Seeing Jack standing by the car, staring blankly at the flat ground that should have been a large crater, Jessie gently tugged at his arm.
"What are you thinking about?"
"Nothing, just feeling a little uneasy." Jack shook his head.
Every now and then, one or two black SUVs drove by on the dirt road. It seed the FBI would be busy here for a while. Perhaps soon, so tabloids or online dia would begin spreading strange tales about aliens abducting tourists in the mountains.
Even a nearby town or village would follow Roswell's example and beco another tourist destination famous for its alien legends.
Jessie wrapped her arms around his neck, gave him a deep kiss, and asked softly with so reluctance, "Are we going to have to part ways too?"
Jack took a small bag from the car. "I'm planning to go to Las Cruces for a day to rest, and then leave the day after tomorrow morning. I'll take you with ; you should be going there to et your friends too, right?"
Jessie's beautiful eyes flickered, and she said sweetly, "Francine still has surgery, and I think they won't mind waiting for for another day."
Jack helped her take off her backpack, took out a small bag of gold dust from it, and stuffed it into the small bag. He then took out a gold bar from the tactical backpack and handed it to Jessie.
"I think this should be enough to pay for your college tuition, but I hope you're clear-headed enough not to let anyone know you have this money."
Yesterday, the two of them weren't just busy venting on the watchtower; Jessie had confided a lot to him, revealing that this girl ca from a modest background and had to work as a waitress in a restaurant to earn a living.
Thinking of how she had handed him that small bag of gold dust without hesitation last night, Jack didn't mind sharing. He still had four pieces in his bag, and with the ones in the Firebird's trunk, this haul should be no less than $400,000.
This was also why Jack had pulled Jessie off the helicopter after she signed those confidential docunts; it wasn't for anything else.
Jessie stared blankly at the small bag, her expression constantly changing, from surprise to disbelief, then to joy, and finally to gratitude.
"Are you planning to be my sugar daddy?"
Jack was sowhat amused and exasperated. "Take it; it's what you deserve. You were very brave."
He wasn't entirely exaggerating; at least the girl's performance in the latter half of yesterday's journey had impressed him.
After putting away the crossbow and tidying up his things, Jack drove the Firebird back to the small town of Las Cruces along the sa road he had co from.
He took Jessie to the hospital first. Saying that his friends would have to wait another day was obviously a joke, but the two of them had arranged to have dinner together that evening.
Finding a secluded spot, Jack retrieved the gold nugget and gold dust from the oil drum. He booked a room at the best hotel in town and began calling everyone to let them know he was safe.
Although they knew he was traveling along a highway with poor signal in many places, Zoe and the others were still worried after being out of contact for a whole day.
After calming the two older won down, Jack video-called Hannah.
After hearing his account of his first close encounter with the n, and how he proudly tossed the glittering gold nugget around, Hannah felt a mixture of envy and jealousy.
"I hate Angela's damn wedding. Why did I have to stay here and endure the tornt of a pregnant woman and her future mother-in-law instead of adventuring with you?"
As expected of Hannah, who never disappoints, this girl seed to have more confidence in Jack than in herself, showing no fear for him whatsoever, only regretting not having joined Jack's road trip from the start and missing out on such a thrilling adventure.
They chatted for almost an hour before Hannah reluctantly hung up the video call to book plane tickets. Knowing Jack planned to rest for a day, they agreed to et in San Antonio, Texas, the day after tomorrow.
After silently repenting for ten seconds, Jack went out to pick up Jessie.
Today's battle had actually been quite exciting for him; upon closer inspection, it was the first ti he had taken so many kills in 24 hours.
Unfortunately, even choosing the best restaurant in town couldn't save him from the cilantro attack.
After enjoying their al, the two returned to the hotel together.
As soon as they entered, Jack couldn't contain himself. Jessie noticed his unusual behavior and cheerfully pulled him into the bathroom.
....
"If I wanted to beco an FBI agent, what should I do?" Jessie asked softly, hugging Jack.
"Stay away from drugs and narcotics, maintain a clean record, dedicate yourself to a relevant profession, and do your best. If you still have this mindset a few years from now, you can contact then."
"If you urgently need money after you get back, you can exchange so first, but find a reliable place to do so. Hide the rest or deposit it in a bank, and deal with it when you need money. The price of gold will keep rising."
Listening to Jack's nagging, full of fatherly charm, Jessie chuckled and interrupted him.
"Alright, don't think you can really beco my…daddy, AH!!"
"We will see about that." He said as squeezed her breasts while preparing for round two.
...
"Listen to your voice now, it's hoarse." Jack said with smug satisfaction oozing out of his voice as he recalled her calling him daddy.
....
Reaching mastery in certain skills not only yields outstanding results but also saves energy. For example, since Jack acquired master-level driving skills, he can easily drive hundreds of kiloters in one go.
The straight highway, while monotonous for the average driver and prone to fatigue and distraction on long journeys, was a pleasure for Jack. He could observe the road conditions only with his peripheral vision and fully appreciate the scenery.
After seeing Jessie off, Jack enjoyed a good night's rest — a true rest — before setting off again early the next morning.
Abandoning his plans to Roswell, Jack returned to Interstate 10. Today's journey was quite long, a full 600 miles (nearly 1000 kiloters) from Las Cruces to San Antonio.
After passing El Paso, he crossed the New xico-Texas border, and the scenery changed, gradually transforming from endless desert to greenery.
While in El Paso, Jack stopped to buy a cowboy hat. The city was interesting; it was divided in two by a river, one half called El Paso, the other Juarez, belonging to the xican state.
Therefore, this place has beco a major passage for illegal immigrants attempting to enter the United States. Jack saw many haggard-looking people on the street, suggesting they must have paid a heavy price to reach the border.
He even saw so Chi*nese people. But he didn't find it weird. After all, living in that country was no better than dying.
He heard that many humanitarian organizations were distributing aid kits along the roads leading to these border cities, containing various supplies.
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