Escape, a New Life (21 page)

“Everyone gets trained.  Life-saving skills, things that will serve you well on the island, but you had much more at stake than the average contestant and took your training much more seriously than I have ever seen anyone before.  Given your particular situation, I arranged for extra hand-to-hand combat training.  It served you well on the island, and I think you will find that it will in the future, as well.”

She held the sealed envelope in her hand.  Part of her wanted to rip it open
; the rest of her could not possibly imagine what it might say.  She may have even been a little scared to open it.  “What exactly is your particular position?  Are you some sort of talent wrangler for the show or something?  Some rodeo clown to make sure we don’t get out of control?”

He laughed
. “Something like that.  Yes, as you have noticed, I try to keep things on track when I am on the island.  I am not always there, though.  I have many other things going on, but I am glad I was there for your stay.”

“What kind of other things do you have going on?”

“Well, I was not much of a public figure from the time that you remember.  However, I am fairly well known now.  I am a businessman, I guess you would say.”

“What kind of business?”

He laughed again, “Whatever kind makes me money.  I started in travel and communications, but television has been my game for the last ten years.  I own this show, Abby.”  He gestured around them. “I finance all of this.  The islands, the house, the show, pretty much everything.”

Abby was a bit stunned.  “So this man that I’ve gotten to know, running through the woods and eating rabbit stew
, turns out to be some sort of eccentric millionaire?”

“I have been called a lot of things, but ec
centric is probably the nicest.  It would be eccentric billionaire actually, but who is counting?” he smiled.  “I meant what I said though.  I can help you, and I am willing to.  Just let me know what you need.  You should get dressed and come join us for now.  Eric seems pretty lonely down there without you.”

“Sure, I’ll come down in a few.  Just let me throw some clothes on.”

He pointed. “They are in the top drawer, a few things that you brought with you at the beginning.”

After Robert left, Abby walked back to the bed and sat down with the envelope in her hand.  What could it possibly say?  She assumed the day could not get any stranger, so she decided to stop procrastinating and opened it.  As she took out the letter, a photo slid out and fell down to the floor
, face down. 

Bending to pick it up
, she flipped it over and saw the face of a very handsome man.  He was a little older, maybe in his late forties or early fifties.  His face did not look familiar, but she recognized the blond hair instantly.  She had been seeing it in her dreams for weeks.  Her adrenaline started pumping.  With her hand shaking, she put the photo down on the nightstand and opened the letter.

She did not have to read past the first word to know she was in trouble.

RUN!

RUN!  Abby, run.  If you’re reading this, I know that you’re a different person now.  You’re a survivor and a winner.  You’re strong.  You must run.  Do not have your memory restored.  I can’t stress how important it is that you do not have your memory restored.  You probably feel like you’re missing ten years.  But trust me, it’s a blessing.  I don’t want to say too much, but you fell in with the wrong people.  There are things that you know that you cannot know.  Lives depend on your ignorance, Abby.  Do not return to California either.  It’s actually best if you do not return to the States at all.

Escape to the most remote place you can, and keep a low profile. 
Your winnings will be transferred to a secure account. Robert is aware of this; he helped set it up.  He also knows you won’t be having your memory restored.  He is very rich, and very easy to find for those who will be trying to find you.  You can trust him, but do not tell him the details of where you are going.  No one can know.  In your suitcase, tear open the back panel (it’s being held on by Velcro) and remove the ID’s and cash to get you to wherever you decide to go.  I had some ideas on where you should go, but I didn’t dare write them down.  I’m sure whatever you… we… I? decide will be fine.  It will have to be. 

Last, and most important, always be ready. 
You have probably learned that I became very skilled with that knife when I was training for the show.  If you’re reading this, I’m guessing it has probably saved our life once or twice.  Always keep it with you.  There is a photo of a man enclosed.  You do not know who he is, but trust me when I tell you that that is for the best.  I will not tell you his name, I don’t want you getting cocky and trying to find him. 

If you ever see this man, do not blink, do not flinch, do not hesitate for a second. 
Run
. Run, or be killed.  He has friends and contacts everywhere.  Run far and fast, or he will find you.  Do not let him speak to you, and do not believe a word that he says.  He is very charming, and very convincing.  I fear that if you let him try to reason with you, you are going to wind up right back where we started.  You have no idea what has been sacrificed so that you can start over.  Do not waste all of the effort that was necessary for this to happen.

I know
you can do this.  I hope I thought of everything.  – Me

Abby read the letter again, and then again a third time, trying to make sense of it.  What could have possibly happened in her life?  What horrible road could she have gone down that “lives depend on her ignorance”?  She picked up the photo from the nightstand and studied it.  He did not look like a happy man, but certainly did not look like someone to be scared of.  Then again, life is not a movie.  The characters do not always look the part. 

She was getting a fresh start.  That does not happen often in life.  Obviously
, she had continued on her current path ten years ago and fell on some bad times since she got out of college, but that was in the past.  Out of sight, out of mind.  Literally forgotten.  She felt a sense of freedom, like what she felt when she gave in and gave up in the whirlpool.  There was nothing she could do to change the status of her life at this moment.  There was nothing more to do than just give in and accept it. 

A loud knock on the door startled her out of her trance.  She looked at the clock.  An hour has passed since Robert left, and she was still in her robe.  Standing up to answer the door, she put the photo down on the bed, then thought better of it and placed it in the top drawer of the nightstand. 

Opening the door, her pulse quickened at the sight of Eric.  His light brown sandy hair was combed, hanging just over his ears.  He wore a sky blue shirt that made his bright blue eyes pop and brought out the deep tan he had acquired over the past month.  His loose khaki pants and leather sandals completed the picture.  He looked like every beautiful man she had ever seen in a vacation advertisement.

“You shaved,” she stood on her toes and rubbed her cheek against his smooth face.  Bringing her lips to his
, she kissed him very softly.  “I like it,” she smiled.

“Not a lot of razors out on the island.”

She stepped back and lifted her robe enough to reveal her calf. “I shaved, too!”

He reached down and rubbed his cheek against her leg, giving it a soft kiss.  “I like it.”

She smiled and laughed. “Not a lot of razors on the island.”

He lingered at her leg for a moment
, before standing up.  “You missed dinner.”

“I know.  I wound up taking a little nap and, well, here I am.”

“Want to go find something to eat?  There was plenty out there.  I’m sure we can find you a plate.”

Abby bit her bottom lip.  Grabbing him by the front of his shirt, she slowly walked backwards into the room and kicked the door shut behind
him. 

Still holding his shirt and leading him into the room, she turned to him and whispered, “Do you realize we haven’t been alone together in a quiet place in nearly three weeks?”

He playfully asked, “Is that so?”

“The last time was that final night we were with Robert, the night before we set out for the beach to build the raft.  Remember?”

He leaned toward her and tucked the damp hair behind her ear.  With the lightest touch, he kissed her neck just below her ear, his lips barely grazing her skin.  Placing his lips close, he whispered, “I remember.” 

His breath against her neck gave her goose bumps, and when he kissed her again, she shook with a chill, although she was far from cold.  Slowly she unbuttoned his shirt and ran a hand over his chest and down his flat stomach while he planted soft kisses slowly down the length of her neck, just a bit lower each time.  When he got to the bottom of her neck, he continued down her shoulder, slowly inching her robe out of the way as he went.

With his free hand, he untied her robe with one pull and let it hang open.  As he kissed her left shoulder, his fingertips lightly traced a line down the right side of her neck and continued down to her chest.  If her pulse quickened when she had seen him at the door, it was racing now as his hand continued its journey, gliding down the center of her breasts.

She s
lid her hand down his taut stomach to his loose khakis, where she found that he was no less excited than she was.  He breathed in quickly when she touched him.  Their mouths found each other, and his tongue lightly traced her lips before kissing her deeply.  The feeling of their lips meeting, while their bare skin pressed against each other, sent electricity through her body.

Leaning forward, he gently kissed between her breasts where his fingers had been, as he knelt down in front of her.  While his hand continued to trace a line down the center of her stomach, and slid below her waist, his lips followed.  She closed her eyes and tried to hold onto the thick bedpost for balance as her leg began to quiver and her head rolled back as he teased exactly the right spots.  Her robe fell to the floor. 

He looked up at her impishly, his bright blue eyes twinkling in the dim light of the room.  She looked down at him and smiled as she ran her fingers through his hair and down to his broad shoulders where she slipped off his unbuttoned shirt as it joined her robe on the floor.  Abby knelt down with him, facing him, kissing his neck and working her way down to his chest, playfully biting his nipple.  He was not wearing a belt, and after unbuttoning his top button, she slid his loose-fitting khakis below his waist.  He smiled and sighed as she took him in her hand.

While they were still kneeling on the floor, she leaned in and whispered in his ear “That bed up there is
much nicer than anything we’ve slept on in weeks.”  She gently squeezed her hand tighter around him and nibbled his earlobe.  She felt his body nearly leap with excitement.

Without saying a word, he lifted her from the ground and set her down on the impossibly soft silk sheets.  She pulled him onto the bed and
pushed him onto his back, putting him exactly where she wanted him.  She climbed on top of him.  Their lips met first, and then their bodies pressed together.  Little beads of sweat started to form on her forehead as she slid her body against his.  Looking into his eyes, she saw the man with whom she had gone to hell and back; the man who had put his life on the line for hers. 

She realized that she had been aching for this moment longer than she had allowed herself to admit.  Judging by his reaction, he had been, too.  As her hips settled over him, she felt him fill her completely.  He ran his hands u
p her body, cupping her perfect breasts, as she eased against him.  Pressing into him, Abby slowly moved back and forth in rhythm to their breathing, which was speeding along faster with each movement. 

Both had anticipated this moment for so long.  Their deep emotional connection started the first night they met when they barely escaped the cave with their lives.  Their physical relationship had smoldered for weeks, and was suddenly bursting into an inferno.  As she moved against him faster with each breath, neither stood a chance of savoring the moment for much longer. 

Abby began to tremble, and felt her chest and neck became flush.  She closed her eyes as she dug her nails into his chest, trying desperately to hold onto the moment for as long as she could.  Every nerve ending in her body tingled as her muscles tightened, and she felt a warm explosion of pleasure wash over her body.  Every inch of her quivered as she contracted around him.  He grabbed her hips with his strong hands and pulled her close, as his body tensed and he shuddered.  

Abby collapsed onto his chest as they lay there, panting in unison, their skin moist.  Neither moved for what seemed like an eternity, until Abby rolled off of his chest and snuggled close to him. 
They were lying in a bed that felt like a cloud, both completely satisfied, neither needing to say a word.  They stayed this way for quite some time, satisfied and safe off the island, listening to the waves crash in the distance as a mild breeze caressed their bodies through the open window, both feeling complete.

********************

Abby did not want to bring up the subject of the letter; she wanted to live in this moment forever, but she knew that she could not.  Right now, Eric was one of her only friends in the world.  As she lay next to him, she considered the letter and her impending life on the run. 
If only I could freeze this moment in time
.

She asked, “Are you nervous about getting your memory back?”

“It’s actually not that big a deal.”

“Huh?”

He sat up, “You never gave me a chance to tell you. I already had it done.”

“What?  How?  Robert made it sound like a really big deal.”

Eric explained that after dinner he commented to Robert that he did not want to wait until morning, and to his surprise, they readily agreed.  “It was really easy, nothing to it.  They sat me in a chair, there’s a doctor and some tech guys.  They said that I was probably the easiest one they’ve ever done.”

“It sounded more complicated when he was talking about it before.”

“I guess it can be, but it wasn’t for me, given my fairly unique circumstance.”

Abby’s interest was piqued.  “And what circumstance is that?”

He sighed, “Well… it would seem that my life has not changed a bit in ten years.  There’s no shock to deal with, no dream to wake up from.  I’m still living in the same crappy apartment, with my same loser buddies, swinging the same hammer.  I’m on a different a jobsite than I thought I was, but that’s about it.”  He sighed again, a little depressed at the thought, and then chuckled. “Funny story, though. One of us did wind up in Mexico.  It just wasn’t me.”

Abby was naked and lying on his bare chest with her arm draped over him.  “How do you feel about that?”

“Well, I like Mexico, but I’m glad I wasn’t the one who got dumped there passed out drunk.”

She playfully smacked his chest, “Not that.  I mean how do you feel that you haven’t really moved on with your life in the last ten years?”

He laughed. “I actually feel great that I don’t need to go back to it, if that’s what you’re asking.  I’m rich.  I met a great girl.  I’m getting a new start.” 

She bolted up in bed and very seriously asked, “Who
’s the girl?”  He looked genuinely nervous for a second, but she could not keep a straight face, and they burst out laughing.

“I asked about you, if you could have it done tonight
, too.  Robert said your life was a bit more complicated and he would feel better about waiting until morning, when they can do it right.”

Abby sat in silence for a while,
nervously running her fingers through his hair.

Robert was covering for her.  He knew she would not be going through with the procedure, as simple as it may be. 
The room was lit only by the bright moonlight coming through the large, arched window on the wall.  A tear ran down her cheek.  She tried to wipe it before Eric noticed, but she could not move quickly enough.

“
Hey, what’s wrong?”

The words caught in her throat, “Well, it seems I’m getting a fresh start
, too.”

“I’m sure you are,” he said.  He sat up and pulled her close to comfort her.