Chapter 3:

It had been almost too easy to slip from one floor to the next. Even the security combination hadn't taken more than a few minutes to crack.

Peter waited, in Walternate's office, sitting at his desk. He would have the upper hand, the element of surprise. His gun was nestled between his hands, or rather Olivia's gun it had been. He could hear commotion and alarms but the door never opened. He wondered if Walternate would be the first to arrive in his office. He suspected as much but as the commotion outside grew louder he wondered if his attention had been turned elsewhere. Peter was certain the machine had powered down when he'd left it. He hadn't considered any fluctuations though, any indication of his passing through universes. He sighed, standing up and approaching the door. There were of course other ways to find Walternate.

He tried the door only to realize he'd been locked in. "That's just great," Peter muttered rolling his eyes in frustration. So they were on to him. He must have been seen on security footage or a guard caught him going into Walternate's office. He was certain there were no cameras in the Secretary's office so once inside he had been safe.

He considered his options. Bust down the door or plan another escape. He wondered what they had planned for him. His father probably wanted him to step into the machine, destroy the world he had come to call home.

Time was a funny thing. Time was counted in a specific measure and yet it seemed to speed up and slow down at the most inopportune times. Peters mind was reeling with useless information with thoughts that were trying to calm him but only causing his pulse to race.

His eyes scoured the office. He needed to plan an escape in case things turned south and they certainly looked as though they were headed that way. He took a tentative step back as he heard the sound of the door handle turn and watched as his biological father, Walternate stepped into his office.

"Son," he spoke hoarsely, his eyes narrow as he focused on Peter Bishop, trying to determine the reason he was here. "So you're here because we turned on the machine." He could only guess the reason Peter was standing in his office at this very moment.

"I'm here because of what you will do," Peter breathed raising the gun up and aiming for his father, Walternate's head. His eyes narrowed.

"Don't do that son," Walternate spoke, his voice softer, gentler. "No good will come of it. Your world is the one started all of this, we never asked for any of it."

"I have no choice." Peter shook his head, his finger on the trigger. He hesitated, though he wasn't sure why. "I may have turned on the machine and believe me if things don't change both worlds will soon enough fall victim to this war." He stared at Walternate, "the only resolution is to stop fighting and to start fixing the holes in the universes."

"And shooting me will what?" Walternate asked as Peter hadn't budged. Walternate took a confident step forward towards Peter. "You won't shoot me." He smiled, "I'm the grandfather of your son, Henry."

Peter shook his head. He wasn't going to fall victim to Walternate's games and mind tricks. "I don't have a son." e wo

Walternate smiled turning slightly towards the door, "bring her in!" He called and watched as the doors opened and Alternate Olivia was pushed through.

She stumbled slightly through the entrance, her dark hair masking her face for a moment as she glanced up, not expecting to see Peter Bishop ever again. She wasn't sure how to respond, what to say, what to do. She half-expected him to come over and slap her in the face for what she'd done.

"Tell him." Walternate demanded. "Tell him about your son. About his son." He emphasized. "Tell him how I saved both your lives."

Peter watched her closely, studied her features. She looked exhausted, worn. She was wearing white drabs, it seemed evident she wasn't in their good graces, with whatever she'd done. "You betray them too?" Peter scoffed his eyes meeting hers. "Besides it's not possible that we have a son. You're clearly not pregnant."

She let out a faint sigh, "his name is Henry." She glanced at Walternate, shaking her head in dismay before turning towards Peter. "I don't know why you're here but you should go home. This man, your father, isn't to be trusted." She knew that he already knew as much but still, she wanted to voice it out loud, let both men know which world her allegiance was towards.

Walternate laughed, his hand reaching for his own gun that he had hidden away, holding it now on Alternate Olivia as he grabbed her forcefully. "You won't kill the mother of your son." He smiled knowingly. "You won't kill any version of Olivia Dunham. You don't have it in you." Walternate smirked pressing the gun to her forehead.

Peter gritted his teeth. He shouldn't have hesitated earlier, he should have done it, taken the shot while he had it. Now he was clearly distracted, staring at a version of Olivia Dunham that had once deceived and mesmerized him at the same time. If he believed in spells he was certain she had charmed him. He pushed the thoughts of the past behind him. He had to take the shot but his mind kept dancing around images of them, of her betrayal and now of a possible child that existed. He didn't think it possible considering the timeline but he knew their technology was advanced from the time he'd been over there.

Her brown hair shined and her eyes seemed to shimmer with something unfamiliar. "Just shoot him!" She screamed at Peter. "Kill the bastard! Do it already before the guards come in!" She shouted for him to listen to her but he seemed in a daze. It took a moment before he refocused. "Don't worry about me. I'm nothing, good as dead if he has his way, just do it, Peter."

A shot rang out across the room but it was neither Walternate nor Peter's weapon that had been fired. Walternate fell to the ground in a heap on the floor, shot dead from a bullet wound to the head. Peter glanced behind him from where the shot had been fired but no one was there.

"How the hell?" Alternate Olivia's eyes widened. Her heart was racing as she saw the Secretary dead on the floor at her feet. She took a step back, moving away but not before reaching for his gun that lay with him on the floor.

"I didn't shoot him." Peter shook his head trying to momentarily understand what happened. As quickly as it had transpired, the doors swung open and guards came in guns drawn. Peter and Alternate Olivia had no choice but to hold their hands up and surrender to the authorities.