Our company was named Run Charlie Run we ran everywhere we went. It was not really the running that was the issue, but us being the center of attention, which lead to us being hit with rocks, stones, cans, bottles, whatever was available. And of course, they had no idea who we were either. Or what our purpose was." Lorelie pointed to the large stone embedded in the ground in front of the table and said, "What you see there was a piece of a beer bottle which I smashed against the table. I was just that enraged." She looked at all of them and said, "I think that says it all right there." Joe said, "Lorelie, you are so humble. That was the biggest piece of glass I've ever seen. You were that mad." "Yes, but I realized my mistake too late. That man took a swig from the bottle. I believe it may have been full. That's what made me that angry. To think of all those children having that, and in front of all those people." He took her hand. "That's exactly why we are here. Our hearts go out to you. The people you saw are the victims of addiction. Sadly, there are countless children out there with their own bottles of a different kind. If they die of an overdose, which is possible, I don't even want to think about how many families it leaves behind. So, you see, I'm glad you were that angry when you smashed the bottle and left that man a bloody mess. You can never tell how things will turn out. You just don't know what lies ahead. All I know is that I wouldn't be standing here right now, if you hadn't smashed that bottle." He leaned down and kissed her lips. There were tears in her eyes. He could see it as clearly as he could see his own reflection in the mirror. Dalton said, "Are you alright?" Lorelie laughed. "Yes, sir, I am quite alright, now that I see that there is a true man sitting at the head of the table. It's not about me. Thank you for not letting me see it from the outside. Because in my own eyes I was doing some crazy things. I am now at peace with myself and ready to do whatever you ask of me." Dalton said, "I can see that." She looked at him. "Now, what do you have to say?" "First, I must say that I agree with you and Dalton. The man that you saw, was not a very good man. So, please tell us more about yourself and how you ended up traveling with them. Please don't leave anything out." Joe raised his eyebrows. He was intrigued to hear the rest of the story. They were sitting in a small coffee shop inside the hospital. Lorelie was at a table, while the others were sitting across from each other. The hospital cafeteria was empty, it was late afternoon. "Okay, I'll tell you everything you need to know." She sipped her tea. Joe said, "Did you leave the camp alone? Do you remember the last time that you saw Joseph?" "Yes, I remember. I had just gotten my hair done and you know the way we all looked. We had on fancy make up and the clothing we had gathered from the dumpsters." "You were good looking women. What about you, Dalton?" "Yes, I guess I was. There was a man who used to come out of the woods every now and then. There were only two of us, besides you and a few other men. He was very friendly and seemed like a good guy. He always seemed to be looking for girls to bring back to the house. So, when I found a shirt and a sweater I put them on." Dalton looked down at the table. "I could smell the cigarettes on the man and he looked at me very weird. It was almost like he was surprised when he saw me dressed up." Lorelie smiled at him. "I remember him too. His name was James." Dalton said, "That's right, James. He didn't seem to like me. So, it didn't take long for us to decide that we should each try to make our own way. It was a good thing. I couldn't have been more afraid if I had been trying to sleep in an alley in downtown Chicago with those people nearby." "Yes, I can see that. But you were lucky and you made it home." "But when I woke up, there was nothing but rubble all around. I was so frightened." He paused for a moment and said, "But it was you that saved me." "Yes, there are no words to describe how I felt when I saw you in the hospital." Dalton nodded. "There was something really different about him. I think the others didn't see it because they were in a drug induced stupor, but I could see it. You could tell that he was one of those guys that knew more than he was telling. I don't know how he got his drugs, but he had them. He must have been running drugs too." "How did you get away?" "Well, as I said, I woke up with him smelling of cigarettes. The way I figured it, it was either going to be me or him. So, I tried to stay away from him. When he left, I started to look around. There were several little rooms back there. There were a bunch of people that were passed out in the hallway, so that made it easy to slip away in the middle of the night. As soon as I could, I headed to a pharmacy and bought a knife. I was going to hide the knife when I got home, so I wouldn't hurt myself. But I went to another one of those camps that I saw when I went there the other day. When I got there, I saw the guy that I used to play basketball with. So, I asked him what he was doing. He told me he was living in the camp for a while. He said he was working on his sobriety and asked me to leave." Joe interrupted, "Did you know what was going on there?" Dalton laughed. "Yes, Joe, I did. But it was never my business. So, I went back and put the knife in my jacket pocket. I then took off in a run." Joe said, "You ran!?" "Yep, I guess I did. The place looked deserted. I noticed that a bunch of the trucks had the keys in the ignition. I started up one of the trucks and drove straight for our place. When I got home I went in and hid the knife on top of one of the cabinets. Then I went to bed and fell right to sleep. When I woke up in the morning, I saw the mess you guys were in. I was so relieved to find that you guys were okay." "The whole town was in an uproar. It was all on the news. I remember that they were saying that all of the campers in the state were found. It was like you had been saved for some purpose, but you were a complete stranger. It was like you were a myth." Dalton sighed. "I didn't get it then. But after watching it on television, I felt bad for not believing you. I remembered your voice that night on the telephone and I had thought it was just your friend playing a practical joke on me. So, when the man and his friends tried to call me, I told them I was sorry, but I didn't know you. I guess it was dumb to say that I didn't know you. And it was also dumb to say that you didn't exist." He paused. "I don't know what happened. I should have known from the start. But I went with them thinking that the more people there were, the more there would be to share. It wasn't that easy." Lorelie nodded her head. "Yes, that's exactly what I was thinking when I saw them." Dalton said, "When I went home that day, after dropping off that man, he and his friends came in, they told me how you tried to escape. They asked me to take you back. I refused, of course." Lorelie said, "Yes, that's when they threatened me with the knife." "I was thinking that the more there were around each other, the safer we would be. But it was all bad." Joe said, "You were right. At least the way Dalton and I have found it. We have found that the best way to survive is for the few of us to stick together. Those are the people that have been in the trenches with us. We need to protect them, because they need protection." Joe looked at Lorelie and said, "Let me ask you a question. Since you met us, how many times have you met up with them?" Lorelie said, "Just three more times. And all three of those were the same people. I remember each of those times, for what I would call strange reasons." Joe shook his head. "There are some good things that came out of this mess. And we are going to start with these men. If you guys are