Okay, much much thanks for the reviewage on the last chapter. Seriously. Thank you. :D
This next part was equally tough to get sounding right, and it's a little shorter but is setting up for some upcoming stuff. Anyhow, take as you will. :)
The sound of Farrah yelling for her was all that kept Carrie in motion. Getting her through the dense, frenzied crowd. It was all that she let her ears tune into as she kept running. The sirens and the panicked chatter around her was nothing but white noise.
So it was frighteningly noticeable when Farrah's yelling stopped. It hadn't tapered off or gone muffled, like she'd been gagged or forced to keep quiet. Carrie knew too fucking well how that sounded.
No, she'd stopped yelling by choice. She'd gone calmer. Maybe she'd been found.
After all Virgil was here, maybe he'd found her. Maybe he'd called someone to help find her. Saul or Danny or Quinn. Even Max would've been a help. Maybe she should start calling for help.
Still running, she reached in her pocket for her phone when she was bumped into and shoved forward, losing her phone and her footing in the process.
Unable to brace herself before she fell, she landed face down on the pavement.
Pushing up on her arms she went to stand, but the slightest movement sent pain straight through her left knee, now sporting a nasty gash.
All she could manage was to roll toward the nearby curb, try and get as far away from the mob as she could.
As far away from her chance at seeing or hearing Farrah as she could.
Curled up tightly on her side, tears seeped through her shut eyes and she was shivering in spite of the heat.
Sore, sweated up, scared, she felt trapped, pinned down. She'd lost someone. She couldn't help anyone.
And she couldn't help but feel like she was back there, all over again.
...
Turning down a side street to bypass parade traffic on his coffee run, Quinn frowned hearing sirens and seeing squad cars turning down the main drag, parking in the lot near the mosque.
"What the fuck..", he muttered, wondering what the hell was going on.
After parking he made his way over on foot. His eyes widening at the frantic crowd and the police trying to control it. Shaking his head he swore, then took off running to the scene. With his background and his training he figured he could be of some help.
"Can we get some help over here, please?!"
Cutting over to the side of the street, Quinn saw a couple tending to someone shakily sitting on the curb.
"She was running after someone then got shoved by some jack-ass behind her. It was a miracle she wasn't trampled.", the man explained, getting a nod from his wife as she tried to clean Carrie's knee wound.
"Before she fell she was yelling for a girl, Tara, Cara? The way she was running, all upset. It must've been her daughter."
...
Daughter.
Overhearing the woman as he walked past, Brody shook his head. Kicking his own mission into higher gear and walking faster. He felt guilty for not stopping. If he could, he would try and help everyone in the crowd he came across, but his priority now was finding Carrie.
A childless (and as far as he knew, with every plan to remain childless) Carrie.
...
"Farrah. Her daughter's name is Farrah."
Quinn corrected, trying not to panic at the fact that Carrie wasn't making eye contact with him and hadn't stopped shaking yet. Afraid to touch her he simply spoke.
"Carrie, Carrie, it's Quinn. Can you hear me?"
"We tried that, she didn't respond."
"Maybe not to you.",
Quinn muttered. Standing, he told the couple to get Carrie to an alley across the way. It wasn't scenic but it was quiet and not in the middle of all the chaos.
...
"Carrie?! CARRIE!" Brody called, removing his cap to wipe the sweat from his brow. He was past caring if he drew attention to himself. The crowd had lessened up but there was still no sign of her and he was getting desperate.
Scanning each face in the group of people ahead of him, with no luck, he turned back around before he was bumped into by...
"Goddammit! Watch where the fuck you're going!", Quinn snarled. He hated leaving Carrie behind with that couple but he had no choice. If she was going to respond to anyone he knew who it would be. And Farrah had to be around here somewhere.
Instead of being able to track her though, he was wasting time with idiots not watching where they walked. This joker with his sunglasses and reddish hair that looked just like...
"Holy, you've got to be fucking kidding me."