Set ten years after the events of Terminator 2: Judgment Day, John Connor and his mother, Sarah Connor, are off-grid and separated in 2005. While Sarah is at Norfolk, Virginia, for matters too personal to tell her own son, John is surviving on his o...
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I wake up with an incessant ringing in my ears and Reyna on my chest. She doesn't move.
"Reyna?" I ask, propping her upright. When she still doesn't move, I shake her gently. "Reyna. Reyna?!"
Her eyes flutter open and blink a few times. "John.... JOHN?!"
She scrambles to her feet and gasps. Apparently, I had blown off the entire living room. Now, I could see the pink barn in the distance.
Reyna kneels and checks me for injuries. "Are you hurt?"
"I'd ask you the same, but since you're a supersoldier, I doubt you are."
She ignores my comment and continues checking me. "How did you even acquire a grenade launcher?"
"Let's just say the Machens didn't like to stick their noses where they don't belong." I say.
She holds me at arm's length and looks me up and down. "John, you should have escaped when you had the chance. I'm grateful for your intervention but you cannot compromise when I am too-"
"Don't do that, Reyna." I warn. "Don't you ever do that."
"Do what?"
"Don't tell me that your life isn't worth saving."
"I'm not saying that; I'm saying that you are too important to risk, for my sake especially."
"Well, so are you!" I shoot back. Realizing what I said, my face heats up. "I mean, you have to go back where you came from, eventually."
"What if I don't want to go back?"
Click! The sound comes from the dryer. Reyna's clothes are done drying.
Once we check the house for evidence of the JEM-9 and closing the eyes of the Machens' once more, I bring my motorcycle to the front porch as Reyna changes into her normal clothes.
Fortunately, there wasn't any evidence of the JEM-9. If any pieces of metal looked suspicious, I shoved it into the Machens' gigantic freezer, where it would stay frozen.
Reyna exits the house just as I turn the ignition on the motorcycle. It's a shame really, she looked killer in that dress. And everyday with her watchful, but protective glare. And everyday in her boots. And just everyday. And I'm ranting.
"Here." I gave her some guns and weapons that I took from the basement that were effective but able to stay hidden.
Reyna straps them on. "Thank you. For everything today."
I give her a half smile. "You're welcome. Do you want to drive first?"
She puts a hand up. "You first, Connor."
"Ladies first. I've done more than enough today."
Reyna hops on first and revs the engine. She looks back at me with a smirk that could have melted the metal I shoved into the freezer. "If you say so."
I sit behind her and wrap my arms around her waist. I don't know how many crunches she did in the future, but it was like hugging a pillar of rock.
And then, we take off.
It was useless to talk over the wind, so most of the trip was silent. However, it allowed me to think.
Does Mom know about all of this? Is she prepared, even in Norfolk? Sure, she could be ready at a moment's instance, but has the other JEM-9 gotten to her? What if it did already and I'm not there?
What would be of the Machens? How long would it be until someone finds their bodies? Poor Ramona, she wanted to become an artist so badly.
And Reyna. What did she mean this morning? What if I don't want to go back?
A voice in my head answers for me. Idiot, why would she want to return to the future, much less the one she's living in right now?
We make sure to take back roads and stop a few times to rest. For lunch, we ate at a Venezuelan café that tripled as a dry cleaner and a small library. By small, I mean two shelves filled with copies of books as old as the Constitution. So if you wanted to impress your date, but got sancocho on your shirt, you could wash your shirt and you and your date could read Pride and Prejudice while you both wait.
While Reyna was done with her pabellón criollo, I was only a third of the way through my grilled pork and plantain arepas.
She places a hand over mine. "Hey, are you okay?"
It's my turn to stiffen and relax. "It's my mom. I'm worried about her."
Reyna sits back. "You know, I always looked up to your mom. Without her, I wouldn't be here. Besides, you never told me the specific directions in case a machine was listening. Only you know her location, not anyone else. It will take days for a machine to find her. And she'll know where to hide. Your mother is a strong and capable woman. She can handle herself."
I nod. "It's just... the last time my mother was capable of something, she tried to blow up a computer factory and almost murdered Miles Dyson in front of his family. Do you know what she could do when she's scared?"
