Freak of Nature - By Julia Crane Page 0,52

at the gas station’s words—bad people. Why was there so much wicked in the world? What would make someone want to hurt a defenseless woman?

Kaitlyn scanned her information drive and was appalled to see that in the United States alone over 1.2 million incidents of violent crimes were reported yearly. Over 90,000 of those incidents involved rape.

She stewed over the statistics for many miles, and it fueled her desire to make the world a better place. Could one person really have that much of an impact? One less woman being abused would be something.

Without being obvious she observed the passengers. It was interesting to see people outside the setting of the compound. She wondered if anyone on the bus had been a victim of a crime, or if there were criminals on board. More than likely there were both.

There was a young couple sitting diagonal from her. They didn’t seem to be very happy. The young woman had her arms crossed against her chest and the man stared out the window. She wondered if they were in a fight and if so what about? She felt a pang of loneliness for Lucas. She would probably never see him again.

An old lady sat across from Kaitlyn. She pulled yarn out of her bag and started knitting. Kaitlyn watched her old hands move at a rapid pace. Kaitlyn was fascinated as the yarn started to become a large square.

The old woman caught her eye and smiled.

“Do you knit?”

Startled Kate shook her head no.

“It’s relaxing. Helps make the time pass. I could teach you if you want.”

“No, thank you.”

The woman shrugged and went back to her knitting.

Maybe she could fit in. So far no one had treated her differently. Other than some gross guy with a mustache that kept turning to leer at her. Doing a scan Kaitlyn realized the man was sexually aroused. The thought repulsed her. She wanted to use a pressure point to make the man pass out, but she knew that was not a good idea. She didn’t need to draw attention to herself in the enclosed environment.

Why Fort Lauderdale? Why couldn’t she remember if it was her home?

In Alexandria, she switched to the train without incident. The further south they went the less the leaves had changed. The stunning red, golds and orange turned to all green. She watched the sun set and rise again from her window seat.

She dozed off with her head against the cool window and dreamed of Evan. Only this time, the dreams were more than just flashes. They were complete scenes. They had been in love; that much was obvious.

Kaitlyn woke up from a particularly vivid Christmas memory. She had just been about to open a small package from Evan, her cheeks flushed with happiness. She searched her memories but couldn’t find that one.

As the train drifted into the station, she wondered what it meant that she was dreaming and thinking of Evan when her heart ached for Lucas.

Chapter Twenty-Three

After twenty-one hours on the road, between trains stops and layovers, the train finally pulled into the station. She was certain she hadn’t been followed. Search teams were probably still combing the woods for her.

When Kaitlyn got off the train in Fort Lauderdale, she had a feeling she had been there before.

Could her instincts have taken her home? The thought scared her. What was she going to do, just waltz back into her old life?

She was way beyond that point.

Maybe she could get back on the train and go further south, or even west. But there was something about the coast line that was drawing her in, so she shouldered her bag and started walking. Palm trees lined the road. For some reason this made her miss Quess, and their walks. A palm tree could never replace her favorite birch tree.

Kaitlyn wandered down the highway, following the signs that said “Beach”. She crossed a large bridge. Cars whizzed by, and a few of them honked their horns. She had no idea what that meant. The smell of the salt air tugged at a memory. She was getting fragments, but nothing strong and overpowering like the earlier memories. She must have spent a lot of time near the ocean in her past life, which would explain the pull.

A parking lot edged up against the sand, and Kaitlyn mounted the long boardwalk that led down to the beach. Neon lights ran down the length of the boardwalk. People sat on the edging, bikers road by and