Wanted (26 page)

“It’s okay. They were things I needed to hear.”

We were silent for a few moments and I enjoyed the feeling of his heartbeat aligned with my own. I listened and waited, only after several moments realizing that I hadn’t been counting them.

“You sure you’re okay?”

I laughed again and nodded into his shirt. I could smell the fresh scent of soap and cigarettes. I squeezed him tighter.

“Yes.” I quivered as I felt his lips on my forehead. “You know, if the circumstances were different, you wouldn’t have to be so protective of me.”

He laughed. “That ain’t hard to imagine. You got more than enough in that pretty little head of yours to take care of yourself.”

I pulled away and sat up. It felt good to stretch the muscles that had gotten cramped. “What were you and Ben talking about just now?”

Charlie’s eyes followed my expression. “There’s some food missing from the pantry, kind of stuff nobody would think to look for.”

I froze. So Wallace definitely was here. There was no denying the danger Charlie was in now.

I wrapped my arms around myself for warmth. “I see.”

He stood up then, wrapping his arms around me when he saw me shiver. “It’s still okay, right?”

I nodded and leaned into him. “I’m sorry, Addie. I won’t let you be afraid of me again.”

The sketchbook! The only thing I thought I would have left of Charlie. Had it been lost in my stupidity?

“My bag, where is it?” I tried to dive from the bed but Charlie caught me before I could secure a landing. Concerned, he plopped me back on the bed and stood up, but he never took his eyes from mine. I held out my hands like an expectant child while he handed me the soaking bundle. I clapped my hands excitedly. Although the cover was wet, and the edges of the first few pages were damp, the sketches themselves were still intact.

“What—?”

“I wanted to take something of yours with me,” I admitted sheepishly. Though I was embarrassed, it was minimal compared to the amount of relief I felt at knowing I hadn’t destroyed the last sketches Charlie had on board.

Charlie looked down at the floor. He seemed sad again, although I didn’t understand why. I half expected laughter and pointing, but sadness seemed like the last response.

“This is my favorite…”

I was more confused than ever until he flipped open the back cover of the sketchbook and handed it back to me. I was taken aback by the first drawing with its abnormal shading and underlined attention to the figure at the center of the page. Charlie had drawn me, sitting on the bed almost as I was now, in perfect detail. The page before it was similar, like a distant black and white photograph. I was staring off the deck into the sea. When had he done these? In other instances I was sleeping on my side or untangling a knot from my hair, but they were all me. All of them were me in various moments we’d been together over the last few days.

“Those first sketches you drew of me, when you first brought me here?”

He nodded, but looked down at his work. “Yeah, I think I ’ready knew then that I loved you.”

He smiled and pulled the sleeve of the sweatshirt away from my face. “I know when you leave here, I ain’t ever gonna see you again. You’ll be in the papers and TV and stuff, but that ain’t the same.” He laughed and sat back down on the bed beside me. “So it’s funny. I guess I wanted to take something of yours with me, too.”

The blush took over before the words even came out. “You kind of had that opportunity last night.”

“I ain’t gonna ruin you.”

The remainder of my will was gone. I threw myself into his arms, leaving the rest of the blankets behind. The sudden rush of air that hit me made me start to shiver again, but he hugged me tighter, holding me about as close as someone can hold another human being. I seized the back of his neck and held on for dear life. I never wanted him to let me go.

“You should have just told me what was going on, with Wallace being here and everything,” I whispered.

He squeezed me tighter. “Nah, its better if you hate me.”

I laughed, kissed his tattoo. “I tried and couldn’t, you fool. I couldn’t hate any of you.”

“Not even Reid?” He pulled away to look me in the eyes.

I laughed again, all at once feeling ecstatic and overwhelmed at Charlie’s proclamation.

“Listen, though.” He tried to get serious again. “We’ll make port in a few hours, and if we don’t find Wallace by then, we could be in for some trouble.”

“Only a few hours?” Though I was ashamed to admit it, I didn’t know which prospect seemed bleaker: the idea of going home without Charlie, or the idea of Charlie being in danger.

He nodded grimly. “You were gone all night. I never thought to look in that hold again after I left there, and all the other ones were searched.” His face became dark again. His glance lost mine. “Truth be told, I only started rummaging ‘round there when I heard your teeth chatterin’.” He took my mouth and inspected it like a dentist. “Other than that, Addie, you were so still and cold. Your lips were blue. I thought maybe you left for good.” He shook his head as if unable to complete the thought.

I pushed my forehead up against his. “Hey, Charlie?”

“Yeah?”

“I’m really glad you found me.”

“Addie, you maybe—” He smiled, kissed me on the nape of my neck. “I’m real glad you found me.”

I couldn’t help but giggle. Charlie laughed in my ear. “I love when you do that.”

“Stop trying to change the subject. What were you going to say?”

He laughed even louder and threw his head back. It was good to see him happy. It made me warm on the inside.

“You ain’t gonna let me get away with that, are you?”

“Nope.”

“I was saying that I wanted you to call your family. It can only be for a few seconds, but you need to do it. They’ve loved you your whole life and you’ve been gone for days. I’ve just loved you for the better part of a week and losing you just ‘bout drove me crazy. It ain’t no wonder why your old man is making such a fuss—”

My mouth silenced his by plummeting the two together, an act that he accepted and actively participated in. I could taste the fresh flavor of clove, tobacco, and mint while I eagerly took his lips as my own. He latched onto me, desperate and grateful to touch, to please. Any remainder of a chill that lingered in my body immediately fled as my muscles seemed to melt in his hands. But once again I cursed my functional lungs when they begged for breath and pulled away when they pleaded for release.

“What,” he gasped, “was that for?”

I smiled at the shadow of his rapidly growing beard. “Just to make sure you understand how you inspire me.”

He sighed and shuddered all at once. “You got no idea what that means to me.”

For a while we just held each other in the blankets and shredded quilts that consumed most of the bed. With his fingers, he attempted to untangle the mess of my hair while I forced him to elevate his damaged hand and keep it unmoving.

“Doesn’t this hurt?”

“I’m used to it.” I remembered the cigarette burn and frowned. I didn’t like the sound of that at all.

“Charlie, why does it have to be that we can’t see each other after all this?”

I felt him tense up instantly. “Addie, I don’t expect you—”

Again, I put my finger to his lips to silence him. “Just hear me out, okay?” He was still clenched, bracing himself. “Things will probably be crazy for awhile. I’m not naïve enough to not know that. But after some time when things cool off, we could meet somewhere.”

He opened his mouth to speak again, but I wouldn’t let him. “There are colleges and universities all over the world, Charlie. I can find one and be anywhere you are.”

“It ain’t that simple, Addie. I’m a thief. That’s who I am, that’s what I’ll always be. I don’t know how to do nothin’ else.”

“That’s not true and you know it.”

“You shouldn’t be stupid for me.”

“Just listen! I’m not asking you to do anything else, Charlie. I don’t like how you make your money, but all you have to do is be you and I’m going to be around. Have you ever heard any of those stories about crazy, stalker people?” I pointed to myself dramatically. “Well, I, sir, intend to be one of them.”

I pulled him close while he smiled. “I’m going to have you whether you like it or not.”

His eyebrow shot up. “You’d chase me?”

I attempted my best imitation of an angry Charlie. “It wouldn’t be an option.”

We kissed once more, our laughter blending in together like so many shades of blue and green.

We compromised about calling Dad, deciding that calling Robbie’s cell phone would be less dangerous for everyone involved, as the odds were it would go right to voicemail and there wouldn’t be a trace on it. Even if there was, keeping the phone call less than fifteen seconds wouldn’t be enough to secure our location, while at least telling Dad and Robbie I was alive. After that, Charlie would throw the cell phone into the ocean and we would be in Singapore within a few hours.

I tried to straighten myself up as best I could. My ankle still throbbed a little, but the swelling was down significantly from the night before, so I knew it was only a sprain.

Charlie lounged on the bed, his hands clasped behind his head, watching me thoughtfully. “Do you want me to carry you?”

I smiled wistfully. “I’m okay.”

“What if I wanted to carry you?” He reached his long arm behind my knees and pulled me over to him until I fell over his shoulder.

I heard myself laughing. “No way.”

Though I tried my best, I only managed to hobble out to the stairwell about halfway before Charlie’s arms tangled around me and lifted me off the floor.

“Oh, come on!”

“I ain’t waiting ‘round forever.”

“That’s ridiculous.” I feigned annoyance and crossed my arms over my chest. But neither one of us could pretend I didn’t enjoy being in Charlie’s arms. “I wasn’t going that slowly.”

I felt the morning sun on my face and flinched at the brightness, though I was glad to see the sun had finally gotten through. “You’re right.” He grinned. “’Sides, I would wait forever.”

He took my hand and led me to the same edge of Deck A, where he had first held me in his arms and I had been so grateful for the touch. He dug into his pockets and presented me with a small flip phone that was almost false-looking from its thin plastic veneer.

“Remember—” He hesitated in handing it to me. “Fifteen seconds.”

“Okay, okay.” I was bouncing on my toes. “I don’t need a lecture.”

Charlie was reluctant in handing me the phone. I could sense something was amiss when the flesh of his fingers touched mine, though what it was exactly had not become quite clear to me just then. I suspected a great deal of his stress had to deal with his tiredness.

“When I’m done with this, you should go take a nap.”

“No.” His voice was firm.

I smiled. He sounded like a stubborn child. “Why not?”

He shrugged. “I only get so much time with you. I don’t want to spend it sleepin’.”

I was overwhelmed with Charlie’s open fondness for me. It caused a feeling of warmth in me. While I had always been a member of a loving family, it had never exactly been an expressive one, and now someone who I cared for immensely brought no hesitation to the table to show those same emotions toward me. It was more than a little intimidating.