I'm asking you guys not to get mad at me beforehand… so yeah

Four

Dark eyes scanned the surrounding space suspiciously. Even though both Olivia and Quinn had warned against it, he just couldn't help it. Old habits die hard. It was a compulsion, a sickness, a habit; muscle memory there was no way to stop it or him. Anyone that came close to him or The Gladiators; his family had to be checked out. There were no exceptions ever, there couldn't be. Everyone at OPA had secrets, secrets that needed guarding, that needed protecting.

Huck would forever be their sentry.

So he had begun to dig and the more he looked into 'Becky' the more he decided he didn't like his findings. It was this last bit of information he had come across that caused his vision to blur and bleed red.

Becky was a cancer.

Huckleberry was now a very upset somewhat reformed assassin.

There was very little time and if his suspicions were right then they were all in danger. He had invited a sickness into their house, their home. It would have to be cut out like the cancerous cell it was. He quickly placed an urgent call to Olivia outlining the situation before he was thundering down the hall to Quinn's office. The door to the office opened with a bang that caused it to vibrate as he stood in the doorway with a dark expression.

Quinn merely looked up from the computer screen with an inquisitive expression.

"Go bag, now!"

Without question, Quinn ran to grab the small black duffle tucked away in the corner before she raced to follow Huck out of the office. The team wasn't wrong when they teased Quinn about being a 'Baby Huck', originally Huck had only intended to help Quinn with hacking purely because it took some of the pressure off him if she could work on the smaller things. However as time wore on he found himself actually enjoying Quinn's company. While he loved The Gladiators and would go to bat for any of them his loyalty and heart belonged to Olivia. She was his mother, sister, daughter, friend and savior. Quinn… However Quinn was an entirely different animal.

There was something there, something he had no desire to define.

"What the hell is going on?" Quinn asked as she hopped up into the SUV beside him.

"You need to change and fast, if I'm right Becky isn't Becky and she's about to kill the President." He said as a matter of fact.

Quinn who was now barefoot and in nothing more than a bra and panties froze at Huck's words.

"I'd say are you joking but… you don't joke. Fuck Huck!"

Huck shot her a look and she continued to change her clothing. This had to be a onetime thing. From now on Quinn's work attire was going to have to change. She now ran with him more often than not. Simple but chic tops with jeans and boots would be better suited to their activities.

"When we go out there you are my girlfriend, we're there to just meet up with an old friend of mine. I don't know what we're going to find when we get to the hotel but you need to be calm and relaxed. You need to follow my lead."

Quinn gave a quick nod in agreement and the two hopped out of the SUV and made their way into the hotel hand in hand. Huck continued to scan their surroundings while Quinn did her best to keep a level head. She knew she still flustered easily and the last thing she wanted to do was draw attention. When they reached the room Huck's steps slowed suddenly.

"Stay behind me," he said softly.

As the two made their way into the room five loud bangs filled the air in quick succession.

With the gunshots a fog came over Huck's mind. There was now a lot to do and very little time to do it in. Quinn's entire body had seized up near the door and he knew that was something he would have to help her with later but now, now it was time to clean up. In two quick strides he was back across the room and placed a gentle hand on Quinn's shoulder which seemed to pull her from her own haze.

"Quinn, time to clean up," he said earnestly.

A nod was his response.

"Five shots," he said.

"Five casings," she responded.

As she dropped to the floor to collect the casings, Huck went about dismantling the gun. He knew if the two of them weren't out of the room in the next two minutes it would be over. Just as he was shutting the gun's case Quinn came up behind him, all five casings in the palm of her hand.

"Time to go," he murmured.

Huck then pulled Quinn into his side as the two exited the hotel room. He quickly guided her over to the fire alarm and with a quick pull the two were making their way down a side staircase. He made sure to keep them moving at a brisk pace and soon the two were back in the car. He had caught sight of the chaos erupting on the streets below as he dismantled the gun. Huck knew what he saw when he looked out that window. It was time for everyone to come home, so his first phone call was to Stephen Finch and before he could even make another move his phone was ringing and the caller ID was flashing a number that he knew belonged to the White House.

He quickly then made the decision to take the gun, the casings and Quinn back to OPA. Things were happening far too quickly for his liking but there was very little he could do. Once he had dropped Quinn off and dealt with Cyrus Beene, Huck headed to the Ludus, the safe house.

Olivia was no longer able to run the show. They were now in Huck's wheelhouse.

Huck worked very methodically for the next hour as he prepared the safe house for its incoming guest. He worked to make sure that the place had power and its back up power in place. The numerous new security measures he had recently put in were all up and operational. He then gathered the materials he would need for his initial meeting with Becky.

It was then that his phone began to ring.

"Huck,"

"Quinn,"

"Stephen just arrived and with some major muscle. He said that you wanted me to call as soon as he touched base."

"I need you to go back to OPA; you need to bring both the gun and casings to me. Remember to take your time, don't be in any type of rush right now. Come to the Ludus when you're ready."

He then cut off the call and calmly pulled on a pair of black leather gloves.

It was time to go to work.

Now here he stood right back where he started not even twenty minutes later. The only difference was that now there was a very naked and still drugged out Becky on the floor. It took all his restraint to not just kill the lying traitorous bitch where he found her but she was still important – she had information, information he not only wanted but needed.

Five Minutes passed – Becky started to come to.

Ten Minutes passed – He got a call that Quinn was about five minutes out.

Fifteen Minutes passed – Becky was fully awake and Quinn had arrived.

Becky was secure.

The gun and the casings were secure.

It was now time to head back to the hospital. While he didn't have all he needed yet. The upper echelons would need an update, something that would keep them calm until he had all he needed. After much debate he was able to get Quinn to keep an eye on Becky.

He wasn't worried, when needed Quinn had one hell of a vicious bite.

Huck was once again being escorted through deserted quiet hospital corridors. Both Fitz and Olivia had been moved and tucked into the most secure and remote wing of the hospital, it was almost at a level of no one got in and no one got out.

At least not without armed escorts.

He was then shown into a large conference room. The large table was covered in various papers and the six different screens were showing six of the major news networks. It was clear that this was command central.

"Huck," Stephen greeted.

"What do you have?" Cyrus asked, not bothering with pleasantries.

"I am currently in possession of the gun, the casings and the would-be assassin, what I don't have yet is who ordered the hit." Huck said simply.

"Good Lord," Stephen whispered.

"What the hell do you mean 'what you don't have yet is who ordered the hit', you mean to tell me that this is some sort of major conspiracy bull, grassy knoll garbage?" Cyrus asked incredulously.

"I'm not really sure yet sir. I have my suspicions but it's really too early to tell and I'd rather not speculate." Huck replied.

"What's the plan?" Stephen asked.

"What are you talking about? Huck gives over the evidence and the fucker who thought they could do this and we interrogate the shit out of 'em." Cyrus growled.

Stephen didn't even bother to correct Cyrus in his assumption.

"No," Huck said quietly.

"No?" Cyrus asked in disbelief.

"This stays in house right now. We don't know who ordered the hit, until we do making this public is a risk, a huge one. The President is still alive as is Olivia, whoever ordered this is still out there and might get desperate and try again if they know we have their hired gun. It all stays with me – for now. I will handle it."

The finality in which Huck spoke quickly silenced any argument Cyrus might have had. They were all working toward a common goal and at this point it mattered very little how they got there.

"Once I have what we need I'll be in touch."

With that Huck was once again on the move.

When all of this came out there would be no due process for Becky, there would be no trial. She would be taken in under the Patriot Act or some other largely obscure law that was put into effect to protect The Republic. The ones who would face a court of law and the court of public opinion would be the people who had orchestrated the attack.

That was all fine and good in Huck's opinion but he first had to find out who the puppeteer was.

Now back at the safe house he could hear Quinn's voice speaking softly. He paused outside the main room as he listened to her muse about life, his toy box and about his relationship with Becky. When he heard Becky's blood curdling scream he finally stepped into the room.

"Quinn,"

Startled, she jumped to her feet and began to gnaw on her lower lip as she eyed Huck warily.

"Thank you," he said softly.

The nervousness and insecurity soon melted away from her eyes. He then stepped across the room and over Becky's prone body, ignoring her moans and placed a gentle hand on Quinn's shoulder. He then turned to look down at the broken and bleeding woman beneath them.

"Hello again Becky, we need to talk. There are some very important things that you know that I need to know too. I know we haven't been in a relationship very long and trust is something you earn. You've sadly broken my trust but I know that I will have to earn the information you have locked inside of your head. I'm prepared to do that."

c – r – a – z – y

Agent Tom Stanton was currently standing guard outside President Fitzgerald Grant and Olivia Pope's hospital room. He had just returned to duty after a few brief hours of sleep. The Presidential unit of the Secret Service had set up shop within the hospital. No one ever left. If it was your time to be off and sleep you stayed on hospital grounds. A few rooms had been set up similar to army barracks and the men basically slept in shifts.

The past few hours had been utterly surreal for the agent. He had come to know and respect both the president and Miss Pope. They were two people who were very clearly in love but fate never did seem to be on their side. He had meant what he said about not abandoning Miss Pope. He could still remember the night that the president had walked away from her prior to his trip to the G8 Summit. Although he had tried to hide it, the president had shed a few tears as he made his way to the motorcade and then he had honestly spent much of the summit completely liquored up. The man struggled to function when he was without Olivia. It was something that Tom had personally witnessed firsthand on many occasions.

Tom genuinely feared for the president if Olivia didn't make it out of this unscathed.

It was another reason as to why he was in complete agreement with the heightened security measures. Four agents were assigned to the recovery room. Two were to always enter the room first prior to visitors while the other two continued to stand guard.

"Tom,"

"Mister Beene, Mister Finch," he greeted with a nod.

Tom and Hal moved forward to do a quick sweep of the recovery suite but what they walked in caused them both to pause in their tracks. The two shared a look and quickly motioned for Cyrus and Stephen to enter the suite. The four men stood in shock at the sight of Olivia Pope not in her own bed but curled up and around the president.

"So, does this mean Liv is awake?" Stephen asked excitedly.

"It would appear that way but… just how? How is this possible? She shouldn't have been able to get into Fitz's bed with her wounds." Cyrus mused.

"Hal could you step out and retrieve the doctor for us, Tom would you please," Stephen trailed off as he motioned toward Olivia.

Tom gave a quick nod in response and gently took Olivia into his arms as he moved her back into her own bed. Despite all of the extra security measures and non-disclosure agreements that had been issued, there was no way any of them could down play Miss Pope being cuddled up in bed beside the president. Tom then stepped back and took up a post right beside the door.

Huck's orders had been clear, an agent to be present at all times.

As Stephen and Cyrus continued to converse softly, Olivia began to shift restlessly in the bed.

"Liv," Stephen whispered as he stepped up to the side of the bed.

Cyrus continued to hover closer to the foot of the bed.

Olivia licked her lips as her eyes blinked rapidly.

"Stephen," she rasped.

"Hey there girl, next time you want me to visit ya just call me." He teased.

Olivia smiled sleepily in response.

"Liv," Cyrus said as he stepped forward.

"Cyrus… Cyrus! Have you been in touch with anyone else from my team?" Olivia asked, suddenly frantic as the cobwebs began to clear.

"Yeah Liv, we've all been here for you and the president." Stephen responded.

"Where's Huck?" She asked.

"In the wind, doing what he does best," Stephen replied.

"Is there anyone to get in touch with him?"

"Yeah, he left a phone with me," Cyrus said as he dug into his coat pocket.

Olivia eagerly reached for the phone and pulled it close to her chest before looking up at the two men whom she called friend and even brother on occasion.

"Kid… you ever do something like this; just keep your damn phone charged from now on." Cyrus finished with a choked sob.

"Cy," She murmured as she reached out for his hand.

Olivia gave Cyrus's hand a quick but meaningful squeeze as she looked up at both Cyrus and Stephen with watery eyes.

"I'm okay, I feel like shit but I'm okay." She said with a watery chuckle.

This of course caused the two men to smile.

"I feel like hell and I need to touch base with Huck but catch me up."

Stephen and Cyrus shared a pointed look.

"We don't know the 'who' or the 'why' but Huck is putting the puzzle pieces together so it shouldn't be long before we have the answers we're looking for. Britta Kagan is dead but thankfully and I use that word loosely the only other people that were hurt in this were you and the president. You saved his life Liv," Stephen said.

"You really did, he was hit once in the upper chest, close to his shoulder on the left side and a bullet grazed his head badly but luckily didn't penetrate his skull. Everyone is pretty sure it was you colliding into him that saved him from that damn thing penetrating his brain. You were hit in the back; the bullet just barely grazed one of your lungs. Both of you came out of surgery okay, we're really all at a point now of just waiting for the both of you two to wake up and for Huck to bring in the bastards that did this." Cyrus growled.

"Wow," Olivia murmured.

"Olivia, take it easy, I know you want to go into fix-it mode but let us handle things for a little while." Stephen said as he reached out to squeeze her hand.

A heavy sigh escaped her lips as she wilted a little more into the bed.

"Okay I get it, I do… but I need to speak with Huck. Can you guys give me a few?" She asked with a small smile.

With a nod the two men quickly exited the room followed by Tom who shot Olivia a small smile as he pulled the door shut behind them with a soft click.

One Ring

Two Rings

Three Rings

"Mister Beene," Huck huffed out.

"Huck,"

"Liv,"

"Are… are you okay? You sound winded."

A snort of disbelief escaped his lips at that.

"Olivia," He said with a strangled sob.

"I'm okay, I'm okay," she said softly.

"You ever do something that stupid again," he growled.

"Got it,"

A heavy silence came over the line as the two listened to the other breathe for a moment.

"Talk to me,"

"I have the shooter and the weapon physically in my possession… and I have information, I know who ordered this. I'm still working on the 'why' but having the 'who' is more than enough, the 'why' will come in time."

"Huck," she whispered brokenly.

With a heavy sigh Huck then began to outline all that he knew and had discovered everything from the decision to ignore Olivia's advice when it came to spying on Becky, to her capture and interrogation. However none of that fazed Olivia in the least not when he started in on the information that Becky had shared with him that day. As she listened to Huck's soft monotone voice, the color drained from her face, her body began to shake and her vision began to blur until the phone slipped from her hands.

Olivia then leaned over the side of her bed and felt her stomach turn as she was sick.

c – r – a – z – y

Justice Verna Thornton's hands trembled as she brought the delicate porcelain to her lips. The tea did absolutely nothing to soothe her rattled nerves. Her mind wandered back to a few weeks prior and that damned meeting she knew she should have never attended.

She knew it was only a matter of time. She could only hope when they showed up on her doorstep they were discreet about it.

The heavy bangs on her front door while expected still startled her. She continued to sit in her library quietly as she waited for them to come for her. Verna did nothing but set her teacup down as she saw numerous men clad in black pour into her library.

"Justice Verna Thornton, you're under arrest."

c – r – a – z – y

Hollis Doyle smirked in smug indignation as he felt the cuffs close over his wrists. He knew exactly what this was about. He also knew that he was innocent. He wasn't worried – not even a little bit.

c – r – a – z – y

Millicent Grant's body shook with repressed sobs as she sat in the unmarked vehicle surrounded by agents, her hands cuffed together as they rest over her pregnant belly. Her heart dropped to her stomach as she saw the Pentagon building slowly being to appear.

End Four

Holy Popes Batman!? What in the hell is going on? Our beautiful POTUS hasn't woken up yet – I'm not worried. Are you? I know this was everyone but Fitz and Liv heavy but I swear I'll make up for it when our two favorite babies are awake – at the same time.

Reviews are like my crack and cookies!

Note, Ludus is a term for a type of training school that Roman Gladiators used. It's where all the plotting, scheming and fighting that the public didn't get to see happened.