As The World Turns Cold

Adventures of Escape

"In a way, I was lucky for managing to escape shear torture for as long as you managed to endure it, but the wounds from my past are fresh reminders on how I failed my family. The burden still weighs heavily on my soul." He slammed the door shut behind him and began walking to the car. "I was in that building for no more than a handful of months. I can count the weeks using my fingers and toes."

Mercy realized then that despite the air of indifference he put on for his family, the pain was recent, and he was freshly broken. He'd have been there for no more than twenty weeks. From how he'd acted around her, Rogue was carefree and easygoing, but this latest information changed things. The attitude he showed her was a façade to mask the pain he had from losing his family.

She winced. "I'm sorry." Mercy uttered.

What else could she say? Finding the words was impossible. Nothing would ever make the hurt go away or make things right. Even apologizing didn't do any good. At the end of the day, the pain was still the last thing the mind would remember. She knew how that raw emotion felt and she hated that he'd been enduring it all this time; never mentioning it until now.

Rogue stiffened. "You didn't do it."

He pushed against her back gently, careful of the bandaged area where the tracker once lay, motioning for them to continue. They moved towards the parking lot in a hurry, not wanting to waste any more time. They had already wasted enough time because she'd been unconscious due to the shot Dr. Snyde gave her. If they hoped to get everything done before the government agents caught up to them, then they would need as much time as they could get their hands on.

He pulled open the door of the Porsche for her and Mercy settled in as quickly as she could. Her eyes found a sign, at least a hundred feet in front of her, and she squinted to read it.

"St. Louis, Missouri?" She pondered. Thinking back to the few geography lessons she had, she remembered how close the states where. "If my memory serves right isn't that a few hours away from where we're headed?"

He flashed a small smile. His hands rested on the controls as he shifted the car into reverse. "Told you we were closer than you think, we're about three hours outside of Louisville. If we're lucky and manage to avoid any problems, then we'll get there by mid-afternoon. The timing could be perfect if you want to see your family."

Rogue placed his hand on the edge of her seat and turned to glance out the back window. He maneuvered the car as if he hadn't been without one for five months.

Mercy was curious. She had never learned, missing out on a lot of teenage rights. She didn't know what it was like to have parents gush over her first year of sports, entering high school, prom, and prepping for moving off to college.

Mercy was just a girl when she'd been taken. The thought that she had missed out on so much made her feel sick to her stomach. It had never occurred to her while she was back with the guards and Dr. Snyde that there was so much she didn't get to experience.

"We picked the perfect time to escape. It only took a few hours of running with you in my arms to stumble upon the train. And luck was on our side that it managed to take us this far. It was a pleasant change of pace." It took Mercy a second to realize he was speaking to her. She had been lost in thought and wasn't making for a nice travel companion already. She nodded, though she knew he wouldn't catch the gesture.

As Rogue pulled out of the lot and into the streets, she glanced around, hoping for anything to distract her. Mercy took note of the keyless car. "Did you hotwire this?" She gawked. "It's a Porsche! Aren't those what all men drool over and dream of? Mankind would be horrified."