Chapter Three
FitzSimmons assessed their options quickly. They couldn't tell the innkeeper, as they didn't want the authorities involved; they had to keep this quiet. Fortunately, the inn offered housekeeping only every other day, and with Deke having checked in yesterday, the housekeeper would not visit his room today.
"I heard nothing last night!" Jemma whispered urgently, as they stood inside the chaos of Deke's room. "I assume no one else did either; otherwise people would have been talking about it at breakfast."
"I doubt everyone else had a night as good as ours though," Fitz remarked. After bidding farewell to Deke yesterday, FitzSimmons had spent the remainder of the day and night either in the claw-foot tub or in bed together. There had been no need for any further Rochambeaus, as each had had plenty of turns.
Jemma shook her head, needing to push such thoughts away and focus on the task at hand.
"If we don't want the authorities notified, we can't tell anyone what happened and we could only ask the most minimal of questions before people become suspicious," Jemma ruminated. "We could canvas the town but we'd surely attract even more attention that way."
"And even if we did ask questions of the people here," Fitz began, "I doubt anyone here heard anything. Like you said, we'd have sensed or overheard something at breakfast. Surely the innkeeper would've said something had he heard any commotion, since he knows we know 'Bob'."
Simultaneously they looked at each other and said, "We need to call for backup."
The next several moments progressed quickly. FitzSimmons tapped the device buried at the bottom of one of their duffle bags, and not long afterwards met Mack inside a crowded pub. "I'm glad we implanted a tracker inside Deke along with everyone else," Mack said, tapping his screen.
The device beeped. "Daisy's got something," Mack said. "Deke's not far from here. Looks like it might be our old friends the Watchdogs."
"The Watchdogs?" Fitz asked. "I almost had forgotten about them."
Daisy's voice came over Comms; apparently she had picked up what Fitz said. "Well I sure haven't!" Daisy remarked, the vinegar in her voice easily coming through.
Upon hearing Daisy's words, Jemma put a hand on Fitz's shoulder. Further discussion of the brief exchange just now would have to wait.
Daisy continued, "Looks like one of their supposedly-former members – who is probably still a member – purchased some supplies not far from here. Interesting list of stuff – I wonder if they're making a new weapon. FitzSimmons, I'd like you to take a look at his shopping list."
Mack added, "And the stuff was purchased not far from where Deke's tracker says he is." He straightened, and added, "If it is the Watchdogs, then Daisy and Yo-Yo, you two stay on the Zephyr. This smells like a trap so they can get their hands on some inhumans." He took a breath. "FitzSimmons, I want you on the Zephyr with Daisy and Yo-Yo, as Daisy quarterbacks. May, Davis, and Piper, let's pay a visit to the Watchdogs' new base."
Jemma and Fitz exchanged a look. They had known that their vacation wouldn't last, and there was no discussing the question that if one of their family members needed them, they would be there to help.
After Fitz had been rescued from space, Daisy had done as Deke had and kept her distance. Her reasons, of course, had been different than Deke's. Fitz had been bewildered, but during their days on the Zephyr, Jemma tried to strike a balance between catching Fitz up to speed and not overwhelming him. He had certainly wanted to know all of the details, while she had been forced to think of a way to convey to him that too much undigested trauma had led to a breakdown. She had tried to spoon-feed information to him rather than letting him gorge himself.
Now they faced Daisy again on the ship, but at least now they had a crisis in front of them, which forced interpersonal concerns to the side. It felt like a bit of a relief.
After pouring over the equipment, Fitz and Simmons soon had a report for Daisy and Yo-Yo. They had spent the past few days away from screens and technology, but neither had any trouble jumping back into it.
"Our best guess is that they're making a weapon to target inhumans, and the weapon runs on sonic frequencies," Fitz said. "They seem to think that the weapon will impact inhumans only."
"Based on the intel you gathered," Jemma added, "we can't speculate as to whether they're just in the planning stages or if they have it built already. But –"
"But why capture Deke and presumably use him as bait if they didn't have something they want to use on us?" Daisy asked.
"Precisely."
In the end though, the Watchdogs apparently had not expected the strike team to not consist of any inhumans. Mack, May, Davis, and Piper were easily able to extract Deke – and a prototype of the new weapon, which had not had any effect on the four non-powered people. Other than a flesh wound on Piper, the team was unscathed; the Watchdogs apparently needed to spend less time on designing new weapons and more time on basic target practice. Moments after retrieving Deke, the Zephyr was back in the sky and Deke was unabashedly hugging his grandparents.
May soon approached FitzSimmons and pulled them into a brief embrace as well. No words were exchanged, but they didn't need to be. Fitz knew that the last thing May wanted to hear was pablum like, 'I'm sorry for your loss.'
"Well, that was easy," Daisy summarized their mission.
"After Graviton and the Kree and the Remorath, the Watchdogs don't feel like much of a threat," Mack chuckled. "I guess it's hubris to feel like we can take on almost anything now though."
"Maybe it really was too easy. Who knows what their endgame truly is?" Fitz asked. "Perhaps they implanted something inside Deke. Simmons should check him out thoroughly."
"I was awake the whole time," Deke said, exasperated. "I sat in a cell while two idiots stood there all night and told me how much they hate inhumans. What the actual hell? And hey, I really need to use the bathroom."
"Fine," Jemma said, "But meet us in med lab right afterwards so I can do that thorough examination."
"Yes, ma'am," Deke said, giving a mock salute.
FitzSimmons headed for the med lab, ready to meet Deke there. Jemma had told him how she and the other Fitz had vowed never to leave the other's side, and he had wholeheartedly agreed with that plan.
Moments later, Daisy entered the lab. She knew the conversation would be easier when FitzSimmons were surrounded by equipment and had plenty to keep them occupied. "So hey," she began, clasping her hands together, "we could use your help to figure out their new weapon and the Watchdogs' real plans. Should we stop at the inn to get your things so you can come back with us?"
Jemma and Fitz exchanged a look.
"Four more days," Jemma insisted, meeting Daisy's eyes. "We want four more days together." They had briefly discussed this on the Zephyr when they had grabbed a minute, knowing full well they would be asked to return. "Of course protecting inhumans from the Watchdogs is very important to us; we just know that we need a little more time."
"Four days," Daisy nodded. "That works for me." She looked down at her hands and then back up. "And when you do come back….can the three of us talk?"
"Yes," Fitz said enthusiastically. He took a step closer to Daisy. "Please."
Daisy nodded. "Coulson's dead. And holding a grudge is just making me feel like shit. There's already been enough shit in my life." She shrugged, "I'm ready to forgive and forget."
Jemma opened her mouth; she wanted to insist that there was nothing to forgive because the man standing right here hadn't done anything. But she closed her mouth. She realized that she, too, might just need to just forgive and forget.
"That's good," Fitz said. "None of us has much family left. Losing Coulson was hard enough." The fact that he never got to say goodbye would haunt him till the end of his days. He silently decided that he might, indeed, take the idea that Jemma had gotten from Andrew and write Coulson a letter.
"Yes," Jemma said, immensely proud of her husband – or fiancé – for not falling into an argument with Daisy. "So, then, see you in four days? And we sit down and have a pint together?"
"Looking forward to it," Daisy said.
TO BE CONTINUED
