Chapter Text
The wide trunks of the endless forest envelops you. The whooshing of the rain as you sprint through it immediately halting once you step foot onto the forest floor. You leap over a fallen tree, stumbling forward when you land in a small hole, your ankle protesting all the way through your leg. You hiss but move forward.
The late afternoon coupled with the storm clouds growling above you put a dark veil over the forest. Soon you find yourself gasping for air, the noise masked by the drum of rain on the treetops. Some of the water fights its way through, clumps of it landing on your hair, drenching your clothes.
This is where you’re running for your life.
Suddenly a light flashes, bright and startling. A loud roar from the skies tells you that this is more than just a little rain.
Footfalls on hardened ground boom in between actual claps of thunder. Slowly but surely, they’re gaining on you.
You come to a steep downwards hill. Here you feign left before quickly sliding right, letting yourself practically fall down the hill in attempt to retain momentum.
Mutterings of curses and the slap of a body against wet leaves are like music to your ears. The laugh it inspires echoes out into the vast forest before being diluted, as the rain comes down harder. The insistent pour fights against the leaves until they’re finally allowed full access, the forest floor quickly covered in rows of rivulets.
The men’s fall has allowed you to put a lot of distance between you, the risk you take as you zoom downwards feeding said distance until you can start looking for hiding places. For though this forest is maintained, the deeper you go the larger the undergrowth becomes. Sticks and leaves from tall bushes whip against your body, each wince and gasp luckily covered by the rolling thunder. They pull at your clothes, ripping into your hair, but not enough to slow you down.
When you come to another hill that drops straight into a large mess of bushes, you throw yourself backwards, connecting with a tree. Chest heaving you decide this is the time to take your chance.
The tree splits the water as it runs down into the dell, making the spot of dirt you’ve crouched down on precarious at the edge of the hill. It wobbles beneath you with every gasp of air, your bare feet sliding in the shoes not doing you any favours in clinging to the brink.
Even the rain can’t hide the shouting as the men approach not even five seconds later. With anger on their short breaths, they pause at the edge that’s been revealed to them, looking down into the green.
“Sarge?” Pete pants.
You’re a few meters from them, barely hidden. You swallow down every breath, trying to desperately not to make any noise.
Will doesn’t answer.
“Sarge, what the fuck, let’s go?!”
“We can take a moment.”
You heart flies at his cool tone.
A fork of light reveals the stark details of the men. Through the bushes you can see their eyes trained on the plants. Will stands with his hands on his hips, his buttoned shirt soaked through, his hair clinging to his forehead. Despite the water he doesn’t look frazzled at all. Oh, this is something that has always managed to put you on edge. The absolute control he’s able to put off even when he’s in a murderous rage in the forest on a hunt for his property. Even when his entire backside is covered in dirt from slipping and falling on his ass.
The light zips out and you’re all left in the dark again.
“Wha- why- how? She’s probably so far ahead now!”
“Use your brain, Pete. The plants aren’t moving. She’s fucking hiding.” There’s a smile on his voice now, an anticipation of winning. Of knowing something no one else knows. “I mean, she may as well not even be down there.”
He takes a step back.
No, no, no. You need them to rush down there so you can run back. The precious time it would take them to get back up would be more than enough distance to run for your true target.
If only they would take the fucking bait.
In a slow movement timed with the flashes of light, you turn your head, looking around for something to help you. You hear footsteps to your right, and it takes everything in you not to whip around.
“Little bird,” a cool voice practically purrs right next to your ear.
You choke back a gasp, slowly turning back to face the noise.
Will is looking around the overgrowth by the edge. In a second he will be able to see you.
The streams of water continue around you. Your weight on the fragile edge causing it to sink a few centimeters with every passing minute.
There’s a rock, but you doubt it will trick him. And the weight will be impossible to throw without giving yourself away.
His feet shift towards you.
Pete, still breathless, hisses in a loud whisper, “do you think she’s over there?”
Another strain of lightning shows Will with his upper-body craned towards the other man. “No. I’m simply admiring nature and all its gifts.”
“Really?”
The rain crashes harder towards the ground, muting the silence between them. “Tell me you’re kidding.”
Your eyes fall to a movement down to your right. With a check at the bickering men you reach forward, plan in motion.
Pete stammers, “Fuck if I know what you’re up to. You’re the one who wanted to stop and think.”
Your hand drifts closer, camouflaged by the harsh weather.
“Hmm… Perhaps stopping to think would do you some good, Pete.”
“Damn, I forgot how mean you get on these things.”
Gripping the pink tail, you immediately fling the mouse over the edge, its scream muted by the thunder. It lands with just enough impact and panicked scrambling.
Sorry, bubs.
“There! Look at the bushes! She’s crawling up the side!” And down he goes.
Will stands at the top, eyes on Pete as he carefully climbs down the almost vertical side.
Why isn’t he going too?
Your breath is locked in your lungs – eyes fixed on him hard in hopes that they can force him to move.
Moving his body sideways, facing you directly, he looks straight into the bush you’re hiding behind. You choke back a gasp, forcing yourself to remain completely still. He can’t see you, he can’t see you, he can’t see you.
Will slowly lowers his body down.
If you ever make it out of here, you vow to bring back some cheese as soon as possible to this spot. You scramble around the side of the tree, the dirt ledge crumbling behind you. You slip and a desperate hand connects with the tree as you pull yourself up and away. Foot planted directly into a large puddle, you bite back a hiss from the ice cold water and carry on.
Completely disoriented, you just pick a direction and commit to it. Trees and bushes whipping past you, your harsh breath drowned out by the angry roar of the skies. They must have realised fairly quickly that it wasn’t you who was rushing around down there, but you’re hoping the fight back up the hill, the sudden shock and confusion, will have allowed you at least a couple of minutes. Zig zagging in and around plants, up and down hills, you hope you’re following as unpredictable a path as possible. But the darkness is descending fast, you’re soaked to the bone, and it gradually dawns on you that in this part of the forest, humans aren’t the only predators to worry about. Fuck, you might just succumb to an infection.
Really anticlimactic end honestly.
Not quite as noble as killing yourself? You ask yourself sarcastically, finally stumbling into a walk rather than a run.
Your breath burns, your eyes blink erratically to keep the pouring water out. It distracts you enough to not realise that you’ve reached a clearing until you’re standing in the middle of it. Looking left and right, you can see that it’s part of a trail. You have three possible paths to choose from.
One leads in the direction of where you came from (maybe?); the second and third next to each other but branching off in different directions. In the darkness they look almost identical.
Right. A shaking hand starts pointing between the two, a children’s rhyme softly passing your lips until it ends. The one your finger lands on being the chosen one and you promptly drag your body towards it.
Can’t decide? Leave it up to chance. Thank destiny.
As you’re about to be enveloped by the tightly bound forest again, a flash of movement forces your entire body to freeze. A dark shape has stepped out onto the path ahead. A flash of lightning above the clearing reveals glowing eyes staring back at you.
“Right,” you say, wiping dripping water from your face. “Okay. Can you move? I sort of need this road too.”
It doesn’t listen.
“Can we at least share?” You take a hesitant step forward.
Its growl rolls to you, shaking with half the strength of the thunder.
You nod, stepping backwards. “No, right, I hear you. But if you could at least go ahead?”
It moves closer to you.
Forcing your movements to be calm, you hop backwards again. “Not quite what I meant, but that’s my bad for not being clearer.”
You’re far enough back now to look into the other path again. Glancing back and forth between the wild animal and the perfectly acceptable path, you wave at the glowing eyes. “You know what, I agree, let’s split up. But it’s been nice knowing you, let’s do this again- well, never.”
The animal growls in what you choose to interpret as agreement, and you move to the other tunnel like path.
Thanks, destiny.
***
The volunteers have grouped off into four.
One will look to the paperwork side in all of this, finding loopholes and discrepancies in whatever legal handcuffs this Will Petersen has put you in. Two of the largest groups are splitting off and going after the car. They have your last known address thankfully, due to the fact that Petersen has to keep the court updated on your progress. Interestingly enough, he hasn’t reported the fact that you’ve been gone. Rather he’s faked documents about you being gradually more and more suicidal.
Kent’s stomach churns at the ideas of what Will could be using these to cover for later on.
The last group is a smaller one. It’s Kent, Maru, Harvey and Emily. How the hell he ended up in this one is beyond him, but despite being in the military he wasn’t brave enough to argue with Robin’s instructions.
She’s going to be a damn fine mayor.
Kent has internally called them the Sanity Crew – responsible for the mental well-being of Harvey, who honestly looks like he’s ready to implode at any minute.
To get some of the energy out of his system, Sanity Crew after a while decides to head to your house to see if any clues can be found there. The walk in the biting rain seems to shock Harvey enough out of the mind-numbing grief he’s been in in the part hours. And it does the opposite for Kent.
His eyes glaze over the road, trying to see if he can still spot your nail marks in the ground. In between bouts of wailing wind he can still hear your screaming and pleading. You were wild. Unhinged. One moment you were calm, the next you had completely snapped. You belong in an asylum.
Kent’s eyes find the back of Harvey’s head. What did he know? He looks to the women following proudly, not a drop of doubt in their postures. What did they believe about this situation? The worst that could happen is that you go home to him for a couple of days. If you’re truly trapped, the system will take care of it.
But Kent’s not sure he believes that anymore. His fingers find the metal in his pocket, drawing comfort from it.
Maru leads the way into the house, followed by Emily. This leaves Kent and Harvey outside, huddled on the veranda waiting for entry. As Kent looks around, he spots Marnie running from one of the barns.
“The animals. I didn’t even think…” Harvey trails off.
Kent slaps him on the shoulder. “Look, Emily is waving us inside.”
He’s never been inside your house, but these three clearly have. They move around the space with confidence, opening drawers and cupboards with an expectation, while Kent hovers by the door.
He realises he’s waiting for instructions. He shakes his head, moving off into the space. What in the world they think they’ll find, he doesn’t know. You packed a bag with the most important stuff when you left.
Hell, he shouldn’t be here. The only logical reason for being with this group is because he can physically restrain Harvey in case he tries to hit anyone again.
Not that Kent believes he will. The kid looked shameful enough after the first attempt.
Kid…
“How old are you, Harvey?”
Maru looks over her shoulder from the kitchens. “Wow, that’s right, we must all look so different to you now, Sir.” There’s a question on her voice.
He shakes his head, then pauses. “I can’t explain it. You look the same, but not really. Out of the three of you, you’re definitely the most changed Maru.” That’s a lie. Though Maru’s objective physical differences are greater because she’s grown up, Harvey has changed the most. Despite being weighed down by grief now, Kent has observed an improvement in him over these last months. Has gotten to know this man again.
The doctor has become more confident. Open. He doesn’t huddle in the corner, doesn’t hide away from the social interactions like he’s afraid of ruining them. He participates. He laughs. He loves.
Yes, Harvey has been changed.
But Kent doubts that change will last if you don’t come home.
Err… Back. If you don’t come back.
Maru smiles and turns back to the cupboards.
“Too old in some ways, Kent,” Harvey offers a half smile, answering his question. A blameless smile. It only makes the guilt worse.
“How do you know that guy, Kent?” Emily asks, ruffling around the bed, then promptly freezes and looks over at Harvey with a face. He shakes his head and trades places with Emily, moving the covers and the mattress around.
“We served together. Lost contact before my last tour.”
“So you already knew her?” Emily frowns. And everyone stops what they’re doing.
Kent squares his shoulders, feeling the sudden tension. “Yes. I saw her a couple of times when she was younger.”
“Did you know her father?” Harvey asks.
Her father? Why is that relevant? “I knew of him.”
“Did you conspire with Lewis to call that man?” Emily asks ever so direct, hands on her hips. Maru has edged in from the side, her hands hidden from Kent’s view. Harvey is standing back, watching the scene.
Ah. It all makes sense.
“I considered it.” Kent refuses to shift on his feet. His anger is high, tension causing his muscles to twitch, needing actions, looking for a fight. He attempts to do the breathing exercises a state provided therapists gave them when they came back. “Not conspiring with Lewis. But I did consider calling Will.”
“Why didn’t you?” Maru asks.
Kent feels the silence stretch. The doubts, the beliefs, all of them sorting themselves into categories until he feels a truth pressing at him. He looks to Harvey. “I realised she’s not who I thought she was.”
They look to each other for a beat and then nod, going back to what they were doing.
“You believe me? Just like that?”
Maru moves into the bathroom. “Sure.”
“Good thing none of you are interrogators.”
Maru pokes her head out from the door frame of the other room with a sigh. “Are you telling us the truth?”
Her earnest voice causes something to catch in Kent’s throat. “Yes,” he answers steadily.
She looks him over for a beat and then disappears again.
To completely alter the mood, the blue-haired women suddenly abandons her spot. “Excuse me, doc,” Emily sings and the plops down on the floor, scooting between his legs to look underneath the bed.
Harvey’s voice is gentle when he asks her what she expects to find down there.
“Dust bunnies who can whisper their secrets to me. Or, wait, a necklace! Oooh, pretty.” She scoots back out, her head in a crown of grey that must have lined the underside of the bed.
A little moon necklace, which she quickly hands off to Harvey. He looks down at it as if it can whisper to him like the dead skin cells evidently can to Emily.
At that same moment, the door bursts open and the familiar shape of Kent’s eldest son fills the doorway. “Dad!”
“What happened?” Kent steps forward, unable to read his son’s face.
Sam huffs and puffs as someone comes running up behind him. His coat clings to him, and he pushes back his hood to show a face sketches with lines of urgency. “We found the car.”