Respect

Chapter 36: Follow The Road

Athena's POV
I had been driving for hours and the only thing in sight was miles and miles of forest. I felt as though I was stuck in some sort of time capsule, nothing was changing. But I never gave up, everything comes to an end, even a road.

It was pitch black out, the early hours of the morning. At first, I was worried that I'd run out of gas, but to my luck, the tank was full, and at the speed I was going, it wouldn't be going down any time soon.

I never slowed down even for a second. I had this strong feeling inside that Daniel was literally hunting me down. He wasn't going to stop until he got me back to that place. I wasn't going to let that happen. Not a chance.

I could feel my eyes falling. I was so exhausted. When they suddenly shot up at the beams of a car in front of me. I was dumbfounded, praying it wasn't his men, but it drove past me and looking ahead, I could see even more lights. I looked around in awe at the sight of civilisation and thought of freedom.

I was free

I stopped at some traffic lights and couldn't pin point where I was exactly, when all of a sudden, I heard honking. I looked out the window and noticed that there were some teenagers waving at me. I rolled down the window

"It's a lady!" I heard one shout

"Damn lady, nice ride. We don't have those around here" he said staring at the car in awe, whistling at the end.

I managed to mouth a 'thank you' as the lights turned green and drove off. I felt like I was showing off though, this car was insanely loud.

I kept driving, not looking back. I avoided looking into the rearview mirror as I was scared I'd see.... him.

I stopped at a truck stop and got out. The stares I got really made me feel uncomfortable. I felt out of place. It was obvious that Lamborghinis weren't a common in this area.

I approached a group of truck drivers chatting, drinking and refueling and just hoped they were friendly.

"Um.... Excuse me" I called softly, keeping my distance

"Yes, how can we help you miss?" one of the men asked politely

"I'm sorry to bother you, but I really need to ask.... What is this place? Where does this road go?" I asked nervously

My question seemed to leave them dumbfounded. Was it weird that I was asking for directions?

"You drive a Lamborghini.... And you're lost?"  a voice said from behind one of the trucks. I turned to see who it was, and could only smile shyly as he walked into sight.

He was tall and well built. He looked younger than the other truck drivers. He was wiping his hands clean, I think he was doing some sort of repairs. He wore a red plaid shirt, leaving five buttons undone, revealing his defined abs quite nicely, paired with dark Blue Jeans and leather cow boy boots. He looked like the perfect example of a country boy. Minus the cowboy hat that is.

"Am I expected to know where I am because of my, car?" I asked, genuinely confused.

He laughed, causing the other drivers to laugh as well. I was honestly confused.

"It has a GPS" he said plainly, almost sarcastically.

Wow
I felt stupid

I looked to my feet--embarrassed-- eyes widened, and fidgeted with my fingers.

"If you'd like, I could help you out?" he offered, ever so politely

"I'd love that, thank you" I blurted out

I walked back to the car slowly as he followed behind when it hit me.

I'm driving around in a place I don't know, which looks like a small town, in a freaking Aventador.

Daniel would find me in no time if I stayed with his car. If it had a GPS, and seeing as it's owned by some gang leader, surly it wouldn't NOT have a tracker.

"On second thought!" I blurted out, "maybe I could just.... Ride with you" I said quietly, hoping he never heard me.

I looked at him and felt so stupid and just opted to walk away.

"You know what, I'm sorry. That was stupid of me, I'm really sorry"

"I don't mind" he said in his deep voice, "But what about your.... I mean, why leave a car like that, in a place like this?"

"Oh no it's not mine!"

"Isn't that more reason to take care of it. I mean, won't the owner look for it? It'd be a shame to lose, millions, if it got damaged or something"

"Trust me, that's nothing. I'm sure he'll easily replace it" I said underneath my breath staring at the car.
"Oh no! Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry, that made me sound like some rich brat. I'm so sorry" I said, covering my mouth and running my hands through my hair.

"Nah, it's fine. You're cute. Not.... Snobbish, at least" he said smirking

He was friendly and charming to say the least. I could see us becoming friends if I wasn't too busy trying to get away from here.

"Let's go" he said leading me to his car

I was about to go with him when I realised-

I still had Daniel's gun

I quickly got into the car, grabbing the gun. I stared at it for a few seconds and wondered whether or not I should take it. I feared that the police would find the car; looking into it further, they'd find the gun, and trace it back to Daniel. I didn't want him to go to prison.

I was brought back to reality when the guy called out to me. He was just behind me, I few inches away from the door, when I quickly slipped the gun into the back of my jeans, covering myself.

"Let's go!" I said putting myself together

It was quite strange that I was riding with a man, I knew nothing about, to a place I never knew of. Well then again, I had been staying with Daniel, who compared to this guy, was far worse.

I got into his pickup and was immediately pulled into a whirlwind of thought. I didn't know what to do, nor where to go. My life was a mess.

"Are you okay?" he asked, snapping me out of my head

"Mm hm" I nodded

'There it is. Perfect'
I said to myself when I saw his cowboy hat placed nicely on the dash.

"By the way, Jayden Raid Ackerman" he said, I'm guessing to break the awkward silence, putting his hand out to shake mine, "but people just call me JR"

I chuckled at his formality

"Athena Grace O'Mara" I said equally cheerfully, shaking his hand, "but people just call me Athena"

"Nice to meet you miss Athena. And.... I'll be your chauffeur for the next.... Five hours" he paused to check his watch

"You're crazy" I said laughing

He started the car and before I knew it, I was off to where ever I would end up, yet again.