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Author's Chapter Notes:
Not sure if I'm completely happy with the end though this is the way it was always going to end. And I'd like to say, just so people don't get upset. I hope you've all noticed this story was set in the PAST and in the past A.J. had a problem.

I hope you enjoy the end ;)
John stared at the bus that brought these now troublesome boys to his town. Allison had hid parts to the bus in order to fix the bus under the town’s nose. He was mad at first, but now they would leave this place, the bus taking them far away. A.J. would never see Allison again, though he wouldn’t know that as he dreamed away. John slammed the hood of the engine down and walked back towards his own house.

****

A.J. managed to steal a moment away from Allison at the beginning of the dinner that evening to tell Allison the plan and to tell her to let the others know as well. She smiled up at him, grabbing his arm before he walked away.

“What’s wrong?” Allison asked A.J., he wasn’t his usual self.

He shrugged. “Something you said earlier this afternoon, made it sound like you were only after me to help you escape, that there was nothing more.”

“At first, you were a means to an end.” A.J.’s face fell. “But, last night would not have happened if I only thought of you that way.” She grabbed his hand and squeezed it tight. “I hope that when we leave here you won’t get swept away in your old life and forget about me, I hope something more might come from this experience.” She smiled at him and left his side, returning to her spot at the front table. A.J. watched as she leaned over and talked quietly to the other women, their faces, even the one who was always crying, brightened.

A.J. returned to his table and tucked in to start eating his food. He wondered what kind of food would be served on Allison’s night, the mere thought of Allison brought a smile to his face and he found himself picturing them going places together when they left the town. He imagined her on his arm as he attended the Grammy’s, he even pictured their picture popping up all over the internet on fan sites. He chuckled slightly to himself hoping no one else at the table was taking note of his mood. He looked towards the others and noticed they were looking towards the front stage. A.J. was so lost in thought he had not noticed John calling for attention.

“Thank you friends,” John started speaking. “The council and I consulted the almanac and we noticed that Saturday will be the beginning of an early fall, which you know will bring an early winter. Therefore we have moved up our annual trip to get supplies to Saturday.”

“What about the parade?” Someone in the audience shouted.

John held his hand to calm the crowd that was attempting to become riled. “We have thought long about that as well. After consulting Widow Thompson, she has kindly agreed to have her celebration tomorrow morning at breakfast with the parade following before lunchtime tomorrow.”

A.J.’s eyes flew to Allison; he knew no such arrangement had been made. The townsfolk were applauding John and the new plan. A.J. caught John’s eye and took note of the look of triumph he received.

John wasn’t finished speaking and as soon as it got quiet, he spoke again. “Unfortunately for us, but I’m sure fortunately for these gentlemen, the five men that have been such a great help this week will be leaving tonight after dinner. Their bus has been fixed and I’m sure they are anxious to continue with their life outside our community. As I understand it, they are a very popular singing group and were in the middle of a tour when they landed in our world.”

Eyes all over the room were turning to look at the five guys mentioned by John; a few murmurs of awe were heard as well. A.J.’s eyes never left John’s face; the look of absolute triumph was enough to make A.J. want to fly from his seat and tear John off the stage. He did not move though, he sat and watched as John told everyone to continue.

The rest of the night A.J. tried to get back to Allison to figure a way out now, but it was no use, someone was always around her. Shelby, it seemed, was her new best friend and would not let Allison out of her sight.

The whole town was at the bus to say good-bye to the five that were leaving. A.J. tried to catch Allison’s eye but she was nowhere to be seen. It seemed Shelby had packed up their items already and they were safely stored on the bus. Walter seemed unsure about the ease of Shelby letting the five of them go.

“Thank you for your hospitality.” Kevin said politely kissing Shelby’s cheek and shaking Walter’s hand. Howie and Brian followed suit. Nick mumbled a “thank you” before getting on the bus himself. A.J. turned to those that helped hold him captive the last few days, he knew he should be somewhat polite and say thank you at least, but he was not feeling it. Instead, he nodded at them and boarded the bus.

Out of what A.J. could only, imagine was anger, Shelby spat out one last comment before the bus doors closed. “You’ll never see her again.”

A.J. found a chair and sat down; Brian behind the wheel started the engine and pulled away from the town. Though A.J. was glad to be leaving, glad Brian took the time to learn to drive the bus from their old driver, and glad that he was returning to his old life, he could not let Allison be run from the town into the desert to walk to the next town.

“We can still help them.” He blurted out when they were at least an hours drive away. “We can go back tomorrow and pick them up after they leave the town. I wouldn’t think it would be that hard to find a group of women walking in the desert.”

The others agreed to help the women at least to the next town if they desired. It was cruel to make them walk all the way to the next town. Some of those women were too old to walk in that kind of heat, then what would happen to them.

Brian found a gas station and got permission from the attendant to park their bus in the lot so that they could spend the night there. Nobody noticed their cell phones now had reception.

*****

The boys woke early the next morning, gassed up the bus and turned back towards the town A.J. desperately wanted to leave since the day they arrived. He watched anxiously out the window for any sign of the women. He wanted to hold Allison; he wanted to take her home to be with her. Those casual flings he had in so many towns so many times no longer interested him, he wanted to be with this one woman.

A gasp came from the driver’s seat as Brian slowed the bus down. “God have mercy.” He whispered loud enough for the others to hear. They all turned towards a window to have a look at what Brian saw.

A.J. isn’t sure what would have happened if Kevin was not there holding him. He wanted to break the window to run towards the evil he saw. His tears blurred his eyes, but he knew, he saw. John, Shelby and two other men were hoisting Allison’s lifeless body into a hole in the ground that held the bodies of the other four women.

He did not know which of the guys called the police; he wasn’t even aware his phone was working. He remembered sitting in the cold interrogation room where the police wanted to know everything that happened in the town. His eyes welled with tears with every mention of Allison, but he got through the process. The rest of his friends left long before him, but A.J. refused to leave until he had an explanation of what happened.

A younger cop took pity on him and let him know what so many other cops denied. It turned out that they uncovered at least 350 bodies of women in the desert where they found John and the others burying the five most recent. Since his grandfather started the tradition of the Widow’s Walk, the council of the town poisoned the last meal of the Widow’s and sent them out on their walk. The rest of the town, even the Widow’s themselves were under the impression that they would end up in another town, the council members spread that lie too. The four current council members were looking at the death penalty themselves for poisoning over 65 women in the last fifteen years. The townsfolk all begged for rides to another town where they might find a way to begin their lives a new, to find a way to mourn their mothers, sisters, grandmothers they now found out were deceased.

A.J. took little comfort knowing that John and Shelby would meet their end for their actions; it would not bring Allison back into his life. Instead of going back to the hotel, they were calling home for the next week; A.J. turned and found himself walking into a bar.

“Double shot of Jack Daniels.” He told the bartender as he sat down on the barstool forcing his tears to stay away. He gulped the drink ignoring the burning sensation in his throat; it only took a few seconds for some of the pain to go away. “Another please.” He asked without looking up.