It's Easier To Leave Than To Be Left Behind
Posted: Fri Sep 02, 2011 7:28 am
((Karen Ruiz continued from Last Page))
Karen's movement across the plains had not been quick. Her transformed determination did not outweigh her caution. She had left Kathy's body by the bench. She wondered what would happen to all of the corpses, whether they were eventually cleaned up. They had to be. She would be very surprised if the owners of the island didn't cash in on its fame and restore its status as a tourist destination in the aftermath of the show.
Thinking about the show made Karen realize that it probably wasn't going out live, at least, not by now. There was simply too much going on. By the time most people saw what she had done to Kathy, a winner would have already emerged. Karen would be free or dead. It was strange thinking of things in that context. In a way, it was almost as if all her actions were already in the past. It sounded like some science fiction novel she had once read, but she couldn't remember which. She didn't even devote energy to trying. She could puzzle over books later, when this was all over.
Off in the distance, Karen could see a figure, a girl, she thought, beginning to descend a hill. A quick check revealed that the girl was alone. The distance was fairly great, though. It would be challenging to catch up with her while remaining unseen. An alternate plan came to mind: Karen would just shadow her, then catch her if she stopped. Simple, efficient, and leaving open plenty of possibilities to change things up as necessary. She made her way towards the hill. It would be a good vantage point from which to watch for the girl.
The walk was not easy, but it was not too hard, either. All the things Karen was carrying were finally beginning to wear her down. She imagined she was still in better shape than most, however. After all, she had been eating full meals where possible, not bothering to ration since her food stores were abundant. She was also remaining properly hydrated, drinking water and sweating it back out as she went, leaving the empty bottles lying on the ground. It wasn't a perfect situation, but it was much better than it had any right to be.
The biggest annoyance was that deep breathing aggravated her various bruises. Using her left arm for quick movements also made it ache. She didn't enjoy being injured, that was certain. Still, she hadn't sustained anything worse than a beating. She was quite lucky, all things considered.
At the top of the hill, she looked out over the sea of grass once more, and was surprised to find that she had lost track of the girl entirely. Maybe it had taken her longer to move than she had imagined. Time was hard to keep track of here. She had thought the announcements were imminent, and that had been nearly an hour ago, but the sun wasn't even to its midpoint in the sky. Maybe her body was still on Detroit time. She didn't know how she felt about that. A little bitter, perhaps.
Without a target, she sat at the top of the hill, keeping a relatively low profile. She would just rest for a few seconds, then go back to the search.
Karen's movement across the plains had not been quick. Her transformed determination did not outweigh her caution. She had left Kathy's body by the bench. She wondered what would happen to all of the corpses, whether they were eventually cleaned up. They had to be. She would be very surprised if the owners of the island didn't cash in on its fame and restore its status as a tourist destination in the aftermath of the show.
Thinking about the show made Karen realize that it probably wasn't going out live, at least, not by now. There was simply too much going on. By the time most people saw what she had done to Kathy, a winner would have already emerged. Karen would be free or dead. It was strange thinking of things in that context. In a way, it was almost as if all her actions were already in the past. It sounded like some science fiction novel she had once read, but she couldn't remember which. She didn't even devote energy to trying. She could puzzle over books later, when this was all over.
Off in the distance, Karen could see a figure, a girl, she thought, beginning to descend a hill. A quick check revealed that the girl was alone. The distance was fairly great, though. It would be challenging to catch up with her while remaining unseen. An alternate plan came to mind: Karen would just shadow her, then catch her if she stopped. Simple, efficient, and leaving open plenty of possibilities to change things up as necessary. She made her way towards the hill. It would be a good vantage point from which to watch for the girl.
The walk was not easy, but it was not too hard, either. All the things Karen was carrying were finally beginning to wear her down. She imagined she was still in better shape than most, however. After all, she had been eating full meals where possible, not bothering to ration since her food stores were abundant. She was also remaining properly hydrated, drinking water and sweating it back out as she went, leaving the empty bottles lying on the ground. It wasn't a perfect situation, but it was much better than it had any right to be.
The biggest annoyance was that deep breathing aggravated her various bruises. Using her left arm for quick movements also made it ache. She didn't enjoy being injured, that was certain. Still, she hadn't sustained anything worse than a beating. She was quite lucky, all things considered.
At the top of the hill, she looked out over the sea of grass once more, and was surprised to find that she had lost track of the girl entirely. Maybe it had taken her longer to move than she had imagined. Time was hard to keep track of here. She had thought the announcements were imminent, and that had been nearly an hour ago, but the sun wasn't even to its midpoint in the sky. Maybe her body was still on Detroit time. She didn't know how she felt about that. A little bitter, perhaps.
Without a target, she sat at the top of the hill, keeping a relatively low profile. She would just rest for a few seconds, then go back to the search.