We are coming to the end of the road. All editing is complete and I will post the last chapter next week. Maybe sooner. We'll see.
Thank you for the lovely comments regarding the last update, I am happy so many have enjoyed the journey.
Chapter 20:
Amir sat in the ambulance, actively ignoring McG's looks as he had told the EMT's that he was Andy's husband and would be going to the hospital with his wife. He'd held her hand as they put in an I.V. and started rattling off medical information and they raced through the streets.
Once at the hospital, he had been stopped by the nurses as McG had followed giving medical information. He felt helpless as they wheeled her back for emergency surgery and she disappeared from view. Soon he was joined by McG who continued to glance at him until Adam and the rest of the team arrived.
All of it was too soon after Preach's hospital stay, and they tried to ignore how the hospital was similar to the one in Turkey that they had spent days wondering if they would ever walk out of whole. The smells and the machines were all the same despite the miles of difference in location. The chairs were the same stiff plastic that were uncomfortable and unyielding.
"Andrea Turner?" a nurse called walking into the waiting room. The nurse's mask of bland emotion did nothing to calm the nerves of the five people in the waiting room. She must have sensed their anxiety. "The doctor will be in to talk to you in a few minutes," she shared as she led them into a private room where Andy lay hooked to machines.
Before McG could ask any questions, a young doctor also in blue scrubs entered the room. The team glanced him up and down as he reviewed the chart of his patient. "Are you all family?" he questioned before glancing up and seeing the group of well dressed, but disheveled people before him.
"I'm her brother," Adam answered taking the lead.
"Well Mr. Turner, your sister is very lucky. The bullet nicked her liver but did very little damage considering. She'll make a full recovery," he announced and left the room.
There was a collective sigh from Adam's team as they looked down at Andy lying against the white sheets. She wouldn't be awake for a little while according to the nurse that came in to check her fluids and Adam ordered the team to head back to the safe house to start packing up.
"Top, you should go change," McG suggested looking at the blood covering the white shirt of his ruined tux.
Adam looked around the team and they were in similar states of disarray. Jaz's hair had come completely free of the pins that had held the strands in place, the mass of curls covering her shoulders, and her dress was wrinkled and covered with blood and dirt from the cave. Amir and McG both were also covered in his sister's blood and the dirt from the cave. The cleanest of them was Preach and he shared a look with the CO that clearly was an encouragement to take the team and come back later.
"We should all go change and come back," Adam suggested. He saw the fierce protest in his team's eyes, but they quickly knew that was more an order than a suggestion. They were gathering too much attention as it was. "Preach will stay and keep an eye on her and we'll get back shortly."
Amir stood and looked down at Andy and realized that once again, he was leaving her having just been shot and would probably not be there when she woke up. He fiercely wanted to be the first one she saw. He needed to be the first one. He could not make himself leave despite knowing that his team was waiting on him.
"She's not going to be awake for hours," McG assured him quietly. He seemed to understand the dilemma plaguing the operative and took pity on him. Amir nodded and finally followed him out. He cast a single glance back and followed his team back to the safe house.
Preach pulled up a chair next to the bed and stared at the woman that had turned his team upside down in a matter of days. Her hair was splayed out on the pillow and she looked relaxed for the first time in days. He remembered the girl that had watched his daughters, had dinner at his table, and comforted his wife when he had been deployed.
Andy Dalton was a brave woman and loved fiercely the people in her life. He had watched as she had not hesitated to save Jaz and stepped in front of those kids time and again while teaching and shielding them from the people watching her. While she was brave, she was also still the loneliest person he had met. This time with her was the first time she had not seemed lonely in all the years he had known her.
"When will you realize my dear that you are not alone?" he whispered as he took up watch over a sister by choice.
Amir stood in the shower, rinsing off the grime and Andy's blood, and he allowed the ball of fear and anxiety to ease slightly as he watched the water finally run clear again. His heart rate had finally slowed and his hand no longer shook when he held it in front of him. His reactions were so out of character for him, it had caused his anxiety to double temporarily. He knew his surroundings and he knew his reactions, but Andy had broken all the walls he had built over the years the minute he had laid eyes on her. All she had done was turn those sky-blue eyes on him, and he had been transported back to the time they were together. He had needed the time away from her tonight in order to take a moment and breathe. Where could they go after so many years? He had to fortify those walls once more so that when they parted again, he could survive losing her.
Jaz watched Amir come out of the bathroom and saw the strain in his eyes. Over their leave, she had exchanged phone conversations and text messages with him and grown to understand how he ticked. Seeing him with Andy, she sympathized with him knowing it wasn't easy to care for members of the Dalton family. They exchanged a glance before she slipped into the bathroom.
She looked at herself in the mirror, the ruined dress, the ruined makeup and the ruined hair. It figured that the first time in her life that she wanted to feel pretty and let someone dress her up that it would all be spoiled. It had been nice to be armed though, and her new weapons had come in handy. Andy Dalton had shifted the dynamic of the team in so many ways that Jaz wondered if they would ever be the same after this mission. Taking a deep breath, she slipped free of the torn and tattered dress, and stepped under the hot spray of the shower to wash away the dirt and filth.
McG sat on the bed in his room and breathed through the nausea rolling through his stomach. He often put on the brave face for his team, but starting this deployment with a teammate being shot was not what he needed. The smell of blood was stuck in his nose, so were the smells of the cave where those poor children had been held. The sweat, the fear, the smells he chose not to identify for his own sanity.
He had finally started putting the previous deployment behind him, the nightmares of finding Jaz, of tending her injuries just to have Preach hurt in the explosion that destroyed their bunker, and then Andy. Andy's injury had not been entirely minor, but she hadn't come close to dying either. It had been the look on Top's face seeing his sister collapse and the worry in the stoic Amir's face every time he saw her that worried McG. Top and Amir were the solid ones on the team, always calm in a storm. Preach was right there with them, but Jaz was the spitfire. Jaz held herself calm, but close to Top as a silent pillar of support.
Adam stood at the bottom of the stairs listening to his team move around and got a text from Preach that Andy should be awake soon. He wanted to urge his team to move faster, but knew that they may need a beat to catch their breath. He would have his moment once he saw his sister awake. He had spoken to Patricia and learned that the children they had saved would be re-united with their families soon. His sister had done good work and the CIA was pleased with the results of their missions.
The first down the stairs was Jaz. She had washed her hair and braided is down her back and wore her usual off-duty uniform of jeans and a black t-shirt with a jacket. She looked up at him with assessing eyes and he itched to pull her to him and just hold her until he relaxed. He held her gaze until he heard footsteps at the top of the stairs and saw Amir walking down slowly. He looked calmer and more centered. More like the Amir he was used to, but still a little rough around the edges. Last down the stairs, McG looking worn out and sullen. Without a word they exited the safe house and made their way to the hospital.
The machines monitoring Andy's vitals hissed and whirred, the heart rate machine silently keeping track of her steady heartbeat. It was the only comfort to the team that she was okay, because she refused to open her eyes. She knew that the team would be looking at her with worry and fear, but she could not bare to see it. It had never been her intention to worry them. She allowed the darkness to claim her again.
The team walked in, Adam handed Preach a duffle so that he could lose his own filthy clothes, and took the seat vacated by Preach so he could reach for his sister's hand. His team found chairs to fill the room and they all took positions guarding her while she recovered.
Hours later, Andy still refused to open her eyes, but the team held fast in their positions until a nurse told them the cafeteria was now open and suggested maybe they make a run for coffee. Amir and Adam refused to leave, but Jaz lead the way knowing that they were all running on near empty as it had now been more than twenty-four hours since they had slept.
Amir sat opposite his CO and holding Andy's other hand. He refused to answer questions until he had had time with Andy. It didn't matter to him that Adam had looked at him more than once with questions. His soul focus was Andy's face and catching the first flutter of her eyelashes as she began to finally wake up. He felt her squeeze his hand and watched as she rolled her head in his direction before finally opening her eyes.
"Well that didn't go according to plan," she muttered, her tongue feeling like sandpaper and thick from the general anesthesia and sleep.
"What? The rescue attempt or you getting shot?" Adam demanded now that she was awake and his fear for her safety had finally ebbed allowing the anger to take hold. He watched as his sister's eyes slowly shifted towards him. The regret immediately evident. He was shocked to see tears also start forming.
"Amir, can you give us a second?" she requested with her scratchy voice, while staring at her big brother.
Amir looked at Andy and then to Adam and knew that she needed this before she could speak to him. For a brief moment, he knew her needs as he had known them all those years ago. Without thought, he raised her hand to his lips and pressed a soft kiss to her knuckles and left the room. She still refused to look at him.
Adam watched as a tear slid down her cheek before she quickly wiped it away. His emotions were mixed seeing one of his operatives being so familiar with his sister, but he didn't hate it. He hated the pain and regret he saw in his sister's eyes.
"You're still in love with him," Adam stated as she stared at the chair Amir had just vacated. She looked slowly over at him, the drugs still slowing her movements, and nodded. He reached for the cup of water the nurse had left for when she woke up and held the straw to her lips so she could drink. She sipped slowly and then leaned back against the pillows, the effort of sitting up even slightly wearing her out.
"I never stopped, but that is my story to tell at a later time," she finally answered. "I have known he was alive a lot longer than he knew I was. Right now, he is re-assessing the situation and I don't want to assume his feelings are genuine and not a memory. I can see he still cares, I'm not blind, but love is a long leap when you think someone has been dead. I need to talk to him when I'm not lying in a hospital bed recovering from a gunshot."
"Andy, you can't hide this from him, he should know how you feel," Adam advised.
"Says the man that is in love with his sniper," she whispered as her energy already started to wane. She saw the regret flash in his eyes and knew she had struck a nerve.
"Touché," he answered moving to sit beside her on the bed.
"We got everyone out and the kids are being re-united with their parents. A couple will be sent to live with other family members because investigations stateside determined the kids' parents sold them. Those parents have been arrested," he told her purposely changing the subject to work.
The idea that a parent had sold their child made her stomach roll and if she'd had anything in it, she would have been sick. All she could think about were those that would get lost in the foster system and grow up feeling as though they were not loved because their parents had sold them.
"Andy, when did this get so out of hand?" he questioned knowing that just because her handler's cover had been blown would not have been enough to send her running for help.
"I decided to get out a year ago. I was offered a training position at the Farm and I was going to take it. I was saying goodbye to my old life and fell into this cover. There was so little time to build a background that I had had to stick mostly to the truth. He had seen pictures of you on my phone and it snowballed. I knew you would have to be called in, but I had put it off as long as I possibly could. Then my handler was killed and I didn't know who to trust. I thought they would send just you, not the whole team," she explained running on empty. She was breathing hard and he gave her more water. He glanced at the heart rate monitor and saw that her steady rhythm was steadily increasing.
"Where I go, my team goes, especially where family is concerned. You're family, they're family, we don't leave family behind," he stated with a shrug. Andy nodded with gratitude and struggled to keep her eyes open. "I'll go get Amir," he offered seeing her struggle to remain awake.
Amir stood in the hall along with the rest of the team, waiting for Top to come out and give them the okay. He paced and was just short of getting on Jaz's nerves when Top came back out and gestured for Amir to follow him.
"Take it easy on her," he ordered before leaving Amir with his sister. Amir stood in the doorway willing himself to move forward towards the woman that he had nearly lost again.
Andy heard Amir's familiar gate as he crossed the room, and wished that he wouldn't hesitate when he saw her. She knew his hesitation came from their time apart, but she couldn't help feeling a twinge of grief for all the time they had lost. It was unfair, but their choices had led to that separation and they now had to live with the consequences.
Amir saw her eyes closed and that she was breathing heavier than when he had left the room. She looked tired despite having been unconscious for several hours. He walked towards her bedside and filled the seat he had occupied earlier. His fingers itched to reach for hers, but he held back for a moment. Then deciding he would never get anywhere unless he tried, he reached for her hand.
Her fingers laced through his and she felt him squeeze reassuringly. Her heart filled with a joy she didn't know she would ever feel again. She felt whole and despite the years since she had been with him. "I missed you," she confessed just barely above a whisper. She hadn't wanted to be the first to say it, but she also didn't want to waste the chance to be honest.
Amir looked into Andy's eyes and realized just how much he had missed her. Her blue eyes were tired and bloodshot, but she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. The years had made him cautious about expressing his feelings and he hesitated long enough that he saw the light dim from her eyes and the wariness creep back in.
"I missed you too. How are you feeling?" he answered and realized he didn't want to leave.
"Like I was shot," she deadpanned. She tried to get more comfortable and sit up more, but it pulled her stitches and she let out a soft groan. "Amir, does Adam know?" Amir gave her an inscrutable look.
"The records were scrubbed when I went undercover. No one knows." The CIA was always quick to hide things about their operatives and it was one of the few times she was grateful for it. Even if it meant that she felt like she lost him all over again.
Andy's eyes slipped close again, but she forced them open. She wanted to savor the time with Amir while she could. She felt his hand close around hers and she smiled even as her eyes slipped shut again. Exhaustion was winning, and she still had a lot to say to Amir.
"Andy, rest. I will be here when you wake up," he whispered in her ear. She nodded and finally allowed sleep to claim her. She never let go of his hand.