Chapter Twenty-one: Asking for Trust

Technology had always excited him, and their time apart hadn't diminished that in the slightest. He was going into every detail of the tracking chip and why it was the best that Halcyon had. One hand danced in the air as he discussed specs, theories, and implementation of the technology. It had been so long since she'd heard him speak like this to her, with that same excitement and curiosity that had attracted her to him early on. He was so caught up in the explanation that he didn't seem to notice until he'd finished.

Howard paused, swallowing his last couple of words and clearing his throat. "Any questions?"

"No," she said softly, holding his gaze, "but I'd bet you still have one or two. Ask them while you have the chance."

"We'll have plenty of time when this is all over. You, me, and the lie detector between us," he tried for what she thought might have been a joke and Scottie shook her head.

"You and I both know that my chances of getting out of this are slim. I have nothing to lose anymore, Howard. Just ask."

There was a long pause and he loosed a breath, taking a step back away from her. For a moment she could see the indecision replace that careful mask of confidence he wore around those he didn't trust. It wasn't an open expression, not by far, but it was less guarded than it had been. Finally those clear blue eyes flickered to meet hers. "Was any of it real?"

Well, no need to start simple she supposed. Scottie took a seat. Honesty wasn't her strong suit, but she had told him to ask, so she owed him that much. "Yes," she said slowly. "The marriage wasn't at first. It was… business. I was fond of you, don't get me wrong, but…. Christopher was real. I think Christopher was when it became real."

Her husband watched her carefully and took a seat across from her. "You loved him."

"I still love him."

He hummed softly, not arguing the point. He knew. He had to have known. He had told her who Tom was with the full understanding that that would make her call off the hit on him. The question never seemed to have crossed his mind that, knowing that Tom was her Christopher, she would allow the hit to go through. If there was one thing that Howard had believed in, it was her love for their son, even if he wouldn't always admit that outright.

"I don't know a lot about love, Howard. Loving our child was the first time I think I've ever loved anyone. Things may not have started out as real, but they became real." She tried for a smile, the motion feeling as strained as she was sure it looked. She didn't have it in her to put on a show for him that day.

Her husband didn't say anything, but he stood from his place, nodding a little and she followed so that she could reach him, her long fingers lightly grabbing his wrist. "Howard, Miles knows it too. Christopher isn't the only one he's threatened. Keep your head down in this. You're not a fighter."

"We're not throwing you to the wolves, Scottie. The intention has never been to get you killed."

"I know," she whispered and leaned forward on impulse to kiss his cheek. "I'll make sure he comes home this time. No matter what."

She had meant to move away then, but Howard caught her and pulled her back. Surprise held her there as his lips pressed against hers in a desperate way she hadn't felt from him in years now. Scottie moved into the kiss, one hand moving up and brushing the side of his face as she felt his arms circle her waist. It was comfortable. Familiar. She'd missed him.

They finally broke, neither moving away and she could feel his warm breath on her as he leaned his forehead against hers. "You didn't try to kill me, did you?"

That pulled a rough laugh from her. "No. A world without Howard Hargrave in it sounds dull."

He chuckled at that and pressed another quick kiss to her lips. "You always were trouble. Bring him home, Scottie, don't just send him."

"I do love you," she confessed softly. She hadn't realized how much she needed him to return it until the words were met with silence. "Howard…"

"Over thirty years of lies don't just go away, Scottie. You come back and we'll figure out where to go."

"They'll send me back to prison."

He shrugged. "Doesn't mean we can't figure it out. Anyway, you look good in orange."

She snorted and rolled her eyes, finally breaking away. "Take care of yourself. I'm serious."

There was a brief flash of old mischief in Howard's eyes, but instead he nodded and motioned to the door. "Shall we?"

The plan was simple enough. They were prepared, but they were also going in blind. The Task Force and Tom's team out of Halcyon - including Solomon, as much as Liz hated it - were standing by. Scottie would deliver herself to the location and they would track her. They had to give them a head start or they would tip their hand long before they found Tom, and then the whole thing would be blown. Every detail was balanced on a razor blade with no margin for error.

Liz couldn't help the way her nerves were twisted up. She was on her toes, waiting for the signal that they needed to hop into action and go. It was relatively simple. Scottie would be able to set off a signal in the tracker that would only be readable to the Artax Network, which - between Howard and Dumont - was fully under their control. It would let them pinpoint where she - and if everything worked out the way she seemed to think it would - and Tom were being held for extraction. Until then, though, it was a waiting game, and she wasn't very good at that.

Liz was listening through half the headset when the door to the van opened and she saw Howard slip in. "Still nothing," she said as she saw Aram swivel back to what he'd been doing.

Howard made a small sound of acknowledgment. "It takes time to transfer someone, especially if they want to make sure they're not being tailed." He motioned to the seat next to Liz and she nodded. "Tom may have been right."

"About what?"

"Scottie."

Liz smirked just a little. "Couldn't imagine where he would have any point of reference on that one."

Howard snorted, but Liz thought she saw the shadow of a smile there. A little pride mixed with a little hope. Finally he cleared his throat. "Have you seen Red?"

And just like that her mood soured. "He went to take care of something. I don't know the details or why it had to be now, but..."

Her father-in-law chuckled. "Not a damn thing changes. Red's never been one to share."

"Doesn't that bother you? He knew about Scottie and didn't say anything."

Howard gave a small shrug. "He knew my son was alive and didn't say anything about that either. Red always has his reasons, and usually they're to protects someone he cares about, if he'll admit it or not."

"Did you know my mother as well?" Liz asked before she really meant to and there was a glint of mischief in Howard's blue eyes.

"Um, I hate to jump in, but she's stopped. No signal yet, but she's been still for a good ten minutes," Aram said and both Liz and Howard moved to see his screen.

"The fortifications are heavier than we anticipated."

"We can bring in a SWAT team to help, but that ups the risk," Liz murmured.

"Scottie knew adjustments would have to be made. We'll do what you have to to get them out of there. I want them ready as soon as Scottie gives the signal."

She had never been a fan of having a bag put over her head, nor the sensory overload that came after. Light flooded in and fresh air suddenly replaced the musty smell of the cloth that had been pressed against her nose. Scottie Hargrave blinked hard, trying to bring things into focus as quickly as she could.

Miles Ellington stood with a broad smile on his face and he approached her with his arms wide. They came in, one hand on either shoulder, and he pressed a kiss to her cheek. "Scottie. It's been too long."

A small, calculated smile curled her lips. It was a game to Miles. It had always been a game. "Are the cuffs really necessary?"

"You tell me. I'm not the one that refused to come in out of the cold until properly incentivized."

"Howard's smarter than you give him credit for. I had to make it look real, and to do that I had to make it look like I was going to help him bring you down."

Miles tilted his head a little to the side. "You expect me to believe you were playing him?"

"Easily. For as torn up as he was to find out why I married him, he fell for it easily enough again."

Miles chuckled. "They say the heart wants what it wants. What does your heart want, Scottie?"

"To finish the job I started years ago."

"And Christopher?"

Scottie purses her lips together, choosing her next words carefully. "Now that he's away from his father I have a better chance of bringing him to our side. He's an operative, Miles, like you and me. He understands that lies need to be told to get the job done."

"And if he doesn't?"

"He will. Given time, he will."

Miles hummed softly, as he stepped forward, circling around her and she knew he was looking for any tell she might give that she was lying. "You said Howard thinks you're working with him. How did you convince him to let you come in alone?"

"There's a button on my dress," Scottie said as she bent a little to reach the bottom button in a line of them down her dark blue dress and began working it free. "It's a tracker. One of Halcyon's technicians was following it. I knew your equipment would deactivate it long before I got to you. Howard didn't." She handed him the tracker and Miles turned the now useless bug over in his hand, examining it.

"You always were clever."

"I still am," she answered with a smile.

Miles chuckled and motioned to one of the guards. Half a moment later Scottie was free of her cuffs, rubbing her thin wrists. "We have a lot of work to do, but first I need to see him."

"He can wait."

"No. I know what you did giving him over to Bill McCready. You used a man that broke ties with our program to train one of the next generation when I couldn't. The sooner we bring him in, the more useful he'll be."

"You almost sound impressed. When did you learn to let go of a grudge?"

"Being angry with you won't get back the years I lost, so what's the point? You saw to his training and now we'll use it. He's good. Possibly better than any operatives that we've seen. I can't get the years back, but now he'll be able to move forward with us."

"I wouldn't get my hopes up too high yet, Scottie. He's fought us the whole way."

She shrugged. "That's because you haven't had me."

"Fair enough." He motioned and Scottie followed behind, listening as Miles spoke. "I remember Bill. I always thought he would join back up with us, but his program did well."

"Did he ever know it was Christopher?"

"We didn't tell him. You know Bill. He would have wanted something more. Instead we passed along a name and file and he lucked out. Quite the fighter, your son. He's already cost me a couple of men."

Scottie only smirked as they wound around to a room with a guard standing outside the door. He had two black eyes and the bruising looked like someone had broken his nose. Miles motioned and the guard turned, pulling keys out, and she heard the locks slide open.

The room was dark, but as she stepped in and her eyes adjusted she saw Christopher. He was seated on the hard floor, leaned up against the far wall, and had one arm wrapped around his middle protectively. Elizabeth had said the sniper had caught him before they took him, and now it looked like they had beaten on him as well.

She risked the brief glance at Miles as she moved past him. He lingered at the door, watching her carefully as she inched her way towards her injured son. He didn't stir at first, but as she knelt down two dark blue eyes slid open, a dangerous and wary glare fixed on her. It took a moment before those same eyes blinked rapidly, as if trying to push through the confusion, and finally softened just a little. "Scottie?"

She smiled at him, reaching out with one hand and pressed it against his cheek, thumb moving lightly over the bruises already forming on his cheekbone. She still wondered how she'd missed it. He was so clearly there. He was older and life had put him through hell, but he was her boy, and right then he needed her to be at her best if they were both going to get out of this alive. She moved her fingers across the palm of the hand not touching him, feeling the small device that Howard had implanted there. If he was wrong, both she and Christopher were dead. If he was right, they should both be home by that night.

"What are you doing here?"

His voice pulled her out of her thoughts and she pressed down, setting the signal off and moving so that she had a hand to either side of his face. "Asking you to trust me."

"I didn't thank you."

Matias Solomon turned, quirking an eyebrow at the woman seated across from him. "For what exactly?"

"Having my back. At the blacksite," Nez clarified.

An amused smirk perked his lips. "And who says I wasn't just following orders?"

"You're a free agent."

"That chose to side with Scottie."

She snorted and stood from where she had been perched up on a set of cabinets, working on her own weapons. Solomon watched her cross the space between them and she held his gaze. He found himself frozen there, unable or unwilling to break away. He wasn't sure. Nez stopped, so close that he could feel her breath on him when she spoke. "You may have been given orders, but that's not why you were there."

"Was it not? Then why?"

Her hand touched his, sending chills he wasn't used to up his spine and she leaned up, her lips against his and he reached over, setting his weapon down to pull her just a little closer. He felt her hands travel up, one wrapping around the back of his neck and he let her guide him deeper, the rush stronger than anything.

Someone cleared their throats awkwardly at the door and they parted, finding Dumont standing there. "Took you two long enough."

"What's up, Dumont?" Nez grumbled and Dumont grinned cheekily.

"Scottie just sent the signal. We're a go."

Solomon looked to Nez who nodded. He didn't think he would ever choose to put his life on the line for Tom Keen, but there they were, and both he and Nez knew this wasn't for Tom Keen.

Notes: No one has a simple, straightforward relationship in this story, do they?

Next time - Reddington searches out information and the jailbreak commences.