1942
Lucy led the team down the road to the Coast Guard station. The building was an old brick building with a bell tower style addition on top. Pointing to the building, Lucy stated, "This is where the Coast Guard set up their post. That addition on the roof overlooks the majority of the beaches here."
"So why didn't they see these guys coming?" Wyatt asked, staring at the building as they continued down the road toward it.
"They stormed the beach further down plus the heavy fog covered up the rest," Lucy replied, motioning in the general direction. "They had help from someone before they arrived, who buried supplies, clothes, explosives, money-"
"Do you remember who?" Wyatt questioned.
She shook her head. "I don't think they ever uncovered that."
"You don't think?" Wyatt repeated, turning his gaze toward her.
She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. "Even though I know about ninety percent of our missions' history, there are moments where I don't."
As the team walked by the station, Rufus asked, "Why not tell them now where to find these men?"
"Well, one of the night patrolmen find them on the beach," Lucy began. "He rushes back to the station to raise the alarm..."
The team reached the beach and stared out across the clean white sand and blue water. The fog from the morning had started to lift. In the distance, they could see a thunderstorm moving on and some distant fishing boats rocking against the waves.
Flynn's eyes darted about the few residents that were walking along the shoreline. They were going about their day as if nothing were out of the ordinary - blissfully unaware of the approaching dangers. He glanced behind them to see the empty road they walked along moments ago, completely void of people.
Flynn turned back to the team. "I'm just going to throw this out there," he began quietly. "Does something feel off to you?"
Rufus's head snapped up. "I was just going to say that."
Wyatt's eyes darted between the two. "Off in what way? What are you two talking about?"
Lucy shook her head, her hair bouncing off her cheeks. "It makes sense why Rittenhouse would be here... we just need to find out where they are." Rufus and Flynn exchanged looks. Flynn jutted his jaw out slightly as he followed Lucy and Wyatt along the beach.
Flynn's eyes drifted down as he watched Wyatt reach out and grasp Lucy's hand, interlacing his fingers with hers. Memories of old washed over Flynn as he recalled his wife's hand in his. His heart ached as his mind brought him back to Tenley.
Rufus saw the gesture at the same time and turned to Flynn. "They seem cozy again." Flynn gave him a quick side glance but remained silent. Rufus sucked on his teeth before saying, "We'll find a way to get her back."
Again, Flynn remained silent. His eyes lifted to study the dunes and beach grass. The air felt lighter somehow, almost as though all of his problems had been lifted and he had no reason to worry anymore. It was a strange sensation when he knew there were so many things eating away at him. He began to wonder if he was finally accepting that Tenley was gone and she was never coming back. The thought sent a cold shiver down his spine.
Lucy and Wyatt stopped in their tracks. Lucy pointed to a broken down fence within the sand up ahead. "Do you see that sign? The one on the post there with the shorts?" The sign she pointed to had one nail still holding it up at an awkward angle. There was a pair of men's shorts hanging off the top portion of the wooden sign.
Wyatt nodded, unimpressed. "Someone left their swimming trunks, so what?"
Lucy blinked at him. "For starters, those kind of swimming trunks weren't around until much later-"
"Okay," Wyatt interrupted her. "I get it...it was a poor choice of words on my part-"
Lucy gave him a curt nod before moving off of the timeline of proper fashion for the times. "If my memory is correct, that's the marker for the..." she lowered her voice in case anyone was listening, "Nazis... to find their supplies."
"Right here in the open?" Rufus gasped.
Wyatt shrugged. "Sometimes it's the things right in front of us that is hardest to see." When the team stared at him in disbelief, his eyes darted between them. "What? It's true." Lucy gave him a small flirty smile as she turned back to the marker.
"What do you suggest we do here?" Rufus asked. "Should we get the Coast Guard and let him know?"
Flynn furrowed his brow, shaking his head. "And how would you explain to them that we knew about the buried cache?"
Rufus opened his mouth to retort but a voice speaking behind them silenced him. "Beautiful day, isn't it?"
The group turned to see a pair of men standing a couple of feet behind them. They wore identical Coast Guard fatigues. They stood at attention before the group. Lucy realized that they were part of the patrols for the beach.
The older of the two smiled at her. "The day turned out to be quite fair, didn't it?"
Lucy smiled in kind. "We were very fortunate that the storm decided to move on."
"Quite," the other man said, nodding in agreement. He eyed the others before turning his attention back to Lucy. "Ma'am, we have an obligation to ask but...are you all right?"
Flynn's eyebrow raised, glancing at the others to see their reactions. Rufus shifted uncomfortably, raising more suspicions and Wyatt seemed almost offended that they would assume such a thing.
Lucy laughed it off as she replied, "Oh, I'm fine. This is my husband, Wyatt," she placed her hand on his chest, tapping it gently before adding, "and my older brother, Flynn." Their eyes darted over to Rufus. She said, "And our neighbor, Rufus."
"I had a dog named, Rufus, once," the first man stated with a smile. "It was a good dog...until it got hit by a car."
Rufus blinked at the remark, casting his gaze to the sand on his shoes. He really hated history.
The soldiers held Lucy's stare for a moment longer before nodding. "Well," the one started, tipping his hat at her. "Have a good evening."
The second added, "And please, remember the curfew."
"Of course," Lucy said, smiling warmly at them. "Thank you."
They watched as the men marched through the sand, heading back to the station. Wyatt scoffed, "What is it with people in history thinking we're always the suspicious ones?"
"Because we usually are?" Rufus quipped. Flynn tilted his head to the side, nodding slightly in agreement. They did stick out like sore thumbs.
Wyatt turned to Lucy. "Curfew?"
Lucy nodded. "They instilled a curfew during the war...it's how they found the spies."
Rufus cocked his head to the side, thinking. He shook his head after a moment. "What are we doing here?"
Wyatt and Lucy glanced over their shoulders at him. The confusion was clear in their expressions. Flynn, however, seemed to be questioning the very idea of being here as well.
Wyatt cleared his throat. "Trying to stop the Nazis from infiltrating our borders."
"But..." Rufus started. "We haven't even seen any signs of Rittenhouse here. Or Bloodstone, for that matter..." He sighed. "I just don't understand why we haven't seen any signs of them around...not even here where the supply drop is."
Wyatt's face shifted as he realized that Rufus was on to something. He glanced about the shoreline, scanning the people heading home. "What if the Coast Guard that finds the spies is the sleeper?"
Lucy shook her head. "According to history, he ran back immediately to sound the alarm."
"And then?" Wyatt asked.
"The spies take off, spooked, and buy bus tickets to take them to their final destination," she replied.
"Final Destination never ended well for those people," Rufus muttered. Wyatt rolled his eyes at the reference, had it not been a serious moment, he would have laughed.
Flynn put his hands into his pant pockets. "This has a different feel than some of our other missions," he stated. "Who's to say that this isn't another one of those distractions?" He turned his gaze quickly to Rufus and asked, "What about that pen you gave me back on the Britannic?"
Rufus sighed, shoulders dropping slightly. "Unfortunately, we had to do a bit of modifying on it...it wasn't working properly after-"
Wyatt tossed his hands up slightly. "What are you saying? We should just abandon this?"
"You want to stay?" Flynn asked.
"We're here," Wyatt countered. "Might as well make sure that we see this thing through."
"And if we're wasting time? Being set up again?" Flynn started. "Allowing Rittenhouse ample time to do what they please without us interfering?"
"It's a risk we have to take!" Wyatt hissed, voice rising.
Lucy raised her hands between the two. "This isn't the time for this fight! We need to get off the beach...we have to make it out of sight before curfew."
As they trudged through the sand, Rufus muttered, "This is a terrible idea. Where's Future Jiya when we need her?"
2002
Amy and Quinn exited the Mothership into the evening light. Glancing about, they had landed in a small grassy clearing within a dark woods. The stars were shining brightly overhead, the moon illuminated the dark, giving the illusion that street lights were lining the nearby country road.
Amy's eyes scanned the woods. Crickets and cicadas were loudly singing within the dark. She could make out the sounds of rushing water and knew the river had to be on the other side of the road, opposite of them. Scanning the road as they began their approach, Amy noticed there hadn't been a car since they emerged from the time machine.
"Are you sure we're in the right place?" Amy asked, glancing over her shoulder at Quinn. "It's really quiet out here."
Quinn turned his dark eyes over to meet hers. He could see her defenses building. He calmly raised his hands. "I won't let anything harm ye. I give ye my word." He turned his attention back to the road as they neared it. "Carol was very adamant about the timing of this accident."
"How does she know all of the details though?" Amy questioned. "It just feels...odd."
Quinn studied her as they climbed up the embankment to the road itself. He stood up, brushing his hands off from gravel when his eyes held hers.
Amy reached out for Quinn, her eyes locked onto something in the distance. "Quinn," she whispered. She nodded over in the direction she had been staring.
He glanced over and spotted three men up ahead. Their car had stopped in the middle of the road, headlights illuminating the space before them. In front of the car, two men were pouring a liquid from a container onto the road.
Amy gasped, "Is that the oil?"
Quinn quickly turned toward her. He motioned to the opposite end of the road. "Wait over there-"
"But what about-"
"The river is on that side," Quinn told her. "If yer sister hits that oil slick before I can stop her, ye'll need to save her, remember?" He gave her a quick sympathetic smile before turning his attention back to the stopped car in the vacant road. "I'll deal with them."
Before Quinn could leave, Amy reached out and grabbed his elbow gently. His eyes darted back to her. "Please be careful," she whispered, fear creeping up on her expression.
His lips twitched as he nodded. She released her hold and he ducked back into the shadows of the woods, heading for the car and the men that belonged to it.
Once she couldn't see him any longer, she ran across the road, sliding carefully down the side of the ditch. The river raged passed her a few feet from her as she sat there waiting and listening for the unexpected.
Her eyes watched the water carefully. The bright light from the moon reflected off the water, creating a shimmery effect on the surface. It highlighted the natural debris that floated downstream as it passed her.
As Amy sat there, her head throbbed painfully for a quick burst before it went away, almost as though she had been stabbed in the temple with an ice pick. She gasped out as it happened, her eyes flew shut until it passed. Her breathing increased as she slowly opened her eyes again, trying to understand what had just happened. When the pain returned for another short burst, a strange memory flashed before her eyes. She could see herself clawing to get out of a raging river, holding onto a fallen tree. She even saw a shadow of someone coming for her with outstretched hands.
The pain dissipated and the sound of gunfire up above her on the road blew the memories away. She found her back pressed firmly against the embankment, praying that she wasn't about to get shot.
Tires squealed against the pavement above. The sounds of a car engine revving filled the air in the once quiet night. Then the sight of a car crashing through the metal barriers could be seen. She watched as the car plunged into the raging river, sinking halfway before the engine died and the lights flickered out.
Amy's heart threatened to break her ribs as she pushed herself to her shaky feet, bile rising to her throat. Blinking at the sinking car, she could make out the silhouette of someone inside struggling to open the door, hand pounding on the window. The water level was rising quickly inside the cabin.
She tried to swallow her nerves but a hard lump formed, seizing her ability to think clearly. She remembered why she was there and forced herself toward the car. Two steps toward the vehicle, Amy's head exploded with pain, sending her to her knees. She grabbed her head, grimacing as she tried to stop it.
Forcing herself to crawl toward the car, she hissed in pain, struggling to ignore it. She crawled into the cold river, reaching for the door handle. She pulled at it and found it locked. Knowing that she was running out of time, she felt around under the water in search of a rock of substantial size.
Her fingers sunk deep into the muck and mire under the cold river water. The moment her knuckles slammed into a jagged rock, scraping the flesh away from her fingers, she pulled at it until the mud freed its hold. She turned to the car window, shouting, "Watch out!"
Holding the large muddy rock above her head, she threw it at the window. The rock crashed through, shattering the glass pieces into the river. The water flooded into the cabin of the car.
Amy slumped back to her knees, feeling the cold river water around her body as she pulled the woman from the inside out through the broken window. The moment the woman was freed from the sinking car, Amy's head exploded in pain, making her see white.
She collapsed onto the bank of the river, clutching her head as she cried out in anguish. Face contorted with pain, she glanced over to the young woman panting for air next to her. Amy held the woman's eyes for a brief moment. She looked just like the photo Carol had shown her.
Before the woman could ask if she was okay, Amy had pushed herself quickly to her feet, forcing herself to seek out Quinn. Her head pounded with each step. She clawed her way out of the river embankment.
Another car had stopped and the driver rushed to Amy's side. "Are you all right?"
Amy pointed down to where her sister remained. "She needs help..." The man brushed by her and slid down the side of the river to help Lucy. Amy took the opportunity to stumble across the street into the dark woods on the opposite side.
She fell to her knees, struggling to see straight as her world started to turn unfocused. "Quinn?" Fear gripped her chest tight as she used a nearby tree to return to her feet. "Quinn?"
Twigs snapped somewhere behind her. Whirling around to defend herself, Amy felt the world spin. She held onto the tree, begging her vision to sharpen.
"Amy!" the cry of the familiar accented voice sounded nearby.
Amy stumbled toward the direction of Quinn's call. When she pushed by a thicket of shrubs, her eyes narrowed onto the familiar frame of Quinn, slumped against a large tree trunk. The moonlight showed the extent of his more severe injuries, even within the darkness. She gasped as she took in the sight of him.
She knelt before him, reaching out carefully. "Oh my god, Quinn..."
He had been beaten bloody but that wasn't the worst of it. His cheeks were cut from his ears to his lips. She could even see a couple of bleeding wounds in his side - knife wounds from what she could tell at first glance.
"Quinn," she whispered again, voice shaking as she took in his injuries. "What..."
He motioned to the bodies around him. "They put up a good fight, yeah?"
She hadn't even noticed the bodies until he said something. She had been too focused on him. "Let's-" her words halted in her throat as the pain in her head returned.
Quinn's eyes widened as he watched her distress. "We need to get ye out of 'ere...now!"
"Why?" she asked, clutching her temples. "What's happening to me?"
"I'll explain on the way," he groaned, motioning for her to help him to his feet. The two stumbled back toward the Mothership together.
1942
Due to the watchful eyes of the Coast Guards stationed at the beach, the team headed back to town to create the illusion they were following the instilled curfew. Once they were far enough away from the station, they circled back around for the beach, remaining mindful of where the Coast Guard soldiers would be patrolling.
The empty beach at night had a completely different aura surrounding it. The evening light created a darker atmosphere that added to the tension of the situation.
The wind blowing across the ocean and onto the shore was cold, wrapping around the team like a blanket. They hunkered together behind a sand dune, keeping their eyes focused on the buried cache a couple of yards away from them.
"What are we going to do when we see these guys?" Rufus asked, crossing his arms for warmth. "Kindly ask them to go home?"
Wyatt's lips curled into a smile as he glanced over at the man. "How did Poe put it? 'How do you know unless you ask'?"
Rufus grumbled under his breath at the quote. "Pretty sure you're slaughtering that one..."
Flynn shook his head. "I'm more concerned that we haven't seen a single Rittenhouse or Bloodstone agent during our entire trip here."
"Maybe they're waiting for the spies to show up?" Wyatt retorted. "It's better to wait and see than leave prematurely."
Flynn's eyes drifted over to Lucy, who remained wrapped in the warmth of Wyatt's arms. Her nose and cheeks had reddened from the cold. She glanced up to meet his gaze but quickly averted them. She didn't want to admit that what he was saying was true. He couldn't blame her since she and Wyatt had just started to see eye to eye again.
"This would be a great time for Future Jiya to show up," Flynn remarked.
Rufus's head snapped up as he shivered in place. "I was thinking that earlier!"
"Look," Wyatt sighed. "If things progress like it's supposed to, we'll head out of here...no harm done-"
"Excuse me?" a voice boomed behind them. The team whirled around shocked as they were face to face with a night patrolman. "You're all in violation of the curfew. You'll have to come with me." The man was about Wyatt's size. His frame carried a bit more heft to it than Wyatt's did. His green eyes scanned the group of them, hand on his hip near his pistol, almost preparing for resistance.
Lucy's eyes widened. "Uh... we... are ... um."
Flynn had never seen Lucy taken by surprise like this before. He cleared his throat, stepping forward. "We work for the FBI. We've been notified that there was a German submarine near this beach-"
"FBI?" the man repeated. "If you're with the FBI," he paused to glance at Lucy and Rufus. "Then I'm a Four-Star General."
"He's telling you the truth," Wyatt chimed in. "We can't leave yet-"
"Do you have badges or something?" the man asked.
Flynn gritted his teeth. He had yet to go to a different time where people didn't ask them for proof of who they said they were when they said they were undercover. He sighed as he looked at the man. "We can't carry our credentials around with us while tracking enemies to our country-"
The man narrowed his eyes at Flynn. Flynn stared back, knowing the next words to follow. "You don't sound like you belong here-"
"He's our international ally," Wyatt interjected. "Look, you're about to blow our cover-"
The man's eyes drifted behind the team. His brows furrowed together as he stared at something in the near distance. "What the..."
Glancing over their shoulders, the team spotted movement in the water. A small inflatable raft hit the beach and four men hopped out. Lucy turned toward the man. "Go back to your station and raise the alarm!"
"They're probably just lost fishermen-"
"They are not fishermen," she told him sternly. "Please - they are Nazi spies. You need to raise the alarm!"
"How do I know that you're not the spies?" the man questioned. "Or helping them-"
Lucy sighed heavily. "Fine...you want proof that we are who we say we are?" She shook her head slightly as she began, "Your name is John Cullen. You are 21 years of age-"
Cullen's eyes widened in shock. "How do you know my-"
"The FBI knows everything," Wyatt chimed. "Look, there's a hidden cache here with explosives and other supplies...but you're going to need backup. Go back to the station and raise the alarm. Get your men here as quickly as possible before they head out! We'll hold them off for as long as we can."
Cullen blinked at them before nodding. "Of course...of course! I'll be back!"
The team watched as Cullen scrambled off the dunes and sprinted down the dark road to the station.
"What do we do about our spies?" Rufus asked. "He's not going to be back any time soon." Rufus motioned to the fleeing Cullen.
"The station is only half a mile away," Lucy explained. "He'll be back all right... and these men will believe they have time to dig up their supplies."
Flynn's eyes scanned the dark shores. The fog had started to cover the area, making it difficult to see into the distance. "Not to repeat myself but we still haven't seen a Rittenhouse agent."
Wyatt turned to face Flynn. It pained him to admit it but he nodded in agreement. "Something tells me that you and Rufus were right. Maybe this was a setup."
"But why?" Lucy asked. "It makes sense why they would come here-"
"Maybe that's what they wanted us to believe - why they chose this setting," Wyatt said. "Maybe this is a distraction so they could pop into another timeline and not worry about us being on their tail for once."
Lucy glanced back over her shoulder to where the spies were deflating their boat on the edge of the shore. "So, what do we do? Leave and hope that our presence here didn't disrupt things?"
Wyatt could see the hidden desperation behind her eyes. She needed to make sure that they saw this through. He gave her a reassuring nod. "We need to stay until Cullen shows up."
Flynn's lips twisted with disapproval but he remained silent. He shook his head slightly, feeling like this was a waste of precious and valuable time. Rufus had scoffed at Wyatt's remark as well but knew it was pointless to argue with the soldier. Once Lucy and Wyatt were on the same page, it was almost impossible for them to change their opinions on the matter.
Wyatt grabbed Lucy's hand, tugging her along to the other side of the dune. "Let's find a better spot for now while we wait." Rufus and Flynn followed them over the sandy dune, laying down to peer over the top.
The spies had disposed of their boat and swimming gear. They were marching through the sand to the location of the hidden cache. They pointed to the marker and spoke in German to one another.
Lucy glanced over her shoulder to the road, praying that Cullen and his men would materialize within the fog. So far, the road remained dark and empty.
The spies took the shovels that were left leaning against the post and set to digging. The sounds of them digging echoed in the night. Lucy closed her eyes, trying to regulate her breathing. She could feel her heart beating against her chest, afraid that the spies could hear it as well.
After five minutes of digging, the shovels struck metal. Speaking in hushed German, they pulled out the large box from the sand. As they opened the lid, whistles blew, alerting everyone to the Coast Guards' sudden, yet timely appearance.
Orders for the spies to raise their hands and to get on the ground echoed across the beach. The spies exchanged confused glances as the Coast Guard surrounded them. With raised hands, the spies were stripped of their sidearms before being cuffed.
Cullen marched up the sand dune and spotted the team. He nodded his thanks to them as he approached, hand outstretched. "I'm sorry it took longer than it should have," he said. "My commander wasn't sure if I was pulling his leg or not. It took him hearing that a couple of FBI agents were on the scene, willing to give him credit for him to march his men down here."
Lucy smiled. "Of course. I'm just happy you made it in time before we had to get involved."
Cullen chuckled. "Me too..." he whispered, leaning forward. "This is a promotion for me."
"Well deserved," she whispered back with a wink.
Rufus watched as the spies were led back to the station. "What's going to happen to them now?"
Cullen gave him a half-shrug. "Probably incarceration."
"Really?" Rufus remarked, stunned.
Cullen blinked at him. "They're on American soil now, so we'll do right by the way of justice."
Rufus opened his mouth to retort but caught the look of Wyatt who simply shook his head, silently pleading that he stay out of it.
Cullen shook their hands once more before following his men back to the station with the spies.
Flynn rested his hands on his hips as he watched the group disappear into the fog. "Let's get the hell out of here."
