39Case 002: Mission im… possible
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A/N; thank you to all those that have reviewed the previous stories. I appreciate anything that I get back from you guys. Dark.
"And we're sure this is the best place to extract the kid from?" the man asked, his eyes scanning the room, to pause on a slim nervous man twitching at the end of the table.
"Y...yes, Sir, that is the best place," the other replied.
The first nodded, his eyes going back to the picture sitting on the table in front of him. He studied the brown-haired, blue-eyed teenager, a frown marring his aging face. "And the security?"
"We have it in best authority that as long as he's knocked out before he becomes aware something is wrong, he will be unable to… do anything, Sir," another at the table answered.
"I am concerned about the rest of the people; are we sure this is the best course of action?" He asked, the frown not leaving from his face.
"All the intelligence we have says this is the best course of action and that this would bring the desired results."
"Then I guess this meeting is done," the man said, as he stood from the table. He paused to look back at the young eager men at the table. "I just pray we're not walking into the lion's den."
With that, the man left the room, leaving the other four.
"Don't worry about him, Ethan; he's getting up there in years."
"I know, but still, what he says make sense. We're dealing with people that could rip us apart," Ethan said, his eyes going to the guy at the end of the table fidgeting nervously. A smile tugged at his face as he watched the man trembled under his stare. "Twitchy?"
"D..do...don't call mme that." The man said.
"Come on, David, don't let him get to you." The unspoken men at the table snickered. David turned red, and dropped his eyes from those at the table.
"David, how many people are in this building at any given time?" Ethan asked, his eyes boring into the slim man.
"Th… that's not the the problem," David said. "That building… is impenetrable."
"No building is impenetrable," Ethan muttered, "Jonathan, get those papers."
Jonathan nodded as he reached over to grab the papers that David had been looking at. David jerked back, his eyes wide as he watched the other three. Ethan shook his head before he turned to the papers; it was only a few minutes until his eyes widened and then narrowed.
"It would seem our twitchy little friend is right; this building isn't something we can break into easily." Ethan said, his voice sounding slightly amused. "It would seem we are actually going to have to work for this one."
"Are we sure he'll be alone?"
"Yes, Nathanial, we are." Ethan said not looking up from the papers. A grin spread across his lips as he watched the other three men. It was about time he got his own team, and when this plan succeeded, he would have his own team. He stood, before he glanced back at the men. "Well boys, let's get this plan going."
"This will certainly put our names on the list," Nathanial commented as he stood to follow Ethan from the room. Jonathan snickered behind as he too followed leaving only David in the room.
With a sigh, David stood and started to gather up all the paperwork. He hated working with most people, but Ethan and the man's team were the worst. He'd rather be hold up in is computer room doing what he did best, cracking computer files. He paused to look at the picture of the kid; while the stranger looked almost innocent in the picture, David knew the kid was most likely anything but innocent.
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Gunther rolled over, a groan escaping him as he reached out, but he found the other side of the bed empty. He wondered again what the hell he had to drink since he couldn't remember, and he hadn't felt this hung over in years. Opening his eyes, he let the room come into focus. It took him several minutes to realize that he wasn't in his room.
"Son of a…" Gunther hissed out as he bolted up. He saw that he was in his clothing from the day before, and as he scanned the room, he realized that it was a small room with only a bed. He wondered how they had gotten a drop on him and, with a low growl, headed towards the door.
He didn't quite get as big of a bang as he wanted, but he smiled as he saw the men in the outer room jump. One of them let out a loud long line of curses as they all scrambled to their feet. Moving towards them, Gunther paused when he saw a pale Adir slumped into one of the chairs.
"What the fuck have you done?!" Gunther hissed, moving towards the boy. He was only mildly amused as the men scrambled out of his way as he dropped down in front of Adir. "Shen? Come on, Shen, you have to tell me if you're hurt."
"He's fine, Mr. Havelock," one of the men said, as he came forward. "My name is Ethan West."
"Like I give a fuck," Gunther muttered reaching up to cup Adir's face. He made the boy look up seeing unfocused eyes on him. "Hey, are you hurt?"
"No," Adir finally muttered.
"What did they give you; how did they manage to get you?" Gunther asked.
"He volunteered to come with, Mr. Havelock; he didn't want to leave you," Ethan explained; he saw the kid turn back to him and Ethan jumped when; the chair next to him blew apart.
"Gunther," Nathanial tried, but stopped when the kid's eyes swung to him.
"Hello, Gunther, and welcome," an older man said coming into the room. "Adir is fine; he wasn't given anything that wasn't explained to him beforehand. He wasn't even supposed to be here, but apparently decided that we weren't taking you without him."
"That sounds like Shen," Gunther said not getting up from where he was kneeling. "How long until it wears off?"
"The drug should in the next hour; however, his powers are currently suppressed with a drug that will wear off in the next seventy-two hours," the man said seeing Gunther raise an eyebrow at him. "Your mission, should you decide to accept it…"
"Are you kidding me?" Gunther hissed standing up. He glared at the five men in the room. "What's gonna stop me from blowing you all up and walking out of here with Shen?"
"First off," the man said, "you don't normally kill unless in danger, and as you can tell, we have no intention of harming you."
"Whatever," Gunther shook his head. "And lay off the cheesy lines."
"Fine," the man smiled, "Your mission is to get back to the CRDP alive and with your team intact."
"My team is not here, except for Shen," Gunther stated.
"Actually, Gunther, you will be using these four," the man said, his eyes scanning the others, "and of course, Adir will be going with you."
"And if I decide I don't want to do this?" Gunther asked; he glanced at Adir, seeing the boy was moving around a little more than before.
"Then you will be returned to the CRDP and given twenty-four hours to vacate the program," the man said softly.
"Why do I have to do this, then?" Gunther asked his attention never leaving the man in front of him.
"Think of it as your certification," the man said; he turned to the others. "These men will be yours to keep safe and command. They will, however, not help you with decisions or anything like that; this is your show."
"Why?" Gunther asked, not sure why this was happening.
"Because that is the way it is," the man said; he grinned at the evil look Gunther gave him. "You should hurry up; you wouldn't want to lose any more of your time."
"Fine, I'll play your little game, but don't think you'll win," Gunther said walking over to Adir, where he leaned down to grab him and toss the boy over his shoulder. "Ups a daisy."
Turning, Gunther moved to leave the room, seeing the others were watching him.
"Well?" Gunther asked with a glare. "Get a damn move on it."
"But…" Ethan started, turning to glare at the man, "this wasn't part of what you said."
"Of course not, but this is the way it's going to be," the man said nodding, "Get a move on it, you heard Mr. Havelock."
"This is asinine," Ethan said, and Nathanial had to nod his head to agree, stopping when Gunther glared at them. As they stepped out of the little worn-down house Gunther, glanced around at the endless desert.
"Where the hell are we?" Gunther asked to no one in particular. He glanced around at the others but saw that no one was going to answer them. "Shen?"
"The only thing I can see is your ass," Adir muttered.
"Sorry, can you walk?" Gunther asked, moving to put the boy down. He held Adir's shoulders to make sure the boy didn't fall down.
"I can walk," Adir replied glancing around; he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Gunther waited quietly as he watched the boy; while Adir was still pale, at least the boy looked healthier. "We are in Arizona and about fourteen hundred miles from home."
"Direction?" Gunther asked as he stretched.
"That way," Adir said pointing towards the mountains. Gunther looked around before he nodded and started to walk that way, followed by Adir and the others.
"I think it would be best to stick to the back roads and try to find a map," Gunther said as he and Adir fell into step with each other. "How far until we get to a town?"
"About a day and a half," Adir replied rubbing his bare arms. The boy was only wearing a tee-shirt, and even though they were in the desert, the sun was starting to set.
"And why is it going to take us a day and half, oh psychic one?" Gunther asked shrugging his jacket off to hand it to the boy.
"We are not going there," Adir said pulling the jacket on. "There is a little truck stop not far from here; maybe we can find a map and a car."
"Good," Gunther said. He glanced back at the others, seeing the four looked disgruntled, and he had to smile. He turned back to Adir, seeing the boy was frowning slightly. "What's up?"
"Nothing, just trying to figure something out," Adir replied; after a second, he shrugged. "I cannot reach Merc, which is okay."
"Of course not," David said, moving to catch up with them. The man has a messenger bag clinched to his chest. "Ttthe drug… will stop it, you you can't have them hhelpp you."
"Twitchy's right," another came up to them, the man's hand landing on David's shoulder.
"Don't touch him or put him down," Gunther hissed at him. The man pulled his hand off David's shoulders before he glared at Gunther. "Respect is something you have to have for your team members; if you don't, you might as well lay down and die right here."
"That's a little dramatic, isn't it?" Ethan asked.
"Do you trust David with your life?" Gunther asked, seeing three very surprised faces. Three heads shook no. "I trust Shen, in fact I trust all the members of the CRDP with my life, even the newest two."
"I am surprised you are not dead yet," Adir replied glancing over his shoulder, "considering how many other agents you have stepped on to get where you are."
"I do what I have to do to get ahead," Ethan shrugged with a grin.
"I am sure Caesar said the same thing, before he was stabbed to death by those he trusted," Adir muttered with a yawn. "We need to find food, too; I am hungry."
"Got it; food, map, car," Gunther replied nodding.
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"If the six of us go in there; they're gonna know something's up," Gunther said, his eyes on the truck stop. He glanced at Adir; the boy was wearing jeans, a tee-shirt and his jean jacket. Ethan, Jonathan, and Nathaniel were wearing suits. Leaving David wearing jeans and a sweatshirt. "Shen, you got money?"
"Some," Adir replied, "should be enough for some candy and a map."
"Good, go get a map," Gunther said, seeing the boy nod as Adir walked towards the building. "David, can you find us a car?"
"Sure," the man replied quietly.
"What about us?" Nathaniel asked.
"Scout the area; you know that they aren't going to let us have a leisurely drive across the states," Gunther said, his eyes on Shen.
"You got something going on with the boy?" Ethan asked, his grin turning into a smirk.
"He's my best-friend and the closest thing to a brother I have; and if I don't make sure he gets back okay, his lover will skin me alive." Gunther explained, his eyes turning to the man. "Besides, my lover is his guardian; how do I explain to him that I let someone in his pride die?"
"You mean… you… um… mean you're Archer's lover?" Jonathan asked; he paled slightly as Gunther nodded.
"What are you grinning at?" Gunther asked Adir as the boy came back towards him with a sucker sticking out of his mouth.
"I got propositioned and two offers for a ride," Adir grinned as he stuck the sucker back into his mouth. He couldn't help but grin even more as Gunther shook his head. "We should go; apparently, I attracted more attention than I meant to."
"You always do," Gunther said as he tossed one arm over the boy's shoulders and they started to walk away. They paused when a beaten down car pulled up beside them. Seeing David, Gunther opened the front door to push Adir into the front while he motioned the three agents into the back.
"This should work for a while," Adir said settling back to pull M&Ms from his pocket. Ripping the package open he poured several into his hand before he handed the map to Gunther.
"Thanks," Gunther said; he shook his head as he unfolded the map. After studying the map for several minutes Gunther nodded slightly. "David you know where we're going?"
"Yep," the man nodded, his eyes on the road. Refolding the map, Gunther sat back to look out the window and watch the passing scenery.
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"Someone is following us," Nathaniel said, his voice quiet.
"Lose them, David," Gunther said as he glanced back to see the dark sedan following them.
"Iiii'm trying," David replied softly, as he turned left onto a busy street. Gunther glanced over at Adir, seeing the boy was slightly tense.
"We need to get out of this car," Adir said, his voice urgent.
"Shen," Gunther started, but stopped at the look on the other teen's face. "We'll be fine. David, get us onto a main road."
"Why?" Ethan asked, he glanced back seeing the sedan was following closer then before.
"They will not blow us up on a main road, too many people." Adir supplied as a shutter passed through his body.
"They won't…" Ethan started, but he paused when Adir shot him a look. "They don't want us dead."
Adir and Gunther didn't reply, they knew what was at stake, and neither were willing lose anyone on there small impromptu team. Gunther took a deep breath as they pulled onto the highway; he glanced behind to see the sedan had fallen behind in the traffic.
"Okay here's the deal," Gunther said; he glanced around the car to make sure he had everyone's attention. "They may not actually want us dead, but that's not going to stop them from killing any of us."
"Killing us won't solve anything," Nathaniel said, his voice dropping slightly. "Dead agents do them no good."
"Rather us dead by them, than caught by the enemy," Adir said. "Agents that can not think under pressure and do well, they have no use for. Us, Gunther and I, are held above that because of the natural abilities we have and know how to use."
"But that doesn't count us," Jonathan replied; he was worried; he hadn't signed up to get his ass blown up by his own people.
"Mr. Garth is teaching Ethan a lesson," Adir said; he grinned at the man. Turning back around he glanced out the windshield as he let his mind wander. He wanted to be able to reach out and touch his lover with his mind like he had been able to do for the last year and half.
"You okay, Shen?" Gunther asked, worried about the withdrawn look on his friends face. He knew that Adir had to be hurting; the boy always was when his powers were messed with.
"Fine," Adir answered not turning back to Gunther. Gunther watched the other teen for several minutes before he turned back to the road. He glanced at David to see the man kept glancing in the rearview mirror, and turning slightly, he saw the black Sedan was close again.
Gunther was about to say something else, when they heard a low popping noise just before the car veered. Gunther reached over grabbing onto Adir as the car tilted sharply.
"BRACE YOURSELVES!" David yelled, as the car flipped.
Closing his eyes, Adir let himself be pulled close to his friend's chest. He knew that Gunther would be able to take the scraps and bruises much better than he would. Letting out a small yelp, Adir was glad when the car finally came to a halt in a groaning of twisted metal. He could also hear other people and knew the car they had been driving had hit several others.
"Shen?" Gunther said; he reached out to touch the young psychic.
"I am fine," Adir said pulling away. While he hurt in some places, he knew he would live. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'll live," Gunther said as he checked on the rest of the men with them. The others where standing and looked dazed and slightly bloody but okay. "Guys you okay?"
"Yeah," Ethan said as he moved towards them.
"Come on David," Nathaniel said as he helped his team member up.
"We really need to get out of here," Adir said, as he turned back towards the accident. He could see several others that were wandering around.
"Come on," Gunther said as he grabbed Adir's arm and pulled the boy from the road. The other four followed after the two teenagers, trying not to look at the other people that were involved in the accident.
"They took a huge risk trying to take us out on the highway," Ethan said as he followed.
"Yeah," Gunther muttered, "we need to find other clothing, and get you guys out of those suits."
"Um why?" Ethan asked.
"To be less conspicuous," David muttered shaking his head as he looked at Ethan.
"What the hell do you know?" Ethan hissed back at the man.
"He is right you know, three men in suits really scream something is up, and you three scream FBI to begin with." Adir replied as they ducked into an alleyway.
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"I don't like this," Mercer said as he paced the room.
"Not much we can do about it," Archer said; he glanced at his teammate. "you knew this was going to happen, it's not my fault that Adir felt the need to come back."
"They also came several hours early," Mercer said, his voice dropping low.
"That's the way these things happen, Merc; you knew that when we discussed it last month," Archer said; his voice low and angry. He wasn't any happier about this, but it was the only way for this group to keep operating.
"Shen is…" Mercer trailed off when Archer shot him a look.
"Adir is quite capable to take care of himself, and to be honest if I had to pair Gun with anyone my first choice would be Adir." Archer said.
"Fine," Mercer hissed, he turned to leave the office. Archer watched the man leave, trying not to jump as his office door was slammed shut. With a sigh he turned back to his paperwork, figuring that could work on that and try to keep his mind off what was going on.
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Gunther glanced up from cleaning Adir's wounds when Ethan stepped into the room wearing a pair of jeans and a tee shirt. With a grunted nod he turned back to Adir, the boy's cheek has a bit of road rash on it, but at least there wasn't any worse damage.
"My Gunny, would you please stop fidgeting," Adir said pulling away. While he knew that Gunther needed to fuss, there really wasn't any need to.
"I just… damn it Shen, Merc is going to castrate me," Gunther said; his voice dropped. He shot Adir a glare when the boy laughed.
"He will not," Adir said shaking his head.
"Keep telling yourself that," Gunther muttered. He glanced back to see the rest of the team had come into the room, David and Nathaniel had come back with coffee and some snacks. He raised an eyebrow as Shen picked up coffee and a doughnut. "Shen."
"Shut up, I am hungry," Adir shot his best friend a glaring look before turning back to his coffee. Gunther just shook his head as he grabbed his own coffee and doughnut. He walked over to where David was going over the map, his eyes on the red line that Adir had drawn.
"How did he do it?" David asked softly, surprising Gunther that he spoke without a stutter.
"Do what?" Gunther asked dropping down into a chair. He saw David gestured to the map and the line that Adir had drawn. "He just does."
"I've dealt with several physics, none of them have shown any abilities like Adir Shen does," David glanced up to look at Gunther.
"How come you're not stuttering?" Gunther asked, he saw David glance at the other agents before the man turned back to him.
"I um Iiii stutter," David took a deep breath, "I stutter when I'm nervous, and those three make me very nervous."
"But Shen and I don't?" Gunther asked seeing the man nod. "You shouldn't let them get to you."
David just shrugged as he turned his attention back to the map. Gunther watched him for several second before the turned to look over at Adir. The scrap on Adir's cheek still made him very upset, but he couldn't figure out how to heal the boy. He had been working on developing the power that was hidden inside him, glad to know that he could do something else beside destroy things.
"We should get going," Gunther said after several minutes. He saw the others look at him; he also knew that they needed to move because their time was running out.
"We should split up," Ethan said; he could see very angry eyes look back at him.
"Not gonna happen, I'm responsible for you all, I will not have you off on your own until this is over." Gunther said he glanced at David seeing the man looked relieved.
"What you can keep David, god knows he's not worth anything to us," Ethan said.
"Hey!" Nathaniel started glaring at Ethan. "Stop picking on David, he contributes a lot to us."
"Whatever," Ethan said turning to Jonathan only to see the man wouldn't meet his eyes.
"Let's get moving," Gunther said moving to drop his cup into the garbage. He turned to see Adir was watching David; the young psychic looked slightly worried. "Shen?"
"Let us go," Adir replied as he followed Gunther from the room.
"Where the hell are we?" Ethan asked; he scowled at the others.
"Orderville, Utah," Adir replied as he started to follow after Gunther.
"How the fuck do you know that?" Ethan hissed glaring at the young psychic.
"'Cause that sign says it," Gunther muttered pointing to the sign that declared where they were. Rolling his eyes Gunther ignored the man's angry hisses.
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Gunther glanced over as Adir paused, his eyes scanning the small crowd they were in. He could see the other teen was looking for something, but really didn't want to ask. He knew that if Adir was looking, something wasn't right. He pulled the agents to a stop, his eyes going back to Adir.
"What?" he finally asked after a few minutes.
"Something is not right," Adir replied softly, his voice dropping even lower. Gunther watched the boy scan the street again; he waited silently as the boy worked his magic. "Come on."
"Shen," Gunther started but followed the boy. He was about to ask again, but felt something wiz past his ear. He knew in that instant that someone was shooting at them. They ran; Gunther had a tight hold on Adir's wrist to make sure the boy stayed with him, hoping that the others would keep up.
"In here," Gunther nearly tripped over his own feet at David's yell, moving he pulled Adir into the ally they ran down about two hundred yards before ducking into a door. Taking a deep breath he glanced around the room, dropping Adir's hand he took another breath.
"Why the hell are they shooting at us?" Ethan hissed his eyes widening as he noticed that David was hovering around Nathaniel, he could see red on the man's sleeve.
"Nathaniel is hurt," David said softly, not sure what to do.
"Okay," Gunther said moving towards them, he glanced over the wound in Nathaniel's shoulder, breathing a sigh of relief when he realized that it wasn't anything more then a flesh wound. "He's fine, it's a scratch, it'll sting like a bitch but he'll be okay."
Gunther saw them nod as he moved to clean up the wound with what Adir had gotten and wrapped it with a white bandage. Once done, Gunther took stock of the room and what they had. They needed to keep moving, because they were running out of time.
"We have to keep moving," Gunther said turning to Adir. He saw the boy nod; Adir's eyes slipping close as the boy concentrated.
"A couple minutes, they are moving out of the area," Adir said as his eyes opened. Gunther nodded, turning to the others to see them watching him.
After a few minutes, Gunther led them out; he wished again that he would be able to contact Archer. Something told him though that it wouldn't be a good idea. As much as he wanted to connect with the man he loved, he knew that he had to make Archer proud by doing this right and getting them all back to the center alive.
"Are you all right?" Adir asked, his voice soft as he watched his best friend.
"Yeah, I just miss Archer," Gunther shrugged as he glanced at the boy. Adir just nodded; he would rather have been snuggled up with Mercer in front of roaring fire, than traipsing across the country. Looking out over the busy street, Adir shifted slightly closer to his best friend. "I'm sorry you have to do this."
"I will always be at my friends' side when they need me," Adir replied with another shrug. Gunther could only nod; he knew that already, because Adir had proven that fact time and again. As they moved out of the city and to the less habited area, Gunther felt his nerves twitch. He didn't like being in the open like this.
"Shen?" Gunther asked let his gaze continue to sweep the area.
"I will let you know if anything pops up," the boy said. Gunther nodded, watching as Adir drifted closer to David, the man still pale.
"He talks weird," Jonathan said falling into step with Gunther. The teenager glanced over before shrugging and returning to sweep the street with his gaze. "Since meeting him I don't think I've ever heard him use a contraction."
"That's Shen, no contractions with him," Gunther grinned at the man. Jonathan was the quiet one, well slightly less quiet than David, but still. As Jonathan stayed quiet Gunther glanced over again, his eyes scanning the agent.
"Ethan's not happy," Jonathan finally said after a while. Gunther shrugged, he glanced back to see Ethan was walking by himself, since Jonathan was with him and David and Shen seem to have found a topic to discuss.
"Sucks to be him," Gunther replied grinning.
"Your boss must hate that," Jonathan grinned back as he shook his head.
"Yeah he sucks too," Gunther said a small laugh escaping him. Jonathan didn't comment, he just shook his head as a small laugh escaped him.
"Why do you call him Shen?" the agent asked.
"Cause it's his name," Gunther said feeling slightly better as they entered an area that was a little denser with growth of some type of cacti.
"It's his family name, not his name… name," Jonathan replied frowning.
"You ever looked someone in the eyes and knew, just knew that in that seconds they felt every one of your pains, your fears, and your betrayals but didn't judge you?" Gunther asked glancing back at Adir to see the boy was watching him.
"No I can't say I have," Jonathan asked wondering what this had to do with anything.
"I have," Gunther shrugged, "when I arrived at the center, I was broken and angry and untrusting. It was Shen that pierced the festering wound deep inside of me and began my healing."
"Still doesn't explain why you call him Shen," Jonathan replied.
"Merc calls him that," Gunther said, smiling as Adir appeared beside Jonathan. "We figured Merc would castrate us if we called Shen kitten too."
"Your lover calls you by your family name?" Jonathan couldn't quite wrap his mind around that one.
"My Merc calls me many things," Adir replied with a grin. He turned to Gunther and with a nod; they slowly started to correct their course that would take them home.
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"Why the sudden interest in the psychic?" Ethan asked.
"Because he's interesting," Jonathan said; his eyes going to where David was helping Nathanial re-bandage his arm. Gunther was cooking and Adir Shen looked to be meditating or something along that lines. He turned his attention back to Ethan. "What do you have against them?"
"How about, the fact that this wasn't the plan?" Ethan asked; his eyes glaring at his fellow agent.
"And what was the plan?" Jonathan asked softly, "that we left those two teenage boys on their own?"
"Gunther Havelock was to have a small trained team, not us, and certainly not that little boy," Ethan replied his quiet voice straining. He looked away, he was angry and they knew it.
"I am not a little boy," Adir said making Ethan jump; the agent turned to glare at him.
"Stop sneaking up on me!" Ethan hissed moving towards the boy. He stopped when the chair be had been standing by popped apart.
"Touch him and I'll make it the last thing you ever do," Gunther said from where he was standing by the stove. Ethan turned to glare at him, the man's eyes narrowing dangerously as he sneered at the teenager.
"If we can not get along, we do not have much of a chance getting home alive," Adir said; his eyes sweeping the room.
"Yeah whatever," Ethan said turning to march over to one of the still standing chairs and dropped down into it. An uncomfortable silence encased the room, and turning, Gunther went back to finishing up the meal. They were a little over halfway home, having managed to lose the agents hunting them as they crossed the desert. He knew though, that they couldn't stay much longer in the place they had found.
They were halfway through Idaho, and Gunther knew they would have to book to make it the rest of the way. Moving the meal to the table, Gunther let his mind drift over his lover and friends. He glanced over to see Adir was picking at his, the boy's appetite down since this had started.
"After we're finished eating we should go over the route and then get some sleep," Gunther said; he looked up around at the others. He got nods, except from Shen who smiled. Turning back to his dinner, he let all the things he would need. "Anyone got any money?"
"I have five dollars left," Shen offered, they watched as the others pulled out wallets.
"I have forty bucks," David said softly handing the Gunther the money. The others came up with what they had, and in the end they had a little over five hundred bucks. Shifting Gunther moved to hand the money back to David, seeing the others give him looks.
"It's safest with David," Gunther stated. He dared any of the others to argue with him, but none of them did. Jonathan volunteered to do the dishes, with Adir's help. After all was cleaned up, they retired to the beds. Gunther was sharing one with Adir, David with Nathaniel, leaving Ethan and Jonathan to work out the last sleeping spot if they didn't want to share.
Crawling into the bed with the small psychic Gunther rolled to his side to watch how Adir curled up. He couldn't help the smile that came to his face. "Do you always sleep curled like that?"
"I normally sleep on Mercer," Adir replied yawning. They had only gotten so far by stealing another car and taking turning sleep and driving, well except for Adir, who didn't have a license.
"I normally sleep half on Archer," Gunther said with a smile. Shifting he turned so his back was facing Adir, letting his eyes scan the area one last time he closed them.
Gunther woke to loud talking, although Ethan wasn't yelling the man was making sure that everyone knew his displeasure. Rolling to his back he glanced over to find the bed empty, sitting up he glanced around to find Adir at the table eating cereal ignoring the irate man. Getting up he walked over to drop down into the chair beside Adir, moving to snag the cereal box. He watched as Ethan and Nathanial yelled at each other, their voices rising in anger.
"Are you going to do anything?" David asked quietly. Glancing over Gunther shrugged as he snagged a bowl and poured cereal into it. Pouring the milk he looked up as Jonathan dropped down into another seat, the man looked ready to beat someone.
"I wish they'd shut up," Jonathan muttered rubbing his head.
"How long have they been at it?" Gunther asked as he started in on his cereal.
"Since about five," Adir supplied for them. The young psychic looked up, a smile on his face as he looked between the three. Gunther nodded as he went back to his breakfast, he could tell Jonathan and know David was watching him, but honestly, if the two wanted to fight, then who was he to stop it. After finishing his cereal, Gunther picked up his and Adir's bowl before moving to wash them.
"Enough!" Gunther finally yelled glaring at the two arguing agents. "We have a lot of miles to cover, and I'd rather not listen to you all fighting."
"Fine," Ethan hissed moving out of the small house. Gunther shook his head before he also followed him out. The last thing he was going to do was argue with the man. He glanced up at the sky seeing clouds gathering and hoped that the rain held off.
"The car is gone," Adir said softly.
"What?" Ethan hissed glaring at the boy.
"The car was found by the police, it has now been returned to its owner," Adir replied with a shrug. There wasn't' much else that could be said, it wasn't like complaining would get the car back.
"This is just wonderful," Gunther muttered as Ethan went back to complaining.
XXXXX
"This is bad, really, really bad," Adir said pulling a groan from Gunther.
"I really hate it when you say that," Gunther said letting his eyes scan the area. He could feel something in the air, knew before Adir said anything that something bad was going to happen.
"What's going on?" David asked, his eyes scanning the open area.
"Something bad," Adir replied his head whipping around to glare behind him. "RUN!"
Gunther didn't have to hear it a second time; he took off after Adir across the field. He yelled at the others to keep up, barely looking back at them. He really couldn't hold their hands too, he needed to keep up with Adir and make sure the boy got across the field. A cry escaped him as he felt a sheering pain slam into the front of his shoulder.
"Gunther!" Adir hissed moving back towards his friend. He grabbed Gunther, seeing David reach out to grab the other side of the teens arm. They managed to get Gunther into the line of trees, moving to lay the teenager down Adir went over Gunther's body finding the bullet wound. "Damn it!"
"What?" David asked, his eyes going around seeing the rest of the team had made the trees. Nathaniel dropping down beside them, his eyes worried.
"The wound is trying to heal, I have to get the bullet out," Adir stated shifting around Gunther so he was closer to the wounded shoulder. "You two are going to have to hold him down."
"Shen, it's okay," Gunther hissed through the pain.
"No, it is not, you can not heal over the bullet," Adir shook his head; he moved to straddle the teens chest. Leaning he placed his left hand just below the wound on Gunther's right shoulder. "I will not kid you, this is going to hurt."
"Yeah I get it," Gunther nodded as he closed his eyes.
"What are you going to do?" Jonathan asked; his eyes wide as he watched Adir lean forward to press Gunther hard into the ground. Holding his hand above the wound he concentrated hard, knowing that once he grabbed a hold of the bullet it would take a lot out of him to pull it out. Gunther let out a yell as the other two moved to help hold him down as he tried to throw the small psychic off.
Feeling the bullet with his powers; he worked on slowly pulling the object out as he kept the wound from healing. As he felt the bullet slip free from Gunther's flesh, he allowed the wound to heal over, his head feeling like it was going to split open as he leaned forward more, letting the bullet fall to the ground.
"Shen." Gunther said as he sat up to wrap his arms around the boy.
"Gonna puke," Adir slurred leaning heavily against Gunther.
"Hang on," Gunther shifted, moving so Adir was over the grass. He was quiet as Adir emptied his stomach, the boy soon clinching at him as he dry heaved.
"What the fuck was that?" Ethan hissed his eyes wide.
"Shen, you have to stay with me," Gunther shifted, moving to heave the boy up. "Come on, you have to work it out of your system."
"Leave him alone, Ethan," Nathaniel hissed at him.
"I am okay," Adir said pulling away. He glanced around; making sure everyone was accounted for, before he turned back to Gunther. "We need to keep moving."
"How bad is it?" David asked; he could see something was bothering the young psychic.
"Bad enough, we have to keep moving," Adir said as he spun around to continue moving through the woods. He could hear the group behind him, not sure where he was going he glanced over at Gunther to see the teenager was looking at the map.
"Let's head this way," Gunther said, having spotted something on the map. He knew they would have to move fast after the last attack.
"They are tracking us," Adir said pausing slightly, closing his eyes he worked on throwing them off their trail.
"Don't worry we've only have to go another couple miles," Gunther said as he grabbed the boy's arm.
"What?" Adir asked as he ran with Gunther, the boy's eyebrow raised.
"Come on!" Gunther hissed pulling on the psychic's hand.
"Where are we going?" Adir asked trying to keep up with Gunther. He could see the teen was intent on their path, and wondered if by chance Gunther knew the area. After another few second, Adir didn't have the breath to question Gunther anymore.
"In here," Gunther called as he ducked down; he pulled Adir into his lap, the psychic breathing heavy as he slumped across the teen's lap.
"Where… where the… where the hell are we going?" Adir finally asked as he pulled his breathing under control again.
"We're close to where Archer grew up, I know the best way back from here," Gunther said glancing around as the others dropped down beside him.
"How do you know that?" Jonathan asked softly, his breathing coming in pants.
"I use to chase Pan through these woods," Gunther replied as he scanned the area. He glanced over to see Adir had his eyes closed, the boy's face scrunched in concentration. "Shen?"
"Something is not right," Adir said softly, his voice low. Gunther groaned, vowing right then and there that he wasn't going to talk to the boy again for a while.
"I'll be so glad when we get home," Gunther said shaking his head. He turned moving to get up; knowing that they were ahead of the trackers, he felt better.
"Gunther," Adir said. Gunther paused at the seriousness in the boy's voice; he looked down at his friend, seeing that Adir was watching Ethan.
"What?" Gunther asked, his voice low.
"Just where in the hell do you think you're taking us?" Ethan hissed as soon as he was close enough. Gunther pulled his eyes away from Adir, turning to look at the agent.
"I know the area; I know the fastest way back to the center from here," Gunther replied.
"I don't care what you think you know; we should have stuck closer to the roads. You're going to get us lost," Ethan said glaring at the teenager.
"If he says he knows where he's going, I think we should trust him," David said, following Nathaniel over.
"I see you've lost your stutter," Ethan glared at the other agent. They watched as David cringed, the fear coming back to his face.
"I… I… wwwelll," David took a deep breath before he turned away.
"Stop it, Ethan; you know HE put Gunther in charge," Nathaniel said bringing the angry agent's attention away from David.
"I don't care. I'm tired of running and hiding; that's not what agents do," Ethan said crossing his arms over his chest.
"No," Gunther started, "but our objective is to get to the center alive, so that means we run and hide. We don't have an enemy to fight; we don't have a criminal to track. It's simply us trying to survive."
"We take this group out, and then we'll be fine," Ethan tried to reason.
"They will send more," Adir soft voice informed them. "The FBI's main goal is to stop us, not to hold our hand all the way back home. They gave us you as a hindrance; they figured with you, we would be a disadvantage."
"Isn't that drug supposed to suppress your powers?" Nathaniel asked softly looking at the young psychic. Adir shrugged not answering the question.
"No more fighting lets move," Gunther said moving away from the group and through the woods. He knew that if they kept at their current angle, they would run into Ran's place. It was the only place he felt they could skirt, at least then he'd know exactly how far they'd have to go.
Gunther paused at the edge of the tree line, looking out over the expanse of the open field. It was the one place that Pan always got him at. He always figured he'd be more vulnerable in the woods, but Pan was extraordinary fast. It would also provide them no protections as they crossed it.
"What are we waiting for?" Jonathan asked glancing at Gunther.
"Just trying to see our best way across," Gunther replied still scanning the area, he turned his eyes onto Adir, seeing the boy was doing his own scanning.
"We should be fine," the boy replied to Gunther's unspoken question.
"All right then, lets get moving," Gunther moving past the last row of trees and into the open area, the rest following behind him in nearly a perfect line.
"RUN!" Adir hissed, causing Gunther to curse under his breath as he took off running across the filed.
"How did you miss them?" Gunther asked his eyes on Adir as the boy ran.
"They have someone helping them block, masking them, I thought they were animals," Adir replied softly. He cringed as he felt the first powering up of whatever they had. He knew that they may not make it across the field. He stumbled at the first loud crack of the weapon, glad that Gunther had been there to catch him.
"Point me in a direction," Gunther said pulling Adir along.
"I can not," Adir replied pulling to a stop, the ground a few feet in front of them looking like it had been hit by lightening. The rest of the group stopped also as several other spots were hit, all of them slightly spread out. Adir scanned the area again, trying to pinpoint the exact location of the weapon. He looked up; he could see a slight electrical charge as it streaked towards them.
Seeing that it was going to hit David, he yelled but found that David was caught like a deer in the headlights, running he threw himself in front of the startled agent as the charge hit encasing his body in blinding white light and pain.
"SHEN!" Gunther yelled as he ran towards the boy. He couldn't get that close though, until the sudden electrical charge dissipated. He stopped though, as Adir stood, the boy slightly raising his arms. "Adir no!"
Gunther knew in that instant that the boy was going to do it. He could feel the massive release of energy knowing that Adir was giving them time. He also knew that it was going to end very badly for the young man. Gunther kept moving towards the boy, knowing when Adir was finished the boy was going to hit the ground.
Seconds later, Gunther proved right, watching as Adir slumped to the ground. Rushing over he slid down to his knees, reaching over to touch the boy. He could see that Adir's eyes were wide open and he wasn't breathing. Moving he reached down to rip the boy's shirt up. "Oh fuck me."
"What?" David hissed his eyes wide.
"This is not happening," Gunther nearly yelled reaching out to grab the boy and shake him. "Don't you dare, don't you dare die on me I'll not go home without you!"
"Stop it!" David screamed reaching out to grab Gunther.
"Why the fuck does he have markings that are glowing!" Nathaniel asked as he pulled David back. They watched as Gunther looked back at Adir, the teenager pulling a breath into his lungs.
"Okay good, that's good; come on Adir, breathe," Gunther said. Seconds later Adir arched back, pulling a painful harsh breath into his lungs. Slumping to the ground again, the boy lay unconscious. Gunther reached over again, moving to pull the boy's shirt up to see the symbol around his belly button was still glowing.
"What just happened?" Jonathan asked softly.
"A gift just saved his life," Gunther said shifting to pick his friend up. He glanced at Jonathan before looking around the area. He knew that the trackers wouldn't be held off for long, and they had to get Adir safe to so the boy could rest. "What are you? Six foot two?"
"Yeah," Jonathan answered.
"Anything in your life that cause sever trauma?" Gunther asked seeing the man shake his head no. "Good, here."
Gunther thrust Adir into his arms, and moving the teenager told them to keep close and headed towards the complex. He made sure to keep sending out pluses, low level ones that he and Adir had been working on the previous weeks. It wouldn't kill anyone, just disrupt the air enough to keep them from following, the only problem was that it took up so much energy.
He knew that Ran wouldn't be thrilled, but the man would help. As they came to the area, Gunther went up to the gate and punched his code, knowing that the minute he hit enter that Ran would know they were there. He knew it wouldn't take the man long to meet them out in the yard.
"Come on," Gunther said stepping through the gate and watching as it slid shut.
"Where are we?" Jonathan asked as he carried Adir easily.
"Friend," Gunther said pausing as Ran appeared, he could see the man didn't look thrilled.
"Gunther?" Ran asked, his eyes sweeping over the group to land worriedly on Adir. He took a step toward where the boy was. "Explain now."
"Need sleep," Gunther said swaying slightly.
"Gun?" Ran moved quickly, catching his brother's mate before the teenager had a chance to hit the ground. "Come now."
The group followed, confused about what was going on.
XXXXX
"Hey," Gunther said coming into the room. He saw Ran and the agents look up at him, with a small smile he crossed to the table to pour himself a cup of coffee.
"How are you feeling?" Ran asked as he scanned the teenager.
"Better, thanks for whatever you did," Gunther replied taking a sip of his coffee.
"You're welcome," Ran nodded before letting his gaze scan the group. "Now tell me what's wrong with Archer's son?"
"Large electrical charge, he took the brunt of it," Gunther stated seeing the group was staring at him with horror, a grin found his face. "Did you guys realize that Adir is Archer's ward and adopted son?"
Four head shook no.
"And Ran here is his uncle," Gunther grinned.
"What would that make you?" Jonathan asked watching as the grin faded slightly from Gunther's face.
"I'm still his best friend," Gunther replied taking another sip of his coffee. They turned slightly as Adir came into the room, the boy still glowing slightly.
"How are you feeling, kiddo?" Ran asked seeing Adir glance at him, the boy's eyes nearly white.
"Like I have been hit by a large electrical charge," Adir replied moving towards the coffee. When he poured himself a cup no one objected, and dropping down beside Gunther he glanced around at the group. "Did I miss anything?"
"Just yesterday," David said softly from where he was sitting beside Nathaniel. Adir nodded moving to drink his coffee; he needed the caffeine in his system if he was going to feel better.
"How long you guys planning on staying?" Ran asked glancing between the boys.
"Just another couple hours, we have to get home," Gunther replied watching as Ran nodded. He had tried to explain to the man when he was in and out of consciousness about what was going on.
"Why were there drugs in Adir's system?" Ran asked the man's voice dropping. Both boys could tell that Ran was pissed, but he was trying hard not to show it.
"It had to be that way," Ethan said bringing Ran's eyes to him.
"Ran it is okay, I am fine," Adir said moving closer to the man. "We need to do this, we have to do it right."
"All right, but I don't like it," Ran muttered as he stood. "I'll start gathering supplies, eat what you can."
Gunther and Adir nodded, the boy turning to look at the food on the table. Ran had made things that would help settle their stomachs and nothing was two sweet or heavy. As the boy ate, the agents watched them, knowing that something had been left out. First they hadn't known that Gunther was Archer Keaton's lover, nor the small psychic was his adopted son.
"It is kind of screwed up, is it not?" Adir asked looking at the four. "They did not give you all the information, hoping that you would somehow fail."
"We fail, you fail," Jonathan shrugged.
"True, but then again, they had hoped we would fail also," Adir grinned as he snagged a piece of toast. Putting peanut butter onto it he started to slowly eat. The rest of the time was spent in silence, until it was time to go. Ran walked them to the gate; the man making sure to have everything they need packed into traveling packs.
"Stay safe," Ran said watching as the group shrugged the pack onto their backs.
"Always," Gunther replied with a grin. Ran nodded and watched as the group of six left the compound, as soon as they were out of sight he turned and headed back into the building. He headed into his office to pick up his phone and started dialing.
"What?"
"I received a package of yours, Mercer," Ran said smiling as he heard the man sputter.
"How many?" Mercer asked.
"Two, they were slightly damaged, but I fixed them up and re-mailed them, it took me a day though," Ran replied as he dropped down into his chair.
"Thank you," Mercer said his voice soft.
"You'll want to double check the smaller of the two, it seemed to have received some odd damage," Ran said softly.
"I will, I'll keep my eyes out for them." Mercer said.
"Good." Ran smiled as he hung up the phone. He had things that he needed to do, and he had wasted enough time already.
XXXXX
Archer looked up when Mercer paused in front of his door; the man's face was twisted into a frown. He raised his eyebrow at his computer hacker. "What?"
"Ran just called, the boys were there," Mercer said the frown smoothing from his face. "They spent a day recovering, Ran didn't really say from what."
"Okay," Archer said feeling relief flood his chest, he couldn't offer any help to his lover and ward. But knowing Gunther and Adir the boys would be able to find resources that most wouldn't think of. "Good, they're on their way home now?"
"Yes," Mercer replied frowning again. "How long will it take them on foot to get here?"
"About eighteen hours," Archer replied standing up. "I want Jacy to know in case they need medical attention."
"All right," Mercer replied moving to leave the room. He made his way towards the infirmary, knowing that the woman would need time to prepare.
XXXXX
Adir knelt down; one had clinching the bleeding wound in his arm. Tears leaked down his face as he looked over at a dirty sweaty Gunther beside him. As they drew closer to home, the attacks had come closer and more frequent as if they were afraid that they would make it. Now that they were five blocks from the center, Gunther was angry and horrified that Adir was hurt.
"I am fine," Adir replied moving to wipe tears from his face. His arm throbbed but at least the bullet had only grazed his skin and not imbedded itself into his flesh.
"How much further?" David asked softly the man wiping dirt and sweat from his forehead.
"A couple of blocks," Gunther replied nodding towards the area in front of them. "We stick to the back streets it should be fine."
"We should go," Adir said seeing the group nod. They were tired and dirty, and ready for the whole experience to be done. Adir moved out first, letting his gaze scan the area before he bolted across the parking lot. He knew the others were behind him, ducking into an alley; he looked up as the others followed behind him.
Gunther grabbed Adir's hand, pulling the boy behind him as he ran. They had two blocks to go and he needed Adir for the code for the door. He couldn't remember his because he normally came in through the garage on the motorcycle. He could hear the others behind them; he paused at the edge of the parking lot to look around.
"Come on, they are closing in," Adir said as they started to cross the lot, knowing that they'd have to hurry if they were going to make it. Entering the building his hands shook as tried to punch in his code. "Damn it, Aimi, open the fucking door!"
Adir kicked the door when it didn't open fast enough; as soon there was a big enough crack he slipped through the door. He bolted into the central area, the minute he saw his lover he launched himself into Mercer's arms, the computer hacker dropping the files he was holding to catch his lover.
"Shen?" Mercer said, letting his arms tighten a little more around his kitten. He glanced up to see the others entering the room slightly slower, letting his eyes slide away as Archer came into the room, the man having smelled his mate return.
Gunther glanced up as Archer came into view, his eyes narrowing as he watched his mate approached him. He wanted to be held, what to launch himself into Archer's arms. "You knew about this?"
"Yes," Archer said.
"And you condoned it? That it was okay for them to come in and take me?" Gunther asked softly, he was trying to hold back his tears.
"Yes," the man answered. Archer's head jerked as Gunther's fist smashed into it. The teenager's eyes wet as he glared at his mate. "it was the only way they would let me keep you; they would have taken you away, no matter what."
Gunther took a deep breath before he stepped into his mate's arms. Archer took a deep breath before he let his arms come around the teen. He leaned moving to scoop the teen up before he turned to where Casimir was standing slightly behind the group.
"I want those men in the cage," Archer started but stopped when he felt Adir's small hand on his arm. Turning he glanced at the boy for several seconds before nodding. "Take that one only."
Archer pointed at Ethan, before he turned and stalked from the room holding his mate close. Ethan protested, but wasn't much he could do as Casimir led him away. Mercer turned to the others, seeing they look at him nervously. "Come on, I'll show you to a room you can rest in."
"All right," Jonathan said, taking the lead of the group now that Ethan was gone. They entered the room that Mercer showed them to, turning to find the guy was already walking down the hallway. "Now what?"
"We shower and get some sleep?" Nathaniel asked looking around the room. There were only two full size beds, and the three of them. "Jonathan, why don't you go first?"
"Yeah okay," he said disappearing into the bathroom.
"You can sleep with me," Nathaniel said, seeing David turn to him.
"Okay," David nodded moving to set his stuff down. He glanced around the room, before moving towards the dresser hoping there would be clothing on one of the drawers. Finding something he took a breath before turning to see Nathaniel was watching him.
XXXXX
The three agents came to their feet as Archer entered the kitchen. They were not sure what their place was yet, but weren't taking any chances. They were not allowed to leave the building or allowed to see Ethan. They watched as the director of the CRDP moved to pour a cup of coffee.
"Sit down guys, he doesn't bite," Gunther said coming into the kitchen behind his mate. "much."
"Funny," Archer muttered moving back towards the table. "I'm glad you're back though, baby, 'cause while Henry can cook, he doesn't as well as you."
"That's not nice," Mackenzie said coming into the kitchen only to be followed by a sleepy Henry.
"Yeah," the pyro muttered, scratching his belly.
"It's good if you like it burnt," Archer said grinning at his lover. Gunther just grinned as he shook his head before he turned to cross to the fridge.
"Hey, Henry; why don't you help me make up a batch of waffles?" he asked, seeing the other teen nod. They watched as the teens moved away, Mackenzie joining Archer at the table.
"So what's up with them?" Mackenzie asked softly thanking Henry as the kid brought him a cup of coffee.
"Their supervisor will be here soon," Archer said watching his lover move around the kitchen. "I'll deal with the lot of them as soon as they're all here."
"Our supervisor?" Jonathan asked softly.
"Yes," Archer said shrugging. He looked up as Adir came into the room, the boy freshly showered and glowing slightly. "You look well."
"I feel well," Adir grinned as he dropped down, his eyes going to the agents. He looked himself when Mercer entered the room, his smile widening.
"Good morning Merc," Archer said, he got a grunt from Mercer as the man sat down and poured himself a cup of coffee. The people couldn't help but smile, Mercer was watching Adir from the rim of his coffee cup.
"How is the wound, Adir?" David asked; his voice soft as he glanced at the boy's lover before looking back at the psychic.
"It is fine," Adir grinned as he moved to crawl into his lover's lap. Snuggling in, he glanced around at the others around him. He was glad to be home, glad to be back in his lover's arms.
"No going back to sleep, you got me up," Mercer said as he poked the boy in his side. Adir yelped slightly before he turned to glare at the man he loved. Adir sat up straighter as Gunther brought the first batch of waffles over. Mercer had to grin, as he watched his little lover move to dig in.
"After breakfast, we're going to the conference room and have a nice long decision about what happened," Archer said. The three agents looked up; they looked at each other before Jonathan nodded.
"What about Ethan?" Jonathan asked.
"He would have let the three of you die for him to advance," Adir said as the boy licked syrup from his fingers.
"You knew that yesterday, when we arrived and you were going to put us all in the cell. You knew because he told you somehow." David said looking between Adir and Archer. He could see something in the boy's eyes before Adir went back to his breakfast.
"Let's just say that it didn't go the way it was suppose to," Archer said thanking Gunther as the boy placed a plate in front of him. He grinned as his lover sat down beside him, leaving Henry to finish up the waffles. "Gunther was supposed to told of everything, he was to given a set of supplies and told to make his way back to the center on his own. They were to use stunner bullets and once he was within two hundred yards of the building, they were to fall back. But I know for a fact they did not, my building has scorch marks on it."
"Oh," Jonathan said turning to his food, although he wasn't all that much hungry anymore.
"I also know you three are innocent of any wrongdoing, Ethan I am not sure on and Adir's been through too much in the last few days to read him," Archer said.
"Ethan just wants to get ahead," Nathaniel said softly, he glanced up at David to see the boy was very interested in his food.
"Don't matter," Mercer grunted, stealing a bit of Adir's waffle. "You do not sacrifice your team for nothing."
The group fell quiet, the meal was finished. Jade and Jacy offered to clean up, and the rest of them headed to the conference room. Archer grabbed files, while he kept an eye on Gunther, seeing the teenager was not happy. They had spent the night losing themselves in each other, Gunther almost desperate in his need.
Archer gave the agents, Adir and Gunther papers to fill out, so he would know exactly what happened and where it went wrong. He glanced up when Casimir escorted a very disgruntle looking Ethan into the room, a smile finding his face as he saw the agent glare.
"Have a set Agent West," Archer said nodding to Casimir to see the man slip out the door. He turned his attention back to Ethan. "So tell me Agent West, is the allegations against you true?"
"I don't have a clue to what you're talking about." Ethan hissed glaring at the others.
"How about the facts that you were calling the agency, letting them know where we were?" Adir asked meeting the man's eyes. The drug had worked itself out of his system when he had nearly died, that was why he knew what Ethan had been doing.
"Why would I do that?" Ethan asked his eyes wide.
"As you told them, Gunther was an incapable leader, and the rest of your men had defected to the freaks side," Adir said his eyes swing to Gunther to see the teenager's eyes narrow.
"It's true, my team never listened, I don't know why they started to listen to him," Ethan seethed as he glared at the other three agents.
"Maybe that is because Mr. Havelock treated them with respect," a man said standing in the doorway. The four agents stood, as well as Archer.
"Mr. Belington, Welcome to the Center for the research and development of the paranormal," Archer said motioning the man to a chair. He waited until the man was seated before he sat down himself, his eyes never leaving the senior agent. "I have to say I'm very disappointed in what happened."
"We wanted the scenario as real as possible," Mr. Belington said, he glanced up as Mackenzie entered room carrying coffee on a tray.
"Thank you Mackenzie," Archer said watching as the man glanced around before he nodded and left the room.
"But it was real, the bullet wound in Adir, not to mention the electrical charge that nearly ended his life," Archer said his eyes blazing. "And the laser marks on my building, you were not to use lasers."
"I can assure you, none of them were in any danger," Mr. Belington said shifting uncomfortably.
"You should have checked yourself," Adir said bringing everyone attention to him. He saw Mr. Belington's eyes widen slightly before the man dropped his eyes.
"Who did you call, Ethan?" Gunther asked.
"It's none of your God damned business," Ethan nearly yelled at the teenager.
"Ethan!" Mr. Belington hissed, the four agent's eyes swung to him.
"Don't you start, old man; you're on your way out," Ethan said.
"No, he is not," Adir said grinning.
"I've been working on weeding out corruption in the office," Mr. Belington replied shaking his head. He looked up at Ethan; his eyes were sad. "I had high hopes for you, though, but it seems they were in vain."
"Whatever," Ethan shrugged.
"No, not whatever," Mr. Belington said turning back to Archer, "it's been taken care of. Those that are responsible for trying to actually kill your people have been dealt with, and as soon as I get Ethan back to headquarters, he will be dealt with also."
"And these three?" Mercer asked, knowing that his kitten was worried.
"Since I've been told they helped, they will be justly rewarded," Mr. Belington said as he stood. He turned to see two men in military clothing enter the room. Ethan stood about to say something when the men restrained him and led him from the room. "I'm sorry, Mr. Keaton, that this training didn't turn out the way it was supposed to."
"Just be glad that my people were returned alive," Archer said seeing the man nod before he and the three other agents left the room. Archer glanced over to see Adir and Mercer move to also leave the room until it was just him and his mate left. "How are you feeling?"
"Better, now that I'm home, fed, and clean," Gunther said turning his attention to the man. A small smile found his face as he saw the concern in his lover's eyes.
"If I ever thought you were in danger of losing your life, I would have never agreed to this," Archer said moving to reach out and take Gunther's hand.
"I know that," he replied with a genuine smile as he stood and pulled his mate up. They left the room hand-in-hand, feeling better than they had all week.
End Case.