2009-10-25: Fast Cash

Starring:

Merrick_V4icon.pngMatt_V4icon.pngJamie_V4icon.pngEmily_V4icon.pngSophie_V4icon.pngElisabetha_V4icon.png

Date: October 25, 2009

Summary:

Merrick returns to the safehouse after using his ability to knock over an ATM.


"Fast Cash"

Upstate New York

An hour and a half has past, as the familiar roar of Merrick's borrowed motorcycle grows louder as it comes to the house. This time heavier then they left Merrick and Matt have returned with a small duffle bag. Merrick turns off the bike and says softly, "I feel…dirty."

Matt looks dirty, more specifically he looks smudged and sweat-stained and otherwise exhausted. "Whew, no more road." Once he's off the bike, he leans forward, hands on knees, straining to catch his breath. "We need to get a rental car. How do you sit on that thing without throwing your back out, anyway?" At least with Charity— well, you know.

Jamie was a little disappointed when she came back downstairs after finding a baseball cap and shoes to wear, and found them already gone. But, she just didn't put the shoes or cap on, leaving them near the door and set to exploring the house.

At some point after Matt and Merrick had left to retrieve some cash, Emily had run into Jamie in wandering around the house. They had both been exploring…one out of childhood curiosity, and the other not so much. But, in that hour and a half, Emily has asked Jamie to show her power, asking her all about it, how it works, how she feels, how she has to think to get it all to work. It's a rather enlightening experience, and by the time Matt and Merrick return, Emily feels a real connection to the girl…'s power. When they finally do return, Emily is…well, lounging comfortably, enjoying some snacks courtesy of the vacationing family, TV on and all.

Sophie keeps to herself, actually. She is still processing what happened to her. She contents herself with cleaning, to keep herself busy.

As Merrick looks over at Matt, he sighs recounting the last hour's events. As Matt directed him to the bank's ATM's machine. As Matt stood guard while Merrick raised his hand before the metal piggy bank.

As Merrick's hand shimmered and the atm ripped open like paper being shread with the loud grind of metal on metal. Merrick grunting as he pulled the machine from the wall to get a better angle of the money. The pair getting as much cash as they could for thier issue at hand. The pair getting on the bike like a modern day pair of bank robbers in the night.

Merrick looks over at Matt, "I don't know. We were lucky no one saw us…you know that right."

"Lucky my ass!" retorts Matt, straightening up once again. He's used his ability to make people look the other way before, but during their escape, it was just one right after the other… even though they tried to pick out a less busy neighborhood for the heist, that much noise still draws a lot of attention. The best he could do was to convince them to chase off in the wrong direction, long enough for them to make good their escape.

Momentarily fueled by this point of indignation, he finds enough energy to follow Merrick back to the house without any further rest stops.

Jamie, after spending time explaining her powers and all that to Emily, ends up sitting to watch TV with her for the time being. When she hears the door open, though, she hops to her feet to run to where the two are coming in, "Did you get a lot?"

Emily can't help but grin when she hears the little girl say that. 'Did you get a lot' she says to herself, shaking her head a little and laughing on the inside. It's…totally something she would say, and she didn't even tell her to say that! Emily's the next one to meet them at the door though, smirking. "Yeah…did you get a lot?" she asks sweetly.

Elisabetha has been keeping to herself, and trying not to cause trouble. She doesn't approve of stealing, since she has had just about anything she could want her entire life, but she also doesn't want to argue. These are not normal circumstances. She is sitting on a chair, and staying silent, until Matt and Merrick enter the house. Then she stands up concernedly, and says, "Mister Parkman, are you alright?" She can feel that there is at least some tension, if not a possible headache or exhaustion in the officer. She hasn't given the details of her ability to anyone unless they ask, and then would have just said that her gift is to 'end suffering'. Whether she would be speaking of her ability or her goal in life would be unclear.

Sophie glances toward the door. There's some discomfort when she notices the bag. But she seems to realize the necessity. She pipes up, one of the first times she's spoken since she was rescued, "Are you both ok? Is there anything we need to do?"

As he looks down at Jamie he presses his lips into a fine line, "remember Jamie. We did not steal it because we could. That would be wrong but we took around four thousand dollars to hold us over for awhile." He looks over at Elisabetha and nods to the woman as he leans against the wall and runs a hand through his hair. Merrick's eyes moving to Sophie to Emily, he cocks his head watching her for a moment. "Don't look at me. I just am here for the food." A sad attempt at a joke.

"Try the veal," Matt adds, with no more humor in his tone of voice than Merrick had in his. "Anyway, yeah, there's enough for some supply runs— but we still need to plan them out, make them quick. Don't know how good a job they're doing of searching for us, at least not yet." He flops down on the couch and stretches his legs out. Move over, Emily.

Jamie nods quickly to Merrick and says, "I know! Usedta have to do worse robbing, don't wanna start doing that again at all." She follows Matt back over to the couch and asks, "We just need clothes, a car, and a phone, right?"

"Four thousand huh? Sounds like a pretty good haul, I guess. At least enough to get a rental car and a non-contract phone," Emily comments, letting the bag alone, and wandering back to the other rooms of the home. Her hands are in her pockets, and she's smiling, but what for, she's not about to tell. "Sounds like a good start," she adds, with that grin.

Elisabetha blinks her red eyes, as Matt doesn't answer, though Merrick acknowledges her. Both Matt AND Merrick are tired… It must have been a strain for them on multiple levels to be hiding from everyone, and yet be out in public, using their abilities to try to avoid detection. "I'd offer a massage to help you relax, but I've never given one before. I'm not sure how to do it." Also, she might hurt someone if she uses her right arm. It's not exactly equipped for tactile sensations. Not that anyone here probably knows it's a prosthetic, unless they saw her changing her clothes.

She glances at Jamie as she admits to having to steal in her past. She just shakes her head at whatever circumstances conspired to force a child to live by stealing. "That must be a really useful gift, Mister Parkman. You can tell what's causing people pain, so you can help them better. I can guess based on the type of pain being suffered, but I can't actually read anyone's mind. It would be easier if I could," she says thoughtfully. "But what about your own pain? Should I go look for some pain-relivers for you and Mister Jones? Water maybe?"

Sophie clears her throat, and she says, "We don't have veal, but now that we have money, I can go shopping for some food."

As he yawns, "Well good mate. If it is ok. Mind if I crash. Between disabling the camera in that atm, and getting it out of the wall, and open, and lack of sleep for 24 hours. I am bullocks. Where can I cras' for a bit and catch up on me z's?" Merrick asks with a smile.

Matt looks around, still getting used to the layout of the place, as they've still only been there a short time. "We took the mattresses apart to double up— used to do it in motels when I was a kid." Before his dad went and bailed on them. "I think there's an open one over on the left there." That settled, he turns back and looks to Elizabetha: "Appreciate the offer, but I try to stay away from pain pills. When I first started hearing things, until I figured out how to control it, I was pretty much hearing everything. Hit the pills pretty hard, and— well, I just don't want to risk it, you know? Rather just wait it out."

Sophie nods as she pauses, "I think I'll check the kitchen to see what I can make for supper." she looks at the various people. She takes a breath, then decides to go back to her quiet ways.

As he looks over at Matt, "Wait….you can read minds." The apples in his cheeks begin to deepen quite a bit as he mutters, "I think I need to sleep." Merrick gives everyone a wave as he makes his way to the mattresses. He slides out of his shoes and just climbs in/on keeping everyone on him. He lets out a groan his muscles screaming…thank you. He closes his eyes and is out within minutes.

Jamie, at Matt's explanation of what his power was like when it started, blinks, "Wow. That sounds awful. Worse thing happens to me is I change by accident. Still happens sometimes." She looks up to those going off to bed, waving to them.

Mind reader? Check. Liquid girl? Check. Magneto? Check. It's practically a smorgasbord. Just a shame she'll have to leave them all behind when she eventually does split the scene. When? Who knows. Soon, maybe. For the moment though, they've got cash and a place to stay, which is better than staying out in upstate New York in late October. When Merrick drifts off towards the upstairs and the sort of dormitory style setup they've made with mattresses on the floor and blanket beds and all, Emily gives him a little nod. AFter that, she just slides into the living room, with Matt, Jamie, and Elisabetha, listening to the conversation, but not saying much.

Elisabetha nods understandingly to Matt. "I see… Yes, dependence on medication could be a problem. Well, I will allow you to use your best judgement then." She smiles and then goes to sit down where she was before Matt and Merrick arrived, and just stay out of the way. This situation is completely foreign to her. People wanting to hurt her? Not within her realm of experience.

Matt nods to Elisabetha, then leans back into the couch, content to veg out for the rest of the current watch (or until the government hunters track down the house, if they're unlucky enough). What's on the TV, anyway? Oh, a Felicity rerun, nothing of major interest. "What triggers it," he asks Jamie, "just too much stress building up?"

Jamie ends up sitting by Matt on the couch now, and answers, "Um… when I'm really scared, I guess. When I have bad dreams… and when I hear a gunshot, usually. I.. I don't like guns." Then she adds quickly, "Not much else scares me."

"Not even the boogeyman?" Emily can't help but add. She's taken up residence in one of the living room's chairs, having pulled her legs up under her body, sitting with her arms and upper body slung a little bit over the arm of the chair.

Jamie looks up to Emily and shakes her head emphatically, "Nope! Nothing. Well… maybe those guys back there again, that was really scary, being stuck there. But, nothing much else." Then she pauses and asks Matt, "When you saved people, did ya save a Mexican guy? Saul?"

A faint grin crosses Matt's face - Jamie looks a little old to be worried about the boogeyman - but then there are real threats out there, and until you figure out what they are, you have to call them something, right? "No, we didn't, I think you already met everyone that we rescued." Unless there was someone that he missed, too, in all the confusion and rush. "But there were people working on the other train cars too, so maybe one of them got him out."

Emily seems to decide that the day's been productive enough. Leaving Matt and Jamie to the TV reruns at whatever hour, she peels herself off the chair. "I'm going to get some sleep," she states. It's just…kind of out there, a declaration. With a little wave to the two of them, she takes herself off upstairs to find one of the mattresses and face plant on it.

Jamie ohs a little to that and nods a bit, biting her lip. "He's the guy looking after me. Hope he's ok." She leans back on the couch, quieting then too. She doesn't admit to being tired herself, but if not sent to bed, she'll probably end up sleeping the night right there on the couch.

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