Wake Up ||ONC 2021|| GxG

19. Please Dial A Number

Gas stations existed even in the middle of nowhere. It also turned out that Paula kept an emergency stash of cash in her center console storage and that twenty dollars bought a decent amount of chocolate. Esme reclined the front seat back as far as it would go, shoving the caramel filled squares into her mouth. The cashier had started to give her the 'no shoes, no shirt, no service' line, but another ten dollars pushed his way had moved things along.

Now she had her feet propped up on the dash and the dirt streaked across Paula's pretty leather interior made her smile. She'd been watching the man at the payphone for the last five minutes, waiting for him to finish up. The three quarters lined up on her lap glinted in the early morning sun.

He finally moved away and she reluctantly inched out of her reclined position and strolled over to the phone. The cashier inside nodded to her as she passed. Esme nodded back with a small smile. "Nice guy, wonder if he's going to try to kill me next," she mused.

Esme dropped the money into the slot and rested her hand on the phone. Most of her phone numbers were in her phone which she imagined was in Easton's car in a tow yard somewhere. She knocked her head gently against the phone box. "Come on stupid brain, work better." She worried her bottom lip between her teeth.

The constant thumping of her head against the metal edge began to make a gentle ache between her eyes. She pulled back and rubbed at the spot, squeezing her eyes shut.

Base camp, requesting pickup.

Agent 23 to base camp.

You can't call me on my cell idiot.

Esme laughed, lacing her fingers together behind her head. How was she meant to get anything done with her pudding brain? She trailed her fingers over the buttons, letting them click gently under them. She lingered over the numbers, slowly pushing them down one at a time. Esme lifted the phone to her ear and listened to the dial tone with the slow intermittent beeps.

It began to ring after the last number and she pressed the phone more firmly to her ear. The cashier inside eyed her, he'd gotten closer to the window while she dialed. Esme was suddenly extremely aware of the blood still visible even under the jacket she'd pulled out of Paula's back seat. Esme turned away and lowered her head.

"Grey and Jett Financial, how may I direct you call?" The voice on the other end was so official Esme immediately felt like a child making a prank call. She cleared her throat but only a squeak came out. "Hello?"

"I... um, so... dammit how do I do this?" Esme shuffled her feet, eyes glancing to the cashier and back to the ground.

"Ma'am, is there something I can help you with?" the woman asked.

"You have such a soothing voice Gina," Esme sighed.

"Escuse me?" Gina sputtered.

Esme grinned and straightened up suddenly. "Yes, hello, I'd like to check the balance of my account. Account number 00523."

"Oh," Gina said slowly. Keyboard clicks sounded through the phone; further soothing Esme's frazzled nerved. "Oh my god, is it really you?"

"Yeah, and I could really use some directions," Esme sighed. "Can you track my location and tell me where the heck I am?" She leaned against the payphone box, resting her head on her arm. "And quickly, I look insane, and the cashier is definitely suspicious."

"You look deranged," Gina mumbled. "I can see you, hold tight and I'll plot you a route."

Esme looked up, searching for cameras. She spotted the small black rectangle on the side of the building and gave it a thumbs up. A few minutes later she had a very basic set of directions and an address. Only moments after Esme had returned the phone to its cradle, she was picking it up again. Her fingers flew over the buttons with the same lost probing as before,

The voice that answered this time was a man's, slightly rough and haggard as if just waking from sleep. "Hello?"

"Hey dad, having another afternoon nap?" The teasing words fell from her lips without and prodding from her end. There was a feeling of familiarity to them.

"Esther! I was wondering when you were going to give us a call," he all but shouted over the phone. All traces of sleep quickly left his voice as he called for his wife. "Is everything ok?"

Esme nearly spilled every moment of the entire wretched day, starting with a single little no. But, she clamped her lips together tightly and was proud that there was no quiver in her voice when she answered, "everything is fine. I just thought I'd check in. I can't chat for too long but I'll call later okay?"

He was quiet for a moment, long enough for her to regret calling. This would put them on the map, someone would find them now and use them against her for something. She'd just gotten her father killed, the real one this time. Esme's mind raced in circles, each scenario worse than the last.

"Okay sweetpea, just don't wait so long between phone calls this time. You know we miss hearing your voice," he finally said.

"Sure thing, talk to you later dad. Tell mom I said hi." The line beeped once and then the dial tone began to drone on. She dropped the phone back in place and stepped back, her knees practically knocking together. The entire call had been less than five minutes yet it had left her more exhausted than two car crashed and a kidapping.

Esme slid into the car, rolling her eyes at the returned banging coming from the trunk. "Shut up, Paula," she called back.

As she drove out of the gas station, Esme aimed for a pothole and smirked when the banging stopped. "Now that we've got some time to chat, I'd love to tell you all about those spreadsheets you screwed up in December. How do you even confuse model measurements with ages? How many numbers do you think there are in someone's age? We weren't hiring vampires." Esme laughed and turned onto the main road. "This is gonna be fun."