Alexander Sands smoothed his suit as he walked down the hallway. His employer would be most unhappy when he heard of the recent events. He could already hear the threats that he was certain would come his way and knew that Crane would make good on them. Stepping into the room, he could feel Crane's eyes raise to look him over.
Xavier Crane sat at his desk rifling through a stack of papers when his colleague walked through the door. Raising his steely gaze to the other, he waited to see if Sands would come clean about the recent screw up he and his men had. Drumming his fingers impatiently, he pushed his chair back, standing in one smooth motion.
"What do you have for me?" he asked, his voice a menacing sound to those he employed. He was life and death to them, and they knew it.
"We've hit some complications, sir." Alex folded his hands together in front of him, knowing that no excuse would be good enough. Not daring to look up, he heard Crane walking across the wood floor, his shoes tapping softly. Looking up, he caught the angry gaze of his employer standing there staring back at him.
"What am I paying you for?" Crane bellowed, waving his hands around in anger. "You let them escape, Sands. Your men nearly cost me a fortune, let alone the few that should still be in my charge. What possessed you to use live ammunition?"
"I didn't know how else to stop them. We're trying our best, Mr. Crane. Now that the two aren't under control, they're setting my men on fire," Alex stated, shaking his head. "We don't have a counter attack for such an action."
"I don't care what it takes, Sands. Use every means at your disposal and bring them back," Crane replied, casting an angry glare in his direction. "If they escape, you'll pay dearly for it," he threatened.
"I understand, sir. I'll contact the local townsfolk and offer them a reward," Sands retorted, bowing slightly before leaving Crane to stew over the situation.
Xavier Crane took a seat back at his desk, pulling the pile of papers back in front of him. Rifling through the stack, he lost his patience, hitting the desk with his fist. Running a tired hand over his eyes, Crane shook his head wondering when his men would actually do their job and bring back the women that belonged to him. To Xavier Crane, everything could be bought and controlled with the right amount of power. He had all the power to do whatever it took to acquire every desired need and at the moment; powerless now as he lost his newest possessions.
*****
Leelee walked along behind Selah, a frown upon her face. Pushing her hair back, all she wanted was to get out of the woods and away from the bugs. "How much longer?" she asked, swatting at the gnats that flew past her face. "Ew!"
"This is the perfect hiding place," Kara replied, pushing a low branch out of her way. "If they're looking by air, the trees conceal us, and if they're on foot, well, we're just out of luck."
"Oh, now that's comforting," Selah shot back, making a face.
"If we keep moving, they won't have a chance," Jade spoke up. "They can't drive through here, the trees and brush are too dense."
Bri walked along, her mind elsewhere as they traversed through the heavy foliage that filled the space between trees. Snuggling Buttons against her to keep the kitten warm, Bri looked up to catch sight of a sparrow flying through the branches of a tree. A squirrel scurried across the landscape, hunting for it's next meal as the group of women continued on their way. With a smile, she extended a hand and waved slightly toward the squirrel, happy that it seemed to take notice of her.
"There are other people in here," Bri spoke up, catching Leelee's attention.
"Let me guess, the squirrel told you so?" Selah remarked, glancing left and right.
"Yes," Bri answered. Stopping and turning toward her new friend, Bri projected her thoughts, asking all she could think of. "There are people up ahead, some with guns. There is a cave not far off, if we can make it, that has a back door we can sneak out of if necessary."
"Do you think we should head for the cave?" Leelee asked cautiously. "I really don't know about you, but I'd rather tackle a cave than men with guns."
"Don't worry, Leelee. Everything will work out fine," Jade replied softly.
"Okay, Bri. . .lead the way," Kara stated, motioning the young girl to the front. Following right behind her, Kara twisted the ends of her hair, lifting her face to feel the sunlight warm her skin. "How much further is it?"
"Not far now," Bri remarked, skipping along a path.
"Bri, wait up for us," Selah called out.
Bri stopped short, turning around to look back at the others, a smile lighting her dark eyes. "It's just over that ridge," she said, pointing ahead of them. Turning back around, she took a step, tripping over the nearest fallen branch to fall on the ground.
"Are you alright?" Jade asked, helping her to her feet.
Bri brushed the dirt from her clothing and peeked into her jacket to make sure Buttons wasn't hurt in the fall. "I'm fine," she replied, shaking her dark hair. "I am such a clutz."
"Anybody could have tripped," Leelee retorted. "I would not have seen it coming."
"My philosophy? If it can happen, it will happen to me." Bri laughed, taking up the lead once again and nearing the ridge with each passing moment. Standing there looking up at the rocky ledge, her jaw dropped. "How are we going to make it up there?"
"Climb," Leelee replied softly, starting up the slope.
"I really don't have the shoes to be climbing," Selah whined on her way to follow Leelee.
"Stop whining, Selah. Just get up here. You know we won't let you fall," Jade shot back, watching her go.
"Can't we just save them time?" Kara whispered, standing beside Jade and watching the others climbing up the slope of the ridge.
"We could, but where is the fun in that?" Jade replied, watching Selah's foot slide to send rock streaming down across Bri. "They're going to hurt themselves, aren't they?"
Kara gasped softly when Leelee caught a tree branch just as she fell backwards. "Um. . . I say that's a big yes," she answered, looking over at Jade. "Let's just do it and get out of here.
Selah stopped in her ascent, her mind buzzing with new sounds as she twisted her head to find the source of disturbances. Eyes widening, she said two words that invoked fear into the five women. "They're coming."
Within moments, the three climbers were lifted into the air, rising silently toward the top of the ridge to sit precariously on the stone ledge. Jade and Kara followed, not daring to think of the consequences that might come if they were found.
****
"They're up ahead. I can see them," a man in a flannel shirt muttered, letting his hand fall to a pair of binoculars around his neck.
"What do you see, Bill?" another replied, pulling cigarette from the pack in his pocket. "What's up there, Tim?" he asked another. Pulling his lighter from left pocket of his leather jacket, John lit his cigarette and waited for an answer.
"A cave," Tim answered, nodding in their direction. "If they get in there, we'll lose them for sure. There are so many caverns it won't be an easy task to track them. May as well return to Sands and admit defeat."
"If you wish to end up at the bottom of the nearest ravine, by all means go ahead. I'm not going anywhere but up there," John mentioned, nodding toward the stone ridge.
Bill dropped the binoculars, ready to continue on. Taking the lead, he closed the distance between himself and the foot of the incline. Glancing up, he didn't see them anywhere and yet, he knew they weren't far off; the wind carrying their voices perfectly.
***********
Lies trudged across the parking lot, discreetly looking through windows of parked cars. There had to be something, somewhere that wouldn't be missed for a while. Finding a potential target, she placed her hand lightly on the hood, soaking up the history of the vehicle. "Okay. . .nope," she muttered, a vision of a tall man with a chainsaw curbing the thought of borrowing it.
Spidey followed suit, walking down through the cars and choosing one that fit the criteria they decided upon earlier. After four different vehicles, Spidey wasn't so sure she wanted to touch another one. Leaning against a dark green cavalier, a vison hit her like a concrete block. A hazy picture of a large man became clear, his hand holding a long hunting knife securely, as he pulled his green cavalier into a parking spot. Dark eyes sought out his next victim, the stench of death stinging at Spidey's nostrils as she sat helpless beside him as an onlooker. The backseat covered in blood, she wanted to scream but no noise came out. Instead, her eyes grew wide as the man got out of his car, walking toward a young brunette. Without hesitation, the man struck, sinking the knife deep within her abdomen and dragging her dying body back to his car, tossing her in the backseat with the other bodies. Spidey sat motionless, wanting to awaken from this nightmare.
"Spidey?" Jen questioned, seeing a look of total terror flitting through the woman's eyes.
Spidey looked over at Jen then violently shuddered, jumping far away from the car. "Bloody hell! That car must belong to a mass murder or summut!" she shrieked loudly, wringing her hands together.
Lisa walked up beside her, wrapping a comforting hand around her shoulder. "I'm not sure what you saw, but from the look of you, it had to be horrific. You're not alone here, Spidey."
"Right," Amy agreed, walking up on the other side. "Just let it go."
"Easier said than done," Spidey remarked, still shaking from the utter violence of her vision. "I'll have nightmares for weeks!"
"Not if you listen and let it go," Amy insisted. "I've seen many things I've never wanted to see, but they're just visions, nothing more. You can't hold onto something like that. Think of them as really vivid dreams and move on."
"What have you seen?" Lisa inquired, glancing at Amy and raising a brow.
"Death," Amy replied bluntly.
"Talk later!" Jen shouted, her eyes catching the glint of sunlight, just before seeing a long black car enter the parking lot.
"They've found us," Amy muttered, feeling a sense of dread fill her.
"This way!" Jen called, motioning them closer to the building.
As the women ran through the lot of parked cars, a dreaded sound was heard; the car accelerated. Not looking back, they knew how close to freedom they had come, but with the squeal of the tires, they felt it slipping out of their grasp. This was their moment of truth. Were they just going to give up and take what Crane offered them or were they going to fight for their right to survive?
"In there!" Lisa shouted, pointing to a darkened doorway off to the left. Once inside, she slammed to door shut tight, locking it quickly. Taking a deep breath, her head dropping slightly, it immediately shot up at the sound of beating on the door. Lisa stepped back, the others just behind her, as she watched the door shake. "It's not going to hold," she stated, eyes darting around.
"Up here," Amy called out, already heading up a flight of steps. Dark hair swinging silently, Amy came to a sudden halt, voices emerging in her mind.
****
"They've got to be up there."
"You go get 'em and I'll stay here with Skip in case they double back," another replied.
"Are they dangerous?" Skip asked.
"Don't you worry, Skippy. We'll get 'em and be home before you know it," Dirk replied, punching the younger lad on the shoulder. "This should be easy as pie. How much trouble can five women be?"
****
"Come on," Lisa urged, ascending the next flight of stairs. Flinging open a door, she glanced hurriedly around, searching for the faintest sign that they were approaching. A shriek from behind her, spun her around to see Spidey shying away from a rat. "It won't hurt you."
"Sure, that's what they told Ann Bolin just before they chopped her head off," Spidey shot back quickly.
"Com'ere, little fella," Lisa called out, crouching down and extending a hand. As if it had known her all it's life, the rat waddled toward her, sniffing cautiously until she lifted it from the ground.
"I think I'm going to be ill," Spidey commented.
"I'm an animal talker, Spidey. I love all animals no matter what they are," Lisa explained. "Now we have got to get moving. We've given them too much time already."
Heading off across the pavement, Jen in the lead, they walked through another door on the opposite side of the parking lot. Much to their chagrin, they were confronted by two of the men. Guns held at the ready, the women knew it would take a lot of luck to get out of this situation.
"Well, now. . . would ya lookie here?" one remarked, his dark eyes flitting across the four girls, a wicked smile crossing his face. "You sure we can't have ourselves a bit of fun before handing them over?"
"Don't be ridiculous. Crane would cook us alive and eat us. He's not one to mess around with, Seth." Dirk remarked, taking in their appearance. "Where's the fifth one?" No sooner had the question been asked that the roaring of an engine followed by the squeal of breaks broke the silence, startling the men long enough to give the group time to make a counter attack.
An RV slid around, door swinging wide open to reveal the fifth woman behind the wheel. "Get in!" Lies yelled, itching to get underway and far away from here.
Jen took to spicing up their lives, heating up the guns held in their hands. Without thinking, Jen wielded her talent, sending it straight back to them and igniting the bullets within the firearms. The exploding ammunition was enough for them to break for the RV, each of them jumping through the door quickly.
Lisa brought up the rear, jumping for the door when Skip reached out and tripped her up. Falling on her stomach, Lisa rolled over just in time to see him barreling down on her, two-by-four in hand. Rolling out of the way, she heard the crash of board against pavement, her heart pounding fiercely in her chest as she jumped to her feet and spun around. Eyes growing wide, Lisa raised her hands in defense only to be grabbed from behind.
"One down," Dirk remarked, his hot breath on the back of Lisa's neck. The more she struggled, the more he enjoyed it. "You're such a feisty one," he added softly.
"Lisa!" Jen yelled, prepared to go into battle but hesitated, knowing that she could very well fry Lisa.
Lisa's little friend peered out of her jacket pocket, his little nose twitching in the slight breeze. Sensing fear from his newest pal, the rat climbed up her jacket and crossed the man's arm, biting him sharply on the side of the face. Flying through the air, as the man flung him away out of anger and pain, the rat landed on his feet, scurrying away into the darkness.
"Thank you!" Lisa called out from the doorway of the RV as it sped away.
*********
Gemma laid the map down in front of her, her hazel-green eyes running over the journey they had begun. It was her job to get them there in the shortest amount of time. Perhaps they thought she would instinctively know the way being telepathic, but in the end, she studied the map ruthlessly, looking for some shortcut that would keep them out of danger for a while longer.
Pulling a pen and paper from her pocket, Gemma jotted down routes and names that were essential to finding the right path toward their final destination. Rubbing her forehead, she set the pen down and withdrew her lip gloss, applying it to her lips before continuing her efforts on the directions. Sighing, she pushed the map away and stifled a yawn. It had been hours since she'd last rested, and it didn't seem as though it would be in their future anytime soon.
Deciding she needed sustenance to continue on, she reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out her last Galaxy Caramel bar. Undoing the wrapper, she took a bite, reveling in the taste before pulling the map back in front of her. Pencil in one hand, galaxy in the other, Gemma set her mind to her task. Minutes later, she glanced up to see Essy staring back at her. "What?"
"You were holding out on us, Germ?" she stated, crossing her arms.
"Wha?" Gemma replied, then noticed the stare of Essy looking at her Galaxy. "It's mine," she stated, holding it possessively toward herself. "Get your own." Gemma ate the last of it quickly, flashing Essy a chocolate smile.
"Will you two cut it out?" Dee remarked, placing her hands on her hips. "Where to next, Gem?"
"We'll have to get off this boat," Rita intervened. "I've been listening to the radio, and they're on our trail, guys."
"Around the bend, there should be a small establishment. Perhaps if we borrow someone's car, they won't mind?" Gemma shrugged, folding the map up and tucking it inside the pocket of her jeans. "I don't know what else to do. We aren't that far away."
"Really? We've come all that way by water?" Dawn asked, leaning over the edge watching the schools of fish swimming peacefully. Dragging her fingers carelessly through the surface, she laughed at gentle nibbles she received.
"I hope the others faired as well," Dee mentioned, watching the scenery change as they floated along.
**********
"In here," Leelee spoke up, motioning the group inside the cave. Walking though the dark passages with only their hands to feel the way, the group made slow progress. If only there was something to light their way.
As if on cue, a group of fireflies flew past Leelee's head and swarmed into a magnificent light, showing the way down the darkened path. Bri stood silently, a smile pursed on her lips as she watched her new found friends lighting their way. The others had told her to believe in herself and her talents. Now, with nothing more than a single thought, she brought an end to their dark trek, doing what she did best; talking to her animal friends.
"That's great, Bri," Jade said softly, catching the young girl's attention. "You truly have a gift."
"I second that," Kara remarked with a smile.
"They're coming," Selah mentioned, standing stiff as though petrified beyond all rational thought. "You guys, we're in a lot of trouble. They're packing heat."
"So are we," Leelee said, motioning toward the gun handle sticking out of Jade's pocket. "You do know how to use one, right?"
Jade just nodded silently. She would rather not have it come to that, always wanting to find a safe and logical way to end things. Violence begat violence, or so she'd grown to believe. Now, here were all her new friends, each of them anxious for her to pull the hardware from her pocket and make the tracker's lives miserable.
Selah sensed the conflict, wincing with the swell of emotion she felt. "That is a last resort," she stated, glancing at Jade in the process. "We are above that, and won't stoop to their level."
"Right," Kara agreed, walking further into the caverns. "We have to get out of here."
"Steal a car," Selah added with a smirk.
"And find our way home," Leelee finished softly.
"Listen," Jade waved her hand, getting their attention.
****
"Let's go down this way," Bill's voice carried down the passageway echoing off the walls. "Tim's waiting out back in case they actually make it out."
****
"Shit," Selah remarked, feeling like a trapped animal. "What are we going to do?"
"Calm down," Kara shot back.
"Dudes! They're getting closer," Leelee spoke up, her voice adding to the echo bouncing through the darkness.
****
"Too easy," John remarked, tugging at Bill's sleeve and leading him toward the voices.
"Just remember, we need them alive." Bill pulled a flashlight from his pocket, flicking the switch to illuminate the darkness. "Come on, we've got a lot of ground to make up."
****
"What are we going to do?" Bri whispered, her dark hazel eyes wide with uncertainty.
"Don't worry, Bri. We'll not let them harm you," Jade whispered, touching Bri's shoulder lightly. "It'll be a cakewalk."
"What will?" Leelee asked, rubbing the wet wall with her hand.
"Our escape," Kara replied.
"I don't see how," Bri shot back, shrugging her shoulders with a sigh.
"I'm going. I'm going," Selah remarked, heading off toward in the opposite direction.
"We'll be along shortly," Kara spoke up, following Jade in the other direction, back the way they came.
"What are they going to do?" Bri asked.
"What they do best," Selah retorted.
"They better be careful," Leelee mentioned, glancing over her shoulder at the fading forms.
****
"Where'd they go?" John asked, his eyes searching the darkness while Bill flashed his flashlight around.
"They couldn't have gotten out so soon." A scrape just ahead caught Bill's attention. Without a word, he motioned John on toward the sound, thinking it more than just a mere animal. After minutes of walking, their guards kept high as they searched the cavern, they stopped, listening for any sign of which way their prey went. When nothing but the occasional water dripping from a high aqueduct sounded through the still air, the men started back toward their last position.
A low rumble started in the heart of the cavern, building up intensity until finally it burst forth, showering rock and dust down into the tunnels. Bill ran through the opening, covering his head with his arm leaving John to follow close behind. Reaching the end, they came up against a wall of rock, each piece fallen into place like an intricate jig-saw puzzle.
"Go back!" Bill shouted, pushing John back the other direction and through the falling debris. "Hurry. . .hurry!" he shouted as they rushed through the passageway and into the next corridor.
"Which way?" John asked, his eyes wide in horror as the ceiling fell behind them.
"Come on!" Bill yelled, running full throttle down the main corridor and toward the dim light of the outside. "Faster, John!" he remarked, but when no reply came, Bill stopped suddenly, glancing back over his shoulder to see no sign of his counterpart. "Dammit!"
The rumble in the cavern died down, leaving Bill standing alone amidst the rubble and dust. Coughing, his arm covering his mouth to cut the dust intake down, his dark eyes searched the blackness for his fallen friend. Pulling his flashlight from his pocket, he turned the light back toward where John should have been to see nothing but a multitude of fallen rock.
"John!" Bill yelled, ignoring the pieces which still fell sporadically from the ceiling above.
"Hey! Bill? John? Hello!" Tim called from the entrance, his eyes stinging with the dust in the air. Taking a few steps further into the cavern, Tim coughed, covering his mouth and nose quickly. A flash of light caught his attention, then Bill's voice echoing through the darkness. As he watched Bill's form grow near, he felt relieved then saddened when he realized John wasn't behind him.
"They're going to pay dearly for this," Bill muttered angrily, looking to the cut on his left arm. "We can't let them get away."
"Is John?" Tim asked, not wanting to continue further than that. He had known John since grade school and the loss was too shocking to register correctly at the moment.
Bill nodded, placing a hand on Tim's shoulder. "We need to work our way around to the other side. Once we pick up their trail again, we'll hunt them down. No more being nice." Bill believed that there was more to the cavern itself caving in. There had to be something Sands wasn't telling them, and the longer he chased the prey, the more certain he became that they weren't normal.
*******
Selah stood at the mouth of the cave, feeling the whole thing collapsing and worrying whether or not her friends were trapped deep inside the recesses of the darkness. Dust rolled out in a wave, causing Selah to jump back and cover her face. Coughing, she couldn't tear herself away from the wondering. The lack of a connection to them for the last few minutes scared her more than she would let on.
Leelee leaned against a tree, her back securing her position but her eyes on the cavern. She watched Selah closely, feeling the overwhelming sense of fear that gripped the other girl. Selah's thoughts were a jumbled mess, an intricate puzzle falling to pieces as the moments passed by. Leelee had to push them away, trying her best not to pry into Selah's personal business, but with Selah's heightened agitation, it wasn't easy.
Bri sat quietly on a boulder, petting the kitten she'd carried with her all this time. Buttons played with Bri's fingers, batting at her and mewing softly. When she looked up, the sight of dust rolling out of the depths of the cave startled her. "What do you think happened?" she asked quietly, looking to Selah for an answer.
"Cave in," Leelee replied quickly.
"If they make it out of this, I'm gonna kill 'em!" Selah exclaimed, wrenching her hands together nervously, eyes trained on the darkness. "Why can't I sense them?"
"Calm down," Leelee suggested.
"While they do something stupid? I can't!" Selah shrieked.
"Do you hear that?" Bri asked quietly, getting to her feet and walking closer. When Selah and Leelee looked at her, she pointed toward the entrance. "Sounds like coughing to me."
Selah spun around, hearing the sound for the first time. "Oh dear God! It's them!" she exclaimed happily.
Kara stepped out from the darkness and into the fading light of day. Her hair covered with dirt, Kara continued coughing off and on until she had it all out of her system. Though she knew the danger of the situation she'd just walked away from, all she could do was smile. "Hi, guys."
"That's it? 'Hi, guys'? Do you have any idea what you put me through? Gah!" Selah threw her hands in the air dramatically, rolling her eyes, then looked back to Kara. "Um. . .where's Jade?" she asked.
Kara spun around quickly to see emptiness behind her. "She was right behind me," Kara spoke up, taking a step back toward the cave but Leelee caught her.
"She's not in there," Leelee stated calmly. Staring off toward the distance, Leelee reached the gap between mediocre talent and that which she wanted to have. This time, she knew exactly what she was doing, finally learning control.
"Where is she then?" Kara inquired.
"On top!" Selah replied, grinning like a fool and looking up.
There stood Jade, hardly any dirt on her at all, with her hands on her hips. "You're getting rusty, Selah."
"Why didn't she follow you out?" Bri asked Kara, completely confused.
"Allergies," Jade replied, walking up to the group. "I think one of them got caught in the cave in."
"Yeah, I heard it too," Kara added.
"One down, how many more to go?" Bri asked nonchalantly, playing with a butterfly that happened by.
"That's not the point," Selah shot back.
"The others are coming, and they're really pissed off," Leelee broke in.
"We have to keep moving," Jade said, leading the others away from the cave and impending doom should the men catch up with them.
****
Gemma peeked around the corner of the building, Essy right behind her. When she saw nothing, she motioned the others around and brought up the rear. Following the group, quickly moving in and out of shadows, Gemma felt an odd presence just before the butt of rifle hit the back of Essy's head, dropping her quickly. Soon, the five women were surrounded by four men, each holding a hunting rifle.
A while afterwards the group of women found themselves sitting in a jail cell awaiting Sands' arrival with Essy out cold and face down on the bed.
"We have to get out of here," Rita spoke up, kicking at the floor. Being psychometric, she didn't like the idea of touching much of anything in the cell for fear of sensing some gruesome fact leftover from a previous prisoner.
"But how?" Dawn asked quietly.
Dee looked around the holding cell, her eyes taking in every last detail she could. Pushing her hands into her pocket, she felt a familiar form. Smile widening across her face, she pulled out her small black pouch which housed her 'tools of the trade'. With her eyes on the door, she unzipped the pouch slowly, slipping her fingers in and pulling out two thin metal pieces.
"What are those?" Rita asked as Dee walked by her.
"You wanted out, didn't you?" she remarked, putting her hands through the space of the bars. Twisting her wrists, she worked the lock on the cell with her tool, concentrating on the task of getting the door open. A few minutes later, the lock clicked and the door opened, Dee smiled and strutted her stuff out of the cell.
"How are we going to get past the guards?" Gemma asked, tapping Essy's cheek in an attempt to awaken her. When that didn't work, she rolled her off onto the ground, the thud of Essy hitting the cement eerie to those present.
"Why did you do that for?" Dawn asked.
"We can't carry her sorry bum," Gemma replied, placing her hands on her hips. "If we have to worry about how to move her, then we might not pull this off."
"Good point," Rita agreed.
"You two wake her up, we'll scout ahead and find the easiest way out. Make sure that she knows she can't start any fires!" Dee started away, with Dawn not far behind, leaving the other three behind. Sneaking down the way they were brought, Dee stopped on the other side of the main door.
"We can't pick that lock," Dawn whispered, shaking her head.
"We won't need to," Dee remarked, motioning her interest toward a small window a few feet away. "We can crawl through there."
"You're shitting me?" Dawn shot back, her first thought on the bars.
"After Essy melts them," Dee explained, raising a brow at Dawn's lack of vision. "A good spy always uses every resource."
"Hate to break it to you, Dee. You're not a spy," she admonished.
Dee ignored her comment, sneaking back to the cell to find the others had accomplished waking Essy from unconsciousness. Leading them back to where Dawn waited, her nerves shot, Dee pointed to the bars and looked at Essy. "Melt them."
"What do you mean 'melt them'? I can't melt on demand!" she raised her voice.
"Shhh... you're going to get us caught," Gemma spoke up, sensing movement in the outer room. "Just try it, Easy. Or are you afraid you can't do it?" she asked, raising a brow and crossing her arms. She knew the quickest way to get Essy to do anything is to make her mad by insinuating she can't do it.
"DCME, Germ," she cracked back, looking to the bars that stood between them and freedom. "I can do this. It's a piece of cake," she added, clenching her hands together, eyes staring blankly at the bars. Concentration at an all time high, Essy sent the bars into nonexistence easily, turning around to smile smugly at Gemma. "Told you so."
Gemma held her hand out toward Rita, a smile on her face. "I think you owe me a fiver," she remarked, wiggling her fingers around like a little kid.
"What?" Essy asked, her voice tinged with anger. "You set me up?"
"It worked, so what's the harm?" Dee shot back, stepping up and pulling herself through the window. "Get a move on. They'll be coming and you'll ruin everything if you get caught again."
Essy mocked her, hands on her hips and tossing her head from side to side. When the jingle of keys sounded through the small enclosed space, she jumped forward and pulled herself out the window after everyone else and urged them away quickly.
The metal door slid open, an officer stepping through, his nose sensing a peculiar scent. Slowly craning his head around, his eyes caught sight of melted metal running down the side of the wall. Setting his jaw in determination, he sprinted to the window, glancing out to see no sign of the fugitives. Now all he could do was report back to the commanding officer and hope that somewhere along the way they could find the perpetrators and get them back behind bars where they belonged.
*********
"Come on!" Gemma shouted, running through the alleyway leading away from police station. Stopping abruptly, she flattened herself against the building and waved the others into hiding. Watching from the shadows, Gemma's eyes narrowed at the sight of the long black car snaking it's way through the streets to pull up alongside the curb in front of the station. Soon as Sands entered, Gemma motioned to the others, knowing that they had to put some distance between them and Sands. "He's right in there, guys. We have to move!"
Essy's eyes flitted across Sands' car. "I have an idea," she mentioned, moving along the edge of the building.
"That English twit's gonna get us caught!" Dee exclaimed, placing her hands on her hips. "You should send a secret agent for such a duty," she pouted, leaning against the hard stone wall.
"I'm sure you can do it next time," Dawn offered in a soothing tone, turning around to watch Essy's progress.
"Think she'll make it?" Rita asked, as Essy ducked quickly to avoid the men coming out of the front door.
"She has to. We have no other choice," Gemma answered, trying to get a feeling of where Sands and his man were at that precise time. "She better hurry up," she added, sensing Sands on his way toward the door.
Essy slunk along the length of the black car, keeping low with her blue eyes trained on the door. Only a few seconds longer and she'd secure the transportation needed to finish the last leg of the journey. It was a bonus to put Sands out of commission for even the slightest bit of time while they tried to find their home.
Reaching the door handle and letting her fingers slide beneath the fixture, she lifted the cool metal slightly, unlatching the door to let it swing open. Sliding into the cool leather interior, Essy reached for the keys, her hands coming up empty handed. "Shit!" she exclaimed, searching high and low for a spare set of keys, still finding nothing.
"She can't start the car," Gemma murmured, her mind fixated on what was happening with Essy.
Dee broke from the others, heading straight for the car and Essy. Knowing that time was of the essence now, she made no move to conceal herself as she flung open the door and pushed the blonde aside. Sliding into the driver's seat, she reached beneath the steering column, her hands already in motion to hot-wire the vehicle. With a spark, the engine screamed to life as Dee wrapped wires and took the wheel. "Let's get out of here," she remarked, nodding to Essy and hitting the accelerator.
The front door to the police station opened and Sands stepped out, his eyes darting to his moving car as he pulled a gun from it's holster. Shooting off a warning shot, he realized it did no good as the women jumped into the car and sped away, leaving him standing there staring at their retreating transportation. "Damn," he muttered, squeezing a hand into a fist. Crane would not be happy with this newest development. "Get after them!" he shouted to the nearest officer, sending him and two others scrambling for their cars.
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