Chapter 62- Bourne Again

I am not Jason Bourne.  As I run down the dark pavement I am assured of that with every step. My mind recalls Matt Damon's legendary character sitting in a diner, describing how he knows where the guns are and who might be a threat in the room. He tells Marie "I know I can run flat out for half a mile before my hands start shaking."  I've only been running for a few hundred feet and I feel like I'm going to have a full body heart attack.  

I slow to a jog and look behind me. I can still see the silhouettes of my attackers walking slowly in the darkness. Without anything else to attract their attention, they are still following me. Futile.  They could never catch me. "Never say never" I remind myself out loud. One thing about running, you are alone with your thoughts. I walk slowly, my arms on the top of my head, stretching out the stich in my side.  I think back on my childhood, sitting on the couch at grandma's house, watching the old Disney version of the tortoise and the hare.  That rabbit knew he was faster, yet when he stopped to take a nap the tortoise caught up, passing him to win the race. The monsters in my rear view wouldn't be passing me, and they certainly wouldn't  need a nap.  I drove the thought of being eaten alive while I slept from my mind.  

How long had it been since I had a good night's rest?  It felt like ages.  I wondered if I could find somewhere safe.  Had Oliver found a safe place?  I worried about a young boy all alone in this new world of horror. Would be thrive or be devoured by a horde closing in on him?  Had he already been?  I felt helpless to assist him.  I had no idea where he could have gone, how long he'd been on his own and can only assume he thought me dead after our accident. Poor kid.  He'd been though so much.  

I looked over toward the skyscrapers looming in the middle of the city. They seemed so far away.  Out here on the freeway I was literally miles from downtown, and completely on the opposite side of town from my condo and the storage unit.  I had supplies there, and if Tracy was still alive that was where she'd be headed. I had planned on crossing town to get there but after my few forays down the off ramps I'm re-thinking that strategy. Perhaps I stay on the loop, wrap all the way around the city.  It would take hours on foot, but it might be safer than trying to navigate the crowded road in a vehicle.  

I kept a steady pace, watching the road for any signs of life.  The moon was up and illuminated the path ahead well. On the opposite side of the freeway I could see the occasional lumbering shape, but on foot they didn't even notice me. Apparently being without a vehicle had its benefits.  My stomach rumbled. I thought of the boxes full of food I'd left in the overturned truck, dozens of cans and those few MREs.  No matter. I had plenty of food in my storage unit.  Just needed to make it there.