90 Miles to Freedom by K. C. Hilton Page A

last time they’d met.
    Adelio could have been right when they had met the last time, but Collin didn’t want to even consider that possibility. He had to assume Adelio was okay, just playing it safe. Sure. That’s all it was. Playing it safe.
    But for an entire year?
    After Collin had finished unpacking the boxes he decided to clean up some of the mess on his fishing boat, make it a bit more presentable. Then he might take it out for a while. It had also been a year since he had taken his fishing boat anywhere, and though he had been consumed by grief and distracted by alcohol, Collin had missed being on the water. It was time to get back out.
    Joey was at the library. Knowing him, he would be there all day and probably most of the evening. If Collin left now he would be back before Joey even got home. Not that it mattered. Even if Collin got home after Joey was already in, Joey wouldn’t mind. He would be glad that his useless big brother had at least done something. Anything was better than doing nothing.
    Collin pushed off from the dock, comforted by the familiar sound of his boat’s engine. He didn’t know where he was going; it was just important that he go. As he got into the open water he opened up the throttle, needing to feel the wind whip against his face and through his hair. The tang of salty air in his nose and the sounds of the birds and splashing water felt genuinely good. He took a long, deep breath, enjoying the day. It felt therapeutic to be back on the water again.
    Time flew by, and by the time he looked at his watch it was already five o’clock. Without even realizing what he had done, Collin found himself pulling up at one of the places where he and Adelio had so often met at in the past.
    From a distance, Collin noticed another fishing boat speeding toward him. He felt a pang of nerves ripple through him at the unexpected sight. Who was this? He pulled out his binoculars from under a bench and studied the approaching boat. Amazingly, it looked like Adelio’s fishing boat. Collin frowned, scratching his head as the boat drew nearer.
    Then he lowered the binoculars, mouth hanging open with amazement. The other boat contained none other than Adelio.
    “ What the hell?” Collin mumbled. He felt an odd mixture of elation and fury at the sight of his old friend. Had Adelio been coming out here all this time without him? What was going on? But at the sight of his friend’s open grin, he dropped his anger.
    “ Adelio! Where have you been, man?” Collin cried, waving in excitement as the boat came alongside. “I haven’t heard from you in a year!”
    “ Hello, my friend!” Adelio called, smiling as he waved back. “How have you been? Good, I hope.”
    A thousand emotions swirled through Collin’s heart as he tied his friend’s boat to his. “No, Adelio, I cannot say I am good. A lot has happened. But I’m so relieved to see you. I was so afraid something horrible had happened to you.”
    Adelio embraced him as usual and the two men held on just a moment longer, enjoying each other’s presence once again. Then Collin pulled away and frowned down at the shorter man.
    “ Why haven’t you contacted me? I checked online every day for a year and you’ve left nothing, not even one word. What was I supposed to think?”
    “ I’m sorry, Collin. Truly, I am. It hasn’t been very safe this past year. I would have contacted you, but I didn’t want to put you in any danger,” Adelio replied. Then he frowned back at Collin. “Are you all right, my friend? You look as if you’ve been ill. You have lost a lot of weight since the last time I saw you.”
    Collin shrugged, trying to contain his emotions. He didn’t want to burst into tears in front of Adelio, but the urge was there. “No, actually, I’m not really all right. A lot has happened, like I said. Just after the last time I saw you, my parents were killed.” Collin looked away. “I could have used a friend.”
    “ I’m so sorry, my