ENDS

Chapter 49- Hope

Third person p.o.v.

They had been driving for some hours now, only hitting a stop to refill their gas tank with the extra gallon of fuel that Soldo always demanded be left at the back seat of every vehicle ever used on a mission.

Jeanie and Santiago had swapped positions an hour ago so he could take a nap because he was exhausted.

Everyone else in the car were fast asleep and Jeanie was the only one wide awake, she had taken a brief nap at some point.

The radio stations were shuffling between songs and there weren't really any news headlines during the wee hours, so she had to stick with random mix of songs including those she knew well enough and those she was hearing for the first time.

The day was getting brighter quite slowly and she believed the time was between five to six am. She didn't go around with a wristwatch so she wasn't so sure of the time but she was certain her guess was right, it was part of their trainings with Soldo to be able to tell the time from the intensity of the sun and how shadows were cast.

It always came in handy in a lot of missions.

But she was tired of being useful in the death of others, she wanted to have a meaningful life that didn't include bloodstains or guns.

As much she loved the family she had made there, she felt she would love her freedom a lot more.

Sometimes she wished she had been left in the streets to rot, probably might have discovered a better life.

Maybe go to school and get a degree, with this job she wasn't able to achieve that. The only degree she has been awarded in her life is best in deletion from the crew at the age of twelve.

She learnt how to clear up traces of even the most gruesome murders from the age of eight.

The flashes of scenes crossed her mind at intervals and she couldn't help but cringe countless number of times at the way she once derived joy from such a horrible act.

She knew she wasn't the only one who wanted out of that demon hole, Santiago was obviously tired too for him to agree to escaping with the innocent girl.

And there were a lot more people who wanted out, from their sad faces to the solaces they found from cannabis and marijuana. She only hoped they could find their way out someday.

Even though they all knew the penalty of such sin is death.

Deep down in her thoughts, it was only a matter of time before they hunted her down and ended her but she only prayed that she had at least a year of fresh air.

She needed it.

While lost in her wandering mind she hadn't noticed the boy in the passenger seat was already awake.

"Good morning" he said as he stared at her with his dull brown eyes.

She jerked out of fear and lost control of the steering for a second before regaining composure.

"sorry..." he whispered realizing she wasn't expecting his greetings.

"It's fine" she replied and maintained her focus on the road once again.

She had no idea where she was headed, but so long as there was a road, there was definitely a city or town somewhere.

It was getting a lot brighter and it disturbed her because it was a sign to prove they were out of time to escape and slowly panic creeped into her mind.

She wished she was still lost in her mind somehow, so she began thinking of what could distract her.

She turned to the guy who had just greeted her and noticed he was a little sad, from her reaction to him or from the hospital, she wasn't sure but she decided it was best to strike a conversation now as she also needed it.

"What's your name?" she asked and the boy looked to her to he sure he was the one been spoken to.

After confirming that he was the only one awake asides her, he replied her question.

"Colby"

Jeanie nodded and pursed her lips to show she was listening but he didn't say anything else.

She didn't know how to hold a conversation with someone who didn't need her services, so this felt a lot more awkward than it actually seemed in her head.

"I'm Jeanie" she said hoping it would make him say something.

"Nice to meet you Jeanie" he said

"Nice to meet you too Colby." She replied and exhaled before continuing. "Where's your family?"

She didn't know if that was a wrong question to ask at the moment but his facial expression afterwards made her wish she had chosen another topic to discuss.

"Dead." That was all he said and maintained his silence.

From his voice, you could tell he was fighting back tears and she felt that in her soul because she could relate to him in so many levels.

"Me too" she added to make him know that he was not alone in this. "All of them"

Colby turned to look at her just to be sure she wasn't lying to make him feel better but when he saw how serious she was he couldn't hold back the tears that had been threatening to fall ever since he woke up to reality.

"I'm sorry." He blurted out in between each tear drop that he had managed to wipe off but the streams kept flowing.

"I'm sorry too" she consoled and found herself also fighting back tears she didn't know were there.

To these two, the world was cruel. Putting them in situations they had to fight tooth and nail to get themselves out of.

They didn't ask to be here, years ago they wouldn't have wished to be here but life had a twisted way of making things happen

And everyone concludes 'it all happens for a reason'

Maybe there was a reason it actually all did happen.

Maybe life had a plan for Colby and Jeanie

But until they discovered what fate they were built for, right now they were two people who had silently lost hope.