The Broken Silence

by MangoKat

A massive misunderstanding causes several operatives to defect from V.I.L.E. Carmen must now protect them before they're hunted down and killed. As Team Red fight against V.I.L.E, they begin uncovering a disturbing web of mysteries involving kidnap and murder. Everything always seems to point back to a certain mime. Who is Mime Bomb, and why does everyone seem to want him dead?

44. Forgiveness

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The Broken Silence

Chapter 44

Forgiveness

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The tension within Team Red felt heavy enough to cut with a knife. Mime Bomb stared at Le Chèvre with such a look of disgust and anger that it caught everyone off guard. They'd never seen him this angry before, and he simply sat there staring at the other man, the silence hanging heavily in the air.

They were on the flight back to Kazakhstan, and Le Chèvre had finally told Mime Bomb everything he had done. He explained the phone calls with Vess, the kidnapping, and the promises Vess had made to him. Le Chèvre had stood by and watched Mime Bomb being taken, fully expecting Mime Bomb to be taken back to the same lab that had tortured him for years.

Mime Bomb had been shocked at first, but as Le Chèvre continued explaining everything, he got angrier and angrier. He listened without interrupting and Le Chèvre admitted it had been a mistake to betray him and the rest of the team, but he didn't actually apologize. When he was finally finished, Mime Bomb didn't react, his hands clenched tightly in his lap. They sat in complete silence, Mime Bomb simply glowering at him, making no move to sign anything.

The staring was clearly starting to bother Le Chèvre and he again told him he regretted betraying him to who he thought was Vess. Mime Bomb simply kept staring. Le Chèvre shifted uncomfortably, and then crossed his arms defensively.

"Why aren't you saying anything?" he demanded, "Talk to me! I want to know what you're thinking! Sign and Zack can translate for you!"

Mime Bomb narrowed his eyes and didn't move. His shoulders were tense, and he ignored when Zack laid a gentle hand on his knee. He simply stared up at Le Chèvre with hate-filled eyes, and didn't react.

Le Chèvre began pacing, the staring really starting to get to him. It would have been easier to dismiss Mime Bomb if he was wearing his usual face paint, but the boy hadn't put it back on yet, and his face was far too human for Le Chèvre's liking. The betrayal and fury was written all across the boy's face, and for the first time, Le Chèvre felt a twinge of remorse. Before this moment, he'd regretted betraying his team and disappointing El Topo, but not really anything about Mime Bomb himself. He'd never really seen him as a real person, and he'd been so easy to hate. He'd always just been the weird quiet kid, and then the weird clown, but never just Yuri. Le Chèvre now looked at the freckled face in front of him, and knew Mime Bomb could have died because of him.

Le Chèvre was far too proud and too stubborn to ever admit this, and he clenched his hands into his fists, feeling frustrated.

"Stop staring at me!" he ordered.

Mime Bomb continued glaring up at him.

"Stop it!" Le Chèvre ordered, "Stop it now! I told you everything and now it's time to move past it!"

Mime Bomb didn't once break his gaze.

Le Chèvre paced again, quickly growing agitated. "Stop staring at me!" he snarled, "It was your own fault I did it in the first place! Maybe if you weren't such a freak, I wouldn't have done it!"

"Jean Paul!" El Topo exclaimed, completely aghast that he'd said such a thing.

"Not cool, man!" Zack snarled, getting to his feet, "He never did anything to you to deserve that!"

"Non, what I said is true!" Le Chèvre snapped, "He's a freak! He's never done anything useful for this team. In fact, he's the most useless member of this entire team, and he's just using us for protection! The rest of us can fight, the rest of us have special skills, but what does he bring to the team?! He never should have been accepted into V.I.L.E academy, he never should have graduated, and he never should have joined you!"

"Jean Paul, that is enough." Carmen's voice said through their coms, "What you did was inexcusable. Don't you dare put the blame on Mime Bomb!" Her tone was icy, and Le Chèvre went silent, knowing he'd gone too far.

He was then caught completely by surprise when he was slapped hard across the face by Zack.

"If anyone is the most useless member of this team, then it's me," Zack cut in angrily, bristling in pure rage. "I can't fight, I'm not smart, I have no special skills, and the only thing I can do is drive a car. Mime Bomb is way more valuable than me! He's smart and resourceful, and he never gives up!"

Le Chèvre looked away.

"I thought you said you were going to apologize!" El Topo demanded angrily, "Jean Paul! What were you thinking?! This was not what we talked about!"

Le Chèvre raised a hand to his face and slowly closed his eyes. Everything was a mess.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly, "I will never do anything like this again. I've ruined everything."

Mime Bomb continued staring at him silently, and so Le Chèvre turned and walked away without saying anything further. El Topo did not look very happy and he followed after his partner to the back of the plane, clearly planning on discussing this further.

"Are you okay, Mime Bomb?" Zack demanded.

Mime Bomb said nothing, his glare still aimed in Le Chèvre's direction. Zack took his hand and gave it a squeeze and finally Mime Bomb looked away from Le Chèvre.

"I know you're really mad right now, but you're going to forgive him right?"

Mime Bomb shook his head, and everyone stared at him.

"You're not?" Zack asked in surprise.

Mime Bomb signed something and Zack frowned at him.

"Well, you kinda have to eventually!" Zack pointed out, "We all live together!"

Again, Mime Bomb shook his head. He had trusted Le Chèvre, and had even tried to be friends with him, but he had betrayed him in the worst possible way. Mime Bomb remembered how his maternal grandmother had done the same thing. She had sent him to that lab, fully expecting to never see him again. The betrayal cut deep, and Le Chèvre had only re-ignited the pain of it. Mime Bomb had seen Team Red as his family, but now he wasn't so sure. Family apparently couldn't be trusted. His cousin had tortured and tried to kill him, his uncle had stolen his voice, his father had abandoned him, his grandfather had him kidnapped, and Mime Bomb wasn't sure how much more of this he could take.

He stared at Zack and wondered how long it would be before the other boy turned on him as well. How long would he get to remain as part of the team? The happiness he had found within Team Red was only temporary, and he felt both disappointed and devastated. He would only be betrayed again and again.

"Mime Bomb?" Zack questioned with a frown, "Are you okay?"

A silent tear made it's way down Mime Bomb's cheek, and Zack's expression was instantly concerned and he placed a hand on Mime Bomb's back. It was too much for Mime Bomb and he covered his head with both of his arms and curled in on himself, feeling the tears flooding his eyes.

"Oh no, Mime Bomb!" Zack said gently, wrapping an arm around him, "It's going to be okay! I'll make sure nothing like this ever happens again!"

Mime Bomb drew his knees up under his chin and just curled up further.

Ivy took a seat on his other side and rubbed a comforting hand on his back, not quite sure what to do.

"You don't really believe any of the stuff he said, do you?" she asked gently, "You earned your place here with us, and you belong here."

"Yeah, buddy, you're our brother and you're not going anywhere!" Zack exclaimed, "Le Chèvre did a really shitty thing, but we'll get through this. It's okay to be upset and it's okay to be angry, but please don't shut yourself off like this."

Mime Bomb didn't move, everything feeling too overwhelming. Zack and Ivy could feel him shaking from sobs and they exchanged a worried look. Player knelt down in front of Mime Bomb's seat and gave him a hug.

"I'm sorry, Mime Bomb," Player whispered, "We care a lot about you, and we'll always be here for you."

"We need to get Dr. Brownswell on the phone!" Zack said, his voice strained, "Mime Bomb needs to talk this through with her!"

"We don't have a signal right now," Julia pointed out, "It will be hours before we land…"

"Mime Bomb, can you please look at me?" Zack asked gently.

Mime Bomb didn't move.

"I'm here for you," Zack told him, "Once you're ready, I'll be here, I promise. I won't move from this spot this whole flight!"

Team Red stared at the miserable mime and knew this wasn't good. If he was having a relapse because of Le Chèvre's actions, it would be difficult to recover from it. He needed professional help that they weren't qualified for. They exchanged long and silent looks with one another, knowing this was going to be a difficult and awkward flight.

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Plague Doctor stepped off the plane and glanced around the private airstrip curiously. Several Void foot soldiers waited nearby, and he could see a garish purple car that was clearly meant for them. He only took two steps before the full force of the San Diego sun hit him, and he was instantly overheated and uncomfortable. By the time he got to the bottom of the airstairs, it felt like he was being cooked alive and he stopped walking, glancing back towards the air-conditioned plane.

Matryoshka stepped off the plane wearing a light red sundress and she didn't seem bothered by the heat at all as she opened a parasol and rested it over her shoulder casually. She glanced down at her brother, rolled her eyes at him, and didn't comment on the fact he was still in full costume. Walking down the stairs, she approached Plague Doctor and stood by his side as they watched their henchmen load their bags into the car.

[[You're not going to be able to wear black leather during the summer in California,]] she pointed out.

Plague Doctor shook his head, and Matryoshka rolled her eyes a second time.

[[Suit yourself,]] she responded, [[You're the one who's going to be miserable the entire trip.]]

"Excuse me, ma'am," someone interrupted, "Everything has been arranged to your specifications, and I'll be the one escorting you to your hotel."

Matryoshka turned to face him. "Who are you?"

"Your personal guide," the man responded respectfully.

Matryoshka frowned. "You're American?" she questioned.

The man nodded. "Yes, ma'am, I live in San Diego and know the area well."

"Do you speak Russian?"

The man shook his head and gave her an apologetic look. "No, I'm sorry, but I don't. English and Spanish only."

Matryoshka normally preferred to speak in her native tongue and she let out a deep sigh. "Alright," she replied, "What is your name?"

"Bruce, ma'am," he answered.

The name didn't feel pleasant on her tongue, but Matryoshka didn't comment. "How far is our hotel?" she asked.

"Not far, just a thirty minute drive," Bruce replied, "The resort is the nicest accommodation in the city, and I hope you'll find it acceptable. You have the entire East Wing to yourselves."

Suddenly Plague Doctor fell against Matryoshka who was quick to steady him.

"Dmitry?" she questioned.

Plague Doctor raised a hand to his head, staggered a step backwards, and a moment later he fainted. Bruce surged forward to catch him before he hit the ground, and Matryoshka pulled off his mask to get him some air. Plague Doctor was flushed and sweating, and it was obvious the heat was affecting him.

"Get him back on the plane, and strip him down!" Matryoshka ordered, "Someone grab ice and cold water, and someone else find him something cooler to wear! Hurry!"

As Bruce carried Plague Doctor back onto the plane, the other henchmen ran to do as they were told.

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It was still snowing when Terry awoke early the next morning when the lights suddenly turned on. Blinking tiredly, he glanced up at the light, glad the power finally came back on. There was a crack as he stretched and he turned his attention to the storm outside.

He stared out the window at the raging storm and knew no one would be leaving the house anytime soon. He quietly checked on Siren, saw he was still out cold, and then left him to sleep, texting Lucy to let him out of the room.

Lucy was an early riser and already fully dressed and ready to start her day. When she received the text, she stopped what she was doing and crossed the hall to unlock the guest room door. Unbolting the door, she opened it, glanced in at her husband and then over at Siren who was still sound asleep. Terry held a finger to his lips and she nodded her understanding.

Terry silently crept out of the room, and then shut and locked the door after him. Lucy gave him a concerned look, and he simply motioned for her to follow him to the kitchen. She gave a nod, and followed him down the hall.

"Is Delano alright?" Lucy asked the moment they were in the kitchen.

"Honestly no," Terry replied, "He's not mentally well, and he really needs professional help, but that's never going to happen with V.I.L.E. He dissociates when he's scared or upset, and it seems to be getting worse lately. He never snapped out of it last night, and fell asleep still holding onto me."

"He seems to trust you a lot," Lucy stated, "Much of what I've seen of his behaviour reminds me of Ethan, and how he shuts down when he's overwhelmed. You've told me stories about his rudeness and his tantrums, and it seems so similar to Ethan. I was just wondering if Delano's autistic?"

Terry gave a shrug. "He could be, but if he is, it's undiagnosed. I think most of his problem is the fact he's incredibly spoiled. He gets away with treating people like that, and no one ever calls him out on how he acts. I'm the only one who doesn't put up with it."

Lucy let out a snort of amusement. "I think everyone knows your opinion on how he behaves."

Terry grimaced, knowing that he had complained relentlessly over the last six months about Siren. His whole family and everyone at the lab had heard his rants, and he honestly felt a little bad about it now. He hadn't realized how bad Siren's situation was, and now he had compassion and pity for the other man.

"He really hates it at the lab, and even he knows it's not good for him," Terry commented, "He's mistreated there, and I think he's rather lonely."

"Can't he just quit? Leave and get the help he needs?"

Terry shook his head. "V.I.L.E would never allow it. Siren is much too valuable for them to ever allow to leave."

"That's not right!" Lucy cried out in outrage, "How can they keep him here? We should contact someone to put in a complaint!"

Terry rested a reassuring hand on his wife's back, seeing how upset she was getting. "I'm handling it," he told her, "I'm helping him leave when the time comes."

"Why not right now?" Lucy demanded, "I don't like this at all! You've been working longer and longer hours, and now I see why! You need to get him out of there!"

Terry knew he couldn't tell his wife the whole situation at V.I.L.E, and he simply shook his head. "Siren refuses to leave until his latest experiment is finished."

Lucy glanced back in the direction of the guest room. "And when will that be?" she asked, "If he's been having meltdowns and episodes like this, he's a danger to himself!"

"I'm keeping an eye on him, Luce," Terry assured her, "I make sure he stays as safe as possible every day, and I'm going to be helping him get out when he needs it."

"He's covered in bruises and cuts," Lucy pointed out, "What happened to him? There's something happening at that lab that you're not telling me about."

"During the time I was reassigned, someone beat him badly," Terry explained, "The other guards absolutely hate him, and there's already been a few attempts at his life. This is why I have to work seven days a week right now; it's to protect him."

Lucy's face was horrified, and then a fierce look entered her eyes. She thought of someone taking advantage of Ethan in such a way, trying to hurt him, trying to kill him, and she bristled in fury. She thought of how thin and battered Siren was, and felt the instinctive urge to protect him.

"He's not going back there," she said firmly, "Send the lab a message that he's quitting."

"Luce, you can't force a grown man to quit his job if he doesn't want to," Terry pointed out, "This is his decision."

Lucy scowled with a determined air. "I'll convince him," she vowed, "He looks sick, and he needs to leave V.I.L.E before something happens to him! Someone else can work on his vaccine research!"

Terry sighed. "Siren's going to bite your head right off if you try talking to him about it," he stated, "He's rude and ill-tempered, and probably the most stubborn person I'd ever met. If he doesn't want to do something then he's not going to do it."

Lucy frowned and didn't answer. The determined look was still in her eyes as she went about making coffee, and Terry knew she would still try. The only thing he could do is wait to intercept the inevitable fit Siren threw at her trying to get involved.

"Do you want me to throw on some eggs for you?" she asked.

Terry nodded, "Sure. Do you need any help?"

Lucy shook her head. "No, I'm fine," she responded.

As Lucy began breakfast for her husband, she wondered what Siren would like. Thinking of how particular he was about his food, she had a feeling it would be best to ask him before making anything.

The smell of the perking coffee woke Siren who was immediately confused. He didn't recognize where he was, and it didn't look like any of the rooms at the lab. Sitting up in bed, he ran his fingers over the quilt covering him, for once not cold. The lab was always too cold, and the fact he was comfortable was a bit disconcerting. Rubbing at his eyes, he then remembered where he was. Glancing around the room, he frowned at the fact he didn't remember going to bed. Did he fall asleep watching tv? Did Terry move him to the bed?

Slipping his legs out of the bed, he could smell coffee and decided to investigate. Heading across the room, he turned the doorknob and realized the door wouldn't open. He tugged and pushed on it, but it didn't budge. Furious that he was locked in, he was about to bang on the door when the lock suddenly clicked open. The door opened and the six year old, Eric, was standing there, looking a bit curious.

"Why were you locked in?" he asked, "Did Daddy ground you?"

Siren scoffed, and then passed him by, following the scent of the coffee. When he entered the kitchen, Terry seemed alarmed to see him, and then his eyes went to Eric, realizing his son must have opened the door.

Siren took a seat at the table without a word, and it didn't escape his notice the concerned look Terry shot him. Reaching across the table, he snatched Terry's coffee mug right out of his hand, and took a massive gulp of it before the other man could react.

"Well, looks like you're feeling better," Terry stated dryly, "There's a whole pot of coffee. You didn't need to steal mine."

"Go to hell," Siren muttered, taking another large gulp.

Terry glanced at the clock and saw it was only a little after six. Siren was notoriously foul if he didn't get enough sleep, so it looked like Terry was in for a long and irritating day.

"Good morning, Delano," Lucy greeted him in a friendly tone.

Siren narrowed his eyes at her.

"Did you sleep well? Were you warm enough?"

Siren took a sip of coffee and said nothing, instead reaching for the nearby pot of coffee.

"Don't pay him any attention, Luce, he's just being a grouchy little shit."

"Terry, language!" Lucy scolded, glancing to their six year old.

Eric grinned widely and giggled. "Daddy said a bad word!"

Lucy rolled her eyes. "Yes he did."

"Is he in trouble?" Eric demanded.

Lucy smiled in amusement. "He sure is! No dessert for Daddy tonight!"

"Oh no!" Terry exclaimed in an over-dramatic fashion. "What if I said I was sorry?"

Lucy crossed her arms mock-angrily. "Let's hear it then!"

Terry cleared his throat and then held up his hands in a pleading gesture. "Oh beautiful wife of mine, can you find it in your heart to forgive this foul-mouthed wretch?"

Lucy seemed to ponder hard.

"You gotta forgive him, Mommy, he said he was sorry!" Eric whispered.

"Of course I forgive you!" Lucy announced, "but I better not hear you speaking like that again!"

Terry crossed his heart. "I swear it! I'm a changed man!"

Lucy laughed and then shook her head as she turned towards the fridge. Siren had watched the entire strange exchange silently, and he seemed a bit troubled about something.

"Are you hungry, Delano?" Lucy asked, opening the fridge door.

Siren shook his head. "No."

"You have to eat something, how about eggs?"

"I don't like eggs, they're mushy and rubbery at the same time."

"Alright, well, what about toast?"

"I don't like toast either, it's just dried out bread. I'm fine with coffee."

"You're too thin, Delano, and you need to eat something besides coffee! How about oatmeal?"

Siren pulled a face at that suggestion. "Gritty cement," he commented.

Lucy glanced into her fridge which didn't have too much in it, and then she glanced towards her counter where she kept her flour and sugar.

"How about pancakes?"

Siren hesitated a few seconds, and then shook his head. Lucy saw that hesitation and removed the eggs out of the fridge.

"Well, I'm going to make pancakes for the kids and you're welcome to have some if you like."

"Oh, pancakes!" Eric exclaimed excitedly.

Siren said nothing and simply refilled his stolen coffee mug. As Lucy began making the mix, Terry frowned at Siren, wondering if he remembered dissociating.

"Are you feeling alright?" he asked.

"I'm fine," Siren responded shortly, "When am I going back to the lab?"

Terry glanced towards the window. "Not until that storm calms down a bit. It's far too dangerous to be out driving right now."

"...Did Vess say anything to you?"

"Like what?" Terry questioned.

"About me?" Siren asked, a slightly worried look in his eyes, "Just how angry was he?"

Terry frowned. "Well, I'm not going to sugarcoat it, he was incredibly upset. He was worried something was going to happen to you. He ordered me to keep you here under all circumstances and keep him informed if anything happened."

Siren knew Vess didn't give a shit about him. The only thing Vess was worried about was the potential loss to Siren's Volkov knowledge. If Siren was anyone else, Vess would have gotten rid of him years ago.

"Blueberries in your pancakes, Delano?" Lucy asked.

"No."

"Apple and cinnamon?"

"No."

"Banana?"

"No. I don't like fruit," Siren informed her.

"Any kind of fruit?" Lucy asked in surprise.

"Fruit is sticky and mushy," he replied.

Terry raised a brow. "How are you even alive?" he questioned, "You probably have like 42 vitamin deficiencies."

"Vess makes me take a daily multivitamin," Siren replied, "It's the V.I.L.E version and allegedly better than anything store-bought."

Over the last six months of working for V.I.L.E, Terry had seen Vess give Siren handfuls of pills almost every single day and Siren normally took them without complaint. He had no idea what any of the pills were, and he really hoped they weren't responsible for making Siren the way he was.

As the pancakes began cooking, the other two kids soon wandered out, the smell attracting them.

"Hello Del," Ethan greeted shyly.

Siren let out a grunt of acknowledgement.

"What are you drinking?" he asked, looking at the mug.

"Coffee."

"Can I try some?"

Without a word, Siren pushed his mug over to the boy as Terry sputtered indignantly. Terry snatched the mug before Ethan could touch it and shot Siren a glare.

"No, my eight year old son can't have coffee, Siren!" he snapped, "Honestly."

Siren rolled his eyes, and took the mug back. A few seconds later, Lucy set a massive stack of pancakes on the table. She then placed a plate in front of each person along with butter and maple syrup. As the children eagerly grabbed pancakes and fought over the syrup, Siren simply stared without interest.

Lucy didn't comment on the fact he didn't take one and she took a seat and took one off the stack. As she spread butter across it, she noticed Siren was staring at the remaining pancakes with a conflicted look on his face. She pointedly didn't say anything and a few moments later, he hesitantly reached out and took one. He didn't put any butter or syrup on it and ripped a tiny piece off to taste. It seemed to meet his high standards because he ripped off a slightly bigger piece.

"You're eating a pancake like a chipmunk," Edward commented, "You're so weird."

"Edward, how many times am I going to have to tell you to knock off the rudeness?" Lucy snapped, "You're already grounded - do you want to lose tv on top of that?"

Edward went silent and focused on his breakfast instead.

Siren had always liked plain pancakes ever since he was a kid, and his grandmother used to make them every Monday morning before school. His brothers used to absolutely slather theirs in butter, syrup or jam, but he didn't like the sticky texture.

Although Siren was a slow eater, no one commented, and when Lucy began cleaning up the empty plates, she slid the last pancake onto his plate without a word. She and Terry then got up to do the dishes, not making a big deal about the fact he was eating. He appreciated that, and picked away at the pancakes slowly, watching the kids as they began playing with several action figures.

When he finished the last piece of the pancakes, Lucy took his plate and then refilled his coffee mug without a word. Siren was a little anxious about having this many people in the room with him, but he found it wasn't quite as overwhelming as it had been the night before. Sipping calmly on his coffee, he felt his bad mood starting to deteriorate. Soon, he'd be able to experience this type of life with his own family. His brothers had already left V.I.L.E and all he had to do was track them down.

"What kind of research are you working on at the moment, Delano?" Lucy asked.

"I'm researching the probability of Terry ever getting a raise," Siren replied, "So far the data doesn't look promising."

"Oh, shut up, Siren," Terry muttered, rolling his eyes, "He's not allowed to talk about it, Luce. It's all confidential."

"Do you want to play with us, Del?" Eric asked, holding out a toy.

"Go away," Siren ordered, taking a long sip of coffee.

"Leave Delano alone, sweetheart, don't be a bother," Lucy ordered, "Why don't you kids go play in your rooms for a while?"

"I'm twelve, mum, I don't play!" Edward protested, dropping his toy to the ground, "That's for babies."

Lucy gave him a patient look. "Then would you do me a huge favour and entertain your brothers for a while?"

Edward scowled and crossed his arms. "Yeah, I guess," he reluctantly agreed.

He quickly picked his toy back up and then ushered the two younger ones out of the kitchen. Once the children were gone, Lucy turned a concerned look to Siren.

"How are you feeling? I know you had a rough night last night, and I was worried about you. Do you need anything? Is there anything I can do to help?"

"Help with what? What are you talking about?" Siren demanded, setting down the mug, "What happened last night?"

Lucy stared at him in surprise. "You don't remember?"

"Remember what?"

"When Siren gets confused, he sometimes doesn't remember afterwards," Terry explained, "It's almost like a mild amnesia."

Siren stiffened in alarm. He'd had another blackout... How often did this happen for Terry to be so casual about it? He struggled to remember the night before, but there was a foggy haze on the memories. He remembered watching tv, and he remembered the lights suddenly going out, but nothing after that. Siren rubbed his head, and knew this was incredibly bad.

"Look, Delano," Lucy began, her tone concerned, "About your job at the lab…"

Siren frowned at her. "What about it?" he demanded.

"It doesn't seem like you enjoy your job very much," she pointed out, "I mean no offense, but you seem incredibly stressed, and it seems to be affecting you physically."

Siren narrowed his eyes. "I'm fine," he responded, his tone icy.

Lucy took a seat beside him and shook her head. "You're covered from head to toe in bruises, and you're much too thin. You had a breakdown last night, and it's probably caused in part from the stress."

"This is none of your business!" Siren snapped, not even noticing one of his hands was resting on one of Eric's toy cars. "I'm fine!"

"There are thousands of labs all around the world, and if you're unhappy here, you don't have to stay. You could even change careers if that's what you want."

Siren began to absentmindedly spin one of the car's wheels, quickly feeling more and more agitated the more Lucy spoke. His shoulders grew stiff and he glared at her angrily.

"I'm only trying to help you," Lucy assured him, quickly recognizing the signs of an impending tantrum, "I just want you to know that there are people willing to help you. We'll do everything we can if you decide to leave the lab."

Terry could tell Siren was about to have a fit and he eyed him warily, ready to intervene the second he began to throw things. He very subtly slid the mug of hot coffee out of Siren's reach, not wanting him to throw it at his wife.

Lucy smiled at Siren gently, and he quickly looked away from her face. It was difficult to be angry when someone was looking at him like that, and it made him uncomfortable. His shoulders slumped as he slowly began to calm down, and Lucy set a gentle hand on his arm.

"This is a safe place here, and Terry and I want to help you," Lucy assured him, "You don't have to deal with this alone."

Not wanting to think about any of this right now, Siren glanced towards the living room, wanting an escape.

"I'm going to watch tv," he announced, quickly getting to his feet.

Terry wasn't expecting this and it took him by surprise. He'd been certain Siren would throw a massive tantrum, but it appeared he was wrong.

"Go ahead," Terry told him, "but don't be surprised if the signal is fuzzy. It's always bad during storms."

Siren left the kitchen without acknowledging what Terry said, and made his way into the living room, hoping to distract himself. Turning on the tv, he grimaced at the loud, bright cartoon and immediately flipped the station. There were only five stations, and none of them seemed that interesting. One station was VILE propaganda masquerading as news, another was cartoons for young children, the third was cartoons for older children, the fourth was sports, and the last was a soap opera. He left it on the soap opera and then slouched down comfortably to watch as the woman on screen cried as her lover abandoned her and rode away dramatically on a horse. When she began to sing about her heartbreak, Siren sat straight up. A Russian musical soap opera! Hell yes!

Siren sat transfixed as drama after drama kept happening on screen, and he quickly found himself getting invested. When he was on the third episode, Eric stepped in front of the screen and he immediately snarled a curse at him.

Eric seemed startled by his intense reaction, and Siren was suddenly swatted sharply across the back of the head from behind. Letting out a surprised yelp, he looked up and saw Terry glowering down at him.

"I'm sorry, what did you just say to my six year old son?" Terry demanded, narrowing his eyes.

Siren slunk down a little lower, looking up at Terry with wide eyes. "Er…"

"I must be going deaf, because a grown man certainly wouldn't be swearing at a small child, right?"

Siren slunk down even further.

"I'm going to assume I misheard you, but if I hear any more four letter words coming from your direction, we will be having a serious discussion, do you understand me?"

Terry's glare was intense, and Siren gave him a nod, quickly averting his gaze. "Sorry..." he muttered quietly.

Terry crossed his arms. "I don't think Eric heard you."

Siren felt his face flush, and he glanced over at the nearby boy. "...sorry, Eric," he repeated sullenly.

"It's okay! Eddie gets in trouble all the time for saying bad words," Eric replied, "Last week he got his mouth soaped out."

"Hmm, now that's an idea…" Terry responded jokingly, "Keep that in mind, Siren."

Siren rolled his eyes. "Why are you standing over me? Do you want something?"

"I came in to tell you that the storm is starting to die down a bit. Hopefully after lunch it will be safe for you to return to the lab."

"Joy," Siren responded, "Looking forward to it."

"Are you going to just watch Russian soap operas all day?" Terry asked, genuinely curious.

"Yep."

"Well, okay then," Terry responded, "Lunch is at noon."

Without another word, Terry turned and left the room. Eric crawled up on the couch beside Siren and glanced to the tv.

"Can I watch with you?"

"Whatever," Siren responded a bit sulkily.

Siren turned his attention back to the show just as another musical number began, and he quickly became invested again. Eric crawled up beside him on the couch and began bouncing around, but Siren ignored him, not really wanting to face Terry's wrath again. Other than the occasional bathroom break, Siren didn't move from the couch all morning, and when a sandwich was brought in to him, he curled up his nose in disgust at it.

"What's that?" he demanded.

"It's peanut butter," Lucy informed him.

"Smooth or crunchy?" Siren asked, glancing back to the screen.

"Crunchy."

Siren didn't reach out to take it and Lucy frowned down at him.

"It's on white bread with no crusts and cut into triangles," she stated impatiently, "We ran out of bologna and so this is all we have for right now."

Siren gave a grunt in response and didn't take it. "I'm not hungry."

"You have to eat something!" Lucy insisted, "What if I made something else, like a bit of rice or pasta?"

"Not hungry."

"Siren, eat the sandwich or I'm going to grind it into your hair!" Terry called from the kitchen, "Don't waste food!"

Siren was tempted to point out that it would only be wasted if Terry followed through on his threat, but he didn't comment.

"I only like smooth peanut butter," he responded with a shrug.

"Siren!" Terry scolded, still yelling from the kitchen.

"I like crunchy peanut butter, mommy!" Eric announced proudly, "I'll eat the sandwich!"

"Are you sure you don't want it, Delano dear?"

Siren gave her an odd look at the 'dear' and silently shook his head. Lucy let out a sigh and passed the plate over to Eric.

"Don't get peanut butter on the couch," she stated, turning to head back into the kitchen.

A few seconds later Lucy was back holding two cans of soup. "I have chicken noodle and tomato soup," she informed him, "Do you like either of those?"

Siren glanced between the cans briefly, his gaze settling on the tomato. He hesitated, and then shook his head.

Lucy noticed his odd reaction and then asked, "What's wrong with the tomato soup?" she asked.

"I only like it a certain way."

"Which is…?" Lucy prompted.

"Made with milk and a grilled cheese."

"Are you asking me to make you a grilled cheese, Delano?" Lucy questioned in amusement.

"...no," Siren responded, once again looking back to the tv.

Lucy once again left the room, and Siren watched as the soap opera silently. The main character was attempting to murder her ex-fiance and just as she was stabbing him in the back, his gay lover came to his rescue and fought her off. As the two characters were having a rap battle with knives, Lucy re-entered the living room and set a grilled cheese and mug of tomato soup on the table beside Siren. Siren glanced over at the food, and then turned his attention back to the soap.

"Don't let your food go cold," Lucy instructed, once again leaving the room.

Absentmindedly, Siren nibbled on the food, never taking his eyes from the screen. Eric bounced all around him on the couch, the six year old bored of the show and trying to get Siren to play with him. Siren ignored him, and even when Eric began placing toys on his lab, Siren pretended not to notice. After a while, the other two kids entered the living room, and he was surrounded on all sides by chatter and bouncing. Quickly getting annoyed, Siren glared at the kids but didn't comment.

"Can I watch my show now?" Ethan demanded, "Дракон comes on in a few minutes."

"No," Siren replied, grabbing the remote before the boy could touch it.

"I wanna watch Дракон too!" Eric said eagerly, "I like that show!"

"No," Siren repeated, certain he was getting close to the end of the series.

"Daddy makes us all share the tv," Eric pointed out, "You've been hogging it all day!"

Siren didn't answer.

"When Eddie doesn't share, he gets sent to his room," Eric continued, giving Siren a meaningful look.

"Shut up, runt!" Edward snapped, "Don't tell people things like that!"

"Daaaad, Eddie told me to shut up!" Eric bellowed out.

"Edward, leave your brother alone or you'll be spending the afternoon in your room!" Terry called from the kitchen.

Edward looked mutinous, but he said nothing, simply crossing his arms and scowling at his brother.

"And Delano won't share the tv!" Eric tattled.

Terry let out an audible groan from the kitchen. "Just let him have the tv, Eric, he's going home soon and it's not worth the fight!"

Eric and Ethan both crossed their arms mirroring Edward, knowing this wasn't fair. Siren shot them a smug smirk, but didn't comment, instead turning back to his show. Completely invested in the crazy plot, he scoffed to himself at the idiotic decisions the main character kept making. She'd had multiple opportunities for revenge, but she always squandered her chance.

After another few episodes, Terry entered the living room and glanced down at Siren on the couch.

"Vess just called, and he's sending a van to pick you up. The streets have been plowed and they should be here any minute."

Siren glanced up at him and then back at the tv. He had thought the show was coming to an end, but then with a massive twist, the main character was now engaged to an evil business owner who may or may not be a witch. There still seemed to be a lot left before the end.

"But I haven't seen the end of the show…" Siren protested.

"There's over 200 episodes of that soap opera," Terry commented, "You're not going to be able to watch them all today anyway."

Siren looked like he was about to have a fit, and Terry quickly continued. "Why don't you start watching it at the lab?"

This thought hadn't occurred to Siren, and he hesitated, wondering if he'd be allowed a tv. Considering how furious Vess was likely to be at him, he knew it probably wasn't a good idea to ask anytime soon.

"Will you record the rest of the series for me?" he asked.

Terry nodded, knowing that was easy enough to do. "Alright, I'll stick it on a thumb drive for you," he promised.

Siren gave a stretch and there was an audible crack as he did so. Wincing, he got up from the couch and handed the remote to Eric.

"Bye, Del!" Eric cried out, "Come back and play tomorrow!"

"...probably not," Siren responded, following Terry out of the room.

Terry handed over the stolen uniform, and Siren grimaced, remembering the stench. "...I'm just walking to the car and so I don't need to put this skunk suit back on."

"It's negative 45 celsius out," Terry commented, "Put on the coat at least."

"It smells bad," Siren complained.

"Lucy washed the uniform this morning," Terry responded, holding it out.

Siren hesitantly reached out and took the uniform. When he gave it a sniff, it indeed smelled clean, and so he put it on without protest.

"Make sure Brian gets this back because V.I.L.E deducts uniforms out of our pay and I know he can't afford to pay for a replacement."

"He apparently can't afford a bar of soap either," Siren commented rudely.

"Here, Delano, I boxed you up some spaghetti for your supper," Lucy said, holding out a paper bag towards him.

Siren hesitated and then accepted the bag, peering inside at the tupperware inside. "I don't li-"

"Take the spaghetti, Siren," Terry interrupted, "Take it or else Lucy is going to worry about you."

Siren furrowed his brow and glanced to Lucy who nodded her agreement. Deciding it was just easier to agree, he nodded.

"Kevin, what is your employee number?"

Terry was instantly suspicious. "Why?"

Siren shrugged. "I just want to know."

Terry frowned at him, but knew Siren would likely just look it up if he refused to answer. "7894363," he answered.

Siren nodded, having every intention of transferring Terry a bit of cash for the meals. He felt bad taking food from the struggling family, and he knew just a few hundred dollars would help out.

The sound of a vehicle honking made them glance towards the door, and Terry reached out to unlock it. When he opened the door, he saw a large black van in the driveway and four guards were waiting there. Terry put on his own coat and then motioned for Siren to follow.

"Goodbye, Delano, it was nice meeting you," Lucy told him, "You're welcome back anytime you like."

Siren seemed to struggle for a moment to find the right words, and then averted his eyes. "...your grilled cheese was soggy," he commented, quickly following after Terry.

As they approached the van, one of the guard's opened the door for Siren to get in, but stopped Terry from approaching.

"Dr. Vess stated that there's no need for you to return with Siren today," the guard informed him, "He expects you to be at work the usual time tomorrow."

Siren's eyes widened. "Vess is going to kill me…" he said, "Kevin, he's going to kill me!"

Terry had a feeling something was definitely going to happen, but he doubted Vess was going to kill Siren. Siren was too valuable and Vess was not an idiot. No, there would be repercussions for sure, but it wouldn't be anything life-threatening.

"He's not going to kill you," Terry said with certainty, "You'll be alright, just be calm and respectful when he's talking to you."

"Kevin…" Siren pleaded.

"I'm sorry, but if he ordered me to stay here, then I can't come back with you. You'll have to face the consequences of your actions on your own."

Siren grimaced and then crawled in the van without another word. The van door was closed and Terry leaned in close to the other guard.

"What's Vess planning on doing to him, Larry?"

Larry shrugged. "No idea, but Vess is mad. You should have heard the way he was scolding Michael Finnegan for his part in this! The whole floor could hear his rant, and I'm pretty sure Michael was thrown out of the apartment for the night!"

Terry nodded, hoping Vess wasn't planning on having Siren beaten. Siren was still injured from last time, and he probably couldn't take any more abuse.

The four guards all got back in the van and Terry watched as it sped away in the direction of the lab. Once the van was gone from sight, he let out a deep sigh, and then turned and headed back into the house.

Not a word was said to Siren the entire ride back to the lab, and when they arrived at the gate, a feeling of dread was settling into his stomach. He almost expected Vess to be waiting at the door for him, but there was no sign of him. The guards parked the van and then Siren was ushered into the building without a word. He was escorted straight to his room and the door was then locked after him.

Siren waited and waited and then waited some more, but Vess didn't come. In an attempt to calm down, he took a long shower and got dressed in clean clothes, but there was still no sign of Vess. Sitting on his bed, he was bored and opened the tupperware of spaghetti to investigate, and gave it a hesitant sniff. It smelled acceptable and he didn't see anything in it he didn't like.

Taking the fork and poking through it suspiciously, he was certain nothing was being hidden in it. Although it was cold, he hesitantly tried a tiny bite. It was good, really good in fact. Siren was Italian American and one thing he had always loved was classic Italian dishes. He was incredibly particular about it however, and he normally wouldn't touch it unless it was perfect. The spaghetti Lucy had made was Americanized, but her sauce was clearly homemade which he could appreciate. His grandmother used to make all her sauces from scratch, and he had spent most of his childhood helping her cook.

Siren was just finishing the spaghetti when he heard the door being unlocked. He looked up just as the door opened, revealing Vess standing there. Siren slowly set the tupperware aside and instinctively drew his knees up to his chest as Vess entered the room. Vess slowly closed and locked the door after him, his expression looking eerily calm. He pulled the chair away from Siren's desk and placed it in front of Siren's bed and then took a seat. Vess then stared at Siren silently, still looking much too calm considering the situation.

Siren tensed up, knowing this was very, very wrong. Why was Vess calm? Vess shouldn't be calm! Every instinct in his body was screaming danger, and he stared up at Vess nervously.

Vess stared at him for a few seconds more, and then he leaned forward slightly. "I want you to tell me exactly what you did wrong," he ordered.

Siren felt a surge of panic and the need to defend his actions. "I only wanted to go to the music store! If you need someone to blame, blame Michael! He was the one who offered to take me, and he's the dildo who left me behind! If it wasn't for him, I wouldn't have gotten stranded there!"

Vess narrowed his eyes, but his soft and calm tone never wavered. "Do you want to lose your laptop? Or perhaps your shower privileges that I so kindly gave to you?"

Siren faltered, knowing he needed that laptop for his escape. "...No," he admitted slowly.

Vess' eerie silver eyes met Siren's directly. "Tell me exactly what you did wrong," he repeated.

Siren hesitated for a long moment. "...I left the lab?" he responded quietly.

Vess nodded, his face completely expressionless. "Yes, you did. Now, how much trouble do you think you're in?"

Siren felt like his blood was freezing, and suddenly he was very, very afraid of Vess. Hugging his knees to his chest, he could feel his heartbeat begin to speed up as fear began to course through him. A calm Vess was a dangerous Vess. He'd never seen him this angry before, and Siren felt completely cornered.

"Answer the question, Delano."

Siren tensed even further. Vess had just used his name. Vess never called him by his real name. Panicking, Siren once again tried to deflect the blame. "Michael's the one who took me out of the lab!"

Vess' eyes turned dangerous, but his tone was still much too calm. "I'm not asking about Michael, I'm asking about you," he responded, "How much trouble do you think you're in right now?"

Siren simply stared up at him, his eyes wide and quickly filling with tears. Vess was unmoved, and he once again leaned forward.

"Don't make me repeat myself again."

Siren swallowed heavily and hunched his shoulders guiltily. "...a lot of trouble?" he quietly guessed.

"Yes, Delano, you are in a lot of trouble... Sleep well."

Vess then got up from the chair, turned towards the door, and left the room without another word. Siren stared at the closed door, and felt terror completely fill him. Vess was planning something, and Siren knew it was going to be horrible. Siren felt absolute panic consume him, and he knew all he could do was wait for the punishment to happen.

---

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

---

It took nearly twelve hours for the plane to reach Kazakhstan, and the tension within the plane was almost unbearable. Mime Bomb and Le Chèvre were refusing to so much as look at one another, and they spent the entire flight on complete opposite ends of the plane. El Topo was furious with Le Chèvre and the two men had quietly argued between themselves before finally going silent as they both brooded.

Mime Bomb had calmed down, but his fury was evident to everyone. His expression was thunderous, and he refused to interact with anyone, simply glaring out the window. Even Zack couldn't get him to sign with him, and eventually he gave up and simply took a seat beside him. Player sat across from Mime Bomb and when he took the mime by the hand, Mime Bomb glanced at him but allowed it. He could understand the way Mime Bomb must be feeling betrayed, and he just wanted to show his support.

When the plane landed, everyone was relieved, hoping the awkwardness would finally subside. Mime Bomb got to his feet before the plane had come to a full stop and turned to Zack to sign something.

"Shotgun?" Zack guessed, "Is that what you said?"

Mime Bomb nodded.

Zack looked concerned. "What about a shotgun? I know you're angry at Jean Paul, but-"

"I think he means he wants to sit up front in the van," Player interrupted.

Zack hesitated and then felt incredibly stupid. "...oh," he replied, "Um, yeah, buddy, whatever you want."

The moment the plane airstairs were lowered, Mime Bomb was first out of the plane and he headed straight for the van, carefully avoiding looking in Le Chèvre's direction.

Le Chèvre sat in the farthest seat away from Mime Bomb, not wanting any more drama for the day. Several people kept trying to start up conversations, but the atmosphere in the van was too awkward and eventually there was nothing but silence. Chase parked in front of the hospital and everyone piled out of the van, hoping Carmen would be able to diffuse the situation.

Mime Bomb's anger could be felt, and Zack and Player both walked by his side, offering their silent comfort beside him. When they entered Carmen's hospital room, Player let out a laugh of delight and ran for Carmen's bed, throwing his arms around her tightly. They had been best friends for years, been through a lot together and this was the first time they had ever met in person. Carmen clutched Player tightly, tears coming to her eyes, feeling happier than she could remember.

"I missed you so much," she told him, "It's so good to finally meet you in person!"

"I've been waiting for this day for a long time, but this is definitely not the way I expected it to happen!" Player responded, looking up at her with a happy smile.

Carmen then turned to Mime Bomb and held out her arms to include him in the hug. "Come on Mime Bomb, get over here! I missed you too!"

Mime Bomb's expression softened, and he crossed the room, allowing himself to be pulled into the hug.

"I'm so sorry," Carmen said quietly, "I failed both of you. It's my job to protect you, but because of my stupid mistakes, I'm completely useless to the team. I'm sorry you two, I'm so sorry."

"Red, it wasn't your fault!" Player assured her, "I should have been more careful protecting my online presence! I was careless!"

"You're a child," Carmen responded, "You never should have been put in that position to begin with. I was young myself when we first met, and it never even occurred to me that we shouldn't be involved in any of this. My world-view was skewed, and I put you in danger because of it."

Player was shocked and he shook his head. "No, no, it was my decision!" he protested, "I chose to join you, and I chose to help you! None of this was your fault!"

Carmen hugged him even tighter. "No, it was my fault. I'm the adult, and it was my duty to keep you safe and I didn't. You're only thirteen, and it was selfish of me to use you like I did."

Player adamantly shook his head. "No. I knew what I was getting into when I joined you, Red. I'm not some wide-eyed innocent little boy. I'm young, but I'm not stupid or naive. I should have been more careful, and I'm going to learn from this and make sure my defenses are impenetrable."

Carmen slowly shook her head. "No, it's not right," she said firmly, "You're too young for this, and I'm not going to endanger you any more."

Player looked furious for a second, but then his expression relaxed as he thought about it. He could see things from her point of view, and knew she was just worried about him.

"I refuse to leave Team Red," he said firmly, "I understand and acknowledge your concerns, but I make my own decisions, and I won't stop helping you. Ever."

"Player…"

"No," Player interrupted, "I am aware of the risks, and I'm making the decision to continue being your tech guy. I refuse to be abandoned by you guys."

"We wouldn't be abandoning you!" Carmen protested, "We'd be protecting you!"

"Feels the same," Player retorted, "I'm here to stay, and I'll keep helping you no matter what you say."

Carmen looked up at Shadowsan who was staring down at Player with a considering look, and then he gave a slight nod.

"Player is invaluable to our team," he commented, "I think allowing him to continue aiding us would be in our benefit. More precautions should be taken, however, to ensure his safety."

Carmen wasn't expecting him to disagree with her and she stared up at him in surprise. "Like what?" she asked.

Shadowsan turned his gaze to Player. "We will allocate some funds for you to improve your equipment and security. Is this something you can do?"

Player immediately nodded. "I can make my security better than even V.I.L.E's, but it will be expensive...very expensive."

"We will give you whatever you need," Shadowsan informed him, "You will remain offline until your security is fully set up and tested. You will only speak to us via com while offline."

Player hesitated. "To be honest, I'm probably going to be grounded for all of eternity once I go home... I still have no idea what to tell my parents."

"Yeah!" Zack cut in, "How are you going to explain where you've been for a month?"

"If you tell them you were kidnapped, it will involve the media and Interpol which could be problematic," Chase pointed out.

Player frowned. He missed his parents a lot, but knew he could never tell them what really happened. "I'll have to tell them I ran away," he answered, knowing he was going to really anger and disappoint both of them.

"Will they believe you?" Carmen asked in concern.

Player shrugged. "I don't know, but that's what I'll have to tell them. It's probably going to get ugly…"

"They won't beat you, will they?" Chase asked in concern.

Player shook his head. "No, of course not. My parents have never laid a hand on me my entire life. They're probably going to ground me, and take away my computers and games though."

"Should I accompany you just in case?" Chase asked worriedly, "Perhaps I can have a talk with them on your behalf? I could explain that you were having a hard time emotionally and you made the bad decision to run away?"

"...well, it honestly couldn't hurt," Player admitted, "Maybe if you're there they won't have quite as much of a blow-up."

Chase was relieved that Player had agreed, knowing he would have worried if Player travelled back to Canada alone. He had promised Player's mother that he would find him, and he would make sure she knew he had fulfilled his promise.

"When do you want to go home?" Carmen asked him, unable to hide the disappointment in her voice.

Carmen had waited years to meet Player in person, but she knew it was selfish to keep him away from his family any longer. Player could see the sad look in her eyes and he cocked his head, offering her a smile.

"Well, I've already been away for a month, so a few more days won't make much of a difference…"

"I disagree," Chase said firmly, "Think of how worried your parents are. Staying longer only makes their pain worse. With each passing day, their hope of seeing you alive again gets smaller and smaller. You need to go home to your family and hug your mother and father as tightly as you can."

Chase's eyes were filled with absolute anguish and he clenched his fists. Julia placed a comforting hand on his arm, and Player gave him a guilty look. Chase was seeing the situation from a parent's perspective, and Player felt terrible when he realized his family believed he'd been murdered.

"Oh…" Player said in a small voice, "I never thought of that…"

Chase placed a gentle hand on top of Player's head and offered him a sad smile. "You're a good son, and you'll do the right thing."

"Stay for tonight and for just once our entire team will be together," Carmen said, offering the boy a smile, "We should celebrate this occasion."

"Oooo, a party!" Zack exclaimed in excitement, "We can have takeout and snacks and then watch a movie!"

"Sounds great, Red," Player confirmed, "It's seriously just so great to meet you guys in person."

Mime Bomb's expression was getting angrier and angrier by the second, but no one seemed to notice. Finally he reached out and pulled at Carmen's sleeve to get her attention. She turned questioning eyes to him and when she saw his expression, she frowned in concern.

"Mime Bomb?" she asked, "What's wrong?"

Mime Bomb turned to Player who gave him a nod, ready to translate.

"Why is Le Chèvre still a part of this team?" Player said as Mime Bomb angrily signed.

Carmen's eyes widened. "Pardon?"

"Le Chèvre betrayed this team and he tried to send me to my death. Why is he still part of this team?"

"Hey!" El Topo protested, stepping forward, "He made a mistake, but he's sorry he did it! He didn't mean it!"

Mime Bomb turned furious eyes to him.

"That doesn't make anything better! Am I seriously supposed to just forget that he fucking sold me out to Vess to be killed?"

"Player!" Carmen scolded.

"That's what he said!" Player defended, "I'm just translating!"

"Mime Bomb, I completely understand why you're angry, but Jean Paul has acknowledged how badly he betrayed you and he regrets it," Shadowsan said, "We're all on the same team, and so we have to work together and forgive each other when we make mistakes."

Mime Bomb scowled.

"I'm sorry, but this is bullshit."

"Mime Bomb!" Shadowsan scolded.

"No, I'm not ready to talk about this, I'm not ready to forgive him, and I'm not even ready to be in the same room as him. If Le Chèvre stays, then I go."

The entire team stared at him in shock.

"Mime Bomb!" Carmen gasped, "You don't mean that!"

"I mean it," Player translated, "I need some time away from him, and then maybe I'll be willing to talk. Right now I just need time to collect my thoughts."

"What do you mean?" Zack asked in concern, "You're not quitting Team Red, are you?!"

Mime Bomb glowered over at Le Chèvre before glancing back to Zack.

"No, but I need some time to think, and some time away from...everything."

"And what exactly does that mean?" Carmen demanded in concern.

Mime Bomb stood hands on hips as he frowned in thought for a few moments. When he looked up, there was determination in his eyes.

"I'm going back to Wales to visit with Alys."

Carmen blinked. "Wales?! You're leaving Kazakhstan?"

Mime Bomb nodded.

"I want some time away from missions, time away from V.I.L.E, and time away from...him," Player translated, looking extremely uncomfortable.

"That's not fair!" El Topo once again protested, "Jean Paul made a terrible mistake, but he apologized to you! I understand that you are upset and I understand that it will take time before you trust him again, but this isn't going to help! You two need to talk to each other."

"Not a chance," Player translated, "I didn't choose any of this, it was forced on me. My entire life has been turned upsidedown and I need some time to think everything through. I need to speak with my grandparents, and I need to spend some time with my sister. Give me the time I need."

Immediately several people began to protest, but Carmen held up a hand and the room went silent. She stared at Mime Bomb for a long moment and then beckoned him over. Mime Bomb hesitated for a few seconds and then approached, only to be pulled into a hug.

"I understand," she told him gently, "I understand what it's like just needing a break from all of this."

Mime Bomb gave her a surprised look, not expecting this.

"Promise me you'll be safe, and promise me you'll call us every single day."

Mime Bomb nodded and she hugged him even tighter.

"Please contact Dr. Brownswell as often as you can," Carmen requested, "She'll be able to help you with this, and hopefully you'll be ready to come back to us soon."

Again Mime Bomb nodded.

"When are you leaving?" Shadowsan demanded.

"The plane is still here, and so I want to leave immediately," Player answered for Mime Bomb.

"Okay, buddy, let's stop off at the hotel and grab our things," Zack said, "We'll have to get new raincoats before going to rainy 'ol Wales though."

Mime Bomb signed at him.

"Of course I'm coming!" Zack replied, "You'll never be rid of me! The two of us are pals, and I'll always stick by your side."

Mime Bomb gave him a grateful smile.

"Yeah, Wales is going to be interesting," Ivy commented, "I wonder if I'll see any sheep?"

When Mime Bomb gave her a surprised look, she let out a laugh.

"After the disaster the last time I let you two knuckleheads out of my sight, I'm not making the same mistake again! I'm going with you to supervise things!"

Mime Bomb hesitated a moment as if he wasn't quite sure how to react to that, but then he smiled at her and nodded.

"Great!" Ivy announced, "It's settled!"

Carmen looked at the other three redheads and knew there would be no changing any of their minds.

The only thing she could do at this point was be supportive, and be patient.

"I still have a month left before I can leave Kazakhstan," Carmen informed them, "Do you think a month will be enough time in Wales?"

Mime Bomb shrugged and averted his gaze.

"I understand," Carmen assured him, "If a month isn't enough time, then we'll manage. Don't worry about us, concentrate on taking care of you."

"Say, Mime Bomb…" Zack commented.

Mime Bomb turned to look at him.

"Do we have to leave right this second or could we have one last group supper together? I'm starving and could really go for something carby."

Mime Bomb glanced at Le Chèvre out of the corner of his eye and then glanced at Zack whose eyes were pleading with him. Mime Bomb let out a sigh and then signed towards him.

Zack let out a 'whoop' of excitement and then ran across the room towards the local restaurant brochure pinned to the wall.

"Awesome! I want something with meat and rice! Ivy, come take a look and help me decide!"

---

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

---

Siren clutched at his head and rested his chin on his knees. He rocked back and forth slightly, trying to calm down, but it was no use. He couldn't sleep and his thoughts were in complete turmoil. All he could think about was Vess and what he might be planning for him. In the decade he'd worked with Vess, he'd never seen him this angry before. Vess was planning something, and the fact he hadn't announced the punishment, made it all the worse. Siren's imagination was running rampant, and he thought of horrendous tortures that made him feel sick and even more terrified.

Siren was exhausted, but every time he started to drift off, he'd suddenly jerk back awake fully expecting to see Vess looming over him. His anxiety was so bad that he began to rock and couldn't seem to stop, just trying to comfort himself in any way he could.

When he finally couldn't take it anymore, he got up and approached the door. Turning the knob, he discovered it was locked. Vess clearly wanted him to stay put. Siren let out a groan of misery, and glanced towards the clock. It was a little after six, and his door wouldn't be unlocked until Terry arrived to work at eight.

Siren began pacing around his room, and when that only made him more agitated, he decided to take a hot shower. Entering the bathroom, he stripped down and then stepped into the shower as he turned it on. The heat normally relaxed him, but as he stood under the hot spray, he simply felt sick to his stomach. Sinking down until he was sitting in the shower, Siren simply sat there under the hot water, unable to think of anything else except for what Vess was going to do to him. Had he finally pushed Vess too far? Was the other man planning on having him executed?

Siren wasn't ready to escape yet and had no idea what to do. If he left now he'd never make it far, especially with Vess already keeping him under lock and key. Siren took a deep breath, and knew he had to find out what Vess was planning. He couldn't stand this, and not knowing was making him feel like he was losing his mind. Siren continued sitting under the stream of hot water, feeling more and more on edge as time went on.

When a sudden knock came at the bathroom door, Siren nearly jumped a mile and a wave of fear coursed through him, certain it had to be Vess. Breathing fast, he stared with wide eyes at the door and didn't move. There was a second, more urgent knock.

"Siren, are you alright in there?" came Terry's voice.

Siren let out a deep breath, realizing it was time for him to go to work.

"Please answer me, Siren," Terry ordered, "Did you dissociate in the shower again?"

Siren's eyes widened. Again?

"What do you mean again?!" Siren bellowed out, "Did you see me naked?!"

"Oh good, you're okay," Terry replied, "You're going to be late for work, so please hurry up."

Siren scowled at the fact his question wasn't answered, and he reached up and turned the water off. His anxiety then hit him full force again, and his stomach twisted painfully. He got dressed slowly and then brushed his teeth, feeling more and more on edge. It was now time to face Vess and whatever creatively horrible punishment he came up with.

Opening the bathroom door, he was met with the sight of Terry waiting for him anxiously and he noticed the other man looked him up and down. Terry then seemed relieved as if he'd expected him to be seriously injured.

"So what happened last night?" Terry asked, "What did Vess do?"

Siren said nothing and instead headed for the door, just wanting to get this over with.

"Siren?" Terry questioned, following after him, "What did Vess say to you?"

Siren ignored him and walked in the direction of the lab, feeling his heart pounding with every step. Vess was going to kill him. This was how his life was going to end. He should run, he should hide, he should fight. Siren did none of these things, simply continuing on his way, feeling like he was in a terrible trance.

He reached the lab, hesitated for just a moment, and then pushed open the door. Vess was seated at his desk working, and Michael was perched on the corner of the desk watching what he was doing. There was a dark bruise on Michael's cheek, and Siren was willing to bet it was from Vess. They both looked up when Siren entered the lab, and for just a brief moment there was a flicker of guilt in Michael's eyes. Vess however, simply went back to work without a word.

Siren took a deep breath, steeled himself and then headed over to Vess' desk. Michael was expecting Siren to yell and throw a fit at him, but to his surprise, Siren completely ignored him, his attention entirely on Vess.

"Numa?"

Vess made a sound of acknowledgement, but he didn't look up. Siren shifted on his feet, just wanting to get this over with.

"Numa, I know that I'm going to be punished for leaving the lab…"

"You are indeed," Vess confirmed, his tone disinterested.

Siren shifted again and waited, but Vess didn't say anything more.

"Just tell me what you're going to do to me!" Siren ordered, the stress evident in his voice, "Tell me, Numa, just tell me!"

Vess didn't even bother looking up at him and began flipping through a stack of paperwork.

"Please," Siren said, his tone plaintive, "Please just tell me!"

"I have scheduled a surgery Monday morning to have your vocal cords paralysed," Vess replied as if he was discussing no more than the weather. "No punishment ever works on you and so I'm taking the only thing you care about. You'll never be able to utter a single sound ever again."

Siren felt like his blood had frozen solid.

"You've been warned, and now you'll face the consequences of your actions," Vess explained, still not even bothering to look at him, "If you still continue to cause trouble after this, then your hearing will be taken as well."

Siren had never been more terrified in his entire life. His voice. Vess was stealing his voice.

"You're making him a mute?" Michael asked in surprise, "Daaaamn!"

Siren began to hyperventilate, feeling like everything was starting to become far away. It wasn't real...this wasn't happening. This was a nightmare, and he'd wake up soon and everything would be alright. Michael began chatting with Vess, and the words were a buzz of unintelligible noise to Siren, nothing feeling real. Closing his eyes, he tried to will himself to wake up, but when he opened his eyes, he was still standing in Vess' lab.

"Siren?" Terry whispered in concern.

Siren didn't react. Vess was taking away his only source of happiness, and soon Siren would forever be silenced. V.I.L.E had done this before, and Siren thought of the sweet and gentle little Yuri. They had stolen that child's voice and now they were going to do the same to him.

Siren felt something within him crumble and without a single word, he turned and fled out of the lab. Siren was surrounded by colours and sounds, but none of it made sense to him as he fled. The boy. The boy whose voice was taken forever. He had to save the boy. He had to save Yuri. Where was the boy? He wouldn't let them hurt him. The boy with the beautiful voice had to be protected.

Siren ran by instinct, and nothing around him made any sense and so he ignored it. All that mattered was making it to Yuri before anyone hurt him. He reached the boy's room and a few moments later, he yanked the boy into his arms protectively. Vess wouldn't get him. Siren would protect him.

"Siren!"

Siren was aware he was now sitting and he began rocking, fear filling his entire mind. Protect him. Protect him. Don't let anyone take him. Protect Yuri.

"SIREN!"

Siren could feel the small boy in his arms squirming, and he clutched him even tighter, just wanting to protect him.

"SIREN! STOP IT!"

Siren rocked and rocked, feeling the boys heartbeat against his hands. No one would hurt him. No one would take his voice. He would fight to keep Yuri safe.

"Siren, you're hurting the little girl! Siren!"

Siren felt long hair against his hands, and a moment of confusion cut through the fear. Long hair? Yuri didn't have long hair.

"Siren, let her go!" came Terry's voice, "You're hurting her!"

Siren's wild gaze looked around the white room. Something wasn't right… This wasn't Yuri's room..

"I'll have no choice but to stop you," the voice begged, "Please Delano, don't make me stop you!"

Siren blinked and slowly looked down at the child in his arms. DD stared back at him, her large brown eyes filled with terror.

"Yuri…" Siren said in confusion.

"Let her go," Terry said softly, gently pulling at his hands to loosen them from DD.

"No, no, Yuri's in danger…" Siren replied, "I have to help him!"

"There's no Yuri here," Terry said, leaning into his field of vision, "You're hurting the little girl, Delano. You're holding her too tightly. Please let her go."

Siren looked down and saw he was clutching DD in his arms as tightly as he could and she could barely breathe. This wasn't Yuri, this was DD. Yuri was long gone. Yuri wasn't here, and the boy's voice was already stolen. Siren swallowed heavily. And now it was his turn. It was his turn to have his voice stolen from him.

Siren loosened his hold on DD, realizing he had no idea what he was doing. Raising his hands to his face, he began to sob hard, all fight leaving him as he slumped against the wall. Terry reached out towards DD, but to his surprise, she remained sitting on Siren's lap and she threw her arms around him in a tight hug.

"Oh, Siren," she whispered, tears coming to her own eyes, "It's okay, don't cry, please don't cry. I'm okay, you didn't hurt me!"

Siren couldn't answer and simply cried harder, knowing Vess had finally broken him. Vess had won.

Siren continued rocking himself as he sobbed and a moment later, he felt Terry take a seat on the bed next to him. He felt a gentle hand rubbing his back, and Siren shook his head still unable to believe this was really going to happen.

Siren knew that he wasn't willing to live without his voice. Vess would destroy who he was as a person, and Siren wasn't willing to allow it to happen. If Vess took his voice, Siren would take Vess' life in return. Siren would be executed without hesitation for doing it, but it would be worth it. Vess was a plague on humanity, and he never should have helped him.

He heard the sound of a ringing com and Terry answered it by the third ring.

"Hello?" Terry greeted.

"Is Siren with you?" Vess demanded.

Siren tensed when he heard Vess' voice, and he began to shake even harder.

"Yes, Siren is with me," Terry confirmed, "He's safe."

"Very good," Vess replied, "Keep him out of trouble until his surgery Monday."

Terry hesitated and then nodded. "Yes, Dr. Vess."

"Contact me immediately if he tries to leave the lab again."

"I will," Terry agreed.

Vess hung up the call, and Terry looked down at Siren with pity in his eyes. He continued rubbing the smaller man's back in an attempt to calm him down, knowing Siren just needed the comfort right now.

"Siren, we need to get you out of here as soon as possible," Terry told him gently, "I'm not going to let Vess do...that to you."

Siren shook his head. It was too soon to escape, and they would definitely be caught. It would be Terry and his family who would be held responsible. V.I.L.E would execute them all without hesitation. There was no way out of this that he could see.

DD looked up at him, her eyes far too intelligent for her age. "What happened?" she asked, "Did Dr. Vess hurt you again?"

Siren swallowed heavily and wiped at his eyes, having no idea what to say. He had nearly harmed DD and had terrified her, and so he at least owed her an explanation.

"I've made Vess angry at me," he whispered, struggling to get himself under control.

"How angry?" she asked somewhat hesitantly.

Siren simply sobbed and she tightened her hug. Siren had never been more scared in his entire life, and he had no idea what to do. Losing his voice was worse than death to him, he couldn't stop shaking in absolute terror. Both Terry and DD simply sat with him silently, and after a few minutes, he began relaxing into the little girl's hug. DD looked up at him, her large dark eyes concerned, and she used her tiny hand to wipe the tears away from his cheeks.

"How mad is Dr. Vess?" she whispered in concern.

Siren closed his eyes.

"Angry enough to hurt me," he quietly replied, pulling at his hair in distress, "I fucked up big time."

"Siren," Terry scolded gently, "Language."

DD studied Siren thoughtfully for a long moment, and then she gave him another hug. "Tell him you're sorry," she told him.

"This is beyond a simple apology," Siren responded in despair.

"What did you do?" DD asked curiously.

"...I left the lab."

DD gasped in horror. "Oh, that is a very bad thing!" she exclaimed worriedly, "Dr. Vess said I'm never ever supposed to leave the lab! Leaving the lab is against the rules! Tell him sorry right away, and promise not to do it again!"

"It's more complicated than that," Siren answered, looking down at her, "Vess is a heartless, emotionless demon, and an apology will never work."

"It might," DD countered, "Tell him that you'll be good from now on and will never do it again."

Siren scoffed at that. He could just imagine Vess' expression if he actually tried that. It would certainly take him by surprise, that was for sure. Siren never apologized for anything. In the ten years he'd worked for Vess, he'd never apologized for anything unless he was being sarcastic or teasing.

Siren then paused. Vess definitely wouldn't be expecting an apology from him, and it might throw him off his game. What if he wrote out an incredibly sincere apology, and swore he'd be well-behaved and compliant from now on? Perhaps it would be just enough to catch Vess off guard and he'd be willing to change his mind?

Other than outright murder, Siren didn't see any other course of action, and knew he would have to swallow his pride and give it a try. Looking down at DD, he gave her a silent nod.

"Siren, who is this, and why is there a little girl in the lab?" Terry demanded, relieved to see Siren was finally calming down.

"This is Igor, she's one of Vess' experiments," Siren replied.

DD let out a giggle. "My name's not Igor!"

"Well, how do you know?" Siren shot back, "You don't even know your real name!"

"Well, do you know it?" DD shot back.

Siren furrowed his brow as he realized he didn't. "No," he admitted, "I don't."

Siren knew he'd have to do a bit more research into Patient DD to see who she was and where she had come from. He knew nothing about her other than the fact she was around four or five years old and looked to be mixed race.

"Wait, wait," Terry cut in, "Did you just say this little girl is one of Vess' experiments?!"

Siren nodded. "He uses children to test his experiments," he explained, "In fact, he's expecting a shipment of children any day now."

Terry gave him a horrified look. "What?!"

"This was why I destroyed the lab the first time," Siren told him, "And this is why I'm going to destroy it a second time."

"Are you serious?!" Terry demanded, "Vess is using children to experiment on?"

Siren nodded, and glanced down to DD. "When I escape, I'm taking Igor with me."

DD's eyes widened. "Escape?! No, no, no! Dr. Vess will be so angry if I escape!"

"It doesn't matter," Siren replied, "Vess will never see you again once you're gone. He'll never be able to hurt either of us again."

DD looked terrified, but also a bit hopeful. "Never?"

Siren nodded. "I'll find you a nice family, and you'll never be hurt again," he promised, "You'll grow up far away from this shithole."

DD frowned. "A family? No, I want to stay with you."

"Hell no," Siren immediately answered, "I don't like people, and I'm perhaps the worst possible person to take care of a child. I'd probably end up accidentally killing you or something."

"But...strangers are scary," DD whispered.

"I was a stranger once too," Siren pointed out.

"Yeah, but you're too tiny to be scary," she replied.

Siren scowled down at her. "Brat."

"Bigger brat," she countered.

"Where are your real parents?" Terry asked her, "Where did you come from?"

DD shrugged and looked up at Siren who also shrugged.

"Well, she must have come from somewhere!" Terry exclaimed, "Someone must be looking for her!"

Siren scratched at his chin thoughtfully. "Well, I guess that would be easier than trying to find a new family…"

Terry couldn't believe what he'd just found out. "We have to stop Vess before he hurts anyone! We'll call the FBI or something!"

Siren gave him a flat look. "V.I.L.E probably owns half the FBI. I'll do some research and find other organizations willing to help us take this lab down. We have to do this extremely carefully."

"And what about me?" DD demanded.

"I'll look up your file to see where you're from. If your family is suitable, I'll return you to them. If not, I'll find you a new family."

Siren then gave Terry a thoughtful look, but he didn't say what was on his mind.

Terry gave DD a worried look. "Siren, she's too young to keep secrets. She's going to accidentally tell someone."

Siren shook his head. "No, Igor is a good little secret keeper. She won't say anything."

DD nodded with fierce determination. "That's right! I protect my friends! I won't tell mean old Vess anything!"

Terry was disgusted with V.I.L.E, unable to believe he'd willingly joined such an evil organization. He'd only been with V.I.L.E for six months and he was now deeply regretting it. He would take his family and return to Maine and never deal with V.I.L.E ever again.

Siren knew he had to change Vess' mind before it was too late, and so he shoved DD off his lap, and then got to his feet. DD had landed awkwardly on the mattress and she shot Siren a glare, but didn't comment.

"I'll check on you soon," Siren promised, heading for the door, "I need to write an apology letter."

Terry glanced back at DD, and then hurried after Siren, feeling completely out of his depth. Siren hurried down and the hall and Terry jogged to catch up with him.

"Siren, do you really think Vess is going to change his mind about the operation?"

"Probably not...but if he doesn't, I'm going to stab him in the throat."

Terry's eyes widened, having no idea what to say to that. Vess certainly deserved it, but what would happen once Siren actually did it? Siren had said that so casually, and Terry didn't doubt his words in the least.

Siren's thoughts were on a certain red-headed boy as he walked along, remembering the horror of what was done to that little boy. The boy'd had so much talent, but it was all stripped away in an instant when V.I.L.E stole his voice. Siren remembered watching several of the boy's performances on youtube when he'd been researching, and that was what had made him empathize so strongly with him. He had seen how V.I.L.E had stolen everything from the boy, and that's when Siren had decided to turn on V.I.L.E the first time.

Siren made it back to his room, and the moment he was inside, he headed for his desk and took a seat. Opening several drawers, he looked for a pen and some paper, and then sat there having no idea what to say. Chewing on the end of the pen as he tried to think of something to say, Terry peeked over his shoulder. Siren glanced up at him.

"How do people normally apologize?" he asked.

Terry raised a brow, knowing this was definitely something out of Siren's field of expertise.

"They normally start with the words 'I'm sorry'," Terry replied.

Siren scowled down at the blank piece of paper. "That's stupid."

"Well, an apology requires you to apologize and then admit your wrongdoing," Terry explained.

Siren's pride was feeling rather wounded as he picked up the pen, and then wrote the words 'I'm sorry' on the page. He stared down at the words and then immediately crumpled up the paper and tossed it in the nearby waste basket. No, this would never work. He would keep this professional, and perhaps Vess would appreciate the effort?

He wrote a few sentences and then paused to read what he'd written.

"Doctor Vesalius,

I understand how my actions may have caused you inconvenience and that was not my intention. I did not consider how leaving the lab would affect the people around me, and I should never have left without permission. I should have approached you with the request instead of sneaking out with Michael. I will not make the same mistake again, and I hope we can put this incident behind us.

-Siren"

Terry read over his shoulder and then frowned. "That's not an apology," he pointed out, "You need to take responsibility for your actions, instead of wording it like everything was a misunderstanding. There was no misunderstanding, you did it on purpose, and you need to own up to it. Explain to him what you did wrong, acknowledge your mistakes, show regret, and use the words 'I'm sorry'. Show him through words that you've learned from your mistake and it will never happen again."

Siren did not look very happy, but he did crumple up the letter to start over. He then sat staring down at a new piece of paper, tapping the pen as he thought. He sat there for so long that eventually Terry gave him a nudge.

"Just start writing," he suggested.

"I don't know how to do this," Siren admitted, "Everything I think of sounds so fake, and Vess will know that I don't really mean it."

"Well, imagine if your roles were reversed," Terry suggested, "What kind of letter would make you forgive Vess?"

Siren looked up at him. "A suicide letter."

Terry rolled his eyes. "Just try seeing things from his point of view. Tell him what he wants to hear, and try to sound sincere about it."

Siren heaved a sigh and looked back to the paper. Frowning thoughtfully, he began to write, and write and then write some more. He paused a few times to gather his thoughts, and when he was finally finished, Terry gave him a nod.

"This is good," he praised, "Very good in fact."

"I nearly puked like ten times while writing this," Siren admitted.

Siren folded over the letter and placed it into an envelope. "Do you think this will work?"

"It's all you can do," Terry responded.

Siren nodded, and then dug inside his desk for something. Terry's eyes widened when he saw it was a knife, and Siren slipped it into his pocket without a word.

"I'm going to bring this to him now," Siren announced, standing up from the desk.

"Where did you get a knife?!" Terry asked in alarm, knowing Siren's habit of stabbing people.

"What time is it?" Siren demanded, pretending he didn't hear.

Terry frowned in disapproval and then glanced down at his watch. "A little after one," he responded.

"Good. Vess would have just come back from lunch and so he's going to be at his least grouchy right now."

Siren clutched the letter tightly and knew his pride was about to be completely annihilated. Taking a deep breath, he left his room and then walked down the hall in the direction of Vess' lab. Terry followed right behind him, hoping this wasn't going to end in bloodshed.

Siren was visibly nervous as he walked, and he kept one hand in his pocket where the knife was. When they reached the lab, Siren paused for just a moment and then pushed open the door. Vess was busy working and Michael was sitting off to one side quietly playing on a Nintendo Switch. Vess glanced up at him as he entered, and he seemed a little surprised to see him. Siren approached his desk and Vess set down his paperwork, expecting a huge Siren tantrum. When Siren silently held out the envelope towards him, Vess raised a brow in question and reached out to take it.

"What's this?" he asked.

"Please just read it," Siren requested, his hand closing around the handle of the knife.

Vess' curiosity was now piqued and so he opened the envelope and pulled out the letter. He unfolded it and glanced at it, and then his eyes widened in surprise as he read.

"Numa,

I'm sorry.

I know you're already skeptical, but please keep reading. I really am sorry. I was selfish, and I never once thought of how my actions would affect you. I knew what I was doing, and there was no excuse whatsoever for what I did. I've treated you horribly the entire time we've been lab partners, and that wasn't fair to you. I've been a bitter and miserable asshole for ten years, and it's unprofessional, and unacceptable. You've always treated me well, and I threw your kindness right back in your face.

I needed the reality check you gave me this morning, and I understand you felt like this was your last resort. I've been thinking about everything all morning, and I know that I need to change. I'm sorry I've put you through so much trouble, and I'm incredibly grateful for the patience you've shown me. It's taken a while, but I now see I need to grow up.

I left the lab which was both foolish and incredibly dangerous. There are people who want me dead, and if I was kidnapped or murdered, it would hurt V.I.L.E and affect your research. I took a stupid risk just to look at a few cds, and I now realize how ridiculous I was being. The rules are in place for a reason, and I purposely broke them. I lied to you, stole a guard's uniform, left the lab, and then roped Michael into my scheme. I owe Michael an apology as well since it wasn't fair to involve him.

You saved my life after my accident ten years ago, and I've done nothing but make your life difficult. I owe you everything and I've never even thanked you for it. I should have been grateful and done everything I could to help you, but I was angry and selfish. I took out my frustrations on you and that wasn't fair. From this point on, I am going to report to the lab on time, professionally dressed and ready to work hard the entire day. I will do all work without complaint, and I promise I will never do anything as foolish as this ever again.

I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me and give me one last chance. I won't let you down again.

I'm truly sorry,

Delano"

Vess looked up from the letter with a bewildered and somewhat skeptical expression on his face.

"You wrote this?!" he questioned.

Siren averted his gaze and gave him a nod. "I'm sorry, Numa," he said quietly, his hand tightening on the knife.

Vess was close enough that with one quick swipe of his hand, he could slit his throat. The second that Vess rejected his apology, he was a dead man. Vess was completely silent as he stared at Siren, and Siren could feel himself beginning to nervously sweat as he waited for the other man's response.

Vess stared at Siren with narrowed eyes, suspicious but also incredibly surprised. In the ten years he'd known Siren, the other man had never once apologized for anything, or taken any sort of responsibility for his own actions. Siren was immature and spiteful, and Vess would have never expected this from him. He glanced back to the letter, and could tell by the messy writing that Siren had indeed written it himself.

"Do you really mean this?" Vess demanded.

"I do," Siren confirmed, "It's time for me to grow up."

Vess glanced back to the letter and was honestly a little impressed that Siren had apologized in such a professional manner. Was Siren even capable of keeping the workplace respectful? He was skeptical that Siren could keep his promises, but the intent was still there. He could live with a bit of annoyance, but if Siren even kept half his promises, the lab would be a lot less miserable.

Vess then realized with surprise that he had finally found a punishment that worked against Siren. After ten years of yelling at him, hitting him, taking away his possessions, this was what it took to get him to finally comply. He finally had a way to control Siren. Vess was delightfully surprised, and he decided he wanted to see how this played out.

"Alright, Siren," Vess told him, setting the letter down, "I accept your apology."

Siren's eyes widened in surprise and he let go of the knife. "You...you do?"

Vess nodded. "From now on, I expect a basic level of human respect and professionalism from you. You will work hard and without complaint from now on, and you will follow the rules."

"So...I get to keep my voice?" Siren asked hopefully.

Vess gave him an imperious look as he nodded. "For now," he replied.

Siren let out a visible breath of relief. Vess then turned to Michael who was shamelessly eavesdropping on the whole conversation.

"Michael, Siren has something to say to you," Vess stated.

Michael glanced to Siren, and then approached, looking incredibly smug with the situation. Siren immediately tensed.

"You stated you owed Michael an apology, and so go ahead," Vess instructed.

Siren tensed further, feeling humiliated and angry as Michael smirked at him.

"Go on," Michael teased, "Let's hear it!"

Siren turned his gaze to the floor and remained silent.

"You did mean what you said in the letter, didn't you?" Vess demanded, a warning edge to his tone.

Siren's cheeks coloured and he kept his gaze firmly on the ground. "I'm sorry, Michael," he stated, wishing he could punch the other man in the face.

"For what?" Michael teased, his smirk becoming even more infuriating.

"I'm sorry I involved you in my stupid scheme," Siren replied, hating every second of this.

Michael grinned and crossed his arms. "Oh, I dunno, you don't really seem sorry enough to me. Maybe I shouldn't accept this apology?"

Siren was furious and closed his eyes, trying his best to control his temper.

"Michael, knock it off," Vess ordered.

Michael rolled his eyes. "Fine. Apology accepted."

Vess could see how humiliated Siren was and was surprised at how well the other man was controlling himself. It appeared that Siren really did mean what he said.

"From what Michael has told me, and also from what you wrote in your letter, it's clear to me that you remember more than you let on."

Siren looked up sharply. Oh shit.

Vess steepled his fingers together as he stared straight into Siren's eyes. "You will tell me everything you remember of the Volkov experiments."

Siren swallowed heavily. Vess knew. Vess knew. VESS KNEW. If Siren told him everything he knew, Vess would finish the experiments within three months and then it would be game over. He needed to delay him.

"I've been starting to remember a few things…" Siren admitted.

Vess leaned forward eagerly. "Like what?" he questioned.

Siren knew he had to tell Vess something true otherwise the other man would never believe him. "I know why so many of your patients end up blind or deaf."

Vess was instantly all business. "Tell me everything in complete detail," he ordered.

Siren nodded, and pulled a chair over to take a seat. "Let me see your research papers and I'll show you where you went wrong."

Siren knew that if he worked closely with Vess on the experiments he could find little ways to foil Vess' research all while appearing to be helpful. He just needed to be very, very careful.

"I don't remember everything yet, but I want to help you, and I'll do my best to figure it out."

Vess was already grabbing files out of his desk, a manic and excited look in his eyes. He was so close to completing the experiment, and he felt like Siren would be the key.

"Let's go over everything together," he ordered, opening the first folder.

Siren nodded, and had a feeling this was going to be a difficult few months.

---

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

---

"Dash?" Crackle called out towards the row of tents, "What's taking you so long? We need to get started on the work!"

"I'm getting ready!" Dash snapped from inside one of the tents.

"You need any help?" Neal teased, approaching the tent.

"Go fall down a well, Neal," Dash responded, unzipping the tent.

As Dash crawled out, Neal stared at him in complete surprise. Dash was wearing overalls, boots, a work shirt and a hardhat, his expression completely annoyed. He wasn't wearing any makeup, and his freckles were on full display. This was the first time Dash had ever dressed down, and Crackle gave a nod of approval.

"You actually look like a regular person!" Neal exclaimed in surprise.

Dash immediately took a step towards him and raised a fist. "You take that back, slimeball!"

"I didn't mean anything by it, love," Neal assured him, "I've just never seen you looking so casual."

"I look disgusting," Dash complained, "If anyone sees me like this, I'm going to lose all credibility as a designer."

"Why?" Roosevelt asked, looking confused, "We're all dressed the same. I think you look fine."

Dash scoffed at him. "You would," he commented, turning to look at the others, "Well, what are we all waiting for? Let's go inside this shack and get it over with."

Crackle could have pointed out that they'd been waiting for Dash for the last twenty minutes, but he didn't. Instead he simply pulled a key out of his pocket and motioned for the others to follow him. The stairs were rickety and full of holes and as they went up, the wood creaked and bowed beneath them.

There was suddenly a loud crunch, and when they looked back, they saw Roosevelt's foot had gone right through one of the stairs.

"You okay?" Theodore asked him, helping him get his leg out of the hole.

"Yeah," Roosevelt responded, simply looking annoyed, "These stairs aren't safe. We should rebuild them first so no one gets hurt."

Crackle nodded his agreement. "We can do that today," he told him, "It won't take us very long to build a new deck if all of us work together."

Dash flipped open his sketchpad and then glanced from the house to the deck as he began a quick sketch. "I'll finish this design after we inspect the house," he informed everyone, "If we're building a deck, we might as well expand it a bit so we can all fit on it."

"We'll have to figure out the costs of the lumber first," Otterman informed him, "Our budget is incredibly small."

"We can bring you with us to the hardware store so you can decide what we can afford," Moose Boy stated, "but I don't want you trying to lift anything!"

Otterman nodded, and then looked over to Dash. "We'll have to work together on the designs to make sure we don't go over budget on anything."

Dash grimaced at that thought, but he nodded all the same.

"Alright, now let's give the inside a good look-over!" Crackle announced, approaching to unlock the door.

It was then that Crackle realized the door was off its hinges and simply leaning against the house. Lifting the door out of the way, he set it aside, and then motioned for the others to follow him as he stepped into the house.

Neal was the one to step in after him and he immediately cringed at what he saw. Every wall was falling apart, and the ceiling was sagging so low it almost touched the top of his head as he walked under it. Thick cobwebs were everywhere he looked, and piles of garbage were absolutely everywhere. Graffiti was across every surface and there was a massive hole in the middle of the floor. Neal simply stared for a moment and then turned to look at Crackle in disbelief.

"Mind the hole," Crackle called out.

Dash took one step inside the door and then promptly turned around and left again.

"Dash, get back in here!" Crackle ordered.

Dash glared at him from the doorway and crossed his arms.

"You're the designer and so I need you in here," Crackle informed him, "We're going to be cleaning up most of this mess today, so stop being a drama queen."

Dash scowled at him, but to Crackle's surprise, he came back in without a word of protest. Dash flipped open his sketchbook and then began sketching out the first room as fast he could.

"Does anyone have a measuring tape?" he demanded.

Crackle nodded and removed one from his belt. "I do."

"I'll need someone to measure each room for me so my designs can be as accurate as possible."

"I can do that," Crackle replied, immediately measuring the walls around him.

The twins were standing very, very still, the floors beneath them groaning in protest every time they moved. The twins were over four hundred pounds each, and they were concerned they were going to fall right through the floor at any moment. Moose Boy was following along behind Otterman like a puppy and he was quick to steer the smaller man away from the gaping hole in the floor.

"Is it as bad as I think it is?" Otterman demanded as he squinted at the walls around him.

"Sure is, Svenny!" Neal announced, clapping him on the back, "We're all going to die when the house collapses on us!"

Crackle shot Neal a glare. "The foundation and support beams are solid," he replied, "The house isn't going to fall down."

"Hmm," Neal replied, not sounding convinced.

Paper Star wandered from room to room silently and her expression was thoughtful. "I claim the attic as my bedroom," she announced.

Crackle turned to look at her. "The attic? Why the attic?"

Paper Star gave a shrug. "I like the feel of it, and it's the most private room in the house."

Crackle knew Paper Star probably didn't like sleeping in the same room as a bunch of men and couldn't blame her for wanting her own space. He gave her a nod which seemed to please her, and she disappeared again into one of the other rooms.

"Oh my god…" Dash exclaimed in horror upon seeing the main bathroom.

The once white bathroom was covered in rust, flakes of dirt, suspicious brown stains and the bathtub looked like something had died in it.

"That porta-potty's not looking so bad now, right fancy?" Neal teased, peering over his shoulder into the room.

"Everything in here needs to be removed and then burned," Dash commented in disgust.

"The bathroom is going to be our first priority after the stairs," Crackle assured him, "Do you have any ideas for it?"

Dash crinkled his nose and glanced around. "This is very small for a main bathroom," he commented, "I doubt the twins could comfortably fit in here."

Crackle looked around and had to agree. "Maybe we could knock out the closet in the room next to here to get a bit of extra space?"

"That would work," Dash agreed, "That would give us an extra three feet of space to work with. We could further utilize space by replacing the bathtub with a large shower."

"That sounds like the best option," Crackle said, watching as Dash made a few quick sketches, "You should go with Sven and Henrik to the hardware store to pick out what you need."

"Right now?" Dash asked hopefully.

Crackle nodded. "Get the hardware store to deliver the lumber and supplies as soon as possible. Listen to Sven, and don't go over budget."

Dash nodded, and fled the disgusting bathroom, just glad to be able to leave the house for a while.

"Alright, let's go," Dash announced to Otterman.

"We're coming too," Theodore announced, falling in step behind them, "We can help lift things for you."

Dash had a feeling they were just uncomfortable standing on the flimsy floors, but he didn't comment, simply giving the two men a nod.

"I'm changing into something more presentable before we leave," Dash announced as they headed for the door.

"No, you're not!" Crackle called after him, "You're not wasting that much time! You look fine!"

Dash shot Crackle a glare over his shoulder and then left the house without a word. It was embarrassing to walk around looking so rough, but he felt resigned to his fate. The only pleasure he took from this was how horrified Cleo would be if she could see him now. He could picture the disgust and horror on her face, and it lightened his mood considerably.

"I'm driving," Roosevelt announced, pulling the car keys out of his pocket.

As they piled into the van, Dash glanced back towards the house just in time to see a rat run out of the front door.

Dash's good mood instantly evaporated.

---

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---

[[Stop pouting,]] Matryoshka scolded, glancing over at her brother, [[You can't wear leather in hundred degree heat. Another 5 minutes wearing that costume and you would have died.]]

Plague Doctor sat arms crossed beside her in the car and he simply stared out the window silently. He was now wearing white shorts and a purple polo shirt that one of the henchmen had given him, and it was obvious he wasn't happy with this situation.

Matryoshka looked him up and down, her gaze settling on his pasty white skin. [[You need to go outside more often. It's hard to tell where the shorts stop and your legs begin.]]

Plague Doctor shot her a glare out of the corner of his eye, but otherwise ignored her.

[[While our men scour the city, we can just relax at the hotel or look around town. It's best we leave the grunt work to them.]]

Plague Doctor frowned, not liking the idea of sitting idle while others got to do more exciting things. He felt like it was his responsibility to find Otterman, especially considering he had almost sliced the other man in half. He tuned out Matryoshka as she blathered on and on about the luxury accommodations they were staying at, and instead stared out the window at the buildings as they drove along.

Downtown was crowded and loud, and as they sat at a stoplight, Plague Doctor stared at the people on the sidewalk. His gaze fell on a taco truck and he marvelled at the idea of getting food while walking down a sidewalk. As he stared at the truck, his gaze shifted to the man waiting in line. The man was massive and blond and he recognized him as part of Otterman's team. Letting out a gasp of surprise he turned and grabbed a hold of Matryoshka's arm.

He then pointed but the blond man was already disappearing into the crowd.

[[What?]] Matryoshka demanded, [[What is it?]]

Plague Doctor jabbed a finger frantically towards the window, but when she looked out, she didn't see anything. Knowing the man was going to get away, Plague Doctor ripped off his seatbelt and then opened the car door just as the car started moving. He hopped out into traffic and there was instantly the blaring of horns and the screeching of tires as he ran across the four lanes to get to the sidewalk.

"Dmitry!" Matryoshka called after him from the car, but he didn't stop, quickly disappearing into the crowds.

Plague Doctor ran as fast as he could in the direction he'd seen the man go, but there was no sign of him. Knowing the man could have gone into any of the nearby shops, he began going into shop after shop but he still couldn't find him. Where could a seven foot tall man possibly hide? He stepped back outside and looked around, but it was like the man had simply disappeared. It was then that he saw the man drive past him in a massive black van.

Plague Doctor knew there was nothing he could do at the moment and so he quickly pulled out his cellphone and snapped a picture of the license plate number as the van passed by. He stared after the van as it disappeared down the street and then glanced down at the picture. The license plate was a bit blurred but he could still make out all the characters. Incredibly hot and out of breath, Plague Doctor headed back where he had come from, glad he at least gained a little bit of knowledge.

Once back at the hotel, he'd see if he could look it up and find out where Otterman's team were staying. He doubted the address listed would be legit, but it was always worth a shot.

When Plague Doctor got back to where he'd gotten out of the car, he wasn't at all surprised to see the car was gone. Figuring his sister would get the driver to circle around a few times looking for him, he took a seat on a nearby bench, feeling like he was melting under the hot sun. His eyes then fell on the taco truck in front of him and he stared at it long and hard before standing up to approach it. He read the menu as he waited in line, and once it was his turn, he pointed to what he wanted on the menu and then pointed to the nearby slushie machine.

"Five dollars," the cook told him, "You want everything on it?"

Plague Doctor nodded and passed over a five dollar bill. Only seconds later, he was handed a wrapped taco and a blue slushie. Taking a seat back on the bench, he unwrapped the taco and stared down at it curiously. It looked edible and so he took a hesitant bite, instantly loving the meat and grease. The sun was blazing hot and after five minutes of sitting there, he was quickly feeling uncomfortable. He was nibbling on the taco as he waited, and when he saw the garish purple car stop in front of him, he simply stared at it and didn't move.

Matryoshka rolled down the window and the relief was evident in her eyes. [[Where have you been?!]] she demanded, [[You nearly got hit by a car!]]

Plague Doctor didn't answer and took a sip of his slushie.

Matryoshka's eyes fell on the taco in his hand and she narrowed her eyes. [[Dmitry, I swear to god if you jumped out of a moving car for a taco, I'm going to slap your teeth down your throat! Where did you even get that?]]

Plague Doctor silently pointed to the taco truck and Matryoshka's eyes widened in horror.

[[You bought it from that?!]] she exclaimed.

Plague Doctor nodded.

[[You are the heir to the Volkov empire, a long line of rich and noble men! Volkovs do not eat street food cooked by a greasy man in a truck!]]

Plague Doctor popped the last bite of taco into his mouth and then tossed the wrapper into the nearby garbage can. He then got up and approached the car, his sister opening the door for him.

[[You'd better have a good explanation for this,]] she warned as he buckled himself in, [[You worried me.]]

Plague Doctor passed his phone over to her and she glanced down at the photo of the black van.

[[Was this him?!]] she asked excitedly, [[Did you see Sven?]]

Plague Doctor shook his head.

[[Was it one of his teammates?]] Matryoshka asked hopefully.

Plague Doctor nodded and took his phone back.

[[Excellent, so they are here! Text that picture to me so I can forward it to the men. It shouldn't take more than a few days to locate their base.]]

Plague Doctor simply nodded and took a sip of his slushie. Matryoshka eyed the slushie for a moment and then reached out and plucked the cup from her brother's hand. She took a sip and then pulled a face and handed it back.

[[Ugh, that's terrible,]] she commented, [[It tastes like liquid sugar. I don't know how you can drink that crap.]]

Plague Doctor gave her a shrug and Matryoshka then leaned over to look at him a bit closer.

[[Huh,]] she commented, poking him on the arm, [[I think you've already gotten a sunburn…]]

Plague Doctor glanced down at his bare arms and sure enough the skin was looking red and sore. He let out a deep sigh having a feeling he was really going to hate San Diego.

---

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---

Julia let out a cry as she was struck in the stomach. She fell to her knees in agony, and a moment later, she was kicked hard to the ground. She rolled several feet and then laid there for a long moment, wheezing in pain and feeling the sweat beading on her forehead. A shadow fell over her, and she looked up at the man looming over her.

"Again," Shadowsan ordered, crossing his arms impatiently.

"I...I just need a minute," Julia wheezed out, feeling completely exhausted.

"Were you not the one to ask me to teach you to fight?" Shadowsan demanded, his tone firm.

"Yes," Julia confirmed.

"And were you not the one who wanted to be able to fight alongside us against V.I.L.E?"

Julia nodded. "Yes," she said again.

"Then get up and show me what you can do," Shadowsan ordered.

Julia took a deep breath, and then struggled back to her feet. She shifted her feet into the stance Shadowsan had shown her, and then launched herself straight at him.

Julia had been training hard all month and she knew she still had a long way to go before she was anywhere near as good as the others when it came to fighting. Shadowsan had little else to do at the moment and so he dedicated most of his afternoons to training her to the best of his abilities. Sometimes the others joined their training sessions, and Julia was beginning to learn how every fighter had their own fighting style. Julia had yet to discover what her own style was, simply imitating Shadowsan for the moment.

Chase often paired with her, and she learned to dodge since she was no match for his strength. Chase lashed out with a boxer's punch, and he was fast and accurate. Chase always went easy on her however, and it was clear he didn't want to accidentally hurt her as they trained.

Carmen had been getting stronger each and every day and she was now able to walk for short distances if assisted. It was extremely hard on her, but she was stubborn and pushed herself to walk a little further every single day. Her new liver was steadily growing and she was no longer in any pain, but her stamina was almost non-existent. It was almost time for them to return home to San Diego, and she was looking forward to leaving the hospital.

Player had gotten grounded for three months upon his return home, his parents furious that he had 'run away.' He'd had to endure multiple brutal lectures and his mother insisted on taking him to see a therapist to find out why he had run away. All his video games, computers, and phones were taken away from him, and the only thing he was left was his ear-com since his mother didn't know about it.

Player had to be careful since he was being watched so closely, but he still found time to contact Carmen several times a day. He was banned from his computer until the school year began and now that school was back in session, he was able to continue helping Carmen investigate the Russian lab.

El Topo and Le Chèvre had been a bit distant at first, but when it was clear Carmen held no ill will towards Le Chèvre, they began trying to spend more time with the rest of the team. They trained and hung out with the team, but they also spent hours everyday with just the two of them.

They went on long walks together, and the two men were rarely seen not holding one another's hand. Carmen was happy for them, and hoped once V.I.L.E was brought down, they would be able to have a long and happy life together. She hoped they'd all get to have happy lives, especially Mime Bomb.

Mime Bomb had kept his word and he and Zack and Ivy video called the rest of the team every single day. The vacation was definitely doing Mime Bomb some good and he seemed a lot more relaxed and his anger seemed to have mellowed a bit. Alys had been absolutely ecstatic at the surprise visit, and Mime Bomb had told her everything that had happened with Volkov.

Mime Bomb carefully avoided his maternal grandmother at all costs, instead staying at the nearby bed and breakfast. He had called his paternal grandparents his first night in Wales and with Zack as a translator, and they spoke for hours. His grandfather was very open with him and answered all of his questions without hesitation. He told him all about the history of the Volkovs and what sort of business they were into, and to Mime Bomb's surprise it was all white collar crime. The Volkovs ran multiple businesses and invested heavily in the stock market, and they had no dealings with V.I.L.E.

Several times Mikhael hinted around about Mime Bomb going to university, but Mime Bomb simply changed the subject each time. At one point, Annika snatched the com from her husband and gushed at Mime Bomb in Russian affectionately. Neither Mime Bomb nor Zack had any idea what she was saying, but it sounded complementary and so they simply nodded politely along to what she said. Mikahel then took the com back, said a few scolding words to her in Russian and turned back to Mime Bomb.

"She knows you don't yet speak Russian, but she has been incredibly worried about you. It would be nice if you say hello to her every now and then."

Mime Bomb nodded and Mikhael then began speaking about the different family members. When he began telling Mime Bomb about Michael Jr., Mime Bomb visibly tensed up.

Mikhael told him how MJ had come to live with him when he was fifteen or sixteen after he had run away from home with the Finnegans. MJ had gotten along with his grandparents well at first, but they kept running into an issue when it came to authority. MJ wasn't used to following rules and was spoiled and rebellious. Eventually he was going to run away again and so Mikhael had come up with a compromise. He allowed MJ to go to work as a spy against V.I.L.E and the Finnegans as long as he remained in contact. MJ had gladly accepted, and he called them at least once a week. He had tried to learn Russian for his grandmother, but he had a lot of trouble with it. He visited them every Christmas.

It was unsettling to hear stories about Michael Jr., and Mime Bomb didn't want to know these things. Michael Jr. was an evil monster and he didn't want his grandfather to humanize him. He wanted to hate Michael and he wanted nothing to do with him.

Mime Bomb spoke with his grandparents several times a week during his stay in Wales, and it was obvious Mikhael had great expectations of him. He was really pushing university at him, and Mime Bomb wasn't sure how he felt about that. Finally after three weeks of nagging, he had told his grandfather that he would consider enrolling into university for next September. This had greatly pleased Mikhael and he had praised him and then quickly ended the call so he could tell Annika the good news.

Mime Bomb wasn't sure what he'd be doing next year, but if V.I.L.E was taken down and Team Red dissolved, then he likely would like to go back to school. He doubted he would ever want to take over the Volkov empire, but if things went well, he would like to know his grandparents.

Mime Bomb spoke daily with Dr. Brownswell and she was helping him work through his anger at Le Chèvre and the rest of the team. She didn't know the exact details about what happened, but she knew there had been a serious betrayal and a lot of hurt. Mime Bomb was still furious at Le Chèvre, but at least now he no longer wanted to punch him in the face. He doubted they would ever be friends, and he doubted he'd ever be able to fully trust him again.

Zack and Ivy were enjoying their time in Wales as well. Ivy took hundreds of pictures, and made friends at Alys' tavern, while Zack mostly spent his time with Mime Bomb as they explored every inch of the tiny village. It rained almost every day, but that didn't dampen their spirits in the least. When Carmen called them midway through October that the team was finally returning to San Diego, they finally felt ready to go back.

They would return to San Diego, and they would work together to take down Vess' lab.

---

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

---

Siren felt like he was walking on eggshells the entire next morning. He made sure to show up for work on time, and like he promised, he didn't say one word of complaint even when Vess piled double the normal amount of work on his desk. He ignored Michael completely, not trusting himself not to bicker, and instead focused entirely on work for the entire morning. He was so focused on what he was doing that he didn't even notice when he'd been working for four hours straight.

Vess was honestly impressed by this new work ethic and he hoped it lasted. Glancing down at his watch, he saw it was now nearly twelve-thirty.

"Lunchtime, Siren," Vess stated, glancing up at him, clearly expecting him to protest.

Siren simply nodded and got to his feet without a word.

"You may take your lunch as well, Terrence," Vess said to Terry, "Try to get him to eat an acceptable amount, otherwise the nurse will be by with the syringe."

Siren grimaced but he didn't say a single word. The shift of power in the room was obvious, and Terry shot Siren a concerned look. Siren remained silent and left the lab, Terry following closely at his heels. The moment they were a safe distance away, Siren let out a furious curse.

"I hate him," he hissed, "I hate him so much!"

"Just hang in there," Terry whispered, "You're doing really well."

Siren heaved a sigh and ran a hand through his hair. "I don't know how I'm going to stand being Vess' workplace bitch for the next several months. You have no idea how many times I wanted to tell him to go fuck himself today."

"But you didn't," Terry pointed out, "You were able to control your temper and appear compliant. Keep it up, I'm proud of you."

Siren groaned and then gave a nod. "Do I really have to sit in the cafeteria for an hour watching you eat?"

"Well, you could eat lunch too," Terry pointed out.

"We both know that's not going to happen. I don't like the food here."

Terry rolled his eyes and they walked along in silence towards the cafeteria. All conversations halted when they entered and every single person stared at Siren like he was a walking timebomb. Siren glared at everyone around him, and they quickly went back to eating their lunches. As Terry went to collect his lunch from the fridge, Siren approached where several guards were lined up to buy food. Shoving his way past them, he grabbed a Pepsi out of one of the coolers.

"That will be 1 VILE buck!" the coffee girl informed him.

Siren cracked open the Pepsi and then turned and walked away, leaving the girl to simply stare after him.

"Well, alright then…" she responded.

When Siren joined Terry at one of the tables, he gave the smaller man a look of disapproval.

"Did you just steal that Pepsi?"

"No," Siren lied, taking a sip.

Terry sighed and decided he didn't feel like dealing with it. His lunch bag was a bit heavier than normal and he wondered what Lucy had made for his lunch. Pulling out several sandwiches and cookies, he was surprised at the quantity.

"That cookie has my name on it," Siren pointed out.

"What?" Terry questioned, glancing down at the cookies.

Sure enough, one of the cookies had 'Delano' written on it in icing. He then noticed one of the sandwiches had Siren's name on it as well.

"It appears my wife sent you lunch today…" Terry commented in amusement.

Lucy had been worrying about Siren ever since he left, and she'd clearly wanted to make sure he was eating. Siren frowned at the food and made no move to touch it.

"Why?" Siren demanded.

"It seems somehow you managed to make Lucy like you," Terry replied.

This only caused Siren to frown further. "That doesn't make any sense," he argued, "No one likes me!"

Terry shrugged and took a bite of his own sandwich. Siren stared long and hard at the sandwich and then hesitantly reached out to take it. Unwrapping it, he saw it was on white bread with no crusts and cut into triangles. He opened the sandwich and saw it was smooth peanut butter. Lucy had gone out and bought him smooth peanut butter. Siren's stomach twisted guiltily as he thought of the bare cupboards and nearly empty fridge. Setting down the sandwich, he reached a hand out towards Terry.

"Let me see your com for a second."

Terry hesitated. "Why?"

"I need to log into my V.I.L.E bank account for a second," Siren explained.

Terry narrowed his eyes, instantly suspicious. "You swear that's all you're going to do? These coms are monitored and I don't want you getting me in trouble."

"Yes, yes, I swear," Siren said impatiently.

Terry reluctantly handed over his com and Siren immediately began typing on it to log into his account. The enormous balance made him feel even more guilty and he set up an e-transfer to Terry's employee number. He debated on how much to send, knowing Terry likely wouldn't accept a large amount. After debating for a moment, he sent him $400. Logging out of his account, he handed the com back and then picked up a piece of the sandwich.

Terry was about to put his com back in his pocket when it dinged. Unlocking the com, he glanced at the notification and then looked over at Siren.

"Did you just send me $400?" he demanded.

"...maybe."

"Why did you send this to me?" Terry demanded, instantly irritated, "I'm sending this back to you right now!"

As Terry began typing on his com, Siren quickly snatched it away from him. "No, that's for you!" he scolded, "Don't send it back!"

Terry's brow furrowed. "Why are you sending me money?"

Siren looked away. "You need it…"

Terry's face flushed. "My family is doing just fine! We may not be rich, but we have everything we need! I don't accept charity, and it's not right that you sent this to me!"

"It's my decision and I want you to have it!" Siren argued, "Stop being stupid!"

Terry let out a sigh and softened his tone. "Look, Del, you're mentally unwell, and I'm not taking advantage of you by taking your money. It's not right, and it would be dishonest of me to accept it. I'm going to send it back to you."

Siren glared up at him. "Then consider it payment for food," he replied.

Terry raised a brow in question.

"Your wife sometimes makes acceptable food, and so if she sends me a lunch every day, it's only fair for me to compensate you for it."

Terry let out a sigh. "We don't mind giving you a sandwich," he pointed out, "You don't need to pay for it."

"I want to," Siren answered firmly, "This way I owe no one any favours."

"Delano…"

"Then we'll ask Vess," Siren stated, knowing Vess didn't care how he spent his money, "I'll tell him I'm buying lunch from your wife from now on."

Terry sighed, but then gave a nod. He doubted Vess would ever approve such a thing, and maybe that was what Siren needed to hear.

"Well, if you're paying for that lunch, you'd better eat it," Terry commented.

Siren eyed him for a moment and then handed him back his com. Without a word, he took a bite of the sandwich, and found the texture of everything was exactly right. He ate incredibly slowly and by the time he was done his one sandwich, Terry had long-since finished his own lunch.

"You're not going to eat your cookie?" Terry questioned.

Siren looked down at it for a few seconds and then picked it up. "No, I'm going to save it for later," he told him.

"Don't let it go to waste, Lucy's cookies are to die for."

Siren nodded and finished his Pepsi as he watched Terry gather up their garbage. Getting up from the table, he tossed his empty can in the garbage, earning him a disapproving frown from Terry. After Terry had cleaned up after them, he headed for the door and Siren trailed along after him, noting that everyone was still watching him.

Siren scowled at the guards and left the cafeteria, knowing it was now time to return to the hell that was Vess' lab. When they entered the lab, Vess glanced up briefly, his gaze zeroing in on the bag Siren held.

"What's that?" he demanded suspiciously.

"A chocolate chip cookie," Siren replied, taking a seat back at his desk.

"Does that mean you actually ate something?" Vess demanded.

"He ate quite well," Terry replied, "He had a sandwich and a drink."

Vess nodded and then set down his paperwork. "I need to make a few calls and will be gone for about an hour. Don't leave the lab, and I expect your work to still be completed."

Siren nodded silently, and reached for his laptop. "Numa?"

Vess glanced over at him. "What?"

"I'm going to be paying Kevin's Lucy to make my lunches from now on."

Vess glanced over at Terry for an explanation.

"He likes my wife's cooking and he wants to arrange for her to make him meals everyday. I told him that he doesn't have to pay, but he keeps trying to get me to accept money from him."

"And why does any of this concern me?" Vess demanded.

"I have concerns about accepting money from him because…" Terry trailed off, not wanting to upset Siren, "of the issues he has. I don't believe it's ethical."

Vess turned to Siren. "How much were you planning to send him?"

"$400 to pay for her time and groceries," Siren replied.

"Approved," he responded, turning towards the door.

Vess had expensive tastes in food and that seemed like an insignificant amount to him.

"Don't touch my desk while I'm gone."

The moment Vess was gone, Siren glanced over at Terry who was frowning at him. Terry honestly hadn't expected Vess to approve that. It felt wrong and he didn't like it.

"Well, if you're paying this much for lunch, I want you to write out a list of foods you'll eat and how you want them prepared. You're the fussiest person I've ever met, and I don't want you wasting the food Lucy makes for you."

Siren glanced down at the cookie. He had memories of helping his grandmother bake cookies, and those were happy memories for him. He'd loved cooking with her, and he still remembered all of her recipes. He thought of DD living alone in the basement, and he felt guilty. She had no such memories and she'd probably never even tried a cookie before. Her childhood had been terrible, and the guilt ate at him. Siren poked the cookie with his index finger and decided that maybe he would share it with her after work.

Turning his attention back to his laptop, Siren pulled up the skype app and dialed Roundabout's number. It rang several times before Roundabout answered, and the moment he saw who it was, he sat up straight in his seat.

"Siren," he greeted in surprise, "I didn't think you would call me back."

"Did you mean what you said about wanting to stop Vess' experiments?" Siren demanded.

Roundabout reached up and adjusted his glasses and then gave him a nod. "I refuse to be a part of child experimentation. I honestly thought V.I.L.E had standards, but now I'm not so sure…"

"If you meant what you said, find a way to stop the shipment of children that are on their way here."

Roundabout's eyes widened. "When are they due to arrive?"

"I heard Vess speaking on the phone and the snowstorm delayed them by two days, and so they should be here on Wednesday at the earliest. If those children make it here, I can do nothing to protect them."

Roundabout nodded. "Do you know what sort of vehicle they're being transported in?"

Siren nodded. "They're both military vans with the V.I.L.E insignia on it. There are twenty children crammed on the first van and another fifteen on the second. If you can stop them, it will take a while before Vess can arrange to get new ones."

Roundabout nodded, a fierce determination in his eyes. "My contacts will find the vans," he promised, "What are you doing on your end?"

"Not much yet," Siren admitted, "What do you know of Team Crackle?"

"They defected."

"Yes, I know, but where are they?" Siren demanded impatiently.

"Why?" Roundabout countered, "Did you have anything to do with them defecting?"

Siren shook his head. "No, Double Trouble are my brothers, and I know they'll come for me if they know I'm here. I've searched the V.I.L.E records, but there's no information about where they are."

"We don't know where they are either," Roundabout admitted, "They seem to have completely disappeared."

"I need to find allies that will help take this lab down," Siren informed him, "I couldn't reach Volkov, and I don't have any other contact information."

"I can provide you with all of Team Crackle's phone numbers, but they haven't been picking up."

"Give them to me anyway," Siren ordered, eager to get any information he could.

Roundabout nodded and then typed on his computer for a moment. He read off each com number and who it belonged to and Siren nodded, committing them all to memory.

"Do you have any numbers for Carmen Sandiego's team?"

Roundabout gave him a surprised look. "There is no way her team will be willing to help you. They'll think it's a trap."

"Vess shot and killed their leader and I bet they're out for blood. They already hate V.I.L.E and if I offer Vess up on a silver platter, they might be willing to help take this shithole down."

Roundabout gave him a considering look and then nodded. He turned back to his computer and typed for a few seconds.

"These numbers may be out of date, but these are the numbers I was able to acquire for Carmen Sandiego's teammates."

Roundabout read them off, and Siren hoped that he would at least be able to get a hold of one person.

"My laptop is now secure and so you can message me at any time. Leave me a text at the number I'm going to type into chat and I will either respond by text or call you back when I can."

"I want you to keep me informed of everything that happens," Roundabout ordered, "I want to know precisely what's going on in that lab."

"There's a lot that Bellum, Maelstrom and Vess are up to right now," Siren replied, glancing towards the lab door, "I'll type up a report and send it to you. I don't have a lot of time right now, and Vess could return from his meetings early."

Roundabout knew how careful Siren had to be and nodded. "Send that report as soon as you can. Send it to my private com."

"Fine," Siren agreed, "Let me know when the trucks are seized."

"I will," Roundabout promised.

Siren ended the call without saying goodbye, and then turned to Terry. "See if Vess is coming," he ordered.

Terry nodded and peeked out the door. "All clear," he called over.

Siren immediately began calling his brothers' numbers over and over and over, but there was no answer. He tried the rest of the team with the same results. Knowing he didn't have much time, he then tried the Team Red numbers. None were picked up and he felt somewhat discouraged. He tried again and to his surprise it was picked up.

"Hello?" said the voice of a young boy, "Is this you, Red?"

Why was a child answering one of team red's coms? The number he called was supposed to be for the team's tech guy, but there had to be some sort of mistake.

"Hello? Is anyone there?"

Siren hit the trace, and waited as the computer began feeding him information about the caller. This would definitely require a bit of investigation. The computer located the caller, and he saw they were in Ontario, Canada. He disconnected the call without ever saying a word.

Gotcha.

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Team Red Base

October 15th

Team Red barely had a chance to relax once they got to the base, and Carmen got a call from Player before she'd even removed her jacket. Carmen was almost back to her usual self, but her stamina was still extremely low, and she got out of breath easily. Shadowsan insisted she still use the wheelchair for a few more days, and she'd given in without too much of a fight.

"I'll be right back," she told the others, wheeling out of the room to take the call.

Carmen was gone for about ten minutes and when she returned, she didn't look very happy.

"Team Crackle are making a move for the Orlando museum today during the fire drill," Carmen informed everyone, "Player thinks someone from V.I.L.E has been trying to hack into him, and so he's been fighting off the attack by improving his defenses. He's going to be offline during this mission."

Tigress let out a long groan. "Those bozos certainly don't waste any time, do they? Ugh, I'm still jet lagged."

Shadowsan frowned at Carmen worriedly. "You're not ready for a mission!"

"I'm going," Carmen said, shooting Shadowsan a 'look'. "I won't be doing much to help, but I'll still be onsite to offer support."

Shadowsan shook his head. "No, it's too soon," he said firmly.

"I am sick of doing nothing. I'm going," Carmen informed him, "You can either come along or stay out of my way."

Shadowsan narrowed his eyes. "Don't be foolish," he scolded, "You can barely walk without exhausting yourself! I will not allow you to put yourself in danger! You need to rest and you need to recover!"

"No," Carmen responded, gripping the handles of her wheelchair as she struggled to her feet, "I am through watching everyone else stand up to V.I.L.E on my behalf. I am the leader of this team and I will act like it."

"Our security is still down in the base," Chase pointed out, "Someone needs to stay here to guard the base."

Carmen knew he was just saying this in an attempt to make her stay behind and she narrowed her eyes.

"Fine," she agreed, "Mime Bomb, you're staying behind."

Mime Bomb was instantly to his feet, shaking his head, but Carmen held up a hand to stop any protests.

"You will stay behind and inform us if anyone tries to get into the base. You will keep the doors locked at all times, and stay here."

Mime Bomb crossed his arms, and was clearly angry over this, but he knew it was ultimately Carmen's decision.

"Why Mime Bomb?" Zack protested, "He wants to help against V.I.L.E! We just re-joined the team like ten minutes ago!"

"I want Mime Bomb to stay behind because V.I.L.E are still after him. This mission might be a trap to capture him, and I'm not taking any chances" Carmen responded, "Who knows what Vess has planned for him. I won't allow it to happen."

Mime Bomb looked mutinous and he signed something that made Zack pause.

"What did he say?" Carmen demanded.

"He said 'Then you expect me to just stay at the base for the rest of my life? I'll never be able to help the team again?'"

Carmen's expression softened. "No, of course not," she assured him, "We just need to be cautious until we take Vess down. We know his lab is in Russia, and we know that he's isolated from the rest of V.I.L.E. Once that lab is destroyed, it should be safe for you."

"And when will that be?" Zack translated.

"...I don't know," Carmen admitted, "Player is doing his best to find the exact location of the lab. We're doing everything we can to find it."

Mime Bomb was clearly angry, and he turned and stormed away into the other room, ignoring Zack calling after him. Once he was gone, Carmen let out a sigh.

"I know it's not fair to him, but we really don't want to risk it," she said, turning away.

"But yet you will risk yourself?" Shadowsan challenged, "You have learned nothing from your experience in Kazakhstan. You are still just as impulsive and foolhardy as ever!"

"That's not fair," Carmen responded, her brows knitting in frustration, "I need to do this. I need to prove to myself that I'm still of use to this team!"

"Of course you're still useful, Carm!" Ivy assured her, "We understand that you need to recover, and you don't need to prove anything!"

"I need to do this for me," Carmen replied, "I need things to go back to normal."

"This is foolish," Shadowsan commented, "You cannot fight in your condition, and you're going to get hurt!"

"I have to agree," Le Chèvre commented, "You'll be a liability."

Carmen turned a glare on him, and El Topo quickly stepped forward to divert the coming argument.

"What if Carmen stays in the van to direct the mission?" he suggested, "She can monitor everything on her laptop, and also keep look-out?"

Shadowsan frowned. "I still do not like it, but I think it is the best option in this circumstance."

Carmen let out a deep sigh, but knew there was no way she could physically take part in the mission.

"I'll help from the sidelines," she promised.

Zack glanced towards the other room and frowned worriedly. "Do you think Mime Bomb will be okay here by himself?"

"Are you asking to stay with him?" Carmen asked in amusement.

Zack gave her a sheepish look. "I get worried about him," he admitted, "Especially when he's upset."

"It's fine, I can drive," Ivy assured her brother, "Stay here with Mime Bomb and keep him company."

Zack looked to Carmen who gave him a nod. "It's okay, Zack. If you want to stay, there's no problem with that. We'll be back in the morning."

Zack nodded. "Can you drop me off at Frankie's on your way? I'll grab us a pizza and then try to cheer him up."

"Sure thing, bro," Ivy said, clapping him on the back, "We have plenty of time to drop you off before heading for the museum."

As Team Red headed out of the base, Mime Bomb watched them go from his bedroom window. Once they had driven off, he turned away and crossed the room towards Zack's soundsystem. Pulling his iPod out of his pocket, he plugged it in and then selected a playlist.

Fifteen minutes later, Zack walked into the base whistling jauntily to himself. He paused when he heard loud music blaring from down the hallway, and furrowed his brow in confusion. What was Mime Bomb doing down there? Setting the pizza and soda on the nearest table, he headed for the bedroom, the music getting louder and louder the closer he got. Standing outside their shared bedroom, Zack hesitated and then pushed open the door. The sight that met him was not one he was expecting at all and he stopped dead in his tracks.

Mime Bomb was standing on top of one of the beds, holding a pretend microphone and mouthing the words to the deafening loud metal music. He was jumping all around, eyes closed and he clearly had no idea Zack was there. Zack watched him as he put on a whole show like he was performing the song himself, and Zack found himself smiling. Mime Bomb had never shared any of his interests before, and Zack had had no idea the other boy liked rock and metal.

He remembered that Mime Bomb had loved performing as a child, and he suddenly felt really bad when he realized he likely still wanted to, but just couldn't because of his muteness.

Mime Bomb performed with all the flourish and grace as if he was in front of an audience, and Zack simply watched him silently, impressed and tempted to clap as the song ended.

Mime Bomb suddenly opened his eyes and when he saw Zack standing in the doorway, he froze. His expression was completely mortified and his entire face was quickly turning bright red. Zack could see the tears and panic in the other boy's eyes, and it was obvious he was completely mortified. Zack wanted to reassure him it was alright, and so he made a split second decision and then jumped up on the other bed. To Mime Bomb's surprise, Zack held a pretend mic to his mouth and began lip-syncing along with the song while jumping all around wildly.

Zack over-exaggerated every movement, and his dancing was clumsy and awkward, but he didn't care. He jumped from one bed to the other, and then looked over at the other boy.

Zack grinned over at Mime Bomb, who hesitantly returned the smile. Zack motioned for him to join in and then made a big show of handing the 'mic' over to the other boy. Mime Bomb laughed and then reached out and accepted it. Zack and Mime Bomb performed the rest of the song together, and Zack was in stitches by the time it was over. Mime Bomb then paused the playlist, also laughing hard and still mildly embarrassed.

"Why didn't you ever tell me you like this kind of music?" Zack asked.

Mime Bomb gave a self-conscious shrug and averted his eyes.

"I couldn't understand anything they were saying, but it was a lot of fun anyway!" Zack told him, "Will you show me some of your favourites?"

Mime Bomb hesitated and then reached for his Ipod. Scrolling through his playlist, he came to what he was looking for and hit play. Turning the volume down so he could hear Zack, he took a seat on the bed as Zack did the same.

"So, who are these guys?" Zack asked.

Mime Bomb signed, and Zack nodded in understanding. "Unleash the Archers? Cool! Never heard of them. I like their sound!"

They listened to a few of the songs and Zack made a point to ask all about the band and Mime Bomb enthusiastically told him about how he had found one of their cds back when he lived in France and had loved them ever since. Zack had never seen Mime Bomb so excited and he felt like this was a giant leap in the right direction. Perhaps now that Mime Bomb saw he didn't have to hide his interests, he'd be more open to him about other things.

"I got us pizza," Zack told him, standing up, "I'm gonna grab it and then let's have some fun and perform the rest of this playlist!"

Mime Bomb smiled at him and nodded.

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TBC