Kyle pulled her car into the parking lot of the near empty cafe. They had been driving for nearly three hours, only making stops when Kyle knew they were safe. The clock on the dashboard read 12:00 AM, the sky was pitch black against the empty skyline of the highway. The moon shined above the trees that lined the other side of the highway, cars speeding past them without a second thought.
She looked over at Nica, who was still asleep in the passenger seat. Her breathing was steady and peaceful even though Kyle could see her eyes twitching under her eyelids. She watched her for a moment before deciding to nudge her awake. Nica groaned and shifted closer to the passenger side door. Kyle rolled her eyes and nudged her again.
Nica groaned. “What time is it?”
“It’s midnight,” Kyle said, “and I’m fuckin’ hungry.”
Nica lifted her head and blinked the sleep out of her eyes. “Are we safe?”
“For now,” Kyle replied. “It won’t hurt to get some food in our stomachs.”
Nica nodded in agreement. Kyle put the car in park and got out to retrieve Nica’s wheelchair. She pushed it to the passenger side door where she helped Nica out of the car. Once she was settled, Kyle opened the back door of the car and pulled out a blanket that she placed over Nica’s lap.
“Do you want your prosthetics?” She asked, looking over her shoulder at her.
Nica nodded and allowed Kyle to slip her new arms on. They were cold against the delicate skin of Nica’s flesh, but she didn’t complain. Kyle had been kind enough to pull over to the side of the road when they were just an hour into their journey to help her take them off because she had been too uncomfortable to sleep with them on.
Kyle handed her her worn leather jacket before closing the door. She helped Nica slide it on and positioned it so it covered the blood that stained the skin of her chest.
“There,” Kyle said with a cheeky grin, “now you don’t look like you just got Carrie’d.”
Nica chuckled as Kyle led the way to the door. She held the door open as she wheeled past before following her inside.
The only waitress that was working turned at the sound of the bell above the door jingling, and she smiled at them warmly. There were two other people two booths away from the door, and the man craned his neck over the top of his companion’s seat to catch a glimpse of them.
“Hello ladies,” the waitress greeted, “you can sit anywhere you like.”
Kyle nodded her thanks to the waitress before leading Nica to the booth that was farthest from the door and the other two people. Nica lifted herself into the booth, reaching for the blanket once she was settled. Kyle sat across from her, and they sat in silence as the waitress grabbed a pair of menus.
Nica looked pale in the fluorescent lighting that lit up her face. Her eyes were sunken and dull. Despite sleeping for a good hour of her trip, she still looked exhausted. Kyle could still see the guilt and grief that she was trying so hard to mask. She was about to reach her hand across the table to comfort her, but the waitress interrupted her.
“Where are you ladies heading to this late at night?” She asked conversationally as she set the menus down in front of them.
Kyle opened her mouth to speak, but Nica interrupted her.
“We’re just driving wherever the highway takes us.”
The waitress tried her best to cover the concern that flashed on her face, but failed. Kyle nodded in agreement.
“Nothing like a good old roadtrip to escape the stress of everyday life,” she forced a smile onto her face.
The waitress nodded like she believed them, even though Kyle knew she didn’t, but she didn’t ask any more questions about the topic.
“What can I get you ladies to drink?” She asked, pulling out a notepad from the pocket of her apron.
“I’ll have a coffee,” Kyle said.
“Water, please,” Nica said.
“Okay, a coffee and water. On it. I’ll be back in a few.”
Kyle watched as the waitress walked away. Her attention was brought back to Nica with the sound of her clearing her throat.
“Are you okay?” Kyle asked.
Nica’s brow was creased as she looked out the foggy window.
“How did you find me?” She asked, her gaze still fixated on the cars speeding by on the highway.
“I got a call from Glen and Glenda,” Kyle said.
Nica’s gaze finally shifted back to Kyle’s face. “How did they know to call you?”
“That’s the thing,” Kyle admitted. “I don’t know how they got in contact with me.”
Nica looked at her in confusion. “You don’t know?”
Kyle shook her head. “I’ve never met them before in my life.”
“That’s strange,” Nica said.
“After Andy went after you when you were locked away I went to his house to wrap up his little… project,” Kyle said. “I had heard rumors about Glen and Glenda, but I thought that was that. Just a lie to get under my skin.”
Nica was nodding. “What about… her?”
“The first time I met her was when she tried to kill me back in Hackensack,” Kyle said, “and the first time I got wrapped up in this mess was when I was just a teen, but it was just Chucky back then,” she shrugged, “I guess as time went on they had bigger problems.”
Their conversation was interrupted by the waitress putting their drinks down in front of them.
“Is there anything else I can get you?"
“Just a basket of fries,” Kyle snapped.
The waitress blinked in surprise at Kyle’s sudden hostility, and left their booth without another word.
“This whole situation is so strange,” Nica said. “Is there any way that it could’ve been Andy?”
“I thought Andy was dead,” Kyle said. “Even if it was him, I have all of his numbers written down, and the one that called me wasn’t one of them.”
“This is so strange,” Nica muttered, looking down at the ice in her glass of water.
“Normally I don’t pick up calls from numbers that aren’t one of Andy’s,” Kyle said.
The younger woman met her gaze.
“Then why did you pick it up this time?”
Kyle shrugged. “Something told me that it was for something important.”
“Did it ever occur to you that it could be a trap?” Nica asked.
Kyle inhaled sharply. “It did,” she exhaled and folded her hands on the table, “but I’ve been in stickier situations.”
A small smile danced on Nica’s lips. “You’re very hellbent on helping someone you barely even know.”
She chuckled. “You seem to forget that I’ve been doing this for a long time.”
The waitress wordlessly dropped off their basket of fries. Kyle picked one up and inspected it before popping it into her mouth.
“Those are some damn good fries,” she commented, picking up a clump in between her fingers.
Nica let out a soft laugh and reached forward to pick one up. Her brow creased in frustration as she couldn’t get a grip on one, so Kyle picked it up.
“Open your mouth,” she instructed and Nica looked at her in surprise.
“You are not feeding me a fry.”
“I am, now open your damn mouth,” Kyle insisted.
Nica laughed in surprise. Before she knew what was happening, Kyle reached forward and shoved the fry in her mouth. She pulled her hand back before Nica could bite down on her fingers.
Kyle watched as Nica chewed the fry in annoyance. She cocked an eyebrow as she swallowed.
“You’re lucky that was a damn good fry,” Nica responded.
“There’s more where that came from,” Kyle said, reaching for another fry.
“No- no.” Nica smacked her hand away. “I don’t want any more.”
Kyle rolled her eyes. “If we’re going to be partners in this shit you’re gonna have to get used to having someone help you with things.”
Nica’s expression changed. “What?”
Kyle sensed the shift in her tone. “I know you want to get your revenge,” she dropped the fries that she had been holding, “and I’m going to help you get it.”
Nica shook her head. “No, no. You’re not. I won’t let you.”
Kyle hushed her. “You have no other choice, Nica.”
Tears began to build in Nica’s eyes. Her voice cracked as she said, “I can’t ask you to do that.”
“You’re not asking me to do anything,” she reassured, “I’m doing it.”
The younger woman shook her head again. “No, no. Please don’t.”
“What she did to you was terrible, Nica, and you have every right to want revenge,” Kyle said, “but revenge can be a slippery slope, and I don’t want you to go down that road alone.”
“No.” Nica said firmly. “I’m doing this myself.”
“You’re not,” Kyle argued. “Let me help you.”
“No,” Nica said again, lifting herself out of the booth and into her wheelchair. “Look, I appreciate you helping me escape, but I can’t risk anyone else getting hurt because of me.”
She began to wheel herself to the door of the cafe. Kyle let out an exasperated sigh before leaving a crumpled ten and five dollar bill on their table.
She followed Nica out to the parking lot.
“How do you expect to find her?” Kyle called after her.
Nica glanced over her shoulder. “I’ll find a way.”
“Just come with me and we can do this together,” Kyle replied, quickening her pace to catch up with Nica.
“Why? Just so you can die like everyone else I’ve ever cared for?” Nica asked with an edge to her voice. She came to a stop, spinning herself around so she was facing Kyle.
“I’ll be fine,” Kyle responded.
“You don’t know that.” A tear slid down Nica’s cheek.
“I won’t be able to forgive myself if something happens to you,” Kyle said quietly.
Nica looked up at her with watery eyes. “If I die, at least I’ll be with my family,” she sniffled, “I have no one, Kyle.”
“That’s not true,” Kyle corrected. “You have Andy, and the kids back in Jersey…”
“You don’t get it, Kyle.” Nica snapped. “You’ll never get it.”
“I do get it,” she said. “I really do. My father left and my mother put me up for adoption when I was three. Then I never had a stable family life until I met the Simpsons, then they died and all I had left was Andy.”
Nica laughed bitterly. “Well look at us, huh? Looks like we both have a sob story.”
Kyle sighed. “Nica, my point is, there are people who care about you,” she rubbed her face with her hands, “I care about you. And you’ll always have me.”
The younger woman looked up at her.
“You do?”
“Yes,” Kyle responded. “I do.”
Nica couldn’t meet her gaze. They fell into an uncomfortable silence before Nica finally forced her eyes to meet Kyle’s.
“Okay,” she said softly. “Okay. I’ll come with you.”
“Good,” Kyle said. “Now let’s go, we need to get you somewhere safe before Tiffany gets on our trail.”
Nica nodded in agreement and followed Kyle to her car, where they got in without speaking a word.
Nica watched the world go by as Kyle sped down the highway, letting the soft sound of the car’s engine lull her back to sleep.