The Strangeness Within Pt. 06

"Well," Javier said eventually. "As it happens I was just thinking about adding fertilizer."

Esther laughed and kissed him, tasting sweat and satisfaction. She'd never get tired of this, the easy moments after lovemaking. Before the next lovemaking.

"I found Nicola," she said. "I don't know much, but she's doing fine, somewhere far to the east. I'm not sure if she would have heard me."

"Given my experience," said Javier, "if she did, she'll suddenly be pretty damn horny and thinking about you. I'm going to guess that sometimes happens anyway."

Esther blushed. Now that they'd stopped moving, the dry air was quite cool against her skin. She was getting all goose-bumped, but that wasn't exactly a bad thing. In such mild weather she could easily keep her body temperature up if she needed.

"This was perfect," she said. "It was like having a direct connection to the ground. I don't know why I didn't think of it before. Vibrations through the Earth are the things that can travel the greatest distance with the least distortion or interference. It's much easier to find far-off people that way than through the air or whatever abstractions I've been using. Think of how sensitive a seismometer is."

"Mmm, Javier said, idly circling her nipple with a finger. "Do you think it would work even better if you were right on bedrock?"

Esther shivered at Javier's touch, and nodded. "Yes. It was better just touching the ground. What are you thinking?"

"Two things," he said. "First, this is strong evidence that Nicola's way of thinking about your abilities is right, or at least helpful. It's really your own senses you're using, because otherwise why would it matter much what you were touching?"

"You're right," said Esther. "What was the second?"

"I think I know another place where we have to have sex."

Esther laughed. "Full of bedrock?"

"The hardest," agreed Javier. He shifted up against her, and she felt his hardness pressing against her again. They looked into each other's eyes, and then they began the much slower process of making love for each other. No tasks, no one to find and worry about protecting. When Esther finally came this time, she was determined to feel every last tingle in her own body, as though she were a totally ordinary woman.

It wouldn't work out so simply, of course, but what was sex for if not fantasies?

* * *

The three of them were just sitting down for dinner when Esther stopped talking mid-sentence. When Javier looked over in concern, she didn't meet his gaze. It didn't look like she was seeing anything at all.

"Esther?" he asked. She didn't reply, and Javier walked over to her.

"Hold me," she muttered. "I have to see."

Not knowing quite what to do, Javier wrapped his arms around her from behind. Esther grunted slightly, and he tried to stroke her stomach to calm her.

She pushed his arm higher, and Javier swallowed. Mark was watching them with a little concern, but no other apparent discomfort.

Nervously he started to touch her through her clothes. Little circles around her sensitive nipples, and firmer passes over the sensitive patches on her chest. He had to pretend Mark wasn't there. When he dropped a hand between her legs, she grunted again, more insistently.

Finally she took a deep breath and kissed his arm. He quickly put his hands on her shoulders.

"Raj is in serious trouble," she said. "He's been taken by a group of armed men."

Javier's heart raced. "Lukas again?" he asked.

Slowly she shook her head. "No. Professional security types. And Raj was incredibly scared."

"Lukas might have been ham-handed again," said Javier. "But no, you're right. Raj would have just been annoyed if he thought it was Lukas."

"It is the others, then," said Mark. "Is there anything you can do, Esther?"

"No," Esther said in frustration. "Nothing at all. Maybe I could yank on the attention of one of them if they were sensitive, hard enough to distract them. But that's still all I've been able do, and none of them have the changes anyway."

"We should have expected it," Javier said, heart sinking. "They must know Raj has a history with Lukas. I wonder if Abuela was the only reason they haven't tried something so bold before."

Esther nodded. "Or else she was keeping the conflict to levels they considered more manageable. Everyone's getting desperate."

"He's in terrible danger, then," said Javier. "We have to help him somehow. Can you follow him at least?"

"Yes," she said. "Yes, unless they put him on a plane and he gets too far away."

"Then I guess we're taking a road trip."

All three of them stood up. Esther looked at Mark for a minute.

"You don't have to come," she said. "I know you hate it out there."

"Of course I have to go," Mark said. "You need me. I will protect you and do what I can for Raj as well."

Quickly they packed away what dinner they could take with them and put the rest in the fridge. Ten minutes later they squeezed into the truck, with Javier driving.

"I'll go as fast as I think is safe," he said. "Could you tell me if there's something I'm not seeing in the road? We have to catch up to them."

The truck was made for poor roads, but it still wasn't designed to take them at the speed Javier wanted. They breathed a sigh when they finally hit pavement, and shortly afterwards he screeched into the gas station.

"I have to call Kat," he said, pointing at the pay phone. "She would want to know. Maybe she's learned something."

He hadn't risked calling her before, though once he'd driven out to Reno to shop, and he'd mailed her a short note without any real substance to it. Just so she knew he was all right, and could reassure Mamá.

While Esther filled up truck he waited for Kat to pick up. But there was no answer. He tried again, but still nothing. She still hadn't gotten around to getting an answering machine.

Maybe she'd changed up her work schedule. Or maybe she'd found a new girlfriend, someone who didn't mind having her over. Javier felt a pang.

"No answer," he told the others as they headed out. "I guess it's just us, then."

When they got on the highway, he increased his speed well beyond what he'd usually do. The road was nearly empty on this clear evening, and Esther reassured him she could spot police cars within a few miles.

"They're taking highway 101 south," she said after some time. "In an unmarked van."

"Not an airport, then," said Javier. "That's good."

But that freeway was much faster than the state highway Javier was on, no matter how hard he tried to push. This truck wasn't made for comfortable speed, and the last thing Javier wanted was to lose control of it. With their incredible senses, Mark or Esther would probably be much better drivers eventually if only they had the experience.

He breathed a sigh of relief when they finally got on I-80. The truck vibrated when he pressed it above ninety. But they were finally gaining a little on the van. Still, it was hours ahead of them.

Just before they reached Sacramento, Esther spoke up.

"They're stopping," she said. "Outside of Fresno."

"InfoCorp," Javier said, his chest tightening. "It must be their facility. That's where Fred Daniels and Myra Jackson were based. Raj is in serious trouble."

The way they were burning gas, they wouldn't make it to Fresno on one tank, so Javier stopped and tried to call Kat again. Still no answer. He was starting to get nervous.

"Esther," he said as they got back in. "Was there anyone else in the van with Raj? Aside from his captors? Could they have picked up Kat"

She shook her head. "No. They didn't stop on the way, and the van was empty before Raj got in."

Amazingly, Mark had managed to fall asleep in the passenger seat. Javier truly envied him, though he knew full well Mark was preparing himself for what might be coming. The thought of it terrified Javier. The truth was, Mark was their single weapon, and they all knew it.

When he finally pulled off the highway in Fresno, Esther began to describe the facility as best she could.

"It is a big research campus with several buildings. There's a guard station at the entrance and a high fence around the whole place, but no barbed wire or anything like that. They took Raj into one of the buildings. He's alone in a room now."

"All right," said Javier. "So, how do we do this? We want to sneak in and bust him out, right? So we can't smash our way through the guard station. Do you know how many people are around?"

"Dozens," she said. "More than I'd expect at night. But I don't think there are guards outside."

They decided to drive around as close as possible to the fence near Raj's building, and then formulate a plan. But before they got close, Esther gasped.

"There's someone else out there," she said. "Someone sensitive. Stop the car."

Javier pulled over. They couldn't even see the fence or the facility from here.

Esther was quiet for a while.

"It's a woman," she said. "Not alone. She's walking back and force along the fence. The other one is staying still. Mark, what can you tell?"

Mark closed his eyes and listened.

"She is short, but not as small as Esther. Young, very athletic, very strong. She has some kind of braids in her hair —"

"Fuck! It's Janelle. It must be," Javier interrupted. "Sorry, Mark. Is the other one a middle-aged guy, average height, not particularly athletic?"

"No," Mark said. "It is another young woman. Average height, very short hair, sort of fat, with glasses. She's sitting down."

"It can't be," Javier said. "Not Kat. How could she be with Janelle? Wait, fat? Maybe I'm jumping to conclusions."

"Whoever it is isn't there willingly," said Mark. "Her hands and ankles are tied."

Javier swallowed. That made an unpleasant sort of sense, and seemed like Janelle all right. Though why would Janelle have kidnapped Kat?

He sighed. Whatever else, Janelle was emphatically not with the assholes who kidnapped Raj. Maybe they could even use her help. And this time, they had Mark.

"Mark," he said. "Do you think Janelle is dangerous to you?"

"No," he said after a brief pause, and Javier's breathed a sigh of relief.

"All right, then," he said. "Mark and I will approach her together. She'll know we're coming, and will probably do something stupid and vicious, so be prepared for that."

"Why not me?" Esther asked.

"I'd rather she not know about you at all," he said. "She's dangerous and sensitive. She might guess you're more than you seem."

Esther sighed and nodded. "I believe I could disguise myself well enough. She isn't as sensitive as Mark. But I agree we should be cautious. I'll watch from here. But please try to hurry. We don't know what their plans are for Raj."

Mark set off at a punishing pace, and Javier did his best to keep up. It didn't matter if he was exhausted when Janelle caught them. All that mattered was Mark, and he hardly seemed to be breathing hard.

When they crested a small rise, the fence and the lights of the InfoCorp facility finally came into view. Almost immediately Janelle's voice came to them.

"That's far enough, assholes," Janelle said. "Javier, why don't you tell us why you came skulking around this time. Don't bother to lie, because I've got your girlfriend tied up back there."

She was standing so she was backlit from a poorly-aimed facility light. Javier squinted. Despite talking to him, all her attention was on Mark. He wasn't surprised. Maybe Mark could hide his easy physical grace, but he certainly hadn't bothered on the jog over.

"Just here to pick up Kat," Javier said. "Then maybe you could tell us why you kidnapped her and came skulking around here."

"Kidnapped?" Janelle laughed. "Are you going all lawyerly on me? I haven't even taken her anywhere yet. She was the idiot who almost stumbled into me."

Javier looked at her in confusion, and it was apparently the moment Janelle was waiting for. Before he could respond, she bounded towards them in two immense strides. Javier cringed away, but of course she'd ignored him completely.

There was a few seconds of scuffling, too quick for Javier to follow, and then Mark held Janelle pinned in what looked like a wrestling hold. She struggled mightily in his arms, and Mark grunted, but he didn't budge.

Janelle was swearing and to Javier's shock she seemed near tears.

"Get off me! Fuck you, get off me!"

"Mark! Let her go," Javier said. Carefully he released her, and she jumped back a pace unsteadily, then crouched, staring at Mark.

"Who are you?" she said. "Who the hell are you? No one's ever done that to me."

"Sucks, doesn't it?" Javier asked, feeling petty. "Remember, there's always someone stronger."

"There wasn't though," Janelle mumbled, half to herself. "There never was. Once I found myself."

Javier shook his head. "We're going to go untie Kat, and then we'll stop bullshitting and see if we're on the same side."

Kat was a hundred yards away, sitting uncomfortably against a small tree. She was gagged as well, and when Javier removed it she seemed at a loss for words. He began to untie her.

"Oh God, Javier," she finally said, rubbing her wrists. "How the hell did you find me? I didn't tell anyone where I was going. And then this psycho here jumped me. AGAIN."

She glared at Janelle, but Janelle still seemed out of sorts, watching Mark nervously.

Kat stood up and went to shake hands with Mark, who accepted it with surprise.

"Hi, handsome. I'm Kat. Thanks for teaching that bitch a lesson."

Mark seemed confused and didn't reply. Kat shook her head.

"This is Mark," said Javier. "Now, let's figure out what we're all doing here. I'm guessing you found out about Raj somehow?"

"Is that his name," Janelle said, sounding more like herself. "I heard he did something stupid and got himself kidnapped."

"That's what I told her," Kat said. "Though I think she already knew anyway."

"Did you?" Javier asked. Janelle frowned, and Mark took a small step towards her.

"Oh, fine," she said. "Yes, Prime got in touch. I was the closest, but there should be a whole group coming soon."

"When?" Javier asked.

"Soon," Janelle scowled, which Javier took to mean "not for a while."

"Raj got in touch with me, just as he was being taken," Kat interjected. "It wasn't hard to guess where they were taking him. He's in serious danger, but Janelle seems content to keep waiting."

Javier figured this was the story she'd told Janelle. Maybe they had lucked out and the two of them had actually been chatting over the internet when it happened. But Kat must have made some more hacking progress if she'd known for sure where to find Raj.

"I'm not suicidal," said Janelle. "There are many armed guards inside there."

"You afraid of ordinary men and guns?" Javier asked.

For once she didn't take the bait.

"You misunderstand. Those men would want me as a prisoner. If I can't elude or subdue all of them, I'd have to make them kill me. I'm one of the most dangerous people Prime has, and they can't be allowed to use me against him. Prime says your friend is important and must not be taken beyond our reach, so I'm making sure of that until the rest of the team arrives."

Javier nodded slightly. Of course Janelle was nowhere near as stupid as she seemed. Perhaps a lot of that was an act as much as her over-the-top bravado.

"But that's what I keep saying," said Kat. "They're going to take him to the airport soon. Him and the other prisoner."

"Other prisoner?" Javier asked.

"Janelle says she doesn't know anything about this other person, and apparently she's not willing to risk her skin even for her own kind."

"Raj isn't our own kind," said Janelle, rolling her eyes. "No real reason to assume the other one is either. But when our team comes I'm sure we'll take a look if we can."

"Jesus Christ, we're all human beings here," said Javier. "And the ones holding Raj are even bigger assholes than Janelle, so I say whoever else they're holding is probably worth springing as well."

"You say, do you?" Janelle sneered. But in the ensuing silence Mark took a small step closer to Javier, and Janelle deflated.

Somehow Javier was in charge, he realized. And that meant he had two decisions to make. Whether to rush into a rescue immediately, as Kat seemed to think was necessary, and if so, whether to take Janelle along.

"How soon, Kat?" he asked.

She nodded. "A few hours at most. Before dawn, which I'm guessing is when Janelle's cavalry are supposed to finally arrive, assuming they're coming by plane from the Midwest."

Janelle scowled again. She really had no poker face whatsoever.

"OK, then, we're doing this," said Javier. Kat nodded vigorously, looking relieved.

And then Javier realized there was yet another decision to make, one which he'd nearly made unconsciously. But that was the old Javier. That wasn't fair to Esther.

"We have another person back with our truck," said Javier slowly. "She isn't as sensitive as Mark, but she knows Raj a lot better, and we think that means she would be helpful inside. I'm going to go back and see if she's willing."

Janelle shook her head, but she didn't find anything unusual in Javier's little story, which was a good sign. Kat, though, was staring at him. Of course, she guessed that this was the mysterious Esther. It was a bizarre circumstance for them to finally meet.

Leaving Mark to watch Janelle, Javier headed back at an easier jog. Esther got out of the truck to meet him.

"So?" she asked. "I didn't catch all of that."

"But you caught most of it? What we were saying, even?"

Esther nodded, looking pleased for herself. Javier quickly summarized the situation.

"You're right," she said. "Maybe when they take Raj to the airport they will be more on guard than they are now. Sooner is better."

Javier drove the truck up the road to the nearest point, and he wasn't surprised to see Kat's car pulled over there. He and Esther joined the other three nearer the fence. Esther and Kat nodded slowly to each other, no doubt communicating all sorts of things telepathically in the way of women. Javier swallowed nervously.

"OK," he said for the benefit of the others. "Kat already got us the plans for the layout of this building. So Esther, go ahead and tell us where they're holding Raj."

Kat looked at him with surprise. Maybe she actually had gotten those plans, along with whatever other information had led her directly here.

Esther nodded and pointed to the closest building. "He's in a basement storage room near the center. The easiest way in is that door over there, followed by two corridors and a set of stairs. This is kind of a back way in, so we can hope there aren't a lot of people on the way."

She'd confided to him that there were at least five guards along this path at all times, but it still seemed the easiest one.

Janelle looked interested despite herself.

"Mark, can you sense how many guards are on the way?" Javier asked.

He shook his head slightly. "Not precisely. There are some on that route, but perhaps it is better than any alternative? Of course when we get closer I will be able."

Javier and Esther nodded, and Javier realized the three of them understood each other. It was a tricky dance they'd have to play, with Esther best at timing out the movements of the guards for stealth while they relied on Mark to subdue the others, all in silence.

"Mark, do you think Janelle would be of help?"

"Yes," he said immediately. "If she can work with me. She is very competent. Strong, fast, and quiet."

Javier smiled. It was exactly the answer Janelle needed to hear, though he wasn't sure if Mark understood that. Probably he did. Mark wasn't anywhere near stupid. Just a little odd.

Janelle was looking at Mark, obviously surprised and pleased by his praise. Finally she sighed and put on something closer to her usual sneer.