A/N: Can I just say I LOVE this chapter? I have been waiting to write some of these scenes for quite a while, and I LOVE how they turned out, hehe. I hope you like them as much as I do! Would love to know what to you think. :)

Disclaimer: Not mine!

Chapter 8

Avery walked into the room when Jai had given the go-ahead, taking in everything the small apartment had to offer. Minimal windows, all locked. Simply furnished. A secret exit out the back. An operative posted at the secret and front entrances. It didn't appear to be anything other than a slightly run-down, simple, two-bedroom apartment.

He glanced at Auggie. He was already depositing his stuff in the first room, as if this were the most normal thing in the world.

He wanted to scream. Moving into a safe house was not normal. At all.

Jai was depositing the large pizza on the island in the kitchenette. "Drop your stuff in the extra room, Bennett. The pizza's getting cold."

Avery noticed Auggie's smirk as he came out of his room, and it relaxed his taut nerves. A little bit. On the off chance that they'd had the luxury of pizza when the four of them had been a team, cold pizza had been their choice. He smirked when he thought of the first time Rory had tried it. They had all laughed when he had spit it right back out. Zane's easy teasing. Those had been the good old days, the four of them together, before… well, before the incident.

He dropped his stuff in the back bedroom, wishing he had thought to bring a picture of Lily and Charlie. The thought of not seeing them, indefinitely, made him weak. Lily had always been his strength. Now he would have to be strong on his own. Why couldn't he just go back to being Pastor Avery Bennett, joker, lover of people, happy husband, father? That was who he was. He didn't know how to wear this warrior's armor anymore.

When he returned to the kitchen, Jai and Auggie were eating their pizza in silence. He took a seat on one of the barstools. "Are you sure Lily and Charlie are going to be fine with Annie?" he asked, clearly worried.

"Relax," Auggie managed to say around his rather large bite of pizza. He swallowed before he continued. "Annie's a good agent. She knows what she's doing. Besides, we're pretty sure Liam is only after us. Yeah, he shot at Annie, too. But he was probably only aiming at Annie, too, because she could identify him. He didn't touch Noelle or her siblings. Or anyone else in that café, for that matter. And it will look natural to see that a woman about Annie's age came to visit with her baby."

Avery took a bite of the pizza, still unsure.

Jai studied Avery, sensing his hesitancy. "Look, Avery," he said, setting his pizza down on the paper plate he was still holding in his hand. "We've studied Liam Henry. Maybe not till recently, but there's a lot of intel on him. And all of it points to the fact that he only goes after his mark. Lily and Charlie are probably more safe than they would be, in a safe house, with you and Auggie. And Auggie's…" He paused, as if he didn't want to say the words. Not because they weren't true, but almost because… it pained him to say them. "Auggie's right. Annie Walker is a really good agent."

Avery sighed. "I guess I'll have to trust your judgment."

Auggie set his pizza down on the counter. "Good. Ave, you should. Joan, Jai, Annie, me… we're all really good at what we do. And we know this guy. Believe me. Lily and Charlie will be okay. I promise."

Avery swallowed and slowly nodded. "Oh—okay."

CA

Annie was nearly asleep by the time she heard it.

Dit. Dah. Dah-dit. Dah-dit. Dit-dit. Dit. Annie? Morse code? Her Morse code was rusty, but she was pretty sure she had just heard her name through Morse code. Where was it coming from?

Then she remembered the contraption Auggie had given her a small while after her one-year anniversary at the CIA. It communicated in Morse code. Auggie had insisted on teaching her. She had mocked him the whole time. When would she need Morse code?

She was glad, now, that he had taught her. She hadn't seen him since before lunch. Jai had insisted on getting them settled into the safe house, and she hadn't even gotten to say good-bye.

The CIA was much more boring without Auggie Anderson's smile to brighten her day.

She scrambled out of bed. By now, he had added, Are you there? She reached for the contraption, trying to remember how it worked.

Yeah, she replied. I was almost asleep. You brought this contraption with you?

Course, silly, he tapped back. I needed some way to talk to my favorite lady, and they confiscated my phone. Figured Liam could trace it back to the safe house.

Makes sense. She tucked her favorite fuzzy blanket around her shoulders. So I'm your favorite lady, huh?

There was an almost uneasy pause. Don't flatter yourself.

She actually laughed out loud. Then covered her mouth, hoping Lily and Charlie, in her spare room, didn't hear. So why the late-night conversation?

A pause. Only so much of Avery's hovering I can take before I need a different topic of conversation.

Teehee, she tapped back.

Miss you, he said, filling the silence.

Aw, shucks. She paused, hoping the words she wanted to say could come out right. I miss the time we had in Toledo.

Just you, me, and a depressing funeral?

She groaned. Auggie… that's not—

He was already typing again, so she stopped to listen. Relax. I know what you meant. I miss it, too.

She closed her eyes, remembering waking up next to him, watching him sleep, his hand caressing hers. Waking up next to Auggie had been nice. Really nice.

She shook her head, trying to dispel the thoughts. She and Auggie were just friends. That's all he wanted. Right?

So how was hanging out with Jai all afternoon? You haven't murdered him yet, have you?

She could actually imagine his sarcastic smirk. It made her smile.

He's actually been nice to have around, he replied. Don't tell him I said so, though. Else I'm a dead man.

She laughed quietly. What-what? The infamous duo is actually getting along?

She could imagine the laugh behind his psht. He's keeping Avery in check. I can't believe I forgot how completely out-of-control he gets with his conspiracy theories. There was a pause. Getting chased by a terrorist and holing up in a safe house has done nothing to return Avery to normal.

She took a sip of the water in the glass setting by her bed, smirking. Better you than me.

Oh, harr.

She smirked. The light, easy banter that came so easy to both of them was a welcome relief from trying to track down a crazed stalker-terrorist and worrying whether or not her best friend was going to get murdered in his sleep. You allowed to come to work tomorrow?

Better be, he replied quickly. If I have to sit up here with Avery all day, listening to his resurrected crazy conspiracies with the two guards doing nothing but stare ahead and grunt, there's something entirely different you'll have to rescue me from.

Who said I'd rescue you? she typed back, grinning.

I think you'd better go to bed, he replied. The lack of sleep is messing with your judgment.

Harr-harr, she replied.

As the silence stretched amiably between them, she listened for any sound from Lily and Charlie's room, or from outside the small guesthouse. While she was awake, she might as well be on her guard. Even though most of the DPD read in on the assignment was convinced that Lily and Charlie were in no real danger, they were still with her. Under her care. And she knew exactly what Liam Henry looked like.

Joan had been wrong before.

Do you want me to go? You said you were sleeping, right? His care for her came over the space between them.

Did she want him to go? Being with Auggie was her favorite thing in the world. But she was exhausted, and she'd pay for it tomorrow if she didn't sleep. She'd feel safer, next to him. But that's not how it is, she reminded herself again.

Maybe, she tapped back regretfully. I am pretty tired. But no, you didn't wake me.

Oh, he typed back. She could hear his relief. That's good, at least.

She smiled. Night, Auggie.

Night, Annie. See you tomorrow.

Yup.

It was quiet. Setting the contraption aside, she slid beneath the covers of her bed, the image of Auggie, mere inches away, lulling her into an easy sleep.

CA

Liam dropped his suitcase to the floor of the hotel. He was finally here. And he knew Zane Giovanni was still here. Justice would be his. He had to be careful, though. This was a military base. Security would be tight. And knowing the dynamic duo battling him back in the States, it would be just his luck to be captured here and have the rest of his plans foiled.

He pushed aside the colorful curtain and peered outside. He could see the military base from where he stood. He could feel the revenge, taste it. How would he get inside? He had to play this safe.

Sitting down at the bed that would be his for the next little while, he pulled his laptop out of its case and turned it on.

He had some work to do.

CA

Avery turned the television off, glancing around the living room area of the apartment. Joe, one of the operatives, was still placed just inside the front door. Had been on duty for the past five hours.

Avery had spent most of that time watching TV. He was pretty sure he had seen enough television for the next five years. He stood to his feet and paced the room. Into the kitchen, back to the couch, back to the kitchen. Was there any good food in the refrigerator? Of course not. Then again, it wasn't the best idea to eat because you were bored. So much for that.

He paced back into the living room. Sighed. Plopped back onto the couch. He decided he hated this confinement. It was nearly worse than the paralyzing fear of not knowing what would happen to the three of them.

"Don't you have a book you can read or something?" Joe called from the entryway.

Avery shot him a look. "Nooo," he replied a little more sharply than he intended. "If I'd had time to drop by the bookstore, do you think I'd be here?"

Joe bit his tongue. He'd seen Avery's behavior over the past two days, since Avery and Auggie had been moved to the safe house. He wasn't picking a fight with such an obviously paranoid guy. How had he ever made it in Special Forces, anyway?

Avery paced to the window, pushing the curtain aside half an inch to see outside. His breath caught in his throat. "J-j-j-joe?" he stuttered.

"Yeah?" Joe replied drolly.

"H-h-he's b-back…"

Joe stood to his feet immediately. Making sure the door was locked securely, he joined Avery at the window. Glanced outside. "The redhead?" he asked.

Avery nodded vigorously.

Joe threw him his phone. "Call Auggie. Use the number he told you to memorize."

With shaking hands, he did as he was told. His hands felt clammy, and the cell phone shook against his ear. "Smithsonian acquisitions," the cheerful voice replied, and Avery wondered how in the world Auggie could be so cheerful at a moment like this.

"Au-Au-Aug-Auggie…"

"Avery? What's going on?"

"H-h-he's back. The redhead's back." Fear fired through his veins. His head began to spin. Was he about to pass out? What kind of wimp was he? He slowly lowered himself on the couch, purposely focusing on staying conscious. Ho, boy.

"There?" Auggie demanded. "There, where?"

"On the street," Avery managed to get out. "He's just sitting on the bench, across from the apartment.

He could hear a terse command on the other side. "Okay, Ave, we're on it," Auggie explained. Avery was not going to die on his watch. "Give the phone to Joe, will you? I need to talk to him about something."

Avery gulped, nodded, and handed the phone to Joe. When he had signed up to serve his country, this was not what he had in mind. He curled up on the couch. How was he supposed to do this?

Oh, help me, Lord, he whispered, meaning every word of it.

He was going to need the Lord's help—they all were—if they were going to get out of this alive. His thoughts turned to Lily and Charlie.

Please help them to be safe. Please. Please. Please…

A/N: Review, pleaseee!