The Short Game
Story 6
Author's Note: So, I'm finally getting to the part of the story I wanted to have in the last section and got in too deep with Ressler and Liz to get there! The songs referenced are Thinking Out Loud, I See Fire and Tenerife Sea by Ed Sheeran.
This part is a continuation of the last chapter.
Please leave a review.
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Donald Ressler hated Gideon Clement and his wife Mira and all they stood for, but, like any good undercover operation, whether it was bikers, or international arms dealers, he needed to pretend he liked them. Knowing they were trafficking young girls to marry old lecherous men with the promise of life eternal made his stomach queasy. Their interest in their staff cabins, with the knowledge Ressler and Liz had of them, was obvious. They were looking for a New Mexico connection and thought Caleb and Skylar Watson were the people they needed. Caleb had arranged for a bonfire their first night and, as luck would have it, another one of the FBI agents posing as a farm hand, could play the guitar so there wasn't just Don and his guitar for entertainment. Liz had heard him play a few times, but never as long as this, and with every chord and strum she felt she fell more and more in love with him. He had always said it relaxed him and she could see why; it was peaceful to listen to him play with a fire in front of them, the trees moving in the breeze, and the sky filled with stars.
The fire was roaring, and Don was playing Thinking Out Loud on his acoustic guitar with Hailey and they were doing a good job of it, having never played together before. They had warmed up with some Johnny Cash, Beatles, and Keith Urban, songs every person who played guitar knew. He listened to Liz talking to Gideon and his wife about how as a young prostitute she was directionless and wished she had good people like them to give her more guidance. They were buying it hook line and sinker. He was happy that, in this operation, Liz was the hard sell. It gave him a chance to watch her in action and she was good. Despite her child missing, despite the chaos that was her life, and that he added to it, she was a fantastic agent. She had spoken extensively with the task force and Tom earlier that day and nothing new had happened with Agnes, their plan, if something did happen, was an out-of-state friend in an accident and dying that she needed to leave to see immediately.
"Caleb, you should dance with this beautiful bride of yours," Gideon said. "Shame to waste a night like this with you entertaining us."
Don smiled and placed his guitar against the bench he had been sitting on and reached for Liz as Hailey started to strum her first notes.
He pulled her close and they swayed together, her hand in his, and his hand firmly on her waist as she played with the fine hairs on the back of his neck and looked at him with moon eyes. He smiled down at her and tried to place the song. It was almost a minute in before he caught it, Hailey had stayed with Sheeran.
"If this is to end in fire, then we should all burn together," Don hummed into her ear.
Liz smiled, but thought, considering the murder suicide and their earlier talk about murder suicide, the song was slightly morbid. She closed her eyes and rested her head against his chest, feeling his steady heartbeat under her face. A couple of other FBI agent/farm hands got up and danced as well, and soon were followed by Gideon and Mira who looked old and stiff in their movements compared to the two other couples dancing. Which, Don thought, was ironic. They were married, and had been probably most of their lives and should be the most comfortable with each other but they were not. It was the religion, the fear of god, and the wrath of Satan if they enjoyed anything too much that probably held them back and made them stiff in each other's arms.
The couple had yet to ask Don and Liz about taking in young girls until they could safely be transferred to their old husbands but, Don imagined, that was why they were here for a few days. Don had given Gideon a tour of their small farm and Gideon seemed most interested in the farm quarters and how often they were empty rather than the actual operation of the farm. He had yet to find out from Liz how she and Mira had spent their time together, but most of it, it seemed, had been spent preparing the food for dinner. Don hoped Liz faked some type of ability in the kitchen, so Mira didn't catch on that she knew less than nothing about cooking.
Hailey rounded out the Ed Sheeran tri-factor with Tenerife Sea and it was during this song that Don saw Mira yawn, thankfully, their evening with the couple was coming to an end. All of the bugs had been turned on in their living spaces and Gideon and Mira's room. It was a slight violation of the visitor's privacy, but they had got a judge to agree to it and, based on their dancing, Don wasn't thinking there was going to be any action in that room that they needed to worry about.
"All that you are, is all that I'll ever need," Don whispered the song lyric into Liz's ear.
She leaned back and kissed him, surprising not only Don, but the other FBI agent 'couple' dancing nearby. Don caught Mira smiling at them. He cleared his throat when they parted and Liz's face, slightly pink, got buried in his chest. He pulled her a little closer and kissed the back of her head. When the song ended Don pulled away from her and looked at their guests.
"Sorry, life here starts early, and we need to get to bed," he said with a smile. "But please stay and enjoy the fire and…"
"No, we'll head in as well," Mira said as she stifled another yawn. "We've been driving a lot lately and it wears on you."
Liz smiled at her, and Don turned to the farm hands.
"Make sure that's out before you leave," he said with a nod to the fire.
They all nodded back, and Don wrapped an arm around Liz's shoulder and walked into the house with her, with Gideon and Mira walking beside them.
"This is god's land," Gideon said as he looked around.
"It is," Don agreed. "The stars are partially blocked by cloud cover tonight. On a clear night…they're endless."
Gideon smiled at the young man and nodded.
"Like the work we need to do in his name," Gideon smiled. "Endless."
"Amen," Mira said loudly.
Liz smiled at her and nodded, and Mira took Liz's hand tightly in hers and nodded.
"If every star is a soul saved, then it is endless work," Liz smiled at her.
Gideon stopped walking. Don and Liz took another two steps before they realized he was no longer walking with them.
"Gideon?" Don asked as he turned to look at the man.
"Skylar said that beautifully," he said. "I was thinking something similar while sitting around the fire just now. It's like…"
"We are on the same path?" Liz asked him.
"I think so, sister," Gideon smiled at them. "I think so."
Don and Liz nodded, and the two couples went inside. They gave Gideon and Mira towels and extra blankets and told them to get whatever they needed from the washroom or the kitchen. That their home was open to the couple. Gideon and Mira thanked them and closed their door to go to bed.
"You and Mira enjoy making the meal?" Don asked Liz as they walked toward their bedroom.
"You know I have never got particularly good in the kitchen," Liz sighed. "Even after all these years, you are a far better cook than I am."
Don smiled at her. "You're learning."
They went into their bedroom and shut the door, knowing the walls were thin, and that any conversation they were to have about the couple was to happen in the closet on the farthest wall away from the hallway.
Don opened the closet door and threw his shirt in the hamper as Liz changed out of her jeans and into her pajamas. He walked up behind her as she was standing in just the top and her underpants and wrapped his arms around her from behind.
"You're good like this," he said into her ear.
"We have guests Caleb," Liz said as she turned in his arms and smiled at him as her hands skimmed his chest teasingly. "What if they need something in the middle of the night?"
"What if I do?" Don asked as his hand dropped under the edge of the back of her underpants and onto her bare ass.
Liz gave him a wicked smile and pushed his half-undone jeans down to the floor with a whoosh. She leaned in close to his ear.
"We need to talk," Liz whispered.
Don nodded and picked up his jeans and carried them to the hamper with her trailing behind him. They stepped into the small closet space, closed the door, and turned on the mic that was sitting hidden in the closet waiting for activation.
"She gave me a drink to help me get pregnant," Liz said as her eyes looked toward Don.
"What do you mean? She gave you something and you have no idea what was in it?" Don asked, suddenly worried.
"She told me as I was drinking it and I couldn't…stop, because Skylar wants to get pregnant," Liz said.
"Do you feel okay?" Don asked her.
"Fine, it was probably some type of cinnamon honey tea or something," Liz said.
"What if it wasn't'? We need to get you checked…"
"I feel fine," Liz assured him. "I left a little in the glass and bagged it and gave it to Hailey. Can we get a rush put on that at the lab?"
The mic didn't allow anyone to speak with them from the post office, just one way communication from them to their co-workers to send intel.
"Can we get a new farm hand or a family member to come and visit tomorrow that's a medical doctor to check her out?" Don asked the mic. "I'm not really asking, in case there's some confusion."
Liz chuckled.
"It's not funny, there could be anything in…"
"I feel no different, I'm fine," Liz assured him again. "It's probably an old wives solution or something."
Don still looked at her concerned.
They then quickly updated the task force about the information they had found out, deactivated the mic, and opened the door to the closet, with Liz leaving to use the washroom, and Don finishing getting changed into his pajamas. When he walked back to their room from the washroom, he heard nothing coming from their guests except a loud snore that was probably coming from Gideon.
He walked into their bedroom and shut the door behind him.
"I guess the bed is comfortable, they sound asleep," Don said before he turned off the light on his nightstand, plunging the room into darkness, before he climbed into bed with Liz wrapping her in his arms. He soon discovered, that despite her protestations earlier, Liz was just in a pajama top and…no underwear….
Don looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "Underwear?"
"We're trying to make a baby, remember?" Liz whispered.
"I know but…" Don started.
"No one is here but you and me," Liz said as she kissed his mouth.
Don returned the kiss.
"They're asleep," he whispered. "It's not like they'll think…"
"I know," Liz said as she hooked her leg behind him and pulled him even closer.
And Don stopped talking. They made quiet love in their bedroom, not for the benefit of the cult members to hear them acting like a couple in love, but merely for themselves, because they were a couple in love.
In the early hours of the morning, Don found himself hating his alarm almost as much as he hated the Clements. They hadn't gotten much sleep, and Liz draped over his body was warm and comforting in a way that made him wish he could wake like this everyday. But the reality of her being married (whether legitimate or not) to another man and the child she shared with him, would keep that dream from happening. Don needed to remind himself that she would always choose what was best for Agnes and he knew that going in.
"What time is it?" Liz mumbled as she shifted off him and batted unsuccessfully at the alarm.
"Time to get up Sky," Don said as he leaned over, turned off the alarm, and pushed some hair from her face.
"Eggs?" Liz asked him.
"That would be great," Don smiled down at her, knowing that Mira and Gideon would expect she made breakfast and, he had taught her the basics of omelettes a couple of years ago.
Don kissed the side of her face and rose to shower and get dressed to start his day while Liz rose to make breakfast. Gideon and Mira joined them downstairs as she was plating Don's omelette and asked if he could help Don with his morning chores. In that moment, Don was grateful he had mic'd himself so whatever exchange would happen between them, wherever they were, would happen on the record.
"I welcome the help," Don smiled at him. "Thanks."
They soon left to tend to the bees and the fields with the other farm hands and Liz was left with Mira cleaning up the dishes before she went to package and label the honey and deal with any orders that had come in over the last 24 hours.
"I remember when I couldn't take my eyes off Gideon," Mira said with a smile as she dried the dishes Liz washed.
Liz smiled. "Am I that obvious?"
Mira smiled back.
"You two will make wonderful parents when the lord finally blesses you," Mira said.
And, in that moment, Liz's eyes watered at the thought of Agnes, away from her, alone, missing.
"Oh, my dear, it will happen," Mira rubbed her back. "The lord…"
"Thank you," Liz interrupted, not wanting to hear the platitudes in her very real moment of grief over her daughter.
"I placed an entire jar of my remedy in the refrigerator, and I will give you the recipe so you can make your own," Mira smiled at her.
"Thank you," Liz nodded. "What's the secret?"
Mira chuckled softly. "The secret, I always say, is love. Love of god, love of each other makes babies."
Liz cried a little harder.
"Oh, my dear," Mira said.
"I'm sorry," Liz apologized. "I just…I want my baby so badly."
"I know you do," Mira said. "And god has a special one planned just for you and Caleb. I know it."
"How…how do you know?" Liz asked her, trying to pull her shit together.
"Because you both love god and each other, very, very much," Mira smiled at her. "He will bless this home with a child. I know it."
Liz felt Mira's arms come around her and hold her tight and, regardless of her being part of a trafficking ring, Liz needed that motherly hug.
They pulled apart and Mira held onto her arms and looked at her seriously.
"Caleb will be a wonderful father," Mira said honestly. "He's patient, and kind, and his heart is filled with love he wants to share."
"I think so too," Liz sighed. "I just worry that I…that I won't be the mother our baby needs."
"How so?" Mira asked.
"I don't want to make the same mistakes with my child that my mother made with me," Liz said, honestly. "I want to…"
"You won't," Mira said. "Because you recognize that they are mistakes, don't you see? God's love and your faith in him has caused you to want to be better, to do better by any child you may have. To give him or her the life you didn't get."
Liz nodded.
"I would like to help others," Liz said, sliding back into her character. "I want other girls to not get lost for so long like I was. If it wasn't for Caleb…"
Mira nodded and smiled.
"Gideon has an idea and he's going to talk with Caleb about it," she said reassuringly. "You and Caleb have the potential to help many, many families."
Liz nodded and waited for her to continue but Mira merely picked the towel back up and started to dry the dishes as she hummed a religious tune.
When Don and Gideon came in for lunch Liz could tell something had happened based on the tension she saw in Don's body. No one else would notice, but she did. They spoke at length about the Faithful Followers and, when lunch was done, Don and Gideon again left to speak and do some work. Liz felt completely in the dark most of the day and the only information she gleaned was the innocuous recipe for pregnancy which included cough syrup, honey, cinnamon, rosehip tea and some herbs. Liz went to their bedroom, on the premise of changing out of a stained shirt, to turn on the mic in the closet and say she no longer needed a medical doctor to come by and gave them the recipe that was not harmful to her in any way.
Dinner was interesting, because Don seemed to lay on the god-talk rather thick and Liz wasn't sure why. Gideon kept dropping hints that he and Don had discussed a plan, that they were going to do god's work, and that they would save many. But, beyond the rhetoric and hints, Liz had no idea if Don had enough information to bring in the troops. He didn't seem to be moving in that direction, yet, so she waited.
That night, the rain came in, and they played euchre. Don and Liz lost miserably to the Clements and everyone went to bed a little earlier than the night before when music and dancing had kept them up later than usual on a farm. After showering, Liz found herself tucked into the closet and mic'd with Don.
"Where the hell was the doctor?" Don asked as soon as they shut the door.
"I called off the doctor," Liz explained. "It was cough syrup, honey, cinnamon…nothing to worry about. She gave me the recipe."
"Oh," Don sighed.
"What happened with you and Gideon?" Liz asked.
"He made the proposal," Don said. "They have it all recorded but he's not sharing the records until the next visit."
"Next visit?" Liz hissed. "What the hell, we can't live on a farm for…"
"I'm trying to push up the date," Don said as he held her shoulders. "I know with Agnes we can't prolong this, but without the records we don't have much."
Liz sighed. She had made a trip into town in the afternoon to get some more coffee and had not invited Mira to join her so she could call the task force, Reddington and Tom to get word on Agnes. Nothing.
"When do they want to visit next?" Liz asked.
"Just Gideon and some men," Don said. "Two weeks."
"We have to live on the farm for two weeks?" Liz hissed.
"No, I have to live on the farm for two weeks," Don said. "They wanted a month and I got him to move it. I'm hoping I can get it moved up more."
"What do you mean I?" Liz asked.
"Cooper," Don said ignoring her. "Can we get a sick relative or something so Liz can go home for a week or so? She needs to help with the search for Agnes and doesn't need to sit on a farm with me for a couple of weeks."
Liz gave him a soft smile. She knew, personally, he wanted her to stay. But he also knew that she needed to go and help find her child. Her child, even with Don, came first.
"Anything else to report?" Don asked her in the dark.
"No," Liz said. "Mira and I just talked a lot about kids…nothing to report."
Don reached up and clicked off the mic.
"Thank you," Liz said softly.
"You need to get Agnes," Don said before he opened the door and walked into their bedroom to discuss with Skylar the offer that Gideon made.
They needed to discuss it as their characters would, but it also allowed Liz to get more information about what was being proposed. And Don was right, they needed those records if they were going to put an end to this.
To be continued…