Jack stopped his bike next to a light pole with a concrete base large enough for him to take a seat. They had been riding for hours. The sun was still on the rise but the heat of the day was already making itself known. Everyone was soaked in sweat. The pace they kept to get away from the gang was grueling. 

With murmurs and silent head nods, the others let Jack know they were ok with stopping in the church parking lot they had been about to pass. All happy to finally be taking a break.

A large chain link fence, littered with different announcements and newspapers lined the parking lot, making for decent cover to stop for a quick bite. Getting off his bike, Jack found out the price of their pace. With legs like spaghetti that felt like they were on fire, he sat with his back to the reasonably cool concrete. He prepared to have the same somber breakfast as he did the morning before, Jack leaned back and stared up at the sky as he reached for a protein bar in his pack.

Sara crossed to Jack, leaning her bike against the carriage he had been towing. Laying down her rifle, Sara sat next to the carriage and coughed, trying to get Jacks attention. At the cough Jack looked to Sara and she smiled lightly as he did and motioned for him to come sit next to her. Moving his pack To the side, he was too afraid to speak, he felt himself blush at the motion.

Thankful for the companionship but still afraid of any conversation, Jack stared ahead awkwardly as she sat down right next to him. Sara sighed, and laid her head on Jack’s shoulder once she was situated. Jack was shocked but tried not to show it, enjoying her closeness. 

“Thank You,” Sara said, raising her head to look Jack in the eyes. Jack was confused, but she carefully kissed him on the cheek anyway. “Don’t give me that look, you saved me. You saved us all.”

Lacing her arm through his, she replaced her head on his shoulder as they both stared at the sky. Just enjoying the moment.

Bryan and Rachel joined the pair after getting their own bikes situated. Before Rachel sat down, she crouched on the other side of Jack and wrapped her arms tightly around his neck. Jack was scared for a moment as her grasp tightened, but Sara put her hand and Rachel’s shoulder and her hold grew slack.

Quietly, Rachel mumbled a thank you as she became racked with sobs.

Jack had no idea how to react and held her tight to his shoulder as best he could, trying to comfort her. It was awkward and it was failing.

Seeing that it wasn’t stopping, Sara pulled her off and away from the boys, trying her best to console the now wailing and frantically waving Rachel.

Jack could see it in her eyes, Rachel was finally having a massive breakdown.

Sara was doing everything she could to contain it and help her, but there really wasn’t much she could do. She was just going to have to be there and help her out. Jack sighed, glad it wasn’t up to him to calm her down.

Seeing the look on his brothers face, Bryan smiled and moved to sit next to him. “I agree little brother, glad I’m not Sara. That doesn’t look good,” Brian said with levity in his voice.

“Nope, we’ll probably have to wait here for a little while. At least it’s off the road,” Jack remarked.

Jack drank from his water bottle he had mounted on the bike, back in the store. Thinking of how hard it had been to actually find one, his eyes settled on Bryan. For the first time Jack noticed his brother seemed to be fighting with himself as if wanting to say something but not sure how. “What? Jack asked.

“You know… what you did back there..” Bryan started, “That was incredible.”

Jack smiled at that but grew concerned as he could see his brother was still fighting for the right words to say.

“But that was absolutely crazy!” Bryan finally blurted out, his face turning dark. As if a dam had sprung a leak Bryan went on, “And not in a good way Jack! Those people are destroyed. When the dust settled from the wind, everything I saw was destroyed. People were cut practically to ribbons from flying debree, still screaming like they had been flayed alive. And those people you held in place by a hand or arm or leg, they’ll never be able to use those limbs again, and that’s not considering what all that pulling and twisting did to their spines. Why Jack, why in the world did you do that?”

Jack felt like someone had thrown a phone book and hit him in the chest going a hundred mph. He hadn’t even looked at the Russians followers, had his twister really created that much damage? “I didn’t see any of that,” Jack slowly admitted, clearly disgusted by his own actions. “I was just trying to protect us, they were going to kill us and do far worse to the girls! I didn’t want to just kill them all!”

Tears now freely falling, swallowing hard to keep the bile from making a reappearance.

Bryans look softened at his brother’s tears, he wasn’t trying to intentionally hurt Jack. Bryan just wanted Jack to realize the reality of his actions. He was all for fighting, even the fact that Jack kill Jimmy's cousin hasent really bothered him. But what Jack had done was torture. Dooming them all to either a painfull existence or excrusiating death. Moving closer, Bryan put his arm over his brothers shoulder in an effort to comfort him. “But don’t you get it?” Bryan explained, “You just as good as killed them. They all are now freshly disabled in a world with no health care or medicine. It’s a dog eat dog world now Jack, and all of those people that lived are now at the bottom of the chain, weak, disabled, disfigured. They’ll be easy targets for others even if they do manage to collect things to survive on their own. Instead of killing them outright, You’ve doomed them to a slow agonizing death instead.”

Jack thought hard about his brothers words, picturing the gangsters in his head. Bryans words bristled him. Jack pictured the colors of the gangsters auras in his head and studied them in his minds eye.

“No bryan,” Jack stated, tears coming to a stop. “You’re wrong. Did I go overboard and cause them undue pain and suffering, yes, hell I watched a man’s face as his arm was partially torn off. But short of outright killing them, there was no other way to handle them. You don’t know Bryan, you can’t see them like I do. Their colors, their auras or whatever you want to call them. These people had preyed on the weak their whole lives, thugs, thieves, murderers. Every single one of them was evil to their core, I could see it. Does that make what I did right? No, not necessarily. What makes it right is what they were going to do to us if I didn’t do it. The girls were to be their personal rape dolls while they made us watch, all for them to be slowly killed in front of us and then it was our turn. I know this Bryan, I know this because they told me it what they were going to do. And if keeping that from happening means those people will live miserable and albeit probably short lives, I’d say that’s a fair trade off. Wouldn’t you agree?”

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Bryan was in shock at his brothers words. He hadn’t heard the Russians plans for them in the parking lot. All of it had been a surprise for Bryan. “I had no idea...” He stammered, “Is that really... it’s no wonder you... How could...” And Bryan lost control of his stomach gagging as he splattered the cuffs of his pants with his half-digested energy bar and neon sports drink.

Jack jumped away from the spray but was at his brother’s side as his heaving started to subside. Rubbing his back in circles like their mother always did for them when they were ill.

“I’ll be ok, have a tissue or something?” Bryan asked, while trying to shake out his shoes at the same time Jack quickly produced a travel pack of tissues from the bag he had been riding with on his back.

“Do the girls know?”

Jack stayed silent, shaking his head in negative affirmation.

“Well let’s not let them know. I don’t think it would be helpful in the least for them to know all this. Besides, they were too afraid to watch in the parking lot and stared at their toes the entire time so I really don’t think they saw any of the carnage either.”

“Lets keep it that way,” Jack agreed.

“Speak of the devils, Is everything ok you two?” The girls had slunk back over toward the parked bikes, Rachel seemed to be under control now.

“Sorry about that everyone and I’m sorry for strangling you Jack. It’s just been hard, you know? I’m so worried about my parents. You guys and even Sara put up a good front most of the time, laughing and enjoying the travel like your still on vacation. It’s just harder for me, I’m normally on medication to help me with handling my emotions, but I only brought enough to the party for that night and the next morning.” Chewing her lip in indecision, finally Rachel gathered enough courage for the last of what she wanted to say. “Beside from ADD, I’m also diagnosed manic.”

Jack took in what she was saying, it was big of her to come out with this to him and his brother. The whole trip so far she had been fairly tight lipped when she wasn’t complaining.

This seemed to explain that. Somewhat.

Nodding his head in understanding Jack questioned, “Manic depression or just manic?”

Rachel looked to jack and answered, “Just manic. Although it not really a suitable situation for the word ‘just’. It means all of my emotions at times are sporadic to extremes not just depression.”

“Hmm could be fun,” Bryan jested, giving Rachel a wink.

Rachel frowned but saw the wink and relaxed slightly.

“No worries Rachel, we all have our quirks and problems. Both me and Jack have ADD and Jack, well, you’ve met him. Kinda sad isn’t it?” Bryan Joked.

Jack scowled at Bryan but couldn’t help joining in with the group’s laughter at his expense. He was making Rachel feel better, its worth the jab Jack thought. “Well I might be sad, but at least I’m not green and pitiful like you,” Jack jibed back with a smile, “How about we get eating? I really don’t think we should break out the stoves and freeze dried stuff, another trail mix and granola bar breakfast?”

Groans again rang out in chorus from his companions at his choice of breakfast. It’s all they had had for breakfast since they had met. Bryan even turned a darker shade of green.

“Nope, I’ve got a better idea.” Sara said, getting up and walking over to the carriage that had been behind bryan. After a few minutes of digging around the gear, she seemed to find what she was looking for.

With a jubilant hop, she turned around and practically raced over the group. “Here, I found these in the bottom of a pile of boxes. I really hope you like them, I took almost the entire box. Just pour about a cup of water in, seal the top and shake it.” One by one she tossed the silver freeze dried packs to each of them then plopped herself back down next to Jack.

When Jack caught his, he couldn’t believe his eyes. “I can’t believe you found these! These where my favorite growing up whenever dad took up back packing!”

“Freeze dried granola with wild blueberries?,” Rachels face looked like she was afraid it was going to bite her.

“Their amazing! You’ll love them! Thank you so much!” Jack excitedly exclaimed, leaning over and giving Sara a big kiss on her forehead.

Sara sat silent with a smile ear to ear, happy to have unknowingly picked Jacks favorite, face as red as cherry Kool-Aid as Jack kissed her forehead.

Bryan smiled at his brothers exuberance, glad to see him perking up after the conversation they had before the girls came back over. His nausea was passing with the levity.

Rachel was smiling as well but Bryan could see in her eyes that she still wasn’t at ease.

“So by what you were saying earlier Rachel, you really think we can make it to the mountains by lunch?” Bryan asked, trying to keep Rachel in the conversation and thinking about finally making it to her parents.

“Yep! We won’t be anywhere near our parent’s cabin but we will at least be out of the city and be reasonably out of danger.”

“Reasonably? I like that.” Bryan Laughed.

Frowning at Bryans sarcasm, Rachel was trying her best to stay positive. “Yes reasonably. It depends on the shape of the streets but if its not too crumbled up and we don’t have any other complications, we’ll easily make it by then. We’re looking for a small back road that according to the map will take up directly to Mount Baldy where Sara and my parents are.”

“Is it mountain road like the trail we found of hiking through the back woods or like the road that we walked on by jimmy's?” Jack asked, trying to guage the terrain.

Rachel looked close at the map, then leaned back and put her hand on her chin as she stared to the sky in obvious contemplation. “It would be a paved road with only two lanes, one on each side. If I remember right, my parents used to take me on part of it as a kid because I loved the up and downs and twists and turns.”

“So not so ‘strait’ there I guess” Laughed bryan.

Rachel stood and looked down at Bryan with a her normal scornful scowel that she seemed to reserve only for him as of late, “No, it’s not. It will be a lot of hills, gaining a lot of elevation and a lot of twists and turns. Will the big baby be okay?”

The last part she said in the mocking voice like she was talking to a two year old she had once heard Bryan use on Jack.

Sure enough, when she met Jacks eyes they where beaming with pride as he held in his laughter at his brothers expense. “But, it is a road that is rarely used by anyone other than locals and it will get us out of the city sooner. Or would you rather stick around and see how many other people we can piss off out here?”

Jack was liking the new boldness coming from Rachel. Even more so, the awkwardness it was causing his brother Bryan had him in almost a fit of glee. All Bryan could do was stammer out an apology and agree it was the best option.

As they all finished there granola, Sara went around collecting the bags saying that she would find some way to reuse the resealable bags later. With everything put away, they all did a weapons check, making sure they weren’t leaving anything behind and that the placement was right for ease of use while riding if needed.

All set, they finally headed back out onto the road, now making sure to go almost due north east, hoping  to make it to their proper destination soon.