Disclaimer: Sorry, not mine. You'll have to talk to the cool guys who work with the movies to see if you can get credit for them. I obviously haven't done that, so they're not mine!
A/N: I'm so sorry for the long wait again, guys, but now I'm on summer break so I think I should be able to update faster. Things are still kinda hectic for other reasons, but at least I don't have school to worry about too! Thank you so much to Jedi'Pirate Jaeh, Halo, Charlotte Lewis, LoremIpsum, broadwaylover07, fallen.leaves19, daisyduke80, Miss Fenway, momiji'sunusedhalo, LupinandHarry, SgtGroganSG, AliuIce0814, and Majestik Moose for your wonderful reviews and incredible patience with me. This chapter is a kind of shorter, transition chapter, but I hope you like it anyway! It's what's going on before everyone leaves for Russia. Enjoy!
Chapter 10
"You seriously mean that we're going to Russia?"
"Yeah. We have to. You know what Artem is capable of."
Riley sighed as he put his head into his hands. "Why does everything always have to be so difficult?" he asked in a sarcastic way. The techie had come to the Gate estate to learn what had happened with Artem the previous night while Clara was still in school.
Abigail sighed as she faced her husband. "Ben, we can't just pack up and leave for Russia," she said with annoyance.
Ben gave her a small smile. "At least you knew a little more in advance this time," he muttered, attempting to lighten the mood.
His attempt failed, however, because Abigail shook her head and turned her back on him. Ben sighed, reaching out a hand to touch his wife's shoulder. "Come on, Abigail…"
"No, Ben. Stop," Abigail snapped, quickly standing up as she pushed his hand away. "I'm not going to be a part of another one of your treasure hunts! We have a daughter now, and one of us has to grow up and take care of Clara! It's obviously not going to be you, Ben."
Riley nervously looked from Abigail to Ben and back, remembering an eerily similar conversation that Patrick and Emily had while Ben was growing up…
"It's because of Clara that I have to go to Russia, Abigail!" Ben replied heatedly. "It's for her safety, your safety, everyone's safety! You don't understand!"
"Then tell me what's going on, Ben!" Abigail told him angrily. "Who is this Artem? What does he want with you? Tell me!"
Riley covered his ears as both Ben and Abigail's fierce words and arguments blended together, not able to tell what either of them were saying. Finally, he couldn't stand it any longer. The techie pushed himself to his feet and stood between Ben and Abigail, shouting, "Stop!" He watched as both of his friends went silent and looked at him, and Riley sighed with relief. "Can't we just work this out like the civilized adults we are?"
Ben stared at Abigail for a long moment before he slowly nodded. He sat down on the couch with Riley while Abigail sat in a chair across from them. "So, what do we do now, Ben?" she asked quietly.
Riley glanced at the treasure hunter nervously while he checked his watch. "We have to pick up Clara early from school so we can get to the airport on time," Ben answered her. "Don't worry, Abigail. I'll explain everything to you on the way."
Xxxxxxxxxx
Dustin finished putting things he needed for the trip ahead in his backpack before zipping it shut. Then, he looked around the room he had used in their hideout to make sure that there wasn't anything he had forgotten. It appeared to be all cleaned out, which was a good thing.
But then, he noticed a small corner of what appeared to be a picture frame sticking out from under the chair. He knelt down and carefully picked it up, turning it over to look at the picture it contained. He gasped at what he saw.
It was a picture of him and Riley when they were young children, and judging by the snow in the background and the heavy coats they were wearing, it had been taken during winter. Dustin's eyes lingered on his brother for a long moment before suddenly slamming the frame on the hard floor, hearing the glass shatter. He had to get rid of the memory… Then, he turned it back over and saw that a crack now ran down the center of the frame, separating him from Riley. The glass over his brother's image was completely intact, but the glass over his image was completely shattered.
Then, Dustin looked over his shoulder when the door to the room opened, and he saw that Nick was standing in the doorway. "Are you ready to go?" he asked. "Ian said that it's time to leave."
"Yeah, I'm ready," Dustin answered quietly. "Just give me a minute. I'll be there soon."
Nick nodded and closed the door again. When he was sure that he was gone, Dustin looked back at the picture that he had found. After another minute of looking at it, he allowed the old picture to fall from his hand to the floor, where it would remain. With it, he was leaving his old self behind. He was leaving Riley behind. Nothing would be the same once he left this room.
For only a minute, Dustin felt a twinge of regret for completely abandoning Riley. But it had to be done. He slowly stood up and grabbed the door handle, taking a deep breath before pulling it open and stepping out before shutting it behind him. Now, there was no turning back.
"Goodbye, Riley."
Xxxxxxxxxx
"So let me get this straight," Abigail muttered from the passenger seat of Ben's car. "Artem has a deadly disease in his possession and is threatening to unleash it on the world if you don't do everything that he says?"
"Yeah, that's pretty much it," Ben told her casually. When he saw Abigail's expression of disbelief, he shrugged. "Riley looked it up for me and said that it was possible."
"It's true," Riley supported from the backseat.
"And with Artem, I'm not going to take any chances," Ben concluded. "He is one messed up guy."
Abigail shook her head. "Well, if that's the case, I don't know if I feel comfortable having Clara along with us," she stated.
"Believe me, Abi," Riley told her. "I don't like it either, but Clara's much safer under our watchful eyes in Russia than here without us."
"Well, I still don't like this," Abigail muttered, watching with narrowed eyes as Ben pulled up in front of the school.
Ben glanced back at her, quickly kissing her cheek before he climbed out of the car and disappeared into the school. Riley sighed, leaning into the front seat and turning the key forward in the ignition so the radio would turn on.
Abigail laughed a little as the techie moved into the backseat again. But then, her smile vanished as she became serious. "Hey, Riley?"
"Yeah?" Riley said from behind her.
"This disease really does exist then?" Abigail asked cautiously.
Riley slowly leaned forward in the seat again so that he could look at her. "Yes. It exists," he answered darkly. "It's actually a deadly toxin that kills whoever is infected with it within a couple of hours. There has never been an actual bacterial outbreak, but there was a controlled case in Russia during the Romanov era."
"How is it transmitted?" Abigail wondered, starting to feel nervous.
"Through physical contact or liquid," Riley told her gravely. "I guess the plan is that Artem is going to infect one person see how it goes from there if Ben doesn't agree to do whatever he says."
"This… this disease is what Artem has then," Abigail muttered. It wasn't a question. It was a statement.
"Oh, yes," Riley replied, his tone turning sarcastic when he saw Ben and Clara coming toward the car. "It's in his oh so capable hands."
Abigail looked as though she wanted to say more, but then she smiled when Clara climbed into the car beside Riley and Ben got in behind the wheel. "This is a treat, isn't it Clara?" she said. "You get to leave school early and miss a few days."
Clara grinned broadly. "Is what Daddy said true? Are we really going to Russia?" she asked with excitement, looking at Riley and then back at Abigail.
"Yes, it's true," Abigail answered, her eyes nervously moving to Riley for a second. "We're going to Russia."
"I can't wait! This is awesome!" Clara explained. "But we have to pack, don't we?"
"No, Clara. We packed everything this morning already," Ben told her as he pulled out of the parking lot. "It's all sitting in the trunk. Now, we have to go the airport to catch our flight."
Xxxxxxxxx
Ian waited by the door of their hideout with Nick, waiting for Dustin to finish packing and for Powell to finish making his last trip to the bathroom. He smiled slightly, knowing that the four tickets he had ordered online were waiting for them at the airport. One thing he was thankful for about hanging low for eight years was that no one was looking for him anymore. It would be good to get out for a while.
And nothing was sweeter than revenge. Ian knew that he was going to love this more than any other revenge plan that he had done in his entire life. This man had wronged him too many times for his liking, and he was going to strike at a time and place that he was never going to expect.
Ian smiled to himself as Dustin came into the room and Powell followed a couple of minutes later. He knew he was going to love every minute of this.
Xxxxxxxxxx
Ben stared out the large window, waiting to see the plane that would take them to another airport in America so they could transfer and catch their plane to Russia. For the first time in a long time, he felt nervous. In fact, he felt more nervous than he ever had about a hunt. But that was because so many innocent lives hung in the balance…
Then, he jumped when a hand suddenly landed on his arm. "Ben, relax," Abigail muttered, placing her hand on his cheek. "It's all right. Why don't you come sit down with me so you don't make me so nervous? Clara was getting restless, so Riley went with her to go get a pretzel. You can tell me what's on your mind."
Sighing, Ben allowed his wife to bring him to the row of seats where their luggage was and sat down. He placed his head into his hands, feeling incredibly stressed. "What's wrong, Ben?" Abigail asked once they were both seated. "You didn't lose your chapstick going through security again, did you?"
Ben took a deep breath, though a small smile appeared on his face. But he checked his pocket, just to make sure. Yep. His chapstick was till there. "No, Abigail. I still have my chapstick," he answered quietly, raising his head to look at her. "It's just…"
Abigail took his hand in hers, beginning to feel nervous. "It's just what, Ben?"
"This is the most dire situation that we've ever been in, Abigail," Ben muttered, kissing her forehead. "The fate of the entire world rests on this one hunt. There is no room for mistakes this time. This time, if I mess up, a lot of people will die."
"I'm sure it will work out, Ben," Abigail tried to reassure him with a small smile as she squeezed his hand. "There is always some miraculous way that it does… Ben? Did you hear me?"
Ben wasn't looking at her anymore, but past her. In the crowd of people moving through the airport, he saw a man that he recognized but didn't think that he would see.
It was Ian Howe.
A/N: Yeah. As I said, more of a transition chapter. In the next one, they'll actually be on the way to Russia. But I still hoped you enjoyed it! Thanks for reading! Your reviews are much appreciated. Thank you!