"When you see me put the gun to Smart's head, you do the same to Mrs. Smart. I want them to watch each other die."
They were never more aware of each other than they were when they stood an inch away from death. This time, when they were separated by an entire street and couldn't even see each other clearly, was no exception. Each sensed the other's presence with them, as if two people inhabited their body or their soul was in two places at once. Despite the distance, they could hear each other's heart pounding, feel their blood racing, hear exactly what they were thinking.
99 knew Max was blaming himself, wishing he'd never told her about the man he saw, thinking he never should have agreed to let her go back there, should have stopped her, or called for help earlier.
Max could hear 99 insisting that this was her choice, that she couldn't have acted any other way, that she had done her duty as an agent and was proud of it, no matter how it ended.
They both saw the other calmly sizing up the situation, watching for an opportunity, an opening, waiting for the right time to make their move. They told each other to wait, don't panic, be patient, we can get through this.
99 could hear Max telling her not to be afraid, he'd get them out of this. Max heard her telling him not to worry about her, she could take care of herself.
99 felt her husband burning up with anger when Greer reached their apartment. She begged him not to do anything rash in his condition – he was in no shape to fight.
Max could sense his wife's fear for him. He hoped she would forget about him and look for a way to escape and save herself.
They both started to lose hope at the same time. All the narrow escapes they'd made from death in the past flashed before their eyes, as if they were adding up to this moment. 99 knew Max couldn't believe it was going to end this way, executed in his own home, helpless to go down fighting like he'd always hoped. Max knew his wife was glad that, if it had to happen, they were together – it was her most frustrating quality.
She begged him to forgive her for dragging him into this mess. He begged her to forgive him for letting this happen. Their marriage had barely begun; they had enjoyed so little time together. He regretted every second they could have had together in the past that he wasted, too afraid to confess his feelings. He wished that he had never given in, that he had let her go when he had the chance – he never should have married her!
She treasured every moment of their love and thanked him for every second he had given her, made all the sweeter because it had to end so soon. Pushing her away would have been the cruelest thing he could have done to her; she never could have been happy with anyone but him, and she wouldn't have it any other way, no matter what the danger.
He knew it all. Why did she have to love him? The incomprehensible mystery about the whole thing overwhelmed him again. How had someone like him ever ended up with someone like her? Why hadn't he appreciated what he had before it was too late? Why did he hold back from her? He had never told her how much she meant to him, never shown her how much he loved her.
She had known all along. She wanted him to know he had nothing to regret. She hoped she had made him happy. He hoped she knew she did.
I love you.
I love you.
She sensed a change in him before she heard the gunshots. She was ready while Miss Parker was caught off guard. 99 saw herself spring up and subdue her distracted captor before she could think about doing it. Her heightened sense of awareness hadn't relaxed yet, and she noticed during their short struggle how stunned Miss Parker looked that she had been able to move so fast, no doubt assuming she had been paralyzed with fear, not lying in wait for the right time to pounce. 99 felt her fingers close around the metal of the gun and looked up to see the Chief in their apartment, Max hobbling towards him, and no sign of Greer. It was over.
99 doubted she would have had the strength to force herself to wait for CONTROL to arrive and arrest Miss Parker if her intense hatred for the woman in her grasp hadn't kept her head clear. She let the desire to make sure that the woman who put them through this would pay for it block out the agonizing desire to see her husband. She asked every agent who came in if he was all right, but something in her refused to believe them until she could see for herself. Finally, she was free to go.
99 could hear sounds of arguing in the apartment when she was still halfway down the hall: "Don't tell me to relax – that's my wife over there!"
"She's fine, Max! You can't help over there, now calm down before you hurt yourself. She'll be home soon."
"I'm fine, Chief! I've got to get over there, now let me go!"
"You're in no shape to go anywhere, and you know it, now, for once, don't be an idiot!"
"Let me go!"
When she reached the open doorway, she barely had time to take in the sight of Max apparently struggling with the Chief before Max noticed her and pushed past him, crutches forgotten. "99!"
They ran into each other's arms. "Max, are you all right?"
"Am I all right? What about you?!"
"I'm fine! But, Max, you shouldn't be up like this..."
"Forget about that, 99! I've been getting enough of that from the Chief!"
"I told you that would be the first thing she said when she got here," the Chief told him, before turning to 99, his voice heavy with relief. "Thank Heavens you're all right, 99. Did they get Miss Parker?"
"Yes," she answered, her arms still around Max and his still around her. "They're still searching the building for Quincannon and the secret exit. Where's Greer?"
"Hospital – gunshot wound," the Chief explained. "He'll be fine, which is more than I can say for his operation. I'd better get over there and take charge of the search. I'm sure you two want to be alone anyway. Great work today, both of you, as usual. I'm so glad you made it through."
"You're glad? How do you think we feel?" was Max's farewell.
99 waited until their boss closed the door behind him before speaking. "Oh, Max, I'm so sorry..."
Max cut her off. "I know what you're going to say, 99, and it's not your fault, it's mine. I never should've let you..."
"Don't start that again, Max. It's over now. We did it. That's all that matters."
But Max wasn't willing to dismiss it so easily. "Sure, it's over now, but what about next time? Next, mission, it'll just start all over again! We'll just go through all this again tomorrow, and the next day, and the next day, and... ah!" He started to lean more heavily against her as his injury protested against him standing up for so long.
"Oh, Max, you've got to sit down, come on." She led him over to the couch and gingerly set him down before sitting next to him.
"I should've been over there with you," he said once he'd stopped groaning in pain from the motion.
"Next time you will be," she assured him.
"Any chance you won't be?" he almost pleaded.
She shook her head and grinned. "Sorry, Max – we're a team. We're in this together forever."
"Yeah, a team..." His armor of anger seemed to be dropping, and held her more closely to him. "I thought this was it for sure this time."
"So did I, Max." She lay her head against his chest and listened to his familiar heartbeat.
"99..." He hesitated, but the events of the day had broken down his defenses, and he didn't stop himself. "If anything ever happened to you, I..."
"I know, Max." She squeezed his right hand in hers before raising it to her lips and kissing it.
He held their hands over his heart. "When he threatened to kill you, I... I've never been more scared in my life."
"I know, Max, me neither."
"I don't get it. It's not like this is anything new, but... something about this time felt different."
"I know, Max."
"Well, what don't you know?" he asked.
She raised her head. "What happened when Greer got here?"
Max took a deep breath and sighed before answering. "He said we were going to watch each other die."
99 leaned against him again. "He said the same thing to me."
Max tilted her head up and buried his right hand in her hair as he kissed her. "I love you," he said once before kissing her again, deeply and passionately.
She pulled back just long enough to say, "I love you, too, Max," before falling back and pulling him on top of her. Every touch, every motion reminded them they were alive and together. They held and kissed each other as if afraid the other would vanish if they let go even for a second.
"I love you so much," he repeated, "I love you... I love you..." as if making up for lost time.
They had never been so grateful to be alive or to have each other. They'd been deprived of this ever since he'd been wounded. It probably still wasn't advisable, but tonight, all the pain and caution in the world couldn't have held them back.