The Consistency of Variables
July 7, 2008 Outside of Galice, Oregon 0930 hours It was kind of nauseating. Paige stood hunched over staring out of one of the back windows of the van, trying not to let the swaying motion get to her stomach too much. When was the last time she'd gotten motion sickness? Had to have been the chopper ride in…all that up and down…side to side… Paige closed her eyes tightly for a moment wishing the feeling in her stomach down. It was hotter than hell, too. She had already pulled off her hood, which helped, but the air condition sucked and she pulled off her mission top, having just a torso length sportsbra underneath. Declan's eyes flicked over to her immediately taking in the sight for just a moment before looking away as if he'd seen nothing. Typical of a male, she thought, though more of an automatic response than a derogatory thing. That was a little better she let out a deep breath. The van swayed again and her stomach lurched. She had to put a hand against the window to steady herself. She kept staring at the distance, trying to make out some sort of landmark, anything, in the driving rain, anything steady to mark her movement against and hopefully subside the nausea. "Oh shit," she heard from the front. She just managed to grab Jordy who was sitting next to her trying to get an open line to the chopper since Simon was driving. The van came skidding to a halt. Paige's stomach kept turning. "What the fuck happened?" Jordy yelled up to the front. Paige closed her eyes tightly for another moment. She could here the snickers coming from under the hoods of the kids. "Shut up," she kicked one of them in their shins. Jordy shot her a look and she shrugged. "I can't see a fucking thing in this rain," Simon yelled back. Paige could hear the tires spinning underneath them. "We're stuck," she said quietly. "Fuck, go see," Jordy said her attention once again going to the laptop. Paige tried putting her rain gear back on, and got one of her arms stuck in the sleeve. It wasn't easy trying to put on bulky clothing when you were hot and sticky and hunched over. "Fuck it," Paige said pulling it off and opening the van door. She jumped out and a huge puddle swallowed her feet. She was soaked immediately and walked around to the side to get a better look at the tires. They were also swallowed in mud and water. "God this sucks," she muttered going to the van doors. "Wheels are buried in mud, I think we're gonna have to try and push it out…or hike to the airfield." "We're not pushing," Bella said and moved into the front of the van. Bella had stripped down to not only her sportsbra but her shorts as well. Much to the approval, Paige had noted at the time, of Declan. That glance had been longer than the one he'd given her. And it was more than an automated response. "Get in," Bella yelled at her from the front. Paige jumped back in the van closing the door and pushed the rain off her arms. At least she didn't have the cast anymore and just the brace, which was hard plastic and velcro, the cast would have been soaked through by now. "Aye, you should probably hold on if the lass is driving," Declan warned. Paige and Jordy exchanged glances…there wasn't much to hold on to. The van lurched for a second and the tires spun underneath them. It slid the other way and Paige, looking out the window still, saw the edge of the road where a small drop off was approaching them. Just when she thought they would go over the wheels caught and jerked free. The jolt was hard enough to bang Paige against the door hitting her wrist and sending a little jolt of pain up her arm. It was also hard enough to knock one of the kids out of their seats, Acid Burn, Paige could tell the female of the group, and Declan moved quickly to get her back in her seat. "You better hold on back there," Bella yelled back from the front. "Now she tells us," Jordy muttered. "Tac," Jordy gestured for Simon, "I can't get anyone on the radio." Again, that snicker from under the hoods. That was getting kind of annoying and Paige wondered how far she could go before it was considered 'hurting' them. What? She paused thinking for a moment. What the hell was wrong with her? Was hunting people down and killing them in cold blood not enough for her? Was manipulating people that cared about her, that loved her, not enough? If that was the case then what WAS enough for her? How far would she have to go to make it enough? How goddamn far? She shook herself. That was one of the guarantees you got with that lifetime subscription to Joshua. You could never go far enough once he got inside of you. Not ever. Not with him. Not with yourself. You could never hurt enough, be hurt enough, sweat, bleed, cry, scream, be tormented enough. And even when she died, and that was something she didn't think of in regards to the obscure and distant future, no, that was something she thought about in the very real present. Because when you dealt with Joshua every day was a chance to die, every moment was a risk, an opportunity to have your life ended by him, or yourself, didn't really matter. And in that death, if the afterlife existed, which she so desperately searched for in the eyes of those she killed, if that after life existed she was as terrified as she was certain that he would be there waiting for her. Just sitting there in the fiery depths of hell with his pretty eyes and his pretty hair, and those hands (always these hands) waiting for her. Waiting for her to join him in eternity. Her thoughts were snatched away as the van leaned heavily to the side. Her instincts told her that the leaning was not good…not good at all. Bella yelled something from the front but Paige couldn't make it out, her mind too busy trying to process what her eyeballs were sending to it. Outside the window the world was turning over on its side. That was kind of creepy in itself…but creepier still was the brown muddy water splashing up against the glass. They were tipping, her mind reported. She had just about enough time to get her hands up before falling across the van and into the opposite wall which was now, effectively, against the ground. Jordan and two of the kids also fell forward, the other two and Declan, being seated on the opposite side of the van, the driver's side, were merely just tipped on their backs. Of course, the bodies landing on them had to hurt. "Everyone alright?" Jordan shouted when the van finally came to a jolting halt. Paige heard the crunch of metal and felt the van door beginning to give way. "Shit," she muttered just as she pulled her knees up and her arms went out again. The van door gave way a second later falling into her and spilling a river full of mud and water into the van. "Help me," she yelled trying to get out from under the door which was extremely heavy under the weight of the water and mud. She felt hands on her pulling at her. Finally, Jordan and Declan had managed her out from under it. The mud was filling the van quickly. "This way," Bella yelled pulling Simon up. "Get their hoods off and cut their ties," Jordan instructed and the three of them released the kids from their bonds. Their eyes went wide when they saw what was happening. "GO!" Jordan yelled at them. Paige grabbed what she could and started handing things to Declan, weapon bag first and then the medic bag. She took a computer bag and another filled with various equipment. "C'mon, that's enough," Declan yelled at her and took her arm pulling her towards the front of the van. It was difficult, to say the least, to get through the mud, it was like trying to walk through thigh high molasses. Declan handed his bags up through the passenger window and then climbed out. Paige then handed her bags up and climbed up. Jordy, Simon, and Bella, along with the four kids were standing on top of the van, which was actually the side of the van, as the mud continued to roll past them. Paige looked up…mudslide took them right off the road. She looked back down, two large trees had stopped their progress further down the hill side. Either way the van was useless and they all stood for a moment looking at each other. "Wow, you guys are really hot," the Cereal Killer said with a satisfied grin. Acid Burn, who seemed like one of the smarter of the group smirked as well, "what do we do now? Swim to your boss' office?" Jordan looked to Paige, "find a way, easiest and fastest back." Paige nodded squinting up to the road again and pulling up area maps in her head. If anything she was good for it was finding the way in the darkness. She watched as Declan and Bella put together a rigging line system to the larger of the trees. It would be tricky getting off the van and onto safer ground and still watch the four kids. But they had weapons…not that they could use them…but the kids didn't know that. She had a route picked out, the ropes were ready, and Jordan was issuing orders. Still, what was to happen remained uncertain. There were just too many variables now. One thing was for certain…Paige hated Oregon. It was kind of nauseating. Return