Chapter Forty Eight

Chapter Forty Eight
Zen’s POV
“Hey Princess, we’re almost there. Wake up.” I took her beautiful hand in mine, holding it to my lips as she began to stir. The pilot informed every one of our descent, as well as the time and temperature of our destination. It was almost winter time, so it would be cold.
The last month had gone by quicker than I ever imagined it could, and I was glad to get away from all the demons that haunted us back in the states. The day Princess came to save me was the hardest. When the gunshots rang out, I couldn’t even process what was happening. It wasn’t until the spotlight shut off that I started to think clearly again. Elizabeth had rushed to me and then all I could smell was menthol and her cucumber melon shampoo. Once my binds were undone, she jumped onto my lap and planted kisses all over my neck and face until an FBI agent came down with paramedics to take us to an ambulance. I was hospitalized for a little less than a week, and it took another week after that until I stopped visualizing the video every time I closed my eyes. It still popped in every now and then, but all I had to do was look at the beautiful woman beside me to find peace.
Elizabeth had still not fully recovered from killing those two men. Every now and then she would wake up screaming, and I would have to rock her back to sleep. She wasn’t a killer, and I hated that she had to become one just to save me. She spent the good portion of my hospital stay trying to explain that she wasn’t the angel I kept calling her. Maybe a fallen one, she claimed. But I just didn’t agree. This woman risked her life just to get me back, and there was nothing that could ruin her for me. I loved her.
As soon as I left the hospital we were given our new identities from the government. We were supposed to be “Eliza Smart” and “Christian Harden” now, but we never referred to each other that way. I was utterly amazed when Detective Jones came to visit me and announced my full pardon for my crimes. I didn’t believe her at first, but she insisted that Princess wouldn’t let her say no. She spoke about her like she was her personal hero or some shit. It was amusing. She also assured me that with the amount of evidence they found on Danny, he would get a minimum of life in prison without parole. I wished they would’ve just killed the slippery bastard, but what could I do?
Before we left, I ran by the bank to withdrawal my money that I had saved from my hits. The feds let me keep it, since it was technically mine. I had 950K in the bank and another 600K in cash hidden away at my various apartments. Nobody informed Elizabeth’s dad of her being found, for security reasons, and the damn feds offered Tom a job because of him proving himself by hacking their private network. He joyfully accepted, of course, and there was a tear-filled goodbye between him and Princess that I wished I wasn’t there to witness.
It took us a couple of weeks to decide where we would go and what we would do. It’s surprisingly hard when you can go literally anywhere in the world. But, in the end, we chose what’s supposed to be one of the safest countries in the world.
We stepped off the plane, taking in our surroundings with awe.
“It’s so beautiful, Zen!” I chuckled at her excitement, grabbing onto her hips and pulling her back against me.
“We haven’t even seen it yet, Princess. We’re still in the airport.” I whispered into her ear. She gave me a shy smile, leaning back against my chest. I bent over to kiss her shoulder, giving her a playful nibble while I was at it. Giggling, she pushed off of me, turning to poke me in the ribs.
“Oh hush. Let’s just get our bags and head to our new home.” She flashed me a radiant smile, grabbing onto my hand and dragging me behind her.
Awaiting us as we descended the stairs to baggage claim was a white sign with red foreign letters and another sign below it that read,
“Welcome to Japan.”