Chapter 50 – On The Road (Samson Conrad POV) Pt.4

"Okay just one of you and Faith," Imogen bounds forward away from Fatima and I, going to where Luca stands with the new camera. After driving for more than a few hours, but only half way through our trip, we pull over to the side of the road when Fatima gasps at the view in that moment.

The spacious land behind us, covered with a light dusting of snow, mountainous and majestic. Smiling towards Luca and Imogen, my arms around Fatima I care less about the picturesque scene behind me, and more about the girl I'm with. Flushed cheeks replace the light olive tone on her face, and the intense focused expression on her face have dimmed.

She's in this moment, and I am with her.

When picture time is over, Luca and Imogen walk away on their own, wanting time way. "What are you thinking?" I ask her when Fatima's eyes seem to glass over. "I'm free," she murmurs quietly.

"It snowed when I was locked away, and it's silly, but when it did, I never understood just how cold it was. I mean... you have a freezer and you can try to imagine what this feels like," she waves her hand around, "but it's nothing like I thought it would be."

"Good or bad?" I ask wrapping her in my arms, after we've walked to a road rail guard. My chin atop her head, the both of us looking outward before us and when she rests back against me, I nearly purr. Embarrassingly so.

So much time passes by where we are lost in our own heads that when Fatima answers, I almost forget the question.

"Good. Definitely... great."

I try at each angle to put myself in Fatima's shoe, although, that normally comes with a good minute or so of unadulterated rage. At Dmitri, though it has lessened.

He went the wrong way to do the right thing. When Fatima starts bouncing in place and the down jacket she's wearing and my body around hers is doing nothing to keep her warm, we start heading back to the car. Climbing in the back with her again, "You should drive," she says, looking out at Luca and Imogen. They no more than we did; just standing, swaying from side to side slightly as they look out at the peaceful landscape.

Pouting I glare at Luca, though he cannot see me, "You don't want me back here with you?" I ask when I'm facing Fatima once again.

Smiling a closed lipped smile, she shakes her head at me, "Of course, but he's not our driver..." she shrugged, "Just maybe you guys take turns."

Huffing I see her point though, I'm not happy about it. Right now all I want is more of this. Of her resting her body against me, at ease, being so close that I can feel her heart beating.

Plus something has changed. I cannot exactly put my finger on it, but a shift has happened.

Sighing I jump into the front drivers seat, waiting for Luca and Imogen to come back. When they do, shockingly, Luca comes up front and sits in the passenger side besides me.

I stare blankly at him.

He must not be in his right mind, I conclude when I shift the gears of the car, slowly leaving this place behind, the moment experienced captured forever.

If he were, Luca would be in the back, with Imogen. Like I wanted to be with Fatima.

~ o ~

Just forty miles left before we arrive in Sun Valley, and Luca asks if I could merge off the freeway so he can go to a grocery store. When he jumps out, Luca turns to me, smirking. "Turnabout is fair game."

Chuckling, I shake my head, keeping an eye out. The sun just setting, fatigue of the eight-hour drive starts settling inside us. Twenty minutes later, Luca comes out carrying two plain brown boxes. Slipping them in the back, we get back on the road aiming to get to the house before the sun had completely set.

After we've exited off the Sun Valley Highway, everyone go on intense alert, especially when we realize that we were surrounded by forestry. Once again, we drive through the sleepy snow covered town, we head off, this time on a dirty road shaking the car uncontrollably as we progress on the rough terrain.

We get to a certain curve in the road where should there have been a house, we should see it, but there's nothing but snow on the ground. "Okay, seriously, what the hell, did he not finish the house?" Imogen assumes. But we keeping going on and when we finally arrive at the gate, this time, Imogen, Fatima, Luca and I all get out of the car. A house the size of mine in Bend, with two attached green houses were encased by what I would call a larger green house.

"It's like a snow globe," Imogen whispers.

"What... why two greenhouses? You don't think he grows marijuana?" dazed, we enter the code before hurrying to the car, driving up the path to the garage. Digging around the manila envelope, Fatima pulls out a garage opener. With the same decontamination we experienced when going to the living quarters of the barn.

The first door slides up for us to enter before closing behind us. For twenty or so seconds, a white mist is ejected, hitting the car from all sides before clearing completely. The second door opens and I slowly pull into the snow globe.

"Was this like your old house?" I ask Fatima but she shakes her head. No. I mean the process to get into the house using the decontamination area is the same. But... there is grass and trees inside the walls. I mean it's just..." she shakes her head. "This a square snow globe like Imogen said."

Without entering the house, we got our answer. Dmitri truly believed what Fatima had told him, going as far as to build a house with a protective layer all around it.

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Devin Rosario POV

The incessant buzzing wouldn't stop. It wouldn't go away, finally, with a grumble I reach out blindly for my cell phone, answering sleepily.

"Hello," I groan out, my eyes shutting immediately when I bring the phone around to see who was calling, "Devin?" I frown, at the panic in the voice of the caller.

"Devin you have to get out of Bend with Taylor! Wake her up right now!"

"Daddy?" I push myself up to a seated position confused.

"Devin do you hear me? Get out of Bend right now!" his urgency never lessens up only getting worse.

"What's going on?" I ask stumbling over to Taylors bed, shaking her, "ugh what?" she groans upset.

"Dad says we need to leave Bend-"

"What? Why?" that has her attention. Sitting up quickly, Taylor turns the lamp beside her bed on, watching me.

"I don't know, he said we have to leave-"

"At the school, Samson's car is there. You'll find a spare key on top of the driver side front wheel-"

"What about the Conrads?" I ask, as Taylor demands I put the phone on speaker.

"Ansel sent me a message they've," he stops speaking, breathing heavily, "Your brother is with them, but they've already left town," Dad says calmly while mom is in the background.

"That girl – she brought them all that trouble! How – what kind of leader leaves behind two innocent girls?" I hear her muffled speech.

Still partially confused, I frown. "All the Conrads left?" I must have heard wrong. Looking at Taylor, she's just as baffled as I am. "Guys that doesn't matter right now, you just need to grab what you can, and get out of Bend, meet us in Portland," my father commands.

Narrowing her eyes at the phone Taylor shakes her head, still as confused as I. "Dad, Samson and Brennan wouldn't leave Devin and I behind, they love us," she says and I have to agree with her.

"Dad are you sure they've left?" I ask one more time, maybe dad didn't understand Ansel. Brennan wouldn't just leave me.

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