The Next Puzzle Piece...

[Oracle]

(Christina feels like she would drive Radar out of his mind for answering this, but she had made up her mind.)

Christina: You can get whatever you want. I'm not eating anything.

[Radar]

(Matthews groans at her disobedience.)

Radar: Fine, don't eat anything. But food on the base is as good as food in prison. So, if I were you, I'd take the opportunity to indulge myself before incarceration. But that's me. And that's smart.

(The Hummer pulls into the parking lot of a gas station. Radar turns on his monitor and takes the H-14 into manuel control. He drives carefully up to a pump and parks.)

Radar: Can I trust you to not do anything profoundly stupid if I uncuff you and escort you to the bathroom?

[Oracle]

(Christina stares at Radar in annoyance as he comments about her doing something in order to escape. She puts the thought aside knowing Radar could hear her, plus she is really anxious just to get the handcuffs off.)

Christina: Yeah....

[Radar]

(Matthews smiles and gets out of the Hummer. He goes around to the back and opens the doors. He unbinds Christina's legs first and then gives her a look.)

"Keep your feet to yourself"

(Matthews takes out the key and unlocks one of the handcuffs. Then an idea comes to him. He smiles and steps back.)

Radar: We don't have time to play around. So, I won't escort you to the bathroom. But if you're not back in two minutes, I'm going to blow this gas station straight to hell and everyone around it. I don't care if you don't believe me, I'll do it anyway. You're lucky no one was in that phonebooth I crushed back in San Francisco. Otherwise, you would have blood on your hands. Now....

(Matthews unlocks the other handcuff and steps back allowing Christina room to leave. He starts counting down out loud.)

[Oracle]

(Christina rolls her eyes and groans as Radar stares the countdown. If she was going to try something, she had less than two minutes now in order to do it. The first thing she does is goes to the bathroom. She hates it when Radar is right. When she exits, she looks at her watch. A little more than a minute left. What could she do? She finds a payphone right down the hall. When she passes the phone, she buys a cup of coffee. Hopefully a good enough excuse for Radar. She uses her leftover change to call the mansion, but she'll have to make it quick.)

(The phone rings at the mansion. When no one answers, the machine kicks on. Good... If someone had answer they may try to keep Christina on for longer than she has left. When she hears the beep, she tries talking as quietly, fast and as clearly as she could.)

Christina: Guys, it's Christina. I've been captured. I'm being lead to some place called Omega Base. Not sure where that is, but I'm about 5 hours out of San Francisco. If you guys find me, be careful. Wherever I'm going, Smith is going to be there.

(She hangs up the phone, grabs her coffee, and heads back to the Hummer. She just drinks her coffee and forces herself not to think about what she has just done.)

[Radar]

(Matthews is at two minutes. He sighs and goes over to a pump, he places his hand on it and prepares to send a seismic wave down. But then he sees Christina turn the corner. He frowns and takes his hand from the pump. As she nears, he gets by the doors of the Hummer.)

Radar: A little longer than two minutes. If there's a next time, try to break your record.

[Oracle]

Christina: Sorry...

(She shows Radar her coffee cup.)

Christina: ... Took a while.

[Radar]

(Radar sighs and motions for Christina to get back in the Hummer.)

Radar: If you promise not to do anything dumb, I'll only bind your legs ok? But don't push your luck.

[Oracle]

Christina: Okay...

(Christina climbs into the back of the Hummer and sits quickly.)

[Radar]

(Matthews closes the doors and locks them. He turns and goes into the nearby store. He comes out five minutes later with a bottle of Vodka, a half a dozen blueberry and chocolate muffins, and a bottle of chocolate milk. As he gets in the H-14, he extends the muffins and milk to Christina.)

Radar: Here, eat something real. Coffee doesn't go that far.

[Oracle]

(Christina shakes her head.)

Christina: I told you I'm not eating anything. Coffee is just fine with me.

[Radar]

(Matthew smiles, secretly knowing that she'll wish she would have taken them. Especially after about a week of Base food. Mattthews shrugs and then turns in his seat. Once again, he starts the engine and Anorak comes online in his ear.)

Tina: We ready?

Radar: Yeah, we are. Let's go.

(The Hummer starts up again and takes off. Radar unscrews the top from the vodka bottle and starts drinking it straight. He rolls down the windows and turns the radio on. Some rock and roll station blares out tunes and Radar continues to drink.)

[Oracle]

(Christina rolls her eyes at the sight of Radar with his vodka. Hopeless drunk she thinks, but then hopes that the loud music blared out her thoughts in his head. She rubs her wrists, clearly seeing the marks the handcuffs left on. She is thankful that she wasn't handcuffed again. It seemed Radar was starting to trust her. Soon he would put to much faith in her, and then she could escape. She just needs to wait for the right time and hopes that it is before they reach Omega Base.)

[Radar]

(Radar sighed and sat up in his seat. He kept drinking until half of the bottle was empty or full. Then he laid back in his seat. He yawned and grabbed a muffin. He propped himself up with his head and looked at Christina.)

Radar: I only do this because I hate what I am. I guess in that sense we are a bit alike.

(Radar relaxed his body and looked out of the window. The weather had changed and it had become overcast. Matthews frowned and closed his eyes.)

[Oracle]

(Christina stares with widen eyes as Radar said that. She would have never thought they were alike. She saw him close his eyes, but she was curious now. He probably wasn't asleep or had passed out yet.)

Christina: If you hated being a mutant, why did you just take the cure?