Chapter 59: The Signal

The signal had popped up at the last possible moment.

Well.

Almost.

They had until morning for anything to come up, before he and Jacobs were to be shipped out permanently.

Shutters closed.

Two weeks earlier, Daniels had come to them with another angle to approach things from. MI6 was trying desperately to flush out Raab's continuing operation – even though the man was dead, someone else was still obviously calling the shots. Whether that was an opportunistic worker, or someone else, they didn't know.

They just didn't have the right intelligence.

So, someone – probably from DINI – had come up with the brilliant idea to make it seem like the MI6 presence had been pulled from the country. All by stirring up some international controversy.

DINI was more than happy to paint MI6 in the bad light – as they needed some better publicity – and well, MI6 was willing to take the fall because it was their only option to move forward. And in order to sell it completely, it was essential that everyone that had been involved with Alex become officially dead.

Deader than dead.

Which really, put them in a slightly awkward position if they ever tried to get out of the country without clearance. But both Cameron and Jacobs knew that they weren't going to voluntarily leave the country until they had Alex back with them – dead or alive, at this point. MI6 was going to have to drag them away against their will – and that deadline was steadily getting closer.

It was hard to consider that they were probably looking for a body at this point. It had been weeks, after all.

The days had ticked by and little was gained.

A few names, here and there.

Emmerson.

The doctor's name.

The other name.

But it all added up to nothing but smoke.

There was nothing to connect the names with any activity within the country.

All they knew was that there was still an active operation somewhere in Lima – and neither DINI nor MI6 could get a grasp on where it was.

After two weeks, MI6 had reached the end of its operational capacity. They were scheduled to get sent back in the morning, with nothing to show for their work.

Cameron dreaded the eventual reunion with Nico – who so far, had been completely shut out of any updates. He had probably even received their death notification, though Daniels had said he would do his best to keep that notification on the down low. Nico didn't need anything more to set him in a spiral, not with his current injuries.

Then, just after midnight, Daniels had burst into their room, shouting at them to get up and get going. Someone had uploaded a data burst and had included an oh so helpful geotag that was not even an hour away from their location. In one of the industrial sectors, but no where near where any of their previous searches had brought them.

Cameron knew it had to be Alex.

No one else – alive – had known about the website.

And it wasn't likely to be a trap either.

Not with what the data burst had included.

Confidential information that detailed the exact chemical composition of the drugs the Puppet Master had been working with. The detailed studies on human subjects – eerily referred to as subject zero and subject one – and the resultant side effects and outcomes. Cameron had hardly been privy to any of the details, but he knew enough to know that whatever had happened in that location was not pretty.

Cameron tapped his fingers against his legs, as the van pulled up to the entrance nearest to the geotag.

It was definitely an industrial sector. The streets were dirt and uneven, and there were more than a few half-completed buildings in the area. The entrance was nothing remarkable, but the door wasn't closed securely.

The hair on the back of Cameron's neck prickled.

That wasn't right.

Not for this area of the city.

Another team had been called in – L-unit, who Cameron had met one or twice when they had been on the same South American deployment – as well as a team from DINI. The DINI team pulled up behind them.

L-unit led the charge out of the van and into a perimeter around the door.

Everyone knew their job and Cameron and Jacobs were just the unlucky hangers on.

It felt wrong to not have the other half of his team backing him up.

The young DINI leader led the way through the door, shouting out commands as they entered.

Obviously, the stealth approach was not what was desired here.

It was also the middle of the night.

Cameron stepped through the door with his gun raised, almost itching for a fight. Itching to be able to do something to the people that had had Alex. The people who had killed Mickey. The people who had maimed Nico.

The scene that greeted him on the other side was not what he had expected.

It was absolute carnage.

Bodies were sprawled across the grounds in the aftermath of what could only be described as a shootout.

Someone had mowed down through the guards with merciless accuracy. Few had killing shots – in fact, many of the men were alive. They had been taken out with disabling shots.

The DINI agent sidled up beside Cameron. "Locals reported gunfire thirty minutes ago." He re-holstered his gun and cast a long glance at the carnage in front of them. "Lasted about three minutes."

It spoke of a professional. Someone who knew exactly what they were doing.

"Rival?" Cameron asked. If it was just gang activity… His chest hurt at the possibility that their tip had washed out.

The DINI agent shook his head. "No… They wouldn't have left them alive." He nodded toward the building across the courtyard, where a door was flapping in the breeze. "We're sending a team inside, but… I don't expect we'll find much."

Cameron sighed.

Too much to hope for.

There was a shout from across the yard, and one of the other DINI agents waved them over. He was leaning over one of the few casualties – one of the intentional ones. Cameron grimaced at the blood spatter and the obvious head kill shot. Someone wanted this man dead.

"This is your leader," the DINI agent said, carefully picking through the pockets of the corpse. "The others are spread out in protective positions around him. He only has a pistol; they all have larger guns." Those that hadn't mysteriously lost their guns in the process of the fight. "And well… obviously European."

Which fit the limited profile they had developed of the leader. Whether he was just opportunistic, or Raab had had them following the wrong trail for too long, was unknown.

But what had happened…

"Take your team and go over the inside. We'll secure the scene out here."

Cameron nodded. He wasn't going to argue jurisdiction with the locals.

He just wanted to find Alex.

He waved at Jacobs and L-unit, pointing wordlessly toward the door. "Let's clear the building."

And maybe, just maybe, they would find Alex.

Or some sign that he had been there.

It seemed too much to hope for at this point.

The inside had been frustratingly vacant.

It seemed that all the guards had either rushed to the aide of the man outside or had bailed ship once the shooting started.

There were few signs of any internal security – the most they had come across was what looked like it had been an observation room, but all the computers were dead. And even L-unit's tech couldn't get anything to work.

The power had been cut somewhere.

The only find of interest was a terrified looking scientist zip tied to a chair and shoved in a corner.

There were signs that some sort of explosive device had been used on one of the doors into the room they found him in, but no one had managed to get anything out of the man. He spoke a language that none of them knew – Scandinavian or Slavic of some sort, Cameron wasn't versed in recognizing languages other than Spanish, French, or German – and didn't even seem to understand English.

How he had ended up there and what he knew would be a mystery until they found someone to translate for him. And probably interrogate him in-depth.

"Cougar, report."

Cameron startled – he hadn't expected to hear his codename used, much less asked to make the report. But DINI had seemed to be deferring to him, so… He shared a reluctant glance with the leader of L-unit before answering. "Cougar, here. One potential hostile located. Translator needed though. Building otherwise clear so far."

"Your unit will return to the courtyard. Fox wants to speak with you. L-unit can continue the search."

Cameron blinked. His unit. It was only him and Jacobs, nowadays. He swallowed thickly. "Received." The comm clicked off and he let his eyes meet Jacobs'. His unit was no more. It was just them, here on a whim because Daniels seemed to understand how they couldn't just settle for being sent away.

L-unit's leader gave a sharp nod. "We'll take the scientist and finish up here." You can deal with the spook, was unspoken. Daniels was an unknown quantity for them. At least for Cameron he had an idea of what to expect – absolutely nothing.

Cameron jerked a nod in Jacobs' direction and led the way back through the building. It probably wasn't the fastest way back, but he knew it would take them to the same door they had come in. The room the scientist had been had a secondary door that led a set of narrow corridors, but as far as they could tell, there wasn't anyone hiding out in there.

No telling where it led either, but Cameron had a hunch that it led back out to the courtyard.

Everything connected in the building.

Outside, someone had set up several large flood lights and a team of investigators were spread out across the courtyard. The injured and still living were being triaged and processed, and the obvious dead were being carefully catalogued.

There were fewer dead than Cameron had realized, though quite a few seriously wounded.

The DINI agent waved them back over to the gate, ushering them toward the van. "Fox says they have a situation back at your base and requested your presence." He shrugged slightly. "Didn't give any more detail than that. Hernán will drive you back."

Cameron chewed on his lip for a moment, but there wasn't any point in arguing.

There wasn't anything here.

They hadn't even found signs of long-term containment – or torture. Just labs and medical equipment.

They weren't likely to stumble across Alex.

And, well, if Daniels wanted them back at the embassy… then he had to have a reason for it.

Even if he was being infuriatingly cryptic.

Cameron climbed in to the back of the van and Jacobs settled beside him. The van lurched into movement, hardly waiting for them to settle.

"He could have gotten out," Jacobs said quietly. "They were chasing someone."

Cameron jerked his head in a nod. But there had been too many bodies. It just wasn't possible that Alex could have won against those odds. Given the state of the courtyard, it was impressive that there hadn't been a blood trail leading out of the door.

It was entirely possible that the person they were targeting had been one of the many casualties.

Infighting.

Someone wanted a better cut of the paycheck.

But no Alex.

Cameron let his eyes fall shut. It would be at least a thirty-minute ride back to the embassy. It would do no good to think on fantastical possibilities.

They had lost their one chance.

Cameron's legs gave out from underneath him. Thankfully, Daniels had seen to insist that they go to a room that had chairs and he collapsed into one of the waiting chairs.

"W-what?" He croaked out, not believing what he had just heard. But the signs were there. Daniels' clothes were rumpled and blood-stained – not at all what would have been expected for someone that had stayed behind in the relative safety of the embassy.

"Alex and Mickey escaped," Daniels said, slowly, as if he still didn't quite believe it himself. "They came here. The embassy medical team is seeing to them both. Mickey is already being transferred to a hospital for treatment, but Alex might be able to be stabilized on site."

They were alive.

Both of them.

Alex.

And.

Mickey.

"Transferred?" Jacobs sounded just as disbelieving.

"Gunshot wound," Daniels settled into a chair across from them and rubbed a hand at his forehead. "He lost a considerable amount of blood, but the lead doctor here assured me that he'll be fine within a few days."

They were here.

Had been here.

Cameron tried to wrap his mind around it.

His unit was alive.

"They're… okay?"

Daniels' eyes jerked up, until they met Cameron's. "Yes."

He could feel the almost hysterical laughter bubbling up. "That was… that was Mickey's work." The data dump and geotagged location. He hadn't expected to make it out of the building alive, but had done his best to send a blaring signal.

Jacobs' eyes widened and he nodded as well. "He sabotaged them."

Daniels raised an eyebrow. "The message?"

"Mickey, and I guess Alex, were the only other ones that knew about the website. And while Alex is smart and could've uploaded things…" Cameron shook his head. "I doubt he would've found the information in the first place. Or thought of geotagging it – that's purely Mickey." Alex was always so keen on keeping his cards as close to his chest as possible. And if he had known about geotagging an upload, he would have likely tried that when he made the mass audio upload.

Which meant that Mickey and Alex were responsible for the carnage in the courtyard.

Only, Mickey should've been shooting to kill. That was his training.

They had found several dead guards on the inside. Only the scientist had been alive. But the courtyard was a different story…

"And Alex is okay?"

A pensive expression crossed Ben's face. "Okay is… relative. Physically, he didn't appear to be in immediate danger. He did more or less collapse once they reached safety though – the doctor on-site will make the determination as to whether he'll stay here or be moved. Obviously, he'll be more protected here than in the city hospital. Mickey will be moved back as soon as he's stable, as well."

So… not shot.

That was… good.

Cameron ran a hand through his hair.

Were they really ever going to go back to active duty?

Even with Mickey alive, they were still down Nico.

Nico.

"Can we… someone needs to let Nico know."

Daniels nodded carefully. "As soon as I have confirmation from the doctor, I'll make sure the message gets passed along."

They hadn't had contact with him in over two weeks, but the last contact had been quite… difficult. Nico had been spiraling and there had been little they could do to help.

They had all been spiraling with the loss of their teammate and charge.

But now…

"A team is going through the data upload to see if there's anything that might change the urgency of the situation, but—" A sharp knock at the door interrupted Daniels. "Come in!"

An aide peeked through door and gave a cautious glance at their presence. "Sir?"

"Yes?"

He eyed them for a moment longer, but apparently decided that Daniels had given him permission. "Dr. Markham wanted to let you know that the boy will be staying here for the night. The other has already been transported out with the diplomatic unit."

"Thank you." Daniels waved the aide out of the room, before turning to Cameron and Jacobs. "I'm assuming you'd like to see Alex then. I can't let you off embassy though, so you'll have to wait on Mickey until he's cleared to return."

At this point, Cameron was willing to take just about anything.

Anything that would make it stop feeling like he was caught up in some fantastical dream.

He and Jacobs followed Daniels through the halls, toward the medical unit they hadn't stepped foot in once during their stay.

It was small, with only two beds. One was curtained off from the rest of the room. Daniels hesitated, but Cameron had no such reservations. He pressed forward, pulling the curtain to the side just enough to get through. He wouldn't begrudge Alex his privacy, not now.

And there he was.

Whole.

In one piece.

Alive.

Someone had taken the time to clean at least some of the dirt, grime, and blood off him, but there were still plenty of signs of his ordeal. Of his weeks away.

Old, fading bruises.

Matted and dirty hair.

A gauntness to his face that hadn't been there before.

But he was alive.

Safe.

Cameron sank into one of the chairs by the bedside and was only marginally aware of Jacobs doing the same. He wanted to reach out a hand to touch, but was afraid of shattering the illusion.

"They gave him a sedative," Daniels said quietly, joining them by Alex's bedside. "Dehydrated and malnourished, but otherwise no immediate concerns."

There was no telling how that might change as they learned more about what happened during his captivity, but…

Cameron took a deep breath. That would be for later. "We'll keep an eye on him."

The corner of Daniels' mouth quirked. "And I'll just forget you're not supposed to carry weapons here." He cast a glance over his shoulder. "I'll let you know as soon as I have word on Mickey."

Cameron settled back into the chair, eyes alert for anything out of the ordinary, Jacobs taking up a similar stance.

He wasn't about to relax until they were all under one roof again.

It was a miracle it was even possible.

A/N: And they're all (almost) back together! Looks like Alex may have finally caught a break. Or has he? Okay, seriously though, this story is wrapping up. Two chapters to go, I believe.