Here's the next chapter! Enjoy!

In the bathroom in the basement, Jane wiped off the dirt off of Mike's face with a washcloth. When she was done, she put the cloth away and smiled at him. "That's better," she said to him. "You look more clean." He then looked at himself in the mirror. He did look cleaner. He frowned, however, when he realized that he didn't have the wig on him. He placed his hand on top of his shaved head, wishing that he had it since Jane liked it.

She shook her head at him and stated, "You don't need it, Mike."

He was a little surprised that she said that, making him feel better. He turned to her and asked, "Still cool?"

She smiled at him again and nodded. "Yeah, still cool."

He smiled a little and added, "Still cute?" Since it was a good word...

She gasped a little, her face heating up and her heart beating faster when he asked that question. She guessed he was still curious about that word...since he caught that and all. She slowly nodded at him. "Y-yeah...still cute...really cute..." She couldn't believe she just said that, but Mike's smile grew, so she couldn't be too embarrassed about it. He looked back at the mirror, smiling and feeling much better about himself than before.

Jane wanted to get this off of her chest, so she asked, "Mike?"

The freckled boy turned to her. "Yes?"

"I, um...I'm glad you're back home."

He nodded at her. "Me too." He then remembered something. He dug into the pocket of his coat and gave her the last waffle he was going to eat. The tomboy looked surprised. "Here...it's an Eggos waffle...your favorite."

She felt charmed that he was actually giving her a gift, and it was an Eggos waffle! She took it and continued smiling at him. "Thanks, Mike." He nodded as a reply. Both of them looked into each other's eyes, their hearts racing at the sight of each other. They both felt like...they both didn't know how to describe it, but...when they were together, it felt like they needed each other.

Without a single thought, Jane walked a little closer to Mike. He was stiff, not knowing what to do and his heart racing even faster-

All of a sudden, the door shot open, making the two separate from each other and look at who opened it. Their feelings for each other immediately disappeared. It was no other than a panicked Dustin. "Guys!" he shouted at them. "I-it's Lucas! I think he's in trouble!" Now they were both worried, exiting the bathroom with him and going to the walkie-talkie on the D&D table.

They all heard Lucas's voice, loud and indiscernible. Jane put the waffle in the pocket of her jacket and grabbed the device, holding it up to her ear and hoping to make some sense out of what he's shouting. It was with no luck. "What is he saying?" she asked her curly-haired friend, making him shrug.

"He's outta range, so I dunno," he replied.

She sighed and pressed the comm button, speaking, "Lucas, slow down. If you can hear us, please slow down. We don't know what you're saying. Do you copy?" She let go of the button and tried to hear what he was saying.

Riding on his bike as fast as he could, Lucas shouted into his taped walkie-talkie, "Yes, I copy, Jane! Do you?! They know about Michael! Get outta there, they know about Mike! The bad men are coming, all of them! Get outta there, now!"

The three still had no luck at understanding his shouting. "Mad hen? What the hell does that mean?" Dustin asked, sounding a bit annoyed that he couldn't understand it. Both Jane and Mike shrugged.

"The bad men are coming!" they finally heard him shout. All of their eyes widened at that statement.

"B-bad men...?" the curly-haired girl stammered in shock. "The bad men...they know where Mike is!" She put the walkie-talkie down and gestured Mike to stay put. "Mike, stay here, okay?!" She then ran upstairs, Dustin following suit. Mike never looked so terrified in his life.

They found him...the bad men actually him...

...

The two friends ran upstairs and looked out of a window in Jane's bedroom. They saw the man in the parked van looking at them from afar. "Wh-what's that guy doing...?" Jane asked in a scared tone.

"You don't think...?" Dustin replied, the two looking at each other with terrified looks. Both came to the same conclusion:

That man was one of the bad men.

Jane instantly ran out of her bedroom and down the stairs at a fast speed. She saw both Becky and Carl in the living room, watching television. "Auntie!" the tomboy shouted to her aunt as she and her husband stood up. Both looked surprised that Jane had a horrified look on her face.

"Jane? What's the matter?" Becky asked in concern.

"D-did Mama tell you about any repairs she scheduled for this house?"

Both adults looked confused, shaking their heads. "No, darlin'. Why?"

...

From the window, Dustin saw the array of vans similar to the one across the street arrive. They saw both of the doctors looking at him. Terrified by their glares, he immediately shut the curtains and ran downstairs to get Jane.

...

"N-not at all before she left to go shopping?"

Becky and Carl shook their heads. "Didn't tell us anything, Jane," the man replied.

The girl let out a deep sigh, placing her hands on her temples. She then ran to the window and opened the curtains, seeing the array of vans park in front of the home. Her eyes widened and she muttered something under breath in distress.

Her aunt and uncle look through the window and looked shocked to see those vans too. "What in the hell...?" Becky inaudibly said.

"Jane!" shouted Dustin, who just entered into the kitchen. She, as well as her aunt and uncle, looked back at him. "We need to leave...NOW!"

She nodded. "R-right!" She then ran with him downstairs.

"W-wait, Jane! Where're you going?!" Becky asked her in a loud voice.

She stopped, turned to her, and replied, "I-if Mama asks or anybody else, I left this country!" She then ran with Dustin down into the basement.

Both her and Carl looked shocked that she even said that. "What?! Jane!"

"We need to get her," Carl suggested in worry. She nodded as they both began to run down into the basement as well.

...

The panicked children quickly got out of the basement and got their bikes. Jane and Dustin ran theirs up the hill of the home, Michael running in-between them. When they reached to level ground, they got on, Mike getting onto the second seat of Jane's. All of them looked at the people who exited the vans. Both the doctors stopped at a distance from them, looking at Michael, Dr. Wheeler smiling a little. The boy looked very scared...he never wanted to see either of them again...

Dr. Brenner then looked at Jane. He wasn't that close to her, but the brown curly hair and facial structure...he smiled. It has been years, but he finally saw her again. "Jane," he called out to her, making all three of the kids look shocked that he even knew her name. "Long time, no see...my child."

Words cannot describe how appalled the tomboy was when he said that. That man, that one bad man...was her Papa?! N-no, he couldn't be!

The freckled boy was also very appalled at that. The doctor, that awful doctor with his dad, HE was Jane's dad?! He looked at the expression on her face, feeling absolutely terrible for her.

"Jane!" Becky shouted as she and Carl went on the level ground. "What the hell is going-" Suddenly, she noticed Dr. Brenner, both him and Dr. Wheeler looking at her. Martin did recognize her, she was Terry's sister. He didn't recognize Carl though.

Her eyes widened at the sight of him and all of these people and vans. Carl was shocked at the sight of the people and vans too. She couldn't believe it...he was back again...

"Go!" Dustin shouted to Jane, everyone else's attention towards him too. "Gogogogogogo!" Snapping out of her shock, the girl and her capped friend both began riding away to a shortcut as fast as they could. The doctors and the rest of the agents went back into their vans and started their engines, driving away from the home and chasing down the biking children.

Becky and Carl just witnessed all of this with completely dumbfounded looks, trying to process what just happened. "What was that all about?" Carl asked his wife. She shrugged, shocked and not saying a word. Seriously, what the hell happened? Why did Martin show up with all those people in those vans?! Why were they chasing the kids?! "Should we call the police?"

Those people actually look official enough, so she replied, "I think they're the government."

He gave her a dumbfounded look. "Then what the hell did they want with our niece?"

"I dunno, hun. I dunno..."

...

Dustin kept saying swears and "Oh my God"s in utter horror as he, Jane, and Mike were now riding on another road thanks to the shortcut they took to avoid the bad men. Lucas was talking into Dustin's headphones, making him reply, "Yes, Lucas! They're on us!" There was a pause as Jane and Mike looked back to make sure they didn't see the vans. "Cornwallis! ...Copy!" The curly-haired boy looked at the two and shouted, "Lucas wants us to meet him at Elm and Cherry!"

"Gotcha!" Jane replied as she and the boys took a shortcut to another road. She still couldn't get what Brenner said to her out of her head.

When they got onto that road, they saw the vans just entering it as well and catching up to them. "Oh my God!" Dustin exclaimed again. "Shit!"

"This way!" The kids then cut through a backyard. Two girls played patty-cake while the other played with Rubik's Cube. Jane shouted, "Outta the way!" The girls did get out of their way as they rode through some trees and finally stopped at Elm and Cherry, where Lucas was.

"L-Lucas..." Jane said to the black-haired boy, being out of breath.

"Where are they?!" he asked them both.

"I-I dunno," Dustin answered.

"Maybe we...lost them-" Jane answered when suddenly, they all heard tires screeching. They turned back to see the vans catching up to them still. All of them were in a panic. "Oh no! Go, go, go!" The kids began biking fast once again. These bad men could never catch a break until they catch them!

Dustin now screamed swears as the girl shouted continuously, "Faster!" They all tried to bike as fast as they could. Mike looked back at the vans in horror, seeing his dad and Jane's dad looking straight at them. He could feel his skin crawling at them just glaring at him and the rest of the kids like that.

He turned back just when another van appeared and was heading right towards them. All of them became petrified, wondering what to do. The curly-haired boy screamed the top of his lungs as the curly-haired girl shouted constantly, "Nonononono..." The freckled boy instantly thought of something.

He tilted his head down and looked at the van, straining himself. When it was close enough, it suddenly went up and over the biking children. All of the kids looked up in utter awe, Michael looking surprised that he managed to do that. It then landed upside down, blocking the way of the other vans. Still in awe, the kids looked at each other, Michael's nose bleeding from the strain. He looked back to make sure the vans stopped. They were, making him smirk and murmur, "Mouth-breathers." The kids began to bike away from the suburbs.

The doctors got out of their van and looked at the children riding their bikes away from them. Both of them looked quite angered by this circumstance. "Well, I'll be damned," Dr. Wheeler said to his comrade. "Terry escapes, then we come to her home and get caught by, I guess, her relatives, then we see your biological daughter biking my son away with some other kids." He then turned to him. "No offense, Martin, but you're stirring up more trouble than the both of us ever needed."

He had to agree with him there. Never had he made so many mistakes in only just a few days. However... "I won't deny my mistakes, but like I said before, this kind of work is never easy," he replied to him in a serious voice. "We just need to work harder, more harder now."

After a dozen minutes, the kids finally made to the junkyard to hide out. All of them got off of their bikes, sitting down with their backs against a broken-down bus there to catch their breaths. "H-holy shit..." Dustin said in a breathy voice. "D-did you guys see...what he did back there?"

Jane answered also in a breathy voice, "Yeah...we all saw it..."

"He flipped a freaking VAN...with his MIND!" Mike smiled a little, feeling a bit humbled that Dustin liked that. "That was-"

"Awesome," Lucas finished for him, the freckled boy now looking at him. He looked back at him too with an apologetic face. "Listen, man...about what I said about you being a traitor and stuff and...me fighting you...I'm so sorry." Mike's eyebrows raised, surprised that he was apologizing to him. He then stood up and crouched in front of him. "Everything I said there, I was wrong. And it was more wrong for me to fight you like that. At that moment, I just..." He sighed. "I was just looking for Jane. She's my friend, you know that, right?" He nodded. "I was angry and stupid and it was uncalled for, so..." He placed a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry, man."

Mike had to take a few seconds to process his apology. He was glad he wasn't mad at him this time, even if he accidentally almost killed him. He was just glad. Looking at him in the eyes, he replied, "Friends...don't lie...I'm sorry too." Lucas nodded at him, smiling and accepting his apology.

Jane decided to apologize to him as well, standing up and saying, "Me too, Lucas. I'm sorry for shoving you like that." He stood up and turned to her. The girl extended her hand out for him to shake. He looked at it for a few seconds. The tomboy looked pretty sincere and besides, Jane was a good friend to him over the years.

He approached her and replied, "I'm sorry for my comment about you looking like a boy." They then shook hands, finally reaffirming their friendship.

Hopper, Joyce, and Terry finally arrived at the police station, parking their cars and going inside. When they went through the entrance, they saw Jonathan and Kali sitting together. Both mothers looked shocked as they quickly approached them.

"Hey, Jonathan, wh-what happened?" Joyce asked her son. "Why are you in handcuffs?"

"What's going on?" Terry asked her adoptive daughter. She sighed and didn't answer.

"Ladies," Officer Callahan said as he stood up from his chair and walked to them.

"Why is he in handcuffs?" the frantic mother asked him.

"He assaulted me, that's why."

"I-it wasn't on purpose," Jonathan replied in defense.

"Doesn't matter-"

"Take them off," Joyce coldly demanded the officer. "Take them off!"

"I believe I can't do that, m'am-"

"Can you please take them off?" Terry asked.

"Miss-"

"You heard the women, now take them off," Hopper chimed in.

Officer Powell sighed. "Chief, I know everybody's getting real emotional here, but there's something you need to see," he stated to him as he and Callahan gestured him to come with them to their police car. He sighed and decided to follow them.

The mothers turned to their teenagers, the brown-haired woman asking, "What happened, you two?"

"M-Mom, it's just..." the auburn-haired guy began to answer before trailing off, wondering if he should tell her or not. Kali decided not to say anything either.

"Kali?" Terry asked her daughter. "What happened?" The girl shook her head, worrying her even more. The teenage girl kept wondering whether or not to tell them like her friend was.

"Come on, you guys-" Joyce said before the opening of the door cut her off. The mothers looked at Hopper carrying a box and setting it on the table in their front view. Both looked shocked when they saw the hunting supplies in there. While Joyce was utterly puzzled, Terry got the idea why they had these in the first place. "Wh-what is this?"

"Ask your son, we found it in his car," Hopper responded.

Surprised and mad that he did that, Jonathan asked coldly, "Why are you looking through my car?"

The police chief leaned forward to him on the table. "Is that the question you should be asking me right now?" He paused, taking in the teenage guy's cold stare. "I'll see you in my office."

"You won't believe me."

The man scoffed at them. "Then why don't you give me a try?"

"Hopper," the dirty-blonde-haired woman said to the man.

"Not now, Terry."

"I need to tell you something." She then dragged him away from the rest of the people and began whispering in his ear. Everyone else looked at them. While the officers and Joyce looked confused, Kali and Jonathan figured out what Terry might be whispering to him. After all, they did tell her about what they were going to do today.

Hopper looked back at the teens, surprised at what he was told about why they had those supplies. He wondered what the hell he should do with them...

Becky was in the bathroom upstairs, washing her hands and still processing what had just happened earlier. She really, really wanted to know what the hell was going on. God, she hoped her niece and her friends were alright...well, there was one other boy she noticed. It wasn't Lucas, but another boy with a shaved head. Who the hell was that?

As she turned off the sink, she exited the bathroom and went downstairs. She looked around, seeing that the thing was a mess. She sighed before noticing the little fort. She approached it and took a good look at it. It was set up like a little bed of some sort...probably for the new friend? She noticed something down on the pillow, so she grabbed it and looked at it. It was a clump of black hair. Who the hell did this belong to...?

The doorbell suddenly rang, catching her attention. She heard Carl yell, "I'll get it, honey!" Even though he was, she was still curious about who was at the door, so she let go of the clump and walked back upstairs.

...

The man rose from the couch and approached the door. As he opened it, he saw the agents and vans, as well as the two doctors, in his sight. His eyes widened. The blonde-haired woman asked, "Carl Mueller?"

He slowly nodded. "Yes..." The woman held a badge up that confirmed her to be of the government, making him think that his wife wasn't kidding.

Becky now appeared next to him, the blonde-haired woman's attention now towards her. "Rebecca Mueller?" she asked her. She nodded as a response.

"You're right, they're government." Now the woman was completely worried, that feeling skyrocketing when she saw Dr. Brenner again. Dear God, what was going on?

...

As the agents thoroughly searched the home, Becky and Carl observed in much worry. However, the woman couldn't keep her eyes off of Brenner, since it was years since she's last seen him. "Becky?" Carl asked.

"That man over there..." she said as she pointed at him talking to Dr. Wheeler, her husband looking at him. "That's Terry's ex."

He looked shocked. "Him? Are you sure?"

She nodded. "Yes. His hair's grayer, but his face remains the same." She knew he was part of the government, but him being here? Something had to be going down and she wanted to know what.

...

Dr. Wheeler, after talking to Brenner about the situation and how to deal with it, went downstairs to look for evidence that M11, his son, was there. He looked at a laundry basket and saw an over-sized yellow shirt with a burger logo on it. It read, "Benny's Diner". He sighed. This was clear evidence that Michael was there.

...

"S-so, lemme get this straight," Becky said, sitting at the dinner table with her husband and the blonde agent. "My sister and her daughter were hiding this boy?" She pointed at a mug shot of Michael on a folder. That was who she saw riding with Jane earlier...that boy.

"What's going on with his hair?" Carl asked.

Not answering the question, the woman said to them, "We just need to know if you've seen him in the past week." Both of them shook their heads, but then remembered something.

"We didn't SEE him, but..." Carl paused. "A few days ago, before Becky and I left for lunch, he heard an intruder here." The woman nodded.

"Yeah, we thought it might be Jane's friend, Will Byers, but it was probably not, due to the news and everything."

"Did you get a good look at this intruder?" the woman asked.

Both shook their heads again. "We thought they might've hid, but my husband tripped and bit his tongue, so I had to go put some ice on it." The woman nodded again. "After that, we continued looking for them, and nothing. We assumed they might've escaped."

The man sighed. "I don't know how I tripped. I was standing still, I wasn't going to move at all."

The woman nodded once again. "It could be him. Have you seen him since then?"

Again, the married couple shook their heads. "No," they both answered.

"If my niece had another boy stayin' over, she'd tell me," Becky responded before sighing. "What has the boy done?"

The female agent shook her head. "I can't answer that, m'am."

She looked annoyed. "Is he Russian or something?"

"I can't say. It's classified information."

Now she looked angry. "I need to know! My sister and my niece are in danger!"

Carl tried to hold her down and whisper, "Honey, calm down."

"I would listen to your husband, Rebecca," the woman added.

At that moment, she didn't care, standing up and yelling, "You come here, you chase my niece and her friend down, then you come here and tell us that my niece and my sister are in danger, but you can't tell me why?! You expect me to remain calm doing that shit?!"

The female agent looked defeated and looked at the two doctors for help. They nodded at her, the woman standing up and walking away. Dr. Brenner was the one to sit down first, looking at Becky first and saying, "I know how hard this is for you, Rebecca."

She looked at him coldly. She could just feel his fakeness bouncing off of her. However, since he was government, she had to be polite. She sat back down and crossed her arms. "Martin. Been a long time."

He nodded at her, chuckling a little. "Yes, it has been." Dr. Wheeler then sat down next to him, nodding at her.

"Mrs. Mueller," he greeted her before greeting Carl. "Mr. Mueller." She didn't greet back because he didn't look trustworthy enough. "We can't disclose any information for safety purposes, but I can tell you this: Your niece, Jane Ives, is in real danger." Carl looked worried while Becky looked very upset. Her husband held her hand to comfort her.

"A-and Terry?" she asked them.

"She's in danger as well." Now she looked at Dr. Brenner. "We want to help them. We really do. Terry and I may have separated ways, but that does not mean I do not care for her well-being. And since Jane is my daughter, I care about her well-being too." The short-haired woman sniffed a little, about to cry. She didn't feel like what he was saying was faked, it sounded...sincere...no, that was just her sadness talking, right?

"We'll give you our word," Ted added, Martin nodding. "But first, we need to know that you both can trust us. Will you two trust us?"

"Will you trust me, Rebecca?" Martin asked of the dirty-blonde-haired female. "I know you probably don't think of me well because of the divorce, but I truly want to know. I promise you, I will bring back Terry and Jane alive and well. Will you trust me and my good friend?"

Carl looked at his wife, who sighed heavy and tried holding back tears. She didn't want to lose them. Visiting them and then losing them? She never wanted that. She and Terry already lost their parents. If she lost her and her cute little niece...

She looked at the two doctors and nodded. "Yes," she answered, her voice almost a croak. Patting his wife's shoulder, Carl looked at them and nodded as well, making them both smile.

"Good..." Dr. Brenner murmured under his breath.

"Now, we need your answer for this question," Dr. Wheeler stated. "Where do you think your sister and niece might be?"

Done! What do you guys think? Any typos or mistakes?

Uh oh...looks like Jane finally knows who her father is...I always wanted to write in that Jane actually sees Brenner for the first time in forever, so here it is!

I hated writing the scene where Becky and Carl talk with Brenner and Ted because...well, we all know that they're lying through the teeth in the most convincing way possible...

Keep supporting this fanfic and I'll see you in the next chapter!

*EDIT of 01/20/20:

-Added "Do you copy?" in "Lucas, slow down. If you can hear us, please slow down. We don't know what you're saying. Do you copy?"
-Removed "I think" in "We need to get her,"
-Added "shocked and" in "shocked and not saying a word."
-Removed a sentence before "I dunno, hun. I dunno..."
-Added a period after "Martin." and capitalized "Been"
-Replaced "him." with "Dr. Brenner."