Joey had seen the way JC had paled when he'd turned to face them, and despite his best efforts to move as fast as possible, he hadn't been able to reach JC in time to catch him. JC, for his part, remained upright, and when Joey finally made it to him, he gently gripped his shoulders.

"You still with me, C?"

At first JC appeared to be out of it, but then he looked up at him. "Yeah," he said. "Yeah, I'm okay."

It was an automatic response - one that Joey ignored. JC was not okay, and that much was obvious. He knew JC realized it too even if he didn't say anything. The way he was avoiding Joey's gaze told him everything, or so he thought. When Joey finally managed to duck his head and catch JC's eyes, he was taken aback by what he saw there. The once vibrant blue eyes were now dull and had turned a gray-ish blue, and Joey suspected the poison currently coursing through JC's veins was only a small reason behind it. There was no fight behind JC's gaze, the resignation of his impending death clear to see.

Joey opened his mouth to say something to JC about it when nearby he heard Justin ask loudly, "Chris, what happened to your leg?"

When Joey had run over to JC, Lance and Justin had gone to Chris. Joey hadn't paid them any mind at first, knowing they could handle Chris for a moment while he made sure JC was alright. But now, Joey followed JC's lead and turned to look at his oldest friend.

Justin hadn't specified what leg, but it didn't take long to figure out which he'd meant. There was a small hole in the left pant leg of Chris's jeans, which was offset by a huge bloodstain that surrounded it. Joey's head had just put together the pieces when Chris mumbled, "I was shot."

For the first time, Joey took a good look at Chris. His face was pale - maybe paler than JC's - and his forehead was damp with sweat. It seemed obvious the gunshot was the major culprit, but Joey was certain the sun beating down on them wasn't helping. While it may be winter, the sun in California was still quite strong.

"Let's get out of the sun," Joey said. He looked at Chris. "Can you walk?"

Chris waved his hand in a dismissive gesture. "Yeah, of course," he said, already trying to push himself to his feet in such a way that he didn't immediately put all his weight on his injured leg.

Joey sighed and shot a look to Lance, who just nodded appearing just as frustrated. Justin had already reached out, grabbing Chris's arm in attempt to take some of the weight from him and provide leverage. Lance came up on Chris's other side, forcing the older man to wrap his arm around his shoulders.

Satisfied that Lance and Justin could help Chris get to his feet and out of the sun, Joey turned back to JC only to realize he was already halfway to his feet. Joey quickly jumped up, ready to offer assistance as needed. And even though JC squinted and put a hand to his head, he got upright without any issue.

Lance and Justin had helped Chris to stand and with him supported between the two of them, they led the way to the shade the barn provided. Joey started to follow only to realize that JC hadn't moved. He stopped and found JC looking off beyond the house, his gaze unfocused. Frowning, Joey reached out and put a hand on JC's shoulder, planning on asking him what he was thinking about so intently. But as soon as his hand made contact, JC blinked and shook himself out of his stupor. He walked towards the shade without Joey having to say anything.

As they stepped into the now abandoned barn, Joey felt an instant drop in temperature. It wasn't extremely hot, but having been in the direct sunlight, there was a noticeable difference once you were removed from it. Lance and Justin had lowered Chris back to the ground, who was grimacing in pain from the strain and movement on his injured leg. At least that was what Joey assumed.

"JC, why don't you come sit down?" Lance asked.

Joey followed Lance's gaze and saw that JC was leaning into the doorjamb of the open door they'd all just come through. His back was to them, and he was looking out at the area they'd just left. It was a position Joey had seen him in plenty of times before, but this time lacked the casual easiness. Instead, it looked like the doorjamb was providing more support than would normally be necessary.

It didn't seem like JC had even heard Lance, and Joey was going to say something only for JC to push off the door and turn around. "You guys need to leave," JC announced.

"Don't be stupid, JC," Justin said. "We're not leaving you here."

JC stepped further into the barn, holding eye contact with Justin. "Yes, you are."

The tone in JC's voice said it was a fact and not something that was up for discussion. Of course, they all disagreed with that, and naturally Chris was the one to vocalize it first.

"Like hell we are," Chris said, haphazardly pushing himself to his feet. Lance tried to step in and help, but Chris pushed his hands away. Joey suspected it had more to do with him convincing JC than being too proud to accept help. "If you honestly think we're going to just leave you here to die alone, then you're an idiot."

"Chris!" Joey hissed, glaring at him. He understood what Chris was trying to do, but to mention the fact JC was dying so carelessly wasn't the way to go.

JC shook his head. "I would just slow you guys down."

"And I'm not?" Chris replied, gesturing to his injured leg. He may be standing upright, but all his of weight was resting on his good leg with the heel of his left foot raised off the ground.

"That's exactly my point," JC snapped. "It's already going to be hard enough for you guys to walk out of here. You don't need someone else to drag along."

Chris stared at JC, but JC wasn't the least bit intimidated, meeting his gaze head on. It was like they were locked in a staring contest, waiting for someone to break first. In the end, it was Chris.

"Fine," he said. "Me and you will stay while the guys go for help."

Joey quickly glanced at Lance and Justin, who looked equally horrified at the idea. It was a feeling Joey shared. The idea sounded good in theory; it made sense to have those less injured walk out and return with help. But all he could think about was they didn't know how much time JC had before the poison took over completely, and the idea they would come back to find him dead...Joey shuddered.

"We're not splitting up," Joey said. "That's how we got into this mess in the first place."

Justin shot Joey a look, and it was only then Joey remembered he'd been the one to backup Lance when he'd agreed to JC asking them to leave. Okay, maybe he'd been find with splitting up then, but it wasn't like he'd known this was going to happen. He suspected it likely would've had a similar outcome even if the three of them hadn't tried to leave town like JC wanted.

"Guys..." JC started to protest, only for Justin to quickly cut him off.

"JC, I love you and I know you're trying to do what you think is right," Justin started, "but just shut up."

Lance groaned. "Justin..."

Joey had expected JC to put up a fight, or at least put Justin in his place in that way only he could. But JC did neither. Instead, he just shook his head and turned around, heading back outside.

Chris took a hobbled step forward, and Joey quickly held up his hand to keep his oldest friend from moving further. "I'll go," he said. Then he walked out without giving Chris a chance to respond.

As Joey stepped outside of the cool shade the barn provided, he was nearly blinded by the sun. Though, it wasn't as bad as earlier that afternoon given that the angle of the sun lessened the intensity. Once his eyes adjusted, he found JC had made his way over to Sabrina's lifeless body, and he was no longer on his feet. Instead, he was sitting with his back resting against the barn and his knees bent in front of him.

Joey crossed the short distance, making sure the gravel crunched under his sneakers so he didn't startle JC. He didn't have to worry though because when he reached JC, he found that he was already looking at him with a furrowed brow. Their eyes locked for a moment before JC looked away.

"I'm not trying to be a martyr," JC said, his gaze having returned to Sabrina's dead body in front of him. "I just want you guys to get to safety."

"I know," Joey replied, nodding. He kept his eyes on JC, feeling uneasy about the dead body between them, especially when there was a poison slowly making its way through JC. "But we're not leaving here without you."

"I don't want you guys to watch me die."

"Who says you're going to die?" JC actually lifted his head so he could look at Joey, giving him an are-you-serious look. Joey continued, "I mean it, JC. You know what's going to happen if you stay here. But if you come with us...who knows. Your fate might stay the same, but at least there's a chance for a different outcome."

JC said nothing. He just looked out into the distance, ignoring the body laying in front of him. Joey could tell he didn't believe what he was saying, that JC believed he was going to die no matter what. But Joey remembered the guilt he saw on JC's face when pleading with Tommie to just kill him, and he wondered if that was why he didn't even want to fight for a chance to live.

"I know you feel responsible for everything that happened, but it's not your fault. You were manipulated, and you don't deserve what's happening to you any more than we do," Joey said. "So why not at least try to fight? If not for you then for us."

JC remained silent, and Joey worried he hadn't said the right thing to get through to him. Though, he didn't know what else he could say. Ultimately, they couldn't force JC to at least try to change his fate by leaving with them. And if JC decided to stay, Joey knew the rest of them weren't going anywhere.

"Okay," JC said at last, his voice quiet.

Joey looked down at him in surprise. He almost wanted to ask JC to repeat himself or if he was sure, but he was afraid questioning JC would result in him changing his mind. So all he said then was, "Well, c'mon. Let's get the hell out of here."

Then Joey reached out his hand, offering assistance to JC in getting off the ground. JC accepted the help without a word, allowing Joey to help pull him to his feet. He only swayed slightly when he was upright, and Joey's hold on him kept him upright until he got his feet under him.

They heard footsteps behind them, and they turned to find the other three coming out of the barn. Chris was hobbling a bit, but the determined look on his face told Joey he was refusing any help from Lance or Justin. At least for the moment. Once again, his attention seemed to be solely focused on JC.

"So are we staying or going?" Chris asked.

"Going," JC said. It was said firmly, but Joey could see the hesitation on JC's face and knew he still wasn't completely convinced it was the best decision for him to walk out with them.

Chris stared at JC for a long moment before he gave a single nod. "Okay."

"Should we check the house first?" Lance asked, looking over his shoulder at the old building that appeared completely undisturbed. "You know, see if there are any supplies or anything we can use?"

"Like what?" Chris said. "The house doesn't exactly give off the lived-in vibe. It's probably locked anyway, so unless you want to break into some gang leader's hang out..."

Lance sighed. "It's at least worth a try." He then turned to Justin. "C'mon, let's check real fast."

Justin made a face like he was wondering why him, but surprisingly he didn't fight Lance on it. The two of them walked away, and Joey looked back at JC to find that he was once again looking down at Sabrina's dead body. He gave an awkward little cough.

"Should we do something with her?" he asked.

JC tore his gaze away from Sabrina and shook his head. "No."

Joey was relieved. The last thing he wanted to do was touch a dead person, but at the same time...was that what JC really wanted? He'd spent time with Sabrina and while she'd sounded awful in the little bit JC had shared with them, surely he had to feel something about leaving her behind like this. But almost instantly he remembered JC's concern about slowing them down. This was likely the same thing.

"We can come back for her," Joey started. "You know, when we make it to the next town."

Joey knew he was making a lot of assumptions with that simple statement, but damn it, he refused to think anything other than they would make it to that town and JC would survive. He did know how JC felt though, and he was ready for him to snap that he wouldn't be back to retrieve her body because he would be dead himself. What he didn't expect was JC to get angry at the insinuation that he cared what happened to her.

"I don't give a shit. She can stay here and rot for all I care."

Joey exchanged a concerned look with Chris over JC's head. This kind of bitterness and callousness wasn't something they saw from JC. Chris took a tentative step forward. "JC..."

"You guys don't get it," JC cut him off, glancing at both of them. "She was an awful person. I'm not going to say she deserved what happened to her, but...I don't feel bad that she's gone either."

Joey wanted to press the issue, but before he could, Lance and Justin returned announcing that the house was locked. They had tried the front door and the back door with no luck. But they had also peered into some of the ground floor windows and discovered that Chris was probably right - the sparse furnishings pointed towards it being nearly abandoned.

"What's going on here?" Justin asked after Lance was done explaining, glancing at each of them suspiciously. "Are we still leaving?"

"Yes," JC said, firmly. And that was the end of that, any talk of Sabrina was officially dropped.

Without another word, the five of them slowly made their way down the long driveway that led to the road. Lance led the way, and Justin fell to the back to walk in step with JC. Joey watched Chris hobble for a few paces before he stepped forward and moved in right next to him, throwing Chris's arm over his shoulder and forcing him to accept the help. It was slow going, but at least they were moving. All that mattered was getting as far away from that place as possible and finding someone who could help them. And in time.

Joey forced that thought away. It might be true, but he couldn't afford to think about the fact that JC was dying and had a limited amount of time before the poison completely shut down every one of his organs. They were going to get JC help before that could happen. They just had to.

It took at least ten minutes to reach the end of the driveway, and they paused briefly trying to get their bearings.

"Which way?" Lance asked.

"Left," JC said.

Joey turned his head, about to ask how JC knew when he remembered that JC had driven here of his own freewill earlier that day.

"Are you sure?" Justin asked.

"It's the way I came," JC replied.

"Yeah, but what if there's a town closer to the right?"

Chris removed his arm from Joey's shoulder and stepped away, turning around so he could face JC and Justin. "And what if it takes us further out into the desert?" he countered. "I'm with JC. Let's just go back the way we came."

Justin looked like he wanted to protest further, and Joey could understand where he was coming from. Given their situation, they didn't want to pick the wrong direction and later find out that if they'd gone the other way it could've made a difference. But regardless, they pressed on, making a left and following the road to hopefully the nearest town.

They walked in silence, the three of them at the front glancing over their shoulders periodically at JC and Justin. JC was still moving of his own accord and had shrugged off Justin's attempts to help once already. Though, he was looking more unsteady on his feet with each glance Joey gave him, and it made him wonder how long JC would last before he either accepted help or just refused to go any farther.

Joey didn't know how much time had passed when he finally got his answer; all he heard was a scraping noise and Justin's alarmed shout. He and Chris turned on the spot just in time to see JC fall on his hands and knees.

"What happened?" Lance asked, having stopped and coming up behind Joey and Chris to see what was going on.

"He tripped," Justin said, crouching next to JC. He put a gentle hand on his back. "C'mon, C. Let me help, huh?"

Even though Justin hadn't elaborated on how JC had tripped, Joey knew that JC had done so over his own feet. It wasn't a hard thing to imagine given the unsteady way he'd been walking, and the fact that it'd been getting worse and worse the further they walked.

JC shrugged off Justin's hand and slowly straightened so he was sitting up, resting on his knees. "No, it's fine."

"It most certainly is not fine!" Justin objected. "From the day all this shit started, you've been pushing us away and refusing to let us help you. But you have no choice now. Your body is giving out on you, and not even your stubbornness can keep you going anymore. So just take my hand damn it and let me help you walk out of here."

But Justin didn't even offer his hand to JC, rather he just grabbed onto JC's bicep and started pulling the older man to his feet. At least until JC yanked his arm out of Justin's grasp, wincing as he did so.

"No," JC said. "I'm not going with you. I'm done."

"JC..." Lance started. There was a look of hesitation on his face, like he wasn't sure what to say. What he settled for was, "You don't mean that."

JC nodded slowly. "Yes, I do. I can't..." He paused, closing his eyes and clenching his hands into fists. "I physically can't keep going. My body it's...I can't."

Joey took a closer look at JC and frowned. Their faces were red from the heat and exertion of walking, it having been hours since they'd last eaten or drank anything. But JC...while, his cheeks were tinged pink from the sun, his skin was pale and his lips were cracking and turning white around the edges. Joey could only imagine it was a symptom of the poison because while he was thirsty, none of them were dehydrated enough to be in a similar state.

"So let me help," Justin said, trying to be soft and understanding, but Joey could still hear the frustration he was biting back.

Justin reached out again, but JC jerked away. "No!" he said. He didn't glare up at Justin, but his determined expression made it clear he wasn't going to be swayed. "I'm not going to be responsible for slowing you down even more."

"And what does that say about me?" Chris demanded. "How is Justin helping you like Joey's been helping me any different?"

This time JC did glare, his steely blue eyes locked on Chris as he exclaimed, "Because you're not a dead man walking!"

Joey's stomach dropped, and the expression on Lance's face told him he'd had a similar experience. Justin looked like he was on the verge of tears, though he was desperately trying to rein in his emotions. Chris though, he didn't need a second to respond. Worlds came to him without a moment's hesitation.

"You honestly think we're going to just leave you here? Let you die on the side of the road? Alone?"

Something caught Joey's attention out of the corner of his eye, diverting his attention from the growing tension between his friends. He turned his head fully expecting to just see a bird flying by or even nothing at all - that he'd just imagined something to distract him from the painful conversation taking place. But surprisingly, it was none of those things. There was a car coming down the road, getting closer to them by the second.

"Guys..." Joey said, trying to get their attention while not wanting to remove his gaze from the vehicle coming their way. Friend or foe? It was hard to say, and he wanted some input on what they should do. Not that they could really go anywhere if it was Tommie or any of his henchmen given that they were in the middle of the desert with not so much as a bush near them. Still, they could at least be prepared to put up a fight if it came to that.

But they didn't hear him. JC just responded to Chris saying, "It's not about that. It's about getting you guys out of here and to help."

"You think you're doing the noble thing, but you're not. If the roles were reversed, you would expect us to fight it. But here you are ready to give up. You're a hypocrite."

The car was nearly upon them, and Joey's apprehension grew as he realized the large SUV was slowing down as it approached them. "Guys!" he snapped, his voice taking on a tone he almost never used. One that told them to shut up and listen, and thankfully they did.

Chris and Lance turned expectantly towards the road and the vehicle, while JC finally allowed Justin to help him to his feet. He was wobbly, and Justin wrapped an arm around his shoulders. It looked casual enough, but Joey could tell the grip was as much about protecting JC as it was for support.

The SUV slowed to a stop in front of them, and they all tensed as the passenger window was powered down. It looked very much like the SUVs Tommie's henchmen had driven, so Joey was surprised and a bit relieved to find that the man driving the car was Lonnie.

"Thank God," Lonnie said, sounding just as relieved. "Hop in."

Joey took a step forward, but was quickly halted by Chris's arm across his chest. He shot him a weird look, and Chris just looked exasperated that he had to explain himself.

"He was in on this whole thing, remember?" Chris hissed. "We can't trust him."

"Yes, we can."

They both spun on their heel to look at JC. He was leaning heavily into Justin, but his face held a stubbornness that said he was right and they ought to listen to him. It was a look they were used to seeing from him, but Joey could tell Chris wasn't swayed by it. So he said the one thing he was sure would convince Chris they had to do this - that there were no other options.

"Are you sure enough to bet JC's life on it?"

It was a low blow because Joey knew even before he asked the question that Chris would do whatever if it would somehow ensure JC would survive, but this was serious. JC was clearly at the end of his rope, the amount of time he had left still undetermined but growing rapidly shorter the more they walked. Given how bad JC looked, Joey was certain JC wouldn't make it to the next town. If they themselves even made it that far.

Chris sighed, but he gave in, his shoulders slumping. Lance and Justin took that as the cue and together worked to help JC into the SUV. Joey tried to stop Chris from hopping into the passenger seat next to Lonnie, but Chris just elbowed him out of the way and jumped in. He understood that Chris wanted to protect them, but Joey wasn't so sure they needed protecting from Lonnie. JC didn't seem to think so - even in spite of Lonnie being an accomplice in the kidnapping of him and Chris from their hotel. And if JC wasn't worried, why should they?

"Pretty convenient you showed up when you did," Chris said as soon as they were all in the vehicle and Lonnie put the car into motion again. "You taking us back to Tommie?"

"I'm taking you to the hospital. That's clearly where you need to be," Lonnie replied.

"Where Tommie and his henchmen will be?" Chris pressed.

"Chris," Joey cut in. It maybe wasn't a completely ridiculous question, but it felt like it.

Lonnie gave a long sigh and glanced sideways at Chris. "Look, I know you don't trust me right now. But you have to know that stuff Tommie said about me being compromised? It's true. I may have started out working for him, but I couldn't do anything to hurt you boys."

"And yet...you're the reason all this happened." Chris gestured to the backseat where JC was propped up in between Lance and Justin as well at his leg.

"Chris," JC moaned. "Lay off."

JC looked like he was either on the verge of passing out or falling asleep. Neither would surprise Joey given what JC's body was currently fighting and his usual penchant for falling asleep in cars or on the bus. Still, it was enough to make his gut clench with uncertainty and lean forward to ask Lonnie how far the nearest hospital was.

"Not far," was Lonnie's response and he put his foot down harder on the gas. The SUV wasn't moving at an unreasonable speed, but it was hopefully enough to get them to the hospital in time.