Masked

Chapter Twenty-Three

        It continued to rain as we drove on. I had curled myself into a ball and set my attention on whatever was happening outside the window. We had been on the road for at least an hour, and my tears had finally disappeared. Though I knew where we were going, Diego had told us of Leonard's grandmother's residence, I had no idea where Jackpine Road actually was and how to get there. So, I let Allison focus on getting us to the proper location.

        She hadn't said anything to me, and I couldn't think of any conversation starters at the time. Our entire ride had been in silence. It was boring, yes, but it was also relaxing compared to all the crap that had happened these last few days. From finally meeting my family to then learning we were all going to die, things had been a little hectic. But hey, we knew who was responsible now. We could save the world just as Reginald had always wanted the Umbrella Academy to. I still didn't feel assured.

          Minutes passed as I wondered if we had the right guy. I mean, I don't think anyone would complain about us taking out a murderer, but what if he wasn't the person we needed to stop? What if there was another Harold Jenkins, or another person for that matter who was going to destroy the planet?

        Suddenly, the engine revved and the landscape beside me blurred as we went faster and faster. I turned myself to face Allison, who had a determined look on her face. What was she doing? If she wasn't careful, she could get us killed or at least pulled over for speeding. The speedometer was already at one hundred and forty miles per hour.

        "Hey, Allison?" I asked shakily. "Is everything alright?"

        She didn't answer, keeping her gaze in front of her. Deciding I may never know what had gotten into her, I brought my attention back to the window, trying to calm myself down with the scenery. It didn't work, but I must have fallen asleep at one point. I woke to Allison shaking me slightly. The car was off, and we were in front of a bunch of bushes along with a mailbox labeled 'Jenkins'.

        Allison glanced at the mailbox and then the file. "This is it."

        Jerking upright, I opened the passenger door and had to stand there for a moment. I had stood up too quickly, and my legs were tired from sitting for so long. Then, I shut the door and followed her. Instead of going straight to the front and ringing the doorbell, we snuck around until we were under some of the support beams by their woodpile. I didn't hear anyone outside of the house. The only sounds were of the birds chirping and some frogs croaking. Apart from that and the slight breeze, the area was silent.

        We crept up to a window where the curtains were pulled back ever slightly. As we gazed in, all that could be seen was some old furniture. Not a single person was in there, but upon a chair sat a black violin case. Vanya had definitely been here. We were about to turn around when out of nowhere, a bird came throwing the two of us off-guard. No one screamed, but I know I jumped back managing to hit my shoulder off of the house. Allison was breathing heavily, but we soon started to laugh. For two people that should have been pros in these kinds of situations, we sure weren't doing too hot. Making our way back to the car, Allison told me where we were headed next. In town.

•~•

        If there was one thing I had learned during this trip, it was that I hated traffic. Allison and I had left the Jenkins residence in order to go into the town and try to see if anyone had seen Vanya. They probably wouldn't know who she was by only her name, but we could easily describe her along with Leonard. Our plan had been foiled, however, by some nasty stand-still traffic. I had begun to tap my fingers on the dashboard in an attempt to keep my sanity. That's why I wasn't that surprised when Allison unbuckled her seatbelt and left the car without saying a word. Deciding I didn't want to be alone, I followed suit.