Doyle sat on his bed, tears streaming down his face. An old photo rested in front of him. It showed Doyle when he was a bit younger, on a beach, with a beautiful, black haired woman holding onto his shoulder. The green-eyed woman smiled up at him from the picture, causing another wave of sorrow to course through him. Doyle looked up quickly as Zak and Drew entered the room. The young boy looked frightened at the sight of his uncle in such a depressed state.
"Doyle? Are you okay?" Zak asked gently. Drew approached him, concerned for her brother. The red haired man sighed deeply, and showed them the photo.
"Sit down, guys. I might as well tell you the story." Drew and Zak sat on either side of him, and looked down at the picture. "See that woman? Her name's Genevieve. I love her to death." Zak looked confused, and Drew blushed.
"Wait, you had… a girlfriend?" Drew inquired. Her brother looked up at her.
"I still do. She's the reason I worked for Van Rook." More confused looks from his family. "I told you I worked for him for the money, but that wasn't the reason. I'd become notorious for small crimes around the world in the past few years, and I guess Van Rook had been watching me, and needed my technological expertise. At the time, I had been traveling around with Genevieve, who I had met in France. We were like Bonnie and Clyde; she had also started committing crimes for money. So one day while we were traveling through Russia, Van Rook approached us and asked us if we wanted to join him in the fight for Kur. Realizing that he was a major crime lord, we declined, not wanting to expand our criminal records anymore. He didn't want to take no for an answer, so he put a knife to Genevieve's throat, and took us into his car. We were kidnapped and taken to his secret base. Van Rook promised to kill Genevieve if I didn't agree to join him, so I had no choice." Drew and Zak looked absolutely stunned, sympathetic for Doyle.
"So where is she now?" Drew asked.
"Still with Van Rook. He's got her chained up in his house somewhere. He promised he'd set her free if I helped him find Kur. Gosh, I miss her so much…" Doyle began to cry again, and he cursed the hot tears that sprung to his blue eyes. Zak felt a wave of guilt, as if Genevieve's situation was all his fault. They reached out to hug Doyle, who gratefully accepted the comfort. "Will you guys help me find her?" The sorrow and longing in his eyes tore into Zak's heart.
"Of course! You're our family; we'll always be there for you" Zak assured. Doyle smiled, happy to have such caring people around him.
"Okay, I'm pretty sure I know where Van Rook's keeping her. We should probably be able to get there by nightfall." Drew rubbed her brother's shoulder soothingly.
"We'll get you there, and we'll free Genevieve. I promise." Drew left the room to join Doc on the bridge of the airship.
"Hey Doyle, wanna go watch Weird World or something?" Zak asked.
"Sure thing, Miniman" he replied. Together, they snuck into the living room, and watched a Weird World marathon. Fiskerton had smuggled some junk food from the kitchen, and sat down to help them eat it. Even though Doyle was having fun, he couldn't fully take his mind off of his defenseless, captive girlfriend.
Later on that night, the Saturdays arrived at Van Rook's house, a pricy estate nestled in the woodlands of Siberia. Doc had decided to stay on the airship, due to his strange relationship with Drew's brother. Out on the lawn, Doyle took a shaky breath, hoping that Genevieve was still alive. Zak, Drew, and Doyle silently slipped into the shadows behind the mansion, searching for a way in. Doyle spotted a partially open window on the ground floor. He motioned Drew and Zak in first, and then climbed through himself. Zak stifled a giggle at the sight of his muscular uncle trying to squirm into the opening.
"Not funny, Zak" Doyle muttered, a small smile playing across his face. "Someone wanna help me out?" Drew and Zak grabbed his arms, and began to pull. After a bit of a struggle, Doyle managed to squeeze into the window, and found himself in Van Rook's kitchen. "Okay, let's start looking. Listen for any signs of human activity, and we should be able to find her" Drew ordered. They looked around for a bit, checking for secret tunnels and doors. "Hey, did you guys check in here yet?" Doyle whispered. The three housebreakers had wound up in a long corridor, with an ornately decorated door at the far end of the hall. They approached the door, and Doyle slowly turned the handle.
They had found Van Rook's study, a huge room lined with bookshelves. Different books from around the world were crammed into them tightly. A couch and an armchair were placed near the stain-glass window. Leonidas Van Rook sat in the armchair, the masked man's attention focused on his uninvited guests. A pale, green-haired man sat on the couch, and a young boy who looked a lot like him sat nearby. The boy wore a green overcoat, and had his light green hair flipped over one eye. He glanced up at the new arrivals, and the other man did the same. Zak flinched as the door swung shut behind them.
"Doyle, my good man. I don't recall inviting you into my home. Oh, and I see you've brought friends" Van Rook purred in a Russian accent. Doyle shuddered, suddenly feeling very cold.
"Agent Epsilon? Francis? What are you doing here?" Drew asked, turning towards the others. The young boy looked at her, and spoke in a monotonous voice.
"We've decided that teaming up with Van Rook to capture Kur would be efficient, and beneficial for everyone." Doyle revealed his wrist blaster, pointing it straight at Van Rook's chest.
"Let's get down to business, Van Rook. I kept my promise to you, now I want Genevieve back" Doyle said calmly.
"Yes, Doyle, you've kept your promise well. The boy and the beautiful lady, lured right into my home. This is almost too easy" Van Rook stated, a note of satisfaction in his voice. Agent Epsilon and Francis had risen, pointing their own wrist blasters at Drew and Zak. They proceeded to press their weapons up against their prisoner's skulls. Van Rook came around to each of them, taking away all of their weapons.
"Doyle, what's going on? You tricked us!" Zak shouted, as Drew glared at her brother, completely helpless. Van Rook walked over to one of the bookshelves, and tugged on a large, red book. The wall slid sideways, revealing a narrow passageway, with a staircase leading downward. The prisoners sighed, nervously awaiting their fate. They filed in and walked for a little way, until they approached a hallway lined with cages. White candles mounted on the walls illuminated the cells, but the prison was still fairly dark.
Drew and Zak were led to the end of the row, and placed in the last two cells on the left. The cage doors shut with a menacing click.
"Okay, Van Rook, I did everything you told me to, now let Genevieve go" Doyle demanded. The Russian man chuckled. His laugh was raspy and metallic, which made Doyle a little bit nervous. He quickly drew his wrist blaster, and pressed it against Doyle's neck. Breathing rapidly, his eyes gleaming with fear, Doyle was forced to back into the cell across from Zak. Van Rook kicked him in the stomach, slamming him into the wall.
"You traitor! I'm the one that brought them to you!" Doyle shouted angrily at the Russian.
"Doyle, you must understand. I simply don't need you anymore; I can find Kur myself. This is just to ensure you're out of the way. Think of this as a little vacation with your family" the man said mockingly. The captor pulled the door shut, and he left the room, Epsilon and Francis trailing close behind.
The prisoners had been there for a while, but no one had said a word. Zak simply glared at Doyle, who pretended not to notice. Doyle looked into the cell next to his, noticing a dark figure in the shadows of the far corner.
"Genevieve?" he whispered. The figure moved out of the shadows, and his heart started racing. It was a thin woman with long black hair, wearing a purple dress.
"Doyle?" she replied in an airy voice. Zak noticed she spoke with a faint French accent. They both went over to the bars that separated them, and stuck their arms through to hug each other. Doyle held back his tears of joy, while his girlfriend let hers flow freely.
"I've been waiting, Doyle. I promised I would never give up hope. I knew you'd find me" Genevieve said breathlessly through her sobs. The couple pressed their faces up against the bars, and managed to kiss. On the other side of the room, Zak opened his mouth and stuck his finger down his throat, making a small gagging noise. This brought a smile to his mother's face.
"Genevieve, this is my sister, Drew, and my nephew, Zak" Doyle said, motioning to his family.
"Nice to meet you. Are you here to save me, too?" she asked.
"Well, Van Rook made Doyle choose between giving up his family to save you, or leave you here. He chose you, but Van Rook betrayed him and locked him up with us. So here we are. All thanks to good ol' Doyle" Drew said sarcastically, one again shooting a mean look at her brother.
"Doyle, you didn't have to jeopardize your family for me. You could have found another woman to love, and I wouldn't have known." Genevieve said, rubbing her boyfriend's shoulder. He turned his head quickly, and locked eyes with her.
"Never. I'd rather die than cheat on you. We were made for each other" Doyle replied, gripping her hand tightly.
"Oh, Doyle" she sighed, and they kissed once again. Doyle felt absolutely nothing but joy and love, finally being able to see his beloved for the first time in years.
"Yea, has anyone remembered that we're prisoners? Shouldn't we be thinking of an escape plan?" Zak asked, breaking the silence.
"I'm one step ahead of you, Zak" Drew answered, spotting a piece of scrap metal on the floor. She reached through the bars, stretching her arm as far as she could, and managed to pull it closer to her. With a victorious smile, she began to pick the lock on her cell. After tinkering with it for a few minutes, the lock opened.
"Yes!" Drew whispered excitedly, pushing the door open. She freed Zak, then unlocked Genevieve's door. Drew and Zak started down the hallway, but Genevieve still stood in front of Doyle's cell.
"Wait! You forgot Doyle" she said.
"He betrayed us! Do you really think we're going to continue our lives with him, knowing that he's willing to give us away to Van Rook?" Drew asked, irritated. "As far as I'm concerned, he can stay here until he becomes a snack for Kur!" The French girl looked like Drew had just slapped her in the face.
"He came here for me. If you're not taking him, then I'm staying right here!" Genevieve said defiantly. Drew sighed, and handed the lock pick to her. She knelt in front of the cage and tussled Doyle's red hair.
"Hold on, dear, almost got it" she assured. The lock sprang open, and Doyle rushed out to embrace her.
"Let's go, guys" Zak said confidently. The four filed up the stairs, and found that the bookshelf was still open. Doyle glanced around for any signs of Van Rook, and crept into the library. The escapees were relieved to find their weapons sitting behind a glass case in the corner, which was unlocked. Genevieve's weapon was there, too: an iron staff, with a beautiful but deadly silver blade on the end. Swiftly, Doyle smashed the case, and everyone seized their weapons.
"The airship is parked in the forest, a little way down the road. As long as Van Rook isn't around, I think we can make it" Drew stated optimistically. They dashed out of the library, heading for the front door. Above the trees, the airship could be seen, nestled in the forest. Seeing no sign of the mercenary, the group ran for the trees, getting closer and closer. After a bit of running, the breathless family had reached the airship, finally safe. They boarded, and the metal door swung shut behind them. Doyle had literally swept Genevieve off her feet, holding her close to his chest, stroking her hair lovingly. She gazed up at him, admiring his beautiful blue eyes.
"Doyle, you really are my knight in shining armor" she said dreamily, planting a kiss on his nose.
"And you're my beautiful princess" he replied, their lips meeting in a kiss fit for a fairytale.