Chapter 2
There were some things he needed to buy, to wit a small camp shovel and a couple of pairs of warm hiking pants to augment his jeans, and packs of freeze-dried food. He’d worry about that in the morning.
When he was finished, he got Orion’s leash and he and the dog set out for their evening walk. The night was balmy for early fall, with a three-quarter moon above them. An auspicious start to my new life. It’ll be full by the time we get to the mountains.
As he walked past her front yard, the nice woman who lived two doors down from Hugh’s apartment building said, “You look happy.”
“Meaning I usually don’t?” he replied, grinning.
“Not often. Mostly you seem to be carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders.”
“I suppose I do,” he admitted. “I’ve decided to do something about it. This is between you, me, and the fencepost.” He gestured to one of the posts on her picket fence, getting a laugh from her. “I’m moving to the mountains Saturday morning.” He didn’t bother to tell her he’d be living rough until he decided where he’d settle for the long term—if he did.
“That will be a big change,” she replied. “I have the feeling, from looking at your expression, that it’ll be a good one, too.”
“I sure hope so. I’m sick and tired of city life. I need my freedom.”
“If I were younger, male, and—” she winked at him, “—gay, I’d offer to join you.”
He chuckled. “If you were, I’d take you up on it. Right now it’s only me and Orion. Not that he isn’tgreat company, but he lacks something in the conversational department.”
“And makes up for it by being protective, I’m sure, in case you run into a feral rabbit.”
Grinning, he replied, “As long as it’s not a rabid rabbit, I’ll be fine.”
“Try saying that three times.” She leaned over the fence to give him a hug. “You take care, and keep in touch. You know my number.”
“I will,” he told her, knowing it wasn’t the truth. Two of the things remaining behind when he left would be his phone and laptop.
He and Orion continued on, stopping twice to chat with neighbors they knew from Orion’s walks. Then they returned home. After taking the partially full backpack into the living room, Hugh showered and crawled into bed. It took him a while to fall asleep, as he went over everything he needed to do, and to remember to pack—but eventually he did.
* * * *
Friday morning, Hugh stopped by his former place of work to pick up his paycheck. From there, he went to the bank to cash it and withdraw what money he had in his savings and checking accounts. His last stop was at another bank, where he opened a new account, since he wouldn’t need to take any cash with him if everything went the way he planned. The real reason he’d closed out his former accounts was to metaphorically thumb his nose at his father, as he thought of it. When he realizes I’m gone, he might try to see if I left with enough money to support myself. As far as he’ll know, I did. Another way to keep him from trying to track me down.
One of the things he’d done on Thursday was go online to his bank to pay off his credit card. Then, witha fair amount of satisfaction, he’d cut it up and tossed it in the trash. He’d also shredded all the paperwork from what would soon be his former life, with the exception of his birth certificate, driver’s license, and social security card. While he doubted he’d need them, he wasn’t na?ve enough to believe he might not, sometime in the future—just as he might need the cash that was now sitting in his new bank account.
Early Saturday morning, after doing one more check to make certain he had everything he needed, Hugh put the backpack—with the sleeping bag and tent strapped to the top—and bow case in the trunk of his car. Then, with Orion riding shotgun, they headed to the mountains.
Hugh had already planned where he’d leave the car. It took an hour to get to the campground a mile outside of a small town forty miles west of the city. It was a popular spot for people who planned to spend a weekend or a week exploring the surrounding mountains. No one would question his car sitting in the lot for an extended period of time. On the off chance they did at some point, he’d be long gone.