"Yes Agent Warren. Your preference will definitely be taken into consideration."
Paul Briggs turned to walk away, only to be stopped by Mike's hand on his arm.
"Don't walk away from me Briggs. Don't you turn your back on me."
Two seconds later Mike found himself on the floor, courtesy of Briggs fist connecting with his jaw.
"Turn my back on you? You mean like you did to me? To Johnny? To Charlie? To Jakes? To Paige?"
He smiled as he saw the pain in Mike's eyes when he mentioned Paige.
"She cried you know? She cried for weeks after you left. I've never seen her look so broken before, and I've known her a long time."
"I never meant to-"
"You never meant to what? To come in and tear this family apart? To lie to all of us? To use us just to get your cushy office in DC? Well I appreciate that you didn't do it on purpose, but hey sometimes stuff happens that we just can't control right Mike?"
With those words Briggs walked away, leaving Mike sitting on the floor, where he remained for a long time afterwords.
"Where do you think you're going?"
Mike just sighed before he resumed his packing, not bothering to answer Jake's question.
"I said-"
"I'm going back to DC okay Jakes?!" He snapped, not bothering to turn around.
"What about Caza?"
"You guys can handle Caza. Briggs probably knows more about them than anyone else alive, and he's got the best team in the world to help him. You guys don't need me. Besides, I don't belong here. I don't know if I ever did."
"That's a load of crap you know that?"
Mike looked up in shock at what Jakes had said, unable to believe what he was hearing.
"Don't act so surprised Levi."
"It's been a while since anybody called me that. Mostly it's been-"
"Sir or Agent Warren or you idiot?" Jakes finished, and Mike nodded.
"How did you know?"
"Let's just say you aren't the first one who screwed up something great, and then felt bad about it later."
"Cassandra." Mike surmised, and Jakes nodded.
"You know the one major difference between me and you Mike? Besides the skin tone I mean." He finished, making Mike laugh. It felt good to laugh. He hadn't really laughed in a long time.
"The one major difference is that you haven't lost your shot. You can still have it all...and I'm not just talking about Paige."
"I don't think so Jakes. I made her cry. I turned the whole house on Briggs, well except for you. Johnny hates my guts and my stupid obsession with a job nearly got Charlie killed. I don't know if it's possible to come back from that."
"Families fight Levi. But they also forgive each other when one of them fucks up. Now I'm not saying it'll be easy, and I'm not saying it'll be exactly like it was overnight because we both know it won't be. But maybe it can be something better."
"Any advice?" Mike asked, hanging onto Jake's words as though they were a lifeline, and in a lot of ways they were. Ever since he had gotten to DC, ever since the rest of the house learned why he was sent to Graceland in the first place Mike had felt like he was drowning. He had felt suffocated, like he had lost the best thing he had ever had. It had gotten so bad that he had started sleeping with the Assistant Deputy Director of the FBI. Oh sure, there had been some initial attraction, but Mike knew the truth. He had known the truth ever since that first night. He didn't care about Jessica. To be honest he didn't even like her. She was uptight and arrogant, and she would do anything to get the top spot, no matter who she hurt in the process. She was the exact opposite of Paige. Paige was caring and loyal, and she would rather be in the field than be sitting behind a desk. In short, Paige was everything Mike wanted in a woman. And she was so far out of his league that it wasn't even funny.
The only reason he had been with Jessica was because he wanted to feel something besides pain and guilt. But Mike vowed that whatever happened next in his life he was done with Jessica.
"You want advice Mike? Well for starters, apologize."
"And then?" He asked as Jakes turned to head back upstairs.
"Stop being an asshole."
"Hey Jakes." He called, making the man turn around.
"I am sorry." He told him, and Jakes smiled.
"Welcome home brother." He replied before walking away.
For the first time in months, Mike Warren slept with a smile on his face. Things weren't going to go back to the way
they were, but maybe they could be better.
"That couch is not good for your back Mikey." Charlie said when he walked into the kitchen the next morning.
"I've got some good memories on that couch. Besides, it didn't feel right sleeping upstairs."
"For a while I thought you were gonna sleep on the floor."
"You heard my conversation with Briggs huh?"
"Yeah. Plus you're gonna have a nice shiner." She said, and he winced.
"I really messed up Charlie. I lied to everybody, and I almost got you killed. I'm so sorry Charlie. If I could go back and change things-"
"You can't change the past kiddo. But that dosen't mean you have to stay there either. Far as I'm concerned, what's done is done. Let's move on." She told him, and he smiled.
"You want a hand with breakfast?" He offered, and she smiled.
"Why not?"
For a few minutes they worked in silence, before Mike broke it.
"Thanks Charlie."
"I don't leave leftover sauce for just anybody. Now pass me the salt will you?"
"Man what smells so good?" Johnny asked as he came downstairs, stopping when he saw Mike and Charlie in the kitchen.
"Are you gonna stand there or are you gonna eat Johnny?" Charlie asked, but Johnny just shook his head.
"Lost my appetite." He replied before walking off. Mike started to go after him, but Charlie shook her head.
"Give him some time. He'll come around."
"So what's the plan Agent Warren?" Briggs asked a few hours later once they were all in the living room.
"I don't know Agent Briggs. Last time I checked you called this op off. So you tell me." He replied simply.
"Guys, give us a minute?" Briggs said, and the others just walked out without a word. Mike tried to catch Paige's eye, but she didn't even glance his way. She hadn't said a word to him since their chat on the beach, and he couldn't really blame her.
"What are you trying to pull Mike? Last night you told me that you were in charge."
"And I was. I called the Bureau and told them to give you back command."
"You think you can trust a burnout with command?" He asked, and Mike sighed.
"I think I made a lot of mistakes. I think I've got a lot to make up for. But one mistake I never made was following your lead Briggs."
"Does Charlie know about this?" He asked, and Mike shook his head.
"No. This was my call."
"So you think giving me back my command will get you back in my good graces?"
"Maybe. Maybe not. I don't know. All I know is that I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I didn't tell the FBI to go to hell the minute they asked me to start investigating you. I'm sorry that I become so obsessed with a stupid job in DC that I tore apart my family. I'm sorry I almost got the woman you love killed. I'm just so sorry Paul."
He was looking at his shoes, unable to look his onetime friend in the eye.
For several long moments Briggs was silent. Then he spoke.
"What Caza did to me...it messed me up. Those drugs took my soul, and cost me every good thing I had. Then when I lost my team, I was consumed by guilt and vengeance. Nothing mattered except nailing Caza and Jangles. And I think that you had the same thing happen. You were consumed by the job, and your desire for a cushy office in D.C."
"Is there a point to this?" Mike asked.
"A question. Can you put us first? Can you put the house before your career?"
"Yes." Mike said, finally looking up.
"Good. You get one chance. But if you screw it up, if you lie to us, if you hurt Paige, you are done. And I don't just mean with the FBI. Understand?"
"I understand."
"Good. Now go talk to Paige."
"The op-"
"Can wait another hour or two."
Mike smiled before heading out to find the blonde DEA agent. He finally found her on the beach, looking out at the waves.
"Got a second?" He asked finally, not moving to sit down. She didn't respond, and Mike took that as an invitation. This might be his only chance to fix things between them, and he wasn't going to lose it.
"I screwed up. I almost burned Graceland on a hunch. I cared more about my career than my family. More than you. And I am so sorry for that."
"What do you want from me Mike? Forgiveness? Absolution? Fine. You're forgiven. We're good." She said tersely.
"I don't want forgiveness Paige." He replied, suddenly calm.
"Then what-"
Her word's were cut off as Mike leaned in and kissed her. She stiffened, and Mike was worried that she would think he was using her as an outlet for his pain. That he didn't really want her. But nothing could be further from the truth. In that moment, he wanted Paige more than he had ever wanted anything in his life. More than he wanted to nail Caza, more than the Director's chair. More than he had wanted to be honest with Abby.
Finally, Paige kissed him back, and Mike felt as though he was on cloud nine. At least until his cell phone rang, interrupting the moment.
"Warren." He said, Paige resisting the urge to smile at the look on his face. The phrase 'if looks could kill' came to mind.
"What are you doing giving Briggs back command? Never mind that you should be talking to me first. If you want that Director's chair then-"
"I don't. I want to be left in Graceland. And I don't ever want to hear from you again."
And with no thought to the consequences, Mike hung up the phone. Jess could go find somebody else who wanted to sleep their way to the top. He was home. And that was where he would stay.
A/N: So I just hated how this episode of season 2 went. I hope you all enjoyed this. Please read and review.