Once they were alone, Carey made it clear that he wasn't in the mood to make conversation or answer questions. He walked quickly, always keeping several steps ahead of Jack, who supposed he was grateful that at least Carey seemed to know where he was going.
"Hey, man," Jack finally called out. Carey glanced over his shoulder, and while it was pretty dark, Jack was fairly certain that was something like annoyance on his face. "I need a break. Seriously."
"All right," Carey replied curtly, sounding authoritative for perhaps the first time in his life. "Make it quick."
"Don't you think you could tell me what's going on now? Fiona can't hear us."
"It's my mom and dad." He paused. "They're pretty badly hurt."
"How? I mean--who could have--"
Carey shook his head. "I don't know, man. I just don't know."
Jack took a second to process the news. "Wait. You're saying you left my mom alone, with a killer on the loose?"
"Yeah, so we'd better get going."
"No," Jack said, standing slowly. "That doesn't make any sense. You wouldn't even let her leave the bus without company."
"She insisted that I come and get you. We're going to need your help." He paused. "Well, I guess that's not entirely true."
Jack fought his instinct to turn and run. This was Carey, after all. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"It means," he began, coming closer as Jack remained frozen in place, "that I'm going to need your help now."
"She isn't going to need help?" Jack asked, his voice low.
Carey tilted his head and examined Jack sympathetically, then, as if addressing a five-year-old: "No, Jack. She's not going to need anything for a while." He reached out a hand, brushed an invisible insect from Jack's shoulder.
And this should be the point in the story where Jack realizes something is terribly, horribly wrong, and begins to retreat at high speed. Instead he stood perfectly still. It was Carey who recoiled in horror.
"Who are you?" he asked, as Jack began to advance.
Jack simply smiled, and Carey found it difficult to muster the energy to fight. After all, when this was over, who would be left? There were Clu and Fiona, of course, and if he could find a way to overpower Jack--not Jack, though--maybe he could save them, too.
Then he remembered the faces of the others: his mother, his father, Molly. Three loved ones gone, two by his own hand.
And so he closed his eyes and surrendered.
* * *
"Jack, what happened?" Fi asked, when he returned to the bus. "We thought we heard screaming. Is everybody okay? Where is everybody?" She paused. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine, but we found some more... bodies out there."
"We should go for help," Fi said decisively. "We can't just sit around here and wait for this person, this killer, to find us."
"No. Mom found Ned and Irene. Splitting up was a really bad idea, so we need to go meet up with everybody."
"Is everything okay?" she asked again.
"Where's Clu?"
"He's in the back."
"Come on, go get him. I want to get out of here."
"All right, all right."
* * *
The three of them struck out into the woods without even a tiny flashlight for illumination this time. "It's straight through here," Jack explained. "And it took about twenty minutes to get back to the bus from there."
Fi and Clu nodded in unison, and walked quickly with their heads down. After a few minutes passed, Jack tapped Clu on the shoulder and began to hang back a little. He gestured for Clu to join him.
"What is it?" Clu hissed. Fi continued to march on, paying little attention to either of them.
"I have something to tell you," Jack whispered back.
"Unless it begins with 'I'm' and ends with 'sorry,' I'm not interested, dude." With that, Clu began to walk faster, but Jack grabbed his arm again, pulling him backward.
"I'm sorry. I am sorry. Honestly. Okay?"
Clu nodded.
"But that's not what I need to talk to you about."
"What is it?" he repeated.
Jack glanced at Fi and placed a finger over his lips. They stood very still, and watched Fi's form fade into the dark, formless tangle of branches.
"Don't worry," Jack said. "We'll catch up to her in a sec."
"Okay."
"Now," he sighed, "I know you're not going to understand most of what I'm about to tell you, but you will get the only part of it that's really important."
Clu nodded solemnly.
"I really am sorry, because you've done absolutely nothing wrong. The others--Irene knew, Ned knew, and Carey... well, that's a whole different story. But you're clean. So I'm sorry."
"What are you talking about? What did they know?"
"Shh. This is the important part. The reason for this is that I don't think Jack is going to be happy where he's going without you."
"That's really nice of you, bro. I'm sorry, too, by the way. But..." Clu's confusion seemed to persist.
"Shh," Jack said again. "This won't take long."
* * *
"Jack! What's wrong with you?" Fi demanded. "I've been walking back this way forever! How could you let me get so far ahead of you?"
"Sorry about that," he said distractedly.
"Where were you? And where's Clu?" Her eyes narrowed. "Do you really think now is the best time for--"
"Fiona, I have something to tell you."
"Okay, am I insane, or did I hear something about a killer running around out here?"
"I'm serious. It's not--it's not what you think."
She folded her arms across her chest. "Okay. What is it, then?"
"We need to get back to the bus to have this discussion," he said.
"You're freaking me out here, Jack. Seriously. If you have something to say, just say it. We need to go find Mom."
"I know exactly where she is, and if you want, I'll take you to her when we're done, but right now, I need you to come with me."
Normally she would probably argue until he relented, but there was something uncharacteristically somber about his voice. "Okay," she said. "Let's go." Pause. "But where's Clu?"
"He went on ahead of us."
"I didn't see him."
"Come on, Fiona, it's practically impossible to see your hand in front of your face out here."
"True," she admitted, and followed her brother back to the bus.
"Hey, man," Jack finally called out. Carey glanced over his shoulder, and while it was pretty dark, Jack was fairly certain that was something like annoyance on his face. "I need a break. Seriously."
"All right," Carey replied curtly, sounding authoritative for perhaps the first time in his life. "Make it quick."
"Don't you think you could tell me what's going on now? Fiona can't hear us."
"It's my mom and dad." He paused. "They're pretty badly hurt."
"How? I mean--who could have--"
Carey shook his head. "I don't know, man. I just don't know."
Jack took a second to process the news. "Wait. You're saying you left my mom alone, with a killer on the loose?"
"Yeah, so we'd better get going."
"No," Jack said, standing slowly. "That doesn't make any sense. You wouldn't even let her leave the bus without company."
"She insisted that I come and get you. We're going to need your help." He paused. "Well, I guess that's not entirely true."
Jack fought his instinct to turn and run. This was Carey, after all. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"It means," he began, coming closer as Jack remained frozen in place, "that I'm going to need your help now."
"She isn't going to need help?" Jack asked, his voice low.
Carey tilted his head and examined Jack sympathetically, then, as if addressing a five-year-old: "No, Jack. She's not going to need anything for a while." He reached out a hand, brushed an invisible insect from Jack's shoulder.
And this should be the point in the story where Jack realizes something is terribly, horribly wrong, and begins to retreat at high speed. Instead he stood perfectly still. It was Carey who recoiled in horror.
"Who are you?" he asked, as Jack began to advance.
Jack simply smiled, and Carey found it difficult to muster the energy to fight. After all, when this was over, who would be left? There were Clu and Fiona, of course, and if he could find a way to overpower Jack--not Jack, though--maybe he could save them, too.
Then he remembered the faces of the others: his mother, his father, Molly. Three loved ones gone, two by his own hand.
And so he closed his eyes and surrendered.
* * *
"Jack, what happened?" Fi asked, when he returned to the bus. "We thought we heard screaming. Is everybody okay? Where is everybody?" She paused. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine, but we found some more... bodies out there."
"We should go for help," Fi said decisively. "We can't just sit around here and wait for this person, this killer, to find us."
"No. Mom found Ned and Irene. Splitting up was a really bad idea, so we need to go meet up with everybody."
"Is everything okay?" she asked again.
"Where's Clu?"
"He's in the back."
"Come on, go get him. I want to get out of here."
"All right, all right."
* * *
The three of them struck out into the woods without even a tiny flashlight for illumination this time. "It's straight through here," Jack explained. "And it took about twenty minutes to get back to the bus from there."
Fi and Clu nodded in unison, and walked quickly with their heads down. After a few minutes passed, Jack tapped Clu on the shoulder and began to hang back a little. He gestured for Clu to join him.
"What is it?" Clu hissed. Fi continued to march on, paying little attention to either of them.
"I have something to tell you," Jack whispered back.
"Unless it begins with 'I'm' and ends with 'sorry,' I'm not interested, dude." With that, Clu began to walk faster, but Jack grabbed his arm again, pulling him backward.
"I'm sorry. I am sorry. Honestly. Okay?"
Clu nodded.
"But that's not what I need to talk to you about."
"What is it?" he repeated.
Jack glanced at Fi and placed a finger over his lips. They stood very still, and watched Fi's form fade into the dark, formless tangle of branches.
"Don't worry," Jack said. "We'll catch up to her in a sec."
"Okay."
"Now," he sighed, "I know you're not going to understand most of what I'm about to tell you, but you will get the only part of it that's really important."
Clu nodded solemnly.
"I really am sorry, because you've done absolutely nothing wrong. The others--Irene knew, Ned knew, and Carey... well, that's a whole different story. But you're clean. So I'm sorry."
"What are you talking about? What did they know?"
"Shh. This is the important part. The reason for this is that I don't think Jack is going to be happy where he's going without you."
"That's really nice of you, bro. I'm sorry, too, by the way. But..." Clu's confusion seemed to persist.
"Shh," Jack said again. "This won't take long."
* * *
"Jack! What's wrong with you?" Fi demanded. "I've been walking back this way forever! How could you let me get so far ahead of you?"
"Sorry about that," he said distractedly.
"Where were you? And where's Clu?" Her eyes narrowed. "Do you really think now is the best time for--"
"Fiona, I have something to tell you."
"Okay, am I insane, or did I hear something about a killer running around out here?"
"I'm serious. It's not--it's not what you think."
She folded her arms across her chest. "Okay. What is it, then?"
"We need to get back to the bus to have this discussion," he said.
"You're freaking me out here, Jack. Seriously. If you have something to say, just say it. We need to go find Mom."
"I know exactly where she is, and if you want, I'll take you to her when we're done, but right now, I need you to come with me."
Normally she would probably argue until he relented, but there was something uncharacteristically somber about his voice. "Okay," she said. "Let's go." Pause. "But where's Clu?"
"He went on ahead of us."
"I didn't see him."
"Come on, Fiona, it's practically impossible to see your hand in front of your face out here."
"True," she admitted, and followed her brother back to the bus.