Disclaimer: I do not own Scandal

Chapter Twenty-One

I was screaming, "Long live all the magic we made."

The following day, just as Harrison and Quinn were on their way out the door to leave for their honeymoon Harrison's phone rang.

"No!" Quinn cut in before he could answer it. "Honeymoon time." She reminded him resolutely.

Holding his phone up, he waved it in her face. "It's Liv. Do you want to tell her no?"

Snatching the phone out of his hand, Quinn answered the call. "No." She screeched. "It's honeymoon time. It's Quinn gets laid on a beach time. So no." She paused and listened. "Fuck, we're on our way."

Harrison crossed his arms over his chest. "What was that about 'no'?"

Pressing his phone in his hand, Quinn replied. "Plane crash. Senator Martinez was on the passenger manifest."

Harrison picked up his car keys. "Fuck is right. Where are we headed?"

"The crash." Quinn told him as she grabbed her light jacket off the coat rack in the corner.

"I'll cancel our reservations." Harrison murmured.

SCANDAL

Jake Ballard kicked at the limp body of Hollis Doyle. The plastic beneath them crinkled as he circled the unconscious man. "Come on, old man. Rise and shine." He grumbled. A moment later Doyle let out a low groan. The noise was muffled by the duct tape over his mouth. "Finally." Leaning down, Ballard ripped the tape off of his mouth. "How ya doin', Doyle?"

The oil tycoon groaned and slowly opened his eyes. Jake chose not to say anything and instead waited for Doyle to speak first. After a moment, the tycoon asked, "Who are you?"

Rising, Jake moved towards a table set off to the side. "Well, Mr. Doyle, my bosses have a few questions for you." He picked up a drill and placed the bit in it. "Let's start with something simple. What are you and Big Jerry planning?" When Doyle only glared at him, Jake shrugged and turned on the drill.

SCANDAL

Quinn and Harrison stared in horror at the wreckage in front of them. "Harrison," she tugged on his hand lightly, "what are the flags for?"

Pulling her closer to him, he answered, "Body parts." She shuddered and he leaned over to press a kiss to her temple. "Come on, let's find the rep for the Pilots' Association."

It didn't take them long to find the only other person in a suit who was standing in the chaos. The representative was turning green as he took in the carnage from the wreck. "Excuse me, sir." Quinn placed a gentle hand on his arm. "We're from Olivia Grant and Associates. I'm Quinn Wright. This is Harrison Wright." She introduced themselves. "Can you walk us through what happened?"

SCANDAL

Olivia rapped sharply on the door of the Oval Office. She only had a few moments to update Fitz before she needed to head to the airfield for the press conference on the crash.

"Come in." Olivia pushed open the door, finding Fitz seated on the floor surrounded by what was most likely The Dream Act. "Hey, Livie. What's up?"

She paused. He was so calm and slightly distracted. Her stomach plummeted at the realization that he didn't know what had happened. "Cyrus and Abby haven't told you yet?"

"Told me what?" He shuffled a stack of papers around. Sighing, he asked, "What's happened now?"

Shutting the door, Olivia stepped fully into the room. "There was a plane crash this morning." He stopped sifting through the bill at her words. "We're representing the Pilots' Association."

Catching his bearings, Fitz stood up quickly. "Were there any survivors."

She shook her head. "No. And Fitz?" She knew his crestfallen look was only going to worsen at her news. "Fitz," she reached for his hand. "Senator Martinez was on the passenger manifest."

Before Fitz could respond the door flew open and Cyrus was barking out orders. "We need the room. Everyone out." He and Abby both stopped short when they saw Olivia was the only one in the office with Fitz. "Oh, do you know? Did you tell him?" Cyrus asked.

Fitz swallowed hard and nodded. "She told me. I need to call Martinez' wife."

Rocking up onto her toes, Olivia pressed a kiss to his jaw. "I'll call you when I know more. We're representing the Pilots' Association." She murmured to Abby and Cyrus, giving Abby's shoulder a squeeze as she walked by. She could tell the pregnancy hormones were making a bad situation worse.

"Please do. Thanks, Liv." Cyrus waved as Olivia left.

SCANDAL

Olivia flew into the room where the press conference was being held at the airfield. She was only five minutes late. The rep from the Pilots' Association should be giving the statement Stephen had crafted for him. She stopped short when that wasn't what she saw.

Winding through the crowd standing at the back of the room, she found Harrison and Quinn glaring at a young man in a suit. "You let the airline go first?" She snapped.

Harrison sighed. "We stayed at the crash site longer than anticipated." He explained.

"What is so wrong with letting the airline go first?" The rep asked. "We'll get our turn. Everyone will get a turn." He grumbled.

Instead of answering, Olivia motioned to the front of the room where the handsome face of the airline spoke confidently to the room of reporters.

"We are all saddened by this tragedy." The man spoke somberly. "And we mourn for the lives lost. We will work closely with the Pilots' Association and any investigators to determine what caused the crash. I would like to state for the record that the plane was properly serviced and was clear for flight before take-off."

"That's why." Olivia muttered, digging through her purse to find her cell phone so she could call Stephen and Huck and give them an update.

"I don't understand." The young man shrugged helplessly. "What happened? What was wrong with what they said?"

"The airline just blamed the pilots for the crash." Harrison pulled his own phone from his pocket. "I'll call Abby and give her a heads up. She's going to need it before going in front of the press today."

The young rep was shaking his head in disagreement even as Harrison spoke. "No," he protested. "That's not what he said."

Quinn just barely held back an eye roll. The man was too green to be handling this. After all was said and done, though, he wouldn't be. "The airline said it without actually saying it. You can't give a statement now."

SCANDAL

Olivia was in the SUV headed to her office when her phone rang. Glancing down at her caller ID, she answered wearily, "Yes, Dad?"

"I need to see you. Fitz will be there."

"Where?" She rattled off the address to her SSAs as she hung up with her father. A moment later, the car took a sharp U-turn and headed her in a rough section of downtown DC. Quickly, she typed out a text to Stephen letting him know that she was following up on something and would meet them at the red box recording later that afternoon. Until then he was in charge and he was to keep Cyrus and Abby informed of their progress.

SCANDAL

When they pulled up to an abandoned warehouse, Olivia noted that Fitz was already there and his security was monitoring the building. "What's going on? What happened with Doyle?" She asked as she slammed her way into the empty building.

Eli and Maya rose from their seats when she entered, her voice bouncing back around them. Olivia, however, ignored them, instead moving straight to Fitz who was pacing back and forth worriedly. "Well?" He prompted once Olivia's hand was in his.

Eli and Maya shared a look before Eli answered for them. "They plan to assassinate you."

SCANDAL

XOXO

MAF