I drove through the stormy streets of New York. Not a soul was out in this weather. Leonard was in the passenger seat. He had not made a noise since the two of us started this journey. The silence in the truck was boring, the roar of the engine against the icy road was comforting. Jarrod had put the chains on my tires when the winter snow first appeared. The sound of Leonard stirring brought me from my thoughts. "What's going on? Where are we going?"
I looked at him. All former hatred has gone from his face. In its place was confusion. He looked fearful.
I looked at him as he looked at me. "It's alright, you're safe now. I found you a little way back. You looked to be in a bad spot. You were in a wreck, lying on the ground when I found you."
He looked at me. "What happened? Why don't I remember anything?"
"The doctors said you hit your head pretty hard in the crash. They told me I could take you home. Give you a chance to rest."
He smiled. "You're a hero then. Thank you for taking me to the hospital. As well as giving me a place to recover, I hate to be a burden to you."
"You won't be, I promise. I'm sure you will be a joy to have around. However, I don't live in the states, I was coming to visit family when I had found you. I was on my way home from spending Christmas with them."
"Do I have any family?" he continued to look at me, as I looked at the road.
"I don't know, probably. I found your cellphone beside you. I didn't see any contacts on it. No surprises though, seeing the place I found you. You had to be pretty mad at your family, leaving them behind to wonder in a place like that. They had to have ticked you off someway, honestly, I thought whatever relationship you had was down the drain. No one goes to a dead place unless they were fed up with whoever they were mad at." I looked back at him. "However, that's just my guess. A logical guess. I looked for your address, but your wallet wasn't in your pocket. The flames from the car stopped me from getting to your wallet, so I couldn't find anything out about you. Tell me, do you know your name?"
He looked at me, shaking his head. "No, I remember nothing."
I looked at him, then back at the road. "I'm sure we can find someone who knows you, but you need to sleep. We have a long drive ahead of us. I'll wake you when we get to the airport."
"Airport?"
"Yeah, you'll love Nantucket, a small, lovely island. Freshly baked bread every morning, fresh fish. It has only the best cafes with the best coffee freshly brewed every morning."
"Sounds good. I wish I had some of that baked bread right now. I'm starving." I looked at him.
"I'll stop and get you something to eat. You don't look like someone who eats too many sweets. I can stop and get you some burgers and a fry. You like Coke, right?"
"Coke's cool."
"Alright, I don't think that McDonald's is open right now, but I think there are other burger places. I think there is a place a few miles from here that is a 24/7 diner. We can get it to go. You shouldn't be moving around a lot."
He got comfortable, as I turned the heat higher, after seeing the chill bumps forming on his arms. I stopped the truck, getting the white fluffy blanket from the back of the seat, covering him up with it. He closed his eyes as I started driving once more. Soon, the sound of soft snores filled the truck. I got to the diner ordering three large burgers and two medium fries and a coke, paying for it, then headed towards the airport.
Once we arrived at the airport, I parked the truck, getting the bag of food. "Hey, wake up. We're at the airport."
Leonard opened his eyes, looking at me. He uncovered himself. "Stay covered up. It's freezing out here. Be careful, it's probably icy in spots. Can you walk, or do you need me to help you?"
"I can manage. You've done enough already."
I walked over to the passenger side of the truck as he opened the door, getting out. I wrapped the cover around him. "The plane is up ahead. It's a private plane. I can wipe the blood off you, get you a robe, and you can fall asleep until we land in the morning. It's going to be a long flight."
We walked until we got to the plane; the door was open as we climbed up the stairs. I walked Leonard to the couch, chiming for Jarrod to leave. With the door closed, we took flight. I turned the television on, inclining Leonard's seat. "You comfy?"
"Yeah, thanks."
"Here are your burgers, and coke. When you get done, I had my pilot go pick you up some clothes. There is a shower in the back that you can use. The bed is across the hall."
I handed him his burgers, walking over to the couch beside the chair where he sat, sitting down myself. Relaxing, the former cares of my sister became just that, out of sight and out of mind. Leonard was safe now and that, to me, was all that mattered. He was safe and widowed. He was happy, and that, also to me, was all that mattered. He seemed clueless about anything and everything leading up to his crash, and he seemed so innocent, carefree, helpless as a child. This was worth waiting four years for, this moment in the plane, under the stars, with the man that had always completed me, no matter the scenario we faced. No one was going to take the man that ate silently beside me away from me again. No matter what I had to do, I was going to protect him and make sure he has the life that he deserves.