"Sir, you can't be serious." Aram spoke nervously.
"I'm afraid I am," Cooper replied. "Either we drop this case or the taskforce gets decommissioned."
"So White House counsel is just going to look the other way?" Meera scoffed. "After they took Agent Keen and Ressler?"
"Not to mention all of the agents they injured." Samar added bitterly.
"They're worried Halcyon has too much dirt on them. Though I imagine they're not too thrilled about submitting to a private military company." Cooper concluded.
"Of course, they're not!" Reddington exclaimed with a laugh as he walked into the office with Dembe close behind. "And that's exactly the kind of kindred condemnation from the government we need to take advantage of."
"How so?" Cooper asked.
"The only reason they want you to drop this case is that your taskforce is attached to the government. It's bad enough they made a deal with me." Reddington explained. "One slip-up and they'll take the blame."
"So...we should work outside of the taskforce?" Aram pondered. "How do we do that?"
"Agent Mojtabai, you're not suggesting we discuss sabotaging a private company! That would be illegal!" Reddington replied with feigned surprise. "And in front of Assistant Director Cooper, no less!"
Samar could only roll her eyes as Meera scoffed. Cooper merely sighed and cleaned his glasses.
"Oh," Aram blushed. "No…of course not.."
"I'll get back to you with a more…acceptable solution." Reddington said with a grin as he exited the office.
Ressler sat at the edge of the bed, stealing furtive glances at Liz, who was digging through the cupboards in the kitchenette.
He didn't know whether to share his most recent memory or not. On one hand, it could coincide with something she may have remembered and they could learn something about their past. On the other, it could lead to her being suspicious of him. Her trust was the one thing he was sure he had right now. It wasn't exactly smart to put that in danger. Whatever the case, he knew one thing. There was more to Tom than what they know.
"You alright?" Liz asked.
Ressler snapped out of his thoughts and defaulted to a grin and a nod. "Yeah. Just…still waking up a bit."
"Well, drink some coffee." She chuckled. "You're the only one I trust here, I need you on your toes."
Ressler grinned and stood to make himself a cup of coffee, his mind clashing against itself at her words. Staring at the steaming cup, he took a deep breath and turned back to face her.
"Liz, listen, I—"
A sharp knock on the door interrupted him and the nerves he had struggled to build up to tell her came crashing down. Liz looked at him, then at the door, then back at him. Clearly, she had heard him.
"What is it?" She asked, maintaining eye contact with him.
Another set of knocks erupted against the door.
Ressler sighed as he set his coffee on the counter and went to answer the door. "It can wait." He grumbled.
Samar sighed as she walked into the fancy hotel room. Reddington had given each of them a large pepperoni pizza with a note instructing them to come to the address. She wasn't exactly fond of the situation and how they had to work behind the bureau's back, but she understood.
"So how exactly are we supposed to find Liz?" Samar asked, her arms crossed as she sat on the couch and propped her legs up on the coffee table.
Reddington plopped down a pile of folders by her feet with a pompous smile. "Matias Solomon."
"The fugitive that killed those US Marshals?" Meera asked as she gratefully accepted a cup of tea from Dembe.
"The very same." Reddington answered. "Though, the victims may have a different definition of 'US Marshal.'"
"What does that mean?" Aram asked, fidgeting and not knowing how to sit comfortably on the fancy furniture.
"Solomon was a former operative of Halcyon, though I doubt you'd find him in their official records." Red explained. "Those marshals weren't taking him into custody…they were going to execute him."
"Let me guess," Samar spoke up. "Halcyon's men?"
Reddington nodded, and the taskforce shared concerned looks, realizing the extent of the company's reach.
"You know where he is?" Meera questioned in surprise.
Reddington nodded. "This morning, he made contact with my people to arrange safe passage to Morocco. It'll be easy enough to bring him to another location and interrogate him."
"You think he'll hate Halcyon enough to give us information?" Samar asked.
"I know I would. And if he doesn't, I can always call Brimley." He said, giving Dembe a look.
With a smile, Reddington got up and went into the kitchen, leaving everyone else to anticipate his plans in silence. He began pouring himself a glass of wine until he noticed Samar behind him.
"Can I ask you something?" She asked, her eyes unreadable.
He looked back at her expectantly.
"Liz and Ressler. How is it that you knew where they were?"
"Agent Navabi, I'm sure you know by now that I always have my ear to the ground." Red replied.
"And your finger on the pulse." Samar said, keeping her eyes trained on his.
He merely smiled and went back to pouring his wine.
Liz bit her lip in anticipation as Ressler slowly made his way between the bars. The physical therapy for his leg had been a hard road to recovery, but she made it a point to see him every step of the way.
She watched his leg shaking as he forced himself to put weight on it, only having his hands positioned above the bars. He made it about halfway through before his stability broke and he was forced to lean on the bars. She could see the frustration coming from his clenched jaw. He exhaled heavily, wiping the sweat from his brow, and shook his head.
His eyes then found hers and she gave him an encouraging smile and a nod. He looked back down at his feet, clearly steeling himself as he took a deep breath and made his way along the bars.
She watched suspiciously as Alice scribbled across the papers on her clipboard, standing next to Ressler, who wore a blood pressure cuff and was sitting patiently on the exam table. They were apparently 'under observation'.
Liz realized just how familiar it felt. Sitting in the same room as Ressler was evaluated by a medical professional. She smiled faintly when the words, 'This idiot needs to learn how to be careful,' found a familiar place in her mind.
"Any problems?" Alice asked.
"I got shot." He deadpanned.
"Can I see?" She asked, not looking away from her notes.
Hesitantly, he reached up and pulled the collar of his t-shirt down, revealing the scar that seemed to have been there for years. Alice reached towards the scar, running her fingers over it. All the while, Ressler was looking up at the ceiling, clearly waiting for the check-up to end.
"Is this all we're doing while we're here?" Liz asked, a little irritated. "Check-ups and observations?"
Alice turned towards Liz, pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose.
"We have to be careful." She apologized in a quiet tone. "This is all I can do to keep them from moving forward right now."
"Moving forward?" Liz asked, standing from her seat and walking towards the other two. "With what?"
"Making someone else like you," she said, turning to Ressler. "Someone more willing. Someone they can control."
"How much of that do you actually know about?" Ressler asked, his eyes narrowing.
"About Halcyon's plans?"
"About making someone like me." He said, standing from the exam table and walking up close to Alice.
She looked at him intensely, dredging up the courage to answer, until the door to the room opened and Tom walked in.
"How are they, Doc?" He asked, a little too cheerfully.
Liz rolled her eyes at the grating sound of his voice. She didn't want to look at him, and instead kept her eyes on Ressler, who clenched his jaw and stepped back from the doctor.
"Still a few things to look over, but so far so good." Alice replied in a seamless, cheery tone.
Tom frowned. "How much longer do you need?"
Alice grit her teeth, but managed to smile through it. "I'm doing my best. I'm all alone here and I don't want to take any risks."
Tom replied with a suspicious glare, but said nothing more to her. Instead, he turned to Liz and plastered on a smile.
"Liz, can we talk?" He asked. "Alone?"
Liz groaned inwardly. The last thing she wanted to do was see him, much less talk to him. She wasn't sure if it was the betrayal or the way he still expected her to run back into his arms, but the sight of him made her want to punch something. And yet, she knew that whatever honey-soaked words he was going to say to her, something in her head was going to eat it up. And it pissed her off to no end.
Of course, she knew it was the only way to get rid of him. She glanced at Ressler, who raised an eyebrow and gave an almost unnoticeable nod towards Alice. Liz knew she had to talk to Tom so that Ressler could learn more about their situation. With an exasperated sigh, she followed Tom out of the room.
Ressler stared at Liz's back as she disappeared through the door.
"Don't worry," Alice said. "She'll be okay."
"And you know that how?" Ressler challenged.
"Despite what he's done, he really cares about her." She looked at him, as if she were trying to read him. "I can tell."
Ressler looked away with an exhale. "You were saying - about Halcyon? About making someone like me."
She gave him another look, clearly noticing the clunky transition to a different topic. "There's not much to say. They don't know how. That's why you two are here." she trailed off, and turned her back to him, writing on her notes. "Reverse engineering."
"What do you mean they don't know? Didn't they do it in the first place?" He scoffed.
"Only the doctor who led the procedure knew. Doctor Gideon Carter." She said in a solemn tone.
"So where is he?"
"He's dead."
Liz sighed and crossed her arms as she walked out the door. "What is it?"
"Look, I know you don't believe a single word I say, and I get that. I broke your trust and I'm sorry." Tom began, looking around the empty hallway. "But…here."
He held out his hand, extending what looked to be a keycard. Liz took it cautiously, looking it over.
"I'm hoping this'll at least get you in the direction of trusting me." He whispered.
"...What's this for?" She asked, searching his eyes.
"Subfloor 3. End of the hall to the right. You're gonna want to wait until Thursday and get there at around two in the morning. Security won't be too tight." Tom explained quietly. "I'll try to keep them away from you but…I can't help you much if you get caught."
Liz furrowed her brows. She ran her thumb over the pristine, black keycard as her eyes found his. She saw nothing but sincerity in his eyes and she didn't know if he was being truthful or if he was that good of an actor, but she hated how she felt at the gesture.
"Regardless of what you think, I care about you, Liz." Tom admitted. "I'm gonna make this right."
She could only watch speechlessly as he walked away.
When Liz walked back into the examination room, Ressler was quick to greet her.
"Everything okay?" He asked, his voice projecting its usual stoicism but his eyes showed his concern.
"Yeah. Fine." She said with a nod. She then lowered her voice, looking over at Alice, who sat at her desk focusing on her computer. "Tom gave me this." Liz handed him the keycard.
He turned it over in his hand, feeling the sleek plastic the surrounded that magnetic card.
"What's it for?"
"One of the doors here. Told me to go down there at 2 in the morning on Thursday." She explained. "He didn't tell me what's inside."
He eyed the object pensively then handed it back to her. "Then we've got two days…Let's talk about it later. You need to see this."
She followed him as he stepped towards Alice, who had turned around in her chair. Displayed on the screen were what Liz recognized to be two brain scans side by side.
"What is this?" She asked.
"These are MRIs of your brains." Alice said. She then pointed at the white masses that adorned their brains. "These things here…they're tumors."
Liz felt her breath catch at Alice's words. Her eyes widened as they glided across the screen, counting each one. She didn't miss the fact that they were in identical places.
"That's…That's in our heads?" She asked in disbelief.
Alice nodded, silent and melancholy.
"They seem to be harmless." She placated. "So you shouldn't worry too much about them."
Liz swallowed thickly and nodded, attempting to put a smile on her face. At least there was that.
"So…why are they there?" She asked weakly.
"From what I know, they don't really serve much purpose." Alice admitted. "But…"
"But what?" Liz demanded.
"The number of tumors corresponds to the number of times Don has…died."
Liz looked at each one, and sure enough, Alice pointed to six different masses. Each one nestled in the depths of their brains. She clenched her jaw at the sight. It was certainly jarring. Inhuman and impossible. But that wasn't what shook her the most. She realized that Reddington had lied to her. Again.
Alice showed them another similarity in their hearts and Liz couldn't quite keep her mind on it. Only the betrayal she was feeling and the anger that followed.
The day went on with more scans and tests and both Liz and Ressler realized that Alice was buying time for them, clearly trying to stave off the inevitable 'experiments' that she had warned them about. It was then that they finally recognized that she really was trying to help them, which felt rare in their current fugitive state.
Just before they were sent back to their room, Liz stopped Alice and showed her the keycard.
"Tom gave this to me." She explained. "Do you know anything about the room? It's on—"
"Subfloor 3. At the end of the hall, to the right." She interjected with wide eyes.
Pushing her glasses up her nose, she held the card and inspected it with scrutinizing interest.
"So you know about it?" Liz asked.
Alice nodded, turning to Ressler. "This opens Dr. Carter's office."
Liz looked at him, confused.
"He's the lead doctor who did…this…to us." He explained.
"The company's been looking for this thing since he died." Alice pondered. "And Tom had it the whole time?"
Liz couldn't help but notice what she said. 'Since he died…' Clearly, Ressler recognized it, placing a hand on her shoulder and giving her a squeeze. She shook the thought off for the moment, though she gave him a quick smile.
"Doesn't the company own this facility? Why didn't they just open it themselves?" Ressler asked.
"Dr. Carter was an extremely gifted scientist. But he was also very paranoid. He didn't want anyone to know much about his research, so he rigged his office with a sort of…self-destruct mechanism." Alice disclosed.
"Self-destruct?" Liz scoffed in disbelief.
Alice nodded. "If anyone forced themselves in, they'd be incinerated. Along with all his research. This keycard is the only way in." She handed the card back to Liz. "There's gotta be a reason why Tom had it and never used it."
"And gave it to you." Ressler added cautiously.
"He told me he wanted me to trust him." Liz said bitterly, keeping her eyes on the black card. "He said he wanted to make things right."
The three of them stood silently, pondering the implications of Tom's actions and the possibility of finding answers until Alice dismissed them.
"If you two decide to snoop in there, let me know." She said. "Maybe I can help figure out what's important in there."
Liz nodded and followed Ressler back into their room. When they entered, she almost walked into him standing at the entrance, and was confused until she saw the room.
No longer was there a queen-sized bed in the middle of the room. Instead there were two twin beds laid out with a nightstand in-between them. They shared a look and shrugged, though Liz felt a little annoyed that Tom acted like he had the right to be jealous about her sleeping next to another man. She merely shook her head in irritation and began getting ready for bed.
"Liz." Ressler called out as he stayed by the door.
She turned from in front of the bathroom and looked at him expectantly.
"About Tom… there's something I need to tell you." He broached.
"What is it?" She asked, walking back towards him.
He took a deep breath and looked at her, almost nervously. "I remembered something this morning. I think it might have been how we met."
"What does Tom have to do with that?" She questioned insistently.
"It seemed like he was my C.I." He said. "Told me that if I wanted to find Reddington, I should start with you."
Liz was floored by the revelation. Not only did Tom know about her connection to Reddington, his involvement with what happened to her and Ressler was deeper than they thought. Assuming the memory was true, of course, but it seemed too specific to be fake.
"I'm sorry, Liz." Ressler apologized.
Her eyebrows raised in surprise. "For what?"
"Not telling you sooner…And assuming it's true, it means I got close to you just to find Reddington." He said quietly. "I'm sorry."
He was right. Liz realized it then. Whether or not it turned into something else, their closeness began as an assignment. Just like Tom. She couldn't think of anything to say to Ressler. Too much went on in her mind, and she didn't want to say anything she was going to regret. Instead, she stared at him for a moment, before walking into the bathroom and shutting the door.
He didn't know how long he had been restlessly asleep. What felt like hours of contemplation brought him there more suddenly than he could have expected. Drowsily, he could just hear the soft squeak of a door closing behind him in the cold darkness of the room. He was still asleep, but just slightly became aware of the way his sheets were pulled back and the cold rushed around him. It didn't last, however, as a weight settled upon the bed; the sheets fell back in place and returned their warmth, but not without the addition of careful movements in front of him and the smell of shampoo wafting and teasing his senses.
Drawn by the sweet scent, his nose nuzzled sleepily into soft, cool locks. Instinctively his arm wrapped around her and pulled her close. The last thing he heard was a satisfied sigh before he drifted back to sleep.