where there's a spy, there's a way

part ventiquattro

credit to ally carter

chameleon POV

I woke up to feel Liz's fist hitting my back, her body following. I groaned and tried to push her away in my sleeping stupor.

I peeked through my eyelashes and saw it was still dark out, and my internal clock told me it was 3 o'clock in the morning on Christmas Eve.

"Ughhhhhh," I groaned, "Liz get off of me."

"Mhmmm." She mumbled not moving.

"Your laptop exploded." I murmured.

She shot right up. "WHAT?" She screamed.

Zach and Grant both bolted upright in bed. "What?" They both yelled.

I sat up and rubbed my eyes. "Liz, your laptop didn't really explode. I just want you to get off of me."

"Liz!" Grant yelled, "This is not the time to be a lesbian! I'm trying to sleep, and I would prefer it if you would chose a different life-partner than my sister. Kay, thanks, bye." He said strangely before throwing himself back down onto the pillow and attempting to go back to sleep.

Zach just gave him a weird look, pulled the covers back over himself and closed his eyes.

"Sorry, Cammie," Liz said.

"It's fine, Liz, don't worry." I soothed, laying back down, Liz following suit.

"Pssssst!" She hissed at me, and I turned over to face her.

"Yes?" I asked, eyes closed.

"Are you brave enough to let me see your peacock?" She said seriously.

"What!" I yelled, sitting up and nearly falling out of bed.

She giggled. "I had a dream and peacock was playing like theme music throughout the whole thing and now its stuck in my head."

I stared at her stupidly. "I didn't even know you listened to that."

"OH MY GOD." Grant sat up. "SHUT UP OR I WILL KILL YOU." He yelled angrily.

"I could kill you first." I retorted, turning back to Liz.

"You've got the finest architecture, end of the rainbow lookin' treasure." I quoted from Peacock. There was a pause. "You really listen to that?"

"Yes." She nodded solemnly.

"I don't want to hear you two talking about dick over there!" Grant yelled from his pillow.

"Shut up Grant, you talk about yours all the time. I'm surprised you're not gay. I don't know how you convinced Zach to sleep in the same bed as you." I snapped.

Ignoring Grant, Liz continued, "I also know the lyrics to I Just Had Sex Feat. Akon." She nodded solemnly.

"Seriously?" I asked awed. "Out of the two of us I thought I was the bad one."

She smiled, "I've been working on it."

There was a silence and then we both broke out giggling.

"THIS IS NOT A SLEEPOVER PARTY!" Grant roared.

"Grant, shut the fuck up." I said angrily. "Stop fucking PMSing."

He growled at me and pulled the covers over his head. "Fucking bitch."

I climbed silently out of bed and over to Grant's side. "I may not have a thong at the moment Grant, but I can still strangle you." I said before jumping on him and effectively wrapping my hands around his neck.

He kneed me in the stomach rolled over so that I was on top of the barrier of pillows between him and Zach.

Zach pulled the covers down on his side. "Why the hell can't you two just ever give it a rest?" He muttered angrily.

I kneed Grant in the balls and he pushed me onto Zach, and retreated to his side, nursing his jewels.

I looked up at Zach. "Merry Christmas?" I asked.

He sighed, and my whole body moved as his body rose and fell.

Liz laughed and Grant moaned as I climbed off of Zach and back into my own bed. "Shut the hell up Grant and go back to sleep." I said, before turning over and attempting to sleep.

The room became silent as I tried to get some sleep.

I woke up to Liz shaking me. I rolled over and she gave me the universal sign for be quiet.

She pointed to Grant and Zach who were sleeping and I understood. We both crept to their bed and I counted down... 3... 2...1...

We jumped onto the mattress and started jumping up and down.

"EARTHQUAKE!" Grant yelled, sitting up and getting kneed by Liz.

"Oopsie Daisies!" She giggled, jumping off the bed to see the damage she did.

"Stop, Gallagher Girl," Zach moaned.

I laughed, "Make me, Blackthorne Boy."

With speed no one who just woke up should have his hand shot out and grabbed my leg.

I squeaked as I fell on top of him for the second time that morning.

Our faces were almost touching and I stopped breathing. He reached up and brushed the hair away from my face.

"Morning, Gallagher Girl," He whispered, looking into my eyes.

Grant's groan pulled me back into reality and I rolled off of Zach, not wanting to.

I laid next to him and listened as Liz tried to find out how damaged Grant's nose was.

I climbed under the covers next to Zach and his hand found mind, and closed around my fingers. I turned to face my body toward his and buried my face in his shoulder, breathing in the warmth and comfort he provided.

We stayed like that for minutes until Liz spoke. "Nothing's broken, its just swollen. Don't worry, Grant, you'll feel better by New Years!" She said cheerfully.

"Zach," I whispered, looking up at him. He looked down at me. I clenched his hand tighter and scooched closer to him. "You're not going to die young. You're not going to die taking down the Circle and protecting me, and you're gonna get married to a really pretty nice girl some day and you're gonna have that daughter." I paused. "Just thought you should know."

He squeezed my hand. "Thanks for trying." He whispered, "But that's not my destiny."

I looked at him angrily. "Nothing's going to happen to you. If anyone's going to die, it's going to be me, and that's okay." I said. "They're after me, not you, or Grant, or Liz, or anyone else."

He pulled his head down closer to mine. "Nothing's going to happen to you, Gallagher Girl," He whispered as Grant and Liz walked into the kitchen to get ice. "I would die before anything did."

"Why?" I asked bravely.

He raised his eyebrows. "You know the answer to that. You're a Gallagher Girl, figure it out."

An idea popped into my mind. "You're going to tell me," I murmured, bringing my face closer to him.

"And why's that?" He asked.

I wrapped my right leg around his waist, bringing myself over him.

And then I kissed him. Hard.

Straddling him on the bed, I kissed him again and asked, "Why, Zach?"

Voice stangled he said, "Because I lo—"

I woke up with a start breathing hard. Liz rubbed her eyes and sat up next to me, and I noticed everyone else was still asleep.

"What happened?" She mumbled.

"I think I just seduced Zach." I said to her.

"What!" Liz yelled. "YOU SEDUCED ZACH?" She yelled.

Before I could quiet her Zach spoke without moving or opening his eyes, "I believe I would remember being seduced and believe me, not such thing happened."

"Better not," Grant mumbled from where he was sleeping, and his snoring started again.

Liz looked at me wide eyed. "Oops!"

"Liz," I asked, eyeing the boys, "What would the reasons for a person to take a bullet for someone else be?"

"Well," she began listing, "Parental instinct, employment—like a bodyguard, and then there's for love." She looked at me. "Wait, why are you asking? WHO TOOK A BULLET FOR YOU?" she yelled, jumping to conclusions.

"No one, Liz," I laughed, "I was just trying to figure something out." Obviously, my dream was telling me I was very attracted to Zach and he would die for me because he's my bodyguard. End of story. Nothing to read between the lines...

"ARE YOU GOING TO GET YOURSELF SHOT?" She yelled.

"NO LIZ!" I yelled. "Forget I even asked it, alright? Chill."

She nodded her head. "I've been meaning to ask you," She started.

"Yeah?"

"Where did you learn everything over the summer? I just wanted to investigate some leads so I was kinda wondering who or what your sources were."

I froze. It was the one thing I couldn't tell anyone.

Who my sources were.

"I can't tell you."

"Why not?" She asked, taking a professional and serious tone of voice.

"I'd have to kill you."

"No really."

"No really, either I'd have to kill you or something else would come after you and kill you."

She narrowed her eyes. "I think I know who you talked to. I know what you did, Cammie. No one else guessed but I did. You went and saw her. You talked to her." Grant and Zach were sitting up now, watching. Liz leaned toward me. "You made a deal with her, didn't you?"

"If I answer the question Liz, I sign our death warrants. You shouldn't have guessed," I said angrily, nearly snarling at her.

"What'd you promise her?" Liz asked angrily. "WHAT. WAS. THE. DEAL." She asked, loudly.

We were both out of the bed by now, a shouting match across the room.

I shook my head. "I can't tell you. It's not just my life in danger."

"You made a deal with her, Cammie!" Liz yelled. "It's a death sentence in its own!"

"I HAD NO OTHER CHOICE!" I yelled. "She had me. She had leverage." I screamed. "That week in the summer you can't remember, Liz? That you never told anyone about? She drugged you! She had you! She had you and Macey and Bex! What was I supposed to do?" I yelled, finally telling someone.

Liz looked at me surprised. "What?"

"She had you and Bex and Macey. There was no other way out."

"What?" Zach breathed out. "What she make you do, Cammie?"

Grant went to stand next to Liz and support her since she looked like she was about to faint.

"That's the scary part. She didn't ask anything really. Yet. She said she'd use me later. But there was one thing..." I shook my head. "But I can't tell you. She'd kill them for sure."

"What? You're safe with me, Gallagher Girl." Zach said, holding my arms.

I shook my head. "No. No. No. She has my grandparents, Zach." I started crying. "She's using them against me. They didn't even know my Dad was a spy!" Zach pulled me into him, and I began crying in his shoulder like a baby.

Totally unattractive I might add.

"Zach—" I said crying. "She has our daughter,"

Haha, just kidding. Did you believe that? I'm no whore.

No, this is what really happened:

"Zach," I said crying, "She wanted me to get something from you. To honey pot you, but I couldn't do it. She wants the journal. Even though we already decoded it and everything, she still wants it. But I couldn't use you." I cried.

"It's okay, Cam." He soothed. "You're safe now. You're safe here, we'll get your grandparents back."

I shook my head. "No we won't. I'd be surprised if they weren't already dead by now. I know how she works. I spent three weeks in that base, locked up... with her."

He cradled my head. "Shh, it's going to be alright. It's all going to be alright, don't worry, I'll take care of it."

"Why?" I pulled away. "Why do you care? You shouldn't. No one should. Why do you care about me? Why do you put up with me and bother protecting me?" I asked through my tears.

He kissed my forehead and hugged me tight. "Cammie," He murmured, "You already know the answer. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me. I would do anything to protect you, not just because it's my duty, but because I have to. Remember that." He hugged me tighter, "And I promise it's all going to be okay, and I don't break my word." He said, pulling away. "I'll go make some calls."

After he turned around I wiped my nose and looked at Grant bending in front of Liz, trying to console her.

What a Merry Christmas, huh?