Chapter 15: Emergency

Nel whimpered from the driver's seat. “I didn't see it!”

Alice leaned forward, panicked.

“Is he okay?”

Rob was frozen in horror.

“Rob! Is he okay?” Alice screamed.

“Wait, you guys know each other?” The taller EMT said incredulously.

Alice didn't hear him. Her senses were flooded with concern for Will. Nel climbed into the back and sat down next to Alice.

“I'm so sorry!”

Rob's hands flew as he worked.

The monitors started going crazy.

“What's wrong? Rob!”

“Shut up!” Rob yelled. He pointed with his eyes at the EMTs. “Get your hands in here and stop this bleeding.” he said to one. To the other he said, “Start charging the paddles.”

Alice held her head; watching the monitors and Rob simultaneously. The monitors added sound to her panic...the heart monitor was slowing at a frightening rate.

“I severed an artery.” Rob managed to tell Alice as he worked.

Alice closed her eyes and tried to regain her calm, but to no avail. Forcing her eyes open, she leaned forward. “Tell me what to do, Rob.”

“I need more clamps!” Rob cried.

“Are you sure about that?” The blond EMT said.

Alice looked up....and stared right into the barrel of her own gun.

The EMT had grabbed her gun without her noticing.

“This isn't a real hold up, is it?” he demanded.

Alice didn't say a word. Nel sat frozen, her eyes huge.

The other man was standing behind his comrade, looking uncertainly from the gun, to Alice, to Rob, to Will, and back again.

“You're a tough one, huh? Maybe he'll talk.” the paramedic with the gun turned to Rob, who crumpled against the ambulance with his arms over his head.

“No, please don't.” the doctor pleaded. “I'll tell you anything.”

Alice stole a glance at Will. Will's blood pressure was dropping rapidly.

“Rob....”

The petrified man didn't move.

“Listen to me. I'm sorry we lied to you.” Alice spoke to the paramedic quietly, urgently. “We were just trying to save our friend. Please, let me save him.”

The brave paramedic hesitated, glancing at Will.

“James, what should I do?” he muttered behind him.

James stepped forward bravely. Maybe stupidly, but bravely.

“Look, I don't know who you two are. I don't know who this guy is. All I know is that this is really, really suspicious.”

His friend nodded in agreement.

“I think...yeah. We should get out of here, Sam.”

Sam nodded. “Yeah...let's go.”

They backed out of the ambulance, keeping the gun and their eyes firmly on Rob and Alice.

Alice felt like puking.

Hurry up, hurry up.

The minute they'd closed the door, Alice spun around to Will.

“Hang in there, Will. Hang on. Rob!”

Rob was still in the corner, curled in a ball.

“Rob!” She reached forward and slapped at him. “Come on, help me!”

He was shaking, but he sat up and looked at Will. “I don't know, I...”

“Rob. What does he need? I'll do it.” She yanked on a pair of gloves.

“Yeah, okay...” He shook his head moments later. “He's a goner.”

“No, no he's not.” Nel stood up and touched Will's hand.

Alice was bent over Will, working furiously as Rob weakly directed her.

Soon, Rob was recovered enough to help Alice. Ten minutes went by, and Will's condition didn't change.

“We're running out of time.” Alice cried. “Nel, take my phone and call speed dial four. That's David's number.”

“What do you want me to say?” the other woman asked, seizing the phone.

“Tell David to come get us. He can track my location from my watch. Do it, now!”

Nel made the call.

“He'll be here in twenty minutes.” she said, hanging up.

“I need more clamps!” Rob shouted.

The monitor's beeping became one long sound....Will's pulse was gone.

“Alice, get your hands out.” Rob grabbed the paddles and raised them in his hands.

Alice pulled out her hands and collapsed against the wall of the ambulance.

“Charging....clear!”

Will's body jolted.

“Charging...clear...”

“Come on, come on...” Alice muttered.

Silence.

Nel's lips were trembling.

“He's gone.”

Rob cursed.

“No, no...” Alice stood up and took Will's face in her hands. “No...”

“Try again, please.” Nel whispered. “Please!”

Rob slammed his fist into his palm.

“He's gone, okay?”

“Try again! Now!” Alice grabbed a scalpel and pointed it at her fake boyfriend. “I'm not kidding, Rob.”

Rob stared at the blade. “Alice...”

“Now, Rob.”

Rob picked up the paddles, his hands shaking.

“Charging....clear.” his voice trembled.

Chapter 14: Cops and Robbers

Alice tightened her grip on her unloaded gun and looked over at Nel; checking to make sure that the girl was alright. Nel's face was pale, but her hand was steady as she held her gun.

“Here come the sirens. Masks.”

Nel complied.

“I love you.” Rob whispered in Alice's ear.

Alice grimaced under her mask.

Gross.

“MMMmm. I love you more.” she murmured to him.

Alice whispered a quick prayer as she glanced at Will.

He has to make it.

He would make it. She knew it.

No more time to think about it.

Sirens.

They were stopping in front of the house.

The front door was opening.

It had become a way of life for Alice. She lifted her gun into the face of the shocked EMT.

“You better fix him.” she growled at him.

Nel was holding Rob's wrist and pressing her gun to his side, as they had briefly practiced.

There were two paramedics.

 Alice admired their courage, even in the midst of her act. They were young men; the one she had at gunpoint was tall, had dark brown hair, and couldn't be older than twenty-five. The one behind him was shorter, stockier, with a mop of blondish-reddish hair. 

Both of them were reacting ideally: calm and collected, obviously not about to either freak out or do anything stupid. These two were smart.

“What happened to him?” the taller one asked quietly.

“He was shot. A week ago. And the bullet's still in him. I need you two and the doctor to remove the bullet and fix him.”

“Let's get started.” Rob said.

He could have been an actor, Alice marveled. He looked so scared. Alice paused, realizing that he might actually be afraid. As she considered this, she realized that she had never brandished her gun in front of him. This could be too dangerous.

“We need to get this over with quickly.” she whispered to Nel.

Nel nodded.

“Get him into the ambulance.” Alice commanded the EMTs harshly.

Will stirred as he was moved onto the gurney.

“Maya...”

Alice's heart leaped into her throat.

Please don't say anything else. She begged him silently.

“Maya...”

Maybe we're safe.

“Maya...”

Yeah.

“Why are you stopping? Get him loaded up.” she snapped to the paramedics.

Nel followed the men out to the ambulance with her gun, and Alice grabbed a quick, whispered word with Rob.

“Are you doing alright?”

He sniffed and glanced at her gun. “Yeah. Of course.”

She sighed and touched his shoulder quickly. “It's not loaded. Don't worry.”

He brightened considerably.

“You can do this.” she encouraged.

“Yeah, yeah I can.”

Alice backed away a few steps, nodded at him, and said firmly.

“You better have everything you need.” 

He nodded, and this time she could see that his trembling was fake. She smiled under her mask.

As Alice had instructed, Nel had been driving the ambulance in almost random circles for over an hour. To avoid attention, she hadn't activated the sirens and lights. They drove slowly down back roads and lesser highways.

Alice was sitting behind Will's head, watching nervously as Rob performed the surgery. Alice had made them wait a while to begin; she wanted to feel out Nel's driving patterns. So far it had been smooth, but she warned Nel to honk the horn if an unavoidable bump or pothole was approaching. When she honked, Rob would stop cutting, pulling, and stitching, and pull his hands away from Will's open torso until the bump had passed.

The ride was awkwardly silent except for Rob's occasional commands to the other two “hostages”.

“Clamp...scalpel...suction...clamp.”

Alice bit her lip until it bled. Despite her intense training and tough personality, she felt her female caring side kick in. Will was so pale...and a doctor had his hands buried in his insides as they bumped down the road. She wished she could have thought of some other way to make it all work, but it was too late and she was fully out of ideas.

“Well?” she asked in her kidnapping tone as they waited for a series of bumps to pass.

“So far so good.” Rob said shortly.

The bumps were over, and Rob went back to work. A few short moments later, he triumphantly held up the bullet.

“Here.”

Alice let her head droop over Will's.

“Thank you, thank you.” she whispered to no one in particular.

“I'll close him up.” Rob said, relief flooding his own voice as he set the bullet aside and reached back inside of Will. “We should be....”

His words were cut off in a horrified gasp as the ambulance jumped over a little, rattling bump.

Chapter 13: Liquid Pain

Tyler set the razor down and frowned angrily at the mirror in his room at the motel. He hated the way he looked, but he was sure that he no longer resembled who he used to be; that is, the Tyler Fog that people were looking for.

He'd just finished buzzing his hair down to an almost non-existent length. It stuck out in funny tufts around his ears, now, but he didn't feel like cleaning up. Dampening his fingertips, he slicked the tufts against his head.

What was left of his blonde hair was dyed a nasty, but natural looking shade of auburn.

He had - to his shame – purchased some eyeshadow. It was a dark brownish-purple color, the color of bruises, in his opinion. He had applied the makeup carefully to resemble a junkie rock-star style.

The whole disguise was topped off by the one element that was out of his control...his nose. Thinking back, he had counted three times in the last four days that he'd had his nose broken: the first time was when he met Alice; the second time was his reunion with Jay, the third was his fight with Jay and David.

Furious, Tyler threw the razor and hair dye bottle against the sink. His face looked like it had been run over by a truck.

“No girl will fall for this.” he muttered, realizing that his best tool for getting information – his appearance- was destroyed

He had always been the more careless of the three when it came to girls. Jay had been excruciatingly faithful to Kim; they had both believed Will to be single.

Tyler had drifted from girl to girl, charming his way into each of their lives, then getting left in the dust when they realized that he wasn't a knight in shining armor. He'd been called so many awful names when the girls found out that he wasn't after a real relationship. He'd blown it so many times.

“Room service.” a voice said outside his door.

“Not now.” he answered.

“Sir, are you aware that you were supposed to check out three hours ago?” the maid ventured.

“Yes, I'm aware. I'm...having trouble packing.”

“I'll give you another ten minutes, sir. If you're not out by then, I'll have to call security.”

“It'll be like I was never here.” Tyler shouted through the door, shoving his things into his backpack.

Time to move on.

The FBI office buzzed uneasily as the agents gathered in a tight bunch. It was eleven pm on a Wednesday night, and over ninety percent of the people standing in the large hallway were holding yet another cup of coffee in their hands. Marlowe stood with the rest of them, ignoring her rumpled jacket, frazzled hair, and the growing bags under her eyes.

She couldn't remember the last full night of sleep she'd had in the past two weeks. Most of the sleep had been one to two hour naps in her car in the parking lot, or on the couch in the lobby. She'd been home three times in the past nine days...but only to shower, change her clothes, and steal a few moments of exhausted sleep. Not even bothering to unmake the bed, she'd sprawled over the top and let the embrace of the soft mattress capture her for a few brief moments of rest. Then, it was back at work again.

At the moment, she and the other agents were waiting for yet another briefing from Chambers. Marlowe was the most uneasy person in the room. She hadn't shared her mysterious and shocking call to Chambers with anyone else; she felt imprisoned by her position in comparison to his.

Only a day had passed. Her head kept whirling around with the information she had. No matter what the circumstances, though, she knew that the truth about the boss had to come out somehow...and soon.

Borjes was dead, maybe even because of Chambers.

The boss himself appeared before her. Almost regally, he stalked through the glass doors of his office and into the hallway. Marlowe's stomach twisted as she remembered that those glass doors had been part of Chambers downfall; allowing her to see in and positively identify him as the mysterious voice on the phone.

“Good evening, people. Let me first say how proud I am of this office. The New York branch of the FBI has an admirable group of people on its hands.

“Alright, let's get to business. We have several things to report to the press, but I wanted to get it to you people first. You better take some notes.

“We think that we're closing in on Tyler Fog. We've received several tips claiming that a person resembling Tyler Fog has been seen at least four times this week in the Trinity area. We're on it. Marlowe, I want you heading that team.”

Marlowe felt like she had swallowed a bucket of stones, but she managed to nod her head.

“Good. Now, the rest of you, just keep on keepin' on. Think about how good it will be to get these guys behind bars.”

There was a loud murmur, almost a cheer of agreement. Marlowe didn't join in. She was becoming more and more convinced that Tyler and Jay didn't belong behind bars, and that Chambers was the one who needed a long sentence.

“You alright, Marlowe?” Chambers' voice said in her ear.

She jumped, her appearance too shaken too look normal. Hopefully Chambers wouldn't notice.

As evenly as she could, she said. “Yes sir. Just tired, sir.”

“Aren't we all. Good work this week. Keep it up.”

Marlowe smiled a little. Chambers was proud of himself, obviously. He had benched her and forced her to push paperwork, obviously keeping her out of the way. She had taken the hint -and the mysterious phone call- and left him alone. He had been getting suspicious that she knew more than she should. She'd kept digging, although secretly, into everything that she felt was necessary, but only reported what Chambers expected her to. Even though she hated even the pretense of being his pawn, she knew that it was working...or was it?

Suddenly, Marlowe wondered about her new task. If Chambers didn't want her finding the truth about the Drexler, why was he letting her lead the team? Frowning and tapping her nails against the coffee mug in her hand, she headed back to her office.

Jay exhaled nervously as he squeezed Kim's hand. The two of them stood in the kitchen, waiting for the moment when David would hang up the phone and give them Alice's update.

As cliché as it sounded, Jay couldn't shake the feeling that time was standing still. He tried to focus on the reassuring knowledge and evidence that Kim was holding his hand. She was there. She wasn't going anywhere. He sighed and relaxed slightly.

Still, time was dragging. It seemed like hours before David hung up the phone and turned to them.

“It's good.” He said quickly.

“Are there any catches to that statement?” Jay asked, after letting out a relieved sigh.

“Not really. What Nel and Kim will be doing is dangerous, but we expected that. I don't see this going badly.”

“What exactly are they doing?” Jay asked, wrapping his arm around Kim's shoulders.

David explained Alice's plot, but Jay was hesitant.

“Are you sure...”

“Jay, don't over-think this. I know how much you want to analyze and fix everything, but in our world there's always going to be risk involved. Trust me, this is the safest way.”

“Are you sure that the doctor is completely on board with this plan?” Kim wondered.

“Alice is always very thorough in her undercover work. Trust me, this man is head over heels in love with her. He's going to trust her, no matter what. In return, she's going to do what she can for him as a civilian...protect him and what not.” David caught the expression on Jay's face.

“Kim, why don't I leave you two alone.”

Kim took the hint and sat at the table with Jay.

“I love you.” she told him.

He smiled and kissed her, hard. “I love you too.”

“Do you know why I love you? Because you're there for people, no matter what. Listen to me, though. This is okay. You're okay. Please,” she touched his cheek and brushed his hair away from his face. “relax. Go get some more sleep, let me rub your shoulders, eat some food, something! Just don't worry. You're going to give yourself gray hair.”

Jay smiled a little at this.

“You're too young for gray hair, Jay. Okay? Kiss me.”

He did.

“I'm glad I have you.”

“Look me in the eyes, and promise me that you'll quit worrying.”

He sighed and tugged on his sleeve.

“Jay.”

Shaking his head uncomfortably, he looked up and met her eyes.

“I promise.”

Chapter 12: Plots and Plans

“Otis Burkley.” Marlowe told the man on the other line. “B-U-R-K-L-E-Y. Burkley.”

She hung up the phone and picked up the sketch that she had received of Burkley. She wasn't sure what to do. Otis was the mystery man that Borjes had been chasing when he died. She remembered the smirk on his face when she and Borjes had met him for the first time.

They had burst into an abandoned apartment to find Burkley burning something in the bathtub with acid. He had mysteriously managed to escaped prison soon after, again using some sort of acid.

And then there was Chambers. Marlowe shuddered, thinking again about the revolutionary phone call she had made to her boss the day before.

She buried her face in her hands and inhaled shakily. Confusion whirled through her thoughts. She didn't know what to believe. Had Tyler really killed Borjes? Or had it been Otis...or even Chambers? Had Tyler even been there?

She slipped into her jacket and picked up her car keys. All she needed was some fresh air.

“Lean forward.” Kim said, helping Jay lean his forehead against the chair in front of him .

Jay winced as Kim gently rubbed oil over his shoulders.

“Jay...”

Jay shook his head. “I told you, there's nothing to talk about.”

“Don't you want to go after him?”

“No.” Jay answered shortly. He gasped as her fingers reached a particularly sore spot.

“Sorry.”

“When are we supposed to hear from Alice and Nel?”

Kim shrugged a little and dipped her fingers back into the warm oil.

“I have no idea.”

Jay rested his chin on the chair and fingered the pattern on a pillow. “I hope they'll be okay.”

“Don't worry, Jay. They will. You have enough problems of your own.”

Jay was silent.

“I wish we could take you to the hospital. You're really banged up, Jay.”

Jay's cheeks flushed at the pain in her voice. He loved and hated that she was feeling so much for him.

“How bad is it, really?” He argued, trying to sound tougher than he felt.

Kim sat down in front of him and wiped the blood from a deep cut in his forehead.

“Well...” she squinted at the cut and reached for some ointment. “....besides the cuts and bruises, you have three broken ribs, a concussion, a jammed finger, and no sleep.”

Jay looked down at the floor, but she took his chin and forced him to raise his eyes.

“You have to start taking care of yourself. I know that saying you're stressed is an understatement, and I know that you don't want to be self-absorbed like...”

“Tyler?” Jay growled.

“Yeah. Like Tyler. I know you're trying not to be like him, but you're going to the opposite extreme. Go get some sleep, please. I'm begging you.”

Alice stared at Will's monitors, counting his heartbeats to distract herself from the awkward silence. Nel was on the couch next to Alice, her arms wrapped around herself, biting her lip and looking very nervous.

“I can't believe you.” Rob finally blurted. “You want me to do what?”

“Wreck the ambulance.” Alice repeated, timidly.

This conversation was getting longer and longer. Alice watched Will carefully, afraid that this was too much of a delay. At the same time, she had to be careful not to rush Rob into this situation.

Rob was pacing around the room wildly, grabbing at fistfuls of his hair.

“I could lose my job, I won't be able to explain what happened. I don't even have a technical reason for being on this ambulance.”

“Even if the victim was in your home?”

He frowned. “I don't see that going well. Wouldn't you be suspicious? A doctor calls for an ambulance. When the patient arrives and the hospital staff finds out that the doctor really doesn't know the patient, it looks even worse. To top it all off, your friend's had that wound for a week; you expect them to believe that a normal, innocent person would wait a week, after a nearly fatal gunshot wound? Alice, I know you're smart and good at your job. This, though,” he shook his head. “This is pushing it.”

Alice thought for a moment.

“What if you were kidnapped?”

“Huh?”

“Listen, Rob.”She took his hands and stared into his eyes. “Listen closely, because this gets complicated. If you do everything I tell you, both you and your job will be safe.”

“What about you?” he begged. “Are you going to be okay? Don't put yourself in danger.”

Alice waved her hand dismissively.

“Don't worry about that right now. It's part of my job to be in danger.

“Here's the plan.

“You call 9-1-1. Tell them the truth; you have a friend suffering from a gunshot wound. He can't breathe, and you need to get him to the hospital right away.

“When the ambulance arrives, we're going to make it look like a set up. Nel and I -in masked disguises- will hold you and the people on the ambulance hostage and “force” you to take the bullet out of Will and patch him up.”

Alice paused. “Is this making sense so far?”

Crossing his arms, Rob nodded.

“I'll make sure that they don't get a look at Will's face.” Alice continued. “Nel will drive the ambulance while I keep an eye on you in the back. Once you've taken out the bullet, we'll stop long enough to shove all of you out the back, and drive away. We'll crash it and get away before the police can show up, and you will blend in with the others as an innocent doctor turned hostage.”

“So...I'll be one of your hostages? I'm not supposed to know who you are?”

“Correct.”

“Will I ever see you again?”

“We'll be wearing masks, remember? They won't know who it was.”

“Okay. I'm okay with that.” Rob sighed. “I don't think I could stand never seeing you again.”

Alice stood and wrapped her arms tightly around him, tearing up. “I love you, too.”

She kissed him and touched his cheek. “Go call the ambulance. Nel and I have to change into our bad guy costumes.”

As soon as Rob left the room, Alice gagged and wiped her lips.

“I hate this part of being a spy.” she moaned.

Nel almost laughed as she pulled the thick black mask over her head and tucked her hair into it.

“You are good at it.”

“I kinda feel bad for him, you know? Leading him on and making him think I'm in love with him?”

“Well, if all your plans work out, how does this story end?” Nel asked curiously.

Alice tied her light brown hair against her head and toyed with the black gloves she held.

“I disappear one day. And he never hears from me again.” she shrugged sadly, then grinned sheepishly. “He won't be able to find me because, surprise-surprise, my name isn't Alice Patterson.”

Nel nodded. “New name, new place, new identity?”

Alice nodded. “David and I will move on.”

“And Will?”

Alice didn't look up or miss a beat. “He's always been a loner.”

“What about Maya?”

“She's dead.”

Nel opened her mouth to ask more questions, but closed it quickly as Rob came back into the room.

“They'll be here in ten minutes.” he whistled in admiration. “You girls look great.”

Alice smiled to acknowledge his comment, then pulled her mask on.

Chapter 11: The Trouble with Tyler

“Good grief.” David whistled as he tipped Tyler's head sideways with his hands. “Jay did a major number on your nose.”

“Shut up. Can you fix it?” Tyler snapped.

“Easy, easy!” David chuckled. “What's got you so worked up?”

“Like I would tell you.”

“Girl trouble. I thought so.” David smiled a little and picked up a cloth to clean up some of the blood.

“Hey!” Tyler stood up to leave. “It's none of your business.”

“Tyler, why won't you let me help you?” David spread his hands out. “Please.”

Tyler smiled a little as he looked at David's open position.

“Yeah....I don't think so.”

Tyler had been waiting for this opportunity. He thrust his full body weight into David at full speed, knocking the other man all the way down with his fist.

David flung his arms over his head and curled up.

“Come on and fight back, coward!”

David only moved defensively, using his arms to protect his head and body.

In his rage, Tyler could barely see straight. The only desire he felt was to keep hitting David.

Jay and Alice burst in from the kitchen, followed closely by Kim and Nel.

Nel screamed, and Jay ran forward.

“Stop, Tyler!” Kim yelled at him.

Jay dove into the fight and reached for Tyler.

“Come on Tyler. Cut it out!” he grunted.

Tyler swung his arm at an unexpected angle to hit Jay across the back of the neck. Jay was ready for him, and grabbed Tyler's arm, twisting it enough to knock Tyler off balance. Jay started to stand up and pull Tyler with him, but Tyler recovered and threw his weight onto Jay.

Together, they tumbled off of David and to the side.

The girls ran forward and dragged David out of the way. Alice shut out the noise around her. Kim was crying, and Nel was shouting awful things at Tyler.

Alice knelt next to David, slapping at his face and chaffing his hands.

“David, can you hear me?”

He jumped a little. “Yeah...let me get back in there.”

“No way.” Alice cried.

The fight behind them ended abruptly.

“No.” one of the other girls whispered.

Alice spun around just as the click of a gun ended the silence.

“Back against the wall.” Tyler yelled, pointing the gun at them.

“Go ahead, shoot me.” Kim said defiantly.

“No, I don't think I will.” Tyler said. “You're good friend, Kim. I guess...” he turned around.

“I can shoot him.” he pointed the gun at Jay, who was crumpled on the floor.

“You wouldn't.” Kim whispered.

“Oh yeah? After everything?” Tyler was shaking, and his voice was on the edge of breaking.

“Please.”

“Stay put.” Tyler grabbed a towel off the table and held it to his bleeding nose, while pointing the gun with his other hand; he was running from them again.

David reached across his brother's chest and strapped the seat belt.

“Call me when you get to Rob's house.” he told Alice.

She nodded and started the engine. Nel was sitting in the passenger seat, her face pale.

“Relax, it's going to be okay.” David tried to reassure her. He didn't dare to even mention Tyler's name.

“You have all the paperwork, right?” David asked.

Alice nodded.

“Be careful.”

“We will. Keep some ice on that bruise.” Alice directed, gesturing at her friend's face.

“Yeah...” David touched it gingerly.

Nel bit her lip as she looked at David's bruised face and forearms.

“Jay's okay, right?” she ventured.

“He's awake.” Kim said, walking up to Nel's open window. “He's not hurt much.”

Nel nodded. “Okay.”

Kim bit her lip and reached for Nel's hand. “Be brave, okay? I know you don't want to be brave for Tyler, but be brave for Jay and Will and me.”

Nel leaned out the window and hugged Kim hard, not saying a word.

The two of them hadn't been extremely close until now. When life was normal, they would see each other frequently on their double dates.

Then Nel and Tyler broke up, and Nel was suddenly left out of the lives of Will, Jay, Tyler, and Kim. The other girls in the sorority house moved out, leaving her feeling very alone. Very alone. Out of desperation, Nel had started arranging coffee dates with Kim. Sometimes Jay, and even Will, would come along.

Those were the times when the idea of a road trip for the guys One of their last dates, when all four of them were sitting at the corner table of their favorite coffee shop, Will announced that it was official.

Nel had been so excited for them, and very open to Will's idea of leaving some of the guys' stuff at her house.

She'd been furious and confused to discover later that she was part of Will's plan....he'd switched the boxes at her house to plant false evidence against Tyler and Jay; notebooks with Drexler and bomb plans in their handwriting.

When Tyler showed up at her door, Nel collapsed in a heap in his arms, sobbing and kissing him. The trauma had mended their relationship...temporarily.

“So that's the plan.” Alice said.

“I'm sorry, were you talking?” Nel murmured, shaking the fog out of her head.

Alice smiled compassionately. “I know this is a lot to handle. And I'm so sorry about Tyler.”

Nel frowned. “No, I'm the one who should be sorry. My boyfriend beat up yours.”

Alice laughed. “How did you know that David and I were an item?”

“Come on, I'm not stupid.” Nel grinned.

“Anyway, you can't take Tyler's blame for him. It's not your fault.” Alice focused on the road.

“David's going to be okay, right?”

“He'll be completely fine.” Alice reassured her.

“And Jay?”

Alice almost hesitated. “I'm...sure Jay will be just fine. I didn't see him after the fight, but I trust Kim. Now, stop worrying about the guys and focus on our assignment. We're going to get Will to the hospital.”

It didn't take long to get to Robert Hanson's house. Alice parked in the driveway, jumped out of the pickup, and turned to Nel.

“Stay with Will. I'm going to get Rob to help me bring him into the house.”

Moments later, Alice ran out of the house with the man who Nel knew must be Doctor Hanson.

Nel got out and shook his hand quickly, and then the three of them worked slowly and carefully to carry Will into the house and onto the doctor's sofa.

“What do you want me to do?” Robert asked, kneeling and examining Will. “It looks like he's had this gunshot wound for about a week.”

“He has.” Alice said.

“And the bullet didn't exit? Why didn't you bring him sooner?”

“I didn't know where he was. He showed up at one of our secure locations a couple days ago.”

Robert nodded.

“Who is he?”

“Rob, you know I can't tell you that.”

“Oh, right.” he said. “Sorry.”

“We need your medical expertise.” Alice said earnestly. “We have his alias medical paperwork, his id, everything. And we need you to help us keep his presence at the hospital as secret as possible. How many people will need to see him?”

Robert frowned and shook his head. “My surgical team, a couple nurses...”

“That's too many.”

“It's the best I can do.”

Alice sat on the edge of the coffee table. “What if he never had to go into the hospital?”

“What do you mean?” Nel wondered.

“Can you take the bullet out in the ambulance?”

“Alice, no, that's too risky.”

Nel shook her head. “I'm not a doctor, and even I don't see how that could be a good idea.”

“I have a plan.” Alice said slowly. “But you're not going to like it.”

Robert swallowed and took Alice's hands.

“I trust you, sweetheart. I know that whatever you do is in the best interest of national security and patriotism.”

Alice threw her arms around her “boyfriend” and, over his shoulder, winked at Nel.

This guy was willing to do anything.

Chapter 10: Feelings

The clock and Jay were at war. He would go to the window, come back and stare at the clock, and repeat. Kim still hadn't come. 

“Jay, sit down.” David said wearily.

“I can't.” He protested. “What if they don't make it?”

“They will! And even if something happens, your pacing isn't going to fix it. Sit.”

There was a knock at the door, and Jay jumped back up.

“No!” David hissed quietly. “Stay here. I need to check.”

David pulled a gun from his waist and left the room.

Jay held his breath, not realizing that he was doing so until his chest got uncomfortably tight. The clock seemed to count off the seconds like they were years.

“Jay?”

With that one word, all the tension inside him washed away.

He spun around, and at the door, the dearest person in the world was standing, her hair rumpled, a large bag over one shoulder, a suitcase in one hand. It was the most beautiful sight he'd ever seen.

Kim's eyes were full of tears, and she dropped her bags and ran to meet Jay. The moment they touched, their heavy hearts were raised.

Jay felt Kim's breath on his neck, and with her breath he felt his own come back to his chest. A wave of relief washed over him, and passionately, he kissed the top of her blonde head.

“Kim.” he whispered, holding her as tight as he could.

Kim squeezed him back. He pushed her away and held her at arms length.

“Are you alright? How have you been?”

She just nodded and threw herself back into his embrace. They stood there in silence, just taking in the bliss of each others company.

Jay buried his face in Kim's hair and closed his eyes. She snuggled closely against him.

Painfully, Jay remembered that they weren't the only people in the room, even though it felt like it.

“Hi, Nel.” he said, smiling at her.

“Hi, Jay. I'm glad you guys are okay. Two of you, anyway. Sorry about Will.”

Jay nodded, swallowed hard, and turned to face the other person.

Tyler shrunk away as Jay faced him.

Focusing his gaze silently on his friend, Jay wished he could burn holes through Fog's skin with his eyes. Tyler wouldn't look at him.

Jay looked approvingly at a fist shaped bruise on Tyler's cheek.

“Nel? Where did he get that nice bruise?”

“Alice.” She smirked a little.

Tyler looked down. Jay didn't move.

“I think we'll leave you two alone.” Kim said, taking Nel's hand and walking out.

Tyler looked pleadingly after them, silently begging them not to leave him.

Jay stepped towards Tyler as the women exited the room. Kim gave him one warning look over her shoulder as she shut the door, but Jay didn't doubt what needed to be done.

“Jay...” Tyler trailed off.

Jay put up his hand calmly.

“I'm going to give you one chance to explain yourself. Don't waste it.”

Tyler looked away.

“Come on, start talking. I have no patience for you.”

“I'm sick.” Tyler said finally.

“What?” Jay asked, concerned. “Why didn't you say something?”

“Not that kind of sick, Jay. I'm sick of trying to get our names cleared. I'm sick of having to put up with Will. I left to hide.” he shrugged and put his hands in his pockets. “I gave up.”

Jay stared at him in disbelief.

“So you were just going to hide in Nel's basement forever?”

Tyler nodded slowly.

“You weren't trying to clear your dad's name?”

“I gave up on him, too, Jay, what did you expect?” Tyler shouted.

Kim stood up and hurried to Jay as he came out of the living room.

“Did you leave him alive?” Nel asked.

Jay just nodded. “You can go in, now.”

Kim looked up at Jay's face as he wrapped his arms around her waist.

“How bad did you hurt him?”

“His nose is probably broken. He's out cold.”

Kim sighed. “Jay...”

Jay just held her tighter.

Nel was at Tyler's side when he regained consciousness. He was still lying on the floor in the makeshift hospital in David's house, exactly where Jay had left him.

His own blood was sticky on his face and neck.

“Hey you.” Nel said.

She had a damp rag in her hand. Carefully, she began washing Tyler's face.

“Do you have another shirt? This one's covered in blood.”

“Yeah, I've got a few in my bag.”

They were silent for a few minutes.

“You know,” Nel said quietly. “You probably need to reconsider some of your life choices. Your face isn't taking your choices too kindly.”

“I know, Nel. I can take a hint.” he groaned. “Is it broken?”

“Yep.”

“I'm going to kill Jay.”

“You didn't hear what I said, did you?” Nel moaned in exasperation.

“Nel.” Tyler said earnestly, sitting up and grabbing her shoulders. “Jay and David are wrong. I don't even have to tell you how wrong I think Will is. They're all wrong. I know it...”

“Slow down.”

“This isn't being handled right. We just need to leave the country. Disappear. Change our names, buy fancy houses and good food with the money we've got left.”

He laughed warmly and touched Nel's hair. “We have so much money, Nel. I have my dad's emergency money. I withdrew it all, so it's in cash. We have Will's cash that we found in the Yale library. We have Jay and I's money for the road trip that we were going to take. You and Kim have some money, am I right? Think about how we could live. And we're living like this? Jay and I can't go out on the street without the danger of someone recognizing us and landing us in jail or dead. Kim is getting hassled to no end by reporters and the FBI. You haven't had too much trouble yet, but I can guarantee it's coming.”

“Tyler...”

“Run away with me, Nel. Even if Kim and Jay won't come. I don't care. I just want you.”

Nel stood up and dropped the bloody rag on Tyler's chest.

“You coward. You unbelievable coward! You know, deep down, that this is right. It's not easy. I will grant you that. But it's the only way.”

Tyler's eyes blazed.

“Tyler, Jay is working so hard at solving this that he barely sleeps or eats. He's killing himself to do the right thing. Will saved you from the bombing and took a bullet for you. What have you lost? They have more reasons than you do to back out and leave. Step up and be a real man, for once in your life!”

“What have I lost?” Tyler was shouting now. “I lost everything. I lost my livelihood, I lost my peace of mind...I lost my father. My father! Nel!”

Nel shook her head and clenched her fists. “No.”

“No?” he taunted her. “No?”

“You already lost your father, Tyler. Or did you forget that he disowned you? You didn't lose him over this incident. You just finally saw the truth.”

She spun on her heel and stalked out, leaving him speechless and alone.

Marlowe tugged at her earring, like she always did when deep in thought. Her earrings had been through a lot of tugging lately.

The small scrap of paper in front of her was the reason for her contemplations. It simply had ten digits written on it, in one of the secretaries' painfully legible writing.

Marlowe's fingers reached out and touched her phone. She knew she had to call that number.

Three days earlier, she and Borjes had visited the home of Joseph; the man that had been referenced in Jay Burchell's evidence tape. Burchell had begged Marlowe to trust him and look into it, then he had run.

Marlowe couldn't blame, Jay, really. Unless he was guilty. She still doubted that he was guilty.

This Joseph guy appeared to be some sort of boss to Will Traveler. When Marlowe and Borjes had gone to talk to him, he'd tried to kill them.

Marlowe would never forget how cold the trigger was when she pulled it and ended Joseph's life. She wished she could have gotten some sort of information from him.

The number she was about to call was the one that had alerted Joseph. From the way he'd reacted, she guessed that the person on the other end of the phone conversation had warned Joseph of Marlowe's knowledge of the tape that documented his conversation with Will. Marlowe had to know who this mystery man was. The excitement and terror sent chills up and down her spine.

Finally, Marlowe picked up the phone and dialed, standing to pace around as the phone rang.

“Hello?” the voice said.

Marlowe's blood ran so cold that she couldn't move.

“Hello?” the voice repeated.

Slowly, Marlowe forced her numb body to turn towards the neighboring office.

Fred Chamber's windows were uncovered, clearly displaying him and his activities.

He was on the phone, speaking the corresponding hello that was echoing in her ears.

She punched the end key, and the phone tipped and toppled out of her fingertips onto the floor. She pressed herself against the wall and tried to breathe and convince herself that it was all in her head.

She knew that it wasn't.