Hey babes! Back again with a new chapter for ya! Sorry it's been a while. Been working a lot lately. But with this chapter, we are starting to get into more of the bigger storyline from s2. So brace yourselves for what's coming.
Enjoy!
He's risking a lot by doing this. He knows that he is. It was never explicitly said by Coulson, or anyone else for that matter, but he's pretty sure that having secret communications with a very high-risk adversary of SHIELD is a big red flag. But he needs to know. He needs to know what she knows.
He's been communicating with Raina for a while, since not too long after her meeting with Coulson at that restaurant. The way she spoke about Skye didn't sit well with him, it never did. He needs to know why. Of course, he hasn't told anyone else about his conversations with Raina, only Max. He confides in Max a lot with things he knows he can't tell other people or just feels like he can't tell other people.
It's been difficult, not telling Skye what he's learned from Raina, but he wants to make sure that he has everything concrete before he broaches the subject with her. Even then, he may not tell her until after everything is dealt with and he can say for certain whether or not her father really is as a bad of a person as everyone assumes he is.
It hasn't been easy, though, with Raina being a naturally cryptic person, and then having to be vague in their communications in case anyone else finds them. But he's done his best to piece everything together. And he's so close.
A soft knocking at the door draws Grant's attention away from the laptop in front of him where he'd been communicating with Raina. "Who is it?" he asks.
"It's me," Skye's voice comes from the other side.
"One second." He shuts the lid of the laptop and sets it aside before climbing off the bed to pull the door open. "Hey."
"Hi. Are you busy right now?" she asks him, hiking Adian up a little higher on her hip.
He shakes his head, shifting on his feet. "No, why?"
"I just felt like we could watch a movie or something," she says nonchalantly with a small shrug. "Things have been crazy around here lately and I think we could both use some quiet. Plus, it's been a while since we've done a movie night. There are still a lot of movies you haven't seen yet."
He shifts on his feet again, his brows furrowing together tightly. He wants to, so badly, but he's also so close in his communications with Raina. He's almost gotten it. "Could we...could we maybe raincheck for another night?" he asks carefully. "I'm kind of in the middle of something important and I—"
"I thought you said you weren't busy?"
He sighs. "I'm not, not really. I just...this can't really wait and I nee—"
"Why are you lying?" she asks, adjusting her hold on Adian. "What are you hiding from me, Grant?"
He sighs again, hanging his head and rubbing the back of his neck. He should have known he wouldn't be able to keep this a secret for much longer. He looks back up at Skye. "Come inside. It's better if I tell you this when no one else can hear."
She hesitates for a small moment before entering his room and he slides the door closed after her. He watches her cross to the small area he has set aside for Adian whenever he's watching the boy in there, and then she joins him, standing near his bed. She crosses her arms over her chest and levels him with a glare.
"Start talking."
He takes a deep breath, watching her carefully. "I've been talking with Raina."
Her eyes go wide and her arms fall from her chest. "You've been what?"
"I've been trying to get more information from her," he explains. "About why she's been so interested in you. I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner, but I needed to be sure about all of this before I came to you."
"If you ever did," she speaks the words he wanted to be left unsaid. "Are you crazy, Grant? We can't trust Raina."
"I think we can," he admits. "At least, about this. It's taken a while to get what I have, but she hasn't been shy about it. She wants you to go somewhere with her, and I've almost gotten the location. She's always cryptic, and we've had to be careful while talking. I don't know if she's going to give me the actual location over our communications, though. I might have to find a way to go get her and have her take me there herself."
Skye's silent for a moment before she uncrosses her arms and stands a little taller. "I'm coming with you."
"What?" He shakes his head. "No, Skye…"
"You can't keep me in the dark with this, Grant. Not when it's about me. I have to know what's going on. Please."
He sighs, but nods his head, figuring there's no use trying to keep this from her anymore. "Alright. I was planning on heading out soon to go get Raina, but I wasn't sure how long I was going to be gone. Since you're coming too, now, we need to find someone to watch Adian. I trust the guys here, I really do, but I don't know if I want to leave him here without us for an indefinite amount of time."
"No, I feel the same way. I trust the others to watch Adian, but I don't know if I want to leave him here without us either. Maybe you could call Rose and see if she'd watch him for us. We won't be able to give her a time frame of how long we'll be gone, but maybe she'd still be willing."
He nods. "Yeah. Do you want to change while I get some stuff together for Adian? I'll call her when we're done."
"Okay."
It doesn't take him long to get things together for Adian, going into the baby's room to find everything they'll need. He puts it all in the diaper bag that they've hardly used since getting it, that's more of a backpack style, and then makes sure the boy is dressed properly. He runs through a mental list of everything he packed, trying to think if he forgot anything. He packed a few extra pairs of clothes, a stack of diapers, wipes, Adian's favorite toys, and a few other necessities. They'll still have to grab the milk out of the freezer that Skye keeps saved up in case she's not able to feed Adian for whatever reason and someone else will have to.
He's sliding Adian's shoes onto his feet when Skye enters the room, dressed in a set of tactical clothing, her hair pulled back out of her face.
"You two ready?" she asks.
He nods, lifting Adian off the changing table and handing him over to Skye. "I've checked his diaper and he seems fine, but he may need to be changed on the way, depending."
She nods. "Okay. Have you called Rose yet?"
"I was just about to." He pulls his phone out of his pocket and immediately dials his sister's number, holding the device to his ear as he waits for her to pick up.
"Hello?"
"Hey, Rosie," he says into the receiver. "Do you think you can watch Adian for a few days?" He glances over to where Skye is sitting in the rocking chair with Adian in her lap and Max sitting at her feet.
"Of course. I'd love to spend more time with my handsome nephew. What's going on?"
"I'm not quite sure," he says honestly. "But I promise I'll explain once I know, okay?"
"Yeah, okay. When are you guys coming by?"
"As soon as possible. Would today be too short of notice for you?"
"Absolutely not. I'll see you when you get here."
"Yeah. Thank you, Rose."
"You know you don't have to thank me, Grant. We're family."
"I know. I love you."
"I love you too."
Ending the call, he pulls the phone away from his ear and looks over at Skye. "Rose said she can watch him."
"Good." She looks at Adian and smiles. "What do you think, baby? Want to spend a few days with your Auntie Rose?"
Adian simply gurgles, waving his hands in the air as he does.
"I think that's a yes," Grant remarks, a smile on his face. "Let me just grab my jacket and then we'll go."
"Okay. I'll meet you in the hangar."
He nods. "And remember, if anyone asks, we're just going to visit my sister to get away from all of this for a few days."
"The best lies have a grain of truth to them."
He gives her a small smile before moving to his room next door to grab his jacket. He wishes he could have a gun of some kind with him, to be able to protect them when they go meet with Raina. He'll just have to make do with what he has, knowing he won't be able to get a gun from the weaponry. Neither of them will if they want to leave without the others noticing weapons missing and then asking questions.
Letting out a heavy sigh, he makes sure he has everything he needs before leaving the room, closing the door tightly behind him. This is it, everything's almost going to be put in place. They're almost to the end.
So? What did you think? Let me know in a review down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.
Until next time,
Jellybean96 out!