WriterFreak001:

Feeling a little better; still in lots of pain. :(

Thank you to those of you who have reviewed, and I hope more of you will continue to review along this epic journey. By the way, that "sex" conversation regarding Ralph is so not over. ;) It might not be brought up in this chapter, but it will be soon.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter as much as I will enjoy writing it! :D

Title | Mind Games

Fandom | Scorpion (CBS)

Description | Post-Deception. Four months passed since the ending of "Deception," and it seemed as though life, for the most part, returned to normal for Team Scorpion. Walter and Paige were given a chance to focus on their relationship in the midst of all of the cases that were assigned to the team. However, eventually, all great things must end, and once again, Team Scorpion will have to deal with an even bigger opponent than the Leviathan Mafia. Mark Collins is back for revenge and will have something big in store for Walter – something even the 197 IQ genius might not be able to see coming. And Collins's return just might cause a rift within the Scorpion family in the process, making it next to impossible for them to beat his ultimate game.

Rating| This fanfiction will be rated T for violence, obscene language, sexual themes as well as brain stuff and fluff.

POV | Limited Third Person

Disclaimer | While CBS owns Scorpion, I am the owner of this masterpiece.

Claimer | I am human; there are bound to be mistakes. If you feel like something should be changed, you have the power to send me a review/private message. I can't guarantee if I'll change it every time, but I do read all of my reviews and all of my private messages!

Mind Games

Sequel to Deception

Written by WriterFreak001

Chapter 3

~ SCORPION ~

As Walter and Paige strolled along the trail of the park, they walked in silence, giving both of them time to process everything that had happened during the day. Walter was partly upset with himself for not keeping a closer eye on Mark Collins; he was also mad at the fact that he didn't warn Ralph about the man. Despite what Paige had told him in the loft, Walter believed he should have seen Collins's move – Mark had said he'd be back; he had promised revenge, and Walter didn't take him seriously. He didn't think Mark Collins would be able to find a way to escape. Once again, he had underestimated Mark Collins's intelligence, and now the deranged man was making things a lot more personal by approaching Ralph. Walter still didn't understand how Mark Collins found out about the boy, but he knew Mark Collins was a smart man; he was very capable of figuring things out one way or another.

He thought about the possibility of Mark Collins returning to Ralph's school, and he didn't like it; Mark Collins was always a persistent man so if he wanted something from Ralph in order to get to Walter, Walter didn't put it past Mark Collins to achieve his goals. "Perhaps," Walter finally spoke as they neared the tree where he and Paige had shared their first "official" kiss the night he had disclosed his list of observations to the woman holding his hand. Paige caught his gaze so he continued. "Perhaps it might be prudent if Ralph stays home from school until Mark Collins has been apprehended again."

"As compelling as that idea sounds," Paige laughed as they stopped in front of their tree, "I can't keep taking Ralph out of school for every threat we encounter; if that happens, he won't be going to college until he's thirty."

"With his math and science proficiency, he could easily attend and graduate from college by fifteen; he doesn't really need primary nor secondary schooling; missing at most a week of school would not inhibit his intelligence. He could pass his classes in his sleep." Walter replied as Paige linked both her hands with his. Her thumbs rubbed against his skin. "But," Walter considered Paige's response as he continued, "despite the fact that he is far beyond other normals his age, Mark Collins could very well send Ralph into the Rabbit Hole. Ralph paid his first visit down there when you were kidnapped; as I told you several months ago, I managed to coax him out of it, but with Collins, there's no telling how deep he could send Ralph if he has the chance to meet with him again. Ralph's mind is still developing; if Collins sends him down the Rabbit Hole, there's no guarantee I'd be able to bring him out – especially if I end up going down there too. We cannot give Mark Collins another opportunity to speak with Ralph again."

Paige inhaled a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Taking that into consideration," Paige hooked her arms around Walter's neck, "letting Ralph stay home for the time being might be a wise idea after all."

"Thank you," Walter muttered. He hardly ever showed his gratitude towards his friends and to Paige, but Mark Collins was simply someone he did not want Ralph to encounter ever again. Collins had already caused enough trouble for Scorpion; the last thing Walter wanted was for Collins to win at his mind games.

"You're welcome," Paige smiled before pulling him down for a heated kiss. Her fingers weaved into his curly hair as he strategically cupped her cheeks and gently backed her against the tree. "Next to Ralph," Paige mumbled as his palms found her shoulders, and his lips traveled down her jawline, "you are my most important thing, Walter." He kissed the nape of her neck. "One way or another," she whispered into his ear; the vibrations of her voice sent shivers down his spine, "I will find a way to protect you and Ralph from the Rabbit Hole." She then lightly nibbled on his ear. "I promise."

For the remainder of their hour, they distracted themselves from Mark Collins's ploy and then eventually agreed that they would resume their heated kisses in the bedroom later that night when they wouldn't have to worry about losing control of their libidos in a public setting.

Paige definitely had a dangerous effect on Walter; while he thoroughly enjoyed her ability to distract his mind from certain, unwanted thoughts, he also realized just how out of control he can be around her. She made him want to lose control. Before he met Paige, he never thought he would be so comfortable around a woman (much less anyone) for as long as he lived. He hated physical contact, but Paige had a different appeal to him than other people.

Walter thought about the time he had to go undercover and pretend to seduce a woman in order to learn some information about dangerous chemicals that were in her possession. The thought of flirting with another woman had made Walter grimace but hearing Paige's voice in his ear the whole time did make the espionage slightly tolerable. The only reason the operation was a success was because he kept telling himself that Paige was the woman he was actually flirting with; she might not have been physically in front of him, but all of his comments towards the woman from Yemen was directed to Paige and not her. Once the chemicals were apprehended, he and Paige had disappeared that night and made use of a hotel room he had booked for the purpose of the undercover operation.

When they made it back to the garage, Cabe was still gone. Ralph was playing chess with Sylvester, while Toby was playing his X-Box Live, and Happy was polishing one of her inventions. As Walter walked over to his desk to check his email and look into Mark Collins's escape, Paige hovered over Ralph and watched her son play against the grandmaster.

"Checkmate," Ralph said proudly; Sylvester slumped his shoulders in defeat.

"Aw man," Sylvester chuckled as he scratched his head, "I was sure I had that one."

"At least Ralph doesn't make you doubt your every move, Sly." Toby stated as he kept his attention on his game. "Be glad that Collins is no longer a problem in our lives."

"True. Very true." Sylvester smiled as Walter found Paige's concerned gaze.

Walter sighed and stood up from his desk. He walked over to Paige and Ralph, ruffled the boy's hair as he felt Paige's arm slide around his back. He naturally wrapped his arm around her shoulders; he definitely was improving with his physical responses under Paige's touch. "About that," Walter's voice trailed as Happy, Toby and Sly stopped what they were doing and looked at him. "It would seem that he's back…."

"And you know this, how?" Toby asked as he put his console down and walked over to Walter. Happy started making her way towards them as well.

"We almost found him talking to Ralph during his recess period today." Paige explained as she reached down and enclosed her hand around Ralph's. "He disappeared, though."

"How do you almost find someone?" Toby inquired as he folded his arms in front of him.

"We didn't exactly catch him in the act," Walter elaborated as Paige rubbed his back for encouragement. "But all of the markers Ralph had mentioned indicated that he was talking with Mark Collins."

"But, of course, Ralph didn't know who Mark Collins was to the team so he didn't see the harm in talking to another mentally enabled man." Paige added, defending her son.

"W-what do you think this means?" Sylvester asked as he pumped some Germ-X into his hands.

"We're screwed!" Toby exclaimed. "That's what it means!"

Everyone turned to look at Happy as she punched the wall. "How did Collins escape prison?"

"Cabe's at HQ getting all of the details; all we know is that he conveniently convinced the guards that he was crazy so they sent him to a facility for mental patients. He most likely found a way to escape after devising some sort of plan. Of course, the psych ward wouldn't say anything about it because they wouldn't want their rep to demolish. For all we know, Collins could have been on the loose for months." Walter frowned.

"And why didn't you tell us this sooner?" Toby raised an eyebrow. "Ralph was done with school over an hour ago; don't you think we have the right to know this?"

"That's why we're telling you now, Toby." Walter replied as he released Paige and circled back around to his desk. "Cabe ordered for us not to do anything until he returned from Homeland; considering who we're dealing with, I think it's prudent we do all we can from inside these walls first and then see about what we're going to do about Collins. The last thing we want to do is find ourselves in the middle of one of his sick mind games." He streamed his computer to the TV screen. "I hacked into the prison's facility and located Mark Collins's files – he was transported to the psychiatric facility nearly five months ago."

"How does that help us now?" Sylvester asked as he started fiddling with his Rubik's Cube. "If the mental facility didn't want to announce Mark's disappearance, then it wouldn't be posted in their digital files."

"Sly's right," Toby nodded in agreement. He ran his hand though his hair. "Other than getting a psych evaluation from his files, they're pretty much useless. Perhaps Cabe has gathered useful information not found in the files."

"We can only hope." Sylvester said as he wiped the sweat off of his forehead. "Did he tell Ralph what he wanted?"

"I think it's pretty obvious." Happy spat. "He wants Walter to go back down the Rabbit Hole again. Except now he's going to be playing dirtier than ever. Approaching Ralph was a low blow."

"Which is why," Paige said as she picked her son up into her arms, "Walter and I decided it would be best to pull Ralph out of school until Mark Collins is apprehended. I can stop by Ralph's school and pick up any missed work for the time being. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to take Ralph upstairs. I'll be back shortly."

As Paige left for the stairs with Ralph in her arms, the group continued to discuss what they're going to do about Mark Collins. They talked about finding a way to bug the man, but in order to do that, they would have to find a way to get close to him, and all of them were against the idea of using either Walter or Ralph as bait. It was evident that Mark Collins had a strong effect over Walter; the team didn't want to risk Walter's mental state over something so risky. Using Ralph was out of the question. They also considered contacting Mark Collins using the radio, but there was no guarantee that Mark Collins would even listen to the channel they'd be hacking into. Walter thought about leaving some sort of message at Mark Collins's place, but the man was in hiding; there was no way Mark Collins would escape from the mental hospital only to reconvene at his house – the first place the authorities would check. By the time Paige returned, the team was still at square one.

"Perhaps," Paige started when the door to the garage opened and closed, causing everyone to find Cabe walking swiftly towards them.

"Homeland is aware of Collins's disappearance; there is an APB out there, and pretty much every branch of LA law officials have been notified about Collins. So, wherever he is, someone'll find him eventually." Cabe said as he placed his briefcase down on the sofa.

"What did you find out?" Walter inquired as he walked towards him.

"Other than what we already know? Nothing, unfortunately. Mark Collins is just too damn smart for us old Homeland folks. Perhaps your facial recognition program would be helpful." Cabe replied as he stretched his arms. Walter walked swiftly to his computer and began hacking into the FBI's software.

"I'm running the recognition now," Walter said as his fingers tapped on his keyboard. "If there's more than a 70% match, the system will beep. In the meantime, we need to figure out what we'll do with Collins once we find him."

"I've got a few ideas," Cabe said as he tapped his gun. "We'll take him to Homeland in pieces if we have to."

"I've been thinking," Paige suddenly caught everyone's attention, "What if we lay low for a while and pretend like Collins isn't back?" Everyone gawked at her with disbelief so she continued. "Think about it, what does Mark Collins crave above anything else?"

"To make Walter's life a living hell." Happy answered quickly.

"I agree with Happy," Sylvester nodded. "What Mark wants is unpleasant; it would be unwise not to retaliate."

"I'm not saying we should ignore Collins completely; just enough to draw him out – make him come to us. I know I'm not a genius, but I've picked up on quite a bit of things over the past several months. If we retaliate, we might be playing right into Mark Collins's hands. I mean, call me crazy, but what if he wants us to find him? From what I remember about him the last time we encountered him, he practically worshipped precision. I find it odd that he would spend a few weeks talking to Ralph and not consider the possibility of us finding out about it. It seemed more like a well-played move than an error on his part. It's almost like he wanted us to find out he has been talking with Ralph – that would send us on his trail and would then lead us directly where he wants us. I just think," Paige folded her arms in front of her, "it might be wise to lay low for a while."

"Paige might be onto something." Toby's eyes popped open. "If anything, one of the things Collins suffers from is a form of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder – a.k.a. OCD. He is abnormally obsessed with the idea of Walter going down the Rabbit Hole as well as him having a spot on the team."

"So if we pretend that Mark Collins doesn't mean a thing to us anymore," Happy continued, "especially if Walter pretends like Collins's presence had no effect on him, then he might just get desperate enough to come to us instead of making us go to him."

"Or," Sylvester gulped, "he might get even angrier and resort to violence to get what he wants."

"Not if we play our cards right," Happy rebutted as she folded her arms across her chest.

"Happy's right," Toby smirked. "I mean, it's a shot in the dark, but let's say we don't retaliate – especially Walter. After a while, Collins will realize we're not buying into his games. If we can prove to Collins that we are not as weak of a team as we were when he was with us, he'll most likely find a way to confront Walter. I can't say for sure that he won't come prepared, but it's a better tactic if we can get him to come to us; we'll have the advantage."

"A-and if h-he ups h-his g-game?" Sylvester stammered as he wiped the sweat off of his forehead again.

"We'll up ours." Walter replied as he patted Sylvester's back.

"If there's a chance we get to see Collins squirm by not retaliating, I'm all for it." Happy smirked. "I'll do anything to see that bastard wipe that smug grin off of his ugly face."

"Let's not forget the fact that Walter has something he didn't have the last time he went down the Rabbit Hole." Toby stated, causing everyone to look at him.

"What? Paige and Ralph?" Sylvester raised an eyebrow and then looked at Paige. She blushed at the young genius's comment.

"No. Sex." Toby deadpanned, causing both Paige and Sylvester to blush. Cabe's eyes widened, and Happy rolled her eyes. "Of course I meant Paige and Ralph, nimrod."

"O-oh. Right." Sylvester pressed his lips together. It suddenly got really quiet in the room.

Happy was the first to break the silence. "Anyway, Toby's right. Because of Paige and Ralph, Walter might just have a chance of staying out of the Rabbit Hole. No offence, Walt, but logic isn't all you think about these days; it may be harder for Collins to push you down the hole this time around. Cuz, I swear," Happy frowned, "If I have to force feed you again, Walt…."

"Dually noted, Happy." Walter cut her off before she could have time to finish her threat.

"Don't worry, Happy; Walter's mind is in good hands." Paige smiled as she leaned against Walter's shoulder.

"I'll bet." Toby coughed, causing both Happy and Cabe to laugh. Walter pretended to be unaffected by Toby's comment; Paige, however, was rendered speechless. "Perhaps," Toby winked, "pleasurable stimulations will keep Walter from nose-diving down the Rabbit Hole. Perhaps we can apply our conditioning theory to more than just phobias, Walter." Toby nudged Walter's elbow playfully. "Huh? How about that, Walt?"

"If all we're going to be talking about is Walter, Paige and their sex life, then I have more important things to attend to." Happy stated as she turned around and headed for her desk. "If we're not going to pursue Collins for the time being, then there's nothing else to discuss."

Toby followed her. "You know, Happy! We could be talking about our future sex life too, you know!"

"You're delusional as ever, doc." Happy said as she sat at her desk. Walter, Paige and Cabe redirected their attentions towards the mechanic and the shrink; the way Happy smiled at Toby did not go unnoticed by either of them. Walter wondered if something was up between Toby and Happy; he knew they'd been playing some game of tug-o-war in regards to their mutual attraction towards one another, but it seemed like they were trying too hard to hide something.

"Good call on that no retaliation theory, kid." Cabe suddenly said, causing both Walter and Paige to look at him. He patted Paige's shoulder. "I know for a fact how geniuses like to take on challenges, and I think you're right; Collins approaching Ralph was nothing more than a calling card – him wanting Scorpion to accept his challenge. I think Walter's smarts are rubbing off on you, Paige."

"Perhaps," Paige laughed and then surprised Walter with a kiss on the cheek.

"Let's just hope Collins takes the bait." Cabe sighed. "Anyway," he looked towards the loft and then back towards Walter and Paige, "if you need me to call Ralph's school and inform them about Collins, I can do that; I can also provide a legitimate excuse for his absence if you choose to take him out of school for the time being."

"Thanks," Paige smiled and squeezed Cabe's shoulder. "I really appreciate it."

"We decided that it would be best for Ralph to remain here until Collins has been apprehended." Walter added.

Cabe nodded slowly. "That's not a bad idea." The man looked at his watch and sighed. "Well, it's almost 5:30 PM. I should get going; got a lonely house to return to." As Cabe headed for the door, Paige called out to him. While Cabe turned around, Walter looked at Paige, wondering what she had up her sleeve.

"I heard the sky is going to be very clear tonight," Paige smiled at Cabe. "I'm sure Ralph would love going to that observatory to get his mind off of things for a while. And I'm sure he would like to keep you company tonight too."

Cabe grinned. "I'd like that very much."

"Great! I'll go and get him!" Paige exclaimed and then raced off towards the stairs.

Walter returned his direction towards Cabe. Cabe was looking towards the loft. "I know none of this was probably planned when you hired Paige, but you've got yourself a great, little family, there, Walter."

"I know." Walter nodded.

"Paige and Ralph are extraordinary." Cabe added as he looked at Walter.

Walter smiled. "I know."

"Hold on to them, Walter," Cabe patted Walter's shoulder. "Hold onto them as damn hard as you can."

"I will." Walter spoke softly.

"Anyway," Cabe withdrew his hand, "while Paige is still upstairs, what are your thoughts about registering for a gun?"

~ SCORPION ~

WriterFreak001:

MUAHAHAHAHAHA! I felt like this would be a good place to stop for now.

By the way, please do not ask me to update more frequently. I get it if you want to tell me to update ASAP, because I do. :P But asking me to update more often is like asking me to type twice as fast and not put some thought into my chapters. It's a process for me, so yeah. Thanks!

Anyway, I'm feeling slightly better; still hurt like hell though. :(

I hope you liked this chapter! I really struggled with the beginning of it so I hope it all doesn't seem OOC for the characters. I wanted to jump into the Collins stuff in the last chapter, but I also didn't want to rush through it; that's why I came up with the idea where the characters would use Collins's fixation against him. We'll see if that works out though. :D

What did you think? I hope there are more reviews for this chapter than there was for the last one.