A Stop for the Night, Part 1 (Hae-Ri)
Staring out the window during the long, uneventful, quiet drive after her captor successfully managed to escape their pursuers, Hae-Ri wasn't really seeing anything. Her ankle was painfully throbbing and her hands were numb as she tried to make sense of the situation and decide what her next move should be.
Her captor didn't bother with her much. Occasionally, she caught him checking up on her in the mirror, but other than that he showed no interest in her whatsoever. She was pretty sure he wasn't planning to hurt her, but even if wasn't, she knew well enough that things didn't always go as planned. Even though she couldn't quite figure out his intentions, Hae-Ri couldn't help but give her captor credit for managing to keep her alive during a gunfight, and at least for now, she wasn't too concerned about her wellbeing. Strangely, at the moment, though cuffed, injured and kidnapped, she didn't feel in danger. Of course, once they reached the destination he had in mind, it might be a whole different story...
The sun was already setting when Hae-Ri caught sight of her captor through the rearview mirror. Though she could see basically nothing of his face, she could tell something was wrong. His neck was streaming with sweat, and it seemed like he struggled to keep his head straight. Suddenly, he turned the wheel sharply and went off the paved road. She though he passed out and lost control over the car, but quickly realized this wasn't the case as he started going up a nearby mountain.
The sun was setting quickly as he kept charging forward, until he drove the car into a large cluster of leafless bushes. He then turned the car off and leaned back, letting his head fall back against the headrest. She didn't think much of it at first, but the way his body slumped as if collapsing into itself, his neck craned awkwardly to the side, she suspected something was indeed wrong.
As her captor stayed unconscious while the sky darkened, she got more confident that it would be a while before he woke up. She carefully tried to open the door as she kept a watching eye on the motionless form in the driver's seat, in case it suddenly came to life. As expected, the door was locked. She eyed the cigarette box on the far end of the back seat again, and decided to give it a go. She wasn't too keen on using her injured foot to do that, but it was the only chance she had to reach it.
She didn't realize just how badly she was really hurt until an involuntarily cry escaped her lips as she tried to take the shoe off. Tears started to well in her eyes, evidence not to her pain, but her frustration at the uncalled-for, new obstacle that presented itself. She tried again, refusing to give up after a single failed attempt, and found herself withering in pain as it became clear that her left foot was of no use in its current state.
For now, it seemed like there wasn't much she could do but count on the kindness of her captor. Even so, the thought of voluntarily submitting to the mercy of others made her uncomfortable, and, almost immediately, anxious.
"Ajusshi?", she called out to him in a low voice, leaning forward as far as her bound hands allowed, peering at him. Up until that point, all that she wanted was to get a moment out of his watchful eyes, and use the chance to escape. She didn't think of what would become of her if this man died while they were alone in the wilderness, with her hands tied to the damn door of a car. It was the undeniable truth that if this man was to die tonight, she would die there too. Though he was the one to force her into this situation by kidnapping her, he was also the only one who could get her out of it. With her bound hands and injured ankle, she would die either of thirst or hunger, or worse, of suffocation. under the unforgiving sun of the desert, the enclosed cabin will surely turn into a pressure cooker in no time, once morning comes.
"Ajusshi, get it together", she called louder, panic starting to creep in as he remained unresponsive. She sat back and tried to lift her leg off the floor in order to kick his chair and shake him up into consciousness, but even the slightest movement made her shrivel in pain.
"Wake up!" she started to yell, calling out to him again and again. She felt a sense of doom brought on by desperation, lodging itself inside her chest, a lump forming in her throat. She could see his chest rise and fall in the dark, but the motion was uneven and laborious.
Overwhelmed by her miserable state of helplessness, she tried to hold herself together. There was no sense in getting panicked, she reminded herself, she should try to think of a way out instead. Feeling stressed about the situation won't do anything to change it, it will only cloud her mind. Until her very last moment, she shouldn't give up, even if everything seemed hopeless.
She started considering her options. She could try to dislocate her thumbs and shimmy out of the zip tie, or try to break the window with a head butt. If she was lucky, she would be able to get a hold on a piece of glass and cut off the tie. At worst, it would allow air into the car and prevent her from being cooked to death inside of it. She could also try kicking her shoe out the window to her left, which should break quite easily, seeing as a bullet went through it. She could yell for help, though it's been ages since she's seen a soul in this god forsaken desert. Maybe her ankle will be a little more cooperative tomorrow after letting it rest for a few hours, then she could go back to her cigarette box plan, in hope there was indeed a lighter in it. Trying to come up with a plan made her feel a bit less bleak. Those weren't ideal ways to get out of this pickle, but nevertheless, they were executable.
Though Hae-Ri was by no means a coward and never shied away from anything due to fear, she couldn't help but acknowledge that the best option she had was the survival of her captor. Being alone in an extremely Islamic foreign country, in a remote rural region that seemed lightyears away from any welcoming wealthy metropolis, she couldn't help but shy away from the thought of roaming the desert alone, left to the mercies of strangers. Being brave was one thing, being stupid was another.
"Come on, open your eyes!", she pleaded with him, this time louder, with new found determination.
"Please, ajusshi!", she called out to him again, deciding to keep going until he either woke up or stopped breathing, and prayed that the first option would be the reason rather than the second.
"Ajusshi!", she called again, and he suddenly raised his head, looking as if he came out of a trance, his soul returning to his body unannounced. Her heart raced with excitement. He was alive! Now she wouldn't have to dislocate her thumbs or get a concussion from head butting the window. He seemed to be a little disoriented, slowly straightening up in his seat, looking around as if he didn't know where he was. But whatever his condition was, the fact that he didn't die was enough for her. He leaned forward and tilted his head, looking upward through the windshield, then turned on the lights in the cabin. She suddenly became aware that she was eagerly leaning in his direction, and settled back in her seat just before he turned around to face her.
His hat was still low over his brow, and under the dim light his eyes looked like two black holes. She tried to curb her excitement down, there was no reason the let him think she cared about his wellbeing. She didn't give a damn about him, the only interest she had was her safety, and he was nothing but a means to meet an end.
"Welcome back," she said nonchalantly, and it came off as sarcastic. Apparently, he thought so too. For the first time, after spending hours in the same enclosed vicinity together, he displayed something that resembled human emotion. She wasn't sure, but the way his frame suddenly shook made her think that he was laughing. It ended as suddenly as it started, and he quickly turned around and turned off the lights.
From that moment on, and for a considerable amount of time, he hastily moved in, out and around the car, very much like a possessed monkey*. The night was getting colder, and each time he opened a door a gush of cold air filled the cabin, making her shiver.
Most of what he was doing she couldn't see. She did hear him put something on top of the car, but that was pretty much it. He either did something outside where it was already too dark to see anything, or he was doing something in the trunk. The car was also dark, but she still turned around occasionally as much as her bindings allowed, which wasn't much, and tried to see what he was up to. She didn't catch much of that.
At last, she gave up her curiosity and just stared into space, trying not to think about anything. Her head hurt and the massive amount of stress she experienced wasn't without a price. She was exhausted. The adrenaline brought on by the anxiety she felt earlier had already left her body, and it felt like everything else she had in her was following suit and leaving along after it. She was just about to surrender to her exhaustion when suddenly a leg came over the seat next to her, startling her into alertness before he quickly disappeared to the back with his backpack in hand. She waited for her heart rate to slow down, summoning sleep, fully trusting her instincts that this guy had no plan to harm her while she was out. He was completely indifferent to her presence, for better or worse. If her wanted to hurt her, he would have done so already, she kept telling herself.
She leaned her head back and closed her eyes, and not a minute after he suddenly appeared next to her again, hopping over the seat and settling down next to her and turned on the lights in the cabin. She raised her gaze to his face, but as usual, could see nothing of it. His hat was even lower, and he kept his head down. He uncapped a bottle he was holding and raised his head just enough to see he wasn't missing her mouth, as he slowly brought the bottle to her lips. She was extremely surprised, not expecting it at all, but nevertheless, she was grateful. Though the liquid was warm and not exactly refreshing, she drank thirstily, her eagerness ultimately bringing it down the wrong pipe, making her gag and cough. He took the bottle away, and though she was still coughing, she feared she wouldn't get another chance like that for who knows how long. She was just about to speak up when he suddenly started to wipe away escaping droplets of water that ran down her chin and neck very gently. She felt water running further down her cleavage, and was nervous for a moment when he reached the base of her neck, praying he would stop there, and relaxed instantly when he moved up to wipe her chin instead.
She eyed the water bottle, gesturing to it with a nod. He immediately caught the meaning, bringing the bottle to her lips again. This time, she took it in slowly. She nudged the bottle away when she had had enough, and he put it aside at once.
He then took an unlabeled tin can and pulled on the metal ring, opening it halfway. The content was red and soupy, with random roundish white peaks floating at the top. It had a nice smell of spices and tomatoes, and her stomach cried in anticipation. Her captor shoved a plastic spoon in and gave it a quick stir, making the sauce level go down, revealing the white peaks were actually beans. He scooped out a spoonful of the mushy content, wiped the excess sauce on the edge of the can, and brought it closer to her. She wished he would have just freed her hands and let her eat by herself, as the uncomfortable situation felt way too intimate. Baggers can't be choosers, she told herself, and opened her mouth obediently, feeling the pangs of hunger echoing through her body. It was savory and soft, and not all that bad after the day she had, thinking she wouldn't get to eat anything at all. He brought spoonful after spoonful to her mouth, and she took it in.
She was already feeling heavy from drinking too fast, and now was starting to feel nauseated as well. She knew the feeling wouldn't last long, but she couldn't fit in another bite in her stomach. She turned her head away on the next approaching spoon, signaling that she was done. He picked up a tissue and wiped removed any traced of sauce from around her lip, and quickly disappeared into the trunk, jumping over the seat. From the sound of it, he was sitting down for a meal of his own.
With her stomach full, Hae-Ri started to get sleepy again. The way he acted made her very curious, but it did more that just that. It solidified her hunch that no harm will come from this guy. Whoever he was and whatever his reasons were for doing this, it wasn't to hurt her, it seemed. Of course, there was always the option that he was just the middleman, and that worse things await in her future…
The ominous thought made her shiver, but she had no energy to acknowledge the possibility. Her mind wandered in every direction, no coherent thought was left intact. At least for tonight she was probably safe, she comforted herself. She felt rather perplexed about how relaxed and almost comfortable she was in this situation, bindings and all, and blamed it on her fatigue after an overly eventful day. She still had to find a chance to escape, and the sooner the better, but her injured foot complicated things. It would be good, she thought, if she could stay with this guy for just another day, until she was well enough to run away from him.