The boss picked up on the second ring. Cassandra looked at Anthony but remained quiet. He thought the lake house sounded great but couldn't make any moves without informing the boss.

"She knows about them," Anthony said when the man in charge answered.

Cassandra could hear the other man freak out. "What?" he screamed into the phone.

Anthony looked at Cassandra, who had her head lowered in shame. "I had to tell her. She kept trying to run away. What else could I do?"

The boss sighed and didn't reply for a few moments. Finally, he asked, "Is she alright?"

Cassandra heard the other man ask about her and lifted her head. Anthony looked over to her as he replied. "She's scared and to be honest, I don't blame her." There was silence on the line until Anthony continued. "Listen. Cassandra told me about a lake house nearby. I'm running out of gas. Do you think it's safe?"

The boss didn't answer right away. Anthony could almost hear the gears in his head. The boss knew Cassandra's family and knew what house they talked about. "Yes, go there for a night or two, but no longer. Be smart and keep a look-out."

Anthony hung up the phone and nodded at her. Cassandra twist her body toward him as he gripped the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white. A place to stay was great, but they were still in danger and needed gas.

"Your purse is in the trunk," he told her. "You have any money for gas?" Cassandra laughed. Her smile stretched across her face and she held her stomach. Anthony laughed too until she cried. "Hey, it's ok," he comforted her. "I'm sorry we had to go about it this way, abducting you and treating you like a hostage. It's for your own good."

She wiped her eyes with the back of her hands. "I have credit cards."

"No," Anthony shook his head. "They can be traced."

"But, you said no one would look for me."

"That was before you used your cell phone and let the real killers know you were still in the area. They used their power to wrongfully convict me. They'd use it to track your credit cards down too."

Cassandra nodded her head in agreement. The sun was going down and dusk settled in. They needed to get to the lake house as soon as they could. He popped the trunk and walked to the rear of the car. For the first time, Cassandra didn't run.

Anthony handed her the purse when he reentered the car. She reached in and pulled out her wallet. As luck would have them, she had a few twenty-dollar bills wadded together. Cassandra gave him a toothy smile. Damn, she's cute, he said to himself.

Anthony backed the car out and headed in the direction they came from. He hoped the darkness would conceal them. He was still a wanted felon, in the state's eye. People still looked for him, and God only knew where the goons that wanted her dead were.

At the gas station, he pumped the gas, and she went inside to pay. It was too risky to let anyone see him up close even though he wore a disguise. Anthony kept his eyes out for any danger, but there didn't appear to be any.

Cassandra came out with a small bag. Without asking her what was inside, Anthony hightailed it away from the gas station. She told him where to go, and then leaned back in her seat. Cassandra looked more relaxed now that she knew the truth. Somehow, Anthony thought, he went from being her abductor to being her protector. "They almost didn't serve me," she laughed. "They said, 'No shoes, no service,' but I lied and told them I forgot them at the beach."

"They must have believed you," he hooted himself. She reached into the bag and pulled out two bottles of soda. She opened one and handed it to Anthony. "Thank you," he said and then thought things should have been that easy from the start.

"I would have bought more," she said as she looked in the bag of snacks, "but I figured we didn't have too much time."

Anthony couldn't help but grin. He never imagined she'd understand the situation. "You did fine," he said and continued to drive away.

 

~~~~

 

It was dark by the time they got to the lake house. There wasn't a sign of anyone being around for miles. Anthony thought it was a good sign though it concerned him too. They got out of the car and Cassandra located the hidden key.

"It's not a good idea to leave the car out in the open," he told her. Cassandra held her finger up to tell him to wait. She opened the main door of the house and turned to walk inside. Anthony grabbed her arm and stopped her. "Not until we know it's safe inside."

He reached for her hand as they entered the house together. Her warmth spread up his arm, giving him chills. They edged their way through the dark entrance and found the inside door to the garage. It opened, and Anthony stepped out. Cassandra remained on his heels.

The garage was dark, but Anthony shined a flashlight around. When he knew for sure there wasn't anyone else there, Anthony gave Cassandra a nod. She pressed a button on the wall and the garage door rose. He ducked down and stepped out to the other side.

Cassandra moved to the steps leading up to the house to get out of the way. Anthony pulled the car inside and parked it next to a sharp looking black BMW. "It's Daddy's," she told him as he looked it up and down. "He only drives it when we're up here."

Anthony held the flashlight against the window but saw nothing out of the ordinary inside. He glanced over the garage again but saw nothing to cause alarm. After shutting the door, he turned the light off, making it pitch dark inside.

"What are you doing?" Cassandra questioned him.

"Look for blinking lights," he instructed her. They both scanned the room but found nothing. Anthony turned to face her. "We're good. No cameras or bombs."

They entered the house. Anthony walked through with the flashlight in one hand and Cassandra in the other. Cassandra jumped at every shadow they crossed. Though she no longer feared Anthony, she still feared for her life.

"It's better to stay in the dark," he said. "Just in case."

Their eyes adjusted as the moonlight shined off the lake and through the windows. Cassandra let go of his hand and sat down. Anthony joined her.

"Can I shower?"

Anthony wanted to shower with her, his way of keeping her safe, but didn't think she'd find his humor funny. He couldn't allow any mistakes that would get them caught again. "I think we're safe here, but I don't know about having a light shine from inside the house."

"The guest bathroom is down the hall and doesn't have a window," she told him. "Come on, I'll show you."

Cassandra walked him down the hall and was right about the lack of a window. The thought of being cleaned tempted him and he couldn't resist. Anthony looked down at his dirty jeans and wished he could change. He wondered if she had spare clothing there, and what the odds were there were clothes for men. "You have any clothes here, for yourself and for me, I mean for men?"

"Yes." Cassandra walked with him down the hall and entered a bedroom. She took the flashlight from him and shined it on a dresser. Inside, there were shorts and shirts of all sizes. Anthony gave her a puzzled look. "For when we have company and go for a swim."

The shorts weren't fancy, but they were clean. He agreed to let her shower. Cassandra led him up the stairs and into her bedroom. There was a large window and Anthony feared the flashlight would shine for miles. He told her they had to rely on the moonlight again while she located clean clothes. Cassandra understood and led him back downstairs when she finished.