Disclaimer: I do not own Scandal
Chapter Twenty-Five: Stand
Walk in a corner shop, see a shoplifting cop
See the old lady with a gun, see the hero try to run
Nothing's what it seems I mean, it's not all dirty, but it's not all clean
There's children paying bills, there's monks buying thrills
There's pride for sale in magazines, there's pills for rent to make you clean
Marvin Gaye, there's no brother, brother
Woody Guthrie's land can't feed mother
Mother's weep, children sleep so much violence ends in silence
It's a shame there's no one to blame for all the pain that life brings
If you will just take me, it might just complete me
And together we can make a stand
"Stand" Jewel
"We're sure this is happening?" Mellie shook her head as she settled into a chair in Olivia and Fitz's living room. The kids were asleep upstairs and the gladiators were gathered around the fireplace trying to game plan as Fitz and Cyrus passed around tumblers, wine glasses, a bottle of scotch and a bottle of wine. Three bowls of popcorn were scattered between them, half-empty already as everyone attempted to process the information Olivia had already shared with the group.
"This is what they did last time." Huck murmured. "Well, what Hollis did last time."
"What do you mean 'last time'?" Abby asked quickly, her head immediately spinning to Olivia, "What's he talking about?" She shook David's soothing hand off of her knee, her eyes narrowed.
"Has an election been rigged before?" David leaned forward, trying to derail Abby slightly, "And how do we not know about this?"
Huck glanced down at Quinn and she nodded, "It's okay, Huck, you can tell them."
Huck and Olivia shared a look before Olivia replied, "Quinn is actually Lindsey Dwyer."
The room was silent for a few moments as everyone processed the information and tried to understand exactly what it meant. "Wait," David was the first to put it all together, "the woman who blew up her boyfriend in Boston like seven years ago?"
"I did not blow anyone up." Quinn protested, her arms raised defensively.
"She's not a killer." Huck snapped, immediately coming to his wife's defense.
"She was set up, by Doyle and a group known as B-613." Olivia cut into the conversation. "They tried to rig the election to fill John Kerry's seat."
"Did it work?" Stephen asked, eying Quinn warily.
"They blew up a building," Olivia snapped, "what do you think?"
"That's Olivia's way of saying, no it didn't work. She and Huck stopped it and got Quinn out of Boston." Fitz settled on the floor behind Olivia, wrapping his arms around her waist, "Look, if B-613 figures out who Quinn is"
"They called her Molotov Mistress." Abby snapped.
"Okay, that's enough." Harrison cut in, "We know Quinn's not a murderer." He defended her, "What we need to focus on is Doyle and Reston and the rigging of a presidential election."
"Harrison's right," Mellie replied, "though I do want to know about this organization, this B-613."
Olivia sighed and her gaze connected with Huck's. "They're a branch of the CIA. Black Ops. They don't answer to anyone. They're run by someone named 'Command.' Their mission is to keep the Republic safe. At least that's what they tell us when we join."
"Us? As in you were a part of this?" Stephen asked.
"Yes. I was recruited while I was in the military. They took," Huck ducked his head and Quinn laced their hands together, pulling his arms tightly around her, "the took everything from me."
"They're a bad group of people that we need to stay away from." Cyrus told the group. "Now, Doyle got involved with them somehow back then."
"I didn't know Doyle was involved until I saw this." Olivia picked up a folder, pulled out a photograph and pushed it across the coffee table, "That's Doyle with Command. That picture is recent. It makes sense that Doyle either was involved seven years ago or he knows Command and got the intel on how to rig an election from him. Either way, Command has an interest in putting Reston in the Oval if he's helping with this."
"Why would Command care who's president?" David asked.
"Because he wants a president he can control. And he knows that won't be me. Reston has no military experience, Reston's wife is nothing more than ornamental." Fitz explained.
"Okay, but if he doesn't answer to the president, then why does it matter if you're the president?" Abby asked.
"Because I'm Command's daughter. That man is Eli Pope, otherwise known as Rowan Pope, Command." Olivia dropped the final bomb on them.
"Holy shit." Mellie shook her head, "This just got complicated."
"It surpassed complicated when we met." Fitz admitted, "Look, all of this with Command is not important right now." He pushed the photo away.
"Fitz's is right," Stephen agreed, "right now we need to stop the voter fraud. Then, when Fitz wins, we'll handle Command."
"You don't just handle Command." Huck protested. "There's nothing you can do about Command. You only do what Command says, nothing else."
"Okay, well if we don't focus on that now, then how do we stop an election from being rigged?" David asked.
"We find out where they're putting the chip and if there's more than one." Olivia began, "So," she fell into gladiator mode, "Huck, I want you to hack into Doyle's phone records and email accounts. I also want you to hack into Jesse Tyler's. Quinn can help. Harrison and Abby, hit the pavement in California. I want you to go snooping around Cytron. Stephen, dig through Cytron's contracts. I want to see if they have any connections with voting precincts around the country. Also, if they have any connections with B-613 shell companies or Doyle Technology."
Stephen nodded, "You got it."
"I can go over any contracts or anything you find in the legal field." Mellie offered.
"Same." David agreed.
"Okay then, all cylinders, people." Olivia raised her wine glass in toast.
SCANDAL
"Abby and Harrison just landed in California. They're going in as potential clients." Huck stood in their offices (somewhere they hadn't spent much time recently), "Quinn has Tyler's records and I have Doyle's. We're going to start going over them now."
Olivia looked up from the map of the United States with the different districts and votes on it, "Ohio." She said.
"Ohio?" Huck echoed.
"It makes sense." She started pacing as she thought, "It has to be a swing state. Reston can't suddenly take over a red county in a red state. He'd have to do it in a swing state. And it has to be in a place no one would think of. Florida and Ohio seem to be our best options." She paused, "But Florida always causes a recount. If there wasn't a recount in Florida" her voice trailed off as she tapped her fingers against the nearest flat surface, "Ohio."
"I'll have Stephen start looking into contracts in Ohio." Huck offered.
"No, have him see if someone, anyone, from Cytron has visited Ohio recently. Get travel records." Olivia ordered.
"You got it, Liv." Huck nodded before darting out of her office and down to Stephen's to give him his new assignment.
"What?" She asked as she picked up her ringing cell phone.
"Hey, Livie, so I just heard something interesting." Fitz's voice echoed through the phone.
"What's that?" Olivia asked absently as she continued to look over the map.
"Doyle was asking about counties in Ohio. Specifically one county. Defiance."
"Where did you hear this?" Olivia's attention snapped to her conversation with her husband.
"Judge Verna Thornton. Doyle came around looking for more support for Reston. He happened to meet Verna. She thought something was up and set up a sit down with Cyrus. Clearly she wants to sit on the Bench one day. She's looking to make friends with whoever she thinks the next president will be, but Livie, this feels right."
"Let me find out if anyone's been to Defiance. I'll send Quinn and Huck out there if they have." Olivia decided.
"Sounds good. See you tonight. Love you."
"Love you too. Thanks, baby." Olivia hung up and called out, "Stephen!"
"Yeah?" Stephen appeared in her office doorway a moment later, "Focus on Defiance, Ohio." She advised.
"Sure thing, Liv." Stephen disappeared a second later.
SCANDAL
"Okay, what do we have?" Olivia asked two hours later as she turned the speaker phone up.
"Tyler isn't in town." Abby's voice echoed through the speaker. "He's visiting a relative in Iowa."
"Iowa?" Olivia asked with a frown.
"No, he's not." Stephen slapped a piece of paper on the conference room table, "He's in Ohio. Specifically, Defiance, Ohio."
"What's in Ohio?" Harrison asked.
"They're unveiling the newest electronic voting machines tomorrow." Huck spun his laptop around. "And Jesse is on the list."
"Okay, so he's planting the chip now. I want it confirmed that there's only one chip." Olivia nodded, "Huck, Quinn, get to Ohio. Take care of the chip. Harrison, Abby, find out if there are any other connections at Cytron, then come home."
"Even if we stop it, we can't let them get away with this." Stephen protested.
"They won't," Olivia promised. "let's get the chip out of the machine and everyone back here and let me finish working something out, then I'll let you know what I'm thinking." Olivia promised.
SCANDAL
XOXO
MAS