Chapter Nine – Final Details

"Elizabeth?"

She absolutely loved the sound of Henry's voice, even over the phone. It brought her almost as much peace as knowing she had a way to get Stevie home. She couldn't help grinning even though she knew Henry wouldn't be able to see it.

"Yeah, it's me," she confirmed.

"Babe, are you okay? Did something else happen?"

Elizabeth could hear the fear in his voice and was more than happy to put an end to it.

"You can breathe now, Henry. I came up with a plan."

"For Stevie?" Henry asked excitedly.

"Yes, and it's already in motion."

"Ha! Ha, ha! I knew you could come up with something! I knew it! Well done, babe."

Elizabeth grinned. Henry's excitement was infectious. It was just what she needed as a refueling source after the exhaustion of the last few days.

"You helped me figure it out you know."

"I did, huh? Well, whatever it was I said I'm glad I said it."

"Me too. I already have approval, so it shouldn't be long."

It probably wouldn't be long before Russell showed up in her office either. Even though her plan had been approved she knew he would have some bones to pick with her about it. That was the way Russell worked. Whenever she did something outside the norm he had a problem with it. Putting together a military mission in the State department was definitely outside the norm.

"That's fantastic, babe. I feel like I can finally function again. Or at least function a little bit better. I'm not sure I will truly be able to function again until she's back home and I can hold her."

"I know. I feel the same way."

She had hope now, but there was always the chance something could go wrong with the operation. Until she had confirmation that Stevie was on a plane on her way home some of the fear would remain. Plus, Henry was right. It wouldn't be completely gone until she held Stevie in her arms.

"Thank you for letting me know, Elizabeth. I love you."

"I love you too, Henry."

"I'll let you get back to work. Go bring our daughter home."

"I'll see you tonight, Henry."

She had barely finished putting her phone down when Blake came scurrying into the room. He seemed like himself despite what he'd seen in the video. That might have been reassuring, but the look on his face was not. She knew that expression. It was his "Russell Jackson is here unexpectedly" look. Blake might have been surprised by that, but Elizabeth wasn't. She'd been fully expecting him.

"Russell Jackson is here, Ma'am."

"Of course he is. Go ahead and send him in, Blake."

She didn't have to wait very long for the fun to begin. Russell walked in, absolutely fuming.

"What the hell is this about you setting up a military operation?" he demanded.

Yup, that sounded about right.

"My plan already has presidential approval, Russell. All of the countries involved have agreed. We don't have time to come up with anything else. What is your problem with this plan?"

"My problem is that you are the Secretary of State not the Secretary of Defense! You handle diplomatic solutions, not military ones."

"And the hostage video came to me. It was my job to find a solution to it."

He could rant against her all that he wanted, but she'd done her job. Russell paced back and forth in front of her, clearly agitated. He finally stopped and rested his palms on her desk, leaning over it toward her.

"What I don't understand is why you didn't pass this off to DoD the instant you realized a diplomatic solution wasn't possible."

Elizabeth had to force herself not to roll her eyes.

"My solution still required diplomacy, Russell, and I had a DoD advisor that helped me set this up. She approved of the plan."

"Elizabeth…" he said in exasperation.

"Oh come on, Russell. I had to make sure that getting every hostage out was a priority. We both know that's not always how defense works. This is a good plan, and it's our best shot."

"I can't deny that."

He pulled away from her desk and started pacing again as he rubbed his chin. Finally he sighed and turned back toward her.

"You know, Bess, you absolutely drive me nuts."

"But I get the job done."

Elizabeth's lips quirked into a smile, and Russell threw his hands up. He couldn't deny the fact that she was correct in that assessment. She did get the job done. That didn't mean he was going to completely let her off the hook though.

"Just hope this plan of yours goes off without a hitch."

"I'm hoping the same thing," Elizabeth murmured as Russell left her office.

She really didn't want to think about what could happen if there was a hitch in her plan. Unfortunately there wasn't all that much that she could do to ensure the hostages would be safe. But maybe…

She glanced at the clock. There was still time. Most people wouldn't have gone home from work yet. She still had a chance to get one more thing done. Grabbing her coat, she stepped out of her office.

"Hey, Blake? Do you have anything for me for the rest of the day?"

Blake didn't even need to look at his computer to answer that question.

"No, Ma'am. We cleared your schedule because of the situation in Nigeria."

"Good. There's something I need to go do. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Have a good evening, Ma'am."

O . o . O . o . O

Elizabeth knocked lightly on the office door and poked her head inside.

"Admiral Hill, do you have a moment?"

Ellen Hill glanced up in surprise. About the last person she would expect to show up at her office was Elizabeth McCord. She could have simply called or if she'd wanted a face to face meeting had her assistant call and request Ellen's presence. This meeting had to be special somehow.

"Of course, Madam Secretary. What can I do for you?"

Elizabeth stepped into the room and closed the door behind her.

"The rescue unit deploys for France tomorrow morning, correct?"

Ellen's forehead furrowed slightly. Elizabeth had to have already gotten that information.

"Yes, Ma'am."

"And you know where they are deploying from?"

"Yes, Ma'am," Ellen replied again, but this time slightly hesitantly. "May I ask why you are asking, Ma'am?"

Elizabeth bowed her head briefly, and when she looked up again her professional mask was gone. The conversation would continue outside of the political arena they usually met in.

"I need to be there, Ellen. Before they leave I want a few minutes with the commander."

"Ma'am, our soldiers know how to handle a mission like this. They don't need further directives. You really don't have to worry. They'll get the job done."

"I know. I know, but this is personal. I really need to talk to them," she insisted.

Again Ellen was confused. It was a very strange request, and she wasn't really sure what to make of it. There was no reason the Secretary of State would need to speak to the troops before they left. Not unless there was more to this situation than Ellen knew. She had to admit that was possible. When she'd been working with Elizabeth on the strategy for rescuing the hostages she'd noticed that Elizabeth had been almost nervous about the situation. Ellen had seen Elizabeth deal with similar situations before and she'd never appeared nervous. She'd never been so invested either. Something was different this time compared to all the others. Elizabeth had just said the reason she'd wanted to talk to the troops was personal. What was going on?

"Ma'am… No. Elizabeth," she began, making it very clear that they weren't talking in any professional sense. "What is it about this situation that is holding you so tightly? You're more directly involved than I would expect you to be. And far more adamant."

Elizabeth dropped her head into her hands and rubbed her temples. It was a closed office. Nobody would see in and nobody would be able to hear what she had to say. She could trust Ellen with the truth. At least Elizabeth hoped that she could.

"Because I have a reason to be highly invested in the outcome of this situation," she admitted as she lifted her head to meet Ellen's eyes. "My daughter is one of the hostages."

Ellen's mouth hung open in shock as she struggled to think of something to say in response. Never would she have expected that reason. Elizabeth had been far too calm and collected. If her child had been a hostage in a foreign country she would have been a frantic mess. There was no way she would have been capable of setting up a rescue plan, yet Elizabeth had.

"I… Are you sure?"

"As sure as I can be," Elizabeth admitted, pain clear in her eyes. "Between the videos and travel records it's pretty conclusive."

"I'm sorry, Elizabeth."

"Thank you," she whispered.

"You designed an amazing rescue plan, and it's going to work. Our boys will bring her home." Ellen paused and jotted a few things down on a post-it note before handing it to Elizabeth and continuing, "They'll reassure you of that themselves tomorrow morning.

Elizabeth breathed a long sigh of relief as she looked at the location and time of the deployment. Tears stung her eyes, but she held them back.

"Thank you, Ellen."

Ellen stepped around her desk and knelt in front of Elizabeth's chair so they would be at eye level.

"It's going to be alright, Ma'am."

God, Elizabeth hoped so. At least she would sleep better tonight knowing that there was a way to get Stevie home.