The Nexus

Chapter 9

 After unlocking her handcuffs and procuring another car to the west of Denver, Emma and Thomas drove on.

They had been driving in relative silence for the past hour so Thomas finally risked speaking up.

"Do you know where we're headed?" he asked.

She didn't turn her head, but he could see that she was giving him a sidelong glance. "At the moment we're heading west," she sarcastically replied.

"Might I suggest that we go to a safe place where you can learn more about The Alliance and we can stop running for a while?"

She sighed, "I suppose I could entertain that option. Where would this safe place be?"

"We would have to make it to Utah, near Provo."

"That's more that three hundred miles away," she hissed.

"It's the safest place I know at the moment."

"Fine," she said.

They were already going west, so there was no need to change direction at the moment. The car they were driving was an older model Hyundai that didn't have any electrical amenities. Emma had explained to Thomas earlier that it would be better for them to take a car that would not likely have GPS or any other way to track it. Plus, the owner of the car was probably not going to raise holy hell if someone stole it.

The car was not doing well on the up hill climbs through the Rocky Mountains.

Thomas now reviewed the events that had occurred back at the abandoned restaurant in his mind and couldn't believe what Emma was capable of. The men he had with him were all dead, with Stenson being the only possible exception, and all the men The Agency had sent were dead. Some of them had killed each other, but Emma had done most of the killing. How had she been able to dispatch these men so swiftly? What was going on in her mind right now?

As if she knew exactly what he was thinking, or, perhaps, she had just felt his stare penetrating her as they drove, she asked, "What else do you want to tell me about your 'Order'?"

"I'm not sure how much else I should tell you," he answered honestly. "You're so deadly that I almost hesitate to bring you to the hideout in Utah. I'm taking a gamble in assuming that you won't lead your previous employer to slaughter innocent people."

She chuckled, "Innocent people? There's no such thing in this game that you're playing."

"Oh, but there are, Emma, there are entire communities that are affected here. You are a very dangerous woman, but Miles Chandak feels strongly that he can convince you to help us. If he feels this way, then I have to have faith that he knows what's best."

She thought for a moment. "You talk as if you're in some sort of cult," she said.

"I don't know if 'cult' is the right word for it," he replied. He paused to think carefully about his next words, "The Alliance is based on a philosophy that is deeply entrenched in science and the evolution of humanity. Some see it as a spiritual endeavor, but everything that The Alliance teaches and promotes is based on facts and can be proven."

"You don't make much sense," said Emma. "You're talking about nothing."

Thomas sighed, "Maybe when you meet Miles you will understand what I'm saying. He just told me that you saw something; something that the average person can't see. He said you would know what I was talking about if I said that to you and it might be enough to convince you to meet with him. Now here we are and you are coming. That is all I was sent to do and I have fulfilled my agreement with Miles."