* * *
We ditched my dad’s car in Baltimore and took a bus to New York City. We both napped on the four-hour bus ride. The bus let us off at Penn Station. We were in New York, because Jason claimed he had a contact there. It was where he’d been heading before he’d had what he called his “little pit stop” in Bramford.
I’d never been to New York City. I was so astonished by what I saw, it was easy to put aside thoughts of Bramford and gape at the sights. Jason laughed at me as I gazed up at the towering skyscrapers, my mouth hanging open. The city was tall and breathtaking, but it was also dirty, crowded, and small. The streets seemed narrow, the sidewalks hardly big enough for all the people who strode through them. Mostly, I was simply floored by the sheer number of people. I’d never seen so many people all together in one place who had nothing in common. They weren’t here for a sporting event or a rally. No, they were just going about their lives, walking to or from work, to the store, to a restaurant. None of them paid each other any mind. I could hear them talking loudly on their cell phones. There were simply people everywhere.
Once off the bus, Jason found a payphone and called someone on it.
He stood at the payphone, one hand shoved in his pocket, cradling the phone with one hand. He looked nonchalant. Like he knew what he was doing. I realized Jason was more in his element here, on the run, than he had been back at home. He knew how to do this. He didn’t know how to be a normal teenager and go to school.
“November One,” he said into the phone. He paused, waiting as someone said something on the other side. “Yeah, it’s me.... Right.... I’m going to need to double the order. I’ve got someone with me... . Female.” He looked at me as if he were sizing me up. “Uh... 5’5 or 5’6, maybe...” he covered the mouth piece with his hand. “How much do you weigh?”
“What?” I demanded. How rude!
“It’s for an ID,” he said.
Oh. “A hundred and twenty,” I said, lying a little.
He relayed my weight. “Brown hair, green eyes,” he continued. “When can we pick it up?... Great, then.” He hung up the phone. “Let’s go,” he said.
Jason walked like a New Yorker. Like he knew where he was going. I followed him as close as I could. Now that we weren’t running for our lives, he didn’t hold my hand. I thought back on the dance, which seemed as if it had happened sometime in the 1700s, and wondered how he felt about the fact that we had kissed. I wondered how I felt about it. There were so many other things to consider right now, like the fact that I was homeless, that worrying about whether Jason still liked me seemed petty and pointless.
We treaded over the sidewalks for blocks and blocks. Everything looked the same. Little shops, restaurants, pizza stands. There were hot dog vendors on every corner. I wanted to stop at one, because I never had, but I felt stupid asking Jason if we could. So I trailed after him, trying to keep up as he walked with confidence through the big, big city.
I was getting breathless.
Jason noticed. “Sorry,” he said. “I guess we could have taken the subway. I just like walking in New York.”
“Yeah,” I gasped. “It’s great.”
“Do you want to slow down?” he asked, laughing.
I nodded.
He slowed his pace. “Next time, say something,” he said.
I didn’t feel like I could say things like that to Jason. I didn’t want to be in the way. I didn’t want to bother him.
Even though I’d known Jason for nearly a month, my knowledge of him had expanded so much in the past twenty-four hours. Now Jason wasn’t only some mysterious, smart boy who appeared in Bramford. He was a gun-wielding dangerous man who could shoot people without qualms and rob convenience stores. And while Jason had seemed brooding and silent in Bramford, he seemed to get happier and noisier with every violent incident we lived through. Was this the kind of life Jason was used to?
And what had I gotten myself into? Not that I had a choice. It was either stay in Bramford with the crazy Satanists or run away with Jason. Still, I was beginning to feel that danger followed Jason around like a hungry wolf. From the moment he’d come into my life, it hadn’t been the same. And now my life was turned completely upside down. I had run away from home. I was in New York City. I only had the clothes on my back and some cash we’d stolen. Who was I? What was happening to me?
“We’re almost there,” said Jason.
“Where is there?” I asked.
“My ID contact,” said Jason. “I said I’d be in town within the next few months to pick one up. That was like three months ago. Anyway, I’ve been expected. Don’t worry. It’s safe.”
Safe? Was anything safe anymore? I’d thought Bramford was safe. It showed how much I knew.
We rounded a corner, and Jason pointed to an apartment building a few buildings down. “That’s where we’re going,” he said. All of the buildings on the street were brick and rectangular. They each had fire escape steps climbing up the sides. They were shoved against each other, like they were all one building. Air conditioners jutted out of some of the windows, even though it was late autumn. Mostly, the apartment buildings looked a little... rundown.
We walked through the front door and into the elevator. Jason punched the button for the sixth floor. Once out of the elevator, he strode confidently down the hall, with me trailing behind him. He knocked on a door that had a welcome mat sitting out in front of it.
What was the point of a mat outside an apartment? Were one’s feet really that dirty by the time one got up the elevator?
The door opened and standing inside was one of the most beautiful women I’ve ever seen. She was tall, with smooth, cappuccino-colored skin. Her hair fell around her shoulders in tiny braids. Her eyes were light brown and almond shaped.
“Jason Wodden,” she exclaimed. She had a British accent.
“Hey Marlena,” he said, grinning.
She looked him up and down appreciatively. “You’ve grown up,” she said, her voice was a little too sultry for my tastes.
This was Jason’s contact? He might have mentioned that she was a beautiful woman.
She gave Jason a huge hug. “Well,” she said, “come in. Come in.”
Jason and I went into her apartment. We entered a living room, decorated in reds and browns. Tapestries were thrown over the couches and the coffee table, which was decorated with candles. Incense was burning. The room was separated from the rest of the apartment by a beaded curtain.
“My God,” said Marlena, “it’s been ages. You were like twelve the last time I saw you.”
“And that would have made you like thirteen?” said Jason, grinning.
“Joker,” said Marlena, poking him. She shook her head at him. “Are you legal yet?”
He laughed. “I didn’t think you much cared for legalities,” he said. And then he grabbed my arm and pulled me close to him. “This is Azazel.”
“Fine,” said Marlena, laughing. “Point taken. Of course you’d want an age-appropriate girlfriend.”
“Oh,” I said. “I’m not—I mean—” I looked at Jason.
He dropped my arm.
Oops. This was awkward. I didn’t know what I was supposed to say. I wasn’t Jason’s girlfriend. Was I supposed to lie? Did Jason want me to be his girlfriend? Before, he’d said... But a lot had happened since then.
“You guys have a seat,” said Marlena, gesturing to her couches. We sat down. “You want anything? Tea? Coffee? Marijuana?”
I shot Jason a horrified look, but he just laughed. “Coffee’s fine. Azazel?”
“Um,” I said. “Coffee. Sure.”
Marlena disappeared through the beaded curtain.
“How do you know her?” I whispered to Jason.
“She was a friend of Anton’s,” he said. “Used to do favors for him. We can trust her.”
If he said so. There wasn’t much about Marlena that I thought was trustworthy. She had to be at least twenty-five, and she was totally flirti
ng with Jason. And I didn’t like that. I didn’t like it at all. Maybe that was stupid. After all, I had no claim on Jason. Still, the thought of it made me feel a little uneasy.
Marlena reappeared with two cups of coffee, which she handed to us. Then she ducked back out of the room to return with cream and sugar, in little packets like you get at a restaurant.
“Still stealing from fast food restaurants, I see,” said Jason.
“You have no idea how much money I save on ketchup packets alone,” said Marlena, settling down on a chair that faced us. “So,” she said, suddenly all business, “your ID is finished, Jason, but since I’ve had such short notice for Azazel, it’s going to take me another day. And I should get a picture of her.”
“Another day?” asked Jason. “I wasn’t planning on sticking around that long.”
“No?” Marlena looked disappointed. “Where are you planning to go?”
“You know I’m not going to tell you that,” said Jason. “Okay, another day. We can do that. We’ll find a hotel that will take cash or something. Unless—what about the credit cards I asked you about?”
“Oh,” said Marlena, remembering. “Got you one.” She held up her index finger. “Five thousand dollar limit.”
“Great!” said Jason.
“But they track those easy. You know that.”
“First they’ve got to connect it to me,” said Jason. “They don’t even know where I am.”
“I don’t think you should use the credit card in the city,” said Marlena. “They might track it to me, and as much as I love you, Jason, I’m not going down for you.”
Jason sighed. “Then I guess just don’t worry about Azazel’s ID. We’ll leave tonight. No hotels.”
“Don’t be silly,” said Marlena. “The two of you should stay here for tonight.”
Stay here? I didn’t want to stay with Marlena.
“I don’t want to endanger you,” said Jason.
“Don’t be ridiculous,” said Marlena. “You’re perfectly safe here, if it’s only for one night. And I can have Azazel’s ID for you in the morning.”
“Okay,” said Jason. “But we’re gone first thing tomorrow.”
“Of course,” she said.