First Person POV (Kaira)
I never imagined that my life was going to go this way. Married to an amazing, and dare I say the best damn looking, man I know. Finding a new family in a grifter, hitter, hacker, thief, and mastermind.
The past few months were amazing, and definitely much needed. Let's just say, Eliot and I did a lot of sightseeing. And our travels had taken us to Portland, Oregon. Eliot and I both got a message on our phone with an address, saying to go there. So, we did.
Turns out, Hardison directed us to Bridgeport Brewpub. Eliot and I walked in. Eliot had a black leather jacket, jeans, and blue shirt, Though, the sunglasses he wore didn't do it for me. I was also in a t-shirt, jeans, and a matching leather jacket. We didn't see anyone, so we sat at a table.
Then I saw Sophie and Nate walk in. Sophie was in short black dress with feathers around the shoulders and neck, and Nate was in jeans, a white t-shirt, and a hoodie. His hair was cut, and he didn't have that mop anymore. Eliot put his phone down and we stood up. I smiled when I saw Nate, He looked better.
"Hey, Nate." I smiled at him.
Nate smiled back and hugged me.
"Hey, kiddo." Nate said.
We let go, but I was still holding Nate's shoulder, looking at him.
"You look better, Nathan." I told him, showing him I was proud of him.
"Thanks, kiddo." Nate said.
"Back room." Eliot said.
We started walking.
"Nice vacation, lovebirds?" Sophie asked us.
I thought back to one of the adventures we went on. Let's just say, we were outside Tehran, with a friend of Eliot's, taking down a rocket.
"Hung out with some old friends." Eliot said.
"Did some sightseeing." I added, smiling.
We ended up walking through some glass doors with wooden trim. Inside was amazing. There were stairs up to another floor in the back, I saw a couple of punching bags. The entire room was brick. Eliot put his sunglasses on his head.
"Scott Roemer, owner of Global Transit Airlines." I heard Hardison's voice.
I turn towards him walking up to us. A glass wall separated the briefing area from the rest of the room. I saw a couple of wooden tables with barstools. There was a screen filled with information in front of a table with five chairs.
It didn't take long for me to realize this was our new base. And I'm not gonna lie, it was amazing. I pace around, looking as Hardison continues his briefing.
"Now, Global got their start making drones for military contractors, then they expanded into cargo shipping. And now they're one of the biggest cargo airlines in the world. Three years ago, Roemer fired all of his American workers, and then he off-shored his aircraft maintenance to Mexico." Hardison explained, and I realize that we must have a client if Hardison has all this info for us.
"Excuse me. Uh, what is this place?" Sophie asked, walking around with Eliot.
I stood by Nate inside the briefing area.
"Oh, this?" Hardison laughed.
"This is Leverage Incorporated, Portland Branch. Come on, baby." Hardison said.
I can't help but smile as I see Eliot and Sophie come down a stair and come by the breiding table, where I join Eliot.
"Hey, see, since we have to stay here awhile, I found us a client. I did up the office real nice and proper. Right now you are looking at our target, Scott Roemer, on a state-of-the-art projection video system." Hardison said as we all stood in front of the briefing table.
"The room is filled with antisurveillance bafflers so we don't get bugged again. Learned from that lesson. And we have nice, high, ceilings for, uh…" Hardison said.
Just then, rope came down, and Parker dropped in, enjoying herself, sitting on the table.
"We should have lasers." Parker said.
I can't help but snicker.
"Put it in the suggestion box." Hardison said to Parker, and I sensed something different with them, but familiar.
"Unh-unh. No, no, no, no, no. We did not agree on this. No, this was just gonna be a stopover until we made it back to Nate's place." Sophie said, walking by Nate.
"Yeah-" Nate said when Hardison interrupted.
"Oh! Nate's apartment. About that." Hardison pulled up security cam footage from the bar.
"You see that street? That's the street in front of Nate's apartment. That car right there's FBI. SUV is state police. And that little pretzel cart is both delicious and Interpol. Nate's apartment is burned." Hardison said, standing at the table.
I wasn't gonna lie, it still hurt that I couldn't go back to the place I called home.
"Well, you can't just set up shop in the back of somebody's restaurant." Eliot pointed out.
"Of course not. That's why I bought the microbrewery." Hardison said.
I gasped a bit. "Y-what?" I questioned Hardison.
"What? No, he didn't!" Hardison put his hand up to his face and looked at Parker.
"Yes, he did!" Parker did the same thing.
"What? Dude, we bew our own beer now." Hardison said.
"Yeah, and we're calling it thief juice. Tastes like bad guys." Parker said, like she was selling it.
"Babe, no, we're not. I told - the suggestion…" Hardison said.
"This is the dumbest idea you've ever come up with." Eliot said.
"Thank you." Sophie said.
"Pairing food and drink is hard enough with the wine, okay? They have textural and taste consistencies throughout both the vineyard and the grape categories, okay? But you're not dealing with wine, you're dealing with beer. It's got a stronger palette. The brewpub menu is the hardest menu to design." Eliot explained.
I chuckle a bit.
"That's what you're upset about?" Sophie questioned Eliot.
"You're not?" Eliot questioned back.
"Not really, no." I said.
Hardison looked mildly offended.
"Thief juice - it's a mouth crime." Parker said.
I just shook my head no.
"Suggestion box. Okay." Hardison said.
Hardison then pulled up a bunch of pictures of our aliases.
"You see these people? All of these - your people, your fake aliases that I lovingly created over the last four years - they are also burned, useless. Guys, Dubenich and Latimer-" Hardison stopped to look at me.
I nodded that it was okay to say what he was about to say.
"And Brian Galileo, they took the fall for most of our mistakes, but that last job emptied out our bag of tricks. Got to start from scratch. I got to create new IDs." Hardison said.
"Nate-" Sophie looked at Nate.
"No, no. See, this is great. No, restaurants have, see, unusually high staff turnover. So that's good for us. Also, it's a different tax zone than our old fake IDs, right? And different state and federal jurisdictions in case there's any criminal charges. That's good for us. No, no. Portland is great. It's the perfect place… to lay low for a little bit." Nate said, opening the big sliding doors to an office.
"Yeah. We're moving to Portland. No warning." Sophie said, sitting down, though she seemed sad.
"Anything else?" Sophie asked.
Hardison was standing by Parker, who went to remove her rig.
"Mm, Hardison and I are dating." Parker said.
"About damn time." I smiled and chuckled.
"Yeah. We just got back from a round the world trip." Hardison said.
"It was-it was different. Like, it's new, and we working it out. W-we working it out. Yeah. All right." Hardison said, lightly pushing Parker's shoulder, and she did the same.
I was happy for them.
"Anyway, you can keep complaining about how I solved all of your problems while you were on vacation, or you can let me tell you about what happened last May when one of Roemer's cargo ships fell out of the sky, killing both the pilot and the co-pilot." Hardison said, walking to the back, pulling up an article about the crash.
"Now, the pilot's widow is on her way right now. She needs some help. I think you know what to do." Hardison said, leaving.
I just look at Eliot.
I know this is the smart move. I was lucky I had gotten all of me and Eliot's stuff out of the apartment before it was burned. But part of that moment felt worse than blowing up the Los Angles office. Because Boston was home. A lot of my memories were in Boston. Sure, the start of me and Eliot's love story happened in Los Angeles, but the best moments happened in Boston. Eliot proposing in our kitchen to a song he made for our one-year anniversary. Eliot and I getting married in a small church in Boston. Eliot and I deciding our future in our bed. All those jobs we did in Boston, all the times I've had to take care of Eliot. All the times he's been my rock when I was crying. All those times I doubted myself and Eliot was there for me. It all happened in Boston.
It wasn't gonna be easy letting my home in Boston go. And one look from Eliot told me he felt the same.
After calming myself down, we met with our client inside the restaurant. Eliot was behind the bar. The client's daughter, Jenny, was at her laptop at the bar, and Nate, Sophie, and I met with the client, Anne Sanders, who showed us a photo of her husband and their daughter.
"Ken flew passenger jets, but he wanted to spend more time with Jenny, so he switched to cargo flights. He's been flying planes back and forth to Mexico - maintenance runs - for global transit until…" Anne explained, getting sad.
"I'm so sorry about your loss, Ms. Sanders." I said, sympathetically.
"I'm so sorry." Sophie said, sympathetically.
"The court ruled it an accident, but Ken told me Global's maintenance facility in Mexico cuts corners and pays inspectors off to cover it all up." Anne explained.
"Do you, um - do you have any proof or…" Nate asked gently. He really did change.
"The crash that killed him." Anne said, her voice breaking as she was about to cry.
"What is it that you want, Mrs. Sanders?" Sophie asked.
"I understand Scott Roemer's going to get away with it. Fine. But how am I gonna pay for Jenny's education?" Anne said.
I get up and I walk over to the bar and sit a seat over from Jenny. Eliot and I see she's editing a video she took.
"You're pretty good at that." Eliot told her.
"Thanks." Jenny said.
We both see she sent an email.
"Who'd you e-mail that to?" Eliot asked her.
"My dad. I send all my movies to my dad. He gets them. I know he gets them." Jenny said.
"I bet he does." Eliot said, kinda quietly.
I smile at him.
"And I bet he loves them." I added, trying to comfort Jenny.
Eliot and I both look at Nate and nod to go ahead. I walk back over to the table.
"We're gonna help you." Nate told Jenny.
"I can't pay you." Jenny said.
"No, that's okay. We work on an - alternative revenue stream." I said as I stand behind Nate.
I look back at Eliot and Jenny. Eliot was always good with kids. But part of me wasn't sure if he wanted kids.
After wrapping up the conversations, Eliot and I escort Anne and Jenny out. Eliot gets the door.
"Thank you." Anne said.
Eliot gave a slight smile.
"Call us if you need anything, okay?" I handed Anne a napkin I had written on with my number.
Just as Eliot and were about to go in, we hear a car engine turn over. We then see a man talking to his wrist and drive off. Eliot and I head in and find another exit to get to Anne and Jenny.
We heard Anne and Jenny screaming and we saw them getting grabbed, so we ran. Eliot tackled the guy trying to grab Anne and I grab the guy messing with Jenny. I turn him to face me and punch him. Eliot goes after the guy messing with Jenny, and I punch the guy that went after Anne, kicked him in the groin, sending him down. Eliot got the other guy down and tossed him. Eliot and I form a wall, telling the guys to back off. Another van pulls up and the goons get in. We turned to make sure Anne and Jenny were okay.
"All this, and now car thieves." Anne said, holding Jenny close.
"Yeah, car thieves, huh?" Eliot said, looking at me.
These for sure weren't car thieves. We checked to make sure Jenny and Anne were alright. We went back inside and made a plan.
Third Person POV
Eliot and Kaira were looking at a tablet, which had employee information from Global. Hardison was looking at the screen as they walked over to the briefing table.
"What would Global want with Sanders? I mean, the trial's over. Global won." Hardison said.
"These guys weren't amateurs." Eliot said.
"Yeah, they were coordinated, spoke with wires." Kaira added.
"Sophie's at Global right now. She'll get us into the server room. Hey, Nate. Thanks for tailing Roemer. Look, once he's at his office, I can lock into his GPS." Hardison said.
Nate was in his car, having followed Roemer.
"Yeah, problem, Hardison. He's no where near his office." Nate said.
"What? Nate, where is he?" Kaira asked.
"I don't know, we're-we're at some sort of museum." Nate said, getting out of his car.
"What kind of museum?" Hardison asked.
"You know, the kind that had a 747 on the top of it. Portland is… odd." Nate said.
Meanwhile, Sophie was in Global Transit.
"And very, very wet. We're gonna have to have a serious talk about moving somewhere with less rain." Sophie complained.
"London has rain." Hardison argued.
"No, London has fog. Fog is mysterious. Rain just ruins my hair." Sophie complained.
Sophie made her way in, using a Russian accent, acting like she was there for a job interview. She was told to take a seat, so she did.
"When's delivery?" Sophie came back on comms.
"Incoming. We'll advise." Hardison said.
Eliot and Kaira found the guy.
"This guy. This guy right here. That's the guy was running point." Eliot said.
"Okay. That's Samuel Busey. He's the head of Global Transit security. He's ex-CIA, very nasty. I'll get you a full background." Hardison said, starting to type on his keyboard.
"Nathan, is Roemer meeting anyone?" Kaira asked over comms.
"You need backup?" Eliot added.
"No, he's just walking around." Nate said, watching Roemer from a distance in the museum.
Then Sophie came on comms not long after after observing some employees.
"Hmm. This place is melting down. There's got to be something in that museum that's more important to him than his own company." Sophie said over comms.
"Let's find out what." Nate said over comms.
Nate started talking to Roemer. Nate then started introducing himself. Eliot was still looking at the tablet, and Kaira groaned.
"Nate, please do not introduce yourself. Like I said, I have no IDs that-" Hardison said.
Nate introduced himself as Tommy Mackinaw of Mackinaw Import/Export. Hardison and Kaira both were not happy.
"Seriously, Nathan." Kaira groaned.
"Yes. Please. Thank you. Do go ahead and pick the one name on earth that does not exist." Hardison complained.
"This is not a background." Eliot said.
Kaira looked at the tablet and realize it's a menu for the brewpub.
"Oh, sorry, man. That's a menu for the pub." Hardison told the couple.
Eliot looked at Hardison.
"Damn it, Hardison!" Eliot growled.
"I said I'm sorry, man. But, I mean, do you - uh, do you have any suggestions?" Hardison asked Eliot.
"No, I do not have any suggestions, man! 9 out of 10 restaurants fail! Especially when you're - you can't put anchovies and pineapple on the same pizza." Eliot argued.
Kaira groaned. "Oh, hell, Hardison! Damn it!" Kaira exclaimed.
"Obviously, you do not have a refined taste palate." Hardison argued.
"Don't come crying to me when this thing goes bankrupt." Eliot warned Hardison.
"Hardison, if my nonna was here, she'd whup your ass with a wooden spoon. Hell, I just might if you keep that on the menu. It's an insult to every Italian out there! My nonna's probably rolling in her grave!" Kaira threatened Hardison (A/N I am speaking as someone who is a quarter Italian roughly, but I know damn well you don't put anchovies, and especially pineapple (I don't care what you say CK) on pizza!).
"I'm sorry." Hardison said.
He went back to his keyboard.
"Sophie, incoming." Hardison said, getting the notification the delivery was incoming.
Sophie got the message on her phone and walked back up to reception, asking to use the bathroom, getting a restroom key. Sophie went into the bathroom and changed into a much more professional outfit, her hair down. She handed a random worker the bathroom key, using a Southern accent. She dropped the key, and used the distraction to grab a folder. Sophie then lifted a badge from another worker. Sophie used the badge to get to the stairs.
"I'm in." Sophie reported.
Back at the museum, Nate was talking with Roemer, mostly about planes. But Roemer mentioned "The Big Bird", and how they only fire it up once a year.
"The-the-the Spruce Goose? The Spruce Goose, built by Howard Hughes, the Tony Stark of the 40s. Biggest plane on earth, made of all wood, wingspan longer than a football field Spruce Goose?" Hardison said, pulling up the blueprint for the Spruce Goose.
Sophie got herself and office at Global and got a package, still using her Southern accent. Inside the package, was Parker.
"Server room is two back." Sophie told Parker.
Sophie went out of the room and distracted a female employee. Sophie started using her Southern accent, but the woman thought Sophie was with the Australian group, so Sophie switched accents.
Nate and Roemer watched as they fired the engines of the plane. Nate and Roemer decided to go in. Parker made it to the server room, going through the vents.
"Parker. The server room at Global Transit Airlines has floor sensors." Hardison reported.
Parker was in a backbend as she got down from the vent.
"Copy that." Parker said.
She lowered her body and sat up. She used the wall as a brace and walked down the wall upside down. She went upright and opened the server door. She grabbed a cord and plugged it in. She grabbed her phone and saw the files were copying.
"Transferring now." Parker reported.
Sophie was now in the meeting room. Sophie walked around. She grabbed a file from the table and looked at it.
Back at the museum, Roemer was showing off the Spruce Goose to Nate. Roemer took Nate inside and mentioned that the materials Hughes used were similar to military drones. Roemer then had his "I'm the bad guy" speech, saying that he liked the system because he could get away with messing up. Nate was not happy. Roemer then mentioned he wanted to fly the plane.
Back at the server room, Parker was looking at the files.
"There's a lot of video tagged of the Sanders'... dated this week." Parker reported.
Kaira and Eliot both got the same idea, and it wasn't good.
"Oh, hell no!" Kaira cursed as she left, Eliot right behind.
"They're watching the house, man. I told you." Eliot growled as he left.
"We're going to Sander's house, now!" Kaira called out as her and Eliot left.
"Got you." Hardison said.
"It gets worse. Tomorrow, the board of directors are voting on a merger with two passenger airlines. And Roemer's gonna move the maintenance to his Mexico facility. The next time one of his planes falls out of the sky, it's gonna be full of people." Sophie reported.
This was bad. And everyone knew Nate was getting angrier.
"Okay, Nate, I realize this is the kind of guy that makes you very angry. Please do not do what I think you're about to do." Hardison told Nate.
Nate proceeded to do exactly what Hardison told him not to do and offered a chance for Roemer to buy the Spruce Goose. Which honestly, described the last 4 years of their lives.
Once Nate was finished, he met with almost everyone at the brewpub. They weren't happy with Nate. He was pacing as Sophie was sitting on the briefing table, Parker on a seat, and Hardison leaning against the front of the table. Nate tried brushing it off.
Sophie blamed Hardison, which Hardison pointed out he didn't tell Nate to run a scam involving the Spruce Goose. Parker pointed out the museum owned the plane. Nate said that he told Roemer that he was apart of a group of foreign aviation enthusiasts, and convinced Roemer the plane was a national artifact and could be bought. Hardison was not happy, making a fake list on his hand, saying he needed to hack the US National Artifacts website.
Nate also told Roemer that his group was looking for a US partner. Nate convinced Roemer to partner up by himself. Roemer had two conditions. One was to meet the buyers, which was simple enough. Nate then convinced Roemer to open a cash account in his name, then Nate was going to have his people put their money into the account. Then Roemer owned the plane, and could loan it to museums overseas. Roemer's second condition was that only he flew the plane. Nate agreed.
Sophie pointed out that it was the scam that he used to sell the Brooklyn Bridge the year they met. Nate said that was why he did it, which impressed Sophie, and according to Sophie, was romantic. Hardison summed up the con, saying that Roemer gives them the information to transfer the funds in, then they'd take his money out and give it to the widow. Parker realized the plan didn't include dealing with the merger. Nate got the deal memo. Nate realized that Roemer didn't include a proxy, so if he's not at the meeting, the deal can't go through.
Nate said they needed to distract him and discredit him by stripping him away from the company and giving him a mystery to be solved. Nate also pointed out the Roemer wants to take risks and be like Howard Hughes. And Sophie pointed out that Roemer was in love with a plane. Nate had a plan, and promised to keep it simple. Nate told Hardison he'd need a fake ID to be the buyer, specifically something Sheikh-y before leaving. Hardison pointed out that he did tell Nate the ID's won't hold up.
First Person POV (Kaira)
Eliot and I had finished our run through the house, checking to make sure everything was safe. Jenny was on the steps outside. Eliot had decided that while he was there, he was going to help Anne out. Eliot, Anne, and I walked out. Eliot had a garbage bag in his hand.
"What would they want?" Anne asked us.
"Did your husband leave anything behind?" Eliot asked as he put the trash in the can.
"He brought back little gifts on every trip - Jenny's backpack, her bear, pretty much every t-shirt she wears now. She won't wear anything else." Anne explained.
Eliot and I looked at her, watching behind her.
"What about a computer or a laptop?" I asked Anne.
"His laptop went down in the crash. I'm sorry." Anne said.
"No, that actually helps. Uh, pardon me for a second. Sorry." Eliot said, getting out his phone and stepping aside.
I walked up to Eliot as he got on the phone and put it on speaker.
"Yo." Eliot answered the phone.
"Yo, what's up?" I heard Hardison on the other side of the phone.
"Hey, Global cleaned up the crash site, right? I think they may have recovered Sanders' laptop. That's what spooked him." Eliot said.
"Well, they claimed everything was destroyed, but let's poke around." Hardison said.
After a moment, I heard him chuckle.
"Aha. Nice catch. There's a video fragment on Sanders' laptop." Hardison said.
He went silent again.
"Ken Sanders had a hidden camera. Okay, look, the, uh, video fragment stops there, but at least now we know why Global has people on the widow. Look, man, you find the rest of this footage, you can prove negligence." Hardison said.
"They must think the widow's got the whole video. They won't stop until they get it." I realized.
Eliot hung up the phone.
Third Person POV
Parker ran outside the office and met with Sophie, saying she had set up the thing for the thing. Sophie asked Parker why she was okay with this. Parker said they were here. Sophie brushed it off. Parker specified that the whole team was there. Sophie said it was sweet. Parker said her and her money, Hardison, Eliot, and Kaira, and Nate and Sophie were there. Sophie asked why the money came first. And Sophie got distracted by a theater for lease.
Nate was at the warehouse, on the phone with Sophie. Nate said he didn't know anything about running a theater. Nate got frustrated about not knowing, then hung up, meeting with Hardison. Nate did the introductions, then Roemer played them, bringing his own goons. Hardison acted upset, saying they were gonna hunt Nate, and when Roemer asked who it was, Sophie and Kaira revealed themselves, pointing fake guns at the security. Sophie and Kaira acted mad, asking if he told anyone about a "device". Roemer said it was a mistake. Hardison then had Roemer and Nate leave, threatening them with a fake gun as well.
Then Kaira and Parker took care of the two security guards as Sophie fired two shots, scaring Roemer. Hardison had them get in Roemer's car. There was a surprise bomb in the car as well, and they faked Hardison dying with some gunshots.
They always did like a good death scene. Nate convinced Roemer to not call the police and Roemer decided to call his security. Nate convinced Roemer that his own security was dirty. Nate found them a car, and Roemer said they'd cash out the money in the account. They drove off.
Meanwhile, Hardison, Kaira, and Eliot were hiding behind a car. They stood up.
"To be honest, when you're not on the receiving end of it, watching him mess with somebody's head is pretty impressive. " Eliot said.
"It is." Kaira said.
"Yeah. He's like one of those aliens that feeds off of people's fear." Hardison said, holding his tablet, as they started walking.
"Oh, my image analysis is scanning the footage that Ken Sanders took. It's not much." Hardison stopped as he pulled up the camera.
"It's not a camera phone. It's a cheaper model used in nanny cams." Hardison said.
"It's like a security camera." Eliot said.
"Yeah. Spy on the nanny so it looks like it belongs in the kid's room." Hardison said.
Then Hardison got an idea.
"But it doesn't look like a camera." Hardison said.
Kaira and Eliot both had the same thought.
"Dammit!." Kaira realized, starting to go.
"We know where it's at." Eliot said, following Kaira.
"Footage is stored in the drive-" Hardison explained.
He started jogging as Hardison went the opposite way.
"I know! Parker, I'm going over to the Sanders' house. Get to the school." Eliot said, getting in his orange Challenger.
"Jenny's more likely to be at the school, so Parker, I'm coming with." Kaira said over comms.
She ran off to meet with Parker.
"Sophie and I are gonna set up Nate's show." Hardison said as he headed to the van.
Eliot pulled out of the parking lot.
Roemer got the cash and threatened Nate, wanting answers. Nate gave him the mystery, claiming he didn't know who they were, and they wanted to take apart the Spruce Goose.
Eliot reported that Jenny had the camera. Parker and Kaira saw that Jenny was walking, and a black van pulled up.
"Shit!" Kaira exclaimed as she started running.
A guy grabbed the teddy from Jenny.
"They figured it out. They know the camera's in the bear!" Parker exclaimed as she chased after them.
Kaira got there just as the guy closed the door. Since it was locked, Kaira couldn't open the door. Parker and Kaira tried chasing the SUV.
"They got the bear." Parker reported.
"Did you get a license number? Maybe Hardison can hack some traffic cams." Eliot asked, getting in his car.
"Uh, slight hitch. Hardison, track Parker's phone." Kaira reported.
Parker was underneath the car. Kaira went back to make sure Jenny was okay. Eliot picked Kaira up.
Later that night, Nate and Roemer looked around the museum. Roemer continued solving the mystery. Roemer eventually realized that the Spruce Goose was actually a stealth craft. Unfortunately, Roemers security arrived, forcing them to move up the time table. Hardison put on a ski mask and Sophie pretended to shoot at Roemer and Nate, and Nate faked getting hit, and him and Roemer decided to get on the plane.
First Person POV (Kaira)
Eliot and I pulled up in his car, cutting off the security. We got out and went to the front of the car.
"I'm only gonna say this once, boys. Give me the… teddy bear." Eliot said, realizing how demeaning it was.
"Really, babe? Why'd you have to say it like that?" I questioned Eliot.
There was some laughter, but not for long, as a couple security guards went after me and Eliot. With some punches, Eliot and I managed to take out the whole group. One lone guard was left and pulled out his gun, teddy bear in another. He went to fire it, but the gun clicked. I can't help but smirk as Parker revealed his gun clip.
"This is the part where you get punched." Parker said.
Eliot took him out as I grabbed the teddy from his hand before it went down.
"Thanks for the assist, mama." I smiled at Parker.
I looked at the teddy bear.
"Pretty cute." I looked at Eliot, holding up the teddy bear.
"That a hint, mama?" Eliot smiled at me.
I can't help but smirk again.
"Maybe." I chuckled.
But then I felt sadness. I had thought about Eliot and I having kids someday. And well, it hasn't been that simple for us. I refocus and meet back up with everyone.
Third Person POV
Hardison and Parker had rigged the plane to make it seem like Roemer was flying the plane. Then Hardison, very proud of himself, decided to initiate the crash sequence. Nate knocked Roemer out, and with a little creativity, set him someplace else. Canada, specifically. Let's just say, his guy Busey and Roemer were not having a good day.
First Person POV (Kaira)
So with Roemer dealt with, we were back at the brewpub. I was watching Eliot give Jenny a lesson in knife usage. Not stabby knife usage, but cutting onion knife usage.
Nate and Sophie gave Anne a check from Global. I saw Parker and Hardison walk over with a tray of drinks, which was the first batch of beer they made.
Eliot finished up the chili he made. He gave grabbed a spoon and scooped some up and held the spoon in front of me.
"Here, try this mama." Eliot said.
I chuckled and took a bite, and the chili he made was damn good.
"That is so good, babe!" I said, my mouth still a bit full.
Eliot chuckled.
"Thanks, Kaira." Eliot smiled at me.
Eliot and I said goodbye to Jenny and left the kitchen. Eliot had some chili he made to try out.
"Black porter chili." Eliot said as he sat the bowl down.
Eliot and I tried the new beer, and we both spitted it out. We both sat down as Eliot and I both bitched about the beer. And we sat in the restaurant, just talking. And it felt like home.
The next surprise of the day came in the form of Hardison having rooms for us all. And, while Eliot and I were on vacation, Hardison and Parker had emptied out our storage container and unpacked everything for us. And I'm not gonna lie, our room was nice. It had all our possessions, and it was upstairs.
So after Eliot and I got changed, we laid in bed. Now, this place was feeling like home.
"Hey babe?" I asked Eliot.
"What, Sweetheart?" Eliot looked at me.
I wasn't sure how I wanted to approach the question I wanted to ask. I figured the best bet was to take it slow.
"How do you like Portland?" I asked Eliot.
"It's not bad. It has you here, so what more can I ask for." Eliot gave me a soft smile.
"Yeah. What about the brewpub?" I asked Eliot.
"I think Hardison's gonna run this place to the ground, but it's a nice base. Feels like home." Eliot said.
I smiled.
"It does." I said.
I took a breath to ready myself.
"It's the kinda place we could lay some roots, don't you think?" I asked Eliot.
He looked at me curiously.
"Roots? You're talking about starting a family?" Eliot questioned.
I exhaled.
"Yeah. I mean, maybe not right away. Let's take some time to settle down and figure it out. Together." I told Eliot.
I could see Eliot processing what I said.
"I like that plan, Sweetheart." Eliot gave me a smile.
He leaned in to kiss me, and I kissed him back, his hand on my cheek. I was relieved that Eliot was okay with this plan.
"Sweetheart, what's wrong?" Eliot asked me.
"Nothing, babe. I was just nervous to ask you about starting a family. I wasn't sure if you were ready, and to be honest, I'm not 100% percent ready either." I told Eliot.
"Hey, Kaira, you know I would never force you to do anything you don't want to do. Except getting you to eat and drink water." Eliot said, smiling at the end, causing me to chuckle and smile.
"Hey, I'm serious, Kaira. I would never do that to you. I'll wait for you. And please, don't rush for me. When you're ready, I'll be ready." Eliot assured me.
I can't help but smile again at Eliot.
"Deal?" Eliot chuckled.
"Deal." I said.
I leaned in and kissed Eliot.
And my mind was a mix of excitement and horror. I was truly excited for the next chapter Eliot and I was heading towards. Our own house, with our family. And I was also scared out of my mind. I was mostly scared about messing it all up. I had dreamed about the journey we were headed on for a while now, but now that I was on it, it's scary. But I had Eliot beside me, so I knew I was going to be okay.