p.s. I don't own anything!
3. Reflection
Arthur was still breathing hard as they reached the motorway, one hand clenched around the silver briefcase and the other around the girl's waist. She was shaking, whether with fear or pain he did not know.
"Hey" he patted her arm, she looked up and realising how close he was, she moved away sharply. "Hey there, no need to be frightened" she didn't look convinced, "I'm Arthur, up front is my friend Eames, he's English too…" no response so he tried a more direct approach "Whats your name?". The girl looked him up and down as though sizing him up "Gia" she whispered.
"Like the 80's supermodel?" he asked, she nodded. Arthur noticed that she was still shivering badly. "Are you cold?" she wasn't wearing much and it was already december, the skies outside the car were pale grey and threatening snow.
Again came the nod. Arthur gave her his jacket "Thanks" she said quietly.
For about two hours no one spoke, Arthur saw Eames's knuckles were stark white gripped on the steering wheel to stop them from shaking. It had started to snow. Fat white flakes drifting down outside and flattening themselves to the windows. A while later they came to a traffic jam, the announcer on radio 4 mentioned a six car pile-up on the M4 to London.
They waited, edging infinitesimally forward towards the next exit off the motorway whilst ahead of them thousands of cars did the same. The snow became heavier, shifting down like flour through a sieve.
"We're going to have to drive through the night at this rate." groaned Eames running his hands through his hair in frustration.
"We'll stop at the next service station" replied Arthur, "see if this traffic won't clear up a little and umm… maybe get you some shoes" he added to Gia who was turned to the window. She didn't react, seemingly not hearing him. Arthur glanced at her and saw a large dark bruise forming on her pale temple.
"Hey," he shook her shoulder slightly to no effect "Hey!" he shook her harder, fear tightening in his chest.
"Arthur whats going on?" Eames asked worriedly from the front seat.
"She's not waking up. Damn it!" he swore. He patted her cheeks and shook her again "Gia! Gia! Wake up!"
"Mmmm?" her eyelids flickered and she took a deep intake of breath. Arthur relaxed with relief still holding her tight by the shoulders.
"Get off me!" Her shriek was so loud and sudden that Arthur recoiled instantly, but not quickly enough to avoid a slap to the face.
"Ouch!" he cried "What the hell?" his cheek burned where she had hit him. She was curled up in the very furthest corner of the car from him. A hunted look in her dark blue eyes. "Hey hey hey, its ok, its all right" he tried to assure her "We're not here to hurt you." She gave him another mistrustful look, skinny arms around her knees which he noted were scuffed and dirty much like the rest of her.
"We alright back there now?" Asked Eames, a slight note of amusement colouring his cockney tones.
"Yeah" replied Arthur, rubbing his cheek "Are you ok? Thats quite the bruise you've got yourself there ." The girl, Gia, touched her face, as though she hadn't noticed the bruise forming there before and then nodded and looked away.
"Not a chatty one eh?" chortled Eames from the front. Plainly he found this all rather funny.
Finally a gap opened up in the gridlocked traffic ahead, they turned off the motorway and onto the a slipway for the rest-stop.
"Dammit" Growled Eames in frustration, circling the parking lot for the third time, "Its full."
"Stop here" piped up a voice from the back, Gia was staring intently out of the window, "They're about the leave"
Both men goggled at her as, sure enough, a large red people-carrier reversed out of a space to the left.
"How did you know they were going to leave?" asked Arthur, impressed and hoping he could keep her talking. Gia shrugged, raking her fingers through her hair trying to sort out the tangles.
Eames watched her in the rear-view mirror and had a sudden thought "Arthur, mate, we can't bring her into a welcome break, lookin' like that can we. we'll 'ave to go an' buy 'er some new clothes and some shoes too. You alright to stay in the car luvie?"
"Uh hun" came the muffled reply.
It was freezing in the parking lot, snow whipped around Arthur as he staggered from the car, starting to feel the pain in his muscles from scaling the outside of the Walsh building. He stretched, rubbing his shoulders and noticed Eames doing the same.
"Its not looking too good out there" said Eames, gesturing to the highway, still jam-packed with immobile cars.
"No, and the snow is only going to come down faster from now." Arthur privately had a horror of being snowed into his car, slowly running out of air and water. "Its getting late, maybe we should stay here for the night?"
Eames looked about at the full parking lot, "If we can get a room… 'ere's a thought, we should go 'an get this girl some clothes an' a square meal." he lent down to the window "Back in a minute darlin', ok?" he asked the girl, she nodded, eyes wide, her expression seemed to Eames still to hold much of the fear they had seen as she'd shot Wheeler. He wondered what had happened to her to warrant such a revenge.
Eames and Arthur split up as they entered the rest stop, Arthur to enquire about staying for the night and Eames in search of clothes for their new charge. Eames had also bought a small first aid kit so they could fix up her poor feet. Flicking through the racks at the back of the tiny TK Maxx he wondered about what kind of clothes a girl like Gia might like.
She certainly couldn't keep on what she was wearing now, the tiny shorts and tank-top were hardly suitable for the middle of winter and she looked odd enough as it was. Eames wondered what her real hair colour was, someone had seen fit to dye it a cheep shade of icy blond that clashed with her naturally tanned and pink-cheeked face. How old was she? Unusually for Eames, who made his living by observing those around him, he couldn't tell. She could be anywhere from her teens to her mid-twenties, a smooth, unlined face and a lack of curves, which, Eames suspected came from a lack of food rather than under development, made her true age indeterminate.
He wondered if she would be offended by being bought child-sized clothes. Eames deliberated momentarily between a black jumper and one the exact colour of her eyes when he realised something that made his hands tremor in a wave of dread which he himself could not explain.
In all the time he had watched her in the rear-view mirror, three hours of studying this new and beguiling face in the car, he had yet to see her blink.
"Yes 'mam I understand you've had a lot of requests today about rooms but I was wondering if there was any alternative." Arthur was quickly running out of patience with the woman at the motel desk. She tapped her acrylic nails against the keyboard, searching for rooms which had become available.
"No, there is only the one room available for tonight." She replied, fishing around in her mouth for her used-up chewing gum before throwing it away.
Arthur ran both hands through his hair in frustration before answering. "How many beds are there?" The woman looked non-plussed, "I mean, is t a twin room or is there only a double bed?"
Comprehension dawned across the motel woman's heavily made-up face, lifting her wrinkles and exposing the rouge which had sunken in-between the cracks, "Double bed… there is an en suite…" she said it with a french accent and reverent expression.
"And thats all there is? You're sure?" She nodded "I'll take it then." There would be some explaining to do to Eames and the girl but Arthur was definitely not prepared to get back into that cramped car again, especially not with the traffic the way it was.
"That'll be twenty three pounds love" chirped the woman at the the desk, all pretence at boredom abandoned as she goggled at the black Amex card he produced "We only take… visa". She sighed as Arthur put away the Amex.
What the hell were the others going to say?
Arthur soon found out, cornering Eames as he exited the TK Maxx with a bulging shopping bag he explained to him the situation.
"No fucking way" were Eames's first words, he shook his head firmly "I'm not sharing a hotel room with that… girl" he said girl the way most people said monster.
"Why? What's wrong that?" Asked Arthur, never before knowing Eames to have any qualms about sharing a room with a person of the female persuasion, if fact more often then not the opposite was true.
"You mean what wrong with" Eames's voice dropped to a whisper "The killer girl in the back seat! She's fucked up, I just know it, we'll be murdered in out beds Artie, mark my words."
"Eames" The point man gave the forger a stern and worried look, "She's not a killer pshyco, just a girl with a score to settle, thats all, I'll bet Wheeler deserved what he got in the end."
"Yeah yeah, I'm not doubting that, its just that… I watch people yeah? and I've been watching her from the first moment we saw 'er in the flat, all broken up an' dirtily an' the like. An' again in the car, she's a weird one, there's definitely something off about 'er. She doesn't blink, like some sort of snake, thats all I'm sayin' " Eames put up his hands in surrender, "But, if you think this is our only option then I'm willing to listen"
"She doesn't blink you say? Are you sure you haven't missed her at it?"
Eames raised an eyebrow "Its my job not to miss this kind of stuff, you watch 'er Arthur, you'll see what I mean."
The two men walked back to the car, jostled by the hoards of tourists heading the other direction, even more snow was coming down now, starting to blanket the ground in a crunchy, slippery layer. The traffic hadn't moved on at all, Arthur had been right.
They found Gia almost as they'd left her, curled up in the car, arms around knees, staring out of the window. Both men stopped and looked at her, looking at them. It was a long moment, and, as predicted, she did not blink. "See?" whispered Eames, "Pshyco killer"
Even though she couldn't possibly hear his words from the other side of the glass, Gia tipped her head as though listening, a small frown creasing her forehead. Then, with excruciating slowness as though to prove she could, she blinked, the effect was more like a puppet fluttering its horsehair eyelashes than any normal facial expression but it was enough for Arthur, who breathed a sigh of relief "See Eames, she's not some kind of freak" Eames looked unconvinced but resigned, opening the door and offering the girl the bag of clothes. "I didn't know what size you were or actually if you're still into Dora the Explorer, probably not but you've now got a Dora T-shirt all of your very own."
"Thanks…" the girl riffled through the bag, putting on the black jumper Eames had provided. It dwarfed her frame and came part way down her thighs.
"We'll uhh, give you some privacy to get dressed shall we?" asked Arthur, moving away from the car politely.
"Mr. Eames?" The forger started at being addressed so formally.
"Yes?"
"Who's Dora the Explorer?"
"Ahh, you've never heard of her?"
Gia shook her head.
"Well, get your kit on and Artie and I will take you for a slap up meal inside, can explain all about it there."
The girl smiled up at him, those blue eyes which had so shaken his, catching the light and the forger felt, against his better judgement some of his misgivings melting away.