I hope you guys enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing this! Italics are Valerie's memory and all of her memories are in chronological order. Enjoy my loving fans!
Valerie felt a stinging sensation in her shoulder and the next thing she knew, her legs gave out and Ian was holding her. He was saying something and shaking her, but she couldn't hear what he said and instead gave into the comforting blackness that surrounded her.
NTNTNTNTNT
Valerie, or Val as she liked her friends and many temporary boyfriends to call her, was in her adrenaline phase, doing whatever she wanted for the adrenaline rush it gave her. She was currently hanging out at a club with her friends, dancing to the beat of the song, when a man with shaggy blond hair approached her with a drink in his hand.
"Can I buy you a drink?" He shouted above the music. He had a British accent.
"Sure." She shouted back. What's the worse that could happen?
NTNTNTNTNT
"I wanna come!" Valerie said. She was currently in the back of a van with Ian and his little crew. They were about to pull off a heist.
"No." Shaw said with finality.
"I won't touch anything!" Valerie argued.
"No." Shaw said again.
"Please?"
"No!" Shaw said a final time.
Valerie turned to Ian. "But you said I could come with you!"
"I said you could come with me, but I never said you could come into the building." Ian told her.
"But I want to!"
"Listen, everything is very delicate and must be done precisely and accurately for it to work. You have no idea what we are doing and will probably mess us up. Please stay here so we don't get caught and go to jail." Ian explained.
Valerie sighed. "Fine."
"Good." Ian turned to Viktor. "Watch her."
Then they left to steal some valuable painting.
NTNTNTNTNT
Ian reached for Valerie's hand over the table.
"Do you know what today is?" He asked her.
"Our one year anniversary! Duh!" She said. Ian had taken her out to a fancy restaurant.
"I can't believe our relationship started with that one question." Ian mused, stroking the back of Valerie's hand.
"Well it never would have really started if you hadn't invited me to go on a heist with you." She smiled, remembering their first conversation in that club.
"Here's to plenty more anniversaries and heists." He said, holding up a champagne glass.
"Cheers." She said and they clicked glasses. At that moment, Valerie realized that this was not just a fling.
NTNTNTNTNT
"Val. Val." Ian said, shaking Valerie awake.
It was the middle of the night and the couple was sleeping in Valerie's apartment after making love.
Valerie groaned, but didn't wake.
"Val." Ian shook her harder.
"Can't it wait until morning?" She mumbled.
"No. Val, it's important." Ian sounded tense.
Her eyes shot open and she sat up facing him. "Did the condom break?"
"No, it didn't. It's about something else."
"Well I'm awake, so shot." She said.
He grabbed her hands with his and looked like he was preparing himself for something. After a couple of minutes he spoke.
"Val, I love you." He said, looking deep into her eyes.
Valerie seemed shocked at this. They had never said that to each other. She stayed quiet for a minute, thinking.
"I love you too." She said finally.
Ian smiled and Valerie did too.
NTNTNTNTNT
"So you're letting her move in?" Shaw complained.
"We've been together for three years, Shaw. I think we're ready to take that step. Plus the house could use some good cooking." Ian reasoned with him.
"Relax, you two can still hang out. I won't completely steal him from you." Valerie said.
"First the heists, then the dates, now this. I thought she was just some girl, Ian." Shaw said.
"Well it turned out she wasn't." Ian said, looking at Valerie.
NTNTNTNTNT
"Who's Ben Gates?" Powell asked Valerie. He was holding a newspaper and approached her while she was making them all dinner.
"Him and his family have some type of theory that there's a huge treasure buried somewhere by the Founding Fathers." Valerie told him.
"It says here that he's trying to find someone to fund his treasure hunt." Powell read off of the newspaper.
"Maybe Ian should give him a call. Who knows? It might be fun." She said.
NTNTNTNTNT
"Are you cheating on me?" Valerie asked Ian. He had been disappearing for nights lately.
"Funny, I was just about to ask you the same question." Ian said, irritated.
"And what's that supposed to mean?"
"I've heard all about you and all of your 'boyfriends'!"
"That was before we started dating! Plus they all lasted about a month! And we're going on four years now Ian!" Valerie yelled. "And I am not a cheater." She added as an afterthought.
Ian paused in his anger. She had a good point, but her past . . .
"Now tell me where you've been disappearing to once a week!" Valerie demanded.
"Ben." Ian stated simply. "We play poker together every Thursday night. He can't bluff at all." He smirked at the last statement.
"Oh really?" Valerie said skeptically. She ran into their living room and grabbed the phone, dialing. Ian followed her.
"What are you doing?" Ian asked her.
"Making sure your story checks out." Valerie said, holding the phone up to her ear as it rang.
Ben picked up on the other end.
"Hello Ben. I was just wondering if Ian comes and plays poker with you every Thursday night." Valerie said.
"Yes, he does. Why?" Ben answered, confused.
Valerie angrily slammed the phone back on its receiver without answering. She turned to Ian.
"I don't believe him. I think he's lying for you." Valerie argued.
"Val, calm down. Why would I cheat on you? You're the only girlfriend I've had for this long." Ian told her.
Valerie visibly calmed down.
"Really?" She said softly.
"Yes. And I love you, you know I do." Ian said, hugging her.
"I love you too." She said and she kissed him.
NTNTNTNTNT
"Stop being mean to Riley! Or he'll send us to a wild goose chase to Antarctica!" Valerie yelled at Shaw, Phil, Viktor, and Powell.
"But he's the newbie. We have to tease him." Shaw told her.
"You don't HAVE to do anything! Now leave him alone so he can figure out where the Charlotte is!" Valerie said and they dispersed, leaving Valerie and Riley alone in the living room.
"I'm sorry about them. They can be real jackasses at times. Especially Shaw. Almost four years of knowing the guy, and he still gets on my nerves. I don't think he likes me very much." Valerie explained.
"How could he not like YOU?" Riley asked, then seemed slightly embarrassed at asking.
Valerie didn't notice. "Well he thinks I'll completely and totally break Ian's heart by cheating on him and/or stealing all of his money. But I would never do that to Ian, I love him too much."
Riley bit his lip and focused on his laptop again. "Well thanks for helping me out."
"No problem." Valerie said.
NTNTNTNTNT
"I don't want to go!" Valerie argued.
"Come on Val, it's the treasures of all treasures. You don't want to miss out on this just because it's going to be cold, do you?" Ian reasoned.
"I guess not." She said.
"Good." Ian turned to Ben and the others. "We can leave tomorrow, if that's not too early for you. I'll have a private jet waiting for us in the morning and equipment ready in the Arctic."
Ben nodded his head in agreement, then he and Riley left.
NTNTNTNTNT
"Are you alright?" He asked.
"No! I am NOT alright! We almost died! Ben and Riley are probably dead! And that was a rush, but that was risking our lives and that is not fun! And did you see the way Riley looked at me? He hated me! He probably died hating me! I can't believe we just did that!" She was freaking out.
Ian went to sit next to her, but she stopped him. "No! Don't try to comfort me! You said no one would get hurt! No one ever gets hurt!"
She cried into her hands. Ian looked at her sadly.
"I'm sorry. I didn't know that Ben would pull out that flare. It was a bluff, Val. We were never going to shoot them." He said.
Valerie looked at him unconvinced, but she nodded in agreement.
NTNTNTNTNT
"You like kids?" Valerie asked, it was more of a statement.
"Yes, I want kids someday." He smiled at her.
"I never knew that about you." She said.
"Well we never really talked about it." He said, examining the letters.
NTNTNTNTNT
Ian and Valerie arrived just in time to see Riley pull the blonde lady away from a truck coming towards them. The light told them that it was safe to walk and they walked to the Declaration, Ian picking it up. As he examined it, Riley spoke up.
"Valerie, are you okay?" He said out of breath.
Shocked, Valerie said, "Yes."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes." Valerie said, still shocked.
The blonde lady heard Shaw and Viktor coming closer and helped pull Riley up.
"Good." Riley said before running away with the lady.
NTNTNTNTNT
"I'm sorry we had to do this. Are your hands okay?" Valerie asked Ben's father.
"Not really. They're starting to lose feeling." He said.
"Sorry, but they would kill me if I even tried to loosen the bonds. My name is Valerie, by the way." She said.
"Patrick Gates." He told her. "Now what's a pretty young girl like you doing with these guys?"
"Ian, the blond one, is my boyfriend. We were dating when this whole treasure hunt started and I just got swept up in it all." She lied.
"That's a shame. Wasting your life on this stupid treasure."
"I take it you don't think it's real?"
"Not at all. After wasting 20 years of my life, I quit."
"Your son, Ben, thinks it is. I've never seen anyone so determined." Valerie said, noting in the back of her mind that Ian seemed determined to get this treasure as well.
"He's a fool, chasing after fool's gold. Look where's it's got him, stealing the Declaration of Independence and his father kidnapped."
NTNTNTNTNT
"Get on the elevator!" Ian shouted at Powell. He looked at Ian like he was insane. "Jump!" Ian pushed him onto the nearby elevator.
He made it okay and motioned for the others to come on. Patrick passed the torch over before jumping himself. Then Shaw jumped and the walkway jerked again. Ian held tightly onto Valerie's waist and held her close to him as he jumped, making it just in time as the walkway tipped 90 degrees. Valerie continued to hold onto Ian tightly even after they were safely on the elevator.
"I'm sorry." Ian said to her. "Had I known that would've happened I never would've made you come."
"But, then Shaw would've died." She struggled to get out. Her eyes were tightly closed and her arms were wrapped around Ian's waist.
NTNTNTNTNT
"Don't shoot him, Shaw. He used to be my friend. Before The Charlotte." She reached over and moved the gun so it pointed away from Riley.
So I know the last memories you already knew, but they were parts that stood out in Valerie's life. Sadly, the next chapter is the last one, but we find out who Valerie will choose! Ian or Riley?
