Illicit Liaison by Katelyn Skye

passed. The road emptied out onto the highway and they watched for signs that they were being followed but saw none. They did not dare stop though until the needle of the gas gauge buried itself in the red and the car was shuddering.
    Cars and semis filled the parking lot of the truck stop. The scent of exhaust hung over everything and there were groups of men and women standing around smoking cigarettes, drinking coffee and talking. None of them seemed to notice the three newcomers as they bustled into the place, bought shirts and blankets, a few stuffed animals, an insane amount of food stuffs and then sat down to eat giant hamburgers topped with extra cheese, fried onions and mushrooms and rich ketchup.
    They did not fill the car up; instead they paid for tickets on the bus lines whose agent stood behind a neat little counter on one side of the place. The bus pulled in half an hour later and they boarded. Jamie fell asleep almost as soon as Lolita draped a blanket over her and tucked the clever little travel pillow under her head but neither she nor Darien could rest.
    Their future rested on the shoulders of a man they could no longer trust.
     
    **
     
    Darien sat across from Jimmy. In the years between his release and now, Jimmy had aged substantially. His skin had gone the soft gray that came from spending too much time within stone walls, his hairline had receded, and he looked ten years older than his age.
    He enjoyed privileges others would have killed for: private rooms and conjugal visits by women who had names like Strawberry Passion and food that was prepared fresh with ingredients that had to be brought in especially for him. Time was slow behind bars though and it took a toll, no matter how easy the time was.
    “You got balls coming here,” Jimmy said as he lit a cigarette.
    “I did not have a choice and you know it. The minute the body count came up short you would have known we got out. Not to mention you are hooked into just about everything we do.”
    Jimmy laughed. His teeth were perfectly even and very white. His blue eyes crinkled at the corners. “This is true.”
    “What will it take to make you leave her alone?”
    “Your life.” Jimmy sat forward.
    The room was empty but for the two of them. Jimmy was never subject to the same rules that governed the other inmates, the two million dollars he put into the warden’s private account every year guaranteed that. The visitation room with its bulletproof glass and phones was not Jimmy’s style; instead they sat in a room designed for the conjugal visits that some prisoners other than Jimmy received.
    “What?”
    Jimmy laughed. “I want out of here. I need someone to take my place. I figure you owe me. Look at the life I gave you.”
    Anger rose up, but Darien did not let that show. His face never changed expression and his tone stayed even, “You gave me? I earned everything I ever got.”
    “You stole every single thing you have. Did you honestly believe nobody would ever try to take it all away?”
    “You better come up with a better reason. I owe you nothing.”
    “You have gotten really attached to Lolita. What would you say if she were captured? She is tough; she has been in prison before after all. Did you know she killed her step daddy? Makes you wonder what she might do to a husband, doesn’t it?” He laughed at his own wit.
    “Leave her alone.”
    “You can make sure she has a nice life, her and that half-wit sister of hers.”
    Darien’s fist shot out and landed in Jimmy’s face. The chair he sat on toppled backwards. His feet were straight up in the air and his back hit the floor so hard that his breath escaped from him in a long and breathy exhale. Before he moved to check on Jimmy the guard grinned and gave Darien a discreet thumbs-up.
    Therefore, the guards knew that Jimmy was protected. They might not, or may have, known why and were helpless to stop the favored treatment but that did not mean they liked it or him. As far