Stockholm

Day One. 11:02am

The police had arrived around thirty minutes ago and the last contact they made had been over fifteen minutes ago. In the brief and mostly incoherent conversation she had with her father, Rachel had told him how the man coldly killed a woman in front of her. The SWAT team that had been called had also arrived at the scene but Joseph Gatina wasn't willing to risk the life of his only daughter and some citizens of the city he had been governing for the past five years. As Donald had mentioned, General O'Brien's assistant indeed had the mayor on her phone and he had pleaded with the police officer to do not make any move.

Inside the store Julian and Jessica were still looking for the blueprints when one of the criminals threw Rachel on the floor. The redhead was crying her eyes out. Brooke immediately looked at Julian that looked back at her and only nodded as she pleaded to help the crying girl.

Brooke moved again to the back of the room and got Rachel a glass of water. She couldn't even hold the glass by her own and Brooke had to help her to drink some of the water. Everyone in the room was tense and concerned of what may have caused her to be like that. Ever since the robbery had been announced and Rachel was brought to their attention she held a tough and fierce gaze and now she had totally lost it.

"He killed her" she finally blurted between many sobs.

"Who? What?" Brooke asked softly as the mention of another death had made all the hostages uneasy again and Julian immediately stopped his actions to look at the girl.

"He killed her in front of me. She was there and then he just shot at her as if she was nothing. It's my fault. I killed her" she sobbed even harder at her confession.

Julian whispered for Jessica to continue her hunt though the woman was nearly hyperventilating again because of Rachel's confession.

"You" he pointed to Brooke "Help Jessica and I will talk to Ms. Gatina"

"Get away from me" Rachel yelled as she crawled backwards on the floor away from Julian.

"I'm not going to hurt you, I promise, I just want to know what happened there" his voice was tender but it wasn't enough to break through the shocked state of the redhead.

"You know what happened there" she shouted again.

Julian could hear the footsteps towards the room and quickly changed his composure "You will shut the hell up if you don't want to join her" he yelled as Donald entered the room.

"Any luck with the blueprints?" he asked Julian, ignoring Rachel.

"Not yet. I had to shut up the spoiled Princess first" his voice was then totally different from the tone he had used to talk to her. It was somewhat pissed and devoid of emotions.

"Do you need any help here?" he looked toward the hostages that had been afraid by Rachel's revelation of another death.

"No" Julian answered too quickly to which Donald raised his eyebrow. "I'm in charge and they know it, they try anything and they're dead" he looked up to the hostages and some of them gulped at Julian's threat. If anything until that moment he had been polite and reassuring them that everything would work out. And now all of sudden he sounded more intimidating than the others criminals.

"Good. Once you find them, let me know" he looked at Jessica and Brooke that tried their best to control their emotions.

"Yes, Sir"

"You may get a bonus if it works, Aladdin" he tapped Julian's shoulder as he made his way out.

"I don't care about that. Just do your part of our deal with Elijah and that's it" Julian said steadily and Donald only nodded. "You don't need to save any bullets if you need them. For now the only thing we need is the Queen, the rest are useless" he said from the doorway before he finally walked out of the room.

Julian had waited until the footsteps couldn't be heard anymore and walking to the door to confirm his assumptions he closed it.

"I don't want any of you to get hurt" he reached for the back of his mask and removed it revealing his face. There was nothing more for him to lose. Things had got completely out of control and he knew there was no escape. He was screwed and so was Angie.

"I won't hurt any of you but I need your help. They're in this for real, all they care about are the jewels and they will kill you all and still be able to sleep at night as if nothing had happened. I want to help you but I need your cooperation, can I count on you?" he kept his voice low and everyone in the room could see how worn down he was.

"You can count on me" Brooke was the first to say something. She was intrigued by the man behind the sweet eyes and unsteady hands. She knew she was playing with fire but in all honesty she also knew that he seemed to be different from the others. She had a good feeling about him and her feelings were never wrong.

"Anybody else?" he asked relieved that at least someone was willing to trust him.

"Why are you doing this? How can we know that all you are saying isn't just a part of the scheme to kill us all?" Rachel yelled.

"Ms. Gatina I really need you to calm down. I'm sorry that you had to witness what happened to that young woman but I'm afraid that if you don't calm down they will come here and if they did that once they will have no problem doing it twice. You're not responsible for what happened to her, regardless of which situation they put you in. They're sick; they're only responsible for what happened to her. I just need you to be quiet. If you don't trust me, if you think I'm just the same or even worse than them, it's okay, you don't need to cooperate with me if you don't want, just try to be quiet so everybody can be safe" his voice was serene and calm and everyone in the room was able to catch the sincerity he had put in his words.

"Is anyone else willing to help me?" he sighed looking at the scared hostages that sat on the floor.

"What do you need us to do?" one of the few men asked him.

"Just to be quiet and pretend that you're scared of me" he explained.

"Let me break some news to you. We're scared of you and we don't trust you!" Rachel once again blurted.

"Count on me" Jessica shakily offered and one by one the other hostages also positioned themselves by his side. Rachel had been the only one that hadn't said a word but at least she was now quiet. He didn't want them to drag any unwanted attention.

"Any luck here?" Julian approached Jessica and Brooke who shook their heads.

"Are you sure this is the only possible place for the blueprints to be?" he questioned.

"Here and the safe" she repeated the information she provided earlier.

"I really need these blueprints. They may be the only chance you have to leave here alive" he clarified just in case Jessica didn't really realize how important it was for them to have the blueprints.

"Let's try the safe" Brooke suggested to Jessica who just nodded as they walked to the other side of the room.

Julian put on his mask again, he didn't want any of the other criminals to enter the room and find him unmasked. It would probably lead them to suspect of his plan.

While Brooke and Jessica opened the big safe and started to check the papers Julian kept an eye on the hostages. They were quiet and even Rachel had totally calmed down. Seeing the situation was finally under control he sat at the couch across from them and after burying his head in his hands his mind drifted to the girl he loved more than life.

Three months earlier

"Ry put me down!" the girl yelled and laughed as Julian held her on his shoulders spinning them around "We are going to fall flat on our faces, you idiot!" she continued but he totally ignored her.

She was a beautiful young woman. Her hair was a light brown. She had beautiful big brown eyes and her frame was petit. She looked like an angel. His angel as he often referred to the woman in his arms.

"Did you say something?" he asked as laid her down on his bed and started to tickle her in the spots he knew so well.

"Ry I swear if you don't stop now I won't let you sleep at night and though I've been away for a month I know pretty well that tomorrow is your big day in that fancy office" she gasped for air but still it wasn't enough to make him stop "And I know you're a hell of a handsome man but I guess your appearance will need more than your charming grin to get the spot"

"This is for you to learn to never leave me for five weeks again" he told her but decided to give her a break and lying down by her side he brought her to his chest "I missed you, Angie"

"I missed you too, Ry" she answered back recovering her breath and listening to his heart.

"I don't want you to do this again. I want you to move in with me. I'm sorry that I've been distant lately but I promise it won't happen again" he brushed her hair guilty for everything that happened to them in the past two years.

"Move in? Really? I love you Ry but I'm not sure this is such a good idea" Angelina honestly turned him down.

"Promise me you'll just think about it, okay? For me" he pleaded.

"Anything for you, Ry" she smiled weakly also thinking about her deal with Elijah and he happily kissed her hair.

Her promise was enough for Julian. He knew how complicated things were with Angelina and he knew her promise was a big improvement from where they were ever since he found out the truth. He knew he neglected her too much in these past two years but he would make it up to her. He loved her too much to just give it up in the most important person of his life.

His memories of one of their last happy moments was abruptly interrupted as the room was invaded by Mickey who seemed very pissed off.

"What the hell are you doing?" he asked not really looking at Julian. The criminal was focused on Brooke on the other side of the huge room.

Julian had been distracted by his own thoughts he hadn't realized that Brooke had moved a table closer the window by the safe and was trying to see if it was possible for them to jump from there. Unfortunately the window was too small for any of them to get out through it and the moment she was making her way down the table Mickey invaded the room. Before she had time to step down from the table Mickey reached for her arm and pulling her harshly he threw her on the floor. During her fall she ended up hitting her head on the nearby coffee table and when she reached the carpet she was unconscious.

"What the hell was that for?" Julian jumped from his place.

"I'm the one who asks you what the fuck you're doing. You're here to keep an eye on them and you allow one of the hostages to climb on the table to the window" the enraged criminal walked towards Julian only to strike him across the face with the butt of the gun, leading it to bleed.

Being an architect Julian was good with spaces and measures even when he didn't have a ruler or anything. He had noticed the little window long before and with a quick look he knew it was too small for any of the hostages to escape through it and that was the perfect answer for Mickey now "Just a moron like you could think that they can really pass through that, you idiot. First they won't reach it and second only a baby could pass there" Julian faced the man that was ready to knock him down.

"Why are you idiots fighting? Can't I leave you alone for one minute?" it was Donald turn to storm into the room. He had heard their arguments from the main room where he and the others were getting the jewels behind the glasses and also making contact with the police.

"I'm doing my work just fine. The hostages are under control. I have the assistant and that girl looking for the blueprints. The girl had the stupid idea to check if she could escape through that ridiculous small and unreachable window. I let her wear herself out and bring her hopes down trying to reach for it and then concluding what was so obvious, only a child can pass there but then this idiot came here and questioned my authority in front of the hostages" Julian was really mad and actually worried about Brooke. He had looked at her from the corner of his eye a few times and she was motionless in her position. He just hoped it wasn't one more death. If he ever escaped this alive he could only imagine how many years he would be in jail for being involved in a robbery that already accumulated two deaths.

"Calm down guys, I don't need you to freak out like two little girls. Mickey, you stay away from this room. I don't want you to come back here, are we clear?" Donald turned to the big man by Julian's side.

"He's an idiot" he murmured

"Shut up and get the hell out of here" the leader was almost losing it with the two guys.

"And you" he turned to Julian after Mickey made his way out of the room cursing "If any of this hostages causes me any problem I will make sure you're one of them, are we clear?"

"I'm in control here, okay? Why would I bother myself with a stupid girl that probably doesn't even know the difference between her hands? Because only morons like her and your ass of an accomplice would think that an adult could go up there. If you guys want to come here to check on me all the time, I don't need to be here so I will look for a bed and sleep" he challenged the chief without thinking too much about it. He just wanted him to go away and check if the girl was dead or not.

"Watch your mouth, Aladdin. I don't need you to get out of here" and it was his turn to be angry by how Julian challenged him in front of the others.

"You may not know it but blueprints aren't really children's puzzles that you can solve easily. So I'm not so sure you really don't need me to read them" Julian kept his voice low because he realized that the other man's pride had been shook when Julian demanded him to leave. If it was only the two of them he wouldn't mind, he wasn't afraid of Donald. But there were nearly twenty people in the room with them and he didn't want to have their deaths on his shoulders.

"Just do your part and keep your mouth shut, I don't want any other mishap in this room, are we clear?" he yelled to Julian who simply nodded.

"Call me when you get the blueprints or if you need to go looking in the other rooms" his tone of voice was then normal as he headed to leave the office.

"Yes, sir" Julian walked to the door and when he saw he was gone, he closed the door again, locking it.

"Jessica, join the others, I will look for the papers by myself" he ordered the scared woman that complied immediately with the order.

"Guys, I really don't want any of you to be hurt. You see what happens when you do things like this? I already told you these guys have no problem hurting you but I have. I really need you to do as I say otherwise you will all end like this" his voice was resigned and filled of concern as he looked to Brooke's motionless body on the floor. "Can I trust you now? Can I really look for those blueprints knowing that you won't do anything stupid? I locked the door but if you don't cooperate I will ask them to send someone else to be with you, do you want this? I don't want anybody to get hurt but I won't get myself even more screwed because of you, so it's your choice, do you want me to be here with you or anyone else?"

They didn't take too much to think about it before muttering 'you'.

"Thank you" Julian nodded and turned his attention to the unconscious woman.

"Why did you have to try something that stupid, beautiful girl?" Julian whispered as he reached for Brooke's apparently lifeless body and taking her in his arms he moved her to the couch close to where she was. The hostages didn't have a view of where Julian was because of the 'L' format of the room, while he was at one end of the L the hostages were in the other and only from the couch where he was sat before it was possible to see both ends. He didn't know Brooke's condition and he didn't want to scare them even more.

For his relief she had a pulse and it wasn't really too weak. "Are any of you by any chance a doctor, a nurse or anything?" he asked when he made it to their side of the room but to his disappointment nobody was.

"She's seems to be okay but I don't know what I'm supposed to do" he looked at where Brooke was and they could see that he was concerned about their well-being.

He approached her again and lifting her upper body and moved it to his arms, bringing her head close to his chest trying to figure out what to do about her. He took one minute to pay attention to the girl in his arms. She was indeed beautiful and he really didn't think she was stupid. Actually it wasn't that clear that none of them would pass through the window. He only knew it because he was good with dimensions and spaces but it also meant that she failed to trust on him though it didn't matter in that moment. He needed to think about something to wake her up.

"Try to splash some water on her face, maybe she will wake up. I don't understand many things about first aid care but I've watched in many movies and TV shows that it doesn't do any good to be unconscious" Rachel dared to walk where she could see them. She could now see then that Julian really cared about them.

"Good idea, would you get some for me, please?" he asked and detaching one of the hands from her he got rid of his mask again. That thing was irritating him and with the door locked he didn't need to worry about any of the criminals seeing him unmasked.

Rachel handed him the glass of water and he nodded for her to move back to her side of the room. He didn't want the hostages to think that they could do as they wanted because Brooke already proved that they weren't in the best of their minds though he couldn't really blame them giving the circumstances they were. But he needed them to trust and respect him and do as he said and allowing them to come and go as they wanted wouldn't help him.

He wasn't sure how he was going to splash the water in her face. It seemed too harsh to just dump the water over her but he didn't see any other way so he slowly turned the glass down letting just some drops of the liquid fall on her face. At first she didn't react and he thought maybe he needed to splash a little bit more so he tipped the glass more.

Brooke's eyes fluttered at the contact of the bigger amount of liquid falling in her eyes and when Julian saw she was waking up he stopped spilling the water.

"Hey" his voice was soft and really low.

"Hi" she looked intensely at his eyes.

"See? That's what happens when you cheat on people. I know I'm not in a good position for trust but I really need you to trust me here" he whispered pulling down his long sleeved shirt up to his palm and holding it with his fingers he carefully used the material to dry her wet face.

"I'm sorry, it wasn't that I didn't trust you, I promise, I just had this idea and I was going to talk to you but you were in such a deep thought that I decided to check it by myself. It was stupid I know and I hope I didn't cause you any problems" she moved her hand to the corner of his mouth that still had blood.

"I'm okay, don't worry and I'm happy you're okay too" he honestly confessed to her. He couldn't handle another person to die because of him.

"Thank you" she offered him her full smile and for the first time he could see how her beautiful dimples.

"You're welcome" his voice was louder but also deeper as he looked into her hazel eyes.