Chester and the 24-hour Lottery
Chapter 19; Winter F’d-Land

It snowed.

Chester kept his arms down although he wanted to wrap them around his body has the women had done when stepping out onto the mountainside where over fifty people meandered. When he exhaled in a huff of confusion at the activity, his breath expelled in a white puff and the cold air stung his lungs.

“Shit, it’s freezing!” Van exclaimed, her petite frame shuddering, “Come on Chet, let’s replace out why nobody bothered to say we needed a jacket and steal theirs.”

He fought a grin, imagining taking clothes off of bewildered people’s backs, “How about we locate Saldivar first?”

“Follow me,” Henry strode to the left expecting them to obey.

Chester assessed his direction, noting a crowd but surveyed the other way and caught sight of a silvery bun and took off by himself. He wouldn’t blindly follow anyone anymore, least of all men like Henry.

“Oh, Chester!” Potter smiled when he got her attention, “I bet you’re chilled to the bone! Here, take this,” she pressed Vid Frames into his shivering hands and he gave a questioning look, “We’re giving them out to those leaving.”

“Leaving?” He yelled, “No one said anything about leaving. It has to be forty degrees out! Where am I supposed to go?”

Her eyes tracked people rushing around explaining, “I know it’s sudden. It’s not safe. We’ve arranged for temporary placement until further notice.”

“Racket told me it is,” he protested, “I don’t want to move somewhere else.”

Potter stopped a group passing, handing them Vid Frames, ignoring Chester. He backed up, running into people. Looking around there was an air of panicked urgency.

“Chet!” Van approached holding two packs and a black jacket, “Got you covered. We need to relocate to Acheron.”

He hurriedly put on the coat, “This is bullshit. We’re sticking together right?”

“Duh,” she grinned motioning to the Vid Frames, “We’ll all be linked in until able to meet. I even snagged a set of Virto-Frames!”

Chester grabbed a pack from her, noting how heavy it was as he slung it over a shoulder, “Is Joey out here?”

She bit her lip, peering around as he did, “Saldivar needs Joey, he’ll be fine. Let’s go, Racket and Henry already started out.”

They set off through the woods and he noticed people moving in different directions. Van touched the side of her frames and a small Geo map showed their location with a red dot flashing.

“That’s our designation?”

“Pick up point,” she nodded, shutting the map off after turning to the left, “We should be there in an hour if we don’t stop.”

Chester frowned at the excitement in her voice, “Did you talk to Saldivar or did someone tell you this is the plan?”

“Racket has extraction orders,” Van wiped the moisture from her cheeks, “When we settle tonight I will teach you how to use these Vid Frames. I would have already but didn’t have access to one. Don’t worry Chet, I’d never steer you wrong.”

“I need to bring something up while it’s just the two of us,” he paused, blowing on his cold fingers wishing for gloves.

“If this is about Henry, keep it to yourself. There’s nothing going on and there never really was. Besides, you and Racket are getting along better so couldn’t you try to do the same with him?”

“Seriously?” Chester snorted, walking faster through the dense woodland, “What a facetious mind I must have if that’s what you guessed I want to talk about. Forget it.”

Van hurried to catch up chuckling, “Oh, come on, Chet! You’re always glaring at him! Okay, please tell me what’s on your mind? I’m sure it’s fascinating.”

“Now you mock me?” He riled after believing Van the only person to unload his newfound perspective with. She listened well but wondered where her true motivation laid, “If I said Racket’s misguided wanting to destroy Allard and The Institute, would you agree?”

He watched her face scrunched up in confusion. She didn’t discuss The Institute or what her life had been like before joining the rebellion when he asked while they’d been on the Locket farm. Unlike Racket though, she hadn’t hardened herself from compassion. Racket considered emotions a weakness and wasn’t afraid to make it known.

“Define destroy,” she slowly replied, “There are hundreds of people inside each facility and I know Racket speaks without explaining details. I’m in the mindset of evacuation and evaluation. There will be damage going in, it’s not as if guards will simply lay down their weapons and walk away.”

“We talked about speaking to citizens. Taking back the neighborhoods and gathering forces. If we did, they might?”

“Where is this coming from?” She sighed, “We can’t do much without shelter and supplies.”

“Why is Saldivar moving us? I don’t think he has a plan. When last we spoke, he sounded defeated, resigned to the fact Ozark could never be free. Now here we are, heading into Acheron like we’re never going home. Who made him in charge of our so-called freedom?”

Van placed her hand on his arm, “He got me out! Offered you a place and kept you safe! Did you forget people are searching for you?”

His frustration grew and shook her off so he could wind through trees separately. Van asked again why he was questioning Saldivar but just shrugged and silence ensued. She shot him concerned glances periodically, but Chester needed to collect his new thoughts before opening up again.

It wasn’t as if he didn’t trust Saldivar to do right by those following his orders. Even he was traipsing through snowy woods in hopes of a better tomorrow but what kind of tomorrow did he want to wake to? How was serving one man instead of another making life better?

There was a loud cry from the forest and Van and he froze, looking around in panic. When more shouts sounded Van said one word — RUN! Not hesitating to follow her lead, they sprinted across the snow-covered ground as fast as possible. There was no mistake that trouble wasn’t far behind as more clamoring echoed through the trees. The pack on his back bounced heavily, slowing him down as Van pulled ahead by several feet.

“Drop the gear!”

Chester stumbled but stayed upright when Wallace suddenly appeared diagonally, scaring the living shit out of him. No further encouragement called for, he wriggled the backpack off and the huge fellow grimaced in apology knowing he had almost caused him to fall.

“Where’s your group?” he panted, “What’s going on?”

Wallace opened his mouth to reply when a black object, the size of a small bullet struck him in the neck and his entire body seized with a blue arc before falling face-first into the ground unconscious. Chester nearly stopped running to help, but when he bent down, another projectile sailed overhead, lodging into the tree ahead.

“Chet! Move your ass! Don’t stop! Duck and weave!” Van screamed, further away than he realized.

Without the pack, he moved easier and in his head repeated Duck and weave, duck and weave, left, right, just so the fear of being hit with a shock dart wouldn’t cause him to make a mistake, like looking back to see how close the attacker came to catching them.

Van stopped when he grew near, searching the area with a determined stance. She grabbed his hand and ran to the darkened grove on the left, plunging through sharp branches and producing more noise than he thought they should be making. Spotting several fallen dead trees, they buried their bodies between them, hoping no one saw which direction they’d gone.

“It was a trap,” Chester realized, trying to catch his breath and hold still as adrenaline made his body shake, “A fucking trap.”

She shushed him and they listened to the silence for several minutes until their breathing returned to normal. Chester huddled down on the cold ground between the tight trees and watched Van. She looked fierce, pulling out a small handgun from her pack. On her hip rested a knife and wished he was not constantly under-prepared for action.

“Are they Ozark officers?” he whispered.

Van nodded peeking over a tree, “Why would you think it is an ambush?”

He wanted to yell but hissed, “You can’t believe it’s a coincidence Saldivar pulled everyone topside without warning when officers were waiting in the area? There had to have been over sixty people outside the bunker but where were they? How did they know we were splitting up?”

Her eyes widened, “Maybe they’re attacking the instillation right now?”

“Or he fed us the fucking wolves to save his own ass! I told you he was off. How far are we from the meeting point?”

“Where are your Vid Frames?”

Chester plucked them out of his jacket pocket, “Can they track our movement through these?”

“Possibly, but I need to go see if Racket and Henry are okay and with these, we’ll stay connected while you wait here,” she snatched them out of his hands, fiddled for a few seconds before shoving the glasses unceremoniously on his face.

“Are you serious?” he grabbed her arm, “We have to replace safety. There’s probably no one waiting but soldiers. I can’t even bring myself to call them officers anymore because they’re flat out assassins. Why don’t we stay here until the coast is clear?”

“You may have a point, but I won’t sit here on my ass,” she inched closer, resting her cheek on his whispering, “It’ll be dark in another hour and I’m fast. When I leave, replace some broken branches to cover the top and keep quiet. I’ll be back.”

“Van,” he choked on her name, petrified she’d hurt herself out of stubbornness, “Don’t be a hero. Promise me you’ll run if-”

She kissed him hard, then slapped his cheek with a smirk, leaving before he could spit out more awkward words. Still feeling her lips, crept out to carefully and quietly cover his hiding place.

Coward, why didn’t you go with her! He berated himself, You’re fucking inept in every way!

Chester gritted teeth waiting for the Vid Frames to show Van safe and replaceing their friends the same. Shivering, he wrapped hands under his armpits realizing without a pack he had no food or water.

“Don’t be a fucking hero Van,” he repeated in the chilling quiet of the forest.

Minutes passed before a vision of staring down on a scene from above the woodland floor popped up. Chester ducked lower, hoping the light from the projection of the frames wouldn’t be spotted from outside of the makeshift retreat.

“Can you see and hear?” Van whispered.

His heart galloped realizing she climbed a tree to look down on Henry and Racket who hid near a dirt road. Two blacked-out trucks sat with no occupations that he could make out.

“Yes,” he whispered back, “What are they doing?”

Van zoomed in on the pair. Racket was wrapping something around Henry’s leg. He’s injured! Chester felt sweat bead on his forehead although the air nipped at his exposed skin.

“I’ll start a truck. Run and we’ll all leave together,” Van said, shimmying down the tree, “Now Chet!”

He set off following her directions. Van contacted Racket. No one spoke, using non-verbal gestures. When Chester reached them, the rig was running and Henry was being helped into the back seat.

“Drive Van,” Racket ordered, glancing at him, “Are you wounded?”

He shook his head, about to climb into the backseat when she pushed him away, “Then why did you leave Van? I should abandon you here.”

His face turned red as anger surged through his body, “Seriously? This isn’t the time you crazy bitch!”

“Get in!” Van hissed, “What are you doing Racket?”

Chester couldn’t meet Henry’s gaze, shame filling his thoughts at Racket’s insinuation as they barreled down the trail with no one stopping them. The truck obviously belonged to the soldiers out in the forest but why would they leave it unattended?

“I told Chet to stay put,” Van snapped at her after a minute of heated silence, “I’m faster and trained for this and he is not. What the hell happened out there?”

“Ambush,” Henry groaned, “I took out three officers before one cut my leg.”

“Chet, there are medical supplies in my pack,” Van spoke confidently, navigating their stolen ride down the road at an unsafe speed, “Patch him up good. Racket, replace the closest shelter available. We need to ditch this before dark.”

Chester did as instructed but having no experience in first aid Henry ended up doing all the work. The man gave him a smile when sitting back after tending to the small gash on his right leg. He nodded, past animosity disappearing since they needed to rely on each other.

The Construct Babes argued until deciding where to go before Van pulled the vehicle over. They stripped it of its supplies and then strode forward on foot through the darkening forest without voicing how fucked their day became.