Chapter Fourteen

Diego was in a rush. Not only did Elliot's murder still weigh on his mind, but he had to gather up Klaus and Andy. Andy would be the easiest, but Klaus… His brother was a pain in the ass during the best of times. Being told that they were heading back to 2019 where he had no followers or people to literally worship him might be damn-near impossible. If he couldn't get the idiot, he'd grab Andy from the hotel then make her force the medium to join them.

As he raced through the grounds of the manor, passing a dozen or more people wearing what looked like scrubs, he finally came upon Klaus and some chick making out. He wanted to be surprised, but he wasn't. He couldn't be.

"Yes, you are, Daddy," the chick said, beaming wide when she kissed him again.

The nickname curled Diego's stomach, but he moved beyond it.

"Yo, Daddy!" he called out, garnering their attention as he approached. "Come on, Klaus. We gotta go."

"Diego!" Klaus chimed.

"Come on," he said, reaching for the man's arm and hoisting him to his feet before he could protest.

With his grasp firmly clasped on Klaus's shoulder, Diego guided him away from the chick and the other people in blue.

"Five's found a way to get us back to 2019," he said.

"Oh my God, Diego," Klaus sighed. "It's so good to talk to you."

"Did you hear me?" He wasn't in the mood.

"Yeah, but…" Klaus paused in step, forcing Diego to do the same.

Diego narrowed his eyes on the idiot. "Are you high?"

"No," Klaus chuckled. "Diego, I'm not Klaus."

Agitation swelled within him. Sighing loud, Diego grabbed his arm once more.

"You are high," he grumbled.

"No, I'm not." Klaus stopped again. "I'm Ben."

"Right," Diego scoffed.

"Seriously." He seemed emphatic. "Ask me something only I'd know."

"Okay," he said, deciding to humor him. "When we were kids, what'd you program Allison's Teddy Ruxbin to say?"

With a smile, he sang, "Luther sniffs Dad's underwear."

It hit him hard, right in the chest. Any anger or irritation he'd felt seconds ago melted away.

"Holy shit," Diego gasped. Without hesitation, he wrapped his arms around the young man, pulling him to his chest and hugging him tighter than he had anyone in his life.

Ben sighed, hugging him in return.

"I-I-I don't get it." They parted, Diego unable to believe his eyes. "Klaus said you didn't make the trip."

"Yeah, well, Klaus says a lot of things. But guess what? I can possess him now and it's freakin' awesome." He giggled excitedly.

Diego tenderly held the young man's face. "Well, you can tell me all about it on our way to 2019, okay? Right now, we've got to get Andy." They started their walk once more. "Five said she's staying at the—"

"She's here," Ben said.

Diego paused. "She is?"

"Yeah." Ben nodded and glanced around. "At least, I think she is. Her and Klaus got into a fight last night. She kind of stormed off. Um…" Ben continued to look around until he spotted one of the followers. "Hey!" He called after them, jogging the distance. Diego followed. "Hey, uh, you!"

The young woman in blue knelt in front of Klaus. Ben cast Diego a glance over his shoulder, one that told him even Ben couldn't believe that people worshipped their brother like they did.

"Yeah, okay, stand up," he said, ushering to her feet. "Have you seen Andy-erm- Sister?"

"Sister?" Diego mumbled.

"It's a long story," Ben sighed.

"Oh, Prophet," the young woman said with a sad expression. "I thought they told you."

Diego noticed Ben tense. "Tell me what?"

"She's dead."

Ben physically twitched while Diego had to fight the urge to cringe outright.

"What do you mean, she's dead?" Diego asked, unable to remove the stern edge from his voice.

Still staring at them remorsefully, the young woman motioned for them to follow. Unsure of what else to do, they fell in line behind her.

She guided them toward the house and around the side. Diego had no idea where they were going, but couldn't shake the strange feeling creeping up the back of his neck. Andy couldn't be dead. After all the shit they'd been through, there was no way. Hell, she didn't even die when she did it to herself.

And yet the nagging wouldn't stop. He didn't know about to feel about it. A normal person would've been heartbroken. Maybe on some level he was, but didn't you have to have a heart to break? Sir Reginald made sure none of the kids had one of those. They were useless to him and his agenda.

But at the same time, last night when Reginald was berating him, picking at every insecurity that the old man had given Diego in the first place, Andy'd been the only one to come to his defense. She was the only one who stood up to the bastard. And it wasn't the first time, either. In spite of how contentious their relationship had been since she came to the Academy, Andy never hesitated to save his ass on a mission –though the need rarely arose. She had done it outright in the theater, though. That counted from something, even to him.

The young woman brought them to a pool surrounded by candles, incense that burned his nose and a handful of people kneeling around the edge. Diego grimaced. A few of them were chanting, but he could have sworn they were chanting song lyrics.

Ben approached the pool first and peered inside. Diego was a bit more reticent, but did the same. The pool couldn't have been more than two feet deep, tinged green from the algae and plants growing in it, and there, right in the center, was Andy.

Dressed in black, she was lying on her back, motionless, eyes closed, and hair fluttering around her head.

"Jesus, that's some creepy shit," he said.

"Oh, God," Ben sighed in relief, his shoulders slumping. The disciples eyed him strangely. "She's not dead," he told them.

"But… she hasn't moved," one of them said. "She's been at the bottom of the pond for hours. Tracer found her this morning."

"Yeah," Diego sighed. The urgency of the moment had returned. "She ain't dead." He knelt down by the pool's edge. "Yo, Andy!" She didn't move. "Andy, come on, wake up." Diego smacked the top of the water repeatedly. "We don't have time for this shit, wake your ass up."

He plunged his fist into the water and that seemed to do it. Andy flinched, opening her eyes before she sat up. Water splashed Diego and the altar that had been set up around her. The disciples gasped and pressed their foreheads to the ground. The chanting intensified. He didn't blame them. It probably scared the shit out of them.

Andy ran her hand down her face, brows together as she peered around.

"Hey," Diego said, drawing her gaze. Her confusion deepened.

"Diego? What are you—"

"Five found a way home," he said, offering his hand. She took it and he helped her out of the water. "We gotta go.'

"Right, of course. Give me a moment to change. It won't take long." There'd been no hesitation on her part, no second-guessing his statement. Diego appreciated it.

Diego ground his teeth. He glanced to the watch Five had given him and made an internal count.

"Actually, there's something I need to take care of first," he said. "Can you two make it to the alley behind Elliot's in a half an hour?"

He leveled a stern eye on both of them.

"Of course," Andy said.

"Yeah, you got it," Ben replied. Diego smiled as he looked at Klaus's face, seeing only Ben in those eyes.

"Good to see you again, Brother," he said. Diego started off. "Half hour. Be there!"

He trusted them to get to the alley, knowing that Andy was responsible and trusting Ben more than Klaus. Plus, no longer having to find Andy freed up some time for him to give Elliot a proper burial. It was the least he could do after he and his family got the poor bastard killed.

Andy brushed the water off her body as she trudged past the Children and into the house. She did her best to ignore Klaus, but he kept close.

When she'd stormed out last night, the only thing she could think to do, the only thing that ever helped calm her down, was to submerge herself in water. Unwilling to take a dip in the pool again, she chose the pond. Apparently, falling asleep had been a bad idea.

"Stop following me, Klaus," she said as she stepped into the bedroom. "I'm not in the mood."

"Andy,"

He reached out and grabbed her arm. The instant the heat of his hand met her bare skin, she wrenched it free and spun to face him.

"Don't touch me, all right?" There were no words to express how much he'd hurt her the night before, so the best thing to do was keep space between them. Unfortunately, he seemed unwilling. "Just leave me alone. I'm not ready to speak to you."

"No, no, no, no, no, no, Andy, Andy, Andy," he shot off the words rapid-fire. The desperation in his face curled her stomach. It seemed wrong, somehow. "That's just it. I'm not Klaus."

"Prophet, whatever. I don't care. You've no idea what you—"

"I'm Ben."

Her throat went dry and her heart seized. Andy tensed her jaw.

"That's not funny," she said. "That's not funny at all."

Andy stormed off into the bedroom, throwing the door shut behind her, but it never closed. She spun to face him once again.

"Go away, K—"

"I'm serious, Andy. It's me." He kept the pleading, desperate expression. It seemed so sincere that it made her pause. "Look, ask me anything, okay? Ask me something only I'd know like Diego did."

"Like what? Klaus would know it, too. The three of us were always together."

He hesitated. Klaus slipped into his thoughts until something seemed to spark.

"Okay, um, how about this? I used to go watch your shows."

"What?"

"Yeah." He nodded. "I used to go watch your act when you were a mermaid."

She shifted in her spot. Part of her wanted to believe him, but…

"You could've made the trip—"

"To Dubai?" Klaus said. "You think Klaus secretly flew to Dubai to watch you perform in that giant tank in the hotel?"

Andy thought back to the event. She and a handful of other professional mermaids had been hired to swim in a two-story-tall tank that had been set up in a hotel on one of the many man-made islands that would be resorts. She hadn't told anyone about it because, at the time, she hadn't spoken to Klaus or anyone else for years.

The Caribbean, perhaps. Dubai? He never would've made the trip. He wouldn't have survived the withdrawals on the plane.

"Or, or!" he said excitedly. "Or, how about the fact that we'd sneak out to the cemetery whenever Dad would lock Klaus in the crypt?"

She shifted in her spot. "But Klaus knows about that."

"He knew we would leave him earplugs or food. But he never knew we stayed." The excited desperation left his voice, returning it to a normal tone. "Every time he was locked in there, we'd stay by the door all night just so he wouldn't be alone, you and me." Tears prickled in her eyes. "It's me, Andy. It's—"

She hadn't given him the chance to finish before she pulled him into a hug. Andy clung to him, her fingernails undoubtedly biting into his back. She buried her face in his shoulders, holding onto him as though her life depended on it.

"I've missed you." Her throat had become so dry and tight that she nearly choked on the words. "I've missed you so much."

He sighed heavily, relaxing against her. "I've missed you, too," he whispered into her hair.

When they eventually parted, Andy couldn't help but take his face into her hands. She might have been staring into Klaus's eyes, but she saw Ben staring back at her.

"I can't believe I'm talking to you," she said with a laugh, tears gliding down her cheeks. "I'm touching you." He smiled, eyes pink with tears of his own. "I haven't done that in years."

"You have no idea how awesome it is to talk to you. There's so much I wanted to say."

"You can tell me anything, everything." She stepped back and looked him over, noting the water that had soaked into his shirt. "Oh Lord, I've gotten you all wet."

They both chuckled at the sight, but the issue was easily dealt with. Little more than a wave of her hand sent to water elsewhere.

"I just…" Her gaze drifted over him. Andy took his jaw in her hands again. "I just can't believe it's you."

She leaned forward, kissing his face multiple times as she pulled him into another hug. Ben freely hugged her back. She didn't want to let him go, but reality was waiting for them.

"Well," Andy sniffed and cleared her throat, putting some space between them. She had to let go of Ben completely or risk being sucked into another hug and missing their chance to go home. "I should change, then we can get the hell out of the sixties."

"Right," Ben nodded. "Um, you change. I need to go talk to someone. Meet you out front in five minutes?"

"You got it."

As he raced off, Andy's smile returned. She doubted it'd fade any time soon.