Disclaimer: Shondaland/ABC owns these characters. But I've taken the Gladiator oath as a writer: #OLITZ4LIFE #JAMMMmmmmm #100%

Dead-Mellie and NO-Joke: Public Service Announcement for any accidental non-Olitz readers

"Where are we going, Daniel?" Olivia folded her arms across her chest.

"Isn't that a shame, I forgot to bring an extra jacket," Daniel Douglas Langston adjusted his coat and smiled at her. "But you won't be needing one, where you're going."

"Where am I going?"

"We, Olivia, we are going for a little drive. The destination is for me to know. I don't want to spoil the surprise. Now don't look at me like that, you're quite safe… For now."

"Is that a threat?"

"No, it's an assurance, Olivia."

"Where's Sally?"

"Sally is in Georgia. She didn't want to be here. The official line is that your wedding offends her moral right-wing dignity. She is upset that Fitz fell in love with a woman who was not his wife, then had the audacity to marry the woman he has publicly called the love of his life. My wife has never understood the depth of such emotion. She has never loved or been loved like that, by a mortal man, which is why she has turned to God. To bless us all."

Olivia glanced away from Daniel's smirk and murmured, "You said that was the official line, what's the unofficial one?"

Daniel Douglas gave her a considering look. "There are a lot of people who don't like to mix their coloureds with their whites."

Olivia narrowed her gaze. "And you have gone out of your way to show yourself as one of these laundry freaks."

Daniel smiled. "Ah, you remember that conversation we had, soon after Fitz threw Sally a lifeline into the White House four years ago. You shouldn't hold that against me; I am a product of my white, privileged upbringing. My family made our money from the sweat of slaves, we still do. Although now I believe the technical term is 'illegals'. But I have nothing against you personally, Olivia. I actually like you."

"Didn't you call me your token black acquaintance?"

"I did and I also said that it's good to have at least one, to name-drop in Washington. It makes me look progressive and liberal."

"I have noticed that you turn up the nasty whenever Sally's around. You're her talking puppet, saying what she can't or won't say in public."

"Now that is why I like you, Olivia. You always see past the bullshit. You see past the act of me being a happily married man, who likes to shoot little wild animals for pleasure, and agrees with my wife's politics."

Olivia unfolded her arms and clasped her hands together. "So why did you kidnap me?"

"I didn't kidnap you. I invited you into the car and you came of your own free will."

"Are we going Number One Observatory Circle?"

"No."

The reason for his growing uneasiness slowly filtered into Fitz's brain in mid-conversation. He paused, realising he had missed seeing a shadow of bronze and red in the periphery of his vision. Excusing himself from the group around him, he scanned the room, confirming she wasn't there.

Then seeing Cyrus and James on the dance floor, waltzing to a duet of 'When I fall in love', sung by Tony Bennet and Norah Jones, accompanied by the Marine Band; Fitz walked up and tapped Cyrus on the shoulder.

"Have you seen Olivia?"

"No," Cyrus said. "Don't tell me you've lost her already?"

James interrupted, "I saw her leave with a man. He looked like a Secret Service Agent."

"What? Where did she go?" Fitz looked around, then catching sight of Tom hovering on the edge of the dance floor, he waved him over.

"Sir?" Tom stopped, gazing from Fitz to Cyrus to James, who'd formed a static group in the middle of the dance floor.

"Where's Olivia?"

"She left with an agent on the Vice President's detail, sir."

"One of Sally's agents? But she isn't even here," Fitz looked around. "Where's Olivia's detail?"

"They're following the Vice President's limousine, sir. Mr Daniel Douglas Langston was the sole occupant in the car. We have reports that the Vice President is still at her ranch in Georgia."

"Georgia?" Cyrus frowned. "But Daniel told me they were both on their way here."

Fitz stared at Tom. "What the fuck is going on?"

"I don't know, sir. I just found out where Ms Pope went, in case you asked."

Fitz gave a wry smile, "Thank you, Tom. Now get the head of security down to my office."

A short while later, the head of security discreetly wiped his glistening forehead and cleared his throat, facing Fitz, who was clearly enraged.

"Why didn't anyone stop her? Or get into the car with her? I told you to increase her protection, dammit! Why would your people let my wife leave like that, when you know the crazies are sending her death threats?!"

"With all due respect, sir, you said we were to watch her at a safe distance, allowing Ms – uh – Mrs – uh, the First Lady to do her job. And Ms Pope, uh, Mrs Grant has assisted the Vice President on – uh- a delicate political matter before. We didn't think to question her actions now. And about the other matter, you gave strict instructions that Ms Pope wasn't to know about the hate mail, so she wouldn't know she has to be extra careful."

Fitz stared at the man, then snapped. "Get me a car."

"That's not advisable. Sir."

"Get me a car!"

Minutes later, Fitz was on the phone to Sally Langston at her home in Georgia.

"Why the fuck has your husband kidnapped my wife?!" he roared.

"Kidnapped your wife?" Sally's spluttered on the other end. "What are you talking about, Fitzgerald?"

"I am talking about my wife, Olivia Pope, being taken from the White House by your husband, Daniel Douglas Langston! What do you know about that?!"

"I don't know anything about that! Daniel has been acting strange. He insisted, insisted, on going to the dinner tonight. By himself. He was adamant and I couldn't stop him. I cannot imagine why he's taken Olivia, or why he has done such a thing! I didn't even realise they were friends. Have you called the police? I would recommend that you do not, let the agency handle this—"

Fitz slammed the phone down on Sally, pressing his fist to his mouth; then turned in relief, at the knock on the door when Tom poked his head in to say, "Sir, the car is ready."

Olivia narrowed her gaze. "Why are you doing this?"

"I want out. I want to stop living a lie, and for that I need to get out of this damned marriage."

"You want to divorce Sally?"

"No, there will be no divorce. For some women, divorce is a fate worse than death."

"I know," Olivia said wearily. "Mellie felt that way about her marriage to Fitz. She thought being married was the be-all and end-all to her existence; the only thing that made her somebody."

"Sally would hate to hear you compare her to that teeth-grinding airhead, and unlike her, my wife does not need matrimony to sustain her. No, Sally wants to keep me shackled to make her more relatable to voters. She wants people to believe that she understands the women of America because she's married, she's a wife and she's a mother. But I'm done with all that. I want out. And I want a permanent solution."

Olivia's eyes widened. "What are you saying, Daniel. You're not talking about… killing… Sally?"

"No! I'm not a murderer, Olivia. Recreational hunting has cured me of blood lust. No, I have something else in mind."

"And you want my help?"

"In actual fact, I think you need my help. I know you and Fitz are planning to leave tonight on Air Force One to spend your honeymoon in Vermont. I know this because Sally needs to know where Fitz is, in case of an emergency, but I'm not the only who knows. Your travel plans have been passed onto to people who don't have your safety in mind."

"Why? What's going to happen?"

"I don't know. Something big, that's for sure. Sally was asked to get out of town, and stay out until she can return to the White House as President in the morning."

Fitz looked out unseeingly at the passing scenery, his fingers tapping on his knee, his jaw tight.

"She'll be fine, sir. I know Mike – the agent that Ms Pope left with. He's okay," Tom said from the front seat of the Presidential Suburban.

Fitz turned away from the window, with a frown. "He's okay?"

"Yes, sir."

Then before Fitz could get clarification on that comment, Tom added, "We're getting word that the Vice President's car is heading for the Potomac River."

"Speed up!"

"Yes, sir."

"Someone is trying to kill Fitz?" Olivia gripped her hands together, feeling a cold prickle of alarm feather her spine for the first time that night.

"Don't forget to include yourself in the equation. You need to be careful. You have enemies much closer to home than you think."

"Someone in the administration?"

"You need to widen your perspective. You're not in Kansas any longer, Dorothy. Not everyone around you can be trusted."

"Are you talking about the people I work with at OPA? I don't believe you. I trust them."

"No, I'm not talking about your staff. I'm saying you shouldn't entertain that same level of trust with the people in Fitzgerald Grant's administration. Think of the last man who slept with Melody Grant."

"Hal?"

"Yes, Secret Service Agent Hal Rimbeau. His job was to protect the President. It wasn't to protect you. There are others who may feel the same way, even though you've stepped into Mellie's shoes." Daniel glanced at her. "You walked out of the White House with Mike because he was a Secret Service agent. They inspire an unquestioning trust. That, I believe, is misplaced. You need to ask yourself how many Hals there are in your team."

"But you said people wanted Fitz dead? Are you saying the agents whose job is to protect Fitz are out to kill him?"

"People can be bought, Olivia. Greed is good, remember?"

"Who's behind this?"

"I don't know. What I do know is that Sally has been courting some heavy hitters with deep pockets. These guys are unhappy with the way Fitz has woken up and started being President. They liked him better when you and the dead wife were playing tug-of-war with his dick. Now the man is focused on his job and it's scaring the bejeezus out of the patriarchy."

"But to kill Fitz!" Olivia glanced away, then swung back to face Daniel. "Do they really think Sally will just let them pull her strings?"

"Yes. They don't know my wife, the way you and I do. But even you don't know the half of it. Sally's done things with the limited power and resources she has; things that don't sit well with me. I don't want her to be in a position to legislate misery for others."

"Stop talking in code, what secrets are you hiding?"

"I can't tell you that. Some secrets are better taken to the grave."

"So what am I doing in this car? You could have told Fitz not to fly out to Vermont at the White House? Why bring me here?" Olivia peered out of the window, frowning when she saw a familiar landmark. "Are we heading to the river?"

"The Southwest Waterfront. For a bit of deep sea diving."

Fitz leaned forward in his seat, "Can this go any faster?"

"No, sir. There are cars in front of us."

"Then use the damned sidewalk!"

The agent driving the vehicle turned to look at Fitz, "You want us to drive on the side-walk. But that's breaking the law, sir. And we'd attract attention."

"I don't care. Just do it!"

"Yes, sir."

Breaking News…

"…Dramatic scenes from our nation's capital this evening. The President's SUV is seen here breaking the speed limit, on its way to the SouthWest Waterfront of the Potomac River. We have eyewitness reports that the Presidential vehicle went off-road, driving on the city sidewalks, narrowly avoiding pedestrians. We're not sure if the vehicle has been stolen or if the President is inside but as you can see from our Eye-In-The-Sky camera crew, the DC police are giving chase…"

Olivia looked at Daniel Douglas Langston with a calm she did not feel. "You are going to drive us all into the river? That's your solution to getting out of a marriage you don't want. Death by drowning?"

"No, Olivia, there are people who want to kill you, and there are people who will want me dead, eventually. Including my wife. I think it's in our best interest to disappear. I have contacts, here and overseas, who can make that happen."

"No." The word was out before Daniel had finished speaking. "No, I'm not going to disappear. I'm not leaving Fitz. It's our wedding day, for goodness sake!"

"Didn't you hear me, Olivia?! Someone is trying to kill the both of you! I'm trying to save your life!"

"And why would you want to do that, Daniel? Why would you want to help me? We barely know each other. I don't know you well enough to trust you in this situation."

"But you trust Senator Lucas Zeke."

"Zeke… he's behind this?"

Daniel Douglas Langston smiled. "So are you in?"

"No! I'm not leaving Fitz!"

"Olivia Pope, you're a fixer but you need to understand that you can't fix this. It's too big. Bigger than you can imagine. The only we will survive, both of us, is if we get out of this mess; leave the country; get ourselves new identities."

"No. I'm not going to do that. I'm can't do that to Fitz. I won't! It would kill him!"

"So would having you around. He's a target, Olivia and so are you. He was shot once and he survived. Do you want to take a chance on another assassination attempt? And this time it won't be a deranged woman trying to give him a lobotomy. This time, the guys who put out the hit will hire professionals; experienced sharp-shooters who won't miss hitting a fly at ten paces."

Olivia glared at him mutinously, a flicker of doubt sparking in her belly, igniting further when he said,

"If you love Fitz, save his life. Leave him."

Breaking News…

"… DC Police at the Southwest Waterfront say a limousine flying the Vice President's flag has driven off the pier into the Potomac River. The first vehicle to arrive at the scene, minutes after the accident was the Presidential SUV followed by a second unmarked vehicle... two men are seen here running towards the point the vehicle took a dive...Now there are others swarming around. Including the DC Police. Yes folks, this is live. It's happening in real time. You can see one of the men jump as the other tries to hold him back… The second one jumps.. Both of them... More of them, it's hard to see how many are in the river… Wait? What? The President?! No way! We're getting reports that one of the men in the river is the President of the United States. Yes, we have confirmation. The President has jumped into the icy cold waters of the Potomac River…"

A/N: Wow, you guys really got onboard the Daniel Douglas cliffhanger! Most number of reviews I've had since the first chapter (after which I went off the rails for about 20 chapters!).

Now I know some of you are fond of DD and some of you are fond of Zeke – the bad news is that I'm going to disappoint half of you ;(((

And I hate to do that to the half who may already be unhappy after watching the latest episode of Scandal in the US - I've been reading a lot of unhappy reviews along the lines of 'WTF, Shonda!'. And, um, that's a bit like where this story is headed! (The WTF part – not the Shonda part).

So sincere apologies to my dear readers who have been through enough shit already, hope you can hang in there for the next chapter, without sending the Huckmonster sans coffee my way!