A Life for A Life

*Caitlyn’s POV*

Two weeks I’ve been waiting and the boys were on a four day break in Montana. They took it to their advantage to sleep in a hotel during the time. I didn’t blame them. I was pretty sick of this bus too.

It also meant I could roam around on the bus without getting caught. I stayed away from the windows though, the last thing I needed was people looking in and seeing me. I felt slightly better being able to sleep on one of the bunks. I made sure to stay on Louis’s, since I was sure he wouldn’t mind me doing so.

Each passing day made me anxious about what Agent Lee was finding out. He said it would take a while, but just how long? I wanted the answers now, but I knew I had to be patient. I knew I couldn’t risk the factor of calling Agent Lee again. With him going undercover for me, the CIA could be watching his every move if they had any suspicions of him having any contact with me.

I tightly closed my eyes. It was too risky for Lee to just tell me everything over the phone. I had to meet him myself. I had to meet with him, but I couldn’t trust him enough to give out my hiding place. That would bring Louis into danger. I had to go to him. I knew just where to find him.

I heard the door to the bus opened. My eyes widened, not expecting someone to come in. I quickly pressed my body to the wall away from the front of the bus, quickly moving the curtain on the bed over to hide my body. “I can’t believe I keep forgetting that stupid thing.” I heard Niall say. “Where did I leave it?”

“Check the bathroom.” Louis said. “I’ll look on your bunk.”

Niall replied with something that sounded like an ‘aight’. I saw Louis’s figure walk over between the bunks. His eyes landed on me. He offered a wink before squatting down to check out Niall’s bed. “Not over here!” Louis yelled.

“I found it! It was on the loo!” Niall shouted.

Louis stood up, resting against the bunks. I heard the door to the bathroom shut. “You go on ahead. I want to call El.” Louis said, bringing out his phone.

“Potatoes, man. See you back in the room.” I heard Niall say before feeling the bus shake as he left the bus.

“Potatoes?” I asked.

Louis shrugged, sticking his phone back in his pocket. “How you holding up?”

“I was fine until you lot came in here.” I said, stretching my legs out.

A grin came onto his face. “Have you been sleeping on my bed this whole time?”

“Ya.” I answered honestly.

He shook his head. “I suppose it’s better than that tight space up there. I still can’t see how you manage to fit in there.”

I shrugged. I took a deep breath, needing to tell Louis of my plan. “Louis…” I started, my tone getting serious.

“Hm?” He asked, eyes widening some in curiosity.

“I… need to leave.” His face seemed to fall a little into shock.

“What?”

“You remember that phone call I made before? That man I spoke to, I need to meet up with him and find out what’s going on.”

“Isn’t he a part of the CIA?” Louis asked. “Wouldn’t he kill you if he saw you?”

“He wouldn’t. Not if I’m near his family, anyways.” I answered.

Louis clenched his jaw. He really didn’t want me to go. “I don’t want you to.”

“I have to Louis. I have to find a way to get myself out of all of this. I can’t keep running forever.”

Louis brought a hand to his forehead before sighing. “Fine. I guess I can’t stop you. Where are you going?”

“Back to DC.”

“DC? Isn’t that, like, a thousand miles away?”

“Pretty much.” I already calculated the distance in my head.

Louis seemed to be in a dilemma with himself. He bit his lower lip as I saw his hand reach to his back pocket. “Damn it, Cat. I swear…”

He brought out his wallet, looking through its contents. He first looked through the pocket with money before pulling out a card. “Here.” He handed to me.

“What…?”

“Use it for whatever you need: clothes, taxi rides, plane tickets. I don’t care. I have plenty of money for you to get what you need. It’s a British bank card, so it’ll be less obvious for the America industries to realize that it’s you using it.”

I was shocked by his actions. From a distance, we both could hear fans screaming. Apparently someone saw Louis come onto the bus and was waiting for him to come out, causing a crowd to come through. I looked at Louis before pulling myself out of the bed, landing on the floor. “Louis… Thank you, seriously, if it wasn’t for you…”

“Save it.” Louis said. “I promised I’d help you, so you do whatever it is you have to do. I’ll wait for you to come back to me. No matter how long it takes.”

I nodded, looking up at him. “I’ll be back.”

A smile came across his face before it disappeared again. He reached out at me, grabbing my arm and pulling me into his chest. He held me tightly. “Be careful, okay?”

I felt myself nod. He let the hug linger for a moment before pulling back, hands on my shoulders as he looked down at me. “Christmas Eve, okay? Don’t forget that. I’ll distract the crowd so you can leave out the window or whatever other strange exit you can find so you don’t get caught.”

He reached up and patted my cheek before turning around and walking down the steps and out of the bus door. I stared after him in confusion. Christmas Eve? What did that have to do with anything?

Either way, he kept to his word. I could hear him screaming like a maniac and fans were screaming too. The screams soon disappeared and I was left alone. I looked at the card once again before sticking it in my pocket.

I had a plane to catch, but first I had to make myself look a least bit suspicious.