"Take a left here." Rebecca's voice cut through the sound of wind coming in through the open window. The trees were tall and snow was falling in Richmond. They were driving through a forest. To the far left there was a mountain, but they were nearing it every second. They were almost to the lab's location, and Leon was nervous. Hell, he'd be nervous since Claire was taken. He wasn't getting any sleep, and he couldn't focus. All he knew was that he would feel better when she was back with them. Earlier, Rebecca had received a message from Chris explaining to them that an outbreak occurred and the lab was set to self-destruct. With that they had hurried, but Jill's bad navigation skills hadn't helped. A million things were running through Leon's mind. Was Claire alive? Was she okay? Had she made it out? If anything were to happen to Claire. He might not be able to live with the thought that he couldn't get to her in time. His train of thought was interrupted as he saw smoke rising out of the distance.
"There!" he yelled and pointed. Jill stepped on the gas drove towards the clouds of smoke, that were followed by loud explosions. They reached a stop and up ahead they saw many scientists and guards standing outside an entrance to what they assumed was the laboratory.
"They're probably waiting to be evacuated." Inquired Jill.
"Let's try to go around. See if we can find Claire maybe somewhere amongst the crowd," Leon was determined and the first out of the car. "Let's go through the trees. We'll be harder to spot." The snow was falling softly and the crew was maneuvering the woods with inexperience.
"Last time I was in the woods, I was chased be infected dogs." Jill sighed at the memory of what occurred that night. She had almost died and she had almost lost Chris. She could feel Leon's uneasiness about Claire's ware bouts. She could sense that Leon liked Claire. She hoped for both Leon's and Chris' sake that Claire was alright.
It was silent and cold. Is this what death was like?, Claire wondered. If it was, she would be content, as she felt no worries. There was peace. Sure it was cold, but it didn't bother her much. Those few moments of peace were shattered by a burning sensation on her arm. It was intensifying. Her eyes fluttered open and she took in her surroundings. She was lying face down in snow, her white shirt stained with blood in some places and her blue jeans torn in different areas. Her vision was obstructed by her hair, which was loose. Tall, snow covered trees surrounded her. It was snowing softly and standing against one tree trunk was Wesker. He seemed calm and was looking coolly at her. She couldn't help but notice how attractive he looked standing there. She quickly shook the thought from her head. It's Wesker. You're not allowed to think that, she told herself. He strolled over to her and simply looked down at her.
"Well. Sleeping Beauty's finally awake. Now," he grabbed her arm and roughly hauled her to her feet, he was only a few inches from Claire's face as he spoke softly, "Now. What. Happened. To. My. Samples?" The way he spoke sent shivers down her spine. It made her uneasy, as if he were delivering a death blow to a wounded animal. Claire carefully thought about what her next words should be. After a few moments, she finally spoke back with the same soft tone,
"Your idiotic guards happened." She felt the corner of her lips curve upward. She really did like pissing people off. Wesker sighed in discontent, though there was a small smile on his face but it quickly disappeared and he tilted Claire's head towards upwards to meet his shaded eyes.
"Very well Miss Redfield, you wish to make this harder on yourself." The grip on he had on her arm increased. He began dragging her behind him. Where to, she had no idea. Then, a road loomed out from behind the trees and a black car was parked out in front of them. Wesker had released her and reached out in front of him. He opened the passenger door and simply waited. She raised her eyebrow at him in disbelief. He returned the gaze and spoke once more,
"Do you wish for me to force you into the vehicle?" He smirked. Claire sighed and hesitantly limped into the car. He closed the door and walked around the back of the car. He opened the trunk and pulled out something that she couldn't make out. She kept her eyes on him through the rear-view mirror. He opened the door and slipped into the car. In his hands, he had a blanket. He offered it to her as he turned on the car. She eyed it carefully and noticed she was shivering furiously. She took it and mumbled a thank you. He then put the car in drive and floored it.
"I don't see her anywhere." Jill scanned the crowed and couldn't find Claire. Snow had been falling making it easier to walk around hidden. She maneuvered the trees with Rebecca behind her. Then Rebecca spoke,
"I know. You think she escaped?" Silence engulfed the two. Jill was uneasy and dodged the question.
"Let's catch up with Leon. Maybe he found her."
Soon enough they found Leon. He was crouched on the floor staring at what seemed like blood stained on the snow. There was a door nearby that seemed to lead into the mountain. It was completely sealed off by a large steel door. When Jill neared, she noticed Leon was twirling something in his fingers. With a closer look, she noticed it was a black hair tie. Like the ones Claire used. She sighed and placed a hand on Leon's shoulder. He looked up at her and she almost expected to see tears in his eyes. Instead they were emotionless and empty.
"Someone should tell Chris," He simply said. "I'm going to get closer. Keep an eye out."
"Wait Leon-", it was Rebecca, she was about to go after him but was stopped by Jill.
"Just let him go. He wants to be alone right now."
"Fine. I'll go call Chris." She was off. Seconds later Leon came rushing out from the trees.
"I found a road. And some tires tracks. They seem pretty fresh. And there was more blood. I think she was taken again."
"Get Rebecca. We're leaving. Now. If we follow the tracks we might reach her."
Leon rushed into forest to get Rebecca. Jill watched him rush off and hoped he was right. She remembered what it was like not being able to find Chris back in the mansion. She could only hope Leon was right.
The trees seemed to blur into one white wall with streaks of brown every once in awhile as Claire and Wesker sped down the highway. She was wrapped in the blanket that Wesker had given and her head leaned against window. She could feel Wesker watching her every once in awhile, but wasn't really sure since her hair was down, covering her view from Wesker. They hadn't spoken since they left the lab. There was still Wesker's unanswered question. She had no idea where he was taking her and it scared her. For all she knew, she going to a different lab. She heard Wesker moving beside her, but decided to keep her eyes on the forest. She was wondering, what would Leon and the others think when they got to the lab to find it destroyed? Would they think she had died and they would give trying to find her? She couldn't think of that right now. She had to get away from Wesker and get help. Her leg was no longer in pain. That scared her. She wondered if the time she spent in the snow could have affected it somehow. Suddenly, she saw a flash of silver in the reflection from the window. She turned and saw Wesker had a needle in his hand. She eyed it and him with a cold stare.
"What the fuck are you doing?" She asked nervously, now with her back was pressed against the car door. She wondered if she would survive falling out of a moving car going thirty-five miles per hour.
"Sorry Miss Redfield, just a precaution." He reached to inject her with whatever it was in her arm. She moved in time and reached to take it from him. He was too fast and pulled it away before she could grab it.
"Nice try, but no." Claire told him as she tucked her hand behind her back to reach for the door handle. He kept his eyes on the road at all times, and then she heard it. *click* The doors were locked.
"You've gotta be fucking kidding me" she said with a tone that suggested that she couldn't believe he had locked them. She reached for the door to find that they were, indeed, locked. She turned at the feeling of numbness in her arm. She looked down at her arm and found the needle directly in it. She then looked at him. He was looking at her over his glasses and smirking.
"You're…an," she slowly tried to get her words out as she began feeling faint, "asshole." There she said it. She was feeling even more tired by the second. She turned towards him as she felt him move his arm. This time it brushed by her lap, sending a jolt of energy to her brain. Before she knew it, his face was inches from hers. So close she could feel his breath. Whatishedoingwhatishedoingwhatishedoing?! She felt herself woozily, questioning his motives but found herself in no condition no back away. Then, she fell backwards; she was now lying back in the seat. Her hair fanned out around her and some covered her face. She tried to get the courage and strength to pull herself up and failed. She finally gave up and dozed off into sleep. If she would have remained conscious for a little while more, she would have seen his hand hover over her face as he hesitantly decided what to do next. Then, he did it. His hand cautiously brushed her hair away from her face and he tucked one piece behind her ear. After that he kept his hands on the steering wheel the entire time, not even looking at her once. If he would have, he would have noticed the laceration on her arm heal almost immediately. Timing was a bitch.