This resumes from Ela's point of view.


For once in my career as a special op, I'm struggling to focus on the task at hand: catching Caveira and finally bringing her down. She's tormented our team long enough. Just thinking about her makes my blood boil…

Yet, I'm still feeling so devastated by finding out that Gustave was working for them all along; working for the rogue BOPE officer. I let myself get too close to him. He got too close to all of us. Pulse was the only one whose gut-feeling about the doctor proved correct. Jack didn't like him from the start.

It makes me feel sick to think I developed any feelings for that bastard!

My mind angrily dwells on the doctor as we finish searching inside the dark, powerless international bank. We took a lot of time carefully trying to track down the elusive "Kapkan" and Caveira but our efforts were fruitless. Nothing seemed to have changed since the last time we were here. No traps, no footprints, no out-of-place-heartbeats hiding in plain sight in Jack's Heartbeat Sensor.

It felt wrong. We all collectively agreed this had to have been a diversion. My heart sank into my stomach, thinking immediately and aloud, "They might know the location of our base!"

Hastily, after we all confidently agreed the building was uninhabited, we headed back to base.

O

O

O

We surrounded our own base, quickly scanning the area, guns drawn. It's still dark outside but the moon is bright.

Thatcher signaled Pulse to the front door. The FBI agent nodded before heading to the door and pulling out his Heartbeat Sensor. After a minute of quietly pacing back and forth by the door, he put the Sensor away and threw up two fingers at Thatcher, indicating he only picked up two heartbeats. That's good. Only Gustave and Elias should be in there.

Once we entered, we all looked at Blitz in unison. Wearing his black hoodie with the hood up, he was sitting back on the couch and had a lighted candle next to the couch which illuminated the room rather well. Because of this, we easily caught sight of his mysterious new mask.

Mute was the first to speak, "Are you alright, Elias? Has anything…" the young Brit was stuck on his words, distracted by the eerie black mask worn by our cheery German comrade, "… happened?"

Blitz looked down at Doc, who was sleeping - or had passed out - on the floor, with a pillow and blanket that Blitz must have sympathetically given to the beaten and bloody man. After a brief moment, Blitz looked back up and exchanged glances with us, his hazel-blue eyes bright with the candle-light amongst the black of the Kevlar mask.

"The doctor is innocent," he answered simply. His voice was still considerably raspy, but I'm sure I heard a bit of bounce in his voice, like the cheerful Blitz I know and love… somewhere in there.

More importantly, what the hell is he saying?

Before I could argue, the older SAS operator got to it first, the anger in his voice matching my own frustrated disbelief, "Have you lost yer fuckin' mind, Blitz?!" Between the creepy mask and being the devil's advocate, Elias must have gone crazy.

"Perhaps," Elias started, "I was in a coma, for how long…? Do you any of you know what I went through?" His voice was low now. A collective feeling of discomfort filled the room as he waited for us to answer, but we remained silent.

He had been holding a wad of dirty, bloody bandages in his hands that I believe had been the ones on his face and neck. He dropped them on the floor before sighing, then looked at the sleeping doctor, "Forget what I said, I am okay, and I do not want any of you to worry… I am truly alright. But I am not crazy,"

"Tell us what you know about the doctor," Pulse impatiently urged him.

I sat next to Blitz carefully, still thinking of his battered and healing body that may very well still be very tenderly sore. I didn't say anything, but I put my hand over his and looked down at the bandages he dropped by his feet. I guess… I understand why he wears the mask, but where on earth did he get it? What does he look like now? It must be so terrible for him to wear such a weird mask…

Elias' hand moved to hold onto mine. I smiled a little, but was still eager to listen to his excuse about Gustave being innocent. My mind wasn't readily open to believe it, no matter what he had to say.

"He told me how he got unwillingly recruited by Caveira and that he is a doctor that works at a hospital outside of the perimeter…" Blitz stopped for a moment and suddenly changed the subject, his eyes locked onto Mike's, "Wait a second, did you guys find her and the other guy?"

"No, we didn't," Pulse growled, "Just get on with your story,"

Mute looked at Pulse for a moment. I couldn't see his expression under his gasmask but I'm sure Mark was a little taken aback by Jack's impatience just as I was. Then Mark began to speak, looking back at the German, "There wasn't the faintest of proof of anyone else having been in that building. We thought perhaps they found this place. But they also may have retreated for now since their plans were well spoiled,"

Thatcher rubbed his head and grumbled, "Elias, ya better not tell me this bastard gave ya a sob story and you fuckin' believed it,"

Blitz glared at the older man, looking rather intimidating with the pure-black mask that the candle's light flickered against, "Don't insult my intelligence,"

"They hurt you, and he was in on it," I reminded him, my voice admirably more gentle than the others as I spoke my own opinion.

Blitz looked at me, his glare faltering, "I am not excusing him for everything that he's done. He was still… or, he IS still our enemy, and that is unforgivable. However, I called the hospital he claimed to work at. I had everything he said verified. He is actually a missing persons,"

"So what makes him 'innocent'?" Jack asked, practically interrupting the German again.

"Stop cutting me off, dummkopf. Listen to me,"

The slightest hue of sunlight began seeping through the small outlines of the closed blinds and curtains. We've been awake for a long time now. Gustave is now waking up, catching everybody's attention as he moans in pain.

Thatcher walked over to the groggy and crippled Frenchman and tore the blanket off of him. Then he snatched the blood-stained pillow from under his head, causing Doc to hiss and growl in pain. I cringed when I replayed the image of Mike shoving his knife into Gustave's ear… twice…

"You don't deserve these. Just fuckin' rot," Mike loudly growled before tossing the items onto the couch next to Blitz. I couldn't see Blitz's face besides his eyes, but I know he's never been a fan of Mike's needlessly brutal torture. It's not that he felt bad for the captives, he just thought the older SAS operator got too much of a thrill out of hurting them, whether it got results or not, and that disgusted him in a way. Mark had very similar feelings about Mike's animalistic, albeit successful means of interrogation.

Blitz stood up then, still a bit wobbly on his feet but he kept his balance. He looked at Mike, who turned to face him, "He is not a threat to us any longer. He is not for you to vent your anger,"

Mike scoffed, "Eh, so you're standin' up for the captive, are ya? Get off your high-horse. Better yet, show us what yer hiding under that mask? Coverin' up the wounds these bastards gave ya!"

"He wasn't part of… that. Regardless, he's incapacitated, and we need nothing more from him now,"

"I'm with Mike on this," Pulse began, stepping closer to the older Brit and looking at Blitz with an annoyed expression, "You can't even show your face. They disfigured you—"

"It was Caveira," Elias barked.

Pulse continued, "Caveira, Sledge and our own 'doctor'" he glared down at Gustave who had managed to awkwardly sit himself up against the wall. His reddened, coffee-brown eyes were on me. He looked sad. Then he looked away.

I felt sad, too.

"He also saved Elias' life. More than once, technically," the ever-calm-and-proper Mark added.

"Without him, I would not be here arguing with you," Blitz firmly stated. It left the room in silence, aside from a gruff sigh from Thatcher.

I wanted to change the subject for now, noticing the sunlight protruding into the house more and more, "I'll stay up and keep watch first. You guys need to rest," They were grumpy; understandably so, but I just wanted to talk to Elias one-on-one and avoid more arguing.

Jack said nothing as he left for his bedroom. He didn't need to; the air around him gave off an angry presence.

"I trust you, Ela," Thatcher said as he passed me. I could hear in his voice that he really meant 'don't do anything stupid, Ela'. Grumpy asshole.

Mute pulled off his gasmask and ran his gloved fingers through his hair. He sighed heavily.

"Before I go to bed," Mark started, "Elias, where did you get that mask?"

Blitz had sat back down on the couch next to me. He nodded towards Doc then looked back at Mute. The dirty-blond Brit nodded back, "Interesting. It's not a good look for you. It doesn't suit you at all,"

With that, Mark headed to his room.

Elias and I stayed silent for a while, just holding hands. I examined his hand closest to me, looking over his scabbed and scarred cuts. I gently rubbed over them with my thumb. His eyes were tired and relaxed as he watched our hands interact.

Every once in a while I'd sneak a glance at Gustave. Most of the time his eyes were closed but sometimes we'd lock eyes for a few seconds. I still found him handsome, even with the blood and dirt all over him, his messy hair, his red and swollen eyes. I was still so pissed off at him, too, but I was starting to forget why. Yes, he was working for Caveira, but Elias believed the French doctor was somehow coerced into it by the Brazilian woman. He said he verified it as the truth. And I believe Elias.

"What are we going to do?" I quietly blurt out to no one in particular.

"Hm?" Blitz hummed in curiosity, looking at me. I was still looking into Doc's dark eyes.

"What are we going to do with him, Elias?"

Blitz took a moment before realizing I was talking about our medic. He looked at the doctor, who never broke his gaze from mine.

Looking back at me, my German friend asks, "What do you think we should do with him?"

I honestly cannot think of an answer. All I can think of is how much I want to hug Gustave tightly and forget about all of this. I want Caveira to be dead and for all of us to have a somewhat normal life after she's gone.

"Don't worry about it, Ela," I look at Blitz now, whose voice sounds gentle but a little playful, "I am the coolest guy you will ever have in your life,"

I blushed, realizing how obvious it must have been that I liked the doctor. Then I gave Elias a shove, "Stop it. Just go to sleep," I pushed him down onto the couch until he was lying on his back, then I grabbed the pillow Thatcher had tossed aside and pretended to suffocate Blitz with it. His arms flailed as he pretended poorly that he was really dying. It got a genuine laugh out of me. Then I remembered Gustave was watching and somehow I felt awkward and embarrassed, so I pulled the pillow away and sat back against the couch, hugging onto the cheap, old pillow.

Blitz groaned as he forced his sore body to sit back up, "What's wrong?"

I shook my head, "Nothing. I don't want to talk about it,"

"Ela, go to sleep. I slept so much since I was injured, I can stay awake for one night," the kind German replied.

I didn't want to argue about who should sleep or stay awake. I change the subject again, looking straight at him with the pillow in my lap, "Are you going to wear that mask forever?" I should have realized it was a rude thing to ask but my curiosity trumped my common sense.

He was a bit taken aback before answering, his fingers touching at the black, featureless mask, "I don't know…"

Then he sat up straighter and forcefully changed his tone to a more playful one, not wanting our conversation to be so depressing, "It brings out my eyes, I think,"

I didn't laugh or even smile as I looked into his bright eyes, "You don't need to hide from me, you know,"

He sighed, "Ela, I just c—"

I interrupted him by touching his mask. He grabbed my wrist quicker than I could react, and his grip was tight. We stared at each other for a long moment, frozen like this. His eyes were serious but scared.

"Don't," was all he said.

After he slowly released my wrist I carefully wrapped my arms around him in a hug. He hugged me in return, rubbing my back slowly. I must have been more tired than I thought, because I fell asleep in his arms.