Stable Connection

Chapter Three

 

 

Jon’s POV

            I changed into the sweatpants and sweatshirt that I was wearing the day I was booked into prison and handed the prison uniform back to the guard on the way out of the bathroom; it was weird being back in normal clothes again, I can only imagine what its going to feel like once I step foot out those doors. I collected my wallet and watch from the front desk and the woman behind the counter wished me luck as I took my last few steps toward freedom. Walking out the California sun hit me full force and I rolled up the sleeves on my sweatshirt before heading in the direction of the bus stop; luckily I still had a few dollars in my wallet to pay for the ride to the bus terminal where I would get my first of four tickets to Texas. I only had to wait about ten minutes before the bus arrived but it was another forty minute ride around the city before it stopped at the bus terminal and I could get off to catch the next one.

            I got off the city bus and made my way up to the main office at the bus terminal; just as Thomas said there were four greyhound tickets waiting there for me, I took the tickets and went to the waiting area to sit down while I waited for the correct bus to arrive; the first bus would take me to the edge of Arizona, the second across Arizona to the edge of New Mexico, the third across New Mexico to the edge of Texas and the last bus would take me to the town where I would meet Thomas. All in all the trip would take me two full days so I was scheduled to show up on Saturday afternoon if everything went as planed. When my bus arrived I climbed on and headed to the back to find a seat; I made myself comfortable and allowed myself to fall asleep a few minutes into the ride.

            I slept most of the first bus ride and after we stopped at the next terminal I walked around for a few minutes and stopped at a vending machine to get some chips and a drink; it was only an hour later when the next bus showed up and once I was loaded I passed the time reading a magazine that was left in the seat by someone else and enjoying the view. It was dark out by the time that bus stopped and I just walked around for a while in the terminal while I waited for the next one to show up; being bored out of my mind I decided to just go back to sleep for the long ride across New Mexico. The driver announced that we were at the terminal waking me up and I was surprised to find that it was daylight again; I stopped at the vending machines to get some more snacks and another drink and the next bus arrived about thirty minutes later.

            The last bus ride wasn’t nearly as long as the first three but after two full days of riding buses I was ready for the trip to be over; I hopped off the bus and went to the waiting area to wait for Thomas to arrive to get me. The waiting area slowly cleared out as everyone else made their way to their waiting cars or called people to come pick them up; the bus was running ahead of schedule so I figured I still had a good thirty minutes before Thomas would get there. I was about to get up from my seat to go see if there was anything good in the nearby vending machines when someone with a thick southern accent called my name from behind me; I turned around to see a tall man with light brown hair, green eyes, and a light brown cowboy hat standing next to the doorway.

“Jon King?” He asked again when I turned around.

“Yeah, that’s me.” I replied walking up to meet him by the door.

“Nice to meet you son, my name is Thomas Walker.”