"What?" Robin asked, seeing a smile on my face. "What's so funny? We're lost in hell."
"I think I know what she did. She had time to bury herself in the sand before we reached the top of that first big hill back there. In our panic and excitement, we might have walked right past her."
"You're crazy," Teal said. "She couldn't do that."
It wouldn't take all that long to do, and who would have expected it? We were looking out there, searching for the sight of someone walking."
"I can't believe it." Teal insisted.
"I can." Rabin said. "I think Phoebe's right."
"Well... well, why would she?" Teal asked, the dread and the fear slipping into her voice.
She waited until we were far enough away and then she came out of the sand and probably walked back to where the van dropped us off." I said, imagining what their plan might have been.
"You mean, they've left us out here?"
"See that. Teal," Robin said. "when you're left to your own, you can think and reach conclusions."
"Very funny. They wouldn't, couldn't do that. Why, look at this?" Teal said, waving her arms at the desert around us. "This is the desert."
"You ran off into it before, didn't you?" Robin said.
"I didn't get half as far as we've already walked. I followed a road that just disappeared on me, but it wasn't like this. There was..."
"What?"
"That road. I thought about going back to it I just got too tired. This is different. This is really the desert."
"You sure made it sound like you almost got away," Robin reminded her. "What are you saying now, you went only a little ways from the ranch before you had to take a rest?"
Teal was silent.
"You probably didn't get half a mile away. How pathetic."
"At least I tried." she whined.
"Can't you two shut up?" I said.
"What do you really think is happening, Phoebe?" Robin asked.
"It all makes sense now... Dr. Foreman ordering Natani to give us desert lessons, giving us these clothes... we're in another one of her tests. I suppose. If we survive, we'll be better for it. Something stupid like that "
"Then she knows where we are?" Teal asked hopefully. "In a very general way, maybe."
"A general way? What if we die out here?"
"So, we tried to run away and we died," Robin said. "Right?" I nodded.
"Well, what should we do?" Teal practically screamed. I stood up and brushed off my leas.
They both looked up at me.
"Yeah." Robin said. "what should we do?"
"Survive." I started to walk again.
"Wait," Robin said. rising.