Adam ran down the road that led away from the hospital. The remnants of the drugs pulsed sluggishly through his system and made it difficult to focus. His eyes burned. His feet hurt. Vernon’s shoes were too small for him, but he had no choice. Walking barefoot past the front desk would have been a trifle suspicious. At least the uniform fit fairly well.
He made his way along the tree line before it occurred to him that it would be a much better idea to cut through the forest. Plunging through the trees and brush, he fought his way several hundred feet into the thicket. Branches scratched at his skin. The sunlight waned as the forest swallowed him like a bitter pill. Better. Damn drugs. Whatever they gave me this time was a bitch. He stumbled over a fallen tree and face planted on the pine-needle covered ground.
Adam rolled over onto his back, tasting blood. His head pounded. The dizzying sway of trees yawned over him. Up, up they went. His thoughts traveled along their high trunks and were released into the sky.
He slept.
The metallic taste of blood coated his tongue, and he opened his eyes what seemed like seconds later. The light was dim and he wondered how long he had slept. His body felt frozen and stiff. “Where am I?” he mumbled. He took in his surroundings, and it came back to him in a rush. Pretending to be asleep. Finding the syringe. The tussle with Vernon. Slamming the needle into the guy’s thigh. Running.
He sat up and tried to ignore the trees spinning around him like carousel animals. “I want to get off now, thanks,” he croaked. Quiet twilight pressed against him like a cold, harsh blanket. His limbs ached.
Bracing himself against a fallen tree, Adam waited for his nausea to pass before he staggered to his feet. A nagging sense of anxiety pricked at him and he stuffed it down. Once the meds wear off completely, I’ll be good to go. He looked up at the canopy of trees overhead. A sliver of moon pushed through. If I can find a star constellation, I can figure out what direction I’m headed.
Adam made his way through the forest until he was able to find open sky. He squinted. The stars, just beginning to show, swirled blurrily overhead. One stood out brighter than the others. Big Dipper. North Star. That way. He took a couple of steps and stopped. Moira. Her ghost is becoming one of those things. Changing. Adam pressed the heel of his hand against his forehead to help him focus. He’d figure something out later. He would have been useless to her if he would have stayed. She needs you, Adam, his thoughts nagged. She asked for your help. Nobody’s ever asked for your help. He closed his eyes tightly to stop the spinning. Shit. Shit. Shit. I can’t think about that right now.
Keeping an eye out for police, he made it to Woodland by midnight. He skirted the edge of town. Stealing clothes from a clothes line, he ditched Vernon’s scrubs for jeans and a T-shirt. Shoes were more of a problem. Dodging in and out of several backyards, he finally found a pair of old boots big enough and slipped them on with a sigh. Perfect fit. The basics out of the way, Adam’s thoughts picked up speed. If I cross the bridge and follow the highway, it’ll take a day’s travel to reach Trader Pines on foot. He reached the river that ran along the north side of town. But if I take a shortcut, it might only take a couple of hours. He eyed the current. Though he didn’t look forward to swimming in the dark, Adam was a strong swimmer and decided to risk it. He was unsure how much a fuss his brother would make of his escape. Probably be glad I’m not his problem anymore, Adam reflected. But he knew the hospital would be making a fuss of its own. Technically, he hadn’t hurt anyone, he reasoned. Just put a guy to sleep. No worse than they’d done to him.
He slid down the embankment and waded into the cold water.
Exhausted, soaked to the skin, and shivering from the cold, he reached his destination just as the sun rose fully over the horizon.
The dilapidated small house sat tucked away at the end of town. Its weather-worn roof sloped down like a hooded eye. The windows were completely shrouded in yellow and blue striped canvas. The front screen door hung crooked on rusty hinges.
Adam opened the screen carefully and knocked.
The door was opened immediately by a tall and well-muscled man. Frayed jeans skimmed the tops of his bare feet. Shirtless, a gold ring hung from one of his nipples. Green eyes peered from behind a mop of shaggy black hair. The man looked him up and down sardonically. “Son-of-a-bitch.”
“Green Man, how’s it going?”
“What do you want, Adam?” His voice was gravely. “You here for a social call?”
“Business.”
The man raised a pierced eyebrow. “Really? I’m intrigued.”
“I need to crash.” He pushed past Green Man and flopped down on his tattered couch. “Just for a minute or two.” Overcome with exhaustion, he ignored Green Man’s protests. Sleep claimed him quickly.
* * *
Adam opened his eyes to Green Man nudging him with a bare foot.
“Wake up, sleeping beauty.”
“Sorry, man. Dropped off.” He sat up and coughed. “I feel like shit.”
“Nap’s over. You’ve been out for an hour.” Green Man pulled his shaggy black hair back into a ponytail and tied it with a leather strip.
Adam ran his hands over his face. “Got any coffee?”
“Yeah, I got coffee.”
“Mind if I help myself?”
“Make yourself at home, Adam. It’s a fucking bed and breakfast here.”
Adam stood and kicked aside a layer of clothes strewn across the floor. He made his way into the kitchen. Dishes, crusted with leftover food, filled the kitchen sink. A few flies buzzed around the mess.
“You still with Kia?”
“Yeah, I’m still with her,” Green Man replied. “She’s been at her sister’s the past week.”
“That explains the housekeeping.” Adam took a chipped mug from the sink and rinsed it out. He poured himself a cup of overly black coffee and took a sip, closing his eyes with a contented sigh. “Man, that tastes good.”
“You been in the nuthouse?”
“Maybe.”
“I don’t need any trouble.”
“You owe me one.”
Green Man guffawed. “I don’t owe you shit.”
“You still growing greenery out in the woods?” Adam shot back. “Because I chose to keep my mouth shut at the last family reunion, if you’ll recall.”
“I chose not to have you silenced permanently when you tried to get Kia on the straight and narrow,” the other man said evenly. “But if you spill my personal business to family, you’ll be dead before you finish talking.”
“I need your help.”
The man looked taken aback for a second before he became aloof again. “You’re my cousin, Adam. But why would I?”
“I need a spot to throw a tent down. And a tent…would be appreciated.”
“You asking for a job, then?” Green Man cocked a pierced eyebrow. “‘Cause spots like that don’t come for free.”
Adam dropped his gaze to his coffee cup, running his thumb along the chipped rim.
“Only reason I’d give you one is because I know you wouldn’t steal or smoke my shit.” His cousin sized him up for a few seconds before continuing. “If anybody comes sniffing around here, for any reason, I’ll throw you under the bus.”
“I love family,” Adam quipped. “I don’t know why we fell out of touch.”
“‘Cause you keep getting carted away to the nuthouse, Adam.”
“Oh right, that.”