Chapter Nine: Desperate Situation
A/N: Asyou've noticed, my posts have been delayed, so I'm really sorry, but I've been really busy this year and will continue to be until summer. If you want, it'll be easier to add this story to your alert list and then you'll get an email every time I update. Also, I haven't had this properly edited yet, so if there are mistakes, just ignore them…sowy…Anyways, here's the next chapter, and I hope you enjoy.
-Modesty
Robbie leaned sideways in the car, resting his arm on the interior padding below the window. They were traveling on a dirt road, one less traveled, and Alex wished she could see people again. She missed people, civilization, more than she could ever have though possible. The sky was a hazy blue, and Rachel was leaning forward.
The country road looked so lonely. All there was to accompany its desertedness were a small sum of barns and silos sprinkled across the open fields. "Where are we going?" Robbie broke the long breath of silence.
Ray glanced at him fleetingly, and then turned his eyes back to the road. "Boston."
Robbie glared at the man beside him. "Why don't we just take the turnpike?" he jousted bitterly.
Ray glared back. Why can't he just learn to trust my decisions? "Because I don't want anybody else knowing that we have a working car," he began with an aggravated disdain. "I figure if we just stay on these back roads for a while, then find a ferry or something; we can cross the river into Connecticut."
Defeated, and not ready to admit it, Robbie folded his arms across his chest and leaned back. "Whatever, Ray."
In that moment, something in Ray snapped. His grip tightened on the wheel and his nostrils flared. "You know what?" he shouted. Alex sat quietly, listening. "Stop it with Ray, shit, okay? From now on, it's either, Dad, Sir, or if you want, Mr. Ferrier." He let go of the wheel to move his hands quickly in the air. "That sounds a little weird to me," he admitted with an exaggerated nod. "But I'll get used to it." He placed his hands fiercely on the wheel.
Robbie reversed his slinky posture and began fidgeting with the radio tuner. At first there was static, a muffled signal, and then a robotic voice, seemingly void of all remaining humanity. "This is a radio broadcast test; if this were a real emergency…" the sound was muffled again. Alex broke out a small smile.
Rachel leaned back into her seat, her knees bobbing up and down as she fidgeted with her gloves. "I want Mommy," she addressed. Alex glanced at her, pitying her need for Mary Ann, and remembering an almost forgotten mother of her own.
"I know, Rachel," Ray tried to sound comforting, but failed miserably. There was a tense quality to his words that made Alex shift in her seat.
"I miss Mommy."
"Tell me about it," Ray scoffed.
"Dad!" Rachel's shrill voice cut through the tensing air.
Ray sighed, "Yes, Rachel?"
Rachel's legs began to squirm. "I have to go to the bathroom."
Hesitantly, Ray pulled the van onto the side of the road. Before anyone got out, he looked in the back seat and said, "Now, look; there's two things we need to be careful of, and one is people who are going to want to steal out car."
"No one's around, Ray," Robbie stated irritably, as he opened up the passenger door. Wanting a break herself, Alex quickly unbuckled herself and jumped to open the door. Rachel rushed out after her, as did Ray, and Robbie.
Like a wild animal caged and set loose, Rachel fled from the car, her skinny little arms flailing about her tiny body.
Ray stood tall. "Right there's fine," he told her, crossing his arms over his broad chest.
Rachel stopped running to turn towards her father. "Are you crazy?" she wondered. "I'm not going in front of you guys!" She turned on her heels a second time.
"Well, then go where I can see you!" Ray offered, hopelessly.
Without turning, Rachel screamed, "That's looking!"
Robbie sat down beside the edge of the road, pulled his knees to his chest and gazed across the wide field and the outskirts of tall trees. He thought he could hear the soothing voice of a river flowing nearby, but it was too far to tell.
Alex stood a foot away from him, letting her arms fall to her sides. She bit her lip a moment, watching Ray stock through the grass towards the tree grove where his daughter had wandered.
Then she folded her arms. "What do you think will happen to us?" she found herself saying.
Robbie glanced up at her, squinting his eyes from the sun. He looked back down at the gravel beneath his shoes and didn't know what to say. "I dunno," he finally answered, chewing on hi slip. "I guess we're going to Boston."
Alex gazed at the fields around her. Boston was almost a home to Robbie and his family. She could never go home. "I don't know what I'll do when we get there," she spoke delicately, every word hanging from her lips.
Robbie peered into her deep, hazel eyes. "You can stay with us if you want," he offered with a hint of a smile. "I'm sure Ray won't mind," this time he did smile as he began shifted the weight of his cap over his eyes. "My mom would like to meet you," he stated kindly.
Alex felt herself grinning. Then she suddenly remembered her father. "You're lucky to have both parents," she said softly. Robbie looked like he was suddenly about to complain, but when she opened her mouth to speak again, he held his tongue.
"I know you don't have much respect for Ray," she began. "But he did save my life, and he's saving yours too."
Robbie didn't want to believe her, bit Alex was right. "Ray's an idiot," he scoffed. "He'll probably get us all killed before anything. Besides, he doesn't really care about me or Rache; he never really has. After my mom left him and met Tim, he hasn't wanted anything to do with us."
Alex opened her mouth to speak when suddenly she was interrupted by a jolting sound. Instinctively, she turned around to face the road behind her. Clouds of grey dirt rose like puffs of breath above the road, and a long train of military vehicles started their way.
Alex calmed herself; it's only people. She looked back at Robbie who had gotten to his feet and, moved to stand at her side. "This is my ride," he breathed, excitedly.
Alex glanced at him, but before she even realized what he'd said, Robbie was gone, making flight down the road to join the oncoming trucks.
Alex's heart skipped a beat as Robbie jumped to one side of the road and began flailing his arms as the trucks quickly passed by. "Hey, wait; stop!" she heard him scream.
The men on the trucks either avoided Robbie's eyes as they passed, or stared though him with hard, unmerciful eyes. It became clear to Alex that they had no intention of stopping, whether Robbie wanted it or not.
Robbie's arms were flailing. "Take me with you!" he shouted, hopelessly. "I want to go with you!"
"Robbie, stop it!" Alex screamed, as she ran up beside him. "What are you doing?"
He turned to her quickly. "I can do more than this," he told her, and then continued shouting as the vehicles passed lazily by.
What does he mean? Alex thought. Do more than what? What more can you do, Robbie. We're not heroes. You're not a soldier.
"Stop PLEASE!"
Robbie took a step forward, not looking where he was going and stepped right into a puddle. As the trucks passed by, they sprayed him lightly with muddy water, coloring his jacket with wet streaks and stains.
"Go home, kid," a light-haired soldier called, chewing on a stick of gum.
Suddenly, Ray was running towards them. "Hey, what are you doing?" he shouted at Robbie.
Robbie pointed at the trucks. "I'm going in that direction!" he proclaimed.
Ray could feel his cheeks flushing red with heated anger. "There's nothing living in that direction!" he shouted. "What do you want to do, Robbie?"
Robbie's whole arm shook as he yelled at his father. "We get back at them!" he exclaimed heatedly. "We go, we find them, and we get back at them!" his words were muffled by the moaning of the military trucks and the splashed their large black tired made in the folds of mud. Robbie answered his father one more time, "We get back at them!"
Alex could feel her eyes swelling with tears. "We can't, Robbie; they'll kill us."
He didn't hear her, or chose to ignore, for he said nothing. Ray hesitated a moment. "Okay," he scoffed bitterly. "Let's try one that doesn't involve your ten year old sister joining the army!"
Robbie stopped yelling at the men in the trucks to face his dad. "What do you care!" he wondered. "You never gave a shit before! The only reason you chose Boston is because you hope Mom is there, and if she is, you can dump us on her, and then you'll be on your own again, because that's exactly the way you like it!" His whole chest rose and fell with every heavy breath as he stared Ray right in the eyes, challenging him dangerously with his theory.
The last truck whizzed passed, and Ray could only stare, blinking at his son. Her eyes wet with tears, Rachel flew to Robbie's side, and immediately began pounding on his chest. "Where are you trying to go?" she cried. "What are you trying to do!"
Robbie glared at Ray a long time before facing his sister again. Then, he gingerly picked up his sister in his arms, and began carrying her towards the car.
Ray glanced angrily at Alex, and saying nothing, she followed Robbie to the van.
A/N: Yay! A chapter done! Aren't you proud of me? Lol, anyways, please drop a review because I have to say, everyone that I have gotten and keep getting is what keeps me going. Thanks.
And now for replies to those reviews:
Adonica: Thanks a lot for you're review. I'm glad you liked it so far.
MuMmIeImIsSyOu: Thanks for the review.
Jamamaime: Thanks for the comments, as usual.
Kat: Haha, thanks so much for your review. Yeah, I don't like stories that rush things too much, but its hard to keep that balance. I'm glad you like it though.
VagrantCandy: Yay! The next chappie will be pretty intense Robbie/Alexness lol. I can't wait to start writing it.