Disclaimer: I only own Gracie the rest...well you know the drill
Rating: PG
Feed Back: DEFFINATLY !!!
Spoilers: set just after Pollo Loco
E-mail: phi@goosehead.com
Gracie
The pain filled eyes of a dark haired six year old girl widened as she heard shouts and the unmistakable sound of heavy boots pounding on the concrete floor, coming towards her. "Come on, Gracie. We have to get you out of this god forsaken place and to your Mommy and Daddy where you belong" Hannah said quietly to the little girl who's small hand she held. She glanced back down the hall before starting to run, Gracie easily keeping up. They kept running through the hallways of Manticore where Gracie had spent her entire life being trained and prepped to be the perfect fighter. But unlike the other young children who had been born with one parent who was human and the other a genetically engineered prototype, Gracie had all ways wondered about the outside world and where her mother and father were. She knew her mother had been one of the few genetically enhanced humans to escape and so she had always wanted to try and find her and her father but it had been impossible, until now.
Hannah suddenly stopped beside a door and tried the handle cursing under her breath when it didn't move. There was a small tug on her hand. Hannah looked down at Gracie who beckoned for her to come closer Hannah obliging. Gracie carefully took out one of the hairpins in Hannah's hair and bent it out straight before focussing on picking the lock. Hannah watched nervously between the little girl and the hall, listening to the shouts and drum of feet coming closer until there was a satisfying click of the lock and a blast of cold air. Gracie silently took Hannah's hand watching her close the door behind them and pulling her towards the perimeter fence. Hannah bent down and pulled back the mesh for Gracie to crawl through then followed the silent six-year-old. Her heart aching at the thought that this was the first time the kid would have seen this side of the fence "Ok Gracie, now we have to get to my car and get you to your Mommy and Daddy".
Gracie's dark tormented gaze lit up "you know them?"
Hannah nodded "I helped your Mommy escape" she paused "Gracie your Mommy won't have heard you exist, she'll absolutely love you of course, but you'll have to be a bit patient for her to really let the knowledge sink in. Your Daddy as well."
Gracie pulled her long dark brown hair out of her eyes, haphazardly pulling it into a ponytail and holding it in place with her hand "I know Mommy won't know who I am cause a surrogate mother was used to look after me inside her tummy before I was born. I don't have any of her genes though, just Mommy and Daddy's"
Hannah nodded amazed despite her self that the softly spoken child before her knew so much * just how Lydecker wanted her, quiet and knowledgeable* she thought sadly.
Hannah took Gracie's hand again and led her through the trees, keeping to the thicker canopied spaces so it was harder for the helicopters over head to see. This went on for about fifteen minutes until they got to the outskirts of the small plantation and where Hannah's navy blue four-wheel drive sat. Hannah hurried over and opened the passenger door lifting the little girl and sitting her in the small space in front of the seat " sit here until we know it's safe for you to sit up, ok?" Gracie nodded. Hannah shut the door and moved around to the driver's side and got in. She winced as the car revved into life the noise surely catching the attention of Lydecker and his troops. She glanced over at the little girl opposite getting a distinct sense of dejavou "you look so much like your mother" she said quietly before turning her attention to getting safely on the road and then looking inconspicuous to any other traffic or more likely Lydecker.
Gracie stared up at the woman who had burst into her room breathless telling her that her name was Hannah and that she could get her out of Manticore and to her parents. Gracie had learnt not to trust anyone when she was a baby, it was one of the first rules to be taught but from the moment this woman had burst in she had felt a kinship with her. Maybe because Hannah knew her mother "what was…is she like?" Hannah smiled seemingly lost in memory " Max is beautiful, full of life and full of morals. Overall I'd say she's the most intriguing person you'll ever meet" Gracie smiled "her name is max?" Hannah glanced down at her briefly "I don't suppose they told you that" Gracie shook her head "no. Does she know my Daddy?" Hannah nodded "uh huh, they're good friends but like I said Gracie you have to be patient." Gracie nodded and rested her head on her pulled up knees listening to the rhythm of the tires on the road, slowly falling into a light dreamless sleep.
TBC