Chapter 31

The car headlights illuminated Carter kneeling on the road.  He wasn't alone when our eyes took in the scene a few yards in front of us.  Carter was hovering over a man, holding him down on his stomach by pressing a bent leg against the guy's lower back.  All Luke and I could see was the dude's head of dark hair since his left cheek was pressed against the pavement away from us. Carter's hands were at work, tying the man's hands behind his back with some thin rope.

Glancing up to Luke, I took in his lowered and thoughtful eyebrows. He didn't know what to make of this and neither did I.  Obviously, the man Carter was tying up was a remaining member of the men that tried to kill us.  But why not kill him? 

My curiosity and confusion diffused when I looked back to the interesting sight before us.  My perception completely shifted, making my breath catch and body tense.  For a small moment, the darkness wasn't a visual obstacle for me.  Because everything I was seeing before us... was suddenly in great detail. 

Like Carter's knee braced against his lower back, keeping him down. I saw the pressure and muscle he put into holding the man down.  Holding the man down on his stomach.  Leaving the man helpless. Helpless.  Helpless on his stomach like he was drowning!  Just like I was drowning when Vic held me on my stomach in the shallow water in the SUV!

For the flash of a second as I stared at the two men in the headlights, all I could see was Vic nearly killing me. He was kneeling behind me, pressing his leg on my back to keep me under the water!  I could see it!  That's what I saw in that second.  As if I stepped away from my body and was witnessing myself dying at the hands and power of Vic.

When I snapped away from the disturbing images that started playing in my mind, I focused back on what was really happening in front of us.  It suddenly became instinct and easy for me to speak after my mind twisted reality for that quick second. And what I said... was voiced without much thought. "Carter!  Just because I killed Vic doesn't mean he needs a replacement yet! Calm down and at least let the guy try out before we just accept him in our club."

Carter didn't look up. It was clear he heard my words when he laughed. "Sorry, I just got a little excited. I need a certain number of friends around me to keep me happy," he said in the same joking tone I used.

Looking up to Luke, his concern fully shifted from what Carter was doing to me. I understood. I was concerned over myself too once I realized what I just said. It wasn't healthy to be joking around right now. But those light and joking words I said, it felt good and I wanted to hold onto that feeling.  It also allowed the reality of what actually happened seem less serious.  It's what I was in desperate need of right now. 

"Let's not get too excited," Luke muttered to me before he looked back to Carter.  He just finished up tying the man's hands behind his back.  Sighing under his breath, still not understanding what Carter's purpose was for this, Luke moved forward and I followed.  "What the hell are you doing?" he asked Carter in a low voice.

Carter got to his feet and hauled the guy up with him.  I was able to see him much better now.  The mysterious man was much smaller than the two other men I stood with. In fact, when I stared into his stubborn face, he looked fairly young. If I had to guess with his round face and boyish features, probably around 23 or 24.

"Saving our asses one day at a time," Carter answered, turning and pinning the man against the hood of the car. He wasn't putting up much of a fight but he sure didn't look happy. Not worried in the least, Carter looked between Luke and I. "This little shit might be acting tough now. He's mad though because he failed as a member. He has enough of a soul to be selfish."

"What are you talking about?" I asked impatiently.

"A few men came running out, tried shooting me. I shot them first. There was one though that attempted to run away instead," he said, nodding down to our tied up prisoner in question. There was a sick smile on Carter's face. It reminded me of just exactly the kind of person he was and how he came to be with us. "He's new to the system. I can tell."

"Just kill me," the man hissed.

Carter's firm grip on the man's shoulder tighten as he laughed. "Well I would have killed you if you tried fighting like a proper soldier.  Instead, you ran... like you wanted to live.  Is that true? You wanna live, boy?" he asked in a playful tone.

"Carter," Luke growled. It was clear he was not at all a fan of this. "What... is... your goal?" he hissed, dragging out his stressed words.

"Friendship," he smirked, clearly having fun with this.

Despite my little joke before, at least I wasn't at ease enough to relax like Carter was!  In fact, I was... anything but okay. I was still shaking, on edge, and ready for anything. I couldn't even take advantage of the headlights as they faintly illuminated the area around us. It would make me sick and sob if I focused on all the bodies.

"Answer!" Luke exclaimed loudly, demanding seriousness from him.  With where Luke stood beside me, he was almost visibly shaking.

Annoyed by Luke's lack of humor, Carter scrunched his nose and finally gave a serious answer. "Christ, alright! He's going to help us. He's going to call his leader and report back that they found us. That they killed us all - including Albany." His eyes shifted to mine as he continued explaining. That gaze lit up like it usually did when he looked at me. "When I was one of these guys, it was a priority to deliver you back alive if we found you. Obviously, things have changed and that's no longer important for some reason."

He didn't need to tell me that these assholes were okay with killing me.  I made that educated guess on my own based on how many uncaring bullets flew towards me not long ago!  They weren't careful and those people actually tried killing me.  Probably because Jackson was guarding me and it would have been hard for them to retrieve me alive. 

Understanding that unfortunate change in their protocol already, it made something else Carter said more appealing.  Hearing that we could use this guy to cover our tracks was very intriguing.  "How much time will that really give us if he reports back that we are all dead?" I asked.

"A lot," Carter answered, looking between us again with an excited grin. "He's going to tell his leader that they succeeded in killing us. And he's going to tell whoever his boss is that they will be bringing our bodies back as proof. That's going to stall them several days until the organization learns what really happened. And it gets better," he smiled, pausing for a second before continuing.  "Even when they do figure it out, they might still assume we are staying around Mississippi. Especially if we can take Vic's dead body and dump it even further south.  It will lead them to believe we are staying south.  It's going to take them a while to figure out that that's not the case either.  So it might really be weeks before they learn we are alive and still going to Washington. We need that right now. And if this man can do that for us... I'll make sure he lives."

There was one word in his explanation that stuck out the most: weeks. I mean, he did say weeks right? Not just days but possibly... weeks. Weeks ahead of them. Weeks that we could use to make sure that they don't catch us or find us! It was as if I never heard of freedom before and I actually had the chance to experience it when I heard Carter say that one word! It sounded too good to be true - and it just might be - but Carter's idea did sound promising.

Our gaze shifted to the man we needed in order for this to happen. Carter slowly asked him again, "Do you want to live? Think very carefully."

Knowing the type of people in this organization, their dedication and beliefs, I fully expected this guy to not give in to Carter's proposal. Therefore, I was quite surprised and a little confused by the man's answer. "Yes," he said.

"Yes what?" Carter pushed.

"I-I want to live," he spoke up from where his cheek rested against the car hood.

Those words were a game changer and we all knew it as we proceeded to get this done.  None of us were the least bit suspicious of the man's intentions either if you can believe it. That might have been the strangest thing.  When Carter allowed him to stand up, his face showed shame. More importantly, there was fear in his eyes when he explained how he would get ahold of his boss. Shame and fear... even Carter knew that was unusual. After all, these men are trained to live a certain way and it wasn't with fear. But he wanted to live and would do whatever it took clearly, including betraying everything that was supposed to matter to him. 

That's how we knew we could trust he wouldn't do anything fishy. That didn't mean we didn't take precautions.

Knowing Carter and I could take care of this task on our own, Luke traded me his gun for the flashlight.  He wanted to get Jackson out of the SUV while we handled this. Not to mention, since I had the job of holding the gun in case something goes wrong with the man, Luke had to carry Jackson up by himself. I'm sure that just broke Luke's heart considering he didn't want me helping him to begin with!

Turning on the flashlight, Luke went back into the ditch to get the unconscious Jackson out and up to the road where we were. As for us... we didn't waste time. 

I paid close attention to the man after Carter searched him.  He found a gun on the man, claimed it as him own by tucking it behind him, and then found the hefty phone we needed.  According to the man, that phone was used to reach his leaders in Ohio.

Before Carter dialed the number the man had memorized, a few instructions were necessary.  "I trust you won't screw us over. I will know if you do instantly. I want you to report to your leader that you found us and killed us. You also tell him there was seven casualties on your side and you will list seven names.  Also, who was your officer?"

"Kayhill. H-He's over there," the man said, nodding to where one of several bodies were sprawled a couple yards away.  I was forced to glance back at the man almost immediately, not wanting to look.

I didn't say a word, understanding that Carter knew what he was doing.  He clearly did with the ordering tone in his voice aimed at our prisoner.  "Okay.  You report he died in addition to seven others. Anyone else above you?"

"Schwartz," he said in a dead voice, nodding in the same direction but on the other side of the road where that body must be. I didn't even bother looking; my stomach was already stirring.  It's not like I managed to calm my shakiness by much either.

"You will report he's dead too.  Now, your boss might ask to speak to a fellow man that's still alive. If he does, you 'give' the phone to me. Got it?" When the man nodded, Carter asked him for one last thing. "Give me a name of someone who died here and wasn't above you."

"Lester Coleman," the man said in a hoarse voice, his face looking pale and sickly the more he was forced to think about all his dead 'co-workers' around him.

"Good."  With that, Carter aimed his attention down to the phone and made sure to put it on speaker before dialing.  It seemed to have taken only a second for him to punch in the number as the man said it.  Then... once someone answered on the other end, time stopped flying.

The actual exchange seemed to last forever once a voice over the phone did pick up. Probably because the tied up man before us had to relay information that I didn't expect. Like his name, a number that I knew wasn't random, and more. Including the information Carter gave him about the casualties.  By the time he actually told his boss that we were successfully killed, it was several minutes into the call.

Listening to the man over the phone after that... that's when things got interesting.  I let the man's digital response to hearing we were all dead fill my ears. "All dead? The girl too?"

"Yes sir," he said, leaning over towards where Carter held out the phone for him. "We were losing several men and there was no other way.  We had to kill her."

There was a pause over the phone before words came through again.  "Reid won't like that, but I know he said dead or alive at this point. I can't blame the guy. Killing her was an easier option - clearly as tonight showed. I'm probably more pleased than him that this is finally over. I know you just started but this has been a three-year hunt. Entirely worth it. I'm unfortunately going to assume that you didn't make a rookie mistake by being the one to report this."

"No sir, no mistake. Schwartz and Kayhill went down."

There was a sigh of annoyance and distress from the phone, causing it to sound more like static. "Good officers and workers. They understood they were falling for a cause though that mattered," he said in a preacher-like tone that made me raise an eyebrow.

After a little more talking, it became very clear just how excited the man was over the phone to hear that it was all over. That we were dead and that he would be able to see the evidence when the 'remaining men' take our bodies back.  He was so excited that it blinded him from logic when he didn't even ask to speak to anyone else.

By the time the phone call ended, I nearly stopped shaking all together. The fight was clearly over and it started to sink in. It was also a relief when I glanced behind me and saw Luke's figure reach the top of the ditch with Jackson slumped over his shoulder.  What really helped though was that call. It actually worked. This would give us a big advantage and I took comfort in that.

However, just as I was starting to slightly calm down, Carter ruined it.

"You did good," he said to the tied man from beside me when I turned back to stare at the them.  Carter let the phone in his hand drop to his side. I didn't see what his other hand was doing until it was too late. He withdrew the gun he took from the guy and raised it, pointing it a few inches from his chest. 

Then Carter fired the gun, killing the man.

***

Everything that happened would stay with me for a long time if not forever.  It was shocking, scarring, and it all occurred within the last hour.  Starting with the SUV being pushed into the ditch.  Then us getting ambushed, shot at, attacked.  Me killing in defense, Vic nearly drowning me, then me killing Vic.  Climbing up the ditch, shooting more men, and Luke hitting them with the newly stolen car.  Discovering Jackson unconscious, finding that Carter tied up a straggler, and that phone call to one of the leaders.  And finally to end the horror for the evening... Carter lying and shooting a man that helped us when he said he wouldn't. 

It was too much to handle, especially when it all happened so quickly. One scarring sight after the other, over and over....  That's why the most difficult thing to accept was that it was all over!  How could I believe it was over for now?  After the terror that happened and thinking it was done, I had to witness Carter shoot another person.  How was I supposed to accept that the turmoil was over after I had to watch that?! 

I remained on edge and didn't know how to start calming down – so I didn't.  That's why I honestly was okay when Luke and I thoroughly started screaming at Carter for his actions.  What he did was wrong and unexpected, but yelling at him allowed the chaos to continue within me; it was easier to deal with than actually accepting anything. That's just sad that I was more comfortable facing drama than calming down yet.  

However, once we got on his ass in hysterics and shock, Carter knew how to shut us up quickly by explaining why shooting him was necessary.  He pointed out something that was obvious to each of us: the man he captured before shooting was new to the group.  According to Carter, for all the years he worked for the organization, they would never put new people on a job like that until workers were fully committed to the belief system.  The man who tried running wasn't committed like he should have been, which was very sloppy on the organization's part. 

He said that the reason they probably risked putting in newcomers was because they were desperate and lacked men.  I would like to think that our stunt at the Ohio headquarters was the reason for that.  After all, I knew many got arrested that night.  Regardless, recruiting newcomers on the job was obviously a mistake on their part since we just took advantage of it. 

Why would him being new though justify shooting him?  As it turns out, we would have had to shoot him anyway.

Carter explained that anyone ready for a job wouldn't have believed our proposal in sparing their life.  If we let that man live like we told him, he would have eventually been tracked down and maybe tortured for betraying his fellow 'brothers.'  It made sense.  Plus, we couldn't deny that Carter knew the most about how our persistent enemies worked.

Though his words did make me understand why we had to kill him, it didn't make me feel much better about it.  Then again, everything else that happened assisted in clouding any relief that might have been possible anyway.  That's why as I stood there beside Luke after Carter explained, there wasn't much I could say.  The only thing that raced through my mind were flashes from earlier.  Mainly the incredible fear that was still effecting me and the images of the people I killed tonight. I never killed like that before... or that many people.

Feeling Luke's eyes on me, I tried to stop my continuous shaking but failed.  Looking up at him in a daze, it was clear how much pain he was in from watching me.  All he wanted to do was care for me and take me away from this.  I knew it would only be a matter of time until he took me aside to try to calm me down or talk to me.  There needed to be a few things established first. 

He looked away from me and back to Carter standing in front of us.  Face now concealing the emotions he revealed to me, he gave Carter nothing but a hard and blank expression.  No matter the justification, I knew Luke was still unpleased that Carter caused one more death that would have to replay in our heads over and over.

Not looking away from Carter, he nodded towards the woods on the other side of the road.  "Since you don't seem to have a problem with dead bodies, I want you to haul them into the woods," he said in a neutral tone, but I knew there was nothing neutral about him right now.  From his sickly pale skin, tense body, and the agony in his eyes, I wanted to be the one to take him aside to help.  He clearly hated the words he had to force himself to say.  "We are lucky no other cars came through here yet.  When they do, we don't need them seeing bodies and calling the cops.  So first, get them in the woods enough to be out of sight for now.  After they are out of sight, we will haul them further back in the woods and bury them."

Since I was happily forcing my mind to stay in action, it was easy for me to take on more concern besides the worry I had over Luke's mental pain.

I interrupted him, drawing his eyes to me when I spoke.  "Yeah, I think we should move them.  But would burying them really help?  The hillbillies around here are most likely to uncover these bodies before the assholes after us do.  When that happens, it's going to blow up all over the news - nationally.  News of their remains will reach the people in charge before they can buy us time finding them on their own.  That will ruin the plan of getting ahead a few weeks."

He smiled softly, as if at least happy to see that I was still thinking on my feet.  I wonder if he knew that it was all that was really keeping me together.  "Not necessarily.  Think about it," Luke said, sounding more hopeful and confident despite how hard it was for him to deal with this.  "Would the locals uncover buried bodies when they aren't even looking for them?  In the middle of nowhere too?  This location isn't close enough to a house with anyone in it.  Otherwise, people would have heard gunshots and called the police.  It would take a long time for anyone around here to just stumble upon buried bodies.  But unlike the locals, the organization will come looking for them once their workers never return with our remains.  They are most likely to find them first – if they do at all.  There is a chance they won't, which would put us even further ahead."

Carter drew my eyes to him as he nodded in agreement.  Leaning against the side of car, tucking the gun he just used back behind him, he smirked down towards the road.  "That's a good point.  They might not ever find the bodies since we're not leaving them on the ground like lazy murders do." 

Not at all feeling better at Carter's use of the M word, I could feel my stomach and chest turning more inside me.  I focused on the other words that raised another question.  "Well we aren't burying Vic, we're dumping him.  Aren't the 'locals' most likely to at least find him first?"

Carter nodded and easily answered. "Yeah but that's okay.  Finding one body won't make national news like a whole army of assholes being found would.  The organization will probably discover what happened to Vic only after they get this far south.  That won't hurt us because by then, they probably are going to assume we are still alive anyway.  Finding Vic would keep them clueless and looking even more south."

Nodding in agreement, I tried my hardest to calm down at this point.  I felt stupid being the only one shaking.  I couldn't help it though when I flung out another immediate concern.  "What about the SUV?  How are we going to burry that shot-up beast in the ditch?  People still drive on this road.  It's going to be hard to miss seeing that!"

Luke came to fully face me, ready to either reassure me with an answer to my question or reassure me that everything was okay.  Before he could say anything though, Carter chuckled and gave me a solution.

"You get creative and play with a little fire.  Done the right way, we can melt it down enough that people won't even bother with it.  There is junk and abandoned cars all over the place.  Once the fire covers up the bullet holes, it's not going to stand out."

I raised my eyebrows and pursed my lips.  Glancing to Luke after he tried thinking of a reason that wouldn't work, he stayed silent.  Jade eyes returning to me with dipped eyebrows, it was clear that he was hardly worried about our plan.  He just wanted to help me. 

Though he did well hiding his worry from the rest of his face, I could still hear it in his voice as he gave Carter directions.  "That will work.  First though, get the bodies out of sight in case any vehicles do drive through. After you lay them in the woods, unload our things from the SUV, cram it all into the trunk of the car. Then, drag up Vic's body and leave him out of sight in the woods too until we are ready to go. After everything is out of the SUV, we'll light it up. Burying the bodies is last."

Carter cocked an eyebrow at the orders Luke threw at him.  Crossing his arms and leaning forward off the car, he snorted and threw back a snarky response.  "And what are you going to be doing, copper? Huh? Taking care of princess?"

He didn't appear phased by Carter's words when he simply nodded.  "Yes.  That's exactly what I'm going to do." Then with a stone expression, Luke gestured behind us towards where he laid Jackson down.  "Also, I'm going to clean him up.  So get to work," he muttered, sighing deeply before he turned his attention to me. 

Carter walked away while I was swallowed by Luke when I came to fully face him.  There was still stone in his features but there was enough emotion and conflict to keep my attention.  His eyes were pools of overwhelming worry but also irritation. 

He slowly took my arm and raised it while his other hand angled my unfolded palm to face up towards him.  I didn't look down to where my bloody and split hand was on display and he didn't either for a moment.  Damn.  Clearly at some point thanks to the headlights, he noticed the awful shape my hands were in. 

"Not hurt too bad?  Really?" he asked in a disappointed but shaky voice before finally looking down at my palm.  His voice shook nothing like my hands though I noticed when I glanced down too.  Tilting my hand more towards the headlights, it was obviously more light than he needed.  It lit up the red color that dominated my hand and the shakiness.

When I looked back up to Luke's eyes that were focused on my hand, it made my heart drop.  Care, fear, pain, and insane worry flowed from him – to the point where it made his lips part and his breath pick up.  That's why I immediately pulled my arm away and hid my hands behind my back like a child.

"It's not... bad," I said, summoning the balls to even try to get that lie pass him.  It was bad and it hurt like a bitch now that I could focus on the pain. It was hard not to jump into the ditch and burry my hands in the water.

His penetrating gaze widened at my absurd attempt.  "No? Not bad?  Jesus fucking..." he trailed off, shaking his head at my attempt.  His care, worry, and need to help me though continued dominating his frustration.  "Come on," he whispered softly, turning and guiding me towards the car. 

"Will you at least take care of Jackson first?" I muttered towards my feet before looking behind us towards where Jackson was laying on the ground.  Luke was so concerned over me, but I wasn't the one that got shot in the arm and was unconscious. 

Luke opened the backseat car door for me when I came to face forward.  "Yeah, I can do that," he nodded as he stood there, knowing I wasn't the one in need of attention as much.  Of course, that didn't mean Luke wasn't more concerned over me.

Calculating and worried eyes moving to Jackson then back to me, he sighed and nodded towards the interior of the car.  "Sit down and try not touching much.  I'll help you once I'm finished with him, which shouldn't take long.  But it's not like we will be heading out soon anyway."

I nodded in agreement.  I mean, you guys heard the steps we needed to take to cover our tracks perfectly for our plan, right?  It would take a while and I was more than okay with that.  Though it felt great not facing the reality of it all yet, I knew I would need to.   Better now than later when I would be stuck in the car with Jackson and Carter.  Honestly though, I had no clue what my mental response would be to everything that happened. 

***

Once I sat down in the backseat, I figured it would be my time to rest, relax, and accept it all (which I knew I unfortunately needed to deal with).  That wasn't the case though. 

In order to tend to Jackson, Luke carried him back towards the car since it offered more light to see.  He laid his unconscious body next and parallel to the car, setting him on a thick blanket he found.  It was on the side I was sitting on and only a few yards away.  It made it impossible to not watch when Luke started tending to him.  Not just because Jackson was in clear sight, but it made me realize how worried I was over him.  He wasn't dead but he did get shot in the arm.  Somehow, that wasn't as scary as him being unconscious.    

I was on edge – internally and externally since I was sitting on the edge of the seat, half out of car since I opened the car door to watch.  Feet resting on the cement, I was able to see everything perfectly.  The car headlights illuminated the area enough as did the flashlight sitting on the ground facing him and Jackson.  It made it easy for Luke to see what he was doing from where he was kneeling beside him.  It also made it easy to see how much blood covered Jackson's arm and his forehead.

I couldn't handle my fidgety and worried state by the time Luke checked again to make sure the bullet did go fully through.  It was too much and I nearly lost it every time my gaze would catch Jackson's slack face and closed eyes.  I hated, absolutely hated the sickening sight of him unconscious and bloody.  "You sure he's okay, right?"

Luke did well keeping any worry off his face.  He was in focus mode with the first-aid kit and some other things he found next to him.  "Don't worry, he is entirely okay.  Just got to patch him up," he said calmly when he glanced up to me.  From how far my ass was off the seat, I think he understood my worry. 

"Patch him up with what?" I asked, eyeing his lack of materials.

"I'll find something.  I need to wash it out first though.  Then clean it with Isopropyl, which will definitely do the job.  It hurts a lot but since he's out, he might not feel it."

Along with the first-aid kit he recovered from what was already in the car, he also found a few half empty water bottles.  Taking one from next to the kit, he kneeled up more and shifted around him.  Stopping when he was at his side, Luke's back towards the ditch, it allowed me to see better. 

Brushing Jackson's hair back with one hand, his other holding the water bottle hovered over his forehead.  He poured it onto the cut, making the blood and water run behind him to the back of his head through his hair.  Luke did the same thing with his bloody arm, using up the other water bottles.

Leaning over Jackson to grab the next thing needed, he glanced up to my eyes before his gaze found my hands resting in my lap.  "Are you doing okay?" he asked, grabbing a small white bottle from the first-aid kit and kneeling back to where he was. 

He unscrewed the top of the bottle as I scoffed and shook my head.  "Yeah.  Don't worry about me and just focus on him."  Truth was, my hands hurt – even worse.  It felt like each minute passing was causing it to hurt more.  But I had no issue sucking it up over Jackson's sake. 

"If you say so," he said, reaching down with his free hand to lift Jackson's shot arm again.  Then, he hovered the small bottle over where he was shot.  He slowly tilted it until a liquid began pouring out onto his wound.

When the liquid came into contact with the punctured skin, it had an effect we weren't prepared for.  The moment the liquid flooded Jackson's gunshot wound, his entire body jerked.  The man's eyes flew open at the same time and his lips let loose a loud grunt!  It made Luke and I both jump in our places, surprised by his sudden return to consciousness.  

It was like flicking on a switch.  After his eyes flew open, he sat up quickly.  Through his heavy breathing and grunt at the pain the liquid brought, panic dominated him.  He sat up, jerked back and away from Luke, looking around frantically.  Then, all his frantic movements stopped when his brown eyes located mine.

His return to consciousness was greeted with confusion and panic at first clearly.  The last thing he knew, we were in the middle of a gunfight.  I would wake up panicked and ready to fight too.  When he stopped looking around though and rested his eyes on me, he didn't only realize that the violence was over.  He realized something else that I didn't consider.  Because the last thing Jackson also knew was that I disobeyed his orders and he didn't know what happened to me.

He now did once his gaze met mine.  Seeing it was all over, seeing I was alive and fine, his eyes in mine stayed pinned.  Frozen and staring at me, his breath seemed to pick up.  And unfortunately, his eyes changed while they stared into mine.  They went from panic, to realization, to worry, then to anger.  Anger I didn't see coming.   

Before anything could happen between us, a loud shout from yards away invaded us.  "Alright! Welcome back!" Carter shouted cheerfully, obviously seeing Jackson was awake.  Though my eyes were unable to break from Jackson's, I could hear Carter continue. "You missed the party man but it's not over yet!  The fun is just getting started!" With that, Carter started laughing hysterically to himself as he got back to his job.

Whether Jackson heard him too or not, he was zeroed in on me and not letting go.  I'm sure Luke had no clue what to think but he didn't say a word. I had a strong feeling he wanted to get involved but upon seeing how intense our stare was, didn't feel it was his place. I couldn't blame the dude. Because unlike Luke, I had an idea where Jackson's overwhelming rage came from.

Jackson didn't care about his wound, that Luke was in the middle of trying to clean him up, and he didn't care about our surroundings either.  Shaking his head slightly, almost dazed, his eyes didn't break from mine when he struggled to his feet and neared.  By the time he reached me, there was more in his expression then he ever allowed before.

Finally breaking away from his rough gaze for a split second, I could see his lips were parted from his hard breathing.  That didn't mean I couldn't see that he was grinding his teeth together though.  When my wide eyes returned to his though, my heart dropped.  There wasn't just rage and anger behind them anymore.  There was a sadness and a pain that he never showed me before.  It looked foreign on his paling face.  It suggested love and care, but anger accompanied now by disappointment clouded it.        

Then, he spoke in a dark and fast hiss.  "Who the fuck do you think you are?"

Standing before me with harsh eyes and words, all I could do was stare back.  I had no clue how to respond and knew it probably wouldn't be a good idea to anyway.  I was right because he immediately continued, only louder now.  "Who the fuck do you think you are?  Stupid shit! Where the fuck did you go?!"

This time, it looked like he wanted a response.  Surprisingly, I answered smoothly but I could sure feel my insides getting rattled.  "To help you."

"Help?  How could you help me?  I told you! Fucking told you to keep your ass under me until I say! You that dumb?  Are you a heartless and uncaring bitch?! You should be dead now!"

Heartless and uncaring bitch?  I didn't understand that part but I sure didn't like how he was speaking to me.  At the same time though, I didn't want to fight back.  I was drained of energy and was done.  Plus, I never saw him like this before and it drew me in, no matter how shitty his words were making me feel.  "I stayed inside for as long as I could.  And I did help!  If I stayed put, I would probably be dead because they started surrounding you."

"By then, I would have given you instructions! Don't you ever listen?!" There was a fire building in his eyes and it was only getting brighter, more interesting.  More emotional and shaken.  His words were separate though and sure knew how to rile me enough to defend myself.

"I don't take orders from you!  You don't hold any power over me or authority!" I said, raising my voice to where his was.  "This is my problem! I caused it, I'm going to fight!"

"It is not your problem! It's mine! So do as I fucking say!" he instantly shouted back, eyes reflecting unbelievable anger as well as desperation.

After yelling that, I think he recognized how untamed he was allowing himself to get.  He managed to calm the emotion that flooded his face, but it didn't stop his disappointment and anger from coming though in a hiss.  "You are too important to step up and take matters into your own hands like that.  How am I supposed to fight for you if you're too busy being a dumb bitch that needs to be handled on a leash?! Grow up and don't make me be your babysitter! Jesus Christ, so fucking stupid."

He didn't wait for anything.  Didn't wait for a response from me or a chance to say anything else to me.  Jackson looked down with a scowl and stormed off towards Carter, leaving me speechless.

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Hey guys, I am very sorry with how late this is. If you are keeping up on what's going on, I'm in the middle of the launch process of Island Rush. And I literally have several new things to do each day. Don't ever think though that that keeps my focus. In all honesty, writing Isolated is all I want to do trust me. It's just been hard to do what I want lately so I am sorry about that.

But if you guys feel like you are waiting a while and are anxious for the next chapter, I often upload on my Facebook page CHAPTER EXCERPTS FROM FUTURE ISOLATED CHAPTERS! So before I even post the next chapter, I will post a little part taken from it on Facebook almost as a sneak peak! So go to my Facebook page, leave a like, and keep your eyes open for that! (The page is Marien Dore - the link is in my profile bio). :D

I really hope you guys are enjoying the story so far like me :) Please tell me what you think!