World of If

Night Bus

Somewhere near Gary, Indiana...

Danny yawned.

Outside his window it was dark and he knew it was late but he didn't care how late. Half the people on the bus were asleep and in the back of the bus somebody was snoring a little too loudly. He had another few hours before he reached the Illinois border and catch another bus. From there, he would go to Bloomington and from there to Chicago. He hoped if he traveled that night primarily no one would pay him any attention, but he also figured the way life rolled he wouldn't get that lucky.

He glanced out the window again, the only thing he could see now was the reflections of the streetlights and his own reflection. Afterwards, he tucked himself into the little space he had and tried to get some sleep.

The sun was just rising when he awoke again. Stretching Danny, ask the person behind him what time it was and where they were.

"A little bit before seven and just past the state border." Came the terse reply.

Sighing, he had nothing to do except watch the sunrise since he felt too jumpy to text anyone or get on social media. He couldn't wait until they stopped, his legs were beginning to cramp and he really had to pee. He had enough of the cramped, odoriferous bathroom on the bus.

Sometime later the bus arrived at the terminal and the people disembarked.

Danny glanced at his watch he still had a good half hour before his next bus came which was just enough time to freshen up and be ready to leave again. After doing his business he changed in the bathroom and brushed his teeth; it had been a long night and he still had a long way to go.

Afterwards he paid for his next ticket for the next leg of his journey then grabbed breakfast and a coffee shop around the corner, he had just enough time to eat something and get a cup of coffee before the bus came.

He was just getting back from the coffee shop when the dispatcher started squawking about the arrival the next bus, Danny glanced at his watch again, it would be a few minutes and likely he would see the bus pull up, though the terminal was already busy. He killed time checking things for the next leg of the trip and charging his phone in the only outlet he could find. He wondered if someone in Indiana had called the cops yet and if they were already looking for him. He had been careful but he couldn't account for everything.

So far, so good, next stop Bloomington, Illinois.

This was by far the shortest leg of his trip the trips through Chicago and Michigan would be longer. Hopefully he would have time to actually sit down in somewhere other than coffee shops; he made a mental note to find at least a McDonald's or a Burger King at his next stop. He didn't have the money for a nice dinner, at least not yet.

From Bloomington he would take the bus heading toward Chicago, but the further he traveled the more he knew he had to be careful and it wasn't until he reached the bigger cities he really started to worry. That was the first of many close calls. That was before he saw the article, that was when the trouble started.