The three cars stopped behind some sturdy trees, at a safe distance from the old repository where Sara was trapped just a night ago.
"What is this place?" Ruby whispered as an unknown kind of fear rose in her heart.
"your Sam came here right after he was discharged from the hospital. And we suspect…" Sara said as she took a quick glance at Allen, who nodded back, "We suspect that he was here last night too."
"What?" Ruby's stunning voice came out in a quiet whisper, "What if… what if they were the ones who hurt him last night? What if they…"
Then, her eyes darted towards the armed guards guarding the heavy and huge metal gate.
"Relax", Allen spoke from the front seat, "It is never too late."
But no words could calm Ruby's shaken heart. And Sara, too, felt that trying to talk her into assurance was pointless. So, she chose to keep quiet and instead focused her attention back at the repository and its surroundings.
The next moment, the three of them inside the car were forced to hold their breaths in anticipation as they saw Sam walk out of the gate, escorted by two armed guards. He, soon, climbed into a car that had just driven off. They witnessed the car speeding away.
Allen's eyes met with Sara's calm ones who were seated in the back seat. Then, he furiously ordered the driver, "Follow the car."
Then, he fished out his phone and ordered the guards in the other two cars to keep a watch around instead of following them.
Their car chased the other car as it sped past the jungle road. Soon, it landed amidst the lively city road. Seeing the car getting lost among the flood of cars, Allen cursed under his breath, "Fuck!"
Before their car could follow, Sara hurriedly blurted out an order, "Stop the car!"
The car screeched into a sudden halt.
"Did they… did they suspect that… that we were following them?" Ruby asked, panic evident in her voice, as her grip around the assault rifle tightened.
Sara placed a hand above Ruby's shoulder that was shaking, "Let's get you home, okay? Get a good night's rest, alright?"
Ruby nodded as she drew in a sharp breath. Then, Sara extended her other hand towards Ruby and she handed over the rifle to Sara. Sara squeezed her shoulder affectionately.
"You are brave; you know?" Sara patted Ruby on her head.
Ruby shot her a complicated look before she gave a slow nod. To which Sara said, ruffling her hair, "Good."
…
Half an hour later
Sara and Allen dropped Ruby at the gates of Honeycomb Villa. Then, they started their journey back. Sara leaned back on the leather seat as she gazed at the night sky. Soon, she saw that they were not taking the usual route. She frowned and sat up straight. As she was about to confront Allen about it, she retreated her claws when she realized how familiar everything looked. They were moving through the old, dusty roads of Sierra. There was a shorter and quicker way back to the city through Sierra.
Sara sat up straighter and looked outside in anticipation. The more she looked, the more familiar she felt. Memories threatened to flood every neuron, every cell, and tissue of her brain. She struggled to keep them shut in the corner of her mind. After some time, she saw something that she was anticipating for a while now.
A self-mocking smile rested on her face as she saw the familiar pond surface reflecting the cool moonlight. She fixed her gaze on the pond as their car drove farther and farther away. Her thoughts were interrupted by a sudden question that Allen tossed to her, "What's going on between… between you and that Brown guy?"
Hearing this, Sara was forced to tear away from her gaze from the window. She turned her head and was met with Allen's pressing and questioning gaze through the rear-view mirror. She just rolled her eyes and totally ignored Allen's existence in the car. She ignored him and continued to look outside.
Allen let out a deep and audible sigh. He knew that he could never make Sara do something that she never wanted. Whom was he trying to intimidate? It was pointless.
"Turn right", Sara spoke suddenly, making the one in the front seat, frown with confusion.
"I think we were supposed to take you home", Allen finally said with much impatience.
"I changed my mind", Sara retorted with batting an eye before her brooding gaze landed on the poor chauffeur, "Turn right."
The driver was faced with a huge mountain. Two intimidating personalities were exchanging heated questions and pressing gazes. None of them was ready to back down. But, the driver was enough to make his decision as he took a turn to the right.
Allen snorted with disdain. What could he say? Never in his entire lifetime, had he won an argument against Sara. Anyways, his loyal driver was in cahoots.
Soon, their car reached the repository area. Allen frowned, deep in thought. This woman never failed to confuse him What was she trying to do?
He could not contain himself and asked, "What are you trying to do exactly?
Ignoring his question, Sara did not linger in the car any minute longer as she jumped off the car. She, then, strutted towards her bike with her long, slender legs. Allen climbed down after her and followed her frail figure as she hopped on her bike. Allen heaved a sigh. Why was she ignoring him?
The next moment, he saw Sara ride back in the same direction from where they came. Allen's questioning gaze was met with nothing. He could only heave a sigh as he imagined the young woman driving under the dark night sky.
…
Sara rode off towards Sierra on her bike. The silent night sky became her companion. It roughly took Sara ten minutes to reach the old pond. She parked the bike nearby and breathed in the unique dusty village smell.
She descended the short cliff and looked at the reflection of the night sky, it's billions of stars and the moon, on the surface of the water. She hugged her stomach to brace herself. Without thinking, she picked up a stone and tossed at the pond, creating a perfect ripple effect. It came naturally, in her default.
That's when she noticed the presence of someone in the nearby bushes.