e. jacqueline corey (ejcorey) wrote in inferusterra, @ 2009-07-29 21:59:00 |
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The morning after Jackie had told Liam (she really hadn’t been asking) that they were going to New Jersey, she’d shown up outside where he was staying. Her hunk of junk car had taken them Highway Ten all the way to Moss Point, which was the closest they could get to the State border without sending up too many red flags. In Moss Point it had just been a matter of waiting for the right smuggler to come along. Truckers did their rounds so frequently; going through all places in the country, that it could be easy to hitch a ride with one if you knew the right cities to stop in. After that it was just a matter of luck in getting a trucker that wasn’t going to take your money and then promptly turn you over to the nearest authorities. Some were greedy enough.
Luckily, it had been easy to spot that this particular smuggler was on the up and up (as much as someone handling illegal matters could possibly be), because he’d already picked up his fair share of people along the Interstate. Space was tight, quarters smelled terrible, but all in all it could have been worse. She could have been stuck in a small car with just Liam, seeing him stare out of the corner of her eye, and wishing she could do something to ease the blade of tension cutting through them.
Getting across the first state border was the worst. The entire time the truck was getting cleared by the Nazi Regime, her breath was caught in her throat. If they could get through this, out of Louisiana and into Mississippi, Jackie had no doubt they could get to New Jersey. Despite her fear, she kept a cool head—the only sign of her troubled mind being displayed when she put her hand on top of Liam’s gloved one and squeezed.
Once they were in, a weight was lifted. She didn’t fear the next boarders. It came easily. The only cause for concern was how many more people the trucker was picking up along the way in each different state. Space was limited, personal bubbles were not respected, smells were shared, and Jackie caught the brunt of it. She figured that she could take a little discomfort, since the alternative was Liam being overly exposed to human flesh, which would result in a goddamn mess. It was much better to avoid trouble if they could.
And almost a week later, they were finally on the state boarder between Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Easton was where the trucker had finally unloaded a majority of his cargo. He wasn’t going into Jersey or New York, so he was leaving several people to find their own way across the boarder. Since he’d gotten them this far, Jackie couldn’t really complain. They were all dropped off at a by-the-road motel, and while Liam waited, Jackie made a dash for the payphone across the street.
Her cell phone hadn’t been turned on since leaving Louisiana for fear of hearing the onslaught of angry messages from Roxy. Instead of facing that hell storm, Jackie just left Roxy a message, “It’s me. I’m fine. Relax. Call you in a few days. Love you, bye.” And then one last one for Franky, “Fuck you man, I just risked imprisonment, my life, and my basic and sexual sanity coming across the country. You’d really better be dead.”
Jackie returned back across the street and sat down next to Liam on the curb, letting her head rest in her head. By this point, she felt dirty—greasy hair, sweat-covered clothes, and huge bags under her green eyes. If there was anything to keep Liam from touching her by this point, it was definitely her appearance… and probably her smell. “So,” she said, finally making eye contact with him. “Should we try to figure out how to jump over the last hurdle, or should we get a room for the night?” The silence clung in the air after she finished her statement, and upon realizing how it sounded, she smirked and shook her head. “Sorry, I’m tired. I meant get a room to y’know, actually sleep for a full night without worryin’ about someone tryin’ to pick-pocket us.”