Chapter 16
Ezra opened the dated fridge in Vin's kitchen and pulled out 3 bottles of beer. He wondered if Vin had anything stronger on hand. He wasn't sure who would need it more, Vin or Morgan.
He heard Vin's boots cross into the kitchen and Ezra closed the fridge. Ezra straightened and looked at Vin, knowing what was coming.
"A heads up woulda been nice," Vin said.
Ezra set aside the bottles and leaned a hip against the counter. "I hadn't expected to have backup in the club with me so soon."
Vin's jaw worked. He turned away from Ezra and started opening drawers until he found a bottle opener. He took a beer and pried the top off without a word, handing it to Ezra. He lifted the top off another and took a long drink before tossing the bottle opener towards the sink with unnecessary force. It hit the stainless steel hard enough that Ezra thought it might leave a dent.
Ezra didn't say anything. He took a drink of his own beer and pretended he wasn't concerned for the teammate that had become a close friend.
Vin took a long breath in, then paced into the living room. He took another drink before sinking down on the couch, exhaustion that looked more than physical in the movement. He set his drink aside and looked at Ezra, any frustration shoved aside, but Ezra could see the tension still running through the usually easy going man.
Ezra took the armchair and took another drink, watching Vin.
"We can't let anything happen to her," Vin said.
"We won't," Ezra promised. He had no idea how he was going to keep that promise.
Ezra's phone buzzed again and Ezra looked at it before turning it off.
"Chris?" Vin asked.
"Our fearless leader misses us." The text was more colorful than that, describing how much Chris would enjoy killing both Vin and Ezra for disappearing from the club without a word.
The sound of Vin's bedroom door opening had them both closing their mouths, pretending they were doing nothing more than unwinding with a beer when Morgan came into the room.
She had changed out of the suede fringed skirt and flimsy excuse for a top. Her lean frame was covered in an Army sweatshirt of Vin's, her long legs hidden in his flannel pajama pants that were several inches too long.
She looked between the two of them and Ezra knew she was trying to figure out how much they had said about her while she was out of the room.
Ezra went to the sink and got the abused bottle opener. He popped the top on the third beer and handed it to Morgan before taking his seat in the chair again.
Morgan took it but didn't take a drink. She set it aside, perching on the edge of the couch. "So what happens now?" she asked bluntly.
"Nothing," Ezra said. "If you're going to continue your employment there, we pretend we don't know one another and nothing changes." He glanced at Vin. Vin looked like he had everything under control, like he wasn't losing it finding out what Morgan was doing for a job.
Morgan's lips pressed together and she stared hard at Ezra. "And Buck?" she asked. Ezra didn't miss the way her fingers curled, her knuckles turning white.
Ezra didn't respond, he held Morgan's look evenly.
"Right," she said, more to herself than to Vin or Ezra. She set her shoulders. "Then how long until he has to know?"
Something in Ezra responded to the resignation underneath her stubborn exterior. He knew that look, that feeling. That it was only a matter of time before you let someone down no matter what you did.
"We may have days or months," Ezra said. "It depends on how my business proceeds forward with Blitz and the others."
Morgan ground her teeth together, but just nodded. She ran a hand through her hair, now loose from the braids she had it in earlier. "I—" she started and then stopped. She looked like the words were being dragged from her. "Just let me know when he's close to finding out," she said.
Ezra gave her a nod. He would do his best.
Rubbing her hands over her face, she closed her eyes. Opening them, she picked up her beer and chugged back a drink.
Ezra saw Vin looking at Morgan. He pulled out his phone and headed back into the kitchen, giving them space to talk.
Ezra looked at his phone. It may be best to call Chris before Chris came looking for them.
#
"I don't know, Buck," Chris fumed. "Neither one's answering."
"Can you trace their phones?" Buck asked JD.
JD looked at his computer screen and pulled up a program.
Buck paced away. Chris was thankful to be out of the surveillance van, frustration warring with worry that Vin and Ezra hadn't made it back to the office after their time at the club. The plan had been to rendezvous immediately after and get as much information from Ezra as they could immediately. Never mind the late hour.
Ezra may have blown off the plan if things changed during his meet, but Vin wouldn't have. Chris tried to think of any logical reason both men hadn't shown up for the three am meet up with the rest of the team.
Josiah was going through the tapes of Vin's last communication before they lost contact, listening for any hint of what happened. Nathan was going through surveillance footage JD had pulled up for him, but the club was strategically located, with no cameras on its back parking lot or front door.
Chris' phone rang and everyone looked at it.
Chris picked it up. "Yeah?"
"I see I missed several calls from you," Ezra's unruffled voice came through the line.
"You see…?" Chris couldn't get the rest of the words out. "Two of my undercovers went missing without a word and you noticed you missed some calls?" Chris exploded. "This isn't a dentist appointment that's inconvenient! You don't just call to reschedule!"
"Things happen," Ezra said. "Vin and I will be there in the morning."
"Ezra!" Chris yelled. "Standish!" he tried again, but he was yelling at a dead line. Ezra had disconnected.
The team was watching him and Chris started to talk, but frustration blocked his words. He fought for control. "Ezra and Vin are safe," he managed. "They'll be here in the morning."
The relief in the room was palpable. Chris let the relief of the other men remind him of what was important. Vin and Ezra were in one piece. Or at least they were until Chris got his hands on them.
There were times he wondered why he had asked Ezra to join Team 7. And then there were times he wondered how long it would be before the men of Team 7 gave him a heart attack.
#
Vin blinked awake. His neck hurt, and the light coming through his window was too bright. He never slept long enough for the full sunrise to pass him by.
With a groan, he shifted. He was on his couch. He blinked unfocused eyes. Ezra was asleep in his recliner.
The events of the previous night returned, filling in the blank sleep had provided. Vin looked around the room. Morgan was nowhere to be seen. With another look at Ezra, sound asleep, Vin got up.
His bedroom was empty, the pajamas Morgan had worn folded neatly and set on the end of his bed.
Vin went to his door, the dimly lit hallway was empty. He picked up speed, fully awake now, and jogged down the stairs, out the door to the parking lot.
Morgan was there.
She glanced over her shoulder when Vin came out of the building, but turned her attention back to the road she was watching.
"What are you doin' out here?" Vin asked. He didn't mention that she was back in her clothes from last night, standing barely clothed in a neighborhood that had more criminals to offer than safety.
"Waiting for my ride," Morgan said.
"I'll give you a ride," Vin said, hearing the disbelief in his voice. "You didn't have to call for a ride."
"I need to get my car and get back to Buck's. I work tonight."
At the mention of her job, Vin felt the coil of tension pull tighter. "Morgan," he started.
"Don't," she said, her voice sharp.
"Don't go back there," Vin said. "That job…you don't have to do that."
Morgan whirled to face him. "That's my job," she said fiercely. "I got that job and I'm not quitting. I let the senator take everything from me in Vegas. I lost everything! My job, school, my boyfriend, my friends…" Vin saw the fragile quiver in her jaw before she tightened it. "I'm not letting him take anything else from me. This is my job and I'm keeping it!"
Vin didn't know how to match her desperate logic. "Morgan," he started.
Morgan turned away from him, looking out towards the road again. "Cobra will be here soon. You don't have to wait with me."
Just hearing his name had Vin on edge. "I'll wait with you," he said. It took everything in him to not push Morgan. He knew she would shove him away if he forced it.
Morgan didn't say anything, so Vin took that as agreement. He looked at the goose bumps prickling her arms in the cool morning air. He slipped off his flannel shirt, figuring his jeans and t-shirt were still a lot more clothing than what Morgan was standing next to him wearing.
She started to pull away when he put the shirt over her shoulders.
"Just take it," he said, hearing the exhaustion in his voice. He didn't know if Morgan heard it and that's what made her agree, or if she was really that cold. He was just relieved he didn't have to fight her to take the warmth the shirt offered.
When Cobra pulled up in a beat up muscle car that sounded like it was missing a muffler, Morgan started toward the car. Then she surprised Vin by turning back to him.
"Thank you," she said. "For the pajamas and letting me crash on your couch and…everything," she said.
Before Vin could respond, Cobra yelled out the window. "Babe! Get in, I don't have all day!"
Morgan turned and got in. She didn't look back.
#
Buck took another long drink of coffee. Hopefully Ezra would show up, they could figure out what had gone wrong last night, and then Buck could go home and get more than the three hours of sleep he was currently running on.
Chris paced out of his office. Seeing no sign of Ezra or Vin, he clenched his jaw and went back into his office. Buck wondered if Chris had gotten any sleep. He was in the same clothes he had worn to the job last night and Buck had the suspicion Chris hadn't left the office for the few short hours they had been afforded before their nine am morning.
The distant ding of the elevator had everyone looking toward the entrance to the bullpen, but no one appeared, whoever was on the elevator apparently going to another office.
Buck put his headphones back on, hitting the playback on the audio from last night. The background noise made it hard to hear Vin and nearly impossible to hear anything else. But there was the sound of a voice, whoever Vin was talking to. Maybe JD could do something to clean up the audio, figure out what it was that had the sniper sounding like he had been caught off guard.
Chris ventured out of his office again, his face one step from murderous. But this time when the elevator dinged, footsteps approached the Team 7 bullpen.
Vin came through the doorway first.
Chris' ire wasn't reserved just for Ezra, judging by the way he strode toward Vin.
"Are you ok?" Chris asked through clenched teeth.
Vin gave a nod.
"Then would you mind telling me why you went radio silent last night?" Each word was bit off.
Vin fished his earpiece out of the pocket out of his jeans. "Just stopped workin'," he said. He went over to JD's desk and dropped the wire on it. "Something must be wrong with it."
JD took the earpiece and his eyes travelled over to Chris nervously.
"That doesn't explain you not showing up for debriefing after," Chris said.
Vin turned and faced Chris. But he didn't offer anything.
Buck had picked up on the tension that was already running between Chris and Vin before Ezra and Vin decided to skip out on them last night. Whatever Vin wasn't saying was only making it worse.
Chris came within a breath of Vin. He lowered his head and spoke in a deathly low tone that carried to Buck.
"You're throwing everything away ever since Morgan showed up." Vin tensed, but Chris continued. "If this is going to be a repeat of Charlotte, you can walk away from the team now. I need men I can trust."
Buck didn't want to feel the nudge of responsibility at the thought of Morgan destroying Vin. He knew what his sister was capable of, how her relationships ended up in flames. But Morgan had made it clear to Vin there was nothing between them. Buck had seen that with his own eyes, heard it with his own ears. And he had seen Morgan show up with that clown, whatever his name was. Python…Viper…? Cobra. That was it. Morgan had nothing to do with Vin and Ezra not showing up last night and Chris knew that.
"You sayin' you can't trust me?" Vin asked Chris quietly.
Buck silently willed Larabee to stop now. The team needed Vin.
Chris studied Vin. "Show me," he said. Then he turned and headed toward his office, nearly crashing into Ezra coming into the bullpen.
"Nice of you to grace us with your presence," Chris snapped on his way past Ezra.
Ezra didn't look rattled, he had plenty of experience being on the receiving end of Chris' wrath.
"Good morning," Ezra responded amiably and headed to his desk.
Chris' office door slammed in response.
#
"Can you drop me at my car?" Morgan asked again. She didn't bother trying to keep her voice level.
"I got another stop to make first," Cobra said.
Morgan pursed her lips against the argument she wanted to make. She had been up most the night, she was tired, she was hungry, she was fighting to hold back every emotion she had seen in Vin's eyes when he saw her at the club last night, and she just wanted to get her car and get away from everyone. Including Cobra. But he had stopped at Spike's first, gone inside to get some money his brother owed him. And now he was heading to another friend's house.
"I gotta get something here," Cobra said, pulling into the drive behind a rusted out van. He jogged inside, the front door closing behind him.
Morgan rested her head back against the seat. She closed her eyes, trying not to see that look on Vin's face every time she closed them. She opened them again. There was no sign of movement from inside the house.
Impatiently, she opened her car door and went up to the house. She gave a sharp knock on the door and opened it without waiting for a response.
Cobra finished sending the white line of powder up his nose before looking up at her.
"You're kidding, right?" Morgan asked. "You needed a fix?" She looked at the other men lounging in half conscious states around the living room. She tried not to show her discomfort at the drugs on open display.
"You want a hit?" Cobra asked.
Morgan clenched her jaw. "I want a ride," she snapped. She turned and slammed her way out the front door.
She wanted more than a ride. She wanted to make things right with Buck. With Chris. To be someone Vin deserved. To go back to college.
"Wait up," Cobra called behind her.
Morgan ignored him and kept walking, not sure where she was going.
"Wait!" he said.
And then his hand was on her arm. His fingers digging in as he turned her around. It was a move Chad had used on her time and time again and Morgan pulled at her arm, trying to get it free.
Cobra's pupils were dilated in spite of the bright sun, his grip almost vibrating. "Come back inside."
Morgan shook her head.
He tightened his grip.
"You're hurting me," she said, pulling at her arm again.
"Where are you gonna go?" he asked. "You walking back to the club? In those heels?" His words were fast, not waiting for an answer.
And Morgan didn't have an answer. She didn't even know where she was. And who was she going to call? She stared at Cobra, at the choice she had made.
"Come on, we're gonna get some food. You said you were tired. Max has a bed you can crash on."
Morgan relented. She let him pull her along toward the house. It wasn't like she had any better options. Food and rest would make things seem better, she told herself. It wasn't like they could get any worse.
She wished she believed that.
#
