No Place That Far

Disclaimer: Jessica is my creation…everyone else? Just playing in Stephenie Meyer's sandbox.

Rating: PG

Characters: Jessica (OFC), Brandt, Jeb, Jared, Wanda/Melanie, Ian, various other cave dwellers, Burns Living Flowers

Description: Set three years after The True Meaning of Human. Jessica joins the community in the caves, and life goes on as well as can be expected. Of course, twists and turns do come up…

A/N: I started work on this story around the same time that I started the first, but it's taken a long time to get them both out. Seriously, two years is a long time to have writer's block! I had to bring the story full circle, though, and this was in my head just as long as the first story, because without Jessica and Burns's history, this story wouldn't have made nearly as much sense…not to mention that I think it's a lot better when you understand everything that happened between them. Also, I'm not too thrilled with the title, it may be subject to change if I can decide on one.

Chapter One: Discovered

My eyes scoured the desert through the binoculars; nothing but sand and rock and scrubby vegetation as far as the eye could see. I was sorely disappointed, but I wasn't giving up. There had been a search in this area several months before for a missing person, and one Seeker had been so insistent in her belief that there were humans in this inhospitable place that she was still searching. Not today, though; she was back in civilization for the moment, being forced to report back her findings of nothing as she had to do every several days.

This gave me the opportunity I needed to try to find my family. Not actual relatives—they were all gone—but more humans. I was so tired of trying to blend in with the souls, of changing my name and moving around constantly under the pretense of being a photographer…I wanted to be among people who understood me, who understood pain and despair and sacrifice.

The sun had just faded behind the mountains, and its light was fading faster than I was accustomed to. I eyed the mountainside that my car was parked about twenty yards from; I was going to hang out at my car until full darkness, then go up to a ledge I had noticed and wait. I was certain they had been watching me from some unseen vantage point, and if they were anything like me, they would assume I was a soul, probably that I was working with the Seeker that had been trying to hunt them down, in which case I would be safer if I sprung the trap on them first and gave myself the opportunity to explain.

I knew about the soul that had disappeared in this vicinity…her name was Wanderer, and this was her ninth planet, something practically unheard of. She had been implanted in a "wild" human, Melanie, and the Seeker's belief was that Melanie had overpowered Wanderer and driven her out here to find her boyfriend and brother. The Seeker believed they were all in hiding out here, perhaps with others, and I had a gut feeling that she was right, even though my efforts to find them had so far been in vain. Whatever hiding place they had, it was definitely well hidden…probably underground, or possibly in caves in the mountains.

Regardless of the utter lack of life I had found thus far, my determination and my convictions were rock solid. Sooner or later, I would find them, or they would find me. If they found me, it would be on my terms. I climbed back into my car, then started packing my small survival bag: a flashlight, two bottles of Heal, a container of No Pain, a small bottle of Awake, and a bottle each of Outside Clean and Inside Clean, along with three water bottles, granola bars, beef jerky, and a packet of M&M's. On top of all this, I hesitantly placed a .9mm and two spare clips that I had gotten off a Seeker last year.

I was only pulled over for going six miles over the speed limit, but the Seeker had been alone, and I took the opportunity to get the weapons I had been without since I first went into hiding. I hadn't lifted a finger against the kindly Seeker who had shown concern when I explained that I was on a road trip and looking for a hotel to sleep at; I had gotten out and was showing her a false path, then sprayed the Still in her face when she was poring over the map. I knew I would be safe; it takes four hours for the effects to wear off. I took the Seeker back to the car, then relieved her of her weapons and left. By the time she had regained consciousness, I had acquired the Hummer that I now drove and was six counties away.

I had already decided several things about my interaction with the humans when we found each other. They would be desperately curious about how I had survived so long on my own, how I had gotten my hands on Soul meds, how I knew how to use them, everything about my life since the invasion. There was a lot about me that they would never know. I could never tell them about my time as a Healer, or the things I had done while I was in that profession…

A shudder brought me to my knees as the memories overwhelmed me for a moment…the most unforgivable things I had ever done…no amount of penance could begin to remove the shame and guilt from my soul. Then there was the reason I had to leave that particular Calling…

The conflicting emotions brought me back to my feet. Love, bitterness, betrayal, pain, regret, longing…I pushed them back, fought against them to focus on the present. Internally, I barred them into the furthest recesses of my mind, letting the single-minded determination of finding my family take hold again.

Now that it was fully dark, I grabbed my survival bag and turned out the interior lights before opening the door and jumping out, shutting the door quietly behind me and quickly hit my knees, sneaking to the opposite side and making my way silently to the foot of the mountain. I had learned rock climbing during my latest Calling—landscape photography—and my hands and feet easily sought out the fastest, most silent path there was to my destination, a ledge about fifteen feet above the desert floor. It was the perfect vantage point to watch for approaching people, whether humans or souls, and it gave me the tactical advantage of the high ground.

Shortly after I had settled on the ledge, my eyes scouring the desert for signs of movement under the stars, I felt the first stirrings of the desire to sleep. Quickly and silently, I pulled the Awake out and gave a single spray, inhaling the grapefruit-scented mist. My mind immediately focused, and all thoughts of sleep vanished with the simple mist. Now that there was no danger of dozing off, I could focus on the bait close by in the form of my Hummer.

This time, I was not disappointed. At around eleven, four forms silently skirted the darkness, staying low to the ground as they approached the car. I tensed and reached for the flashlight and the .9mm, silently flipping off the safety and inspecting the chamber for the round I knew should be there. It was, and I watched them surround the vehicle, communicating with hand signals. The only gun was carried by an older man, much older than the others, with a great bushy white beard. The others held clubs, except one that carried a machete. I wasn't concerned about them; I could pick them off before they ever reached me, if it became necessary. The rifle was more dangerous, but only if he could get a clean shot.

They were using hand signals, but they were obviously homemade; whoever they were, they had never been in the military, and had a conspicuous lack of precision. They all jumped up at the same time, opening all the doors, finding nothing but the provisions I had left in the vehicle.

As soon as the realization that they had been set up hit them, I fired a single shot that hit the sand by the foot of the man with the machete. They all started and immediately put themselves into defensive postures, the man with the rifle aiming at the ledge I was perched on.

"The first one's a warning," I called down to them, making sure to keep out of the line of fire of the rifle. "There's a flashlight in the glove box, if you don't have any of your own. Show me your eyes, and I'll come down, but move slowly. If anyone approaches me, I won't be giving warnings a second time."

The one with the machete slowly pulled a flashlight from a jacket pocket, then clicked it on and shone the light into his own eyes. Blue…no silver to catch and magnify the light…so he's human! He slowly passed it to the next person, whose eyes turned out to be gray…gray, but no silver. The process was repeated, and I was satisfied that they were all human. A quiet footfall, the faintest grinding of pebbles behind me gave me a split-second warning, but it was too late; a knee pressed hard on the base of my neck, while another landed firmly in the center of my back, pinning me down on the ground.

Blinding light shone in my eyes, and I realized with horror that I had forgotten to remove the damning evidence before holing up here; beams of reflected silver danced over the rocks. A man's voice above me cursed low.

"It's a Seeker!" he called down to the others. I had only moments to act; I knew they were scrambling up the rocks to kill me.

"I'm human!" I screeched, but a punch in the ribs made me wheeze in pain. Hands clenched in my hair, and a thin metal blade pressed into my neck.

"We're not stupid, you filthy parasite," he hissed in my ear.

"I can prove it! They're contacts! Just give me thirty seconds to take them out, and you'll see!" I insisted, forcing myself not to fight against the predicament I was in. I kept silent after that, letting my words sink in. The others had reached us by that point, and I knew they had heard me also. After a moment, the hands loosened, but my gun had been taken from me.

"All right…but if it's a trick, we won't hesitate to kill you," the voice said, finally letting me go and allowing me to sit up. I made my movements slow and deliberate, observing the men standing over me; one of the men had traded their club with my .9mm, and the older man with the rifle were standing about ten feet away, but all barrels of the guns were aimed at me.

"I'm just gonna get my case for my contacts first, if that's ok," I said, slowly raising my hands so they could see that I wasn't about to do anything stupid. "It's in my front pocket, so I'm just gonna get it real slow, ok?"

"All right, sweetie," the older gentleman said kindly, lowering the rifle a hair but keeping his intense gaze on me.

I slowly reached in the pocket and pulled out the small white case, then frowned as I saw the dust and dirt on my fingers. It would just make my eyes even more irritated, but I knew that was the least of my problems, so I sighed and slowly opened one side of the case, then tilted my head back and popped the small lens from my eye, then placed it in the case and repeated the procedure with the other eye. As always, my eyes burned after being freed from their unwanted burden, and I blinked a few times before looking up at them.

The light was expected this time, but the burning in my eyes made it even more uncomfortable. It moved between both of my eyes for a few moments, then turned to a more broad area. I was momentarily blinded, but I could feel their relief and surprise in the air; relief that I was actually human, surprise at what I actually held in my hands. I could practically hear the wheels turning in their head as they processed what that would mean for them.

"Well," the old man's voice broke the silence, and I was somewhat grateful for his making the first move. "I suppose introductions are in order. I'm Jeb, and this is Kyle, Brandt, and Wes. The ruffian that snuck up on you is Jared."

I looked around as he pointed out the others he introduced. Even the light from the flashlight wasn't enough for me to make out much of anything yet, so I could only tell shapes in the faint light. They seemed to be waiting for me to speak, so I cleared my throat.

"I'm…well, I've gone by so many names over the years it's hard to remember my real name anymore," I replied as I started to pull myself up. The figure he called Brandt stepped over and offered me his hand, and I accepted it and let him pull me to my feet. "But when I was a kid, my parents called me Jessica, so that's gotta be it."

"Jessica," they repeated to themselves…it was almost creepy, but I knew they were just repeating it so they could remember it.

"So how exactly did you find us, anyway?" Jared asked. I wanted to hit him for the bruise I felt forming on my ribs, but I restrained myself.

"Listening…that little Seeker didn't seem to care who heard her talking, as long as she got her point across. I was eating lunch in a restaurant in Tucson when I overheard a conversation she was having with another Seeker. He didn't seem to buy what she was thinking, though," I explained. The men seemed surprised and baffled at my simple story.

"You were able to sit there in a restaurant, in a city filled with Souls, with Seekers in the same room?" Kyle asked incredulously. "And none of them noticed?"

"Well, the contacts helped…not to mention that I've been hiding in plain sight for years, constantly moving around, and I've learned how they behave and talk, and I tend to keep my mouth shut unless one of them speaks to me. I wouldn't have made it all this time if I were stupid," I growled out, feeling more like I was talking to a wall than a man, for all the good it seemed to do. Jeb chuckled.

"I'm sure you've got some real interesting stories," he said, his tone light. "But I'd say we should continue this conversation inside. Is there anything you needed to get out of your car before we move it?"

"Clothes, supplies, a little food—that's pretty much it," I told him, shrugging. My side gave a particularly painful throb, and anger flooded through me; faster than lightning, I spun around and punched Jared in the mouth, making him stagger back.

"What the hell?!" I heard Kyle and Brandt exclaim, but I kept my glare leveled at the man I had hit.

"That's for my ribs, jackass," I hissed. It felt so good to be able to let out my frustrations like this…I'd held everything inside for so long, it was nearly as good as sex to let it out. He nodded, even managed to smile through the pain of his bloody lip.

"I guess we're even now," he said evenly. In the light of the moon and the flashlight, I studied the men's faces, and I could see that my actions had brought me a bit of respect. I had a feeling that might be the case; they respected strength, the willingness to stand up for yourself, and I had shown them that I wasn't going to sit around and be bullied. All things considered, I'd say I was off to a pretty good start.