Las Vegas Savior
Chapter 13

Emily was dying to tease back that she would love to share his bed but unfortunately, for her, it was too close to the truth and she was not at all certain that he was feeling the same way. So she bit her tongue and slid the key card into the lock.

There was definitely a physical attraction there, at least on her part but she also wasn’t a bed bunny that would hop into bed with just any man. There had to be feelings there and some kind of promise that he would still be there, not only in the morning but for a long time afterwards.

She knew for sure that she was attracted to him but how was he feeling? So far, except maybe for the dance they had shared, he had only been professional towards her. Was protecting her from a criminal the only reason he was still with her? Would he stick around when all of this was over?

Another bad choice in her life was the last thing she needed right now. She did not want to become just another notch on his bedpost, so to speak, and she was sure that he did not lack for female company with his good looks and manners.

Emily entered the room and looked around. “Very nice.” She thought to herself as she closed the door and then carried her backpack in and set it on the bed. She was looking forward to a good night’s sleep for once.

She just hoped that they both managed to stay in their own beds tonight. If John was as aware of her on a physical level as she was of him then he was keeping his feelings very well hidden. If she was free, then she might be interested in replaceing out if they could have a relationship.

While it might be great, if she were truly free and not on the run for her life, but right now, she has to concentrate on staying alive long enough to have a relationship. Now was not the time to get mixed up with anyone, even a federal cop. And she definitely did not want to be with him if his only reason was because he felt sorry for her. She couldn’t imagine anything more degrading than becoming anyone’s sympathy fuck.

She quickly used the bathroom to empty her bladder then walked over and opened the adjoining door and stepped into the “living room” area between their two bedrooms. While it was not lush, it was neat and clean and very comfortable looking. John came through his adjoining door a moment later and asked “How do you like your room?”

“It’s definitely nicer than some of the places I’ve stayed in. Thank you, John.”

“For what?” He asked, uncertain what it was she was thanking him for.

“For dinner. The night in a nice hotel room. For making me feel safer than I have in a long time.” Emily said. “It’s funny that I met you the same way I met Derrick. I met him at the laundromat when he stopped a panhandler from stealing my baggie of quarters. I wish now, I had let the guy have it. There was less than five dollars left in it.”

John’s heart went out to her. No wonder she was so leery of men. It sounds like her sampling of his gender had not been a good one. He wanted nothing more than to put his arms around her, to hold her until she felt totally safe again.

But until he had this particular bad guy behind bars, it would be best if he did not let on that he was physically very attracted to her. He did not want her to be with him just to thank him but because she returned his feelings and truly wanted to be with him.

“Well, you are most welcome. I had fun today. Would you like something to drink? The mini bar has a wide variety of stuff to drink.” He said, walking over to the small fridge and opening the door. “Oh wow, there’s even some alcohol in here if you care to imbibe?” John asked.

“No, thank you but I will take a soda. How much are they?” Emily asked.

John looked at the little cost card that was sitting on the counter and said “Wow, it’s five dollars for that small little soda. I wonder if there is a vending machine on the property.”

“There’s a convenience store across the street at the gas station. Sodas will probably be cheaper there. Want to go for a walk?” Emily asked.

“Sure. Just let me get a jacket. You might want to pull one on too. It was getting a little chilly outside.”

“Yeah, if you can give me a minute, I’d like to change my clothes. The wind was going right up my skirt and my toes were cold.”

“Sure. Just open your door when you are ready.” John said as he turned to go back into his bedroom.

Emily hurried back to hers and closed the door behind her. She quickly took off the adorable sandals, then pulled the dress over her head and folded it neatly. She dug her clean jeans out of her pack and then chose one of the new t-shirts she had bought. It had a picture of a wolf howling at the moon on the front of the pretty blue t-shirt. She tucked it in and then put on her belt.

She didn’t need the belt to hold up her pants but it finished off the outfit nicely. She pulled on a pair of socks and then her sneakers. She wished she had the money to replace these with a pair of the same quality but she had bought these before she went on the run.

In fact they had been the shoes she had on the night this nightmare had begun. They had been fairly expensive but they had lasted her for 3 years of almost constant use, so they had more than paid for themselves but they were well worn and she had had to shoe goo the soles back on about 9 months ago.

She quickly ran her brush through her hair and then packed her dress, sandals and brush back in her pack and put it in the closet. She thought about putting it back in the car but they were only going across the street, after all. Surely she could leave it in the room for the short time they were going to be gone.

She pulled on her sweatshirt hoodie, since that’s all she had, before she opened her adjoining door to replace John, sitting on the sofa waiting for her. “Sorry for making you wait. Thank you again for the dress and sandals. It’s been a long time since I’ve had anything pretty to wear. And thanks for today. I’ve had fun.”

“Well, you looked great tonight and I’m glad you are enjoying yourself. Sounds to me like you haven’t been able to let go and relax for a long time.” John said and led the way to the door. He pulled open the door and stepped out onto the sidewalk and looked at the cars parked around the corner and then across the street to the service station.

It wasn’t far away so that they would be able to walk there and back with ease. Emily looked to be in very good condition. The calves of her legs had been very well muscled, like someone who spent a lot of time on her feet or those of a runner, and she was both!

Emily followed him outside and together they walked across the parking lot then across the street to the convenience store. They entered the store and besides the clerk at the counter, they were the only ones in there. They walked down the aisle to the refrigerated section and picked up what they wanted to drink. They both got several bottles of the same thing and John picked up some popcorn that they could pop in the microwave back in the room. Maybe they could watch a movie together before they went to sleep, he thought to himself.

They were checking out the candy aisle, trying to decide if they wanted something sweet to eat, when Emily looked up and saw a black SUV pull up next to one of the gas pumps outside. She recognized it as Derrick’s and she nearly screamed as she grabbed John’s arm, her voice came out in a squeak when she said “They’re here!”

John had never seen anyone move so fast as Emily did when she ducked down and ran for the back of the store to the ladies room. John looked outside and saw the black SUV passenger door open. He put the bottles of soda and the popcorn down on the shelf in front of him, then lifted his foot and pulled his back up gun from the holster on his ankle. He put the gun in his jacket pocket, then pulled out his badge and hung it from his belt.

He tried not to be obvious about it as he watched two men get out of the SUV and stretch. They must be just getting into town, which would make sense if they were coming from Idaho since the exit that came out near the store would have been the one from the highway that went up North. Now John was convinced that there had to be a dirty cop in Seattle. That’s the only way they could have known which direction Emily had gone when she had left Idaho.

John walked farther down the aisle, pretending to look at things in the store. He could tell that they had Washington license plates but it was too far away for him to make out the numbers, unless he moved closer to the window but that would look suspicious so he returned his focus to the two men.

He couldn’t really see much of the driver yet but the man that was standing on the passenger side was tall, bald and rather heavy set, wearing wrinkled dark slacks, a dark shirt and a satin windbreaker with the logo of the Seattle Seahawks on the back.

The bald man stood and stretched for a minute and then said something to the driver as he began to walk into the store. John kept himself between the man and the restrooms, trying to not look obvious as he waited to see what the man was going to do.

Just as he suspected, the man was going to use the restroom and John was torn between warning Emily and praying that she would stay inside the women’s room until he gave her the all clear. He considered taking a chance at arresting them right here and now but if he had the wrong men, he was going to end up looking like a fool.

The man in the store was definitely not the man Emily had shown him the picture of and he would guess that at least 10 percent of the men in America were tall, heavy set and bald. Might not be a look he would go for but that didn’t make the man a criminal. John kept acting like he was trying to decide on what to buy as he watched the man walk back to the men’s room.

John glanced over the top of the shelves to see the driver of the SUV open the tailgate and look for something inside the vehicle. John couldn’t see his whole face so he couldn’t be certain that he was Derrick Gibson. All he really saw was the back of a man’s head or a slight profile.

John watched as the man pulled out a small igloo cooler and poured out the melted ice water and then seemed to be checking on his supplies inside. He pushed the cooler back in and grabbed a bag of trash and tossed it in the trash can that was between the two pumps.

He opened the back door and cleaned out the back of the car, emptied the ashtray and then closed the door. He also tossed the bag of trash in the trash can and then went to attend to the gas. He hung up the nozzle then waited for his receipt.

Just then, the bald man came out of the bathroom and headed down the aisle one over from John. John noticed that the man gave him a quizzical look but kept walking. He stopped and got a six pack of beer out of the first cooler and grabbed a bag of potato chips then grabbed a small bag of ice before he made his way to the counter to pay for his purchases. John made his way closer to the front of the store as the man left and the driver came inside.

This man was definitely Derrick Gibson. He looked exactly like the man in the photograph that Emily showed him. It seemed that they had a system of never both being together when outside of the vehicle.

John knew that it would be foolish of him to try and arrest him now but still, he kept his hand on the gun in his pocket as he watched Derrick out of the side of his eye as he walked back to the bathroom. John knew that it was going to look too suspicious if he didn’t move so he picked up the sodas and popcorn and carried them to the checkout counter and pulled out his wallet.

He pretended to be interested in the scratch off tickets and asked the clerk one each of the one dollar ones. Derrick came out of the restroom and left the store.