September 24th

The Bounty

There Jake was, on the ground in front of Alex. He could see vividly the bullet, traveling from the barrel of the gun. Time slowed down as the lead floated through the air. He could see the bullet as it made contact with Jake's head. He saw as the metal lodged itself somewhere inside Jake's brain. He saw the light, the life, leave Jake's eyes. He witnessed Jake go limp and stop struggling. Blood blossomed on the cold pavement. It pooled around Jake's head and slowly spread out and down. The smoke from the gun drifted lazily up from the barrel. The blue eyes stared, lifeless, into the distance. Alex screamed...

He sat up in bed, sweating. He rested his head in his hands. Another night terror about that day. He could never stop replaying that one moment in time. With every vision the details began to get clearer. Alex checked the cheap digital clock on the nightstand beside him. Its red letters indicated that it was only 4:00 AM. He was too tired to stay up, but he couldn't go back to sleep, for fear of Jake's lifeless eyes staring back at him. Alex shuddered at the thought. Slowly, he stood up and wandered, as if lost, to the bathroom. Maybe a hot shower would make him feel better. He stepped in the shower and turned the water up to its hottest setting. Not surprisingly, the water was only lukewarm. After all, he was in the middle of the desert. The slightly warm water rushing over his body helped to stimulate his senses and drag him out of his post-dream state and into the real world. Feeling almost like-new, Alex stepped out of the shower and pulled on his other change of clothes. That reminded him, he needed to do his laundry. He snatched up his bag from the motel floor and pulled open the door. The cool desert night greeted him. The sky was the tentative color of blue just before the sun even thinks about coming on the horizon. Nobody else is awake as Alex made his way to the laundry room of the motel. He absentmindedly tossed his dirty clothes into the washer and started the load of laundry.

Since the old washer would probably take a while, Alex decided to wander around. As he was walking around aimlessly, he noticed that the diner was already open. The door let out a friendly little jingle as he walked in. He could smell the wonderful aroma of a pot of coffee brewing. Alex slid into a stool at the counter. The friendly waitress from the other day - what was her name? - welcomed Alex with a warm smile. "You're up early!" 

"Yeah, I couldn't sleep," he said, glancing at her name tag. That's right, her name's Alice. "Could I get some coffee?"

"Sure thing, Gio," Alice responded, pouring him a cup of the steaming beverage. 

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The sun had long risen over the desert horizon, and Alex was still chatting with the friendly waitress, Alice, from the diner. A friendly jingle came from the bell above the door as someone stepped inside the diner. Not wanting to talk, Alex kept his head down. "Morning, Sherriff," he heard Alice say, "will you have the usual?" His breaths quickened and his heart beat out of his chest as he heard the sherriff step closer to him. He suddenly became very interested in his coffee, looking down into the mug. "No thanks, I'm here strictly on buisiness today," the officer responded. "There was a murder up in the Seattle suburbs and the murderer is on the loose."

"What does that have to do with us, we're all the way in Arizona?" Alice asked.

"We have reason to believe that the suspect may be here, in Arizona, trying to make a break for Mexico. He hijacked a small plane that crashed at the airport several miles north of here." Shoot, they were on to him! Alex squirmed slightly in his seat and tried to remain as inconspicuous as possible. "Anyway, if you happen to see this man, give us a call." The sherriff slid a flyer onto the counter and then left. Alex examined the poster with a sideways glance. His breath caught in his throat. There was his school yearbook photo, staring back at him. Apparently there now was a $10,000 price on his head. Joy.

Alex slid a $20 bill across the counter. "I have to get going now," he said, trying to pretend that everything was fine. He strode quickly out the door, and once he was safely out of Alice's sight, he broke into a run back to the motel. Alex retrieved his clothes from the laundry and raced up to his motel room. Fumbling with the key, he stuffed his still-wet clothes into the bag. They would have to air dry. Breathlessly, Alex collected the rest of his belongings and went to return the key to his motel room. He opened the door, ready to give the key back to the friendly motel worker when he caught sight of the sherriff, talking to him. Alex kept his head down, as the sherriff strode calmly by, seemingly not noticing that he was there. He placed the key on the office desk, noticing that the receptionist looked at him for longer than usual. Alex turned and ran out the door. Damn it! There was no time for hitchiking now, Alex needed to put as much distance between him and the town. He looked around for any mode of transportation that he could. 

Alex noticed a dirt bike, still running, outside one of the houses. The poor owner probably had just ran inside to retrieve a forgotten item. He took the opportunity and ran with it. Alex hopped on the bike and roared away, out of town. No place was safe for him now.