Dr. Scott's expression was shuttered and unreadable; she refused to tell Allison Shaw anything. The teenager they'd grabbed with her – an aide Allison recognized from the courthouse – was looking around like a cat in a room full of rocking chairs. He was clearly worried, but it was also clear he had some loyalty to Dr. Scott. How strong that loyalty was had yet to be determined. Suddenly, there was a ruckus at the door, and Allison looked up from Dr. Scott as another of her teams returned with an old man and two children. The old man was injured, bloody, and scared, but he was also furious. Her team seemed to return the favor, glaring at the old man whenever their eyes met. A quick head count of said team came up short.
"Where's Jack?"
"Not coming." Fred said angrily. She spotted a brief flash of satisfaction from the old man and did the math.
"That's unfortunate." And it was; she thought she had hired more than mere muscle. If they hadn't paid enough attention to their briefing to recognize the physical threat this 'old man' presented, well, they were morons. She turned to follow sudden cries of recognition as the children ran towards Dr. Scott. Jed followed, pausing only to shoot daggers at Allison as he passed her.
"Oh good, we're all together now." She turned to the terrified children they'd nabbed and addressed them directly. "In case you're wondering, the reason you're here is that it turns out your traitorous father is alive." Bewilderment joined fear on their faces, but then she looked at the adults. "You knew."
"Yes." Rachel replied, turning to the kids who looked up at them, hurt. "He asked me not to tell anyone. It was safer if the people trying to kill him thought he was already dead." She paused, debating. "And he didn't want you guys to have to mourn him twice, if it came to that. He's still in a very dangerous place." Ashley seemed to comprehend that, though she still looked hurt. Sam, however, didn't.
"You told Granddad."
"No, I didn't." she said, glancing at Jed.
"I caught her looking at his message late one night. But I did what your father asked, and didn't tell anyone. It was supposed to be safer that way."
"And it was. For him." Allison said bluntly. "Now you're bait."
"Oh, fuck you." Blurted out Mark. Well, that answers that. Allison thought.
"In your dreams, kiddo." She addressed the group as a whole. "Time to move out." She said, nodding at the guards.
"All right, let's go. We've got a plane to catch!" Rachel flinched at the guard's harsh voice behind her. "Come on." The man insisted, grabbing her shoulder roughly. Rachel heard a snarl behind her from Jed, but it was quickly cut off by the click of a gun safety. She rose from her seat and moved as ordered, reaching out take the children's hands as they were moved towards a black SUV.
. . . . .
Rachel sat in the back of the plane and waited, teeth clenched. As much as she wanted to see Tom right now, she didn't want him to come here. But she knew he would. Soon enough, the door opened and in walked… Tex.
"Tex!"
"Hey, darlin'. How you holding up?"
"I've been better." She replied. "You?"
"Y'know, I had a nice little place out in the country. I was all set to retire from this crazy life and then y'all pull me back in."
"Sorry, Tex."
"It's alright, c'mon, time to go."
The group rose to leave, but Allison raised her hand.
"Not you, Dr. Scott. Not until after the captain's aboard."
"I'll stay with Rachel." Jed volunteered as the kids left.
"Nu-uh. You're coming. Captain's orders." Tex said.
"Doctor's orders too, Jed." Rachel insisted. "I'll be alright. Go, get that shoulder looked at."
"You're sure?"
"Take care of them. Go." She insisted, leaving unsaid the growing suspicion they both had. He nodded, understanding her concern and agreeing to relieve one of her fears. It wasn't long after Jed had left that Tom arrived.
"Tom!" She threw herself into his arms and felt them squeeze around her with almost crushing force.
"Rachel." He breathed into her ear, relaxing a bit. "God, I was so worried."
"Me too."
He spent some time simply holding her in his arms, reassuring himself that she was really there and it was really her. Then it started to register that something was different. It was Rachel, all right, but she was subtly different. He pulled her tightly to him once more.
"Rachel, are – " he was silently reminded of their audience by nails digging into his side. "- you okay?"
"Yes. I'm fine, Tom. Really."
"Well, there's that at least." Then something else registered – the sound of engines revving. He looked back and the door had been closed. "Hey! You said you'd let her go!"
"We lied."
"The children are safe, Tom, that's what matters. Jed will take care of them."
He looked at her in disbelief. How could she say that when she was here?
"Relax, Captain. Your wife is safe, as long as you do exactly as we say. Hell, we'll even get her some pre-natal vitamins if you behave well." Allison looked amused at Dr. Scott's stricken look. "Yes, I noticed."
"What? How?"
"Most people, when threatened, protect their heads first."
It took a couple of seconds for Tom to process that, and then he saw red, lunging at the bitch in front of him. It took all three men – and Rachel's pleas – to restrain him.
"Now, now captain. Remember what I said about behaving?" she turned to the guards. "Cuff him."
Once he was cuffed and seated, Rachel was allowed to sit next to him as Allison settled in for the flight. held his hand as he made an effort to calm himself.
Then a voice came from the cockpit.
"Uh, Ms. Shaw?"
"What?"
"The landing gear is stuck."
"So?"
"It means we can't taxi."
Allison glared at Chandler, somehow sure he was responsible.
"Don't look at me because you can't keep your plane in working order."
She eyed him suspiciously before going to the cockpit. They heard her speak in harsh but quiet tones to the pilots before one of them sighed, got up, and moved to open the door once more as Allison sat down facing her hostages.
…
Bill muttered vilely to no one in particular as he wrangled with the landing gear. He was just a pilot. How in the hell had he ended up in the middle of a goddamn coup d'etat? Then, finally, he wrenched the mechanism loose and worked its motion a couple of times before buttoning the system back up.
"All good now?" an overly friendly drawl asked, far too close for comfort. He slowly turned to see the man from before holding a gun.
"Uh…yeah."
"Do me a favor? Borrow your hat and shirt?"
"Um…"
"I'll give you a good thirty seconds head start before I make my move." Bill looked at the nearest hangar exit, considering. "Well? I ain't got all day." Coming to a decision, Bill began to unbutton his collar.
…
Tex, having donned his new hat and shirt, walked towards the open door. He was roughly the same build as the pilot, though he admitted the beard was probably going to give him away sooner than he'd like. He kept his head down as he moved up the stairs; from above, they should just see the hat.
"Can we get on with it already?" Allison said, annoyed. She didn't even look his way.
"Mmhm." He replied with a nod, turning as if to go to the cockpit.
"Good, let's go."
"Hey, wait a – " One of the guards started, but all his observational skills got him was the first kill shot. The one standing next to him was next. The third and final guard got a couple of wild shots off, hitting Tex in the leg and the window next to him, but Tex got him too. Allison looked on in shock as her security team went down, but found her courage as Tex staggered against the bulkhead, moving to pull a sidearm from one of her men. Tex rewarded her initiative with another round. A quick glance around the small plane confirmed that the only people left alive were himself, Tom, Rachel, and the co-pilot, whose arms were raised in surrender.
"Y'all good?" he asked, looking on as Rachel uncoiled from her husband's side.
"Yes, thank you, Tex." Came a cool British accent that was at complete odds with her dilated pupils.
"We're fine." Confirmed the captain as he looked for the keys to release himself. "Though it would have been nice to have a conversation or two with her."
"She was reaching for a weapon." Tex shrugged unrepentantly.
"I know. I'm not blaming you for it, just wishing. It'd be nice to know who all was involved."
"Well, for now, it's over."
"Thanks, Tex. I owe you one."
Tex laughed, then winced, reminding them both about his leg. Rachel immediately transformed into doctor mode.
"Tom, help me with Tex… it doesn't look too bad, but we do need to stop the bleeding."
"Just one second." He picked up a gun and moved to the cockpit, also reverting to the professional mode. "You – come on." He escorted the pilot out to find his team waiting for him and began to issue orders once more.