Two Paths that should Never cross

Two paths that should never cross

- Shoots and ladders

Rebecca paused hearing something behind her. She had been wondering around for the last hour, a trail of dead monsters in her wake. She knew if the thing she heard was another of the larger monsters she had seen in the building she was in trouble. The firestar she had only had three shots left. She had a crowbar with her, something she had picked up in the back of the art studio. But she didn't want to use it unless she had to. The ex S.T.A.R.S. member pressed her back against the wall closing her eyes a moment. Running footsteps made her look up.

Turning a corner she thought she saw someone darting down another corridor. "Wait!" She ran after the figure, hoping to catch them. Again she cursed her luck that she hadn't been able to find a flashlight anywhere. A child’s laugh came from the shadows. Shit, a child’s in here… She turned towards the way the laughter had come from. Hearing the footsteps down another hall she followed them. “Hey, wait kid, you’re going to get hurt if you keep this up.” She hoped the kid would stop.

Turning another corner she saw a blank wall in front of her. The figure was nowhere to be seen. Rebecca put her back against the wall again, this time biting her lip. Where are you Coen… Hell I'd even go with Heather at the moment… I hate being alone… She took a deep breath, trying to clear her thoughts.

All the mazes, the shadows… And here I thought I left all the fun and games back in Raccoon and Exeter… She tipped her head back closing her eyes a moment as the memories hit her. The smell of rotting meat hit first, making her fall to her knees covering her mouth. That's when she heard the shuffled steps. Glancing up she yelped as the faded light showed her a man in a brown trench coat with graying hair. For a split second the man's face showed signs of decay, making her scoot back more against the wall in a panic. The gun aimed at him only to freeze when the man stopped, and raised his hands. He was older than David, though she didn’t think by much. The scraggly look of his chin was probably two days of growth. Everything about how he stood screamed private investigator that watched way too many old movies.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you." He stayed his ground and she lowered the gun with a sigh.

"I thought you were one of the monsters." Shaking her head she tried to clear the thoughts from her mind.

They’re not monsters…/ The thought came out of nowhere, surprising her. Becky looked up slightly.

"You hurt?" He moved closer, kneeling to check on her. She blinked as he held up a flashlight. The man was moving carefully trying not to startle her.

She shook her head. "I'm fine. Just fed up." She gave a small strained smile. "You're the first non-monster I've seen in the last hour… maybe two."

The walls that had been blocking their way crumbled making her jump, forward, turning as she aimed her gun. The man moved as well, drawing an old pistol. Both were aiming at where the wall had been and glanced at each other when they heard bad mall tunes start up again. Rebecca bit her lip to keep from laughing.

A small girl, in a dark dress ran from the shadows, disappearing after a moment. Rebecca watched her and shook her head hoping it was just her mind playing tricks on her. The man; Rebecca noticed, didn’t seem to see her.

"Okay, that was weird." He smiled over at her. "Looks like we're supposed to go this way." He stood, slipping his gun away. She did the same, taking a few moments to collect herself. "You sure you're okay? You look a little pale."

"Yeah, at least the mall doesn't smell like smoke anymore." She tucked the hair from her eyes. "I'm Rebecca by the way." She figured since the man hadn't shot her, he should at least know her first name. "Let's just say before you came around the corner… I was remembering something best left alone." She rubbed her arms a little as she stepped into the open area of the mall.

"I know you’re Rebecca Chambers, living under the alias Rebecca Manson for the time being. I was hired to look for Heather. Let’s just say I’ve been watching you two for a few days." He watched her as she took a few steps ahead of him before the words sunk in. “Sorry to drag you out of your thoughts.”

"Wait…" Rebecca turned looking at him, her face serious. "What do you mean?" She knew she couldn’t draw the gun on him now, but she’d try to make sure Heather was safe before she led him to her. After all, Heather was a civilian, she might not be a cop anymore, but that was a hard habit to break. She didn’t move. The thought of someone watching her for a few days without her knowing scared her.

"Don't worry I'm not going to hurt her." He smiled. "I was just asked to look for her that's all." He held up his hands, not going for the gun. He didn't need the teen to start trouble though. “Really, I just need to talk to her.”

Billy had said I was targeted… Would they be looking for someone close to me? She started to reach for her gun, just in case the man turned dangerous. "Who hired you then?" Her hands were perfectly steady as she gripped the small gun in both hands.

"Look, I went through this with Heather. All I want to do is help this lady find out if Heather's her sister, that's all." He kept his hands up. Rebecca sighed easing up slightly, though it was clear she was still wary of him. Smart kid.

"Keep talking. We'll head to the subway to see if she's there." Rebecca slid the gun away again, but didn't relax too much.

"She's not going to talk to me." He handed her a file. Rebecca walked along side him flipping through the file as she went. She made sure to keep an eye on him as she did so.

They're saying Harry kidnapped her? That's impossible. I mean… She shook her head. She wouldn't think David would have put her with someone with a past like that. David wouldn’t put me with someone who kidnapped anyone. I remember him saying Harry had a daughter… She was about my age…

Well, figuratively speaking. The voice she heard in the back of her mind startled her a moment, but she kept quiet. Part of her wanted to tell it to shut up, but she didn’t want to let the man know she was hearing things.

"You don't believe the file do you Miss Chambers." The man laughed. She frowned realizing it must have shown on her face. "I didn't either when I looked at it. Though my employer insists it is.” He shook his head.

"He's not like that. I've been with him and Heather a month now. And seriously, Harry doesn't fit the profile for a kidnapper. Besides, a friend of mine asked him for the favor of me staying with them. If he had kidnapped her, he wouldn't have allowed someone else to stay in his home." She handed the file back. "It doesn't fit the profile of a kidnapper." She shook her head. “Harry’s too kind. He wouldn’t hold anyone against their will.”

"You sound like you weren't just a cute face with S.T.A.R.S." That brought her head up. Douglas saw the look in her eyes that told him his thoughts about her were true. The kid had grown up too fast. Her eyes showed it almost as clear as the distrust. Damn, Forgot that she hasn’t lived a normal life.

Just how much does he know about me… Rebecca blushed a little as her mind remembered the brief kiss Coen had given her earlier. The two had made it to the entrance to the subway when they saw Heather. Rebecca shoved the memory back and raised her hand to get Heather's attention. "Heather!"

"What are you doing with that freak Rebecca?" The taller teen glared seeing her companion. “He was following me around. I thought I would have to call security.”

"Actually looking for you. After the mall went nuts… You're okay right?" She walked up to Heather to make sure. "Your dad would kill me if you got hurt." She noted a few bloodstains on Heather’s vest. Seems I’m not the only one who had to deal with the world going nuts for a while.

"Yeah I'm fine." Heather looked at her a moment. "You mean it didn't just happen to me? Why didn't you try looking for me earlier?" Heather stepped back a moment, “Rebecca you’re really okay right? Dad would have a fit if something happened to you as well, you know how he is.” She glanced at the older man wondering how much he knew about Rebecca.

"Because I was kind of locked in the back hall…" She remembered Billy disappearing and frowned. He's okay… he can take care of himself right… She closed her eyes a moment then looked at Heather and Douglas. “He knows. I don’t know who his intel is, but they’re good.”

Douglas looked like he was about to say something. Rebecca shook her head to tell him not to say anything.

"I'll talk to them about it. Heather and I should get home." She ran a hand through her hair. She wasn’t sure how she’d ask them about the charges in the file about Harry yet, but she hoped she’d think up something on the way to the apartment.

"Rebecca here." He handed her the file. "You two take it easy okay?" The worry showed in his face. Rebecca gave a small smile, trying to reassure him they'd be fine.

"Yeah…" Heather huffed as she started for the stairs. Rebecca followed noting it was still eerily quiet. Heather slowed before they got to the ticket booths. “Rebecca?”

Becky was tense, it was clear she was thinking about something. Glancing up when she heard her name she saw Heather waiting for her. “Sorry, guess my thoughts got the better of me.” She gave a sheepish grin. “Damn, isn’t this place packed this time of day?” It's like how the woods were… She tensed slightly, her mind remembering what had happened back in Raccoon. She kept her gun tucked into the holster at the small of her back. I'm not going to scare Heather more. I mean… No use in it right? She thought then remembered something. Her footsteps slowed.

"Something wrong?" Heather looked at her. “Usually you notice things quicker.” The taller girl looked a little worried.

"No, I just forgot to do something. Go on ahead of me, I'll take the next train okay?" She bit her lip. “Heather, here.” She had seen the gun Heather had now and had some bullets for it. “I know your dad taught you how to reload. Just, don’t kill anyone okay?”

“You saw the monsters too.” Becky nodded.

“Yeah, I saw them. Heather, need to make a call. Don't worry, I'll call Harry and tell him I'll be a little later than you. Can't have him worry about us now can we?" She smiled brightly as she ran back into the mall for the phones. Billy, please still have the phone on… Let the phones work…

***

Digging change and the paper Billy had handed to her she dialed the number. Grinning when the phone on the other side rang. Yes!

"Come on… pick up…"

"Miss Chambers, I'm so glad you called."

The voice wasn't Billy's. She tensed slightly. Wondering if she should hang up, instead she stayed on the line. She pressed against the wall keeping her eyes on the hallway, making sure she could see who was coming from both sides.

"Who are you?" She scowled into the phone. "If you've hurt him…" She hoped worry didn’t show in her voice as she spoke. Billy… where are you?

You’re safe now… don’t worry about him… The voice was back in her mind. Becky shook her head hoping to clear her head. Soon you'll be home again. And no one will hurt you.

"Relax, I'm not going to hurt him. After all he is under my employment. I needed him to give you the number though. Alas I can't be there in the States, I have pressing matters elsewhere, but I needed you to talk to me. I'm Trent." The man on the phone said unaware of the personal conversation she was having.

That name… he was the one that talked to David. She managed not to make a sound at first. "You're the one that helped Jill in the Spencer house. And you gave David the hints to get us to the lab." She kept watching the hall. She was glad she had chosen the payphone instead of going to the apartment first.

"Yes, I gave her some information to assist her.” There was a pause. “So he took you with him. I thought that you would have been with the others then. I'm glad that you made it." There was a small sound of joy in his voice. "I'm going to do the same to you, give you information that is. You'll have to go to the hotel. I've called another contact, he should be meeting up with you now." She glanced up seeing Douglas walking up looking a little confused. Before she could ask the voice on the phone anything the line was dead.

"Look I…" He ran a hand through his hair confused by the text message he had gotten. It had been from an old contact, telling him to assist Chambers anyway he could.

"I know. You're supposed to take me somewhere right?" She sighed. She was tired of Umbrella’s little games. And now she only had Billy as back up, and he wasn’t around. Closing her eyes she leaned against the wall. “This is the testing facility all over again…”

The man looked at the teen with a puzzled look. "How'd you…"

"Just got off the phone with him. We have about twenty minutes to spare. Heather'll be home by then. I’ll need to talk to Harry. Tell him to get Heather out of town. If you could find me so could the people after me…” She bit her lip.

No, Heather has to stay… I need her. The voice in her head spoke forcefully making her wince.

Douglas looked at her. “You okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. Let’s go… I just… want this day to end.” She rubbed her temples as he ushered her towards the exit to his car.

***

The trip in the car wasn't bad; despite the fact Rebecca didn’t like not knowing exactly what was going on. She had just barely finished reading over the file fully. "You know, I think you're client's insane. I mean all this about Heather, being some religious icon. She can't be serious." She closed the file as he pulled into the garage next to the apartment complex Heather and Harry's apartment was in. "Heather's Heather. If anything she's the typical teen." She noticed they were parking. "Okay, that was quick. I'm used to thirty minutes on the subway."

"Yeah, you want to go to the office building." He chuckled a little. "You also have to remember, the subway goes all around town before it gets to your place."

"Huh? Right." She followed him out of the car, noting that he was drawing his gun. "Douglas?"

"Thought I saw something move towards the apartments." He heard her draw her gun and close the car door. “Chambers?” He glanced at her seeing the look in her eyes. Nodding he gave a faint grin understanding she’d play back up.

Trent would have to wait. She followed him into the building, seeing a figure standing by the door to the apartment.

It was the dark haired girl she had seen skipping in the mall. She turned back looking at her, a smile on her lips, before she disappeared suddenly.

“Something wrong?”

Rebecca shook her head holding the gun behind her until she got to the apartment, just in case one of the neighbors stepped out of their place. After all, she was supposed to be a kid still, and for the most part, girls from small towns didn’t carry handguns like pros.

"Go check on Mr. Mason." Rebecca nodded pulling her key out of her pocket, touching the door it was open. Douglas darted around a corner leaving her alone.

Opening the door the rest of the way she saw something move near the chair. Raising her gun she moved closer. The figure looked up at her and bolted for the back door. She started for the door only to hear the groan from the chair.

“Harry…” She scrambled to his side. “Stay still.” She glanced at him, then at the door again. Torn between going after the figure and tending to the man who had taken her in.

“You can’t fight it. It would kill you.” She glanced back at him and nodded.

Harry was holding his stomach; Rebecca could see a lot of blood and pressed him back to the chair. "Don't move." Rebecca bolted for the bathroom she was sharing with Heather and the med kit that was there. She kept an eye on the back door as she moved. Snagging the kit she scrambled back for the chair to help him.

Getting back to the chair she knelt frowning. It was deep. "Harry, keep talking to me okay?" She stayed with him, glancing up when she heard footsteps.

"Da.. What the hell happened?" Heather had a few small scrapes, and looked a little worse than when Rebecca had last seen her. Her hand reached for the bandages but stopped, seeing the look on the other teen’s face.

"He was attacked, it's on the roo…" Rebecca didn't finish what she was going to say, as Heather bolted for the door after throwing the phone her way. Rebecca caught it as she tried to deal with Harry. “Harry stay with me please.” She whispered checking his pulse. It was starting to slow some. Not good…“Come on… Don’t leave me… and Heather…” She whispered low. He reached up brushing the hair from her face. She touched his hand and gave a small smile.

“Hea…”

“Heather’ll be okay.” She reached for the phone to dial for the ambulance. As long as Harry stayed still she’d be able to keep him alive until they arrived at least.