Jess had barely made her way through the parking lot and into the Henbane woods when it just suddenly had to start raining. Mild rainwater began falling rapidly, nearly drenching her completely and putting her leave on hold. After another pointless discussion that had gone nowhere, she'd been wanting to finally leave the jailhouse and the Henbane. With Nathan still out there she was itching to resume the search, leaving the talking and convincing to Jerome. If there was anybody that had a chance at changing the people's minds on what to do with the situation, it was him. Maybe he could be the one to talk some sense into Tracey and get her to back off, though that was unlikely. But as long as she didn't intervene with the search Jess could not care any less what she did.

Jess alternated between a half-sprint and an awkward speed walk back to the jail, so grateful her jacket covered her from the surprisingly fat droplets of water. She saw that a few people walked outside to take in the rain, thanking God for gifting it to them but a particular group cursed it for having interrupted their game of chess.

She made her way back inside and towards the main area. There she saw the Sheriff with the other two deputies, all still in their uniforms, looking over a map of the county and highlighting potential exit routes like the rivers in the Valley and any mountain passes.

"Jess, back so soon? You get caught in the rain?" The Sheriff greeted her with smaller "heys" from his other two deputies.

"Not just me, it got everyone outside too." She jerked a finger at the people that were making their way inside.

"I'll have to remind everyone to check for any leakage, the last thing we need is any excess amount of water making it inside." He signaled a Cougar to check the rooftops for any holes through which water could get through.

Jess nodded absentmindedly and looked back at the map on the table. It looked like Orville creek in Holland had been a point of interest if the big circle that was drawn around it was anything to go by. Trying to get out again huh? Let's see how it goes this time. Jess was betting whatever team would get bombed down by Chosen airplanes.

"We're looking to see if we can make it out of the county and get help from the outside. We figured now that the Father's practically disappeared we could do it without being detected by any roaming Chosen." Hudson explained to her. She pointed at several other spots near the far end of the Whitetail mountains. "We're also hoping to get some of the more experienced climbers and hikers to take the journey out through the mountains."

"From there we'd let the higher-ups deal with locating Joseph Seed and whatever's left of the project." Whitehorse finished, pointing a finger at the island where the church was. Though that had been empty for months already there was still a small chance that Joseph had returned with his people to reclaim it.

"Anyway, Jess I've been wanting to talk about Rook for a while. Figure you could indulge me for a couple of minutes?"

"I suppose I got some spare time, " Jess was mentally bracing herself for another awkward conversation with a group of people she had barely ever spoken to in the months they knew each other.

"You were the only person that knew him more than anyone, even us. He always kept to himself at the department." Whitehorse had never been bothered too much by that, after all, he still did his job diligently. "That I'd like to know what you two went through when the war was still going strong."

That was not what Jess had in mind when he told her he wanted to talk about Nathan. She thought it would be another usual questionnaire on what she'd do when they met again. Well, I agreed so i may as well get this over with.

"What can I say really? Those liberated outposts could tell you more of a story than I really could. Though I always thought he didn't like me too much..." Jess never talked much about her adventures with Nathan because she never felt she needed to. Even Nathan kept quiet about the ins and outs of their operations, usually only commenting on a finished job.

Maybe she could tell them a little more. After all, they couldn't be that actually incompetent if they survived this much.

So she did just that. Let them know all about what went on in the Whitetails to the Henbane and everything in between. For as weird as it felt basically retelling everything that had happened, Jess went on, obviously omitting some things she knew Nathan would want to be excluded. She finished with their was their last job together at the brewery days before he went off to confront Faith.

"Sounds like our Rookie really managed to get to you huh?" Was apparently Whitehorse's assessment of everything she had just told them.

The hell does he mean by that?

"What do you mean?" Get to her? No one was getting to her, not without her say so. "Like... getting on my nerves?"

"No, what I mean is that just as you clearly changed him, he did the same to you." He clarified.

Change me? Yeah right... Aside from some minor changes in music choice, Jess really didn't agree with that. Now had she changed Nate? Well, he was gone so not enough apparently.

"Had we really changed each other we wouldn't be in this mess would we?"

"Have to agree with her there boss," Pratt spoke up after a long period of nothing but silence from him. There was still an out of place look about him like he wasn't a hundred percent there emotionally. Jess understood it was due to what that sick bastard Jacob had put him through, it had been the same type of look Nathan had for a while after he killed Jacob.

Whitehorse smiled and looked at Jess. "Well, I'll tell you this. When you were with Rook here some people were highly wary of you because of y'know... the bow and arrows plus your brash attitude."

"Of course, he always spoke very highly of you, asking people to see past your demeanor." Though she didn't really care what people thought of her, she appreciated Nathan's efforts.

"And now the fact that you're actively looking for him and also being on Tracey's case so often. I'll agree she's a tough case isn't she?" Though her newfound hard edge was due to the fact that Minkler was dead and his murderer had basically gone off scott free.

"I'm standing up for my friend, why wouldn't I want her to back off?"

"Would you have done that for someone prior to meeting him?" He asked, curious as to what her answer would be.

Jess knew the answer was no because there had never been anyone before Nathan that had been such an influence to her, besides her grandmother. Wait... Did he?

"No..." There it was.

"Rook always had the law in mind when it came to dealing with the Seeds, so even when he talked about there being good in Faith it didn't mean she would be free of punishment," Whitehorse reminded her. "But he was adamant about that."

"Yeah... He was. And it cost him everything." Hudson murmured from the side. She like Pratt had resorted to simply listening to their conversation with very little input.

"I'm not saying he was definitely right this time but... If he was right about you, then maybe he could've been right about her..." He finished, letting the words settle in her mind. She refused to those words but she'd keep that to herself.

"Thank you for your time anyway Jess, if you should get back out there, I'd suggest you do it now the sun's setting." Fucking finally! With a half-hearted "later" Jess walked away from the group.

"Hey, Jess," Hudson called to her. Jess turned to see the woman walk over to her in a rather quick pace.

"Yeah?"

"I know this probably doesn't need to be asked, but do keep us posted if you find him, please. I think you know we also want to help him..." Jess knew Hudson was a different case when it came to ties with Nate. She was the only one who really knew him before his arrival to Hope County but other than that neither really talked about it much.

"Sure," Jess assured, walking off to the outside wanting to finally leave the jailhouse after so long. After all, Nathan wasn't going to find himself.

Now Jess wanted to leave more than before. She had to go clear her head for a while after everything and so she figured she'd do just that. The rain had long since stopped leaving the dampened air that made the summer heat worse.

Whitehorse's talk stuck with her on her way out. It was weird that their first actual conversation that didn't involve how best to take down Eden's Gate had left her thinking so much and the more she gave it thought the more she realized that maybe they were right. Maybe Nathan had managed to get further past her exterior than what he realized or she cared to openly admit.

He had seen something in her that made him stick around her immediately after they met and well beyond that. Whatever it was that Nate saw in her also gave her the only person she had actually cared about in a very long time. But then that also brought her to her next question...

Could Nathan have been right or at least on to something in regards to Faith? No. Not a chance. Jess shut that thought down almost as fast as it had popped in her head.

Just because Nathan was insistent that their was some other side of Faith no one else saw didn't mean he was right about it being a good one. Faith was a manipulator through and through and Nathan well... Jess felt Nathan could be incredibly naive, sometimes. The time he spent with Faith could've been more than enough for her to mess with his head and lure him into believing her every word. Because that was what she did, didn't she? Made her way into your head till eventually you fell prey to her words and Nathan had been no different from that, it had just taken longer.

That made Jess wonder what could really be done if Nathan was too far gone after all that time, what she would do. Perhaps the day when they met again, they'd figure it out and see it through together, as the team that they were.

She suddenly heard the rotating blades of a chopper and looked up to see one fast approaching her. The closer it got the more Jess could make it out and thankfully it didn't seem to be a peggie one. Otherwise she'd have overpowered and been caught with her metaphorical pants down.

As it landed a few yards from her Jess looked at the paint job and sighed. Of course it was Adelaide's, who else would it be? Let's get this over with, I've got a search to get back to...

The ugly pink camo was unmistakable and was something only someone like Adelaide would have. Nathan had found it cool when they first saw it but he had also been as high as a kite that day on some of Hurk's stuff.

"Hey darling, how's it going?" Adelaide greeted her from inside the chopper. Once she stepped out and walked over to her did Jess respond.

"Cool, I guess. Kinda boring with no peggies around anymore."

"They're gone for good?"

"Nah, not really but trying to find them's a pain in the ass so with any luck they'll just starve to death." Jess really hoped that wouldn't apply to Joseph. That fucker didn't deserve to die on anything other than Nathan's terms.

"So I've been told you're looking for the deputy and Faith for a while now huh? Must be exhausting." Adelaide asked, sounding surprisingly sympathetic. Jess felt that despite being related to Hope County's two biggest idiots, Adelaide was better off in terms of maturity and smarts. She could be over the top sometimes, but who isn't?

"It's more annoying than anything, like who knew he could be such a slippery little shit."

"So what brought you over to the jailhouse? I doubt you'll find them there. Unless you got a sweetheart there?"

"Fuck no! I came to talk to Tracey about the flower bitch. They used to be close friends years ago or some shit like that." Though that had gotten her absolutely nowhere and only proved to be a gigantic waste of time just like the other times they'd talked.

That part surprised Adelaide. So did that mean that was more to Faith after all?

"I've also wanted her to back off on the whole situation and shit, it's bad enough we forced Nathan's hand that day."

Adelaide frowned slightly at her words. "Tracey had a part in that?"

"Yeah... and so did I for some stupid ass reason..."

"Well, it's nice of you to at least know you screwed up on that, looks like the deputy's starting to rub off on ya' and... not in the sexual kind of course." Jess understood well enough what she meant and maybe like the Sheriff, Adelaide was on to something.

"Since we're here to tell each other what we know so I guess it's my turn." Not that she didn't appreciate the gesture, but Jess was highly doubtful Adelaide knew much about what had been going on in the county much less anything newsworthy to her.

"Here's something I thought you'd like to know, Junior and Sharky found Nathan in the valley clinic."

As if her mind was on a delay, Jess took time to process just exactly what she'd been told. There was no way those words came out of her mouth, did they? Did... Did I hear her right?

"Wait what!?" There was no masking the surprise and slight excitement in her voice. Nate was still in the valley!?

"Yup, he met up with those two for help. I still dunno why he'd look for those two though. They got the combined intelligence of a darn 'possum."

Any other day and Jess would've laughed at the comparison but right now she wanted to have the two of them right in front of her so she could murder them.

"So Hurk and Sharky... they know where Nate is?"

"Mhmm, talked to him and everything but one day Grace overhead them talking about him and they spilled." Grace knew too! What the fuck why wouldn't she have told me!?

They knew all along? They were well aware that she had been all over the county going off on whatever grain of information she got to try and find Nathan to no luck. Going around like an absolute idiot in circles only for them to be in the valley.

Friendship with him or not, Jess was going to beat the shit out of Hurk and Sharky

"I... I gotta go..."

"Did I say somethin' wrong?" Adelaide received no response as Jess had already left. For a moment she stood there confused and slightly miffed but then it all began to dawn on her... God damnit Addie!

Adelaide realized she might've put her son and nephew in a very awkward position after what she revealed. Jess was really gonna let those two have it when she got to the valley. Maybe she should warn them to go back home? Nah, they need a fuckin' scaring or two, hopefully, she doesn't go too far...

As for herself, she had to make it to the jail and see what had been going on with the Cougars and Tracey. Another thing was that she needed to call Nathan and tell him just who she had encountered. She was curious to see what his reaction would be, concern probably.

Though that would all have to wait as she felt her radio go off from inside her shirt. I really need to buy a clip for this damn thing, it's worse than the toy back at home.

Who could possibly be calling her? She suspected it was Hurk asking for money again but part of her was worried maybe something wrong went wrong back at her marina between Nathan and the people there. She really hoped Xander had done what he could in getting them to mellow out.

Not knowing what to expect, she held up the radio and pressed on the button to talk. "This is Adelaide, who am I speakin' to?"

"Hey, Addie!" Came Nick's greeting from the other line. Nick Rye? What could he need? They hadn't spoken to each other in quite some time though the fact that it was him who was calling and not someone else was... oddly relieving. Maybe because she didn't want to give Hurk any more money or possibly find out that her marina had been the fighting ground between the deputy and the Cougars.

"Well goddamn, Nick Rye! To who do I owe the pleasure of this call?" She winced slightly at her faux-enthusiasm that was too much even for her. Kinda overdoing it a little Addie... Nick didn't seem to notice though.

"Well I had been wanting to get in contact but I always figured you're too busy doing your thing to make time and drop by the valley."

"Oh, you know me Nick, gotta keep my chopper in the skies and my marina in tip-top shape." That and being around the Spread Eagle brought back some unpleasant memories of her younger self dragging a wasted Hurk Senior out by the collar of his shirt.

"That's cool. I've been running some maintenance on Carmina, one of the gatling guns is jamming up but anyways... I wanted to talk to you about our friend, Nathan, and Faith Seed."

"Oh yeah, what about them? Were they found or something?"

"Not yet, but that's what we're preparing for. If we find them we have to be ready for the worst y'know, when it comes to Nathan."

"How so?"

"Faith could've messed with his head, used the Bliss or something else to get him to fall in line. Our friend probably doesn't even know where he is or what he's doing!"

That was... unexpected. While Adelaide suspected Nick would be vocal about what happened but she didn't expect him to rant the same way everyone did. It was beginning to get annoying fast.

Well, Nicky, he's in my marina and what he's doing? Based on the looks he gave her probably the Seed gal, but Adelaide wouldn't tell him that especially not that last part. No, Nathan and Faith's whereabouts would remain a secret for a while longer.

"Oh c'mon, not you too Nick?" How many times had people been saying the same thing? The fact that she and a couple of others had seen Nathan and Faith first-hand without him going haywire disproved that theory.

"Huh?"

"None of us know what in the hell happened between them before they ran off. Our dearest lawman had gotten the boot before we even heard a peep on his end." Even she didn't know yet, and right now she was only one helping him! She'd know it all in due time, they had agreed to that.

"It's best to stop flinging one conspiracy after another, leave that craziness to Kupka or the Parker kid. We need to focus on what we do know and go on from there."

"And how would you know that's not what happened?" He was right. How could Adelaide really be sure that wasn't what had happened? I guess I can't really be can I? Just gotta trust Nathan on that.

"I don't but Nick, it's been almost three months since anyone's seen or heard anything about them." She briefly paused and noticed that she was beginning to sound genuinely angry. That wasn't good.

"Look, if Faith really worked her charms on him, then what the hell was her plan? To take him back to the cult with her?" Because she hadn't... Nathan had brought her back to the Henbane. "There's been hardly any cult activity since then Nick, c'mon..."

"It just really makes no sense to me but I guess that's... that's a possibility."

"Mhmm, and as of now, he's yet to be seen in those soiled cult rags with a gun in one hand and that fuckin' weirdo Joseph Seed's book in the other." Sensing that her anger was towards Nick and his stubbornness, she decided to lighten the mood and hopefully put an end to their conversation already. "Though who knows really? You could be right and we may have to put 'em down..."

"What in the... You're joking right?"

"Relax Nicky I'm just kidding with you. I doubt it'll come to that."

"Yeah... I mean, I guess. Anyways, I gotta get back to the wife and little rugrat so I'll catch you later."

Oh, thank Mary...

"But don't be a stranger alright? And tell Kim I said hi!" Adelaide bid him farewell and took some time to process their talk. As interesting as their conversation had been, Adelaide still had to get to the jailhouse and talk to Tracey, see if she still thought the same of everything.

Before she turned the engine of her chopper back on Adelaide remembered she still had to give Nathan a call and let him know of just who she'd met up with. With any luck, he would at least appreciate the heads up.

That's all she wrote, sorry.