The balcony?!" Nate wasn't sure he heard right. "How did you two go from posing as repairmen, to running for your lives up to the balcony?"
"Okay, first of all, the mark's many bodyguards caught us snooping around in his office, and second, running for our lives is a bit of an exaggeration, Nate," Eliot said over the coms.
"Are there people after you?" The sound of a bodyguard being punched pretty much answered that question.
"Calm down. We got the file that'll ruin Philip Carlyle, and I can handle these guys. There may be a lot of them, but they have the fight skills of two year olds." He punched out another one. "Seriously, who holds a knife like that?" he muttered, more to the downed guard than to Nate.
"Complain about their incompetence later, when you and Parker are safely in this van," Nate responded anyway. "Speaking of Parker, I assume she has a backup plan?" Eliot looked over at Parker.
"Getting into her harness that I didn't even know she had right now."
"Then I suggest you do the same." Eliot was about to tell him that wasn't necessary; he'd just hitch a ride as Parker went down, when she looked up from her harness. Her eyes went wide. Dropping the line she'd been hooking up to her harness, she leapt forward.
"Eliot, look out!" she cried, pushing him out of the way with surprising strength as one of the guards came up from behind with a taser. He barely missed Eliot, and got Parker instead. The guard looked surprised for a second, before he gave a sick smile, like he didn't really care who he got, then he backed the stunned Parker to the railing, and tossed her over like she was nothing more than a bag of garbage. When he turned around to face Eliot, he noticed that this wasn't just another bodyguard; it was their mark, Philip Carlyle himself.
Eliot let out an enraged roar as he started swinging almost blindly. Carlyle dropped the taser, but he quickly dodged the rest of his blows, landing a few of his own. He picked up the downed guards knife, and swiped at Eliot. He missed his torso, but nicked his arm. This angered Eliot even more, and he started pounding the mark over and over again. He wasn't just seeing red this time; he was seeing helpless Parker going over the railing. He got the knife away from Carlyle somehow, and was actually about to use it, when his eyes fell on the taser a few feet away. Deciding it would be poetic justice, he pocketed the knife and picked up the taser. Cranking up the electricity as high as it would go, which was surprisingly high, he was about to put his lights out for good, when Nate's voice in his ear brought him back to his senses.
"Eliot! Parker! Answer me! What's happening? Eliot! Parker!" Suddenly he had only one thought; Parker. He knocked the mark out, dropped the taser, and ran to the railing. He was hoping that the thief, who'd shown no problem in the past with jumping out of a
Second-story window with no harness, had managed to land gracefully on her feet, like the cat burglar that she was, but just before he dared to peek over the railing, he remembered that she had been tasered. Sure enough, Parker lay prone on the ground, not moving. After unconsciously patting at his jacket to make sure the documents were still there, he hurried back inside.
"Nate, Parker's hurt!" he shouted at the mastermind as he ran down the stairs and to the front door. No one that tried to stop him stood a chance.
"Parker!" Nate and Hardison exclaimed simultaneously. "What happened?" Nate asked a third time as Eliot knelt down beside Parker.
"She fell. She's unconscious." He felt for a pulse, and was relieved beyond words when he found one. "Where are you guys?" he practically demanded.
"We're still a block away," Nate answered. "Remember, we were setting up the next part of the con…which is a moot point now." Eliot tried to take deep breaths. She had pushed him away from the danger, and put herself in the line of fire. He had always known she was crazy, but this…he ran a hand through his long hair.
"What is wrong with you? Why did you do my job?" he chastised her softly, but the com still picked it up.
"Eliot?" Nate said more gently. "We're almost there." Eliot nodded, even though he knew Nate couldn't see the action, and continued to stare at Parker, as though he could actually will her eyes open.
Nate and Hardison practically broke the gate off its hinges to get to the backyard. Eliot stood and moved back a little as the two men gathered around her. Nate looked up to the balcony, frowned, and looked at Eliot.
"It's not that far of a fall; not for her. How did this happen?" Eliot just shook his head, still too stunned to say anything.
"We have to get her to a hospital, Nate," Hardison told him. "The how and why can wait." Nate nodded absently, then he noticed Eliot's right arm.
"You're bleeding. How did that happen?" But Eliot still seemed unable to speak, so Nate turned back to Hardison as he picked Parker up. Then he saw a little bit of blood on the grass, and stopped him from carrying her off.
"She might have a head wound," he explained before moving her head so he could see the back. He nodded to himself. "Okay, head wounds tend to bleed the most. The gash back there actually isn't that deep, so don't freak out."
"Too late, man," Hardison muttered as he started carrying her to the van. Nate started to follow, but stopped when he saw that Eliot appeared to be frozen, staring at where Parker had fallen. Nate put a hand on his shoulder, careful to avoid jarring the injured arm. Eliot still didn't move.
"Eliot, I need you to focus right now," he said kindly but firmly. "We have to get Parker to the hospital. Once she's under a doctor's care, you can tell us what happened here, okay?" Eliot didn't even turn to him as he spoke. "Eliot, you of all people cannot fall apart now; the team still needs you to be strong." That last part seemed to do it. He finally turned to Nate, and his eyes looked as hard and determined as they always did. He followed Nate to the van.
The team, Eliot noted, was in bad shape. Sophie was crying, Nate, who was driving, looked like he wanted as many drinks as he could get his hands on, and Hardison cradled Parker's head, his face a blank…well, except whenever he glanced at Eliot; then it became hard, accusing. I know this is my fault, Hardison, he wanted to tell him, but he just concentrated on sowing up his own knife wound, not even using the local anesthetic he'd packed in the emergency kit. Let it hurt, he thought, and it complied. It would serve as a reminder not to let something like this happen to a team member again.
Parker was taken back immediately. After handing the nurse a fake i.d. that said Alice White, and giving her a cover story about how they were a family of construction workers, and that she had fallen off a roof at a job, they were told to wait while the doctor stitched her head, and took x-rays.
The team went to the only place that was empty in order to talk; the chapel. The fire was back in Hardison's eyes as he looked at Eliot.
"How. Did. This. Happen?" he demanded, emphasizing every word. Eliot's eyes were downcast.
"I turned away from the door leading into the house for, like, 2 seconds to check on Parker's progress with the harness, and Philip Carlyle himself snuck up behind me with a taser." Sophie gasped. "Parker warned me, giving me about two seconds to react; plenty of time, by the way, but then she just…" he paused for a moment to try to calm down. "She shoved me out of the way, and got tasered instead." Another gasp from Sophie, and he didn't need to look at her to know she'd have tears in her eyes by now. He tried to ignore his own blurry vision. "Then he backed her up to the railing, and…" Eliot stopped again, taking a sharp breath in as he saw it all over again in his mind's eye, "and he just chucked her over," he finally finished.
"And Carlyle?" Nate asked quietly.
"I beat him senseless…almost killed him," he admitted before taking out the files from his jacket. "I got these," he muttered, handing them to Nate.
"Well, as long as you go the documents, a near-casualty is worth it," Hardison said with a sneer. Eliot ran a shaky hand over his face, unable to look Hardison in the eye, or any of them, for that matter. But Nate glared at the hacker.
"We can use these to get revenge, Hardison," he said crisply. "Now, you want to be part of that, or should I attempt to do it, and probably botch it up?" He held out the files, and Hardison finally took them. But he wasn't done with Eliot.
"How could you get distracted like that?" he growled, something he never did, least of all at his best friend. "You're supposed to be looking out for us! What happened to 'it's what I do'?"
"Hardison," Sophie interrupted his tirade, her voice almost pleading. Hardison turned on her.
"No, don't even start trying to defend him, Sophie! This is supposed to be his job, his only reason for being here!"
"Hardison," this time Nate said it, but his voice had a warning edge to it.
"No, let him," Eliot finally intervened before Hardison turned on him as well.
"I will do no such thing, Eliot. I'm the one that drew your attention away from the door by mentioning Parker and her back-up plan. Turning to her for a second or two would have been automatic." He looked at Hardison. "Even you would have done it. So, how about we all blame the mark who attacked her, huh?" Hardison finally backed off and withdrew, but not before giving everyone in the chapel a withering glance. Eliot just kept staring at the floor. Nate sighed. "We'll give him time to cool off. When Parker wakes up, she'll talk some sense into him. She did, after all, make the call to basically jump the guy," he looked at Eliot as he said that. When he didn't get a response, he stood in front of him, and leaned over so he'd be in his line of vision, until he finally raised his head. "What is it you always say about her; 20lbs of crazy in a 5lb bag?" Eliot turned away just then, but Nate saw the tears in his eyes. He hid his shock at the never-before seen sight by sighing again. "Well, come on, let's go wait to hear from the doctor," he said to both Eliot and Sophie. He took Sophie's hand and they started to leave the chapel, but Sophie hesitated when Eliot didn't follow. "Let's give him a moment as well," Nate whispered to her.
Once they were gone, Eliot tried to pull himself together; taking deep breaths, and closing his eyes. Turned out that closing his eyes was the wrong thing to do, because images of Parker getting tasered, then going over the railing, then of her still form just lying there flooded his mind. He gasped as his eyes snapped open. He suddenly had trouble breathing. Recognizing this as the onset of a panic attack, he hurried out of the chapel, then he made a beeline for the nearest exit, not really caring where it led.
When he found himself standing outside of the back of the hospital, he took a deep breath of the night air, but when he automatically closed his eyes again, this time out of weariness, the scene was replayed, and he found himself leaning on the wall for support. I'm never going to be able to close my eyes again, he realized dismally. He then leaned his head back against the wall to try to calm down.
"There's nothing like jumping off a building under a starry sky," Parker once told him. He had responded like he normally did.
"There's something wrong with you." Eliot responded to the memory by punching the rough wall with his fist repeatedly.
Hardison was pacing in the small waiting room, while Nate and Sophie sat watching him, when Eliot returned.
"Don't suppose there's been any word," he asked Nate, who shook his head. Hardison abruptly stormed off. This prompted a scowl from Nate.
"I know he's worried, but I have a sudden urge to go straighten him out," he said to no one in particular. Sophie gave him a don't-you-dare look. "Well, now is hardly the time for this," he defended his statement.
"Just when would be a good time, Nate? We're in a hospital, waiting to hear about the injuries Parker sustained during an incident that never should have happened!" Eliot found himself suddenly ranting. "I'd say it's the perfect time to show his justifiable anger." Nate opened his mouth to argue, then he frowned as something caught his eye.
"Eliot, what happened to your hand?" he asked, indicating his right hand, where the knuckles were all bloody. Sophie gasped at the sight, and Eliot quickly hid the injured hand, looking a little sheepish.
"Eliot! What did you do; shadow box with a brick wall?" Sophie practically scolded.
"Well, not a brick wall, just a regular one outside."
"Oh, that's much better," Nate said sarcastically. "Do I even want to know why you hit a wall with your fist?" Eliot shook his head, and Nate sighed. "Well, it's a good thing we're in a hospital, because those look like they'll need stitches." Eliot shook his head.
"They never have before."
"And the last time you punched a wall was when?" Eliot thought about it for a moment.
"2003," he answered. Nate folded his arms skeptically. "No, seriously. There was this guy named Harold 'The Brick' Becker, who got that nickname because punching him, even in the face, was like punching a brick wall." Nate sighed again, and started rubbing his temples.
"Are you absolutely sure I can't sneak some liquor in here?" he muttered to Sophie. Great, now I get to feel guilty for stressing Nate out even more, Eliot thought.
"Eliot, could you maybe get Nate some coffee?" Sophie asked sweetly. Eliot nodded, taking the hint, and left the waiting room. "Nate, we need to talk about what the fallout from this will be."
"I've already been thinking about it. As far as Carlyle goes, we don't have to worry about him. We're going to send a copy of the file we stole from his house to Bonano; I'm sure he'll let us know if he can do anything with the information."
"What about the team?"
"If Parker comes out of this okay, she'll likely be able to quell Hardison's anger, and alleviate Eliot's guilt. Now, even if she's okay, Eliot's first instinct will no doubt be to try to leave the team, wanting to 'protect' us, but Parker will convince him that we're safer with him than without him. If Parker doesn't come out of this okay…" Sophie put a hand on his leg and squeezed gently, clearly not wanting to hear such things. Nate sighed. "We have to consider the possibility, Soph."
"I know. The answer is obvious, though; if Parker doesn't make it, then neither does this team. She's Hardison's heart, and Eliot's crazy, non-judgemental little sister. They won't be able to function without her." Nate smirked, and nodded. That described the 3 youngest team members very well.
Sophie put on a fake smile as Eliot came back. He gave them both an equally fake smile, then handed Nate a cup of coffee, then gave one to Sophie, even though she hadn't asked for it. They were both about to thank him, when, to their horror, they saw him take his earbud out, and hold it up for them to see.
"You know, next time you plan on talking about someone when they're not around, you really should make sure to remind them to take this out, or at the very least, remember to take yours out, especially when discussing such a…sensitive subject," he said, his voice gravelly, and, to their further shock, with tears in his eyes. He pocketed the device, then shrugged. "Just something to keep in mind," he added before hurrying off. Nate guiltily took his out as well.
"Hardison, did you hear any of that?" Sophie waited a moment before removing hers when there was no answer. "I guess he already took it out," she said to Nate, who sighed a third time.
"Well, this just keeps getting better and better," he muttered.
Nearly two hours passed before the doctor finally came to talk to them. Fortunately, Eliot had returned half an hour before, and Nate was relieved when he saw Hardison come in right behind the doctor.
"Are you Alice White's family?" the doctor asked.
"Yes," Nate answered as they all stood. "I'm her Father, Arnold Smith, this is my wife, Zoey." Sophie gave him a quick nod. "This is Alice's brother, Charlie." Eliot shook the doctor's hand. "And this is her husband, Carl White." Hardison stood there with his arms wrapped around his middle, not even acknowledging the doctor's presence. "How is she?" Nate continued.
"Well, she has 15 stitches in the back of her head, a severe concussion…"
"Is she awake?" Nate interrupted. The doctor's face was sad and almost suspicious at the same time.
"No, Mr. Smith, she's not; which brings me to her most serious injury…and the most confusing. I don't believe the head trauma is solely responsible for her being unconscious." Nate frowned.
"Then what is?" The doctor hesitated for a moment.
"You said she fell off a roof during a remodeling job?"
"That's right," he said without showing a hint of the nervousness he was suddenly feeling,
"Well, there are marks on her chest that almost look like they came from a taser." Everyone looked properly horrified and confused by this 'revelation'. "Any idea how they got there?" the doctor asked warily.
"I can assure you, there was no taser involved," he said sternly before looking at Eliot. "Were there any loose wires up there, son?" he asked gently. Eliot shook his head.
"I don't think so, sir," he said, following the plan they came up with earlier. "My back…was turned when she fell, but I suppose some kind of freak accident could've happened." Nate nodded, and turned back to the doctor.
"No doubt Alice can tell you what happened when she wakes up. But even if she did get electrocuted somehow, how could that have any bearing on her current condition?"
"Well, Mr. Smith, Alice had a mild heart attack. We think it happened when she was…mysteriously electrocuted." This time, everyone was horrified for real. Nate had to catch Sophie when her knees buckled. Hardison shrank into a corner, and Eliot, to everyone's further shock and horror, started breathing faster, steepled his hands in front of his mouth, and doubled over as if he was having trouble staying on his feet as well. Upon seeing his reaction, Sophie's few tears became outright sobs. Nate helped her sit down. Eliot straightened, and turned away, immediately chastising himself for the outburst. If ever his team needed him to be strong, it was now.
"I'm very sorry," the doctor said. He seemed to have decided right then that they had nothing to do with her electrocution, thanks to their genuine reactions.
"Can we see her?" Nate asked, his voice low and a little shaky.
"Only one at a time, and only for a few minutes." Sophie started shaking her head vehemently.
"No, we're all going in there, and we're not leaving until she wakes up," she said as she stood. The doctor held his hands up.
"Mrs. Smith, she's in ICU, and protocol…" but she cut him off with a withering look.
"Doctor, have you ever stood between a mama bear and her cubs? It never ends well," she said, her voice low, but with a dangerous edge to it. Apparently, she was channeling Eliot again, like she did a few months ago during the potato job, only this time, without the southern accident. If Eliot wasn't so upset, he'd be proud of her, because the doctor wisely backed off.
For the rest of the night, the team gathered around Parker's hospital bed, despite the unnerving feeling each of them got at seeing her so still, since Parker was never still. During that time, they barely spoke, or ate, or even slept. Eliot didn't sleep at all.
Early the next morning, Nate woke up, and went to get some coffee. When he came back, everyone else looked like they had just woken up themselves, and they gratefully accepted the coffee he'd brought in, using a tray of some kind…well, all except Eliot.
"You stay up all night, Eliot?" he asked as he sat down. Eliot didn't answer, which was an answer in and of itself. "You can can't keep this up, Eliot; who knows how long it'll be before Parker wakes up." Eliot smirked, but still didn't take his eyes off Parker.
"I've been forced to stay awake longer than 24 hours, Nate," he said dully. "A whole day, in a comfortable chair that I'm not tied to, in a place with blankets, food, and water is a walk in the park." Nate grimaced at the implication.
"This is different, Eliot. No doubt something was…stimulating you back then to keep you awake."
"Oh, trust me, Nate, something is stimulating me right now, too." Eliot said, but he didn't tell him, or the team listening in around them, that he saw Parker fall every time he closed his eyes.
"Eliot, get some sleep. We'll wake you up the second she opens her eyes."
"Yeah, man, get some sleep," Hardison finally said, but Nate scowled at him when he noted the edge in his voice. "Just watching her didn't help her then, and it ain't gonna help her now." Sophie let out a tired sigh as Nate continued staring daggers at his young hacker, which he just ignored.
"You're right, Alec," Eliot said, using his first name for the first time in the four years that they'd worked together. "I'm not helping her." Nate had enough. He suddenly banged his fist on the empty food tray, causing Hardison and Sophie to jump. Eliot, of course, remained motionless. Nate stood up, and Hardison automatically did as well. Nate was clearly angry, and Hardison was now clearly scared.
"Listen to me very carefully, Hardison," he said in a low, barely controlled voice. "We are not doing this here, do you understand me? I get that you have feelings for Parker, and she for you, mixed up though they may be, but you are not he only one this is hard on. Right now, I am in a hospital, which I hate, watching yet another child of mine struggle to live, while the other one is slowly tearing himself apart for something that was not his fault, so you know what, I could do without all this tension you're creating between the two of you, not to mention the hostility that's practically radiating off of you, so you had better get your head on straight, and keep it on straight, until my girl wakes up. Got it?" The room fell silent as he sat back down. Even Sophie's crying was silent. Hardison just looked stunned as he sat back down as well. Even though Eliot hadn't moved an inch, many emotions were churning inside of him, and they all would have seen it if they'd looked him in the eyes.
"Jeez, can't a girl sleep in without you boys going at it?" a croaked voiced came from the bed. Everyone snapped to attention, and gathered around Parker.
"Parker?" Hardison ventured to call her name. She gave a tired moan, as if she really had just been woken up a little too early for her liking.
"Parker, open your eyes, please," Sophie cooed. "We really need to know that you're okay now, sweetie." Parker frowned, even though her eyes were still closed.
"Of course I'm okay, Sophie," she muttered. "Why wouldn't I be?"
"Parker, darlin', I need you to look at me," Eliot said in that soothing, calming, quiet voice. It was hearing his voice that finally snapped her out of it. She opened her eyes slowly, and began scanning the room, really looking for only one face.
"Eliot?" she said weakly. She had the feeling that she was supposed to be concerned for his safety, but she couldn't remember why. When she started lifting her head, Eliot leaned closer until he was in her line of vision to stop her.
"I'm right here. You need to try to keep still."
"Why would I need to do that…" and then she got her answer. Putting her hands to her head, she let out a surprised yelp. "That's why," she concluded in a tight voice. "Wait, am I in a hospital?"
"Afraid so, sweetie," Sophie answered her. She frowned in confusion.
"Why?"
"Ask Eliot," was Hardison's blunt response. Eliot actually cringed, and Nate actually came at the hacker.
"Out!" he ordered, backing him right out the door. Now, Parker frowned out of concern.
"What's going on?" she asked warily. "You all know I hate it when the team fights."
"Don't worry about the boys, dear. Everything will straighten itself out now that you're awake," Sophie said, silently hoping that they wouldn't make a liar out of her. "What is the last thing you remember?" Parker closed her eyes in concentration.
"We were on a job, something went wrong…which I have a feeling is an understatement." There were a few sad chuckles.
"Maybe you shouldn't rush it, Parker," Nate said kindly, seeing her struggling to remember.
"No wait, it's right there…" then her eyes happened to fall on Eliot, and it all came back to her. Her eyes went wide, and she tried to sit up again, but Eliot gently took hold of her shoulders.
"Remember, you have to stay still, Parker, unless you want the mother of all headaches. You have a concussion." Parker patted his left arm, as if to reassure herself that he was alive and whole. The gesture wasn't lost on Eliot, and he responded by sitting next to her, and wrapping his arms around her. Nate and Sophie, feeling like they were almost intruding on a private moment, backed away a little, and stood in a corner of the room.
"Someone came after you, and I pushed you out of the way," Parker said quietly. Eliot swallowed hard, held her tighter, and lightly rested his chin on her head. He was glad to be facing the wall, so that the others couldn't see the emotions that were crossing his face.
"Yeah, you did," he said, trying to keep his voice steady, but not entirely succeeding. "What else do you remember?"
"That's it," she said after a moment. She could tell that he was upset, and she knew she'd only upset him more by asking, but she couldn't help it. "You okay?" she said, her voice small, like a child's. She couldn't tell if the shudder she felt his body make was due to a silent laugh, or a silent sob. Perhaps it was both.
"Of course I am, darlin'. I wasn't the one that was tasered and thrown off a balcony." Oh yeah, that's what happened, she thought.
"I vaguely remember that I stopped breathing for a few seconds, and there was a slight pain in my chest, but I don't think any of that was from hitting the ground, or the actual fall; I fall all the time, and that's never happened before. It might have been before the fall…maybe when I was tasered? Is that normal?"
"Maybe you should ask the doctor about that," Eliot said, not wanting to be the one to explain to her how she could have a heart attack at her age, knowing that she would ask. "Right now, we need to have a talk about what you did on that balcony," he said, looking down at her, but still keeping his arms around her. "Mind telling me what you were thinking?" he asked, but not unkindly. Parker gave a sheepish smile.
"Well, it's something that you'll understand, Eliot; I saw that you were in danger, and it was just instinct. You do understand, don't you, Eliot?" Eliot averted his eyes, and to his horror, he felt his lower lip quiver. He couldn't take it anymore. He nodded, and gave the top of her head a kiss before pulling away.
"You should get some rest," he said in a gravelly voice. She laid back down on the pillow to placate him. Eliot gave her another kiss on the head, then hurried out of the room the second she closed her eyes.
Hardison was sitting on the floor just outside of the room, sulking, but Eliot barely glanced at him as he hurried past him. He looked up as Nate and Sophie came out as well.
"Am I allowed to see my friend now?" he asked Nate dully.
"Just so long as you don't upset her by badmouthing Eliot," he warned. Hardison got up and went in. Sophie pulled Nate aside.
"Nate, I understand your protective feelings toward Eliot and Parker, I really do. I know for all their tough talk, and their acting like nothing gets to them, they're the most…" she searched for the right word, "damaged members of the team, but Hardison's strong feelings for Parker shouldn't just be glossed over…"
"Soph, his feelings for her doesn't give him the right to go off on Eliot like that." He narrowed his eyes at her. "I hope you're not thinking he's right about this being Eliot's fault."
"Of course not. I just think you could have handled it differently. You know, taken him aside, and talked to him privately."
"Eliot needed to know that this wasn't his fault either, Sophie. Two birds, one stone."
"What if it had been me?" she tried a different tactic, causing Nate to frown. "How would have reacted? I'll tell you how. You'd be snapping at everyone, possibly blaming them all, despite knowing that it wasn't true." Nate sighed. That, of course, was an accurate assumption.
"So, you think I should apologize?"
"You'll have to do a little more than that to fix this, Nate." He rolled his eyes.
"Don't you think you're over-exaggerating just a tad?" She smiled sadly.
"Darling, I want you to think back on your somewhat justifiable tirade for a moment. You admitted, finally, I might add, that you have some kids on this team. You mentioned your helpless child, Parker, your guilt-ridden child, Eliot…but no third angry, scared child." Nate's breath caught slightly at the realization, and he swore.
In Parker's room, Parker smiled at Hardison as he sat next to the bed.
"Hey, baby girl."
"Hey."
"How you feeling?"
"Not that great."
"You want me to get a doctor? Maybe a nurse can give you something for pain, or nausea…"
"No, it's nothing like that. Our family is in trouble. I don't want Nate to be mad at you, or for you to be mad at Eliot."
"He was supposed to protect you, Parker. That's his only job; the only reason he's on this team."
"Do you hear yourself, Alec? He's more than just our bodyguard, and he's even more than just our friend; he's our brother. We've said so about a hundred times…although maybe not to him. Gotta fix that, I think. Look, like I told Eliot, I saw that he was in danger, and I just reacted. It was instinct, and it's not one that I usually have, which is saying a lot. In the past, I've always put my safety on a job first." She paused for a moment to let Hardison think about what she said. He hung his head when he realized she was right. "We have to fix this," she added. She was relieved when he nodded.
Eliot hurried outside once he left Parker's room. He didn't want to hit a wall again; Nate and Sophie would insist that he get stitches then…maybe they'd even get a nurse to slip him a tranquilizer, so he went to the van.
Once he was in the driver's seat, he started hammering the steering wheel with his good hand as Parker's words replayed in his head. He did this until he wore himself out, then he rested his forehead on the very thing he'd been pummeling. He still heard Parker's voice.
It was instinct. She felt the instinct to protect him? That wasn't how it was supposed to go. Time for some new ground rules, he told himself. This was now just a team, not a family. He was Nate's employee. No more just hanging out with the team. He'd even start taking his cut of the cons, to drive the point home. Then, there's the ultimatum; they either agree to these rules, or he was gone.
Just then, the passenger door opened, and Eliot sat up with a start, then he sighed when he saw Sophie climb in.
"I know what you're going to say," he said dully.
"You're wondering if it's worth all this," she said bluntly. He frowned.
"Okay, I didn't know you'd say that," he muttered, but he should have known. "You really need to stop reading my mind, Sophie; it's very unnerving."
"Oh, you know I'm not reading your mind. It's written all over your face. What Parker said just now is upsetting you."
"More like concerning me," he corrected. "So, I was just thinking of some new ground rules to prevent this from happening again."
"And if we don't agree to these new rules, you'll leave the team."
"Okay, seriously, stop doing that. I get that it's a part of the grifter persona, but it's really creeping me out."
"Alright, how about a prediction then? If you leave, the girl who allowed herself to be hurt for the sake of someone else, a completely new concept for her, I might add, will track you down, and follow you…assuming that Nate doesn't do so first. And if you decide to start up your…previous activities again, that could end up not being at all safe for them." Eliot suddenly jumped out of the van. Sophie sighed before following him. "Eliot…"
"I don't want to talk about it anymore, Sophie. These new rules aren't up for debate."
"It will be when the others follow you."
"I know how to disappear, Sophie."
"Oh, and that won't make their searching even more dangerous. You really should think this through, Eliot…preferably after you've gotten some sleep. And while we're on the subject, is there any particular reason you didn't sleep at all last night? I mean, we all got at least two hours, even though we were just as worried about Parker as you were."
"But none of you were on that balcony with her," he said quietly, staring into the afternoon sun.
"You're having flashbacks, aren't you?"
"Every single time I close my eyes, and not just when I'm trying to sleep. Like, I could close my eyes right now, and I'd see her charging the mark, getting tasered, being tossed over the railing…" he stopped, and shuddered a little. "Now add to that, her voice saying it was instinct…" he stopped again, and turned away.
"Well, someone has to protect you."
"I protect me!" he snapped, angry now. He started pacing. "When I don't, it means I'm getting sloppy, and I get hurt, and it's a reminder not to let it happen again. That's how it's supposed to be."
"Eliot, no it..."
Stop it, Sophie! I'm the hitter. If I had been the one to get tasered, I wouldn't have been dumped over the railing; I'm heavier, and I wasn't in the right position. And I wouldn't have had a heart attack from the shock. I've been electrocuted before, worse than from a taser; she hasn't."
"Alright, fine; Parker was injured. But Parker jumps off buildings, for pity's sake, and steals things from rich people with guards, who have training, and weapons. This is a dangerous profession we're in. It always has been, but now even more so, because we're the good guys now. And yes, being the good guys means getting close to people, and feeling things, and protecting our friends, but what's our other option at this point? To go back to what we did before, alone? I can't do that, Eliot." He stopped pacing, and stood with his back to her. "I don't want to go back to stealing from innocent people, and ruining their lives in ways that I don't even know about. We keep each other in check, Eliot; it's too easy to go back to what we were otherwise, you know that…" Eliot stopped her rambling by suddenly embracing her. When did that happen, she wondered. She hadn't even seen him move. He was shuddering violently in her arms, but she pretended she didn't notice. He'd kill me if I even told anyone, or even acknowledged, that he's crying, even silently like this, she thought.
While Sophie was talking to Eliot, Nate called Hardison out of Parker's room. Parker was very curious, and actually tried to follow so she could listen in, but then laid back down when she got dizzy after 3 steps. He came back after nearly ten minutes. Parker resisted the urge to perk up, mindful of her concussion.
"How'd it go?" she asked a little apprehensively, but she brightened considerably when she saw that he was smiling.
"It's all good, Mama," he told her. "Nate and I are all right now." She sighed with relief. Now all he had to do was fix things with Eliot.
The hospital kept Parker for another night, and she hated it. Everyone wanted to stay, even when she was moved out of ICU and into a private room, a sure sign that a patient was out of immediate danger, but she bluntly suggested that they should all go home for a few hours, get some sleep, change clothes, and shower…especially shower. They reluctantly obeyed when she threatened to escape through the air ducts.
Hardison was the first to come back. Parker complained that it had only been an hour, but since he had showered, changed clothes, and even shaved, she didn't send him away again.
Next to return was Eliot, 15 minutes after Hardison. There was an uncomfortable silence when they caught sight of each other, as Eliot hung back, debating on whether to leave until Nate and Sophie returned.
"Anybody want anything to drink?" Eliot ventured to ask when he noticed that the malice seemed to have left Hardison. Parker shook her head in answer. "Well, I'm gonna go get a coffee," he said after a beat. He started heading back out.
"Do they have any orange soda?" Hardison finally called after him. Eliot paused in the doorway.
"I'm sure they do," he said without turning around. "You want me to get one for you?" There was a pause.
"Well, yeah man, that's why I asked," he said, the snarkiness back. Parker released her second relieved sigh of the day, and Eliot smiled as he walked out.
By the afternoon of the next day, Parker was fed up with being in the hospital, and decided to argue with the doctor.
"I can sit up without my head pounding now," she whined. "What's the difference if I do that her, or at home?"
"We really need to monitor your recovery, Mrs. White. If we release you prematurely…"
"They are my monitors," she interrupted, gesturing to her team. "And no offense, but I trust them more than these machines you have me hooked up to. I mean, seriously, how am I supposed to rest when I feel like a science experiment, and I got nurses coming in every hour to ask me the same dumb questions, and to tell me that my blood pressure is the same as the last time?" Sophie tried to hide a laugh, but a snicker still came out. Hardison, though, didn't even bother to hide his smile as he looked at the doctor.
"And this is Alice being polite," he said, which Parker responded to by rolling her eyes.
"You know, we could just sign you out against medical advice," Nate said conversationally, knowing that she didn't know that. Sure enough, she frowned at the news.
"Really? And they don't do anything?"
"Well, they can't force you to stay."
"So, I can leave right now, and they won't, like charge a fee, or restrain me, or drug me?" Nate shook his head.
"You all do know I'm still here, right?" the doctor interjected, albeit good-naturedly, causing the two of them to look at him.
"Well, yeah, but if what Na…my Dad says is true, then there's really nothing more we need to talk about. Since you are a doctor, at a very busy hospital, I'd really hate to waste you precious time," Parker said, smiling sweetly. Now Hardison was grinning.
"Again, this is her being polite." The doctor sighed.
"Fine, you win, Mrs. White. I'll release you voluntarily. I'd hate to see what you're like when you're being impolite, though," he muttered, shaking his head as he left the room.
It was decided that Parker would stay with Nate and Sophie. Eliot went home after a couple of hours, while Hardison had to be forced to leave hours later, so that everyone could get some sleep, especially Parker.
Eliot sat in his living room reading, when he suddenly perked up. There was a noise that came from his bedroom and it almost sounded like a window being opened. As he got up to investigate, while holding a boot knife, it crossed his mind that Parker would often sneak into his apartment for one reason or another; a bad dream, a thunderstorm, a particularly rough job, or just the strange need to 'check on him.' But she was sleeping at Nate's place, unless…
He opened the door, ready to pounce, and, sure enough, there was Parker, sitting on the bed. Eliot sighed, and set his knife down on his dresser by the door.
"Parker, are you kidding me?!" he scolded. "You just got out of the hospital after suffering a concussion, being tasered, resulting in a heart attack…" he stopped suddenly, not sure whether she'd actually been told about that yet. But she didn't look alarmed.
"Yeah, the doctor told me about that," she said to his relief, as if she had read his mind.
"Then why did you come to my apartment, which is on the 3rd floor, and climb through my window, which means that you scaled the building? You could have gotten dizzy and fallen…again. And no matter how good you are at living through some pretty high falls, you wouldn't have made it through that one."
"Sophie said you haven't slept since it happened," she blurted out. Eliot ran a hand through his hair, and looked at the floor.
"Well, Sophie has a big mouth."
"Do you really see me every time you close your eyes?" she asked in a small voice. He sighed.
"Parker, just…what are you doing here?" She studied him for a minute.
"The same thing has been happening to me." Eliot bit his lip, then he sat on the end of the bed. After a few seconds, Parker moved from the head of the bed to sit next to him. She sat so close, that their sides were touching. Since she seemed to feel the need to be close to him, he resisted the urge to flinch.
"Bad dreams are keeping you up too?" he asked quietly. She nodded.
"I just thought that if we both slept here, and we saw that we were both okay, then…" she trailed off when she saw him frown. "I know it's childish. I'll go back to Nate's." She started to get up, but he gently took hold of her arm to stop her, and at the slight tug, she sat back down.
"What do you see when you close your eyes?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper. Now she frowned.
"The same thing you do. I see you in danger, me not being able to get to you in time. I know that's not how it happened, but it could have if I hadn't been fast enough…"
"That's not what I see." Parker seemed genuinely confused.
"I don't get it; we both see someone we love like a sibling in danger. How is that different?" She said it with such innocence, that Eliot felt himself well up again, but this time, he held back. This wasn't Sophie; tears would only frighten her. So he wrapped his arms around her instead. She immediately did the same.
"It's not different, darlin'," he said softly. "And it's a good idea you had…not the part where you scale 3 stories, but about staying here tonight." She smiled at the praise.
After Eliot called Nate to tell him where Parker was, which was a double surprise, since he didn't know she was even gone, and why she was there, so he wouldn't get angry with her, (he left out the part where she scaled the building), they both fell asleep on the couch. When Nate used the key Eliot had finally entrusted him with just last year to let everyone in, that's where they found them, sitting on the couch, eyes closed. Parker had her head on Eliot's shoulder, while his head rested on her head, and he had his arm around her protectively. The team agreed that they'd never looked so peaceful, and, after Sophie covered them over with the quilt from Eliot's bed, they quietly slipped back out.
The End