Second Spirit -8- by Melanie Brown

Second Spirit

By

Melanie Brown

Advisor: Lisa Charlene
Copyright © 2024

Part 8

Holding my hand tightly, Kajika led me through the bus depot’s parking lot. I kept glancing around, worried about spotting any cops. I was also still afraid of seeing those two criminals. We had no idea if they’d been caught or not.

Being noonish, it was already sweltering hot, and the heat bouncing off the asphalt of the parking lot just made things worse. I tugged on Kajika’s hand.

“I’m thirsty,” I whined as we approached the bus terminal.

Kajika frowned at me. “Stop being so dramatic. I’m sure they have a water fountain.”

I dragged my feet. “I’ll never make it.”

“I’m going to leave you behind.  The depot is literally twenty feet away. Sheesh.”

After what seemed like ages in the blistering heat we stood before the depot’s entrance.

Kajika looked down at me. “Remember. I’ll do all the talking.”

“Do you see any cops in there?” I asked nervously.

He shook his head after peering through the glass windows of the depot. “Nope. Coast is clear.” He pushed the door open, and a wave of refrigerated air rolled onto us. I sighed with relief.

I was annoyed that there was a line to get to the counter. Kajika pointed across the room. “There’s your water fountain. And while you’re at it, go ahead and take a piss too. We’ve got a long wait in this line.”

I nodded and walked over to the fountain. The water that came out was so cold and wonderful. I probably drank more than I needed to. After being done with that, I went to the women’s restroom. I almost walked into the men’s. Hey, I haven’t even been a girl a full day yet.

I’m not only new at being a girl, but I’m about to get on a bus with a boy I don’t know to take a trip to someplace that’s a sanctuary based on his word alone. Am I nuts? I shook my head as I pulled my new shorts down and sat down on the toilet. I’ve only been a girl a few short hours, and the police and a pair of international criminals are already chasing me. Should I even ask what’s in store for me tomorrow? Probably not.

I returned to stand in line next to Kajika. We were next up.

Kajika and the woman at the counter had a discussion for several minutes before he forked over some cash. The woman looked confused at first seeing cash. Jokingly, she said, “Y’all runnin’ from the law or something? Don’t usually get cash.” She grinned as she took the cash.

Kajika frowned and said, “Yeah, or something.” The woman’s grin dropped as she handed Kajika what I assumed were tickets and a pamphlet.

As he turned from the counter, he handed me the pamphlet. “Here, squirt. Hang on to that.”

As we walked over to a row of seats, I looked over the pamphlet, which turned out to be our bus schedule.

Sitting down, I said, “What the hell? We have to take a cab for thirty miles over to Gallup? That’s insane.”

Kajika nodded. “That’s what I said. Apparently, it’s the only way to get to the bus going to Colorado from here. But it’s all in the travel plan.”

I folded my arms. “This is stupid. I don’t like it. Too much risk.”

Kajika shrugged. “Like it or not, the cab will be here in about fifteen minutes.”

I looked at the ticket and looked back at Kajika. “You used your real name, Einstein?”

“Sorry, I forgot. But, we’re both nobodies right?”

I sighed. “I hope so.”

                    *

The cab ride to Gallup, New Mexico, was largely uneventful. That is if you don’t count our chatty cab driver. Turns out this run is his main gig. He likes the drive. He asked if we were brother and sister and Kajika just said we were. He wanted to know where we were headed. We didn’t answer that.

The first disaster of the day was that we’d missed the first bus to Albuquerque. I had to look at the pamphlet to check the spelling. The second disaster was while waiting in the bus terminal for the next bus. A little girl around five wanted me to play dolls with her while her mother looked on.

The wait seemed forever, but the bus finally rolled into the terminal. When you’re waiting and in a hurry, time really drags. Even though we had a snack before finally boarding the bus, we didn’t have time to eat lunch, so I was starving when we got on the bus. And it was going to be hours before we arrived at Albuquerque.

“I’m hungry,” I whined as we climbed the steps to enter the bus.

Kajika handed me a chocolate bar. “Here. Now go grab a seat. Remember, I get a window seat so I can watch out for cops.”

The bus took almost twenty minutes to take on passengers. Kajika kept a nervous lookout, watching for any signs of the police. We were both wanted, after all. The bus started to roll. Our two-hour bus ride to Albuquerque was starting. I sure hope they stop somewhere for lunch. After our stop in Albuquerque, we make a left turn towards Santa Fe, then north to Colorado.

Thankfully, we had an extended stop at Albuquerque, where I got a soda and a hotdog. It was then a seven-hour long ride to Colorado Springs. This was going to be a long-ass day. I wished I had my car. We could have driven there faster.

The bus driver announced that we were going to stop at Santa Fe to take on a few passengers.

A few miles out from Santa Fe, Kajika exclaimed, “Ah shit!” The bus started to slow down.

“What’s going on? There’s no stop here.” I said.

“Cops,” said Kajika simply. “There’s like six cop cars ahead.”

“Well fuck!” I exclaimed making a few passengers look at me strangely. “What do we do?”

He plopped back into his seat. He dug into his pockets and handed me what was left of our money and the tickets. He sighed. “Looks like my ride ends here, girl. Take the money and try to make it. I’ve given you the phone number to call when you get to Colorado Springs.”

Scared shitless, I stammered, “Maybe it’s not you they’re after. Maybe they detected a donut on the bus.”

He shook his head. “They could be here for someone else. Let’s hope so.”

The bus came to a stop along the row of police cars, all with their lights flashing. After a moment, a chubby sheriff entered the bus and spoke with the driver for a couple minutes.

The sheriff picked up the driver’s microphone and clicked it. “We’re looking for one K… ah, Kage eka Rainwater. Son, make it easier for all of us and present yourself now. We have an outstanding warrant for your arrest issued by the Tribal Authority at the Navajo Nation headquarters in Window Rock, Arizona.  Boy, I know you’re here.”

Frowning, I said, “Next time, bucko don’t use your real name.”

He scowled at me. “Oh, shut up.” He stood up and waved. “I’m here, officer. Please don’t shoot.”

The sheriff chuckled. “Come on up here, son. I don’t plan to shoot anyone. If you promise not to try to run off, I won’t even cuff you. It says you’re a runaway.” Another officer stepped inside the bus.

As Kajika walked toward the front of the bus, the sheriff pointed toward me. “Is that girl with you?”

He turned back to look at me. “I’ve never seen the bitch before.”

“No need to be rude, boy. Come along.” Kajika was led from the bus to a waiting patrol car. I moved over to the window seat so I could watch him be put into the car. He looked at me through the window as the bus slowly drove away.

Fuck it all to hell! Now, what do I do? I’m alone. On a bus heading to Colorado. Do I use the phone number I was given? Do I just run away? I’m a twelve year old girl with no identity and all alone. I’m even more scared shitless than I was a few minutes ago. My money won’t last. I fell back against my seat. I looked up and silently shouted, “Look! I’m sorry I was rude to you. Please change me back!” And, of course, nothing happened.

I was crying, staring out my window as the bus drove into the Santa Fe depot to take on new passengers. I closed my eyes and felt sorry for myself as I felt the bus take on new passengers and drop off a few others.

“Well, hello, honey. Fancy meeting you here.” I felt someone sit next to me.

I turned and saw in terror, sitting next to me was Carl, the trafficker!

End of Part 8