A/N-Sorry for the delay in posting this chapter. This will wrap up the angstier and more dramatic part of this story. A few epilogue-ish chaps will follow, depending on my mood, to see what happens with our heroes. Thank you all SO MUCH for your support. This story has been a very different, very fun experience for me, and I appreciate your patience and the definite "suspension of disbelief" that was necessary to read this. Haha.

Chapter 14

Mayfair was able to get a warrant from a sympathetic judge based on Kurt and Remi's statements and the photographic evidence that Roman and Sarah were being held against their will. Unfortunately that was only the first step. Remi warned that if Shepherd saw a raid coming, she'd use a network of explosives that were set in key locations all around the farm to destroy evidence. Saving Roman and Sarah was obviously the fundamental goal (at least for Kurt and Remi), but they also needed to find the organization's various attack plans so they could stop them before people got hurt.

Gord tried to get access remotely to the plans, but it seemed like the computer they needed wasn't online. Remi and Kurt's plan was simple: get in, make sure the computer in the barn was powered up, plug in a cellular card, secure Roman and Sarah, and protect them when the raid came. If possible, Mayfair also wanted the evidence from the bunker, just in case there was additional intel hidden there. Remi seriously doubted the plan would go off without a hitch. There was a reason Shepherd was respected and seemingly above the law: she was devious and ruthless.

Remi knew the plan Mayfair spouted so pragmatically was anything but simple. Kurt and Remi each hastily promised to look after the other's sibling if it went wrong, and if they hadn't been distracted by the immensity of the task before them, that promise would have been far more painful to make. The trickiest part was that Mayfair wanted to wait until Gord retrieved the data before raiding the farm so they could be sure they'd gotten everything they needed before Shepherd destroyed it. After all, they wanted to bring Shepherd in alive.

Gord and Mayfair were set up nearby, awaiting the signal they hoped Remi and Kurt would be able to broadcast when they plugged the cell card into the computer. A small army of FBI and local law enforcement waited, but they had to keep a substantial distance to avoid being detected.

Kurt considered himself a brave man, certainly not a coward, but sneaking through the surrounding fields around the farm was truly terrifying. This wasn't some lightweight mission like meeting with Gord, they were walking right into Shepherd and Doyle's territory. The lives of everyone Kurt cared about were on the line.

He and Remi planned to sneak onto the farm, using the inside knowledge that she had of Shepherd and the compound, and hook the cellular card to the computer and make sure it was powered on. Once they'd completed those two tasks, they'd pretend to stroll onto the farm to meet Shepherd as if they'd just arrived. Remi promised him that if Shepherd found them before they accessed the computer, she'd never let them get near it. Although he felt he was doing a fantastic job of appearing calm, it took every last piece of his reserves not to be overwhelmed by the thousands of things that could go wrong in the upcoming hours. This wasn't a time to think, this was the time to be a soldier, calculating, efficient, and strong.

He and Remi crawled through the low autumn brush along the edge of a recently razed cornfield. The half-dead remnants of plant life scratched at them, briars poking through their clothes as they tried to navigate without making a sound. As they came across a place that seemed familiar to him, he realized it had been part of the long running path he'd taken with Remi and Roman, back when she was an untouchable mystery to him.

So much had changed since his last visit here. He was in love, completely head-over-heels enamored with this woman, and it was enough to make him do the most insane things. This farm that had once simply seemed 'weird' was now revealed to be the headquarters for something far more insidious. And Sarah, the one human being he'd vowed to do anything to protect, was now in a whole world of danger. And it was his fault.

Gratefully his thoughts had distracted him from the remainder of the long crawl into position. When they were finally there, Remi signaled for him to wait while she made the stealthy dash to the barn, but he refused to sit in a safe spot while she risked herself. He whispered, almost noiselessly, "If you get caught, they'll wonder why you're here on your own. You were instructed to bring me. We both go."

She sneered but nodded, clearly accepting that he was right even though she didn't want to. After a quick moment of scheming, he followed her to the barn. She was careful to avoid known cameras and trip wires, but as soon as they were in the barn, she groaned.

Weller knew that groan couldn't possibly be a good sign, but she hurried to the computer and quickly powered it on, and plugged in the device Gord had given her. She shut the doors as quietly as possible and led Kurt over to the entrance to the basement as she harshly rasped, "They probably know we're here."

She nodded at a camera on the far wall, and when he saw the rapidly blinking light and a lens that followed them as they moved, he figured she was right. The door was latched with a recently changed lock, and Remi's key did not open it. Just as she stooped to pick the lock, they heard Shepherd's voice ask, "Looking for this?"

Shepherd held out a key that was fastened to a chain around her neck.

Remi, appearing entirely unflustered, held out her hand and said, "Thanks," like Shepherd would simply turn it over.

Shepherd laughed and Kurt felt hope run cold at the sound. "First, why are you sneaking around? If you and your new…friend…are just here to help the cause?"

"Locking up Roman, my brother, your son, was completely uncalled for. I need to know if he's okay before we talk about anything else."

"You think I'd hurt my own boy?" Shepherd asked, hand to her heart like she'd been wounded. The phony display made her lack of soul apparent.

"Show me Roman," Remi demanded.

"And Sarah," Kurt added, at first irritated that Remi hadn't thought to ask about his sister, and then he realized that Shepherd would probably find Remi's concern for anyone other than Roman to be suspicious.

"Cadet Weller, such a pleasure," Shepherd cringed. "Your siblings were taken somewhere more comfortable. You'll have to take my word that they're fine."

"I want to see him," Remi insisted.

"All in good time. Now, Weller, Remi seems to believe she's helped you see the truth? You want to join our quest for justice?"

"Yes, ma'am," he answered with military formality.

Shepherd nodded, obviously not believing him for a moment, or even making any attempt to make it look like she believed him. "Why?" she asked.

Remi and Kurt had practiced all of the finer talking points and arguments that had been drilled into her head in the preceding years. Remi had told him it might come in handy if they needed to convince Shepherd that Kurt wanted to join them.

He thought over the things that Remi had taught him, and he picked a few that genuinely upset him so he would sound more believable. After all, he loved his country, the military, and the government, but there were things they'd done that he definitely disagreed with. Honing in on the objections they shared, he told Shepherd exactly why he hated them in his own words.

For the scantest moment, there was a glimmer in her eye that made him think that maybe they could sell this, and she'd actually believed him. Then she looked away, gazing out the door in the distance as she pinched her lips between her teeth and gave the situation some thought. She waved a hand to someone out there, and Kurt was certain that Doyle was about to join them.

Weller heard steps crunching over the ground as someone approached, but when he saw the man, it wasn't Doyle. He saw the passing flash of nervousness in Remi's expression that made it clear that she knew him. Kurt knew the guy must have been young, right around Remi's age, lacking the vile creepiness of Doyle. If anything, this guy looked like a soldier, obedient, loyal, but not a leader. "It's good to see you," the man said to Remi, and Kurt understood the emotions behind the way he looked at her.

"Hey Oscar," Remi said with a nod.

Something in her voice made it clear that Remi was worried about Oscar's appearance at that moment, and Kurt felt a foreboding mood settle in.

"You're back?" Oscar asked.

"Yea. I'm here. Have you seen Roman?"

"I checked on him personally, Rem…" Oscar reassuringly stated. "You know I look out for him." Turning to Kurt like his very presence was inconvenient, "Your sister, or whatever, she's fine too."

"Thanks," Kurt replied, uncertain if he really trusted the words, but if Oscar cared so much for Remi, it seemed likely that he would have checked on the two captives.

Shepherd gave a signal, something that Kurt didn't really understand, but Oscar did.

Oscar looked at Remi and said, "I won't fight you," before he dropped to his knees and hooked his fingers behind his head in surrender.

Kurt's brain scrambled to figure out what was going on, but couldn't seem to grasp it until Shepherd asked. "You want to join?"

"Yes," Kurt adamantly stated.

She took out a gun, turned the barrel toward herself, and handed it to Kurt. "Let's see if you can take orders."

He took the gun, then nodded. He had no idea what he was going to do if she gave an order he couldn't follow through with.

"Kill him," she said, like Oscar wasn't one of her most promising followers.

"Why?" Kurt asked, hoping to move this little charade along so he could make sure Sarah was safe before the FBI raid began.

"Because I told you to," Shepherd said, as calmly as if she'd asked him to pass the salt at dinner.

He raised his hand, mostly trying to bide time, hoping that at any moment Mayfair and their friends would come bounding in to save the day.

"This is ridiculous," Remi said, stepping in front of Oscar, who seemed all too willing to take a bullet…or maybe he knew he wasn't really in any danger.

"How sweet," Shepherd replied with saccharine disgust. "Perhaps you do have feelings for Oscar after all."

Kurt could tell Shepherd was trying to hurt him, to threaten the connection between him and Remi.

"No," Remi shook her head, "I just don't see the point in wasting a perfectly useful operative. Oscar is helpful. Obedient. And, clearly, he'll die for you. Find someone else to test Weller's loyalty."

Shepherd turned to Kurt, as if Remi didn't even exist, and pulled out a gun of her own, showing her readiness to use the weapon. "Shoot him, or I shoot you."

He saw that Shepherd could put a bullet between his eyes with no more depth of emotion than piercing the center of a paper target. "I can't shoot an unarmed guy, kneeling on the ground," Kurt argued, dropping his gun hand. "Look, I agree with you…the government, the powers that be…totally out of control. They answer to no one. But I still have standards. Ask me to strike a target, shoot some rapist, killer or child molester, something worthwhile. This guy here, is he any of those things?" Kurt nodded at Oscar, "tell me what he's done to deserve to die."

"Do you question your commanding officers like that?" Shepherd asked.

"I haven't ever questioned them," Kurt replied, watching Shepherd's smug expression, "but…after all Remi has taught me…maybe I should have. Isn't that the whole point of this? Not to just blindly accept what those in charge tell you so you can find the truth?"

His speech was rather impassioned, and it definitely looked like Shepherd might have been swayed. She walked over, putting an arm around his shoulder. "That's an interesting thought."

"The spirit of the movement," Kurt agreed.

The next few moments happened in absolute slow motion. Shepherd's grin melted from her face as she turned, staring so close to him that he could feel her snicker. "But in this world," she said, "there are leaders, and there are followers. I'm the leader. So that makes you..." Her hand pulled back and he knew she was pointing her gun at him before he could even react, but he seriously doubted his gun was loaded with real bullets.

A shot rang out, and Kurt flinched as he anticipated pain, but instead, Shepherd's grip on his shoulder became lax as her body weight fell into him. She clenched her shoulder as blood became visible. Kurt searched the area, expecting to find Mayfair at the door wielding her gun, but instead, Oscar, still kneeling on one knee, was the man with a weapon pointed at Shepherd.

Remi stared wide-eyed at Oscar, clearly unprepared for the possibility that he might shoot Shepherd. "I'm sorry," he said to Remi, standing slowly. "I just…couldn't do it."

"Thank you," Kurt said as he carefully lay Shepherd on the ground, grinding the heel of his hand into her wound.

"I didn't do it for you," Oscar spat. Taking Remi's arm, he said, "She was going to kill you. She and Doyle…they don't trust you anymore. They think you're a liability."

"Where's Roman and Sarah?" Remi immediately asked.

"Doyle has them in the bunker," Oscar whispered.

"How do we get them out?" Kurt asked, looking at Remi, wondering how long they had before the FBI stormed the farm and the two teens would likely be Doyle's victims.

"I have an idea," Remi said, her eyes glancing down as Shepherd gasped. "First, we need to make sure these two can't get away."

Watching Shepherd struggle for breath wasn't something Remi had time to think about. At the moment, she was more concerned with Roman and Sarah, and exactly what twisted plan Doyle had in mind. In order to make this work, she had to go to the bunker alone. She appreciated the fact that Oscar had tried to protect her, but she wasn't sure if this was all part of some elaborate scheme. Kurt locked Oscar and Shepherd up in one of the cells below the barn, just in case.

One of Doyle's lookouts waited outside of the bunker, and signaled that Remi was approaching. She steeled her resolve as Doyle emerged.

"Weller shot Shepherd," Remi said, somberly. "And he injured Oscar before I took him out."

"Weller's been hit?" Doyle's cruel voice questioned.

"Headshot," she stated. "Weller's history."

Doyle tilted his head with disbelief.

"He shot Shepherd, my mother," Remi said. "He crossed the line. We need to get help for her and Oscar…we might already be too late."

Doyle gazed in the direction of the barn and, with complete disinterest, said, "In due time."

Remi wondered if Doyle had ever been truly loyal to anyone.

"Let me see Roman," she demanded.

Doyle opened his mouth to reply when he saw something in the distance. Remi just glanced over her shoulder, but that second of distraction was enough time for Doyle to grab her by the throat and turn her around. The blade he placed against her neck was so sharp that she felt it split her skin on contact. It was difficult to fight when the slightest movement could slice through an artery. "I should have slit your throat long ago," he rasped, "but this is going to be fun."

"Let go, Frank," she growled, "you're blaming the wrong person."

He laughed hostilely, "I don't believe you. You're a traitor. And it's going to cost you your brother. Seems a shame to waste that cute little blond girl…but sacrifices must be made."

As FBI vehicles charged up the dirt road, some lumbering through fields, helicopters circled above. Doyle pulled out a detonator and squeezed. An explosion in the bunker below made the ground shake as heavy billows of smoke poured from the open door and chunks of debris flung through the air. Most people would have fallen to their knees or cried. Remi supposed it would have been normal to scream, "No," or call her brother's name in anguish, but she shut down her feelings, instead staring emotionlessly. She wasn't about to let Doyle see the pain he caused, but she knew she would never recover from this.

Doyle kicked a chunk of fleshy debris with his foot and asked, "Think that was part of Roman or Blondie? Hard to tell when the pieces are so small."

Her fight wasn't spent though, and she decided that, with her dying breath, she'd end Doyle. Just as she silently made that vow, Doyle sliced into her shoulder near her neck and whispered, "I'm going to cut you up piece by piece…and watch you bleed out every last drop."

The knife moved beneath her breast, and she felt the sharp edge on her skin as he pulled her back toward a waiting truck to make his escape.

Her shirt was growing heavy and warm as the blood from her shoulder and torso soaked it. The FBI was close, but they were either too late or too early. Remi wasn't even sure if it mattered anymore.

Just as the blade cut through her skin and met the bone of her ribs, she heard the zip of nearby bullet. Doyle laughed loudly, but his grip loosened as he leaned back against the truck. Standing in front of her, she saw Kurt, gun raised, honed in on Doyle. He'd made a tricky shot, hitting Doyle's arm enough to make him release Remi, and then Kurt's eyes glanced at Remi and her bloody shirt, and she saw every last bit of pain he'd felt on her behalf for the things she'd experienced because of Doyle. Kurt loathed Doyle, and couldn't seem to contain that emotion any longer as his finger squeezed the trigger three more times.

Remi studied Doyle's injuries and realized that, even in a fit of anger, her boy scout had managed to make sure none of Doyle's wounds were life threatening. Of course they probably hurt like hell. But she gazed at Kurt, at his reddened eyes, and she knew she'd have to tell him that Sarah hadn't escaped the bunker. Her lower lip quivered as he very cautiously put his arm around her, gun still unwaveringly pointed at Doyle, prepared to kill him if necessity called for it.

"Easy," Kurt whispered as he encouraged Remi to lean against him.

The FBI vehicles surrounded the entire area and agents descended on the buildings of the farm. Mayfair leapt from her vehicle to help, and Remi argued, "You should have given me more time."

"I told you we were coming in as soon as Enver got the intel we needed," Mayfair answered. "If we'd waited any longer, the two of you might be dead."

"Well Roman and Sarah are dead," Remi informed, her voice sounding nearly lifeless.

Kurt squinted up at the farmhouse, and she thought it was probably from shock, but he shook his head, and she waited for the pain of what he'd lost to hit him. "Remi," he said, pointing upward, his voice not sounding at all devastated, "look."

She lifted her eyes to the window in the attic, and saw Roman and Sarah pounding their fists on the glass window.

"Doyle must have moved them," she stated, like she should have known.

"Maybe he didn't trust Oscar either," Kurt added.

When Roman used a shackle to break the window, he leaned out and shouted, "Hey, sis. You feel like getting me out of here?"

"We'll be right up," she answered.

Roman shook his head, "Bad idea. Shepherd rigged the house and the door up here with explosives. Can someone toss us a rope?"

Beside Roman stood Sarah Weller, but she wasn't relaxed and grinning like a fool. Tears streamed down her face, and she looked more traumatized than anyone else Remi had ever seen. Sarah asked Roman a question and he nodded, and she threw her arms around him in a celebratory hug which Roman didn't return, squirming uncomfortably until she finally let go. Roman certainly wasn't used to hugs.

Mayfair stood over the writhing Doyle, who looked far less intimidating now. "We have so much to talk about," she said to the man she'd been waiting to catch. She lowered down to put cuffs on him just in case he had any thoughts of escape. She accidentally knelt on his groin and when he whimpered, she replied, "Ooops, terribly sorry," as she beamed. Mayfair leaned close, her lips only an inch or two away from Doyle, and her smile had become quite intimidating. "All those girls you used…I know their names, I've studied their faces…and, buddy, you're going to pay."

After Doyle was taken away by a veritable flock of agents, Mayfair asked, "Where's Shepherd?"

"Locked up in the cells under the barn with Oscar," Kurt said. "Shepherd is hurt, but I think she'll survive. I bandaged her wound and hopefully slowed down the bleeding."

"We're bringing in a rescue ladder for the kids. In the meantime, you need to get to the hospital," Mayfair said to Remi.

"Not until Roman and Sarah are on the ground," Remi argued. "And I want to see Shepherd before you take her away."

Kurt, already perfectly aware of how stubborn she could be, quickly removed his shirt and folded it over a few times before using his belt to fasten it tightly to the cut on her ribs to staunch the blood. Then, he swept her legs out from under her and held her as they waited for the FBI to free their siblings. Remi wanted to protest, every self-sufficient, lone-survivor molecule in her body resisting, but when he pressed a kiss to her forehead, she took in his expression. He wasn't acting the part of a brave rescuer or hero, he was simply holding her because he loved her, and did the only thing he could at that moment to try to help ease her pain.

Several agents ran to Mayfair and whispered something, and she angrily retorted, "What do you mean 'missing'?"

"What's wrong?" Remi asked.

Mayfair strolled slowly over to the couple and confessed, "Our agents didn't find Oscar or Shepherd in the barn or the cells below. We can't find them."

Remi watched while all available agents fanned out, searching the grounds. "You won't find her," she said.

"Can you give us any idea of where she may hide?"

Remi shook her head, "She moved Roman and Sarah, rigged the house…she doesn't trust me. She's smart. She won't go anywhere that I could find her."

Then a cold shiver shot up her spine and she shouted, "Get those kids out of there now," as she wriggled out of Kurt's arms.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

Just gut instinct, but I know Shepherd. She wants to inflict pain…she wants to hurt me if she thinks I betrayed her. If the house is rigged, it might be on a timer or a remote detonator. Get them down!"

Remi hurried to the porch, injuries be damned, climbing carefully up, searching for tripwires or other traps. Kurt followed her, taking a rope from one of the agents and joining in the rescue. He was rambling about her passing out from blood loss, but she felt responsible for getting Roman and Sarah into this mess, so she sure as hell was going to get them out of it, too.

Kurt moved past her and very carefully climbed out along the building, and she was more than a little impressed at his skills while he worked his way to the window using a downspout and the stones that lined the chimney. He got to the window pretty quickly, entering as Sarah flung her arms around his neck. He clearly had trouble getting her to let go.

Remi directed the agents to rig a fall pad, just in case Sarah lost her grip and fell. Kurt tied the rope around his sister, and he and Roman carefully lowered her, even though she looked terrified to leave her brother's side. Remi hurried down to meet her, and the moment Sarah's feet touched ground, she grabbed onto Remi. "I love you guys," Sarah sobbed. Remi knew this event had probably changed Sarah's entire outlook on the world.

Seconds after Roman and Kurt made it to the ground and they all joined Mayfair in the van, they heard a series of explosions, watching as the farmhouse, once so orderly and picture-perfect, was engulfed in flames and began to collapse in on itself.