“I love you,” I say with more ease at every utterance.
Odessa reaches up and kisses me quickly. She pretends to be interested in the movie we watch every few days. I have no doubt The Bridge on the River Kwai wouldn’t make the grade in the old world. Today, she embraces anything to keep us sane. I’m learning to care about the movies, music, and food too. If they extend the time we’re together, I’m willing to do anything.
Too many years ago, I found my way to the Lost Highway and believed the killing was what drew me here. I hunted and waited while never certain what exactly I was waiting for besides my next kill. I assumed I retained my sanity and humanity because I was superior to the other Death Dealers.
Now everything possesses a clarity the Lost Highway rarely provides. I had nothing before arriving here while Odessa was broken. We couldn’t make sense of who we were meant to be.
We were lost until we created a piece of heaven together in the depths of hell.
Epilogue
Odessa
The Lost Highway never relents. It provides no escape or explanation. This place simply exists. If we want to survive, we’ll learn to accept the rules rather than fight them.
I still think we’re dead. Quill claims we’re in a parallel universe. Neither answer is right or wrong. The Lost Highway is our home now, and we’ll never leave except through death. I’m not even confident that’ll provide an escape.
Despite the predators in the Lost Highway, I’ve never felt as safe or blessed. Since Athena’s death, I remained stuck at the age of sixteen. All I wanted was to suffer for my mistake. Now that I’ve found forgiveness, I’m finally growing up.
Quill is teaching me to fight. He’s made me strong, and I believe I’ve helped him too. Quill never felt he was lost, but he certainly wasn’t happy with his life. I don’t think he even imagined he ought to enjoy happiness. Now he expects it.
We will fight for our territory. No matter what we face, we’ll keep our home safe. I haven’t enjoyed a sense of belonging since I was a teenager. Now I do with Quill, and I will die to protect what we’ve built together.
Most days don’t involve fighting, though. When the storms roll through, we spend entire days in bed, distracting ourselves from the noise and light.
After we trade heads for a deck of cards at the outpost, Blackjack becomes our newest distraction. Quill quickly learns my tells, so I lose most hands. His reward for winning is control in bed, making me the winner too.
Embracing love and laughter is the key to staying sane. We keep our minds focused on what matters rather than allowing them to become prey to the voices haunting this world.
The Lost Highway might not be the devil, but the saying about idle hands still makes sense. As long as we enjoy the small joys – a tender caress, a card game, the occasional M&M – we will remain the Quill and Odessa, who discovered love and forgiveness in a place drenched in darkness and horror.