"You just tried it like a minute ago!"
Simon cursed as the dispatch crackled mockingly, supporting Sofia's statement. She'd been nothing but oppositional each time he tried and tried again to radio out to nearby officers.
"Just keep driving. I know where we need to go. And forget about the radio, already! I told you, this area is shit for signals, even radio. That's why my uncle chose it for his motel and—"
She stopped abruptly when Simon swore again and threw the receiver aside. It'd been perhaps twenty minutes since they'd left the motel, but Simon already considered it far too long, both time-wise and physically for him to be apart from Fool Bright.
The driving in itself hadn't been as difficult as he'd thought, as he was too worried about Fool Bright to succumb to any nerves that might have hindered him otherwise. The real problem lay in that he could not plan what he was supposed to do after driving. He and Sofia would report the crimes that had taken place, and Fool Bright requiring backup as well as medical assistance, but then what?
"You're certain we'll arrive at this destination soon?" The little gauge notifying him the gas was empty had been pointing to E since their departure. Yes, there was the container in the trunk Fool Bright had bought, but Simon didn't want to waste precious time refilling, if at all possible.
"Yeah. I betcha we'll even be within radio range in just a bit, but we have to go there. Okay, we need to actually be there before we alert the cops."
Simon wasn't so sure the cops wouldn't be alerted themselves, if an out-of-state cruiser was reported driving rather erratically, and with a teenager in the front seat. "Where is 'there'?"
"You'll see when we get there."
"You do realize, Sofia, given your uncle's actions, I advise you to be more forthcoming. I'm not saying I don't trust you, but right now I'm not in the mood to have important information concealed from me."
"I don't..." Once again, she was the frightened girl who never spent much time being a girl at all. Her voice became small, guarded. "I don't want to talk about it... just! Please, just keep driving, I swear this is where we need to go. I want to help you and your cop friend, okay?"
"We are trying to help you. I understand, your world has been turned upside-down and this is a lot to absorb and it may feel best to just act." It was so necessary Simon keep a cool head, but when his was pounding in pain, it taxed his patience to do so. "But that is no reason for you to take all this upon yourself. The truth remains that, the longer we're unable to send backup to Detective Fulbright—who seriously injured his shoulder, in case you hadn't gathered—the more disconcerting this whole situation becomes, for all of us."
"You know, it's really sweet you're so worried about him. Your cop... friend." She used the phrase for a second time, but this time there was a teasing in her tone, that she meant 'friend' as anything but.
"I am no such thing! I mean... of course I..." Damn it all, he shouldn't be even in the least worried about Fool Bright. Or, appear that way to anyone of the general public. He was a convict, who should be thrilled beyond words that the officer transporting him was entangled in an ordeal that left Simon free to do whatever he wished—including escape. "He is neither my cop, nor my 'friend'! He— ...Listen, I have not driven in quite some time, so I would appreciate if you would not distract me with these outlandish accusations."
A silent minute or two passed, which Simon would have gladly heard filled with the disappointing static of the dispatch, for how awkward it was.
"He was really worried about you, ya know. He told me he couldn't leave you behind. Like, he sounded almost like he was gonna cry."
"Tch. Now that, I believe; he is nothing but an overemotional, irritatingly dedicated fool." His fool. Neither his cop nor his friend, but his Fool Bright. Simon feared there was a touch of fondness in his previous statement, and made to cover it up with an ample amount of scorn. "And you're telling me this because... ? It's supposed to mean something to me?"
"Well, if I were in your shoes, and my cop was so worried about me, then yeah, it would mean some—"
"For the last time, he is not 'my' cop!"
"Okay, so... if he's not, then... are you really on death row? Are you really even a prisoner at all? I mean, I believe he's a cop and everything; he showed me his badge."
Simon scoffed audibly. Of course Fool Bright did.
"But you... are you sure it's not some weird roleplay, fetish-type thing? That you like being his prisoner, or something? You don't have to be ashamed, I've had to... had to take part in crazier ones, and—"
"Silence!" Simon snapped at her, face burning at discussing this so candidly—and at the suggestion of such fantasies. Ones that had, admittedly, entered his mind on nights when certain urges grew too unbearable to not take care of himself. "First of all, that is the type of revolting information you need to tell an officer and not me. And second of all, I... it is not... you've quite an overactive imagination, do you know that?!"
"Well, it's not my imagination that you already had some hickeys on your neck when I was kissing you earlier. And you're the one who said you hadn't been with a girl in a long time. It'd explain why you were so freaked out over touching me earlier, if you'd rather be getting nailed by some—"
"I am a murderer, Sofia!" Visions of that fateful day on the stand flashed through his mind. His confession came rushing back to him with crystal clarity, and he repeated it with the same dangerous edge. "I took the life of my mentor, to prevent her from continuing to abuse her daughter. Fool Bright is nothing to me, and at most, we have an... an alliance, which will end once I'm executed. That is strictly all it is."
"Whatever."
Simon couldn't help himself from getting a jab in. "Ah, the common rebuttal of the teen-aged girl." He had heard that word sneered many a time, having grown up with Aura.
"Oh, shut up."
"Gladly. You shall do the same, and speak up only to inform me when to turn off to... wherever this 'here' is that we are driving to."
"Turn here," she repeated back to him.
"Yes, precisely."
"No. Turn here." She motioned wildly at an off-ramp that, according to the sign posted beside it, led to a large campground and lake.
Though Simon rarely apologized for his behavior, he would have to do so to Fool Bright, for being such a disruptive passenger, now that he had played the part of distracted navigator.
Only, he wondered as he steered the cruiser along the wending path that bordered the campground, if and when the opportunity would present itself.
The only thing that bolstered his confidence was the lasting image of Fool Bright, releasing his injured arm long enough to salute Simon. Exactly how Simon wanted to remember him, if they were not to be reunited any time soon.
In justice, he would trust.
But even justice couldn't keep a car running on an empty gas tank. The cruiser stalled, and sputtered out, coming to a complete halt in the middle of a dirt road back behind the campground entrance, blocking it to any other traffic.
"Close enough! Come on, follow me." Throwing open the passenger door, Sofia climbed out and didn't even wait for Simon as he retrieved his backpack from behind the driver's seat. She sped off deeper into the woods, away from the campsite, towards what he guessed could be the direction of the lake.
"Hoy! Sofia!" He caught up to her easily, spotting her black mane in the dim purpled backdrop of the early morning. "You're positive you know where you're going?"
"Yes!" She whirled on him, her voice a growl overflowing with frustration. "Just stop questioning me! God, why couldn't your cop have come with me? At least he didn't treat me like a kid; he actually freakin' listened to what I had to say."
It should have stung, but there was so much hurting Simon more at the moment. "You are a child! You—!"
Simon stopped upon realizing Sofia was crying, again. Because she was a child. Defenseless. Trapped. She didn't want to hear it, though. Didn't want to believe it.
He inched closer to her, thinking better than to try and reassure her with physical contact. Swinging the backpack around so he could unzip it, he found a pocket pack of Kleenex and the bag of red licorice. He withdrew one of each from their packages, and Sofia accepted them.
After blowing her nose quite loudly, she snacked down the licorice with a sort of disgusted twist in her expression. "Red licorice is pretty gross. But... thanks. Gracias."
A ghost of a smile pulled at Simon's lips. "You're quite welcome. Now, are you prepared to lead? Because I am ready to follow, wherever you may go."
Sofia nodded, but didn't move in any direction. Suddenly, she launched herself at Simon, slender arms flying around his middle in a hug. She all but headbutted him in doing so, her face burying into the chest of his grimy sweatshirt.
It was uncomfortable to say the least, with how brutally sore his ribs were. But he didn't complain, didn't pull away. He placed a hand gently atop her head, unsure what else to do with his other arm but to loosely circle it around her. And he wondered if she'd ever received contact like this: purely platonic, caring. Supportive.
She slipped out of the hug with a great sniffling inhale, and pushed back the hair that had fallen across her face. Then she turned, facing the sunrise. The rising light of day reflected in her damp eyes, and the same brightness shone in her declaration of "This way."
No chains, only half of his prison uniform, no lunk-headed officer trailing him—well, maybe that part wasn't as satisfying as it might have once been. Simon would never be this free again, and yet, there was no enjoyment in it.
They trekked on for another ten minutes, the scenery unchanging. Simon had lost whatever little sense of location he'd obtained, only certain they were heading east given the direction from which the early morning sun poked its rays through the trees.
"Sofia, would you mind at least tell me what or who it is you're seeking?" Simon asked as he palmed a low tree branch away from his forehead. "I'm only asking because I think it best we work together as much as possible."
The fresh morning air, the time to collect herself and her thoughts must have helped her relax. There was no defiance in her words when she answered him. "You wouldn't believe me if I explained it. Just keep following me. You'll see."
Simon was about to demand she quit making such assumptions, when the trail spilled out to the lakefront quite suddenly—they were surrounded by foliage and shadows, and then, they were not. It was awe-inspiring in its beauty, so vivid and sparkling. Taka would adore flying around here, and Simon wished it were a viable request to ask of Aura, for when he no longer held claim as the hawk's closest companion.
"There! I knew it!" Sofia shouted back to him, before dashing off into the distance, towards a vacant and somewhat dilapidated dock jutting out from the water's edge.
"Sofia!"
Simon hadn't run in years. Adding to that his battered state and the weight of the backpack, he quickly fell behind. He staggered to a disoriented stop several feet short of a band of gritty sand where Sofia currently stood, impatient.
"What the hell.." He gulped in air, hunched with his hands on his knees for support. "This is... this is nowhere, this is..."
"Let's go for a swim!" Sofia reached for him, attempting to unsaddle him of the backpack. One strap was halfway down his shoulder before he fought her off.
"What the hell are you on about?! This is not a vacation!"
"No shit, but make it look like it is." Giving up on the backpack, she inched closer to the water, toes curling as it buffeted her ankles. She glanced back at Simon, expression falling back to that tragically frail line between fear and strength. "Mr. Simon, please, at least just sit on the dock or something, pretend you're here with... do you have any siblings?"
"A sister."
"Well, pretend you're here chilling with her, or something."
Right, which would mostly involve Aura mocking how translucently pale he was and trying to pants him (and likely succeeding). Or, that is how it would have been when they were younger. Now?
He'd never know, so he didn't bother thinking on it. Instead, he lowered himself to the dock and dropped his feet into the lake water, which was as icy as he would have expected this early in the day. After a moment or two, it became soothing, and Simon rolled up the legs of his prison slacks to expose them to the same lapping comfort.
Sofia had moved to stand beside Simon, and she smiled over at him. "Good," she said, before taking a deep breath and then a running leap off the dock's end.
Before Simon could get over the shock of what she'd just done, Sofia burst through the water's surface, whipping her hair back as though she fancied herself in a movie. Her top was all but transparent, clinging to her frame and, unnervingly, leaving nothing to the imagination. Simon made a quick mental note to lend her his sweatshirt when she was back on dry land.
"Keep on the lookout and let me know if you see anyone, alright? Anyone at all. Park rangers would be great, but just... anyone will do." She swiped at a section of hair still stuck near her eyes, then kept paddling in place. "Hopefully this won't take too long."
"What are you up to?"
"I told you, you'll see."
"No, you will—Sofia!" She vanished underwater again, and when she reappeared not a minute later, Simon finished his question. "What happened to reporting the crime at the motel? To having help sent to Fulbright?"
"Okay, so what, we're just going to run into a park ranger's office looking like this? Some beat-up little Mexican girl and a creepy goth? You think they're gonna listen to anything we have to say?"
Creepy? Goth? Hmph, well, he'd heard worse. "And you using this lake for a leisurely swim will inspire a different outcome?"
Sofia didn't answer him, only inhaled again and disappeared beneath the water. Simon watched with intent as she would emerge, draw in another deep breath, and plummet back under the surface, clearly with a goal in mind.
After two more attempts, and no results, Sofia let out a cry of frustration. With it, she slapped at the water, sprinkling Simon in the process.
He fixed her with a narrowed glare. "Are you sure we oughtn't abandon this plan of yours?"
"No. It's just stuck, and I—"
"'Stuck'? What is stuck? Shall I help you or—"
"No!" she insisted. "You're keeping an eye out for the rangers, right?"
Simon automatically scanned the horizon for a split second, then looked back at her. "Yes, but—"
"Then you're helping. God, I figured they'd be all over the place, but I guess it's still kind of early."
"You're familiar with this park?" She'd made it a point for Simon to drive here in particular, and seemed to know the general layout, so she must have been here at some point in the recent past. But Simon couldn't imagine her repulsive uncle bringing her here for a fun family outing.
"I came here for a biology class field trip at the beginning of the school year. We were supposed to take soil samples, all the different kinds that are around the lake, y'know? "
"Yes, I believe so." Right. She'd mentioned being able to attend school, receive an education she might not have if she were still with the rest of her family.
"Well, there's a ranger station right on the other side of the lake, behind those trees. I remember because there was this park ranger lurking around, and he had this seventies-ish 'stache." She grinned at Simon, tracing the mustache's shape along her lip. "And he had like, those super-tight brown ranger shorts on. You could totally see the outline of his—"
"Enough!" Simon cut her off. It was so bizarre to hear her speaking so much like a teenager, when she spent the better part of her days charading as an adult. Releasing an exasperated sigh, Simon let his eyes slide shut. They remained closed for a few more moments, as he found keeping the intensifying sunlight out of them helped to ease his headache.
"What, you imagining your cop friend in a pair of them?"
Simon's eyes shot open. His attempt to kick a spray of water at Sofia failed, as she just laughed and disappeared underwater, returning to her mission. As she swam around, Simon formulated the tongue-lashing he would give her when she resurfaced. It was disposed of when she burst forth with a squeal of exhilaration and her arm extended high and triumphant. The object being waved about, Simon couldn't make out until she swum over and held it out to him.
"Got it," she grinned, blinking up at Simon. Thick clumps of her hair stuck about her neck, shoulders, as if molded there; this was, if only an infinitesimal bit, fun for her, the swimming and diving. A fleeting smile involuntarily twitched back in return, Simon's bewilderment at what was in his hand now overpowering any will he might have had to offer anything fuller.
A key. With an arrowhead keychain quite similar to the one Fool Bright had been given when they'd arrived.
"It's a master key," Sofia explained. "Tío has one, and I have one. Er, had one. This one. Until I left it here."
"Left it? Did you lose it while with your class?" Simon turned it over in his fingers. It was grimy, stank of the lake's sediment and something else Simon couldn't place.
"No, I didn't lose it. I just told you, I left it here." A pause, just long enough for Simon to anticipate this was all about to get worse before it got better. "On the body."
Dread expanded in Simon's stomach, nearly as painful as the ache in his ribs. "The..." he swallowed, hoping he'd heard her wrong.
Until another whiff of the keychain reached him, and that's when he knew what it was he'd been unable to identify.
Decaying flesh.
"Yeah, the body." Sofia confirmed, a crack in her voice. "Of the cop who came snooping around the motel a couple weeks ago."
Simon's throat tightened. A gag forced his other hand to his mouth, not that there was anything to bring up. He always spoke so casually of his own imminent death but to be this close to someone else's—someone who could have been Fool Bright...
He knew now, why she reminded him so very much of Athena, beyond just being a young, spirited girl with so much to live for. That hollowness in her eyes when they'd first met—she had seen so much, too much more than she ever should have, thus having that spirit broken, mangled. Everything but completely stolen away.
And her treatment at the hands of her uncle and his loathsome clients hadn't been all of it.
Death. No, that was hardly the definition of what she'd witnessed.
Rage. Hatred. Destruction.
He wanted to ask her what she'd told Fool Bright in her short time with him, about this corpse in the lake—because she had to've; this would have been where they would have devised to make off to. But all that came out was a low, breaking, "Oh... There..." as off in the distance behind Sofia, Simon could make out a moving, brown-clothed figure emerging from the copse of trees near another dock. A ranger, perhaps.
Sofia followed his gaze, turning to check, and then looked back at him, her grin returning with a vengeance. "Great. Don't lose that," she said, motioning to the key still grasped tight in Simon's hand. "Now just play along okay?"
If by "play along", Sofia meant for Simon to sit there on the dock in unseeing confusion as she began screaming wildly for help, for someone to hurry, that there was a body...
That's precisely what he did.