His expression in profile gave nothing away, as he kept his hands on the wheel and steadily pulled into traffic out of the parking lot. They were a mile down the road when the song finally ended and she stopped singing. “Well?” she demanded. Her heart beat a little faster waiting on his verdict.
“I’m no expert,” he said, causing her stomach to dip. “But I could listen to you sing all day. And I’m not saying that ‘cause I love you. I really mean it.”
“Thank you.” Paltry words, but her wide smile said it all. After that, they spent the next two hours on 95 North with her singing and trying to teach him the words to some of the more popular songs. Rolling Stones lyrics he knew, and they managed quite a duet onPaint it Black. “You could sing with me. Your voice isn’t bad,” she said.
“No, thank you.” But he was smiling as he said it. He squeezed her thigh, and she clutched at his hand to bring it up to her lips for a kiss. They remained holding hands for the next little bit until a car cut them off and he needed both hands to drive. She leaned against the door and watched him sleepily until she drifted off, catching up on the sleep she’d missed the night before.
“Allison, wake up. We’re here.”
“Huh?” She shifted in the seat and stretched her neck trying to lose some of the stiffness of sleep.
“Look.” Peter pointed out the window, and off in the distance she saw the massive twin towers.
She glanced over at the city, but it was Peter who had her attention. He was staring raptly at the city skyline, a huge grin on his face.
“Amazing, huh?” she stated quietly, letting him absorb his first glance at the city that never slept.
“Incredible. It’s one thing to see it on TV, but it’s different in person.”
“Let’s go.” She bounced a little in her seat, eager to get into the city, find a place to stay and start exploring. She couldn’t wait to show Peter CBGB.
If Peter was rattled by the traffic and crazy drivers of the city, he didn’t show it, as he calmly drove through Lincoln Tunnel and wound his way downtown. He pulled into a parking spot, they fed the meter, and then went looking for a pay phone.
“Priorities,” she explained. “I have to call my parents and let them know I’m alive. Then we’ll scour the classifieds and see if anyone has a room for rent.”
Peter sat up in the hotel bed where he and Allison slept totally naked. A strange noise at the door had him tensing and scoping out the room for the threat. Tonight they were in a hotel room, but tomorrow they would be in their new tiny apartment shared with another woman. Someone was trying to get into their room. He cursed, wishing for a weapon, but he hadn’t brought anything with him.
He’d planned on starting a new life, one in which he wasn’t a soldier. Civilians didn’t need weapons. So here he was, in the most dangerous city in the country, unarmed. Shit.
The door swung open and his enhanced vision made out two men walking into his room as if they belonged there. A third man followed.
“Dad?”
Beside him, Allison stirred.
“Peter, it’s me,” his father said.
One night. He got one fucking night of freedom. “What are you doing here?”
“We’re here to bring you home, son. Where you belong.”
He shook his head and snapped on the light on the nightstand. “No, Dad. I belong here now. With Allison. She’s my match.”
“Peter?” Allison sat up slightly and brushed his arm with her hand. He tucked the blanket around her to cover her nudity. “What’s going on?”
He looked from her to his father. He should’ve guessed they’d follow him, but he’d never dreamed they’d catch him so quickly.
“How did you find me?”
“Tracker,” one of the soldiers next to his father said, confirming his suspicions.
“Is it in me? Am I tagged like an animal?”
“No,” his father said, but didn’t reveal any more details.
“I’m not coming with you, Dad.” Allison’s hand found his thigh under the comforter and squeezed. His heart pounded. It took twenty years but he was finally standing up to his father. A father who’d been loving, but demanding and wouldn’t accept anything less than his son joining the Program and fulfilling the contract his father had signed.
“Peter, you don’t have a choice. If you leave, you’re a deserter, a traitor, and it’s been made clear to me that they will follow all protocol when it comes to military traitors,” his dad said in a low voice meant only for Peter’s ears.