts when she caught sight of Sylvia walking back over to her. Thankfully, she was still clothed, the cat had a thing about preferring to stay naked rather than covering up and while Raine was very much an 'each to their own' type of person, she felt a silver-haired woman walking around the streets in the buff was a bit too suspicious and eye catching for their under the radar lifestyle. It was like trying to teach a toddler not to take their clothes off in public because it wasn’t decent, only the toddler probably would have learned the lesson a lot faster than Sylvia.

Sylvia sat down beside Raine and sighed.

“What’s with the long face?” Raine asked, c*****g an eyebrow in her direction.

“When do I get a shot riding shotgun?” Sylvia moaned. “It’s no fun clinging on to you the whole time we’re driving!”

“Let’s see…” Raine smirked, taking another sip of her drink. “You’re still grounded for trying to steal someone else’s bike!” She laughed sarcastically.

“That wasn’t my fault! They left the keys in the ignition!” Sylvia pointed out.

“Yes, but there were also twelve of them and let’s see…oh yeah, they were part of a notorious biker gang!” Raine spat back.

“Notorious my ass…” Sylvia mumbled. “I’m way scarier than that lot!”

“No arguments over here, but when there are twelve of them and two of us, the odds are very much in their favour!” Raine chuckled.

“Okay, so that was one time! Surely my punishment should be over!” She moaned and then attempted to bat her eyelashes pleadingly.

“Ahh, but then there was the time you nearly robbed a convenience store!”

“There were no prices on anything!” Sylvia argued.

“And yesterday, you nearly got charged for indecent exposure…”

“Alright, I get it! Sylvia bad!” Sylvia huffed, crossing her hands over her chest.

“I’ll give you a shot as soon as your punishment is over.” Raine chuckled; yesterday’s incident was hilarious when she thought back. Sylvia woke up from a nap, forgot to wear clothes and walked outside the motel room and right in front of a bus full of nuns. Their mortified expressions were worth Sylvia nearly being arrested.

Raine gazed over at her traveling companion. She definitely made the trip more interesting and hilarious, even if she was a risk almost daily.

“So…anymore visions to give us a clue where the universe wants us to go?” She teased, poking Sylvia playfully on the shoulder.

“None.” The cat woman sighed, looking out over the sea. “Must be going the right way though, if I’ve not seen anything to warn us otherwise.” She grinned.

Raine followed her vision to the sea. It was so nice and peaceful, but she knew they couldn’t stay long. They had to keep moving.

“Time to go.” She informed Sylvia.

They both got up and walked to Raine’s motorcycle, which had been parked in the fast food places car-park. They slipped on their helmets and climbed atop the bike; Sylvia behind Raine with her hands wrapped around her waist. Raine started the engine and they joined the traffic leading away from the ocean.

Where were they going? They didn’t know. When would they finally find somewhere safe? Maybe they never would. How long would they have to travel? Only time would tell. But one thing was for sure, destiny had something in store for them both and it was coming for them whether they were ready to face it or not…