Authors Note: Hi guys so I'm glad you liked the last chapter so now we'll find out if S.H.I.E.L.D is everything they say they are and who are mysterious rat could be.

Grant woke with a smile, the warm bundle next to him stirred and moaned before drifting back to sleep. He reached over her and grabbed the clock from the bedside table 7am, this was serious progress a full night's sleep his first since Skye had returned to the bus. Since her late night chat with Dex she had made vast improvements she still refused to enter the lab and sharp objects were avoided but her nightmares had lessened. She opened up more to Grant and the others and had managed not to destroy anymore lab equipment much to Fitz's relief.

Putting the clock back quietly he turned so he was spooning her, she wriggled her ass against him to get more comfortable but he was starting to wonder just how asleep she actually was. He decided to find out slowly he moved his hands under the tank top she liked to sleep in gently massaging circles into the skin just above the waistband of her shorts. She stirred her butt pushing back against his crotch, for obvious reasons it had been a while since they'd been intimate. He'd never push her, he was a gentleman after all a regular Steve Rogers as Skye had told him once but he missed her warmth and enthusiasm. He gently stroked the long chestnut waves from her neck so his lips could plant gentle kisses up and down the tender column of exposed flesh. She sighed and turned in his arms her lips seeking his in the still dark room, it was a soft tentative kiss.

Slowly she opened her eyes and smiled "Morning robot" she'd started calling him robot again which normally would have irked him but he'd never been so glad to hear the damn nickname. It wasn't mocking or teasing like it had been in the past, it seemed it was now a term of endearment. He stroked her cheek tenderly before steeling another kiss, she smiled against his lips. "I like when you wake me up like this, so much better than threatening me with push-ups" he chuckled at that, it was no secret that Skye was not a morning person especially when a gruelling training session awaited her. They would have to resume her training soon, now more than ever she needed to be able to protect herself but that could wait another day. It was Sunday; they had no mission Coulson had refrained from taking on any new cases. He suspected to give Skye time to recover from her ordeal, which he greatly appreciated. Although she was slowly returning to herself she was definitely not ready for field work. "I like waking you like this" his face broke into the smile he knew she loved the one that touched his eyes and revealed those dimples "I missed you" he rubbed their noses together pressing his forehead to hers.

"I missed you too; I know I haven't been myself lately. I'm sorry" her tone was sad.

"Don't be sorry baby, never be sorry" he soothed he didn't want her to be sad and pensive he wanted to make her happy again, hear her laugh. He kissed her all over her face and every ticklish spot he could find until she was in fits of giggles. She wound her arms around his neck and pulled him as close as she physically could, deepening their kisses as heat pooled at her core. All of a sudden the atmosphere in the bunk changed from playful to one of pure need, she needed him like she never had before. Maybe it was because she'd come so close to never seeing him again, maybe it was all he had done and sacrificed to protect her but she needed to feel him deep within her.

She ran her fingers over the perfect plains of his body, his beautifully sculpted body honed from hours of training and years of battle. He was the quintessential warrior, her ever loving protector and as her hands explored him his found the hem of her tank and in one fluid motion he pulled it off over her head. He sat back on the bed pulling her with him so she was straddling his lap, she could feel his sizeable erection straining against his boxer shorts. He looked deep into her chocolate brown eyes they were almost black with lust. Her breathing ragged and heavy as her breasts heaved against his chest.

"Are you sure your ready for this, we don't have too..." she cut him off crushing her lips to his; he didn't need any more confirmation that this was what she wanted. She was most definitely ready for this as gracefully as she could she wriggled out of her sleep shorts as he stripped off his boxers. Finally after what had seemed like a lifetime they were skin to skin, when he looked into her eyes she felt like he was looking into the depths of her soul. His touch was the balm she needed it soothed the rot that had set in after her time with Hyde, she felt warmth seep into her veins again. The cold detachment was ebbing away, she could be strong again and as long as he was near she could be whole. They made love for hours, the morning slipped into the afternoon before they surfaced.

He strode out of his bunk in sweats and a tee not bothering to disguise his just fucked hair; he'd left Skye to rest while he grabbed supplies from the onboard kitchen. On his way back he spotted Simmons and Dex in a very domestic looking scene, he was sat on one of the comfy couches with her curled up in his lap they looked like they were doing some kind of puzzle together. Then it struck ward it must be soduku he remembered Jemma liked number puzzles they kept her mind sharp, not that with her numerous doctorates she needed any help in that department but after all the horrendous events of the last few weeks it was nice to see them so relaxed. Skye wouldn't relate Dex's history to Ward making it clear that they were his secrets to tell not hers all she would say was that it was a very sad story. He smiled to himself and left them to it, Simmons was so absorbed in the activity that she hadn't noticed him at all but the hacker gave him a nod. Skye was right the guy did have Vulcan hearing, he wondered briefly what the rest of the team were up to; if they were enjoying what for him at least had turned out to be an amazing Sunday.


Meanwhile in Coulson's office he and May were having a very worrying conversation with director Fury.

"How is the girl?" the director asked, he'd come aboard whilst they were parked up at HQ.

"She's doing better than I could have hoped, considering" replied Coulson.

"Was she able to give you any useful Intel on Hyde's Order?"

"Well technically it wasn't Hyde's order he was only second in command, they're funding their so called research with capital from a shell company called Johnson International CEO Dr Mark Johnson who we now thanks to Skye and Jarvis know is Dr Andrew Grayson" Coulson explained. May just sat silently, she was really just there to offer support to Phil and maybe kick some ass if they even suggested moving the girl. It was true that May and Skye had a very antagonistic relationship at times, they were polar opposites but she was a member of her team and Coulson's niece she wouldn't let S.H.I.E.L.D harm the girl.

"Grayson the ex head of research and development? That Grayson?"

"The very same, it seems he was the ringleader of the attack on Skye and her parents back in the previous directors day, he made claims that they had the full support of S.H.I.E.L.D for their actions. It was only when the council found out what they were up too that they were disowned" he was sure Fury would know the truth, Stark had once said that he was the original spy and that he knew everything that went on in his organisation.

"That part I have to admit is true; I suppose he told her that I wanted the same?"

"Yes Hyde did mention that to agent Ward, said you wanted his files so you could control his research" this was the crucial point that would determine if Skye would be safe if she were in S.H.I.E.L.D.S grasp.

"I'm not going to deny that in the past I have pushed the envelope when it comes to weapons development but I learnt my lesson after the tesseract incident. The only reason I want that mans research is to stop it from falling into the wrong hands. I don't want to harm your niece Coulson, God knows she's been through enough if she can learn to control her powers she'd be a huge asset to S.H.I.E.L.D maybe she could even become part of the Avengers Initiative but if she can't...Phil if she becomes unstable or a threat to the world we will have to deal with her." Director Fury took in the murderous glances that May and Coulson shot him "You know full well that I don't want to have to go there, I owe you Phil, and the planet owes you. So I'm gonna give you some freedom here she can stay with you, on your team but it's on you to make sure she keeps it together. If she can't or the wrong people get hold of her again I will step in. Is that clear?"

"Yes Sir" he breathed a sigh of relief he knew the risk Fury was taking to allow this.

"Now on to the other reason I'm here, we have a serious rat problem someone has been feeding Greyson information from within. I had agent Sitwell working on this but he turned up dead this morning, found hanging at his house apparent suicide. Except I'm not buying it, he was closing in on someone. Someone high up he was gonna brief me today, till this" he sighed "Sitwell was a good agent Coulson whoever did this had to be damn good to get the drop on him"

Coulson and May were shocked Fury was right Sitwell was one of the best, they knew him well had worked with the man in the past and now he was dead. Whoever this was, they were willing to go to great lengths to remain hidden. It hit home to both of them that it was not only Skye that was at risk but anyone who tried to help her of course it was doubtful Sitwell knew that was what he was doing but still. "We'll track down whoever's responsible for this sir you have my word on that".

"Good, you might have better luck up here especially with your new helper. How the hell did you manage to get Dex O'Neil to come out of retirement?" just how many people had the Major worked with?

"You'd have to ask agent Ward the particulars he was the one who talked him into it, he's an old friend of Skye's like a big brother she told us" he explained.

"Must really care about the girl to help you on this, do you know his history?"

"No his file was heavily redacted, he was black Op's though it's not unusual" he was curious now he guessed Fury must know.

"We've had dealings in the past not always friendly but he's a good guy and an excellent soldier. He came across a young girl called Katherine Miller, she was a gifted she could manipulate particles speed them up, slow them down it was amazing to watch she could make a man explode literally but she could also heal. Her abilities caught the attention of a group called CERBERUS nasty assholes. They kidnapped her from her home when she was 18 they took her to a secret facility. She was experimented on, tortured, raped it was one of the worst cases until Hyde that I'd ever come across. CERBERUS works with the US military on various contracts, that's how the Major came across the girl while he was working with their agents on an operation. Like I said he's a good guy, when he saw what they were doing to her he couldn't leave her. So he busted her out, took her to a safe house and then reported the incident to his superiors thinking they'd put a stop to it. What the poor guy didn't realise was that the sons of bitches were in on it; luckily for her he hadn't told them where he hid her. He acted like he understood when they fed him the usual it's for the greater good bullshit, arranged to hand her over. Except he didn't went on the run with her, left behind his whole life to protect her. They moved from place to place for two years nearly everyone who helped them ended up dead, he nearly died a few times there was a lot of close calls. S.H.I.E.L.D tried to help protect the girl but by the time we stepped in to help she'd had enough of running. The people chasing her were relentless, at the time the government and the military had no intention of reining CERBERUS in. Their CEO fooled her into thinking they'd finally killed Dex, she could heal the living not the dead. He hoped in her despair she'd give in and let them take her, she had the power to kill them all but that's not who she was. He didn't see the knife until she jabbed it into her jugular, she wasn't like Skye she was human and she bled out before she could be saved. By the time we got there with him she was gone, it nearly destroyed him. I never saw a man so devastated, the least I could do for the guy was get the rest off his back. When he moved to Austen we made sure he had S.H.I.E.L.D protection, it must be really hard for him to help her like this. I really hope it doesn't end the same way"

Jesus no wonder the guy was so mistrusting of authority, if it were possible Phil had found a whole new level of respect for Dex. All he'd been through, all he'd lost and he'd still come to Skye's aid when she needed him. "Dear God, is he still a target?"

"Of the military No, I made sure they gave the guy his dues and left him alone when I became director of S.H.I.E.L.D, it's amazing what you can do if you have the right information on the right people. As for CERBERUS Sec Def reined them in but if they came across him again...who knows. If I were you Phil I'd keep Dex as far away from CERBERUS as possible because I wouldn't blame the guy for killing every last one of those sons of bitches".

"He'd have a willing helper" May chipped in; she'd been so quiet they'd quite forgotten she was there.

"Yes well as much as I realise Agent Wards recent targets were necessary, please remind him that we are a government agency not a vigilante service. I understand he wants to protect the girl but we need to be careful we can't knock off everyone that threatens her"

Coulson nodded reining agent Ward in could present a serious problem he knew that he was gunning for Grayson and his S.H.I.E.L.D insider but they needed them alive. They needed to know just how much they knew about Skye and what they had done to her, if they had her DNA they could be working on a serum now. They had to be stopped before anyone else was harmed and before they could get hold of his niece again.

"I want your team to investigate Sitwell's death; I want the culprit found as soon as humanly possible before I lose anymore of my agents. This takes top priority, keep Jarvis running a search for Grayson but this is our main focus for now. I'll have all Sitwell's files and laptop sent here for Dex, Skye and FitzSimmons to work through. Keep me in the loop I want to know everything"

"Understood Sir, we'll get right on it" Fury nodded at Coulson and May before taking his leave.

"So much for a quiet Sunday" May sighed "Do you trust him?"

"Fury, Yes. The rest of S.H.I.E.L.D until we know who murdered Sitwell and how many people are involved, No. Fury's right this takes top priority we don't stand a chance against Grayson unless we cut off his source of information" he reasoned.

"And what about our visitor?" May had no problem with the Major, in fact she was thankful to have another combat trained person on board it lessened her load a little but after Fury's revelations he could be a risk.

"He's proved his loyalty to Skye and to us, he was willing to go back for Ward even when he and Skye were safe. His tragic history aside he's an asset to the team, we need all the help we can get at the moment" May nodded it was true their options had become limited when it came to back up and Dex had some serious skills, she respected that but something niggled at her.

"What if he's using this mission to get revenge on CERBERUS, when he first came he said he was here for Skye as soon as she was safe he was gone but he's still here and she's back with us. He only agreed to stay on when he knew they were involved with Grayson" she reasoned.

"It is a possibility, he's very closed off and he's not likely to reveal his motivations to us but it is possible there's another reason for his willingness to stay on" Phil Coulson was a very observant man, not much got by him. He had not failed to notice the looks that passed between the major and his biochemist the rules about fraternization only applied to field operatives not field operatives and consultants.

"Simmons? Is it wise to allow this?"

"Simmons is a big girl; it's not our place to intervene in her personal life. She's not breaking any rules and even if she were we overlooked Skye and Grant"

"I guess" she was worried about the young woman, the Major was a complicated man with a tragic past and Jemma was young but Coulson was right it wasn't her place to intervene. She just hoped she knew what she was doing, despite Mays reservations about joining Coulsons team she'd grown close to all of them in her own way. She was not an extrovert nor did she wear her heart on her sleeve but when she could she would always protect her team.

"Best rally the troops, we have work to do" she nodded as he announced they would be meeting in the war room in ten minutes for an urgent meeting.


They all gathered around the centre console in the war room, Skye was tucked into Wards side there really was no point in hiding their relationship anymore. Jemma and Dex were deep in conversation, while Fitz looked on in exasperation it seemed he'd lost his partner in crime just lately. When Coulson entered the room they all stood to attention, they knew it must be important if he was calling a meeting on a Sunday.

"We have a mission of great importance to carry out; it's with deepest regret that I inform you all that agent Sitwell was found dead in his home this morning. Director Fury has asked that we carry out the investigation into his death" Everyone except May who already knew about this and Dex who had no idea who this guy was looked deeply shocked.

"Oh my goodness who would murder agent Sitwell? He was such a lovely man he didn't even file a report after Skye and I...well you know and now he's dead" Dex rubbed her back in a comforting gesture.

"Director Fury believes that his death may be linked to an investigation that he was carrying out. Agent Sitwell was closing in on whoever has been passing information to Andrew Grayson, we think that they were aware of this and that they murdered Sitwell to cover their tracks. He was supposed to brief Fury this morning, when he didn't show Fury sent agents to look for him they found him hanging as if he'd committed suicide but we all know that is not likely. Agent Sitwell was a very experienced operative; whoever did this must have known him very well to get the drop on him".

"Do you think this was another S.H.I.E.L.D agent then or an outside party. I mean we know Grayson hired CERBERUS to guard his HQ maybe he used them to silence Sitwell" asked Ward. Coulson did not fail to notice the tick in Dex's jaw when CEREBUS were mentioned or the sympathetic look Skye shot him. He must have told her his story at some point; he wasn't surprised his niece was very empathetic and very skilled when it came to people.

"They do have some very skilled assassins in their arsenal, it would make sense to use someone else to do the dirty work that way whoever this double agent is their hands stay clean" Dex reasoned.

"You seem to be very knowledgeable when it comes to CEREBUS" May shot.

"Like I said we've had dealings in the past" he wasn't going to elaborate anymore, he knew Fury had briefed them so there was a good chance that he had also relayed his past involvement with S.H.I.E.L.D but he wasn't having a heart to heart with the lady T-1000.

"Yes well that is certainly a possibility" Coulson diplomatic as ever steered the conversation back on track. "Since we have no idea who the rogue agent is we've been instructed to handle this alone meaning we report to Fury alone. Agents Fitz and Simmons I need you to investigate the scene and take a good look at Sitwell's autopsy reports see if you can find evidence that may link anyone to this. Agent May and I will accompany you to the scene of the crime just in case it's being watched. Skye and Dex all of Sitwell's files and his laptop are being sent here, I need you to go through it all see if you can work out who he was closing in on but be careful, we don't want to spook them. Ward you stay here with them, I know Dex can take care of himself but Skye will need a guard for the foreseeable future, I doubt that anyone would be foolish enough to try and take her on S.H.I.E.L.D property but I'm not willing to take the risk. We need to solve this problem and fast we don't stand a chance against Grayson whilst he is being passed information on our every move. Besides that agent Sitwell was a good man and a good agent, he died merely for doing his duty someone has to pay for that" They all nodded in agreement. The mood on the bus had gone from one of deep relaxation to one of sadness and determination.

"FitzSimmons you need to get your gear together as fast as you can we'll take the short bus to Sitwell's place" they wasted no time departing for the lab but just before Jemma left the room Dex grabbed her arm.

"Be careful Jem OK?" he didn't like that she was going without him, he understood why Coulson had asked him to stay and dig through files with Skye and he knew that Coulson and the ladybot were more than capable of taking care of the two young scientists. But still he hated that he wouldn't be there to watch over her, however hard he tried to keep his feelings in check it was clear that he was falling for her.

"I will, I promise" she soothed she kissed him lightly on the lips before she left the room. May and Coulson had already left leaving him there with Skye and suit.

"She'll be OK, Coulson and May they won't let anything happen to her" Skye understood why he was anxious, she walked over and hugged him tightly. He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her back. He knew he was being irrational that she would be fine, but after everything he'd been through and everything he'd witnessed since he'd been onboard the tin can he couldn't help but worry.

"I know" he smiled down at her as Ward looked on, confused by the exchange.


A few hours later as Skye and Dex were rifling through Sitwell's files they came across a coded letter which cheered Dex up, he loved codes. To anyone else it would just have looked like a letter from a loved one but to the hackers it was obviously a gold mine of secret information.

FitzSimmons and the two older agents had returned a short while ago; the two scientists were going over autopsy reports in the lab whilst Coulson had retreated to his office to update Fury. May was on the stick and Ward was quietly reading in the corner, there really wasn't much for him to do until he had a physical target to apprehend. He was glad to see that Skye was excited about work again though, she and Dex worked well together. It took them a little while to decipher the letter but once they had it lead them to a pass worded file on Sitwell's personal laptop.

It was becoming obvious that an outside party had handled Sitwell's assassination although most of the files had been wiped from his hard drive this one had been missed. Probably because Sitwell had been very careful to disguise this vital information a further testament to the fact that he was an excellent agent.

When Skye cracked the file and scanned the information it contained her mouth fell open "Oh my god" Ward looked up from his book.

"What is it? Did he find out who the double agent is?" he was all business now.

"Yeah but you're not going to believe it" she shook her head, well she'd never liked the woman but she never thought her capable of this. Her own partner, she'd murdered her own partner to cover her back. Whether she did it by her own hand or had CERBERUS do it for her it was cold.

"Who is she?" Dex asked he'd never come across this one before but he didn't like the look of her whoever she was. Her eyes were cold and cruel, she had supper villain written all over her.

"Well?" Ward prompted.

"It's...Victoria Hand" she stammered still shocked by what she was seeing.

"What?! There has to be some mistake it can't be" he couldn't believe it Hand was as straight laced as they came; sure she was detached and blunt and maybe even uncaring at times but a murderer and a traitor?

"It's all here Ward, phone records, photos of her meeting Hyde. He says he checked out anyone that worked closely with or for Greyson and my dad and he stumbled across this. A lot of people worked with them so he didn't expect to find anything in it when he checked her out but he came across a few suspect emails that she'd tried to erase"

"Thing about the internet, nothing is ever really gone" Dex chipped in.

"So he followed her and took these, then he requested her phone records of course they were clean but he pulled the records from burner phones he'd seen her purchase".

"I can't believe this" it was one thing to think you had a traitor in your ranks but to have it confirmed was just...he couldn't believe an agent he had looked up to, that had seemed so dedicated could have done this. He knew that Hand had never liked Skye but to throw her to Hyde and Grayson and then murder her own partner to cover her tracks was just so...well evil. Skye came over and sat next to Ward, she took his hand and squeezed she knew this must be hard for him S.H.I.E.L.D had been his whole life, he believed in everything it stood for and that his fellow agents were just as committed as he was. It was a horrible feeling when you realised that your beliefs were nothing more than fantasy.

"I'm sorry Grant, really I am Sitwell didn't deserve this he was a good guy and I know he probably didn't know it but he died helping us, helping me" she pressed her forehead to his.

"The best thing we can do for Sitwell now is bring that traitorous bitch to justice before she hurts anyone else" wherever he'd gone he was back. Skye was right Sitwell had died helping them whether he knew it or not they owed him. "We need to brief Coulson"

Authors Note: I hope you like it, maybe it's just me but Agent Hand has always come across as being a bit evil and she clearly hates Skye.