"W-what do you mean?" Alex whispered – now attempting to get out of the cuffs once more, knowing that Maggie needed her help.
Maggie stayed silent for a few seconds, curling up in Alex's lap.
"I… woke up… in the back of a van – or something." She finally said. "Cullen was there…"
"Cullen?" Alex asked.
"A young guy – blonde. Jamie Cullen. He… worked in my precinct. He's a cybercrime guy."
Alex recognized him as the 'body'. "Is he alien?"
"Hates aliens… got suspended because of it." Maggie sounded breathless, but at least her thoughts were coherent enough to make sense.
"Why does a sacked CCS guy want you dead, Maggie?"
Maggie took a deep breath. "It's complicated."
"I figured."
"Alex." Maggie gasped. "The guy he's with – his voice…"
Alex wasn't sure whether she meant the third guy or Atticus, but she didn't interject.
"… He's trouble. If he is who I think he is…"
"Listen – they're coming for us, okay?" Alex leaned down until she felt her neck protesting – just to get close enough for her cheek to touch the top of Maggie's head. A whisper – just in case anybody was listening.
"My tracker is active – she's on her way to rescue us, alright? Just hold on… Stay calm. Don't make any decisions."
"What did they want with you?" Maggie whispered back, a trembling hand making contact with Alex's chin.
Alex wished she could hold her.
"They want us to help their militia. Civilians that pick fights with aliens. They need intel."
Maggie stayed quiet.
"But… if they're NCPD… why are they pretending to be civilians?" Alex whispered out loud, her brain racing with possibilities.
"Alex." Maggie sighed. "Me and those guys aren't the best of friends."
Alex swallowed thickly. "Tell me what I need to know. Tell me who you think they are."
Maggie nodded – Alex felt the movement on her chest. "Cullen was caught…selling NCPD files onto the dark web. We never found the buyer – but we were put on the case… because all the files were alien related."
Alex nodded.
"If… he is who I think he is – the other guy is Eric Finch. He used to work covert ops in vice and homicide. We did a case together a while back – didn't end well."
"Finch…" Alex repeated – making the connection almost instantly. "Atticus Finch."
"What?"
"To Kill A Mockingbird." Alex mused. "Never mind – I know who you're talking about. He's the guy that knocked you out."
"Ugh…" Maggie grunted. "That's why I feel so shitty."
Alex nodded through the dark, and felt her hands trembling behind her. "I thought you were gone."
"Honestly – waking up like that – I thought the same." Maggie laughed weakly into the dark.
Alex wished she could hold her.
"What about the third guy? Did you recognize him? Or the woman?"
Alex heard footsteps approaching in the distance, and realized they didn't have much time left.
"I didn't see a woman." Maggie responded. "The guy… I… I don't know."
Alex nodded – she had enough to go on.
Five beeps. Click.
"Babe, cover your eyes with your hands." She instructed Maggie. She couldn't see whether Maggie complied – but figured sudden bright lights wouldn't do her concussion much good.
The door opened. The woman – Fletcher – stood in the doorway. Along with Finch, and Cullen. The third man wasn't with them.
The door closed behind them, as they entered. Now with five people in the room, it was much more crowded. Alex felt disoriented already – Maggie's warm body grounding her as much as possible.
"Agent Danvers – I hope the reunion was pleasant?"
"She's hurt, and I can't help her with these handcuffs on." Alex responded. "I have told your enforcer already – if you want my help, you need to let me help her first."
"She'll survive. She's tough enough." The woman said. "From the stories I've heard, she's a little too tough for her own good."
A hard impact, and a painful grunt from Maggie below her. In the dark, she couldn't see who was responsible.
"She can't give you information if you bash her brains inside out. You're idiots if you don't understand that." Alex snapped – attempting a different tactic. "And if she's brain-dead, you'll come after me next? Beat me to a pulp with a tire iron and then expect me to give you handwritten notes?!"
Finch – next to her – laughed. "You underestimate us, Agent."
"I can assure you, I don't."
"Have you considered our proposal?" The woman asked.
Alex sighed. "Not yet."
A hiss through teeth behind her.
"Wrong answer."
Roughly – she felt Maggie being pulled away from her. She yelled out. "No! No, please, no!"
A scuffle in front of her – so close that Alex occasionally felt various bodies bumping into her – why the fuck was she stuck to this fucking pole…
"Maggie!" She yelled – hoping that her fiancée would respond.
Heavy breathing ensued, by at least two people.
"Your defense is still shit, Sawyer. All punches and no blocks." It sounded like Finch.
Maggie's weak voice responded. "At least I fight – I'm not a coward that can only punch in the dark, Finch."
Finch growled, and seemed to lunge – but the woman stopped him. "Enough, Atticus."
Maggie laughed breathily. "Oh – Eric - you didn't tell me you had a girlfriend? And you even have cute nicknames?"
"Sawyer." The woman responded. "Your offer is still on the table too."
"I haven't forgotten." Maggie responded. "Kind of hard to think around here when you get beat up every other second."
"Funny." Fletcher deadpanned. "Your time is up. I need an answer from both of you – now."
"Or else?" Maggie huffed.
The woman laughed. "Even when you're down, you still want to pick a fight."
"How did you convince Cullen and Finch to do your bidding?!" Maggie shot back. "What did you give them – money? The promise that they got to beat up innocent aliens after hours?"
"Watch your fucking tone." Cullen's voice hissed from beside her. A series of movements, and Alex heard a choking sound. Maggie – gasping for breath.
"Easy, easy." Alex realized the time for stalling was over. "I accept, okay?! I'll help you. If it helps keeping National City safe – I'll do it."
"Alex…" The choked sound of her name made her wince.
"Maggie – stop. Stop fighting. Please." Alex willed her fiancée to stay safe, and quit antagonizing them. "Take me wherever you want to get information, but leave her alone. I'll tell you wat you need to know."
"You really think you're smarter than her?" Finch taunted.
"The NCPD doesn't have the intel the DEO has." Alex said. "She won't give you anything I can't tell you. She's useless to you."
"Not useless…" Cullen responded. "She makes for an excellent punching bag."
Whatever baggage Maggie had with the two men – it was obvious they resented her.
"Take it out on me. I'm the one she loves."
Finch and Cullen laughed simultaneously. She felt movement to her right, and a hand touching hers behind her back. Within seconds, the cuffs loosened, and she slipped both hands out.
She considered attacking the man closest to her, but in the complete darkness it would be a pointless fight. In a familiar environment, maybe, but here - she had no idea what she was doing.
"Alex… Alex, no… Where are you taking her?!" She heard Maggie's emotional voice as she felt herself being pulled towards the door by her sore – and slightly numb - arms.
"Your response, Detective Sawyer?" Fletcher asked her, as the man holding Alex – she figured it was Cullen – waited to punch in the code.
"No." Maggie hissed through her teeth. "Fuck you. No!"
Fletcher hummed – and Cullen entered the code, shoving the door open.
For a second, Alex managed to look back into the room, willing herself to keep her eyes open.
Maggie was being held by Finch – but it looked more like he was supporting her. The left side of her face was completely caked in dried blood – probably from laying unconscious on her side. Her eyes were wide and full of terror – but when they met Alex's own, the Agent gave Maggie a small smile. "Don't worry."
After that, the door slammed shut. Cullen walked with her through the corridor.
This was her opportunity.
She wouldn't let it drop again.
As soon as they were far enough away from the door, she made her move.
Their mistake was not restraining her.
She snapped free from his hold, and jabbed the palm of her hand into his throat. When he doubled over to nurse it, she hit him in the ear, and elbowed him in the neck. He dropped to the ground, wheezing for breath.
One last brutal kick to the face – for Maggie. He clutched his nose, blood gushing out through the mask, and whimpered pathetically.
She crouched down, and pulled off his mask. "What's the use for the mask, huh?! I saw your face in the alley."
The man didn't respond. She felt a hardness to the mask, and glanced down, analyzing it. The mask had a built-in night vision device. High-tech, and expertly made.
She threw it aside carelessly, and grabbed him by the hem of the shirt.
She pulled him up, hissing dangerously. "If you don't tell me what's going on within the next five seconds, I'm snapping your neck like a fucking toothpick."
Cullen grinned – baring teeth stained with blood. He then spat at her.
She felt herself being sprayed with his blood, and moved to wipe it off. Then, she tried again. "What's the code for the door?"
No response. She grabbed his head, and shoved it against the floor forcefully, before pulling him back up. "What. Is the code. For the door."
He laughed. "Alien-loving bitch. You don't know what's coming. You won't stop us."
Alex realized the man was useless. She tilted his head up once more, and pushed it back against the ground. One – two – three times. Until the man went limp underneath her. She didn't care whether he lived or died, at that point.
Poetic justice for pretending to be dead in the first place.
There was still a third man around, and she didn't know the code to the door. For a second, she stared at the body below her – and considered her options.
Maggie was in no shape to fight, but if Alex took Finch – maybe the Detective could surprise the woman and they could overpower the two. Finding the right corridors back to the stairs was a problem for later.
She walked back to the door where Maggie was being held, adrenalin coursing through her veins.
As she approached, she heard voices from inside. She stopped next to the door, and listened in.
"…knew what the consequences were." Fletcher.
"I had nothing to do with it. You're wrong." Maggie.
"Stop lying. I know what I saw." Finch.
"You didn't see anything because I didn't do anything."
Alex frowned at Maggie's rushed tone.
She heard her fiancée continue. "Might as well just kill me, Eric."
"Oh, I plan to. But your girlfriend is going to give us everything she knows first."
Maggie laughed. "If you think she's going to give you anything, you're even more stupid than you look. She's already on her way."
Alex couldn't help but smirk.
Fletcher laughed. "Why do you think I sent Cullen out with her?"
Alex's smile dropped instantly.
"You know what I think, Detective? I think you peg me for a fool."
Scuffle. Punches – impacts. Alex pressed her back against the wall next to the door, and waited for it to open. She was powerless to stop the fight inside, but she still had the element of surprise…
… even though Fletcher had apparently calculated it somehow.
Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Click.
The door opened.
Alex waited one second – and was glad she did when she saw that Maggie was the first one being shoved forward into the hallway – her eyes clenched shut and tears rushing down her bloody face from the brightness.
As soon as she saw the torso of the man peeking out of the doorway, she lunged.
Grabbing the man by the throat and headbutting him. He let go of Maggie – out of the corners of her eyes, she saw her stumble away into the corridor.
Alex was one on one with Finch now, and she was out for blood. Rage filled her upon remembering the dull thud that had resounded when he'd struck Maggie down in the alley.
"I'm gonna fucking kill you!" She screamed, punching and elbowing him any way she could. He put up a fight, dodging and blocking whenever he could, but taking some hits along the way. And he fought back too. She saw red, and barely felt the few hits that came her way.
She managed to grab him by the throat and shove him against the wall, glaring at him. But right as she opened her mouth – she felt something jab in her back.
Electricity coursed through her body, freezing her in place.
Fuck.
She'd been tased before during training. And a few times in the field – with metahumans or aliens that conducted electricity.
It fucking sucked.
And she recognized immediately that the taser jammed in her back wasn't police-grade. It was far stronger.
She collapsed, feeling her entire body tense up. She couldn't move, and was forced to stare at the man's shoes in front of her.
"Nice try." Finch sneered, taking extra care to step on her hand as he moved away from her.
"Where did Sawyer go?!" She heard Fletcher say behind her. "Go – find her, now! And call Price!"
Finch took off sprinting.
The clacking of heels reverberated through her skull, until finally – a set of woman's shoes came into view.
"That's on me, Agent." The woman chuckled weakly. "I should have known better. Sorry it had to come to this."
Alex saw her crouch down next to her, and finally got to see the face of the mysterious woman. Short, brown hair. Elegant, red lipstick. A smirk of control on her face.
She didn't recognize the woman – but that only scared her more. If she'd been on a DEO list somewhere, at least she knew what she was up against.
The Agent was used to constantly analyzing a situation and making judgement calls. But this time, she had no idea what could happen next.
She wished Kara was there.
She felt the woman put a lock of hair back behind her ear – a gesture that, in any other context, would have seemed motherly and concerned.
"We're going for a ride, Agent Danvers."
Alex couldn't respond.
She felt the taser jab into the space between her shoulder blades.
The second jolt made her lose consciousness.