Independence Hall…
Charlie sits carefully on a chair in a secluded corner of the library as she tries to ignore the pain throbbing in her lower back. Not that she has any experience in this area, but she's pretty sure that this pain is caused by labor.
As in, she's having the baby.
And she isn't ready.
Bass is missing and Miles is in Tennessee. Daddy and Grandpa are supposed to be here for this.
She takes a deep breath and rubs her belly. "Just hang in there a little longer, OK? Daddy'll be home soon." Though she knows there isn't much time. Maggie had told her that labor can sometimes go on for days before a baby is born and she's been at it since she woke up this morning. They have some time before all hell breaks loose, but not enough.
From her chair, Charlie can see the homeless man she'd brought home from the shelter sitting with his glasses perched on the end of his nose and his eyes directed out the window. She wonders yet again what he could possibly be looking at but doesn't even bother asking.
"The baby's coming," she says softly into the silence. He may not be listening, or even care, but it makes her feel a little better to say it out loud. "D'you think Bass will be back in time?" She asks, not actually expecting an answer.
Unsurprisingly, all the man does is blink and continue to stare out the window.
Abandoned building five miles from Independence Hall…
Bass watches the young man that has taken him hostage pace back and forth in the dirty, little room he'd chosen to hide them in. His hands are bound behind his back and his feet tied the legs of a chair. He can't go anywhere just yet. Through the cracked window, he can see the bell tower of Independence Hall gleaming brightly in the afternoon sunlight. He thinks of Charlie and wonders if she's pacing, much like his captor, wondering where he is or if maybe she's rocking their newborn to sleep, or possibly in the terrible pains of labor at this very moment.
He's drawn from his thoughts by the appearance of a messenger who quickly whispers to the young man. "Ah, excellent news," the young man says with a smile.
The messenger leaves them alone and Bass glares at the smile on his captor's face. "Who are you? Why are working for Duncan Page? She's ruthless and brutal, and she only cares about herself. You should let me go. If you do, I'll forget any of this ever happened and you can go free."
The young man scoffs. "Man, Duncan said you were full of yourself but she didn't say anything about you being delusional." He shakes his head in amusement and leans casually against the wall. "Well first of all, my name is Scanlon. And second, I'm doing this because Duncan said so, and she's my boss. And third, what exactly do you think you could do to me? You're tied to a chair with no weapons and no way of freeing yourself. Plus, your men are miles from the city. You are literally one man against an entire army. You don't stand a chance."
Bass struggles against the ropes binding his hands but it's no use. They're too tight. "Why are you doing this? What does Duncan even want? Whatever it is, she can have it, all she has to do it let everyone go. No one has to get hurt."
Scanlon chuckles and stalks towards him, leaning down so his face is merely inches from Bass'. "Don't you know? Hurting people is Duncan's favorite part."
Baltimore, Maryland…
"I can't believe we've made it this far," Jeremy says wearily as he splashes water from a small stream onto his face.
"Yeah well don't get too comfortable," Miles says. "Tonight's the full moon and we'll be lucky if we make it in time to stop Duncan."
"You don't think she'll actually hurt anyone, do you?" Tom asks. "I mean, she's always seemed the type to do more talking than anything else."
Miles refills his canteen and quickly drains it, only to refill it again before getting back on his horse. "I know she will." Tom and Jeremy both look at him questioningly, so he explains. "Charlie humiliated her. First by marrying Bass, which Duncan had planned to do in order to unite The Plains and The Republic. Then Charlie tricked her into coming to that Summit just so she could lock her up while we took over her land. None of this is about the Republic at all. This is about Duncan's revenge on Charlie."
Jeremy and Tom share a matching, horrified look. "Oh shit." Jeremy says under his breath.
Tom nods in agreement as he hurries back to his horse. "Let's go."
Independence Hall…
"Hey, have you seen Charlie?" Danny asks as he enters the kitchen. Jason looks up from the plate of fresh cookies he'd been digging in and shakes his head.
"What are you doing?" Danny with a chuckle.
"Taking a break," Jason says around a mouthful of cookie. Danny rolls his eyes in amusement as he shoves another cookie in his mouth and asks, "Do you know where she is?"
Jason frowns and swallows hard, taking a drink of milk before answering. "No, why? What's going on?"
Danny shrugs, but still looks worried. "I just saw Maggie on her way to the clinic, she said that Charlie didn't check in with her this morning."
Jason stands up to his full height, wiping away the remains of his snack from his face. "She's not in her room?"
"No."
"Bass' office?" Danny shakes his head. "Miles' office?"
Danny sighs. "No. I've checked all the usual places and she just isn't here."
"What about the library?" Jason asks, earning himself a glare.
"I told you, I checked. The only person in the library is the fat, homeless guy she brought home."
Jason raises his hands up in mock surrender, a little smirk on his lips. "OK, OK, I'm sorry."
Danny rolls his eyes at him and turns to leave, intent on searching the lesser used half of the house that's meant for guests. But Jason grabs him by the hand and pulls him towards him, his eyes much softer this time. "Hey, I said I'm sorry."
"I know, I heard you." Danny says stubbornly.
Jason chuckles under his breath and steals a quick kiss, making Danny glare. "Do you forgive me?" He asks with a knowing smile.
"My sister is missing!"
Jason waves the statement away with his hand and pulls Danny close. "I'm sure she's just hiding because Bass is missing and she doesn't want anyone to see her cry. Give it an hour and I'm sure she'll turn up."
"You sure?" Danny asks distractedly as Jason slips his fingers beneath the hem of his t-shirt. Jason kisses him rather than answer.
XxX
Nora sits at her desk, her eyes fixed on the red stone on her wedding ring. She's been married for a month now and she's only spent one day with her husband. There's been no word from the boys about the situation in Georgia yet, but she's sure it'll be anytime now. Miles knows better than to keep her waiting.
As if on cue, a tired and travel worn messenger stumbles through her door without bothering to knock, a crumpled letter clutched in his hand. She takes it without preamble, the scared look on the messengers face making her hold her breath as she rips the letter open.
Bass or Charlie or Nora or whoever is in charge whenever this gets to Philly,
Get out. Duncan's planned a coup. If she's already made her move when you get this, I hope you're safe, and I'll meet you at the spot. You know the one. If she hasn't moved yet, set condition teddy bear and we'll be home as soon as we can.
Miles, Jer, and Tom
"Oh fuck," she whispers. The messenger's eyebrows shoot high up on his forehead, his prior concern reaching up to full blown panic. Nora storms past him and out into the hallway, shouting to the guards and officers roaming around before they all head home to dinner. "The capital is under attack! Lock down the building immediately and raise the defenses at the gate!"
Everyone in the hallway stops and simply stares at her.
"Now!" She screams. They all jump into action at once, but what looks like chaos Nora knows is actually Miles' pre-prepared defense plan falling into place. She grabs onto the nearest body and turns the girl in uniform to face her. "Find Jason Neville and tell him to meet me in the President's suite. And tell him to bring Danny."
The girl nods and takes off, leaving Nora headed for Bass and Charlie's room. She pushes the doors open without knocking, expecting to apologize once Charlie is safe, only to find the bedroom empty. She calls out for her friend and checks the bathroom before Jason and Danny come skidding into the room, Jason's boots in his hand and Danny's zipper still undone.
"What the hell?" Jason asks between gasps of breath.
"Duncan Page is a lunatic and Charlie is missing, so put your shoes on and button your damn pants cause I'm pretty sure we're at war!"
The boys both stare at her for a moment and she groans. "Guys, now!"
Jason drops into the nearest chair and shoves his feet into his boots while Danny rights himself. "Where the hell is Charlie?" Jason asks angrily.
Danny stares at him with disbelief. "Are you kidding me? Twenty minutes ago you didn't care where she was!"
"Well that was before she was missing," Jason says, his cheeks turning a little pink.
Before Danny has a chance to argue, Nora cuts across him. "Enough! Jason, I need you to oversee the lock down while I look for Charlie."
"Wait, why can't I look for her?"
"Because," Nora says, seeming a little desperate. "This military crap is Miles' thing and I'm in way over my head here. You take care of the lock down, I'll find Charlie. Finding people is something I can do."
"OK, great." Danny says. "What do you want me to do?"
Nora and Jason both turn to look at him and say, "hide."
"What?"
Nora nods and starts pushing him towards the hidden room inside Bass' closet. "I will not be responsible for killing Charlie's baby brother, so you are going to sit in this closet and you are going to like it."
"Jason," Danny says with pleading eyes. "I can't just sit in here."
"Yes you can," Jason says seriously, nudging him into the small room. "I can't do my job with you running around unprotected, so just stay here and let us do our thing. And when Charlie gets here, try to keep her calm. We don't need her going into labor in the middle of a war zone."
"But-"
"-Stay safe!" Nora chirps, closing the door in Danny's face. "Do you think he'll stay?" She mutters under her breath.
Jason sighs and shakes his head. "Not a chance. We better make this quick."
XxX
Charlie breathes in the cool evening air with a sigh of relief as she sits on a bench in the park. After sitting in the library with the homeless guy for a few hours, she finally couldn't take it anymore and left. The contractions had been sparse this morning and had eventually stopped altogether, so she'd figured it was safe to go out and about. That was up until ten minutes ago, when they'd started up again.
It's alright, she tells herself. They're not bad yet. I've got time.
Ding-dong, ding-dong, ding-dong.
Charlie whirls around to find the source of the noise and feels her stomach drop, and not because of the contractions. Men and women hurry about on the front lawn of Independence Hall as the warning bell continues to chime in the background. Charlie gets to her feet as quickly as she can and heads back to the house as the doors and windows are all being checked.
Dread washes over her as she approaches the house. If the bell is ringing, then something bad is about to happen.
A young private spots her as she ambles up the path to the side door into the kitchen and rushes out to meet her. "Mrs. Monroe, everyone's been looking for you!"
Charlie waves off the young girls remark with a quick shake of her head and says, "What's the situation?"
"I don't know exactly, but Vice President Clayton told everyone that the city is on lockdown and that we were to find you and bring you to either her or Lieutenant Neville."
"It's Matheson," Charlie corrects her automatically, already headed straight for Nora's office.
"Ma'am?"
"The Vice President," she says impatiently. "It's Nora Matheson."
The young Private looks prepared to argue about the importance of Nora's name but seems to decide it's best not to argue at the last moment. "Of course, Mrs. Monroe. My mistake."
The girl moves to follow her to Nora's office, but Charlie holds out a hand to stop her. "I know where I'm going Private. Go do whatever you were doing before you found me."
She waits until the girl is out of sight to change course for she and Bass' bedroom. As much as she wants to know what's going on and as much as she wants to help, she'd made a promise to Miles a long time ago, and it's one she has to honor. He'd made her promise that if she ever heard that bell ring, that she would go straight to Bass' closet and hide in the secret room inside. She'd made that promise when she was nine years old and despite the years that have passed since then, she knows that he'll still hold her to it. Plus, even as stubborn as she is, there's no way this pregnant lady is fighting any battles today.
She grabs a blanket off of their bed on her way through the bedroom and pushes open the hidden door behind a row of Bass' dress clothes only to find that the room is already occupied.
"Charlie!" Danny practically screams as he throws his arms around her. "Where the hell have you been?"
"It doesn't matter," she says as she secures the door behind her. "Just tell me what the hell is going on."
Abandoned building five miles from Independence Hall…
Even from this distance, Bass can hear the faint ding-dong of the bells around Philadelphia. On one hand, the sound is a good thing. It means that Charlie and the gang know there is a threat and they're working against. On the other hand, it could also mean that they're under siege and everyone is running around like a chicken with their head cut off.
He pushes the second option out of his mind and hopes for the first one. For everyone's sake.
Independence Hall…
The silence surrounding the city is overwhelming. So thick you could probably hear a pin drop. Nora and Jason stand shoulder to shoulder in the rotunda where the bell hangs looking it over the city. Everyone is at their battle stations, nonessential personal have been evacuated, and the city's residents have been gathered into safe zones all across the city.
"Did you check on Charlie?" Nora murmers.
"Yeah," Jason says softly. "Pissed off about being couped up, but she cooled down when I got her Bass' shotgun from under the living room couch."
"And Danny? Maggie?"
"She tried to move the entire clinic into the closet but I managed to convince her that her medical bag would have to be enough if the baby decides to come. And Danny will be fine. I gave him my knife. He knows how to use it. I've been showing him some stuff."
Nora lets out a long, slow breath, letting the relief wash over her as the silence takes over again. They watch as the sun dips low on the horizon until it eventually disappears and is replaced by the darkness of a new moon."
"I can't believe Duncan would be stupid enough to attack us on our own turf," Jason says after a while.
Nora sighs, nodding in agreement. "Maybe Miles is wrong, maybe she'll-"
BOOM!
The explosion knocks them both to the ground, disorienting them long enough for the cafe across the street to be completely engulfed in flames by the time they get to their feet. Below them, they can see people running from the building, their clothes on fire, their screams piercing through the air.
"Oh my God," Nora says. "What the- how did they-"
BOOM!
More prepared this time, they both grab onto the railing and watch as a missile falls from the sky, landing somewhere near the clinic.
"They have bombs?" Jason shouts over the noise. "How the hell did they get those!"
BOOM!
"I don't know," Nora screams. "But we need to evacuate everyone now!"
XxX
As a child, Charlie had seen more than her fair share of fighting. Blood and gore, gunfights, even a few of Nora's homemade explosives. But never in her life has she witnessed something like this. Even from inside the closet the explosion is deafening, shaking the entire house beneath her feet.
"What was that?" Danny asks, his voice a higher pitch than normal. Charlie simply shakes her head at a loss for words and takes his hand.
"Don't worry, love." Maggie says, trying to sound calmer than she really is. "Everything will be alright. Nora and Jason know what they're doing and we're safe in here."
Danny doesn't look all that convinced so Charlie nods. "She's right. Duncan wants to take over so she won't do anything to hurt Independence Hall. We're safe as long as we're…" Her voice trails off.
"What, Charlie what's wrong?" Danny asks quickly.
"Oh no," Charlie says softly, almost to herself.
Maggie grabs her hand and squeezes it. "Charlie what's wrong?"
"The homeless man," she says softly, as if that explains everything. "He's still in the library." She struggles to her feet before anyone can stop her and rushes to the door.
"Charlie what the hell do you think you're doing?" Danny yells.
"We have to go get him! We can't just leave him in there by himself."
Maggie hurries over to her and grabs her shoulders, shaking her as if to wake her up. "Charlie that man has no idea who he is or where he is, or even who we are. He is not worth giving your own life."
Charlie backs away from her as if she's been burned. "You're a doctor, Maggie. Didn't you take an oath or something that says you have to help people?"
"Yes, I did. And right now I'm helping you and your child. I know it's horrible and someday I'll pay the price for this, but I can live with that as long as you two are safe."
Charlie shakes her head. "Well I can't live with that. What kind of example would that be for my child?"
"Charlie-" Danny starts.
"No," she says defiantly. "I'm going." She grabs Bass' shotgun from the floor and opens the closet door, instantly struck by how loud the noise outside really is. Rather than argue, Danny grips the knife Jason gave him and Maggie pulls a small revolver from her bag.
"I can't believe I'm letting you do this," Maggie mutters.
Charlie smiles in spite of the situation and says, "It's not like I was asking for permission."
Rolling her eyes, Maggie pushes past both of them and moves quickly and quietly to the bedroom door. Deciding to take her lead, Charlie follows as stealthily as her pregnancy will allow with Danny just behind. The explosions seem to have shaken whatever prior plan Miles had in place for emergencies. The guards typically stationed at the end of every hall must have fled, or at the very least are hiding someplace else in the house. Not that she blames them. There's only so much a foot army can do against missiles.
It isn't until they've reached the first floor of the house that Charlie realizes where the guards have gone. The hallway outside the kitchen is filled with dead bodies, both their men and Duncan's lay dead at her feet. Danny turns abruptly and vomits on the floor while Charlie and Maggie gag at the gruesome sight before them.
"Come on," Charlie says, patting Danny roughly on the back. "We need to keep moving."
They find more bodies as they move along towards the library, as well as quite a few soldiers who seem too in the moment to realize that the First Lady is running around a war zone without a bodyguard. Fortunately they don't run into any enemy fighters.
Walking into the library and finding it exactly as she'd left it earlier is a little disconcerting when she considers the carnage just outside the door, but Charlie pushes on towards the chair the homeless man has been occupying the past few weeks. But he isn't there.
"Great. You're homeless guy is gone. Can we go back to the safe room now?" Danny whines.
"Where could he have gone?" Charlie asks, ignoring Danny's question.
"Does it matter?" Maggie says impatiently. "Look, we came down here and we tried. That's all that matters. Now let's get back to someplace safe."
As much as she hates it, Charlie lets herself be lead back through the library towards the door, only to be stopped again by a woman's voice.
"Safe?" She says mockingly. "Oh, honey, there's no place that's safe anymore."
Charlie feels her heart drop at the familiarity of the woman's low, taunting tone. "What do you want Duncan?"
The other woman laughs as they peer around the bookshelf closest to the door, though she stops abruptly when she finally spots Charlie. "You know what I want." She says, suddenly seeming angry. "I want what you took from me."
"Took from you?" Charlie asks incredulously. "I never took anything from you."
"Oh, please. Save your little Miss innocent act for your stupid uncle." Duncan raises her gun as she comes around the bookshelf to face them. Charlie cocks the shotgun and levels it at her chest. "Uh-uh," Duncan says with a smile. "Don't even think about it. You might kill me with that shot but I guarantee I'll take your brother down with me. And I don't think you want that, now do you?"
Charlie glares at her, which Duncan seems to take as an agreement that she's right and motions for Charlie to give her the shotgun. "Nice and easy, princess. Wouldn't want the little prince to get all blown up now would we?"
"What do you want?" Charlie asks angrily as Duncan tosses her shotgun aside.
Duncan smiles, the effect slightly terrifying on her face. "I want what you stole right out from under me."
"What are you talking about? I never took anything from you!"
"I could have had everything!" Duncan yells angrily. "All I had to do was marry Monroe and the entire Eastern coast would have been under my command. But no. You had to come in with your crocodile tears and that whiny little voice. 'But Bass…' You ruined everything."
Charlie can't help but cringe at the pure loathing in Duncan's voice. As much as she hates Duncan, she's always had a certain amount of respect for the woman. Apparently that was a mistake.
"Look, I'm sorry that you feel that way Duncan. But I didn't stop Bass from being with you, he made that choice long before he and I were even an option."
Anger contorts Duncan's face for a moment, but then she turns instantly calm, her movements sharp and calculated. "Well it doesn't matter now," she says in a sickly sweet voice. "When the First Lady dies, the President will need someone to pick up the pieces and I will be more than happy to do that." She raises her gun and points it directly at Charlie's heart.
"Hey!" Maggie shouts, jumping in front of Charlie as she wraps her arms protectively around her belly. "If you want to kill Charlie, you'll have to kill me too."
Duncan scoffs. "Alright." She pulls back on the hammer of her gun and time seems to slow as Charlie watches her finger begin to squeeze the trigger. Then-
Thud.
Duncan blinks slowly and crumples to the ground, revealing the homeless man standing behind her with a heavy, hardback encyclopedia raised as if to strike. For a moment they all just stand there in shock, too surprised by his sudden appearance in the real world to realize that he just save their lives.
"Oh my God," Charlie murmurs, her eyes finding the homeless man's brown ones. "You… you saved us," she says, feeling tears brimming in her eyes. "After all this time just sitting in the library, you save us."
The man slowly lowers the book, looking at it like he isn't really sure where it came from. "Yeah," he says hoarsely. "I guess I did."
A smile breaks out on Charlie's face and she rushes forward, enveloping this strange man in a tight hug. "Thank you, thank you so much."
He pats her awkwardly on the back and says, "No problem."
Charlie releases him, a big genuine smile on her face. "So now I can finally get an answer. What is your name?"
He chuckles nervously, running a hand through his unkempt hair. "My name is Aaron. Aaron Pittman."
"Well it's nice to finally meet you Aaron Pittman."
"Yeah," Danny says, coming over to shake the man's hand. "And thank you, for savings us, I mean."
"This is really wonderful," Maggie says in a can-we-talk-about-this-later kind of voice. "But don't you think we should deal with the crazy woman before we throw the welcome party?"
"Oh, right," Charlie says as she turns to the door. "I'll go find Jason and Nora. Without their leader, I doubt Duncan's guys will keep this up much longer." She turns the doorknob but before she can pull the door open, Maggie's voice stops her in her tracks.
"Oh, dear God."
"What?" Charlie asks, whipping around to look at her. "What's wrong?"
Maggie merely points, her finger directed at Charlie's long skirt. Charlie looks down and sees a long stain on the fabric. She does a quick, mental physical and realizes that she feels wet.
"Oh no," Danny says, his eyes going wide.
"My water broke," Charlie breathes.
"Yeah," Maggie says, automatically switching into clinical mode. "You're in labor."
A/N OK, so as usual I'm a liar and a terrible person because it's been like a month since my last update and I promised to do better but apparently I'm just not capable of that. Hopefully you guys don't totally hate me right now. I would understand if you did. :)
It turns out that I just have no time to do anything anymore. It has taken me like three weeks just to get this much done and even that was like pulling teeth. As much as I love writing, when this story is finished - which I promise it will be - I'm going to have to hang it up for a while. I'm killing myself working 2 jobs and trying to keep up with my family at the same time, and it just isn't worth it anymore. Maybe at some point I'll pick it back up, but right now I just have too much on my plate. I hope you guys understand. Thank you all for being so wonderfully supportive and I hope you'll enjoy the ending I have planned for this. :-D
