Wanderers (1st Draft)

The Kiss

Alice

Alice sits in between James and Mason at the table. She picks at her food, a bowl of pasta, olives, and feta cheese. Across the table sit Rixton, Amelia, and Jackson. At the head of the table sits Rixton's mom. She's in the middle of a story about how Rixton had rolled around in the mud with a pig when he was five. Jackson lets out a laugh and Rixton buries his face in his hands.

When no one's paying attention, Alice leans over to Mason. "So, what's with all the talk about you being married?" She whispers.

Mason looks at her and smiles. "I was wondering when you were going to bring that up."

Alice stares at him in shock. "So it's true? You're married?"

Mason nods his head.

"How long? What's her name? Why are you here and not with her?" Alice asks in a rush.

"Four years. Her name is Samantha. As for why I'm here, well, that's a little complicated." Mason says.

"We've got all night." Alice nods towards Rixton's mom. "I'm sure she has plenty of embarrassing Rixton stories to tell."

Mason laughs. He takes a deep breath and starts his story. "Okay. Well, when we got married we didn't have enough money to pay the wedding fees. Being young, and stupid, and in love, we got a loan from the local debt lord, Louis Rios. He gave us six months to pay him back, and in that time we forgot all about the debt. Love stricken newlyweds." He rolls his eyes and Alice smiles. "Anyway, when the time came to pay him back he sent his men out to collect the debt." He pauses and looks at his plate. After a few seconds he continues. "The debt more than tripled and we didn't even come close to having enough money to pay it off. Our only option was for me to agree to work for him, to work off the debt."

"And you did?" Alice asks.

"Yep. That is until I was sent to this one family to collect money. I had collected money from people before, but this time it was different. When I got to the house I was greeted by a little girl, she looked to be about two. She ran towards me on her stubby little legs, and when she stopped she smiled up at me. My heart melted and I knew I couldn't do it anymore." Mason explains.

Alice leans an elbow on the table. "What'd you do?"

Mason shrugs his shoulders. "I went home, told Samantha to pack her bags, and we left."

"Where is she now?" Alice asks quietly.

"She's living with her parents in Summerville." Mason says then takes a drink of water.

"Why aren't you there with her?" Alice blurts out. She doesn't understand why he'd be out here wandering around while his wife is somewhere else.

Mason leans back in his chair. "Because, Louis has a warrant out for my arrest. If I stay in one place for too long, someone's bound to recognize me. Louis currently doesn't know where Samantha is, and I plan on keeping it that way until I can figure something else out."