John was humming merrily to himself as the car climbed into the forest and back towards the motel. He glanced out across the city and gave a contented sigh. Ustin was safely back at his hotel and they were ready to make their next move. It was all finally seeming to fall into place.

Alex laughed and watched him in delight. She recognised the tune he was humming and joined in for a few lines, her heart racing as he turned to her and gave her a huge smile.

"I love you." John offered suddenly.

Alex grinned. "Love you more, babe."

John took one hand off the steering wheel and slipped it into hers, lacing their fingers with a gentle squeeze.

Alex nodded in approval. "This is more like it."

"Yeah." John agreed and took a deep breath, "Today is a good day. Ustin will help us track Trangh down and we can go home."

"As simple as that." Alex chuckled.

"Absolutely."

Alex encased his hand in both of hers and laughed softly, "Oh, if only, babes."

"What?" John shrugged, "He's meeting with the scientists tonight to make final launch prep and he's wired. We can ID them all and one of them is bound to be dodgy."

"Easy." Alex offered in sarcasm.

"Sorted." John agreed.

"Blindin'."

"Too right, guv'ner. Cor blimey, me ol' mucker."

Alex squealed in delight. "Oh, please! Just don't even try!" She laughed merrily, "And where the hell did you get that from?"

"Mary Poppins." John grinned, "And gawd bless 'er!"

Alex threw her head back and clutched at her chest, trying to breathe through her laughter.

John quirked an eyebrow and glanced at her in mock disdain. "What? And Parker talks that way, too."

"No, he bloody doesn't!" Alex managed breathlessly.

"Sure, he does!"

"Parker is from London." Alex argued, "Not the Hollywood school of bad accents."

John gasped, "How dare you! Dick van Dyke is a genius!"

And Alex laughed even harder, pausing only long enough to suggest that John must have led a sad and lonely life.

"Yeah." John enthused, "Well what else am I supposed to do for hours on end up on Thunderbird Five? There aren't many options in low orbit. I've downloaded and read more books than they have in all the libraries in the world." He spread his hands momentarily to exaggerate his point even further. "There's only so many new stars to be catalogued and all other choices are either far too energetic or make you go blind."

Alex's laughter began anew, tears brimming in her eyes.

"Yup." John nodded in conclusion, "Disney movies saved my sanity."

Alex calmed for a moment. "Oh boy."

John chuckled merrily. "What? You don't think it's been a success?"

"Nope!"

"Oh."

Alex frowned in thought and there was silence in the car for a moment. She then bit back more laughter and glanced cheekily up at him. "Mufasa!"

"Oooh, don't!" John shuddered, "That name makes me shiver!"

Alex gave a joyful cheer.

John glanced at her suspiciously and then gasped in realisation.

"What?" Alex defended, "It's not an easy thing to talk about."

"You love Disney, too!" John declared in delight and watched Alex nod. "How could I not have found this out before?"

Alex shrugged slightly, "Well … we kind of skipped the small talk."

John's smile faded slightly. "Hmm … we did, didn't we."

"It was all instant and immediate and then weeks of being apart." Alex recalled, "Even our long late night chats were never really about just 'stuff'." She gasped dramatically, "In fact, I hardly know you at all."

"Merciful heavens!" John agreed, equally theatrical. "Well, there's no time like the present." He glanced at the clock on the dashboard. "We've got a few hours yet. We can ditch the old man and talk about nothing but 'stuff'."

"Yeah. Sounds cool." Alex agreed, suddenly becoming sombre.

"Hey, none of that." John urged quickly, sensing her troubled thoughts. "I know it's all gone to shit and we're in the middle of a Ukranian forest, about to hunt down some dangerous terrorists." He glanced at her, "And I know you're scared. Hell, I'm scared. But there's light at the end of the tunnel now."

Alex frowned in confusion as the car slowed and John pulled over to a halt at the side of the road. She turned to him and saw sudden tears glistening on his cheeks.

John turned in his seat to face her and swallowed hard. "Al … if you want this to end … just say the word."

Alex held his gaze and her mind was racing, part of it seeing her chance to stop this craziness and part of it knowing how much he needed to see this through. She reached up and placed her hand on his cheek, seeing fear and confusion and love passing behind his eyes.

"I mean it." John urged.

"I know." Alex replied and then slowly nodded, "We started this together and we'll end this together. One way or another."

John smiled and leaned down to place a kiss on her lips. He sighed happily and eased the car into gear. Turning his focus back to the road ahead, he then suddenly laughed, "To infinity! And beyond!"

"Yay!" Alex enthused. She wiped her eyes and swallowed back the lump in her throat, turning to look out of the window and suddenly smiling. "I spy with my little eye, something beginning with 't'."

"Tree!" John laughed in delight. "Okay, I spy - "

"Tree."

John nodded and chuckled merrily.

Alex giggled, "I spy - "

"Tree."

Alex grinned. "Which is your favourite?"

"Ooh, tough question." John frowned, "It depends. I mean, if you mean in terms of the story or whether you define best by quality and sheer jaw-dropping beauty then - "

"John!" Alex sighed, smiling up at him, "Small-talk is about short answers."

John grinned, "I'm sorry. I know. I think far too much." He took a deep breath and frowned again. "Snow White."

"Yeah?"

"For no other reason than it was Mom's favourite. I watch it every year on her birthday."

Alex had no reply for such a touching sentiment.

"She used to say all of us were her dwarves. Her five boys, Brains and Dad." He laughed at the memory. "But there is no way I'm telling you which one I was!"

"Oh!" Alex protested.

"Uh-uh."

Alex groaned and then smiled, frowning as she tried to recall all the names of the dwarves and figure out which one best fitted him. Brains was so obviously Doc but -

"What about you?" John prompted.

"Beauty and the Beast." Alex replied easily, "Without a doubt. Just love it. Or maybe Nemo."

John laughed, "You totally rock, Squirt!"

"Dude … awesome!" Alex grinned in delight, "That's so your brother!"

"Who? Alan?"

"No, Virgil!"

John chuckled merrily and nodded, "I guess. Alan's more like Nemo. Little shit. 'Get back here! Don't you touch that butt!'"

They were still giggling happily as they reached the clearing and the motel that sat nestled among the tall pines. John guided the car through to the parking space outside their room and switched off the engine.

"I'll go get food?" Alex offered, nodding towards the café.

"Sure." John climbed from the car and headed towards the motel door. "Hey, Al?"

Alex spun round.

"Be – our – guest …!" John sang merrily, adopting an exaggerated imitation of the right pose.

Alex laughed in delight, "Put our service to the test." She continued and then started humming the tune merrily, skipping in time as she turned and headed back towards the café.

And that was when the car that neither of them had noticed trailing them from the city sped around the corner of the road and skidded to a halt in the car park.

John turned from the motel room door and gasped in horror. He saw the barrel of the gun that poked through the car's open window and the world seemed to stop turning.

Alex spun at the sound of the car arriving and then heard John's cry of warning. She quickly sought cover and ran back towards their car. Diving onto the floor, she heard the first rounds being released and suddenly the air thudded with impossibly loud machine gun fire.

John threw himself inside the room and crouched down behind the inside the wall. Bullets sank into the plastered walls and splintered the wooden front door. He covered his head and kept low, just able to see Alex in the corner of his vision. She was face down on the ground, her arms over her head and seemingly out of range of the sweeping gunfire.

But then the gunman's aim changed. He must have known her position and now targeted their car. The rear tyres hissed in protest as they were punctured and the back window shattered, the whole car trembling with the impacts of the endless bullets.

Alex seemed shielded but some bullets were finding their way beneath the car or over the roof, ricocheting off the pavement and taking huge chunks of plaster out of the motel walls.

John looked on in horror and, unable to get to her, he quickly calculated the spent rounds and prayed that he was right and they would have to reload at any moment. And that would be his chance.

Tbc …