Unity and Destiny Pt. 05

She didn't need a unique butterfly. She needed a swarm of small butterflies, each much easier to find than a single cascading change. Every snowflake among the billions came to rest where it did from a countless set of variables, but there were statistical rules, ways to group these apparent coincidences. And Esther began to put her thumb on the scale.

A fold here, and one wind gust scoured slightly more snow off an upslope branch. Another fold, and an extra few flakes stuck on the lower side. On and on, faster and faster, her mind raced beyond her conscious control, nudging and folding in a simple set of patterns. Thousands, millions of little butterflies. The timing was critical, and she finally finished just as their truck passed below. What followed was unstoppable.

* * *

"Faster," Esther murmured, and Nicola grunted. Javier couldn't see how they could get any more speed. The road underneath the snow might be flat, but the drifts had their truck tipped enough that Javier kept leaning unconsciously uphill, as though his weight might make the difference. And there was a new noise, a big branch breaking nearby, or maybe more.

"Holy fuck," Nicola whispered, jamming on the accelerator, and the truck slid dangerously for a moment. But then Javier heard it, too: a huge thundering, smashing, as though the entire forest had begun to give way under the snow. And then a single long shattering crash. He could swear he felt the impact through the snow.

"Avalanche," Esther said slowly, letting her breath out. "There's an immense tree blocking the road now. Two hundred feet long, maybe nine feet in diameter. And the avalanche took down smaller trees as well. It's a huge blockage, and I don't think the slope's safe for snowmobiles to go around. The first one just reached the debris, and they stopped."

Nicola slowed to a safer speed, and they all were silent for a few seconds.

"Oh my God," Grace said. "You started an avalanche? That's brilliant!"

"I wasn't positive the avalanche would happen," Esther said. "But I pulled down the tree."

Javier knew Esther was capable of something like this. But knowing she could do it and actually experiencing the results were different worlds. He reached forward and gripped her shoulder, wordless with wonder.

"You pulled down a tree," Kat said slowly. "But it must have been about to come down, right?"

"Eventually," Esther said. "It needed a lot of nudging. I used the snow and the wind. The men are starting to argue if it could have been Mark who started the avalanche, or if we had it rigged. But it sounds like they mostly think it was dumb luck, or the passage of our truck that did it. If they investigate, it will look totally natural."

A few minutes later Esther reported the treaded vehicle had stopped as well, and had given up after a few attempts to navigate up the slope.

"They've got a couple chainsaws," she said. "But nothing that could handle that tree. They're trying to work a snowmobile up and over, but the tree's too big. We've outrun them for now."

"Fantastic, Esther," Raj said. "What about the roadblocks?"

"We're in luck. The way out state 70 West is still open. Looks like the patrol cars had to turn around at an unplowed stretch of 89, and we might be able to beat them there."

"Left turn again, then straight down to 89, to 70?" Nicola asked, and Esther agreed.

"Wait," said Javier. "Wait. There's just one highway out right now?"

"Yes," said Esther. "Roadblocks everywhere else, all the nearest junctions."

"Then they'll guess we went that way when they don't catch us," he said. "Or set up more roadblocks further on. This truck is conspicuous, and they'll focus their efforts that direction. How is 49 near Sierra City? Any snow?"

"No," Esther said. "It's been raining down there the last two hours. Bare pavement."

"Oh," Nicola said, turning the wheel to crunch over another small tree. "That's sneaky, Javier. We get on the pavement, so they'll lose our trail even if they guess we went this way. Then we could take that big forest road south, where there will be other tracks to disguise ours for the first mile. Then another section of the state highway, to the valley road."

Javier nodded excitedly. "Esther, could we get all the way east like that? The truck wouldn't be so obvious in Reno. Maybe hole up with Jacob until we can get another car?"

Esther thought for a while. "Yes! We could do it. Right at the junction, Nicola. We'll be dropping fast. Just mud in another few miles."

"Mud," Nicola said with a sigh. "Never thought I'd be so happy to hear that."

* * *

Jacob answered the door in his pajamas, looking sleepy and slightly cross. It was two in the morning. His expression changed when he saw Esther and Javier.

"Good heavens, Javier, you look awful. Come in, both of you."

"There's six of us," Esther said. "And we're fugitives. I don't want you to—"

"Of course you can stay here," Jacob said hurriedly. "Come in, all of you. I'll find space. Javier, I have some dry clothes if you need them."

"Most of us are just as bad," Javier said. "And we have to hide the truck immediately."

Jacob nodded slowly. "There's a covered lot at the casino hotel down the main road to the left. A mile maybe? I can drive you back."

"No," Javier said. "I'll just run. Anything to get the blood circulating again."

The others made their way to the door. Nicola was practically dead on her feet, the result of pushing her reflexes and senses to the limit during the long drive. Javier had taken over once they hit pavement for good, and Esther was amazed at how well he was still managing. She gave him a kiss and he hopped back in the truck.

Jacob owned half of a small duplex on the outskirts of Reno. Inside was warm, quiet, and cramped. Everyone started pulling off wet layers in the living room, finding places to hang them. Nicola wasn't wet, but she stripped to her underwear and collapsed on the couch. Jacob didn't seem surprised, finding a blanket to drape over her. Esther supposed he'd gotten used to Nicola in the year he'd stayed up at the camp.

A camp that they might never return to. That tree coming down had felt like a bridge burned, a past sealed. Esther hoped she was wrong.

"Is there a shower I could use?" Kat asked miserably. Of all of them she looked the worst off, having been least prepared for the snow from the start.

Jacob directed her down the hall, again not seeming to react when Kat took Grace's hand and dragged her along. Esther always imagined he was wonderful with his parishioners.

Esther and Raj accepted hot chocolate from Jacob and sat at the tiny kitchen table, telling him the short version of their tale.

"My prayers are with your family, Raj," said Jacob. "Times are worse than I realized. I'll never forget the terror of that night, even though our area was spared much of it. I hoped we would find another path forward. Military raids inside our own country? We're letting our fears rule us. May God give us strength."

He got up to collect some spare clothes and blankets, and Esther and Raj sat quietly for a minute.

"You were remarkable," said Raj eventually. "Thank you for everything you've done."

"It's my fault you're even involved in any of this," Esther said miserably. "You shouldn't have come to find me at my high school. You and Anatoly shouldn't have been so kind that I couldn't forget you."

"I would have been involved anyway," said Raj. "I was too close to Lukas in college. He would have reached out to me, or someone would have made the link despite Lukas's attempts to hide his past. Recruiting you was a decision I'll never regret. Even if it were only for the mathematics we've done."

Esther smiled. "You know, I had a glimmer of an idea, amid all the excitement."

When Javier came back, he smiled to find the two of them engrossed in mathematics. And Esther realized despite everything, she was home.