Dancing With The Devil

Chapter 14

A month after I had been broken out of the government building and thrust into Barcelona I found myself sitting quietly in a coffee shop in Glasgow, feeling more excited and apprehensive than I had in months when I looked outside expectantly. I had always laughed at people who complained about the weather in the UK. How could you be surrounded by such amazing land marks and history and be concerned with a light drizzle? I didn't think it could possibly be that bad, and besides, every girl claimed to love rain. I was no different. The smell was refreshing and the idea of rain was always so romatic. But now that I lived here I wasn't so sure I could ever love the rain again. Now that the seasons were changing for the colder the rain didn't stop. Ever. I was constantly sipping tea to keep warm and looking out the window in hopes that the rain had changed to glimmering white snow that I loved so much in Canada.

"You are looking well, Samantha."

My head snapped up at the sound of my newest name and a smile broke across my face. I was delighted to see Sophie again, but seeing my beautiful blonde friend was tainted by the fact that she had a new name that I didn't know and she only knew my name because she had been the one to send me the new paper work.

"Hey...you." I whispered, getting to my feet so I could wrap my arms around her in a tight hug. By some amazing means my best friend had gotten us both out of a position that I thought we would never escape. Yes, we still had to start all over again, in a new country with no money to our name and no friends to lean on, but we had made it. We were safe and each day was getting easier. Seeing her now and touching her- knowing that she was really there- almost seemed like a dream. We had actually done it.

"How have you been?" she asked as she sat down across from me, smiling knowingly when she peered down at black coffee I had purchased for her.

"Good." I said with a bright smile.

Sophie just raised an eyebrow at me. A month apart had not stopped her from being able to detect my lies.

I took a long swig of my steamed milk and sighed, leaning back in the comfy chair as I tried to figure out what I was going to tell my best friend. I had a hundred lies in my head that I wanted to dish out on her, showing her how well I had adapted and how grateful I was for everything she sacrificed. And I was grateful, but that didn't mean that this dramatic change hadn't come with its own struggles.

I spent about a week in Barcelona, lying through my teeth as best as I could. It was a struggle and I spent most of my time holed up in my hotel. I was too scared of slipping up and blowing my cover to exist outside the four walls of my room. Then, finally, a young man knocked on my hotel door and hand delivered a parcel. It had contained new documents that would get me into Scotland.

Yes, it was English speaking. And yes, it was my last destination so I was delighted. But it had still come with its own set of challenges. I was working a minimum wage job again, something I never thought I would have to do a second time. I was a first time renter and finding a decent place to fit into my budget had been hellish. Every day I worried about where my friend was and if she was alright, and in my free time I would search up my company. Thankfully, it was doing well, but it was hard to know my pride and joy had been handed over to someone else.

"It's taking time to get used to." I confessed. That handful of words almost made me burst out in tears. This had been one of the hardest things I had done in years.

"For me too." Sophie agreed. "I didn't think that moving here would be such a big change with the language being the same. If you can even call it the same."

"Sorry." I said with a soft smile, trying to be mindful of listening ears around me, "I keep forgetting where you live now. You're always bouncing around, moving in with a new lover every week." I teased, unable to stop smiling. She was so familiar in a foreign land and I had been so desperately lonely. Though this was a hard conversation to have I was still thrilled that she was here. Alive.

"Come, lets walk and talk, I've been inside all day." Sophie suggested.

My tech geek friend certainly didn't do the outdoors, especially not in the rain. But I knew as well as she did that listening ears were most unwelcome. I just shot her a grin and stood up, taking my steamed milk with me.

We walked down the Glasgow streets quietly as the crowds were still quite dense. By the time we reached a nearby park we were both soaked to the bone, but still smiling at each other. The park was stunning, a lush green place filled with trees, shrubs and ducks. I had come to love it quite quickly, but now it was deserted, the rain chasing everyone away. For once, I was thankful for being isolated. I wanted to ask her a thousand questions, but I didn't know how long I had with her, how much I was allowed to say, and honestly, I was so happy to see her that I didn't want to ruin my glee with a depressing conversation.

"You died your hair." Sophie said softly, clearly believing we were out of ear shot.

"I did. I've never had my hair a different colour, I thought it was time." I lied. My whole life I had beautiful caramel coloured hair. The fear of being recognized made me dye my hair a darker shade of brown, and to really change it up, I even asked for deep purple highlights. Remarkably, I managed to avoid looking like a teenager and ended up appreciating my stylist capabilities. On top of that I had also gotten my teeth whitened, started painting my finger nails, and dressed more casually. They were small changes, but I hoped they were enough.

Sophie hadn't died her hair, but she had chopped a good portion of it, bringing it up to her jaw. Her clothes were different too, more professional. I wondered if she had gotten a new job.

"How is everything?" I whispered.

"Hard." She admitted with a sigh. Her brown eyes flicked towards a couple that was running to get out of the downpour. "But very worth it. I took longer to get here than I thought. I had a few hiccups along the way. Thankfully, I've been settled in Edinburgh for about a week now."

I let out a sigh, Edinburgh was only an hour train ride away from me. At least she was close by, even if she wasn't in the same city. And knowing that she was safe, even if there had been bumps in the path, meant more to me than anything else. Not hearing from her had been torturous.

"What kind of bumps?" I pressed.

"Nothing that we need to worry about now." She shrugged. "We don't have a lot of time, I just wanted to make sure that you were okay. Do you have a place to live?"

"Yes, I have a small apartment. It's nothing special or glamorous, but it's a roof over my head and it's all I could afford since I work at a bookstore now. And you?"

"I started renting out the basement of a house today. Before that I was sleeping in a hostel. I'll start job hunting tomorrow, but I have enough money to keep me afloat for a few months if need be."

"Come live with me!" I blurted, immediately wanting to ease the burden on my friend.

"Samantha." Sophie said with a laugh, acting like I was absurd, but I saw a flash of fear in her eyes. "I need to be on my own two feet, you know that."

I heard exactly what she wasn't saying. She needed to be away from me. The more distance between us the better. We had been criminals hiding in plain sight before, but now we were criminals on the run. One bad step could land us both in prison. Or back in Anaheim.

"Of course, but I'm always here if you need me." I said with a smile, knowing that she could never truly lean on me like she used to.

"I know." Sophie lied back seamlessly. But I had known her for so long that I was able to see the brief flash of pain in her eyes. "But everything is good? You feel okay?"

"I feel fine. I think I've crossed the hardest parts. Like figuring out what the hell people are saying through their accents. But I've done this before. What about you?"

"I'm doing good too." She gave me an apologetic look as she took a small step away, "Thanks for the coffee, but I have to run. I'll send you another letter when I have some time."

"It was good to see you." I called out, but doubted she heard me over the rain as she turned away from me, leaving me alone in the downpour.

****Please vote and comment if you liked it. What do you think of Sophie?****