[Sequel to The Merciless Black List Of Highland High]
Secrets and lies.
The very flesh and bone of the infamous Shameless Foursome guys.
Collin Adamms, the supposed creator of The Shameless Virginity Games, knows what it's like to make mistakes t...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Coast Starlight Amtrak.
That's how I'm getting to Portland, Oregon.
Despite living in California my whole life, I've never even heard of the thing but supposedly, the whole train trip through the West Coast takes thirty-five hours and promises outstanding views of the coastline for about 350 miles or so. Starting in Los Angeles and ending in Seattle.
Thirty-five hours in a train sound like reaching another dimension of personal hell to me despite the fact that I enjoy travelling. Luckily for me, I guess, I get on in Oakland seeing as that's the closest boarding station to San Francisco, which makes the time a little more bearable.
Carlos offers to drive me to Oakland. He also offers to pay for the ticket and when I refuse, he tries to push the idea of at least taking his money and being a little more comfortable by choosing a separate family suite all for myself down my throat. The thing is, I don't want his money. Or his ideas. I'm not the one that he has to do right by. And I'm almost certain the only reason why he's suddenly acting so nice and accommodating is because now he knows I could easily spill the truth to Rose, which he obviously doesn't want to happen.
In all honesty, I don't care where I sleep as long as I have a bed to sleep on. It doesn't matter whether I get the suite or the roomette but apparently to him it matters a whole lot.
I have to give it to him though, the guy isn't totally heartless, even though he most likely wishes he was. Because that way things would be easier. Less complicated. Must run in the family. He doesn't ask me any questions though, which definitely has to be internally challenging for the trained cop inside him, and for that alone I decide to swallow my pride and take the money because I know every penny counts as useful. I still have to get back to Los Angeles after my little visit in Portland is over, not to mention I have to buy food and pay for a motel for one night at least till I manage to track the West Linn facility down. This whole trip is already crazy as it is, I don't need to make it even crazier by hunting Courtney down the second I get off at the Portland station after nearly thirty hours of travelling.
The train stops in Redding, still in California for a short stop only when I decide to take out my phone – the one I powered down before I left LA. The sun is slowly setting down and I'm sprawled across the upper bunk bed inside the sleeper roomette I'm sharing with an older dude who might be in his late fifties or sixties, I suppose. He's already asleep, not giving a shit about the hills or the nature behind the window, snoring so loudly I can't ignore it anymore after enduring it for the past twenty minutes. So, music proves to be the only option and since there's no music on my other pre-paid phone, I don't have much choice in the matter.
The idea is stupid but in a little while I'm not even going to be in California anymore so it really doesn't matter that much whether Leal tries to track my phone down or not. I'm already too far gone.
I expect to be swamped with texts and missed calls so it doesn't really come as a surprise to see there's more than enough of them popping up on the screen. I don't read the ones from Jade because I've already spoken to her.
