Alexa was driving the white van, Brian sitting in the passenger seat with Evan, David, Craig, and Tyler in back. Evan was dressed in the same black tux the other men were in; Alexa was wearing a new small black dress. They all looked as if they'd just come from a funeral. The van was silent as well, only disrupted by Brian's low voice as he directed Alexa through the Beverly Hills streets to a small little restaurant. The six of them were the decoy squad, sporting enough weapons and ammunition to massacre anything that stood in their path. But they had a special target, and that special target was someone they were all itching to see bleed.

Beside Evan sat David, hunched over, his dark hair slicked back and his glasses and shoes freshly polished. In his lap was a laptop, monitoring a certain three other people's positions on a radar scan of the downtown area. Three small, pulsating blips on the computer monitor with small name tags attached to each huddled together on a street, most likely inside the Orange Outback. Evan felt his stomach flip as he read Jonathan's tag on the screen.

David caught Evan's sideways look, drawing his lips into a thin line of understanding.

"They're fine, Ev," David responded, his voice hushed in the quiet car.

Evan nodded, leaning his head back against the metal van side. His heart was still pounding against his rib cage and he couldn't calm himself down. This was their last shot, their only shot. If any of them fucked up, even by missing one bullet, they would all suffer.

Up front, he heard Brian shift in his seat, and Evan looked up to see Brian starring back at them. Brian didn't need to ask, Evan and David already knew. A near year and a half together and you start to read one another's minds.

"He's fine."

Brian nodded a thanks and turned back to face front. The car fell silent again. Evan was restless; he took out his HK45C and reloaded the gun for the third time. Across from him, he caught Tyler's eyes watching his silent, slightly jittery hands. Beside Tyler was Craig, leaning against Tyler's shoulder and starring at nothing, lost in thought. Tyler glanced down at Craig, taking his hand in his and giving it a squeeze, bringing him back to the present and his eyes up to Tyler's.

"It's on the right," Brian's voice drifted to the backseats. Craig's eyes widened slightly as he heard those words, and Tyler's grasp around his hand tightened. Evan felt his stomach lurch as well, and next to him David stiffened.

The white van swerved slightly and came to a slow stand still as Alexa parked the van on the street. She gently yanked the parking gear on and sat still in the driver's seat, her recently curled hair swaying as she turned her head too her right. Evan could hear pedestrians outside walking past their van, talking as if nothing about today was special.

Brian looked up at Alexa, yanking his jacket down to hide his PM 63 RAK.

"Ready?"

Brian just sighed. He looked out his passenger window blankly. Alexa sighed as well, turning in her seat to look behind her. She caught Evan's eye, but he looked away. The van was silent for a long time before, finally, Craig spoke.

"One thing you wished you had done."

Evan looked up at the British man across from him, a smile playing on his lips as he remembered the last time they had asked that question of themselves. Upfront, he heard Alexa give off a breathy laugh. Craig caught his eye, and smiled encouragingly.

"Fought you fuckers harder for the kitchen," Evan replied. Craig blushed as he remembered that little fight, while Tyler wrapped an arm around him, chuckling as the memory. Evan smiled too while up front Brian and Alexa groaned.

"I should have made you guys do dead lifts in boot camp after that stunt," Alexa jokingly growled. Brian chuckled in agreement.

"What's all this?" Tyler asked, glancing from Craig to Alexa and back.

"At the bank heist," Craig began, "when my group was stuck, out of ammo, thinking we were gonna die, we said one last thing we wished we had done."

"I should have contacted my mom," Alexa spoke up, sighing. "Ended it on a bad note, and I think I regret that. Just called up and apologized before…"

"We're not gonna die though," Brian cut in, turning in his seat to look at Alexa then at the rest of the van. Evan sighed, chewing on his lip, not meeting Brian's eyes.

"Right?" Brian's question was left to hang in the air, a reminder of just how dangerous this mission was. They shouldn't have anything to loose except their lives, that was why Evan broke Sydney's heart, why he trained so hard, why he tried to look over his feelings for Jonathan. Good thing it worked out so well. He sat next to David on the way over here entirely to watch Jonathan's tag on his computer screen.

"I should have missed my plane out to LA," Evan mussed, his eyes trained on the floor as he spoke. "No offense or anything guys."

"None taken," came the soft murmur of everyone in the van.

Silence ensued for another long stretch of time, before being broken by Brian.

"Well, that certainly put all us all in the correct mood."

"Then let's get this over with," Alexa spoke, switching off the car engine and pushing open the driver's door. She stepped out onto the street, Brian clambering out the passenger's door before throwing open the back doors. Evan stood, hiding his pistol back in the back of his pants while David shut his laptop down and slid it under one of the seats. Evan watched him as David lifted his hand up to his ear, switching on the ear piece and asking if the other three could hear them. After a brief pause, he looked up at Evan and nodded.

The four in the back of the van filed out, joining Alexa and Brian on the sidewalk outside a small steak house restaurant. Evan noticed the few looks from strangers the group of six got, but he was more concerned with the group of dark suited men equipped with dark visors and ear pieces inside watching the small group.

"Okay guys," Alexa breathed as they made their way to the door. "Just as we planned. Evan and I talk, Brian tears up, David stays in the back and gives the signal. Stick to the plan, and we make it through."

Evan nodded with the others.

As she reached the door, Alexa stopped, her hand clasped around the metal handle.

"We'll all make it through," Evan clarified, looking pointedly at her. Alexa turned to glance at him, unmoving for a split second, before swinging the glass door open. She greeted the waiter with a sugary yet sad smile complete with a weighted glance back at her friends before informing the waiter they were meeting people.

Evan couldn't get her look out of his head. Something was off about her, something he couldn't understand. She'd had that same look since Brock regained consciousness. Jonathan had brushed it off, saying she was just focused in on training and wanted to get out, but today it was different. It had a zen quality to it, a lightness he'd never seen. Following behind her as their group of six weaved their way around the packed and busy restaurant to the long table in the back, she acted like her normal self. But that look…

Evan snapped out of it when Alexa stopped in her tracks, every muscled clenched in her body as she recognized the man sitting in the middle across from their empty seats.

It was show time.

"Mr. Fong, Ms. Michaels," hissed Mr. Clark, or Snake Man as Alexa and Jonathan loved to refer to him as, extending his hand to shake theirs as the others filled in around the two. On either side of Mr. Clarks sat two more representatives, both dressed similarly in snug fitting black suits and black ties complete. Behind them were three thugs, dressed similarly, but with plastic wires connecting bluetooth devices to ear and dark glasses. Six in total. Perfect.

Evan glanced down at Alexa, feeling an intense wave of fury emanate from her. She didn't move to shake his hand, so Evan did, giving him a wiry and tired grin.

"Please, sit," Mr. Clark gave a grand gesture to the chairs lining the long table in front of them, and Evan sat, Alexa on his right and Tyler on his left. Craig sat next to Tyler while Brian sat next to Alexa, David stood shaking his head with a rough smile when offered a chair — "I've got to take care of some finance issues" — and took up position next to Craig and immediately brought his phone up to his ear. His job was the keep attention away from David for as long as possible while he tracked the other's progress.

"So, may I ask, why the fancy dress?" Mr. Clark's pale brow creased in sympathy as he glanced down the row of boys and Alexa. His eyes lingered extra long on her, enjoying the hatred seeping from her.

"Funeral," Evan responded, glancing down past Alexa to Brian as if checking his every word. "I'm sure you noticed we're missing a few people."

"Yes, I did notice," Mr. Clark mused, interlacing his fingers as he leaned on his elbows, an apologetic smile on his face. "Please accept my sincerest condolences."

"You can shove them right back up your ass," Alexa responded hotly. Evan jerked his head, his eyebrows raising in alarm as he took in the small girl sitting next to him, her eyes trained on Mr. Clark. He raised an eyebrow, giving her a disinterested yet surprised look.

"After sending me those videos…you expect me to take an apology like that?"

Mr. Clark closed his eyes, nodding.

"Alexa," Evan hissed into her ear, touching her shoulder lightly. "You need to be calm. This is our only chance." Alexa sighed, closing her eyes and nodding. Evan straightened up, noting Mr. Clark's eyes glancing between the two with a not-so-well-hidden smirk.

"You have to understand Alexa—"

"Ms. Michaels."

Mr. Clark paused raising an eyebrow at her before continuing, seeing he wasn't going to get an option on this. "—Ms. Michaels, you have to understand we had no other options to reach your little group—"

"You declared WAR on us, you KILLED our friends, you are RESPONSIBLE for the death of my brothers, I—"

"Alexa," Evan hissed again, this time pressing his hand onto hers. She flinched noticeably, and Evan had to fight the urge to glance at Mr. Clark to see if he noticed. She recovered quickly though, and sighed, apologizing low under her breath.

"Maybe its best if your quiet for a bit, okay?" Evan cooed, loud enough for Mr. Clark across the table to hear him. "We're all a little strung out right now, the last thing we want is a fight, okay? I don't think any of us can handle much more violence, especially, Brian," Evan emphasized that last statement by glancing over Alexa's head to Brian, who was sitting in silence with the gloomiest expression Evan had ever seen on him.

Evan turned back to Mr. Clark, digging his nails into his skin to bring tears to his eyes. Mr. Clark was watching the little interaction with interest, and now turned with equal interest to Evan.

"I'm sorry. We're all a little tired—a lot tired—and we are just looking for a way out."

"I'm very sorry to hear that," Mr. Clark apologized, leaning forward on his elbows again. He glanced to the representative on his right who produced a small brief case, undoing the case with a gentle pop and taking out six sheets of paper.

Brian sniffed then, and Evan pulled out one of Kleenex's he'd kept in his pocket for this moment, he leaned behind Alexa, who grabbed the papers for the two, while Evan handed the Kleenex to Brian. Brian was blinking fast, keeping back imaginary tears, but Evan could count the nine individual times he blinked before raising the towel to his face. Evan sat back satisfied; they had no idea where the other three were.

"What's this?" Evan asked, looking down at each document and reading.

"Well, good to know you're reading it this time," Mr. Clark tried to be funny, but when he got no reaction from any of them—with the exception of a wicked glare from Alexa—Mr. Clark swallowed and continued speaking.

"These documents will release won't release you from the program, since we cannot do that, however, we can promise you a safer existence as bodyguards for our big investors, or as general guards for company locations."

"Like the banks?" Tyler cut in. Evan kicked him under the table, but he couldn't help but smirk a little at that jab. Especially seeing the way Mr. Clark's jaw set in response.

"Yes," he replied shortly, flashing an unimpressed glare Tyler's way before focusing back on Evan.

"We could locate you to any of our buildings, not necessarily all together, but safety isn't always easy to accomplish for…a group such as yourselves…"

Alexa stiffened next to him, but remained silent. Evan glanced at Brian now. Distraction time.

Brian lowered his head, shaking as if he was crying silently. Alexa noticed, wrapping an arm around him and speaking soft and low into his ear. Mr. Clark glanced at the two, but continued, glancing every now and then at the two.

"While our banks always need extra protection, we can also locate you to our main towers if you…wished…they have fairly good Renegade protection, but I'm sure we can fight a few spots for…some of you…"

"Is it mostly Renegade protection there?" Evan asked, pressing a hand on Alexa's back and glancing from them to Mr. Clark.

"Yes…some computer security, but well-trained Renegade power is hard to beat…"

"Well-trained?"

"Come now, Mr. Fong, you don't really think we keep our best Renegades out in the field now, do you?" Mr. Clark turned his focus on him now with a sneer. "It's all good fun to bet on which group will kill which, but if we're going to keep betting, we need to keep our best closest."

"So…the Renegades we've faced already…none of them—"

"Good? You can say that," Mr. Clark smiled. "You boys have proven yourselves though, so like I said, I'm sure we can find some spots for a few…the better ones, anyway," Mr. Clark surveyed the line of six with mild distain.

Evan felt a hand on his shoulder then. He didn't even need to look up to know it was David. "It's done. We're all set," David whispered into Evan's ear, his voice and the sound of his Kimber 1911 Raptor dual pistols being cocked and readied shrouded from Mr. Clark's ears by the nosey restaurant behind them.

Evan grinned nastily upon hearing that, his eyes never leaving Mr. Clark's. This had been way too easy to pull off. Everything from the little touches between Alexa and he to Brian's break down in the corner, all too easy. Fucking idiots.

"No offense to your guards, Mr. Clark, but we ARE the better ones," Evan snarled, standing up and kicking back his chair. From its holster on his back, Evan produced his HK45C and took aim at Mr. Clark, also rising in alarm along with his two friends. The guards stepped forward, producing their own weapons, only to find themselves outnumbered as Alexa, Brian, and Tyler, pulled out their weapons. The representative on Mr. Clark's right made a reach for the brief case, but screamed when a Gold Spring Latch Butterfly Knife imbedded itself into his hand.

Craig smirked. "I'll be taking that," he smirked, reaching with one hand for the brief case while the other dug the knife deeper into the man's hand, enjoying the screams a little too much before ripping it out. "That's for nearly killing me," he snarled, flicking the knife back into his pocket.

Around them were screams and scrapes of chairs and tables as people pushed to get away from the their little scene in the back of restaurant. Police would be called soon, and without even needing Evan's signal, David left to start the car while Brian went around the restaurant, placing C4s under every other table.

"You lying little fuckers," Mr. Clark spat. Evan laughed, nodding his head for Alexa and Craig to start tying them all up, using zip ties on their wrists then zip ties to the chairs. "You lost your friends and this is what you do the day of their funeral? A suicide mission?"

"Oh, they're alive," Evan promised, smiling. "In fact, they were already looking into making a few open guard spots at Abra Inc. for us. They've been hard at work while we've been here, distracting you, basically."

"What…?" Mr. Clark starred, wide eyed at Evan. Alexa shoved him back down into his chair, zip tying his wrists together all to unkindly. He glanced from her to Evan and back, confused. "But—but the attack—"

"Your attack almost killed my boyfriend," Brian came back, priming the detonator clasped in his hand and flashing it at the six before them with a glare. "And for that, I can't forgive you fuckers."

"You're making a big mistake, all of you," Mr. Clark hissed, glancing around at all of them. "When you get to those towers, you will all die. You can't possibly fight off two hundred plus Renegade guards."

Evan smiled, raising an eyebrow. He glanced around at his friends, Tyler with his arm around Craig, the two glancing at each other and chuckling, David rolling his neck and cracking his knuckles, Brian reloading his RAK with the detonator safely tucked into his side pocket, and Alexa with her arms folded across her chest shaking her head pitifully. When Evan looked back, he could see the fear eating away at Mr. Clark's and his companions cool exteriors.

"When I came to at our base after being rescued from my first Renegade encounter, I was told I would have to kill five hundred men to have a chance of escape. A year and a half of training was all preparing for that. Now you tell me I have to fight off two hundred?" Evan chuckled, his friends joining him in laugh. He nudged Alexa, who unfolded her arms and pointed her Berettas straight at Mr. Clark's snake-like face. Firing squad style, the others aimed their weapons as well.

"All I have to say to that is…really? Two hundred men? Bring it on," Evan grinned, and pulled the trigger. Let the suicide mission begin.