Engineered Chance

[Kyle Roberts]

The wooded road ran onward, silent as the Canadian Rockies got on a summers night, which was pretty quiet. Every so often the screech of an owl or scream of a bobcat downing its prey would break the silence, but other than that it seemed as if all the world were empty. It might as well have been, this particular part of the world being inhabited by only a scant few. Things were starting to fill up though, people being forced out of the cities and into the untamed wilderness., or deciding that they needed some place away from their real life, so that they could sample actual real life.

Kyle Roberts was mulling over these thoughts as he drove home, his beat up old Chevrolet quietly slicing through the darkness. More people moving in meant a larger housing demand, something that meant much more job opportunities for him and his brother. But it also meant exactly what it was, more people. Kyle didn't like people, at all, no matter what they were like. And besides, where there were people, other people would be drawn to it like ants. For every person that migrated in, their chances of being discovered went up another notch. Then they'd have to up and move again, try and find somewhere else that they could live peacefully.

Tearing his thoughts away from all of that he glanced over to his side, soon turning back towards the road but shooting occasional glances that directions from out the corner of his eye. The person next to him was an absolutely beautiful brunette, with the most stunning bright green eyes he'd ever seen. They looked an awful like like his brother's but then that was probably just a coincidence. Granted not a very likely one but hey, anythings possible. Anyways, he'd stopped off at a small bar run by some of the local loggers on his way back from the jobsite for a few drinks before he headed home, a routine ritual of his after a good day. He'd only been on his third shot when she slid in next to him, chatting him up a bit and clearly having just one thing in mind. Kyle certainly couldn't complain, of all the girls he'd been with she was definitely near the top when it came to looks. And so it was no time at all that they were in his truck and headed off to the little home he shared with his brother, for the time being at least.

A short after his little introspection he turned off the main road onto one that was clearly much less traveled, the old pickup grinding down the dirt road for about fifteen minutes with nothing but trees and the occasional pair of glowing eyes to be seen. These were still in place when he pulled up in front of a small cabin, one that was obviously not meant for very many people. That suited Kyle just fine of course, the only people it needed to house were him and Kris. The location was what mainly concerned him, they were so far in the middle of nowhere that the deer would be lucky to find them, which was just the way he wanted it. The only reason he was bringing this girl out here was because it was dark enough that he was confident she wouldn't be able to remember her way.

Parking the truck by the door and flipping off the radio, his paranoia compelled him to examine the house. As it should have been there was only one light on, the one coming from his bother's room. That brought an exasperated sigh forth from the young man. How many times was he going to have to tell Kris that he needed rest to keep up his strength? He'd already hidden at least two dozen of the boy's medical books, but somehow he always got more. Shaking it off he stepped around the truck, opening the door for the young lady to get out. Just as he did so an eerie howl pierced the silence, soon followed by a half dozen more. That brought a rueful smile to his lips, the way of the wild. It seemed that the local pack had found their prey, probably that grizzled old elk he's spotted earlier in the day. Well, they'd have their work cut out for them. That old buck might be gray, but he was hardened. There would be no easy kill when it came to him. Closing the door behind her he silently strode to the house, unlocking the door and standing aside as he waited for her to enter.

[Kristopher Roberts]

At one point the old animal sounds used to bother then blond when he was alone and at home. But nowadays it was nothing more then a comfort to him for as long as the animals where out and about, being loud then everything would be fine for him and his brother.

The blond, however now a burnette due to hair dye, sat in his room as he normally did while he waited for his brother to return home from work. The fake burnette always went home early because his brother was always afraid that Kristopher might try to over do his share of work and take on something that would hurt him. But Kris liked to be helpful and the more he did then the bigger the pay check and less worry for Kyle. Heaven knew they had it rough sometimes especially when Kristopher had an episode of sickness. But luckily, he hadn't had one in at least a good month.

It was something to be happy about, however Kyle would be displeased to see his brother still up and reading for that is what he was doing. Kristopher was laying on his stomach upon his wrinkled bed with a large book in front of him over amazing medical facts. He even marked a few things he wanted to share with Kyle before he got his book stolen and hidden again. Kyle always did that, wanting Kris to rest when he wanted nothing better to do then learn. Knowing how to cure and fix bones was good for the two and Kristopher enjoyed helping, he even spent time at the local shelter doing volunteer work. It made him feel like he was worth something.

A flash of lights went past his window. The green eyed boy looked up then and smirk, "Guess he's home." Kristopher stood from the edge of the bed and held his book in his hands, on second thought...he better hide this one book and so he did. He listened as the door opened and then closed, wait, did he hear two doors? Confusion took over the brunettes face. Did Kyle bring someone home with him?

Curious the blond stepped out of his room, dressed in a pair of shorts and a white tank top. He went around to the corner and to the main room where he say his brother. "Hey, welcome home!" The boy chuckled, "I read something really cool while you where g---" his sentence suddenly came to an end as he took note of the girl. He looked at her for a moment then to Kyle.

"Erm, who is she?" He asked, putting a delicate hand on the egde of the hallway as if he was prepared to make a fast back peddle to his room. But he hide that all away with a bright smile. "Erm, welcome to our little home." He said in greeting but stayed put.

Kristopher never got close to women very often, he was always uncomfortable around them as well as a bit shy.

[Sarah Roberts]

Sarah had found them. After all this time, she'd found them . . . . Well, she thought she had. She was fairly sure this guy was Kyle. Didn't take her long to use her feminine wiles to get a closer look, and here she was, on the way to their house. She noticed Kyle looking at her from time to time, which made her smile. It was always nice to have one's beauty appreciated. However, she was mostly interested in keeping her eye on the path to the house. It was dark, and out in the middle of nowhere. It would be difficult to remember exactly where the place was, but Sarah picked out a few landmarks to make things easier. She wasn't sure if she could give exact directions back to the place, but she was fairly certain she could find it again, given some time and a little trial and error. Hopefully, she wouldn't need to. So far, things had gone her way.

They arrived at the house. It was a tiny little thing. Though, Sarah was used to that. It was actually kind of quaint. She could get used to living out in a place like this. Shame she had a job to do, else she might consider keeping up this deception and staying with her brothers. But, life had other plans for them all. Oh, well.

Sarah bowed graciously to Kyle as he opened the truck door for her, and climbed out. She shot him a smile as she did, and followed him the little house. She gave him a suggestive look, and a wink as she passed through the front door he held open for her. Once they were inside, it didn't take long for her suspicions to be mostly validated. Kris came into the room, about to tell his brother something cool, apparently. He looked a lot different than he should have, but he had those green eyes. That was a dead give-away, if one knew to look for them. Plus, she'd heard he had changed his hair, so his current look fit the stories. Excellent. Now, she just had to wait until morning to call mother.

In the mean time, why not have some fun?

"Erm, who is she?"

Sarah smiled brightly at her long, lost brother. "Hello. My name's Melissa. Melissa Jones." It was the name she had given Kyle at the bar, and the one she was going to stick to for a while.

[Kyle Roberts]

By this point, Kyle was feeling pretty good. The combination of the whiskey and the not-so-subtle hints he'd been picking up from the girl were working wonders on his mood, not to mention his ego. It was a good thing he was such a grounded person or his head would have already swelled up so large that he couldn't fit into the house. As it was though he was just getting a mild confidence booster, which was about the only reason he'd even brought her home. Kyle was no stranger to the arts of the bedroom, but his massive lack of any really self esteem meant that he rarely had the drive necessary to snatch one up and whisk her off. Tonight was gonna be different though.

A cheery grin was plastered on his face as he followed her inside, having easily picked out the meaning behind the look she'd just given him. But he'd no sooner stepped inside and closed the door behind them than he caught sight of Kris, the grin turning into an exasperated frown. He didn't like the boy staying up so late, it was bad for his health to lose any sleep. Luckily they were just framing tomorrow so he could handle that easily and let Kris sleep in as long as he needed. Regardless, he gave the boy his trademarked 'That-book-is-so-gonna-be-gone-come-tomorrow' look.

He was about to introduce his guest when she spoke' introducing herself. Kyle was perfectly fine with that, he wasn't like some chauvinistic morons that thought women should be seen and not heard. it helped that he'd always found assertive women to be better in bed, not to mention easier to get there. Looking her over once more he did think she looked a bit young, but then most people did these days. Hell Kris was nineteen and he looked several years younger. Letting his hand slide across her rump in mock disinterest he stepped over to Kris, a semi-serious look to him as he wrapped an arm around the blond's shoulder and leaned in closer. "So whatcha think little brother? Wanna help me break her in?" The grin he gave his brother just then ought to be illegal, seeing as it never failed to get Kris to relent. That's why it was only rare occasions like this that Kyle used it, wouldn't want the boy to buildup an immunity.

[Kristopher Roberts]

Kristopher didn't say anything else for the moment as he stared at this girl. She seemed strange to him if not familiar something set something off in his mind but he had no idea what it was, so for the time being he pushed it off to the side. But still, he didn't like the idea of Kyle bringing a girl home...in fact he never did. The blond was never really fond of most girls and often was awkward around them as well as edgy. Sure he could look a girls all day long and talk about them. However approaching one, let alone bedding was a different story in general.

He stared at her green eyes as if he was searching for something until Kyle came up and put an arm around him. The boy chewed on his lower lip and tilted his head to the side and away from his brothers face. "Don't use that on me. You know how I am." said the sickly younger brother. However, that face always worked on Kris and he hated that it did sometimes.

"I think I would rather watch Tv...to be honest." He said in a low voice as his eyes looked back at her, as if they where trying to scan her like a robot to produce information on her. Luckily for her, that was impossible for Kristopher to do.

He then pulled his eyes from her and looked to his brother and sighed. That damn face, it was so cute and so retarded. "I--I don't know. I guess," he replied, feeling the pressure being built on him as his brother kept looking at him so hopefully. Kris love to keep his brother happy in anyway he could, even if he didn't care for what he was doing. But he had ways around things.

"But I would rather tally the creaks, but you won't let me get away with that this time will you?"

Ah yes, trying to get his younger brother back into the playing field with fine girls. A hard task but it could be done, and would of been much better if Mama hadn't fucked with his head and more. Kris wasn't sure if he could do much really, he was actually feeling tired. Must of been from all the reading.

[Sarah Roberts]

Sarah looked from one brother to the other. Had he just asked Kris to help him "break her in"? Hmm. Sarah thought about that for a moment. That could potentially be jun, she supposed. She'd never done it with two guys before. She wondered how, exactly, it would end up working. She didn't think about it for too long, though. She had other concerns, at the moment.

She could tell that Kris didn't quite trust her. She wasn't sure why, but it was fairly obvious. At least to her. His brother's suggestion seemed to have caught him a little off guard, though. Enough so that he was actually agreeing to it, it seemed. Interesting. These two must have gotten pretty close while they had been gone. Suited her, though. She didn't mind a little fun before Mom came to collect them.

Sarah wore an amused smile and crossed arms as she watched the two brothers consult each other. Reminded her a little of older times, back when they were younger. The were plesant memories, mostly. At least those of her brothers.

[Kyle Roberts]

Kyle just continued to grin at his brother, knowing the blond would give in eventually. He always did. It was a point of pride with him to know that he could always get Kris to go along with what he wanted if it was something he wanted bad enough. And this he wanted a great deal. It was high time Kris got back into the game, went out an found him a girl, settle down, have some kids, and finally get his doctorate. He knew that would make him happy, or at least he thought it would. All he wanted was his brother's happiness, and it was for this reason that he found himself searching the blond boy's bright eyes, so much like those of the young lady still standing by their door. It was in that moment that he realized what he needed to do, a gentle smile on his face as he turned away from Kris.

Walking over to the girl he stopped close beside her, craning his head down so that she could easily hear his lowered voice. "That's my little brother, Kris. See the thing is, he really likes you. But he's about as shy as they get, so naturally its been a long time since he's been with anyone. Think you can help him out?" He smiled at her, almost exactly the same smile that he used to persuade Kris into doing what he wanted him to do. Of course this new turn of directions meant that he was going to get left out of the fun, and that he could very likely be missing the only chance he'd ever get with this lovely little thing, but he wasn't going to change his mind. He knew full well what Kris was like, and knew that his brother needed this alot more than he did. Besides, a bit of extra rest couldn't hurt.

[Kristopher Roberts]

Kristopher looked at his brother for a long moment, sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. He so wasn't getting away from this one, he could tell by the look on his brothers face. So, he would just have to grin and bare it. But maybe it wouldn't be so bad, after all, it wasn't like it was in the past and so he wouldn't have to worry. It wasn't like he was going to be smacked around...so maybe it would be fun.

Offering his brother a soft smile, he lowered his hand and pondered on the matter. The girl was pretty and he hadn't been around women much since he was thirteen, hell he had done a lot anything since the age of thirteen, well minus a few escapades here and there. Over all, he left all of that to Kyle happily.

"Right." Kristopher said softly, "I get it." He stated after he received his pat on the back. Kyle was going to leave this all up to him and Kyle was going to set back and do the tallying up marks while watching TV. Figures, this was totally ass backwards. When Kyle left, Kris looked up at the girl and him whispering to her.

Good god, what was he telling her?! He felt his face heat up at the mere thoughts of what he could be saying. Maybe he should of stayed in his room. Well, to late now. Walking up to the two of them, Kristopher reached out and took the girl by the hand softly. "So, um, I'll show you my room. Just um, pardon all the books. I like to read---a lot."

He then started to lead the girl away, turning back to look at his brother once with the 'are you sure?' look, 'cause I'm not!'. However he didn't voice it and left his brother there. Poor boy was going to be hearing some music tonight.

---So the little man with a Neon Sign comes out. Plugs it in as he adjust his large glasses to say: This Moment has been brought to you by: Censorman!--

[Sarah Roberts]

Of course, RB will be airing this episode at a later date, minus the commercial interruption.

Well, that was fun. So much so, Sarah almost over slept the next morning. That could have been disastrous. Fortunately, she woke up in time. She was laying in Kris' bed, her arm wrapped around him. She snuggled up to her big brother, and kissed him lightly on the cheek. She then slipped out of bed as quietly as she could.

It was still early. The sun hadn't even come out, yet. Sarah really didn't like getting up this early, especially when she'd participated in so much activity the night before, but she had a job to do, and she was here to do it. She got dressed quietly, then slipped outside. She made her way to Kyle's truck, using her cell phone as a light, and searched around inside for a while. Thing about living out in the middle of nowhere was that most people who did, didn't lock their car doors at home. So, she was able to find the rifle Kyle kept stashed inside. She smiled as she took it out of the cab. Then, she took a knife she'd had concealed with her, and proceeded to slash all four tires. All of this, of course, was precautionary. She didn't want to have to use the gun on her own brothers, but she knew they might force the issue.

Now all that was left was to make the call do dear old mum, and tell her where they were. Time to bring the lost children back home. She dialed the number, and, when her mother picked up, she said, "Hi, Mom. I found them."

[Kyle Roberts]

He just grinned as he watched Kris come over, the small blond so adorably awkward as he took her back to his room. Which was of a course a good idea seeing as it had the only bed in the house. The tiny cabin was only two rooms, and so naturally Kyle let Kris have the bedroom while he bunked on the couch. Luckily the couch was mighty comfortable, and so it wasn't a bad arrangement at all.

Once they were through the door and out of sight, Kyle began undressing, pulling off his boots and setting them to the side while he tossed his dirty clothes in a pile on the floor. The old Colt dragoon that he always kept in his waistband he placed under the cushion that served as his pillow. After that he stretched out on the couch, groaning a bit as strained muscles tightened and tired bones popped. But after a moment though he was peacefully relaxed, laying back into the cushions with a contented sigh. He stared up at the ceiling, fully aware that he could watch some t.v. or something, but he just didn't feel like it. So he just lay there, His thoughts carrying him back to his long lost baby sister. He hadn't seen her since they'd escaped that nightmare, had it really been six years ago? Leaving her had been the only hard part about that. he hadn't wanted to, but he'd had o choice. He knew it was going to be hard enough to just take care of Kris. And besides, Sarah had never really even liked them as far as he could tell. She was always focused on escaping their parents' wrath, fully content to just let her brothers bear it all. It was quite a while of these thoughts before he drifted off, his last thought being to hope she was alright.

------------

It was nothing that would have even disturbed most people, but the nearly silent sound of footsteps roused Kyle from his sleep. At first he wasn't quite sure what it was that had awoken him, but then he heard the sound of what could be nothing more than air escaping four punctured tires. This not only woke him, but angered him as well. Someone was screwing with his truck! This did nothing but enrage him, his teeth gritting in anger as he silently rose from the couch.

Without a thought he reached down, removing the revolver from its hiding place and leveling it with the thief's back as he quietly stalked across the small house. Upon reaching the door his rage was multiplied tenfold. There, in their hands, was his rifle. The firearm was unmistakable, its polished silver catching the fading moonlight and reflecting back. He'd saved up for years to buy the one of a kind lever action 30-06, it was his pride and joy. And here was this little bitch trying to steel it! with a silent snarl he moved forward, almost instantly closing the distance between them. Stopping just a few feet behind them, he was just in time to hear the odd phone conversation the person, who he now knew to be the girl he'd so stupidly brought home with him, was having. Mom? Kyle was confused, the fact that they'd been tracked down the very last thing in his mind. Shoving the confusion aside he cocked the hammer, producing quite an audible sound in the early morning silence. "Just what the hell do you think your doing...?" The ice that dripped from his words displayed quite clearly that this girl did NOT know who she was dealing with.

[Kristopher Roberts]

Kristopher was normally a very light sleeper, even after his little adventure. So it was no surprise that he woke up from the slight movements on the bed. But he did not move or show any signs that he was waking up. He listened to the sounds of he woman dressing and he had to wonder where the hell she was going. Something had seemed off about her to begin with but he had very little idea what it was, in fact he was down right confused about it.

He let out a small sigh as she left the room. This allowed him to roll over on his back and let his arms out across the bed. He brought a hand put to his face then and rubbed it, thinking with his tired brain. Some of the things she did last night, the sounds and the looks. It reminded him of something...something from six years ago.

Wait a minute...

His green eyes suddenly grew very large as he compared his past life to the current one. The girl, those eyes she had and the way she looked at him and his brother the other night. How she moved and touched him. "Oh. My god." He muttered to himself in full out surprise and shock. But the boy wasted no time, enough had already been wasted! The teenager threw back his covers and quickly dressed himself in his boots, jeans, and a black sleeved T-shirt with a skull on it. "How fucking stupid could I be?" He asked himself as then reached into his small closet and pulled out a can. He opened it and frowned, that was right, Kyle had the pistol. But that didn't stop the boy from reaching in and pulling out a few rounds and sticking them in his pocket as well as some cash and a switch knife that Kyle had given him for his birthday last year.

"Shit." Panicking, the teenager got to his feet and quickly exited his bedroom. Where did she go? Where the hell was his big brother? He wanted to shout for him, scream his name but he knew better then to do that. Who knows where the bitch could be! Kristopher's eyes looked down at the sofa, Kyle wasn't there.

He looked to his left and his right quickly but did not see anyone. Then he heard voices outside. Oh fuck. Kristopher ran to the door and pushed it open. There he saw his brother, "Kyle! We need to go we got tricked! That wasn't a normal girl that was---" He then took notice of the girl with the phone and rifle. "---our sister." His voice suddenly vanished. Sarah had called their Mother. He knew she did as soon as he took notice of the phone.

Kristopher's face suddenly went pale, "Kyle..." His green eyes looked down at the truck's tires as he noticed he hissing sound. Oh no. There went their escape. Unless, they went through the woods. They could do this, they could make it! All Kyle had to do was disarm her, knock her out and make a run for it. No way she could follow them, right...?

[Sarah Roberts]

Sarah had just given the last of the direction when she heard the tale tell sound of a handgun being cocked. She went rigid for a moment, then said, "Gotta call you back, Mom," before hanging up the phone. Damn it, she'd been caught. And whom ever had caught her was apparently not happy. She raised both hands, and slowly turned around.

"Kyle! We need to go we got tricked! That wasn't a normal girl that was--- ---our sister."

As she turned, she heard Kris identify her. Damn it. This was all going to hell. All just so Mom could pay off some bills. They were going to shoot her, she just knew it. They had no reason to do otherwise. Yes, she was their sister, but she might as well not have been, for all the closeness they shared. She had happily let them take the brunt of Dad's beatings. There was no love lost between her and her brothers. She saw the faces of Kyle and Kris, both drastically different, neither wanting to have anything to do with her.

It hurt, slightly, thinking on it. She wasn't sure why. She'd never been close to either one of them. Never had feelings for them one way or another. They had been tools for Mom to use, for Dad to take his frustrations out on, and for Sarah to hide behind. So, why was it hurting to think about them not caring for her? This must be some of those odd thoughts that you think about before you're about to die.

Well, maybe she could get out of this . . . . maybe.

"Hey, guys," Sarah said. "Let's calm down a bit, here. You're pointing a gun at me. I don't think you should be doing that. I'm not the one who did this." She gestured, carefully, toward the truck.

[Kyle Roberts]

Confusion was still forefront in his mind as he held the gun there, staring at the girl's back. What kind of thief called their mom in the middle of a job? Did she need a ride or something? Well if that was the case, then why hadn't she just taken the truck and left? What could she possibly hope to gain by stranding them all here? None of it was adding up in his mind. He knew there was something he wasn't seeing, something that he should know but that was lingering just on the edges of his mind. It just needed a little push to bring it forth.

....That did it. Kyle's eyes immediately widened, a chill spreading through him as the barrel of the pistol lowered slightly in his nerveless hands. A second later and it was back level, his face becoming a mask of pain. So that was it. She was helping their mother, trying to drag them back to hell. That could only mean that she really didn't care about them even in the least. They weren't even human to her, just tools for her use. That knowledge killed a part of his soul, embittering him against the girl that he'd always cared about, even though she'd never cared about him.

He ignored her words, barely even hearing them. It was a pointless effort on her part, there was no way out of this. Not now at least. Before, if she'd explained things to him, then he would have forgiven her, even taken her with them. But that chance was gone now. He and Kris were going to leave, and if she tried to stop them. then he'd kill her. "Get the gun Kris." His voice was tight and choked, the anguish he was feeling at the moment finding its way out. He was doing his best to hide it, but apparently his best just wasn't good enough. But that didn't matter now, he could deal with it later. What mattered was that they had to run, as far and fast as possible. Before she got there.

[Kristopher Roberts]

"Hey, guys," Sarah said. "Let's calm down a bit, here. You're pointing a gun at me. I don't think you should be doing that. I'm not the one who did this."

Kristopher so badly wanted to call Bullshit, but he didn't. He had other things to do then argue with his sister. He had to figure out how the hell they where going to get out of this one. Ranning a hand through his now curly brown locks, (due to the fact he hadn't ironed his hair yet, those damn curls had to be ironed out every morning.) the blond quickly fell into step towards his brother and sister.

Kristopher reached out and ripped the rifle out of his sisters hands as quickly and safely he could. Then, he moved back and checked the rifle to make sure it was well loaded. He was chewing on his lip then, "Kyle, what are we going to do?" Asked the blond with a shaky voice, his eyes looking down towards the slashed tires. The truck wasn't going to help them now, not anymore.

He then raised his green eyes to look out down the road, afraid that any moment headlights would appear. So he lowered the rifle, holding it in the proper safety position with the barrel pointed towards the ground. There was no reason to have two guns pointed at her. It wasn't as if she had the shotgun on her person or something. He turned towards the truck then, opened the driver side and dug in the truck for a moment and pulled out a cameo backpack and slid it over his shoulders. It was their get away pack they always kept in the truck in case of emergencies.

"How much time do we have before she shows up?" Kristopher asked Sarah harshly. His heart was pounding in his chest. Maybe they could lose everyone in the woods. But first they wanted to know how much time they had, where she was coming from...however Kristopher was trying hard not to lifted the rifle and slam the butt of it into her head. They would have to knock her out...or something.

He then looked back to his older brother. "You know what, forget it. Kyle, we have to go. Now." The placed a shaking hand on his older brother arm then, he was wanting to run right now.

[Sarah Roberts]

"Look, I don't know what you guys are going on about. I came out, and saw someone messing with the truck. When he saw me, he started running, so I got the gun and was going to . . . . Oh, hell, nevermind. Not even going to try it with you guys. You're my brothers, so you're not completely stupid." Resigned, she didn't even try to resist when Kris took the rifle. She sighed heavily. This didn't exactly go to plan. Now her brother had a gun on her, and her options were limited. She had two options, if fact. Distract them until their mother arrived, which would be difficult, as far out as they were, or try to go on the run with her brothers. The thought had occurred to her several times before now. However, she knew she wouldn't make it on her own. With her brothers, though, she could do it. Hell, with her, they could do it better.

Of course, she'd probably blown any chance she had of being accepted into their group.

Though, it didn't really matter, at this point. The method used for either option was actually the same, at least up to a point. So, might as well get started. "Hey, wait! Look, she's not going to be here for a while. The directions I gave were a little iffy, at best. It was dark when Kyle brought me here, and it's quite a way out of the way. Plus . . . the way he was looking at me was a little distracting." She shook her head a bit. "The point is, you guys have some time. Don't rush this. You'll get caught. Mom ain't dumb, you know. She'll find you if you don't think this through."