Author´s note: Wow, it has been ages. A year pretty much to be precise. So…while I am pretty sure many got an alert on the update for this story, I hope you guys will stick around and let yourself be sucked in again. I have this story mapped out till the end, but got a new computer in the meantime, in between being busy, and had to reconstruct from the very beginning. Anyhow, thank you so much for your support and I hope you´re still enjoying this. But before we start, a very belated shout out to my dear reviewers. To those I fail to mention: I hope you´ll forgive me. :)

Noro: Thank you. I am, as you can see now, I haven´t abandoned this. Sorry for the long wait.

Clio1792: That´s what I always thought, I think Fitz has been getting far too bad a reputation. I see him as a character who might be flawed and wildly naïve at times concerning the scheming capabilities of others, but good at heart. I was a little concerned about Kimi myself btw, I still am…

Jennkyle: Thank you. :)

Sweet Olitz: Thank you. Do we? Or don´t we? ;)

Dakidd: So much concern for this little hacker. I like how that played out. :) Thanks for the review as well.

Chapter 35 – The trapped

The house looked nothing at all suspicious, a nice little estate that reeked of money but not in a too boastful way in the middle of the nicer parts of town. The kind of house where somebody might live an innocent life without people raising too many questions about where a paleontologist might have gotten the money to afford this little villa. Nice, but not too boastful. A finely kept garden, a neat front entrance. Gravel grinding under the boots of the approaching men, hunched, in dark clothes, faces serious, muscles tight, night goggles plunging the surroundings into a ghostly greenish night. Intercoms crackling. "Stay alert."

"Huck?" She instantly felt her heart racing when she heard the man´s voice, his words hurried like they always were when he was fighting for control.

"Something must have gone wrong, CNN is already leaking the story and I have no information of any other data going out."

"We saw. Where is our whistleblower?" She had raised her voice, despite herself, her gaze fixed on Fitz who seemed to have frozen in place, eyes intent, brow slightly creased in confusion and worry.

"I am trying to find out Liv."

Shadows silently creeping along the walls in that tense silence that always comes before the storm. Slow but steady steps. A glance that confirms that the pack spread out. Surrounded the house. "Team in position."

Liv could feel her heart skip a beat. "You don´t know where our hacker is?" This could mean many things and also one thing in particular: Hackers went off radar frequently of course, but this one falling completely silent to Huck after revealing what had been revealed without leaving a trace for Huck to find? No credit card movements, no activities to trace? It could very well mean that the hacker was in trouble. That the head start CNN was now responsible for had put whoever it was into grave danger. That her father had caught the mouse while it was twitching in the trap.

"I am working on it, Liv." Huck´s voice sounded tense and she got a sense that there were background noises, then the screeching of tires.

"Huck! Where are you?!"

Another couple of seconds where concentration and focus set in, calm yet anxious waiting for the command. "Breach!" A dart, a sprint, two doors and three windows crashing at the same time, almost soundless and yet loud enough in the silent of the night to send some neighbour´s dog barking. "Go, go, go, go. Secure the first floor. Beta team, upstairs, rear guard, secure compound." Like dark locusts the FBI agents raced through rooms, doors, turning the nice suburban home into a trap with no way out.

"Our whistleblower is a girl, Liv. A young girl."

"What?"

"I have to go now, Liv."

"Huck! Don´t you…"

The line went dead.

Racing footsteps, hurried yet controlled breathes, weapons held at the ready at the turn of each corner, catlike agility as room after room was cleared. "Nothing on the ground level, Sir." Came the report, crackling slightly with static. "Nothing on the second floor either."

The agents relaxed, but were still alert. "No car in the garage, Sir. Looks like Bishop isn´t here any more."

"Fuck!"

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

It was still drizzling rain when Kimi stepped outside with the older man who, spring in his step, apparently was trying hard to reassure her even with his body language that he was no danger, made his way to his car, still chatting amiably about his daughter. Some 20 or 30 something it seemd who had hit it off big. Kimi could imagine the woman. Straight hair, white speech…the kind of person that had denied her heritage and sucked up to those that made the world go round and her good old daddy wasn´t even noticing what was wrong with that. Might almost make her feel bad to nick his purse she thought. Almost. She nearly chuckled inwardly when she felt for the object in her pocket. Leather. Expensive. Probably had a few credit cards. But hadn´t the tides turned today? Hadn´t the times when she needed to pickpocket to make it through the month sometimes (computer equipment was expensive after all) end today? Old habit probably died hard and this fellow sure wouldn´t lose too much sleep over a few dollars less. She´d take the money out and slip the purse back before he knew what was happening. She wasn´t a monster after all. And in the end it was basically just her taking back what the Haves had been taking from the Have Nots for decades and centuries. What was a little dough compared to all the injustices her people had had to suffer? She was pretty much just a Native American Robin Hood. Just more badass. And less tights.

Eli had reached his car, a nice one, further reassuring her assessment of the man´s wealth, a rather new Mercedes, typical for an older dude who´d just not admitted to his midlife crisis in time. He turned to her as he opened the door on the passenger side. "Come on, let´s get out of the rain." His broad white grin flashed at her, reminding her a little bit of a shark. It made her falter in her step for a moment, some ancient instinct kicking in, but she ignored it. Stepped closer.

Suddenly, a hand settled on her shoulder from behind. She jumped. Then there was a voice, close to her ear and she could feel instant goosebumps erupt on her lower arms when she felt stubble trickle her cheek when the stranger spoke close to her ear. She saw Eli stop in his tracks.

"You really shouldn´t get in that car, Kimi. Get behind me. Now!"

She froze. "Who the fuck…?" she tried to shrug off the hand but it only tightened and in that moment she saw that Eli´s slightly shark like grin had turned full end shark. And first she could hardly place the sound but then realized…the other man was laughing. A low, dangerous laugh that reached his laugh but still sounded like one of the vilest sounds Kimi had ever heard. Eli raised his hands, but it was almost in mockery. "Oh, come on, boy. Are we really going to play this game?"

The hand on her shoulder tightened, pulled her aside and she could see the man for a moment before he urged her behind him, despite her protest. The man was younger than the one near the Mercedes, maybe in his late thirties, dark hair, square jaw, wild little eyes and an uneasiness to him that sent chills down her spine. "Who the fuck are you?" she cursed, stumbling nearly as he pushed her, her arm grazing past something that he had in his pocket, feeling the colour fade from her faze. That guy had a fucking gun!

The new comer ignored her question, only making her more angry, and more afraid. What the hell was going on here? She struggled, tried to fight off his arm, failed. Again, Eli laughed.

"You really should let her go. I was just trying to be nice and give her a ride into town."

"Like hell you were. She´s coming with me and we are…"

"What?" He stepped a little closer. What the fuck was he doing, Kimi thought. Didn´t that idiot know the guy had a gun? "We are what? Going to wait for the cops?" Again, that vile chuckle. "You and I know that this is not going to happen." Another step closer.

"Stay where you are!" The stranger´s voice was dangerous.

"Or what? You´re going to shoot me? I don´t think you´ll want the cops on your tail. Or hers." Eli´s eyes briefly flickered to her and she could almost not stand his gaze. There was a cruelty in them that shocked her. "Too many things to find in that little house, aren´t there?" The shark grin was gone, replaced by something even more dangerous. Even more cold. Then he turned. He just turned and strode away.

"Come on." The stranger´s voice was constricted, hurried. "You have to come with me! Now!"

She was overwhelmed. No idea what was happening. Too much at once. Who the hell were these people? And then it hit her. They had to be on her for the hack. They had to be some of those that were involved with all this and now they had come to trace her down. But who were they? Who was the bigger danger? She wanted to call for help but couldn´t, watching as the tall African American walked away, his step hurried now, the other man holding her as she gave him a kick against the shin. She opened her mouth to scream but he clasped a hand over her mouth before she could and she bit down on his fingers, causing him to grunt in pain.

"Hold still, silly girl." He hissed. "It´s me. It´s Finn!"

"What? How…" She stopped to struggle. The Mercedes sprang to live, engines rearing as its driver kicked the gas pedal almost all the way to the ground.

"Not now. I´ll explain. You´re in danger!"

"No shit, Sherlock!" Where the hell did she find the energy for that biting sarcasm. She aimed another kick, this time missing her target. Adrenaline flooding her body. Panic threatening to take over. Battling with relief. If he was here, maybe she was safe?

"If you don´t stop to fight me they´ll think that I´m…."

But it was too late. The door flung open and the man she had talked to over the counter, the man who had offered to drive her home after his shift, stepped out. "Hey! Let go of her! I called the cops! I…"

A shot rang out. The man in the door slumped to the ground, dead before he hit it, going out like a candle without the slightest sound. Kimi felt herself screaming, didn´t hear the sound she made, only felt it vibrate inside her head. Felt Finn´s arms clutch around her, noticing belatedly that it had not been him that had shot the barista. "I´m sorry…" he murmured and she felt something being pushed over her mouth. A cloth. She stumbled, ran, he dragged her away. Another shot, missing its target, going off somewhere with terrible snarling ping. She felt herself be pushed into a car. Felt her senses fading. Felt the jerking sensation of that car accelerating, panic sweeping over her like a wave. Then: darkness.

"