Hope

18 - rescue

Alex and Martha got along just fine at the farm, working together to keep it clean, rather than Alex just being a guest. In Parrish's mind, Martha was already family, and she would care for the older woman as such. That meant helping her clean up, make all three meals, and even making some for Mrs. Kent when she got the opportunity. It didn't take long, but the two were becoming more and more comfortable around each other.

That afternoon, Alex was cleaning the dishes while Martha went out to tend to her reconstructed garden. From anywhere in the small house, one could hear voices, if any, outside. It was so quiet on the farm, so hearing foreign voices outside wasn't hard.

Alex turned the running water out, and that was when she heard it; cars roaring in, kicking dirt up behind them. Well— it was only one car, once Alex took a peek. It was just a large, black car. Seconds after it was parked on the dirty grass outside the old house, men started to pour out the doors, guns shining against the sunlight in their belts.

Parrish automatically took it as a threat, and tore through the house, to the back, where Martha was just taking her gloves off and entering. Alex startled her, making the older woman let out a sharp gasp, only to be shushed by the younger woman in front of her.

"Shh, if you can, look past my shoulder as slowly as you can, but there are strange men in suits coming up to the house. They don't look so friendly, and I think they're here for me, so I need you to get out without them seeing you, or they'll take you in too. Is there a way you can get into a garage or some kind of hiding place, without them seeing you?"

Martha took a moment to take in all the information just given to her. Granted, she was grateful she had the warning, but how certain was Alex that this would work? The woman shook her head, snapping herself out of her thoughts and tried to come up with a way she could get into the garage and drive off without any of those men seeing her. After a moment of thinking, her eyes fell on the truck that sat on the ground, the front slightly jutting out to the side of the house, where one could see the red, metallic paint from the front. Alex followed her eyes and automatically knew what she was thinking.

"I'll distract them, you get in, and drive until you reach the city. Go to Clark's house. My apartment is right next to his, you'll find a spare key just above the door, behind the 'P' sign."

"You'll meet me there, right?"

"Yes." Alex said, after a pause. "Be careful." The two shared a quick hug until a knocking on the door interrupted it. "Wait for my signal." She said, rushing to the front of the house again, peeking through a window to see exactly how many men were outside. There weren't many, which meant they were planning on taking someone in the van with them. She noted that it was a fairly large vehicle, appearing to be a seven-seater, however, there were only four men, which meant they had some intent of taking somebody with them, hence the extra room.

In the sunlight, one could see the silhouettes of people in the car, despite the tinted windows, and Alex saw none. Good. The knock came again, and this time, Parrish opened the door slightly, her left arm being completely concealed behind the door, so she could signal Martha to get out.

"Alex Parrish?" One man asked, seeming certain that this was where she was. Alex raised her eyebrows and waved her fingers on her left hand, which told Martha to get going, since Alex could see all four men on the porch in front of her. Martha saw her cue and stealthily made her way out through the back.

"You're speaking to her. May I ask why you're looking for me?"

"We've been sent with direct orders to bring you with us."

"Sorry, who sent you?"

"We can't tell you that, ma'am."

"Well, then I can't come with you. Sorry."

Suddenly, the hum of a truck echoed through the house. Alex heard it, which meant the men on the porch heard it as well. They lifted their heads in alert and the man in front looked at Alex.

"Are there any other people in this house with you, Mrs. Parrish?"

"There are not." She responded. Technically, Alex wasn't lying. Martha wasn't in the house; she was leaving he house. Unfortunately, Alex's lie didn't convince that man, for he pushed the door open and entered, his icy blue eyes searching the house for any bodies. Alex was eyeing the road, hoping that the truck would get far enough away, where the men couldn't reach.

That didn't work out in her favor either, since one of the men stayed on the porch, also watching the road spoke up as soon as he saw the red truck cruising along the dirt.

"Bart! She was stalling for someone." He shouted, making Alex panic. She, along with all the other men rushed outside and Bart watched for a few moments before jerking his head towards that man.

"Stop her." He ordered.

The snitch pulled out the gun, and Alex inhaled sharply, unable to react quick enough, because Bart wrapped his hand around her arm as she tried to make an advance towards the man with a gun. Finally, he fired, not hitting the woman driving the truck, but one of the tires in the front, making her unable to drive off due to the deflating tire. Two men rushed off to drag her out of the car, while Bart and another man held Alex.

Clearly, they underestimated her strength because she easily broke free from Bart's grasp and swung her first around to punch the other man in the face, knocking him back and breaking herself free. She turned around to face Bart, who was clearly trying to get ahold of her again, but this time, when he grabbed her wrists, she let out a cry and lifted her leg, kicking him in the chest. It hurt him, judging from the grunt he let out and the pain in his eyes, but his grip on her wrists was ironclad. Alex struggled frantically, while the other man picked himself up and rushed over to contain the struggling mess that was Alex Parrish.

Between her animal-like cries in attempts to elbow someone in the chin, and Martha's squeaks, Clark could hear it all the way from the office he sat in.

Without a problem, Clark broke the cuffs, simply by separating his hands, and opened the locked door, pulling the knob off in the process. He didn't care, he needed to get to those that were in trouble. He whizzed through the Federal Agency office, ignoring the comments he got and the suspicious stares he received. Exiting through the back, he caught a glimpse of Ryan realizing his perp just escaped, and the sheer anger on the man's face. Ryan tore through the crowd, following Clark as fast as he could, but he wasn't fast enough.

Before he could even get outside, Clark was already going to save the day, the fireproof cape flapping behind him as the telltale thud of him propelling himself forward in inhuman speed, towards those in need sounded.

Superman was here to rescue them.