Joss's head jerked to the side as Kara landed another punch, her hair whipped to the side, and Joss spat out blood. Her hands were cuffed behind her back, the bomb vest wrapped around her torso much like they had done to Fisher. However, before they could cuff her to the chair, Joss had discreetly reached up into her hair and nabbed a hairpin while no one was looking. She was waiting for the right time when she had Kara distracted enough to pick the lock to her own handcuffs and free herself.
"How does it feel, Jocelyn, to lose this time?" Kara wondered sounding like she was gloating.
"Who says I lost?" Joss questioned. Kara forced her face to look at her, her hand rough on her chin. Joss spat the blood from her mouth into Kara's face, which earned her another harsh smack.
"Bitch," Kara wiped the blood from her face, before stepping back. "What does he see in you? I didn't realize he liked caramel." she sneered with a dismissive look at her.
Joss could hear the derogatory tone to her voice, clearly to Kara she wasn't John's type because she was black. "Well John hasn't ever been with a real woman that is until I showed up in his life." Joss egged her on, watching the rage contort in Kara's usually emotionless face as she slammed her fist into her jaw. Pain erupted there but, she worked her jaw, thinking. Joss had been trying to figure out Kara's weakness for the past hour, ever since being forced into this chair cuffed and getting strapped with a bomb vest.
"I suggest you shut your mouth, detective, or I'll shut it for you."
"Please, you aren't any match for me." She knew her remark throttled Kara because Kara rushed her, jamming her knife deeply into the fleshy area of her shoulder, just beside the vest, and Carter forced herself to ignore the pain. "Is that the best you got with my hands behind my back, you coward? You're not very good at this."
Kara turned the blade inside her. "Can he even get it up for you? You're nothing like his dead ex-girlfriend who he loved so much." Kara smirked as if finding her weakness, reminding her about Jessica, as their faces were inches apart the blade still deep in her shoulder. Joss kept her brown gaze on the dead ones in front of her, having a sense she knew what Kara's weakness was.
"Tell me, Kara, during the time you and John were lovers; did John ever call out your name in the throes of passion, like you're the only woman in the world?" Kara twisted the knife in her again stealing her voice, but it also told her she found Kara's weakness. It was John.
Now that she found it, she was going to exploit it. "I take it that was a no. He told me that none of his previous sexual partners compared to me, he used them for release. I know why." Joss gave her a dismissive once over, glad her voice wasn't trembling from the pain. John had told her disturbing things about his relationship with Kara. It was a brutal and disgusting relationship, Kara trying to demean, dominate, and break John. She had no doubt that Kara Stanton probably wanted to own John because she thought he was weaker than she because he had emotions while she lost hers a long time ago.
"I'm gonna make John suffer even more, he's going to beg me to kill him. I'll make sure you get a nice recording of it," Kara said, yanking the knife out of her, slowly, and the pain ebbed from the wound. Joss however didn't care, she was going to distract this woman long enough to free herself. She slowly pulled the hairpin apart, trying to find the little hole on the handcuff.
"Being in your company is enough to make anyone suffer." Joss sniped. "Why are you doing this, because John has a life after the CIA burned him and you don't?"
Kara laughed. "I want revenge because he got me retired, I'd still be in the CIA had he not just disappeared from the database. I wouldn't have been reassigned, I wouldn't have been sent to Moscow to be killed!"
"Then what, huh, after you kill John your life is meaningless?!"
"Then I'm going to figure out this machine, that's the reason why John got burned in the first place. And when I find it I'm going to blow the fucker up."
"All of this is in a pathetic attempt at getting revenge because your job was taken from you?! It's not John's fault you were burned it's your own!" Joss snapped. "You were the one that peeked into the flashdrive, you were the one that got him burned because you used his code, and you botched the hit on him giving him a chance to save himself!" Joss tried to invoke real reasoning trying to point out that it was her own fault why this happened to her. But clearly Kara was blinded to her own role in her own burning because she rather blame John then look at herself.
"I know the real way to make John suffer; by killing that cute little blue-eyed boy that he loves so much…Reese has always been a sucker for kids." Joss froze.
"You touch one hair on that boy's head I'll make sure no one will be able to tell which of your body part is what, and it will be as painful as possible." Joss growled, nearly forgetting she was trying to exploit Kara's weaknesses and not show her own. She'd kill Kara with her own bare hands before she would let this woman touch Simon. She forced herself to calm down, working the hairpin in the lock, twisting to unlock it.
"Ooh, someone is a little touchy about the boy….what was his name again, oh right-Simon." Kara said making her snarl as she tried to lunge at her, her wrists felt raw as they strained against the cuffs. Stanton laughed at her reaction. "Just imagine John's reaction can you imagine his agony as he watched me torture that cute little boy, right in front of him, and he can't stop me? Yeah, I'm going to make him watch while I slowly kill the child that he has come to love as his own. John will be devastated, beyond repair, and you won't be able to save him this time. And that will be your torture, watching the man you love eat a gun in front of you, now I would pay money to be a fly on the wall of that." Joss stared into Stanton's eyes. The dead expression remained. She had no qualms about torturing and killing a three year old.
"You're dead," Joss said simply. "If not by me, then John or Shaw, you won't touch that boy." Joss assured as she paused in trying to unlock her cuffs when Kara Stanton smiled though no emotion showed, Kara turned, and walked out the empty old gymnasium, leaving Joss to angrily but quietly undo the cuffs.
"Come on Finch did you find Carter's whereabouts yet?"
"No, not yet, Ms. Shaw I am having trouble locating the scrambler." Finch said, fingers moving quickly across the keyboard.
"Well hurry up, we need to get her out of there and out of the bomb vest before Reese hands them the dummy chip!" Shaw snapped as she paced the floor of the library. John had asked Root to pass along a message to her, one she was grateful to get; kill Kara Stanton and she would with pleasure. She was going to make it slow, painful, and maybe even take a picture of it for Reese. Shaw was loyal to people she actually liked, which was a rare few and she happened to like Carter, Finch, and Reese….and maybe Lionel too here and there when she felt like it.
"I'm working on it."
Shaw knew her berating him wasn't going to get him to find the scrambler, hack it, and find Carter's whereabouts. Short of just showing up into the middle of Manhattan near where the scrambler was located at, she was stuck waiting.
"I got it, Ms. Shaw!" he announced triumphantly. Her eyes rounded and she hurried to overlook his shoulder. Finch hacked the scrambler, disabling it without Decima realizing it. Carter's GPS tracker that was sewn into her shoe was going off. "She's at an old closed down elementary school that is being scheduled for demolition next year." Finch said as he eyed her coordinates.
"Text me the address," Shaw commanded and rushed out of the library at breakneck speed. She'd call Fusco on her way for backup. She hoped everything would go well on John's end.
John quietly drove his car to Maxwell Limited where he was instructed to go. He was given an earwig from Greer, with the promise that once this mission was completed Joss would be safe. He smiled inwardly, Greer had no idea. "Keep to the plan John," Root's voice echoed through the earwig he was given from Greer, surprising him. "I hacked the link between you and Greer if you are wondering, but only you can hear little ole' me, I figured it would be easier this way. Oh, and John my brooding lug, don't forget to pop the trunk." Root's soft voice sounded amused.
He pulled up in front of the building that housed Maxwell Limited the front for the NSA facility he was to infiltrate. He climbed out of the car, discreetly as possible, hitting the trunk button on his remote for his car. "Good timing Mr. Reese, you'll have your girlfriend home in no time." Greer said through the earwig. He hoped Root was telling the truth that Greer and Decima could not hear her.
"What next?" John demanded not responding to what he said about Joss.
"Enter the building and find a man named Cyrus Wells, he is a janitor. You'll need to use him to get into the NSA facility." Greer said and John already knew this thanks to Root and her all-knowing friend. He entered the building, seeing a man mopping up the lobby area of the bottom floor. "That's him Mr. Reese." Greer said seeing his movements thanks to the small camera that was hidden inside a pin he was forced to wear on his lapel.
"John, that man doesn't like guns, so please be as gentle as possible." Root beeped in. He strode over to the man mopping, as John looked around making sure no one was around as he pulled out his Sig-Sauer, feeling tense. Knowing this whole plan hinged on if Cyrus could play dead. He prayed the man could. Root had gone to Cyrus yesterday, discreetly telling him his life was in danger, and had to listen to her word for word so he could be saved. He hoped like hell this man took her advice. John walked up behind him and placed the gun to his head.
"Shhhhh, don't make any sudden moves and do not make any sudden sounds." John said deathly quiet. Cyrus flinched and tensed.
"Please, I don't like guns." He whimpered a bit and John felt bad, because he knew it that wasn't a part of the ruse. This man truly didn't like guns but John couldn't let himself drop the weapon from his head.
"Then do as I say."
"I'll do anything just put the gun down, please." Cyrus begged. And he nodded lowering it.
"Good thing you said it like that Cyrus, I need your retinas." John said quietly. "I'm sorry I have to put you through this." He admitted truthfully.
"Good job, Mr. Reese," Greer applauded. John forced Cyrus forward towards the elevator. The ride up was awkward, Cyrus trembling and he was tense. He was afraid their plan would somehow fail and he would lose Joss. When the elevator doors opened he yanked Cyrus out into the hall towards the scanner in front of a white door. The man shook heavily as he leaned down allowing the machine to scan his eye. Once the click sounded John put a foot over the threshold to keep it open, seeing a little room with a control panel beside another closed door with a keycode mechanism that apparently led to the top secret NSA facility. "Now kill him Mr. Reese."John knew he had a blank in the chamber. Come on Root jam the signal before he had to shoot, as he aimed his gun at Cyrus who whimpered.
"Now John I jammed their signal!" Root said and John fired the weapon, shooting nothing but the blank, and Cyrus screamed in true fear and agony. John felt like a monster for doing it to him.
"Cyrus you need to get down and don't move," he plead as he reached into Cyrus's pocket finding the fake blood pack, spreading it across his face as Cyrus laid on the floor.
"John straighten, they're about to get signal back!" Root said quickly and John straightened as Root instructed.
"Mr. Reese did you kill Cyrus Wells? Turn your body so I can see, we had a bit of a camera and audio malfunction." John turned his body so the small webcam in the flag pin that Decima placed on his lapel was turned towards Cyrus who laid still with the fake blood on him.
"Yes, he didn't have to die he wouldn't have said anything." John growled acting it up for Joss's sake.
"Mr. Reese please don't pretend that you have a conscience now after all you have done in your life. He is just another man you have killed, nothing else to it. Now enter the small outer room that will lead to the facility." he thanked god that Greer hadn't figured out the ruse as he did as he was told. "See the control panel?"
"Yes," John answered.
"Open it, there will be a switch that controls the ventilation system I want you to close all the vents." Greer instructed. He did as requested. Once he did that Decima fed methyl propyl ether (sleeping gas) into the facility; putting all security personnel, scientists, and computer engineers asleep. He waited five minutes before Greer gave him a numeric code to access the facility. The click sounded he grabbed the handle and opened the door. John entered seeing everyone inside unconscious; he checked a few pulses, glad to feel steady ones. Decima was truthful that they were just sleeping and not dead. "Now head to that desk in the corner, erase the last fifteen minutes of footage, and turn the camera off inside the facility. Once you are done wait for my instructions."
John worked quickly. "It's done," having done this similar thing for years in the CIA.
"Good, head to the left you'll see a room with another keycode mechanism to it, that's the room that is holding the chip. It's delicate and you have to listen to my instructions to the letter or you'll damage it! You damage it, your girlfriend dies."
"Why do you want this thing?"
"That is no concern to you Mr. Reese, just do as I say and your girlfriend will be safe." Greer gave him another code, and he was given access to the room, when the door opened a bit, he grabbed the handle and pulled it fully open. The room was cold, shrouded in blue light. "Now listen carefully Mr. Reese, your girlfriend's life depends on it."
For the next ten minutes John took meticulous care at retrieving this chip from the room, following all of Greer's instructions, when he secured it into his left suit pocket, he exited the facility. "I have it now let her go," he commanded.
"You know how this works, John, you give the chip I give the girlfriend. Meet me downstairs, outside, I'm waiting near the doors for the chip." John smiled as he headed towards the elevator when he heard a beeping from Root.
"I'm ready to go, John we need a code word when you are ready for my help, how about monkey?" Root suggested and he smirked. "Whistle if you're good with it, John?" He began whistling a tune and Root chuckled a bit. His smile grew wider, tonight the machine would be correct about two of the three premonitions it had; it would be the end of Decima and that growing storm it was worried about, but Finch, his friends, and Joss were going to be safe.
AN: Shaw, Finch, and Fusco trying to rescue Carter who has Kara's number while John/Root go up against Decima. Let's just say next chapter shit hits the fan XD And because I can't find a good teaser without giving away anything I decided to make today a 2 for 1 special lol XD Hope everyone had a nice, safe, and fun filled holiday. I overate lol I'm still feeling it today!