Run Rabbit Run [13/?]
Psych
Explicit
Carlton Lassiter/Shawn Spencer overall; a bit of Pierre Despereaux/Shawn Spencer
~39900 words (total so far)
When strange envelopes are delivered to Shawn and Carlton with instructions and threats, they have no choice but to run for their lives. But trusting a stranger to watch their backs is easier said than done.
"Shawn. Shawn, wake up." Shawn's eyes flitted open and he curled closer to Carlton next to him. He'd fallen asleep while sitting on the hood of the car, the sudden lack of adrenaline and excitement allowing him to slow down enough to grab a little bit of sleep. He ducked his head against the warm body, murmuring unhappily. If it was an emergency, Carlton would have been more urgent. As it was, he only shifted slightly, allowing Shawn to remain curled up near him. With a sigh that sounded almost fond, Carlton brushed a hand through his hair. "Come on."
Shawn sighed reluctantly and raised his head, following Carlton's gaze to see Pierre walking back from the road, hands in his pockets, looking somewhat smugly back behind him. "Must have found help."
"Must have," Carlton agreed. Shawn arched his back, pressing gently back against the body next to him. Carlton indulged him for a moment before sliding down the hood, feet on the ground as Shawn sat up.
Pierre raised his hand in the briefest wave, and then Shawn heard it. The engine made his stomach clench - he might have had enough of vehicles by the time this was over - but the Jeep that tackled the off-road challenge as bravely as Carlton had a few hours ago was most certainly not the black car that had tried to run them off the road.
He crossed his legs and sat up higher, as if lifting his head and squinting meant he'd be able to make faces out this far away. By the time Pierre got to them, the Jeep pulled to a stop, kicking up dust, and the engine rumbling like a quiet purr. Shawn narrowed his eyes at the tinted windows, naturally not trusting who or what might be inside. He uncrossed his legs and slid down the hood, wincing at the pain in his wounded leg.
The driver's door opened, and a large, tall, muscled guy stepped out. Tight shirt, camouflage pants, and he looked like he ought to be wearing dogtags with his short, buzzed hair. His expression was grim - so much for the hope of finding someone fun - and he scanned quickly over the three of them, his eyes singling out Shawn and his slight favoring of his injured leg.
The passenger door opened, and Shawn's eyes immediately shot to it. Of course Muscles had backup in case things went south. More south than Florida, and that thought had him biting back a laugh, leaning closer to Carlton, and eying the suspicious door that was open with nothing coming out.
Shawn peered closer and was startled as a head popped up over the top of the door. "Hello!" Her smile was nice, and Shawn found himself smiling back, eyes scanning over the girl who broke the silence. Her yellow hair was tied back into a ponytail, a few stray strands brushing her forehead in the breeze. Her features were youthful, and Shawn guessed she was probably a year or two from shedding the most awkward years of youth and maturing like some sort of post-adolescent butterfly. "These the two you've been helping?"
Pierre nodded, "Doing my best."
"They're in one piece, so I'd say you're doing pretty good." She hopped down and walked around the door, getting a better look at the both of them. "I'm Juliet O'Hara. He's my big brother, Ewan." She looked over at him, still smiling away, and his firm expression cracked into something warm and amused. "Don't you think they've been through enough to have you glaring at them?"
"The Look's a tried and true method."
"Yeah, for creeping people out." Juliet rolled her eyes, and Shawn laughed. These were good people. The tension that had him in its hold for the last several weeks unwound slightly at the revelation. This was safety for now. This was good.
"These two are Shawn Spencer and Carlton Lassiter. I'm assuming Lightly's told you about them."
"And about Ewing," Ewan's smile fell into a grave frown. "We should have known."
"Glitch in the system," Pierre said with a shrug. "We're alive."
"Barely," Carlton added with a grumble that turned the two sets of unfamiliar eyes to him. He shifted slightly under their scrutiny, lifting his head and clenching his jaw even as he tried to smile. It came out thin, his joke weak, and Shawn elbowed him gently.
"I'm the one who got shot. Lighten up."
That earned them some quiet laughs. Ewan nodded towards the car. "Doesn't look like it's going to go much further."
"No," Carlton agreed, and Shawn nudged Carlton's hand with his, knowing how hard admitting defeat on the car that got them this far would be. But there was some nasty dents in the side and one of the wheels was definitely tilted at an ugly angle. It wasn't going to be making it many more miles on its own.
"You mind leaving it for dead?" Ewan asked, jerking a thumb at his Jeep. "We've got plenty of room for the three of you and whatever you brought."
"What's the plan?" Carlton demanded.
Juliet was the one who answered, taking a half-step forward, a quickly-aborted attempt at comfort. She held her ground and answered, meeting Carlton's gaze without flinching from his scowling intensity. "We get you both to Miami. Check Shawn's wounds and make sure they're healing okay, get you a different car and any other supplies you need."
Ewan added, "And if you need training in anything. We can give you a crash course or direct you to someone who can help."
"And I'll be arranging the next leg of our journey," Pierre finished with a nod. His body posture was stiff, nervous even as he seemed confident in their being able to trust these two.
Shawn was fairly sure that Henry would have scolded him for the instant liking he took to Juliet and Ewan, would have told him to keep himself sharp or else it might be the end of him. Not to trust a friendly smile. "And we'll be safe?" Shawn looked between the three of them.
Ewan nodded, "Completely."
"We'll take care of you," Juliet promised, and Shawn suddenly realized how weird it was, being offered protection by a girl who had to be a few years younger than him. He had a million questions he wanted to ask, but he held them back. There'd be time later.
For now, there was only one that mattered. He looked up at Carlton who turned his head. He looked uncertain, an eyebrow raised, silently asking the same thing Shawn needed to know. It took him shifting slightly and feeling the pain in his leg to have him dip his head in a small nod. Besides, they were right. The car was done, and it wasn't like they had a lot of options.
"All right," Carlton said quietly, first to him before turning to look at the others again. With a firm nod, he repeated, "All right. We'll go. What are we going to do about the car?"
"Leave it for now," Ewan said. "Me and lil sis will come pick it up soon and sell it for parts. If you don't mind."
Carlton shook his head. "Fine by me."
"Grab your stuff and hop in," Juliet ordered brightly before hoisting herself back into the backseat of the Jeep. It took them approximately ten minutes to pull out all of their luggage and the assorted things they'd left laying around in the seats that needed to come with them.
The last thing Shawn removed were his books. Ignoring Juliet's giggles and Ewan's startled laughter, he piled them on top of his duffel bag. All except for one. It didn't take him long to find the page with the yin-yang symbol drawn on it in pen. The ink had faded from his repetitive rubbing, his need to see, touch, and analyze it slowly making the mark lighten and the paper thin. He tore the corner off and left it in the driver's seat, knowing the others were watching him and not caring.
If they found it, the message should be clear enough for them to see: We're still ahead. We're still alive. Suck it. While he tossed the book into the back, he avoided meeting their eyes, not wanting to see their condescension, their disapproval. But when he closed the trunk and took a tentative look, there was something akin to pride in Carlton and Pierre's expressions. Shawn lifted his head and grinned shamelessly.
He climbed in the Jeep, sitting in the middle of the backseat, nestled safely between Carlton and Juliet. Once they were safely on the road to Miami with no sign of the black car they'd been running from earlier, he relaxed, leaning slightly towards Carlton even as he turned to look at Juliet. "Please tell me you have satellite."
"Why?"
"I'm dying for some good TV. The motels we've been staying at don't have nearly enough channels." Shawn grinned at Juliet's laugh and felt himself relax for real for the first time since he'd been shot as his shoulder touched Carlton's.
-----
The O'Haras lived in a nice-ish house in the suburbs, a mirror image to all the ones around it. The small back yard had a basketball hoop and a dog that trotted up to the fence, head tilted to the side when he saw Shawn, Carlton, and Pierre. "That's Rocket," Juliet explained. "He keeps an eye out."
Shawn, who hadn't gotten to ever have a dog when he'd wanted one so badly as a kid, immediately made a beeline for the gate, peering at the German Shepard as he poked his nose through the chain links, snuffling and sniffing until his ears perked up and his tongue licked a stripe over Shawn's hand. Shawn laughed.
"Shawn, come on. It's still light." Shawn looked back to where Carlton had his suitcase hanging from one hand and Shawn's duffel bag swung over his shoulder. Shawn nodded and followed him towards the house. Ewan had them stand back while he unlocked the front door and punched in the security code for the panel on the wall.
"Lightly supplied?" Pierre guessed, bringing his own luggage inside.
"Nothing but the best and safest," Ewan said, his smile seeming a little sad. "The bedrooms are upstairs. There's only two beds, but I can crash on the couch if someone wants mine."
"I can sleep down here," Carlton offered, but Shawn shook his head.
"They'll have a harder time breaking in on the second floor. It's safer for us to be up there," he reasoned.
Ewan and Juliet both smiled at him. Ewan nodded, "Exactly."
"We can settle it later," Pierre said. "For now, Ewan and I have matters to attend to. Juliet?"
She nodded quickly, no explanation needed. "I got it."
"You're sure leaving us with the thirteen-year-old is such a good plan?" Carlton shrugged, only partially apologetic. "We've been through a lot."
"Juliet can handle herself," Ewan assured him with a confidence that chilled Shawn to the bone.
"I promise I can," Juliet nodded, her expression serious, more mature than Shawn thought she should. "And I'm fifteen." She gave a small pout as she crossed her arms in the ensuing silence, "Just. So you know."
Ewan ruffled her hair playfully, and Juliet's pout shifted into indignation. She swiped at his hand with a loud "Hey!" Shawn saw Pierre's fond smile and filed away a reminder to ask later how well he knew the two of them.
Later. The idea that there could be - would be - a later made him want to laugh, run circles around this unfamiliar home, maybe kiss Carlton again and enjoy the thrill of victory no matter how small and fragile it was. He grinned over at Carlton who was watching the two O'Haras with a tight smile. Fake.
He nudged Carlton with his elbow, raising his eyebrows and silently asking what was wrong. Carlton glanced at him and gave a small shrug before looking back at the other three. "We'll be back as soon as we can," Ewan promised, heading for the door, Pierre at his heels. When he passed, Shawn touched his arm. Pierre paused and looked at him, silently questioning.
"Stay safe?"
Pierre smiled fondly at him. "We will. Relax and rest up." He looked towards Carlton. "Both of you."
Carlton gave a curt nod and watched as Ewan and Pierre left. Shawn, on the other hand, turned to face Juliet. She looked worried while, at the same time, she tried to hide it. He drawled, "Soooo?"
"What?"
"Gonna give us a tour of the house or what?" Juliet gave him a tentative smile and nodded. Shawn nudged Carlton again and tried to get something similar out of him, but Carlton barely tried before shaking his head.
He carried their bags up the stairs and vanished, and Shawn forced himself to turn back to Juliet with a smile, saying flippantly, "He's a little grumpy about the car thing, but trust me. He's usually at least 10% more cheerful." It took a tremendous amount of effort not to immediately follow him up and, instead, to focus on Juliet. In the ensuing tour, he never stopped trying to catalog everything he could about her. There would be no surprises. Not this time.
-----
It took him two hours of spending time with Juliet before he felt safe enough concerning her, her brother, and the house to excuse himself upstairs. The door to the guest room Carlton had chosen had a closed door, but the knob twisted easily under his hand. Shawn swung it slowly open, the creak of wood and the squeal of a hinge making him wince, but it didn't seem to matter.
Carlton was sitting on the bed, his suitcase open on one side and a familiar-looking envelope in his hands. For a moment, Shawn panicked, thinking that Carlton had found his and opened it, but the rage died as quickly as it came. He didn't recognize the people in the pictures, and Carlton's worn-down, wounded expression made Shawn's chest hurt. It wasn't a difficult leap of logic to make. Shawn kept his distance, not wanting to intrude if Carlton didn't want him to.
"She seems like a nice kid," Carlton finally said, breaking the silence as he sat the envelope and its contents down on the bed.
"We're safe with them." Carlton looked up at him, seeming so tired that Shawn had to force himself to stay still, to keep himself from crossing the room and trying to take all of Carlton's troubles away one way or another. "Their parents," he explained quietly.
"She told you?"
"She didn't have to." He stepped into the room and closed the door behind him. "There's pictures of all of them downstairs, in places where they can be easily seen. Dusted. Cared for, but they're here alone. They had a sister too, but I don't know where she is."
"So you think that guarantees our safety?" Carlton's tone was unintentionally condescending, and Shawn frowned. "Hardly."
"I doubt they'll turn us over to the same sort of people who killed their parents," Shawn reasoned. "I mean, you saw the two of them. They're close. And from the pictures, it looks like they were close to their family too." He shook his head. "They wouldn't forgive that. Or take advantage of it. Or at least Jules wouldn't."
Carlton's eyes shot to him, narrowed, "What did I tell you about nicknames?"
"She's fifteen."
"Age isn't important," he said firmly. "Don't get comfortable with them."
"Or with you," Shawn grumbled. "I know." Carlton's frown deepened slightly. "I know."
"Shawn, about earlier-"
Shawn held up a hand, stopping him before he could continue. "Let me guess? A big mistake, can't happen again, get out?"
Carlton shook his head and scooted to the edge of the bed. He stood, "No. I mean, yes, it's probably a mistake. A bad idea. One of the worst we've ever had. And I don't know if it can happen again or not."
"Sure it can," Shawn assured him, sliding slowly into Carlton's personal space.
Carlton put his hands on Shawn's shoulders, holding him at a decent distance. "I was thinking. About what Despereaux said, about how he had to take an option that screwed over others just to make it out alive." Shawn opened his mouth to say something, but Carlton shook his head, eyes glimmering with fierce intensity even as they softened in sorrow. "Shawn, if something happens, and there's a way for you to get out, you have to go for it."
"Absolutely not."
"And that? That's the problem."
Shawn shrugged his shoulders, wiggling out of Carlton's grip and taking a shaky step back. "You wouldn't leave me either! Earlier, when you could have gone on foot - you should have." He realized his voice was rising in pitch, his body tensing as he got more upset. "Should have left me. And-" He took a shaky breath. "And you can't expect me to do something you wouldn't. Unless you regret that, too?"
"God, no. Shawn, I don't. Of course I don't. And I don't regret... But. But you have to understand."
"That what? You're allowed to care about me, but I'm not about you?"
"That's not what I meant," Carlton snapped. "But if you have a chance to get out of this, even if it means-"
"No," Shawn shook his head, taking a step away again as Carlton stepped forward. "No, I won't."
"Yes you will. You have to. And if you can't even hear me say it, then this is already too much."
"I can handle," Shawn's voice shook, and he could feel tears in the corners of his eyes, burning, begging him to blink and let them spill. He didn't. "I can handle it. I can."
"Shawn," Carlton's voice was gentle, but his intense expression had only hardened, steely and unyielding. "You have to do what it takes. If you get a chance to get out of this, even if it means you have to kill me to do it, you fucking take it. You understand? I didn't bring you this far for you to let some stupid crush get you killed."
Shawn shook his head, but he couldn't find the words. Found himself running over Carlton's file in his head, the three pictures he'd seen. An older man, clearly the father. And two women, one roughly Carlton's age - that'd be the wife - and one who looked to be roughly Juliet's age. A sister. Ewan and Juliet's closeness was making him miss his family. Puzzle solved.
And with that, he was aware that the silence had stretched on forever, Carlton still staring him down, his own heart pounding loudly even as he realized he was almost perfectly calm. "Say it, Shawn. Say you'll do it. Whatever it takes."
It took Shawn less than a second to consider and shake his head. "No. I'll make my own decisions how I want to. You aren't the boss of me. And if you can't handle the idea of me dying, then maybe you're the one standing too close to the fire, Lassie." Carlton leaned back away from him, observing him coldly. He didn't say anything. He didn't have to. Shawn turned towards the door, aware that he was storming out again. For the hundredth time since this started, it felt like.
"Sh- Spencer." Shawn paused, hand on the knob, turning to look at Carlton who was still wearing a distancing mask, trying to keep Shawn from seeing his emotions. It didn't work well. He was angry, upset, sad, scared. Everything they were probably supposed to be. "Don't go outside. Not until it's dark."
He gave a brief nod, opened the door, and walked out thinking that maybe he'd go outside and play with Rocket. With the close crowd of houses around them, he'd be able to see anyone trying to sneak up on him or aim at him while he was in the yard. He'd be fine.
He'd be fine.
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