Renegade Runaways :: Chapter Twenty One

Steve watched Bo brewing silently across the tiny cabin of the small plane they were in. John flew in silence, occasionally in communication with Shane. They were headed back to Salem, but none of them were as happy about it as they should be.

Bo felt Steve's hand give his shoulder a sympathetic squeeze. His gut twisted. He tore his eyes from the dark Earth below and glanced at his friend.

"It'll all work out," Steve reassured, "She loves you."

Bo's jaw clenched. It was too soon to hurt her this way.

"We'll be back to the safe house before you know it," Steve added, "Maybe she'll have enough time to cool off. She'll be level headed enough to forgive you and you two can ride off into the sunset."

Bo chuckled lightly despite the guilt and pain he felt towards leaving her behind, "Hope? Level headed? Have you seen her temper?"

Steve smiled, "Nothing you can't handle."

Bo smiled softly. The fire inside of Hope was one of the reasons he loved her so much, "You don't seem to be handling my sister's temper too well…"

Steve sighed, "There is a time and place for handling Kayla my friend. This mission is neither the time, or the place."

Bo shook his head, "Chicken."

"We'll work it out," Steve replied confidently, "We always do."

"I can't wait for this crap to be over with," Bo sighed, "I'm tired. I want to be normal again."

"We've never been normal brother," Steve laughed, "Who needs normal?"

Bo stared back out the window, "I do…"

Steve sobered, "We'll be home and back to normal before you know it. We'll figure this out. We always do."

John's voice startled them and drew their attention to the front of the small plane, "Caroline has been located in a warehouse just outside of Salem. It appears abandoned. Not much movement going on at this time. Shane is waiting for us there."

Bo and Steve glanced at each other.

"You ready for this?" Steve questioned.

"The sooner we get Ma out of there, the better," Bo nodded.

"About an hour till landing," John announced.

"I bet she's giving them hell," Steve almost laughed.

"Who?" Bo questioned, "Hope?"

This time Steve did laugh, "Well, I'd place money down on that fact. I was talking about your mom."

"Well, Ma never was one to back down," Bo smiled at the thought. Her illness had been eating him alive. He missed her.

"How did you get so lucky to be surrounded by fiery women?" Steve asked, "There's not a weak one in the bunch."

Bo shrugged, "Good thing you fell into this crew, huh?"

Steve shrugged, "I don't know. Sometimes I think they could take me."

"Oh, they could," Bo nodded, "Don't ever underestimate them."

"Stephanie is a lot like her mother," Steve sighed. His voice sounded far off, "I thank my lucky stars every day."

"The minute I found out Ciara was a girl, I always prayed for the same thing," Bo sighed back, "Hope is strong. Independent. She's not afraid of anything."

"She's afraid of losing you," Steve replied quietly.

"And I'm afraid of losing her," Bo sighed and ran a hand through his hair, "I go over and over this in my head. There is no right answer. I couldn't have done it differently. She had to stay there."

"Stop beating yourself up," Steve encouraged, "It's too late for that. It's done. We're all in this together. She'll have to take it out on everybody."

Bo stared at his boots. He longed to see the sparkle in her big, beautiful, green, eyes. He wanted to hear her laughter floating down the hallway of their home. He wished she was there to make him feel human. Right now, he felt robotic.

"Hey," Steve snapped at him, "I promise you she'll be so happy to see you when we get back, it'll all be forgotten."

Memories of the pit hit him unexpectedly. The dark days. The torture. The many consecutive days without her. He shivered. He prayed this mission didn't get him back where he started. He wouldn't survive this time.

"Hey man," Steve's voice lured him back to the plane, "Where were you just now?"

Bo swallowed uncomfortably, "The pit."

Steve shook his head once, "There's no way in hell you're going back there."

"I can't do it," Bo shook his head, "I won't do it. They'll have to kill me first."

"I won't let them," Steve replied, "I've got your back. We can do this."

Bo nodded. His anxiety dissipated. Steve had saved him. They had always been a good team. Nothing had changed that. Hope was safe. He didn't have to worry about her. He exhaled slowly and leaned back in his seat. He had a mission to do. It was time to focus. The plane would land in half an hour. There was no room for mistakes.