On Sleepless Roads
Chapter Seventeen
Ryan’s POV
There was no answer so I slowly opened the door.
It took me a moment but I finally found Marti.
She was sitting in the corner nearest to the door,
Hidden by the door until I closed it.
She was crying which made me feel even worse.
I sat down next to her but I didn’t know what to say.
So finally I decided to start with an apology.
“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.” I said softly.
Marti didn’t answer,
Instead she looked away from me.
“I promise that whenever I found out anything I’ll tell you.” I said.
Marti didn’t look at me as she replied.
“And how do I know that you’re not lying?” She asked.
I didn’t have an answer for her.
“I want to go home.” She whispered.
That surprised me.
“To your mom?” I asked.
Marti shook her head.
What could she mean by home then?
“What home?” I asked.
The words came out harsher than I meant them to.
“Australia, my grandfather.” She whispered.
I hadn’t even thought about the possibilities that she had grandparents and aunts and uncles,
Besides the ones we shared I mean.
“Have you seen him since you moved here?” I asked.
Marti shook her head.
I never really thought that she might miss Australia.
I mean, Las Vegas is my home,
Always has been and always will be.
I never thought that it would be different for her.
“If you promise to stop running away then I’ll promise to tell you everything that I hear about your mom.” I said a few minutes later.
It took a while but finally Marti agreed.
“I don’t want to go back to her.” Marti said suddenly.
She was still looking away from me so I couldn’t tell if she was crying or not.
“We’re trying to make it so that you don’t have to.” I said.
“That won’t stop her.” Marti said softly.
I didn’t know what to say to that.
“We won’t let her.” I said finally.
I sounded more confident than I felt.
“You don’t know that.” Marti said.
I stared at her in surprise.
“What?” I asked.
“You don’t know what she’s capable of.” Marti whispered.
The way she said it sent chills up my spine.
“Then tell me what she’s capable of.” I said.
Marti hesitated and then shook her head.
“I can’t.” She said.
I didn’t push the issue.
Just getting her to admit that her mom did bad things to her was a big step.
“Why do you always run away?” I asked a few minutes later.
Marti stiffened next to me and shrugged.
I had a feeling that this meant that our talk was over.
It was just as well,
I was exhausted,
And judging by Marti’s yawn she was too.
“I think that we should both go to bed now.” I said,
Trying to stifle my own yawn.
Marti nodded and struggled to her feet.
“So you won’t run away tonight?” I asked.
She shook her head.
“And you won’t keep things from me?” She asked.
I smiled and shook my head.
It seemed like a pretty good compromise.
“Then I’ll see you in the morning.” I said.
Marti nodded.
“Good-night.” She said.
“Good-night.” I replied as I shut her door.
That had been a lot less awkward than I had thought it was going to be.
Marti’s POV
Even though I was exhausted I found that I couldn’t sleep.
I had absolutely no way of knowing if Ryan would tell me everything that he knew.
I had to trust him,
And that wasn’t easy for me to do.
I trusted only three people,
Mark, Maddie and my Grandfather.
To let a fourth person join that group was hard for me.
Especially one who had already shown that he didn’t deserve my trust.
Mark, Maddie and my Grandfather had never done anything that hurt me before,
They’d never kept anything from me or even yelled at me.
I rolled over onto my side and sighed loudly.
It didn’t really seem like I had any choice but to trust Ryan.
Running away didn’t seem like it was going to work anymore.
I always got caught now.
Apparently someone with a lot of power did not want me to leave.
I mean,
Come on,
Fall Out Boy catching me?
What are the chances?
There was no answer so I slowly opened the door.
It took me a moment but I finally found Marti.
She was sitting in the corner nearest to the door,
Hidden by the door until I closed it.
She was crying which made me feel even worse.
I sat down next to her but I didn’t know what to say.
So finally I decided to start with an apology.
“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.” I said softly.
Marti didn’t answer,
Instead she looked away from me.
“I promise that whenever I found out anything I’ll tell you.” I said.
Marti didn’t look at me as she replied.
“And how do I know that you’re not lying?” She asked.
I didn’t have an answer for her.
“I want to go home.” She whispered.
That surprised me.
“To your mom?” I asked.
Marti shook her head.
What could she mean by home then?
“What home?” I asked.
The words came out harsher than I meant them to.
“Australia, my grandfather.” She whispered.
I hadn’t even thought about the possibilities that she had grandparents and aunts and uncles,
Besides the ones we shared I mean.
“Have you seen him since you moved here?” I asked.
Marti shook her head.
I never really thought that she might miss Australia.
I mean, Las Vegas is my home,
Always has been and always will be.
I never thought that it would be different for her.
“If you promise to stop running away then I’ll promise to tell you everything that I hear about your mom.” I said a few minutes later.
It took a while but finally Marti agreed.
“I don’t want to go back to her.” Marti said suddenly.
She was still looking away from me so I couldn’t tell if she was crying or not.
“We’re trying to make it so that you don’t have to.” I said.
“That won’t stop her.” Marti said softly.
I didn’t know what to say to that.
“We won’t let her.” I said finally.
I sounded more confident than I felt.
“You don’t know that.” Marti said.
I stared at her in surprise.
“What?” I asked.
“You don’t know what she’s capable of.” Marti whispered.
The way she said it sent chills up my spine.
“Then tell me what she’s capable of.” I said.
Marti hesitated and then shook her head.
“I can’t.” She said.
I didn’t push the issue.
Just getting her to admit that her mom did bad things to her was a big step.
“Why do you always run away?” I asked a few minutes later.
Marti stiffened next to me and shrugged.
I had a feeling that this meant that our talk was over.
It was just as well,
I was exhausted,
And judging by Marti’s yawn she was too.
“I think that we should both go to bed now.” I said,
Trying to stifle my own yawn.
Marti nodded and struggled to her feet.
“So you won’t run away tonight?” I asked.
She shook her head.
“And you won’t keep things from me?” She asked.
I smiled and shook my head.
It seemed like a pretty good compromise.
“Then I’ll see you in the morning.” I said.
Marti nodded.
“Good-night.” She said.
“Good-night.” I replied as I shut her door.
That had been a lot less awkward than I had thought it was going to be.
Marti’s POV
Even though I was exhausted I found that I couldn’t sleep.
I had absolutely no way of knowing if Ryan would tell me everything that he knew.
I had to trust him,
And that wasn’t easy for me to do.
I trusted only three people,
Mark, Maddie and my Grandfather.
To let a fourth person join that group was hard for me.
Especially one who had already shown that he didn’t deserve my trust.
Mark, Maddie and my Grandfather had never done anything that hurt me before,
They’d never kept anything from me or even yelled at me.
I rolled over onto my side and sighed loudly.
It didn’t really seem like I had any choice but to trust Ryan.
Running away didn’t seem like it was going to work anymore.
I always got caught now.
Apparently someone with a lot of power did not want me to leave.
I mean,
Come on,
Fall Out Boy catching me?
What are the chances?