A/N: Im so sorry this took so long but ive been so busy with my college apps and school and wow, plus FF wouldn't make it easy for me to post! Anyways, I hope you like this chapter! Please review and tell me what you love, what you hate, what you would change, anything! Thanks so much for all the reviews and reading:) you guys are awesome!
Present time
"... could have killed yourself..."
"... just want to know what happened..."
"...and what was the commotion you heard that separated you from your team..."
"...an unacceptable risk..."
"...the team, Wordy and Lew, they want to know.."
"...and you didn't see another person..."
Sam blows out a breath as he parks in front of his house, turning off the ignition. In the last 3 hours, he expertly blocked out Ed's raging lecture, avoided Greg's probing eyes, and manipulated the interview with the SIU detective.
It was all a success because of his expert lies, simple logic and the glaring facts. How could a single man take out three highly trained Russians? Especially when one Russian had a thick knife wound and the other two had bullets in them that didn't match the SRU issued ones?
Plain and simple. Because it wasn't David Hilton. It was the Shadow.
He climbs off his motorcycle and notices a grey sedan parked in the driveway. He walks over and peers inside then glances at the house. He quietly makes his way to the back door and opens it with his key. Once inside he follows voices to the living room and hides behind the staircase.
Jules is talking with a man whose face he can't see from his position. She's saying something but he's too far away to hear.
The man nods and reaches into his pocket. Sam reaches into his own pocket, but stops when the man pulls out a small flash drive.
Jules takes it and hugs the man tightly. The man rubs her back and Sam growls slightly, resisting the urge to make his presence known.
The two pull away and the man talks some more before turning to leave. And as he turns, Sam sees his face. Spike.
As soon as the door closes, he speaks up, an edge to his voice. "What was that about?"
Jules turns wide eyed, startled. "Sam?"
He asks again. "What was Spike doing here?"
Jules looks at him incredulously. "I didn't hear you come in."
He raises an eyebrow.
Jules rolls her eyes. "He's my friend, he's like a brother to me. He was here awhile playing with the kids." She motions in the general direction of the children's bedrooms. "They're asleep now."
"What's in the flash drive?"
She looks at the object in her hand, actively avoiding his eyes. "Nothing important."
He studies her closely. He walks forward until he wraps her in his arms. "What is it babe?"
She looks up at him and he sees sadness in her eyes. "I asked Spike to do some research on my father..."
Sam sighs. "Sweetheart..."
"He found something Sam. Warned me that I wouldn't like it, but I have to know."
Sam nods softly and kisses her forehead. "Jules, I just don't want you to get hurt."
She smiles up at him and pecks his lips. "I know, Soldier. But I won't. That wound is healed, remember? I just need to know."
He smiles sadly. "Okay."
"So how was the interview?"
He smirks. "Went well."
She nods carefully. "It was you, huh?"
He stays quiet and she knows. Jules puts a hand to his cheek. "I'm glad you're okay, Sam. That's all that matters to me."
He smiles and kisses her deeply, eliciting a moan and equal fervor from her. As the passion burns, he presses her against the wall, trailing kisses down her neck, his hands touching as much soft skin as he can. Her hands in turn sneak under his shirt, caressing his chest and abs. She starts lifting his shirt off, but he forces himself to pull away. If they get started, they won't stop and he has a mission tonight.
He chuckles, breathing hard. "Sorry babe. Not tonight. I got government business."
Jules pouts, her chest heaving up and down heavily. "Jerk."
He smirks, kissing her once more, just because he's addicted to her. "I love you."
Her eyes twinkle. "I love you too."
He steals another kiss and smiles seductively. "I'll be back in an hour or so and if you're still awake, I can show you some love."
She smirks and pats his chest. "I'll hold you to that." She starts walking up the stairs but stops and looks back at him. "Be careful out there."
"Always."
Once he hears the door to their bedroom click closed, he jogs lightly to the basement and lifts up the blue training matt, meticulously selecting the necessary weapons for the mission. He puts on his midnight black shirt and matching pants, slips on his mask and gloves, and hides the various weapons in his boots and clothing.
As he walks out into the cool night air he doesn't look back but heads straight to his motorcycle and starts the ignition.
FPFPFPFPFPFPFPFP
Sam hides his motorcycle among some bushes in front of 2256 Monica Lane. He surveys his surroundings and smiles in satisfaction. Everyone seems to be asleep on this cold night.
He walks once around the one story house, creating a mental blueprint of potential exits and entrances. He finally settles on using the back door to enter.
He gets on one knee, and reaches into his combat boot for the pin he needs to pick the lock. Click.
He gets up and pushes the door open gently, not making a sound, and closes it behind him just as quietly. He exchanges the pin for a dim flashlight from his boot and makes his way further into the house, searching for the basement. From one of Spike's comments, he learned the Italian slept in the 'comfortable lower quarters'.
Peering around a hallway, he finally spots the elusive doorway. He tests the knob and finds it unlocked. Once again, he gently opens it and closes the door without a sound.
He lightly jogs down the concrete stairs only to be met with a second door. He tests this one. Locked.
He again effortlessly picks the lock and pushes the door open. He studies the room before his eyes. A single bed lies in one corner. Various computer screens, laptops, and monitors lie on an elongated desk against the back wall.
He retrieves his gun from his holster and turns on his voice modulator. He approaches the bed and presses his gun to the sleeping man's forehead.
Spike's eyes blink open at the sensation of cool metal pressing painfully into his forehead. It takes some time for his eyes to adjust to the darkness, but when they do, his eyes widen slightly and he tenses at the armed figure holding a gun to his forehead.
"Where's the flash drive?" Sam asks, his voice sounding mechanically emotionless with the modulator.
Spike sucks in a breath and asks stupidly, buying time to think. "What are you talking about?"
The gun presses deeper into his temple as the mechanical voice sneers. "You know exactly what I'm talking about."
Spike swallows and stays quiet. He can't figure out a way to get out of this alive.
The figure growls. The sound of shattering glass fills the room as the figure shoots the computers and devices one by one with his silenced gun.
Spike clenches his jaw and resists the urge to curse at the man for all he's worth.
"I'm going to ask you one more time. Where. Is. The. Flash drive?"
Spike closes his eyes. He knows when he stumbled into the information a couple months back that there would be retaliation. But he kept digging anyways. For Jules.
In an attempt to buy more time, Spike offers to search for the flash drive he no longer has.
Sam weighs his options and motions with his gun to go ahead. Spike stumbles out of bed and walks towards the electronic wreckage. He gets on his knees and pretends to search, in reality looking for a sharp piece of metal to defend himself with.
Wrapping his fingers around a piece of jagged glass, Spike turns abruptly and makes a run for the man.
Sam easily blocks the hit and presses a taser into the man's arm, sending him flying backwards.
Spike can hear the mocking tone as the electronic voice speaks. "Apparently you don't know who I am."
Gasps coming in short breaths, Spike bites back. "A government mercenary. You are part of a covert group under the orders of crooked military officials. Officials whose names I found. An organization I'm going to make light of. I might not now who you are but I know you're gonna rot with the rest of them."
Sam chuckles. "And how are you gonna save the world if you're dead?"
"Cuz I don't have the..." Spike stops abruptly. "Shit."
A sense of dread threatens to overcome Sam. "Then who does?" He asks menacingly.
Spike curses himself multiple times over. He looks away and refuses to answer. The man slowly walks over and leans down, twisting a Swiss knife on one hand.
Sam hates what he's about to say but he has to know. "Julianna Braddock."
Spikes eyes widen and Sam knows. She has the flash drive.
"Please don't hurt her. She doesn't have anything to do with this." Spike says fiercely.
Sam begins to pace the room angrily. How is he gonna get the flash drive now? He can't ask for it as her husband, she'll get suspicious. But he can't attack her or threaten her either.
He glances at Spike and gets an idea. He points the knife at the man. "Put on your shoes. If you want to save your friend, you're coming with me."
Spike knows this man won't hesitate to kill him and he can't let this man go after Jules either, so he gets up and put on his sneakers. The figure walks behind him, undoubtedly holding a knife or gun to his back, as they head out of the house.
"Drive."
Spike catches the keys thrown his way and wonders only for a second how the man got his car keys. Nevertheless, he wisely doesn't ask and climbs into the passenger seat, watching warily as the man climbs into the backseat, gun in one hand.
"9623 Maple Drive."
Spike finds it odd that this man knows Jules's address off the top of his head but decides not to speak out about that either.
The drive to Jules's home is quiet and tense, but eventually Spike is pulling into the driveway of the familiar home. Both men exit the car and Sam forces Spike to walk forward.
A couple feet from the front door, Spike turns and tries to knock out the man in an attempt to protect the sleeping family inside.
Unfortunately the highly trained assassin seems to anticipate the move and effortlessly blocks the hit, punching him hard in the gut and knocking him to the ground. Spike slowly gets up, clutching his stomach and trying to breath.
"Next time I wont be so nice." Sam threatens.
Spike nods numbly and resumes walking. At the front door, the masked man picks the lock and they're in. But as soon as they step inside they both sense something is wrong as barely audible sounds reach their ears.
"Go." Sam's head is swirling as his keen hearing picks up on his wife's and a familiar male's voices. He presses the gun to Spike's back as he pushes the man towards where the sound is coming from. The basement.
He nears the door and whispers. "Don't try anything stupid and stay behind me."
Spike nods. Right now he has no plans on leaving. Jules is his first priority right now. Both men quietly walk down the stairs and stop dead at the scene before them.
Jules has her gun trained on a man with dark hair and eyes, who in turn has his gun trained on her.
Sam immediately points his own weapon at the man. Spike just looks back and forth among the three.
The brunette man in black smirks and turns towards Sam, keeping the gun trained on Jules, and lifting another gun with his other hand. "Hey Buddy. Remember me?"
Sam's eyes widen and he takes a step backward. "Matt?" He shakes his head in disbelief. "You're alive."
"No thanks to you." Matt sneers. His eyes then train behind Sam, noticing there's another person in the room, and before anyone can act, pulls the trigger.
"Spike!" Jules screams, running to her fallen teammate. She searches for a bullet hole, or blood, but finds neither. She turns to Matt, pointing her gun. "What did you do to him?!"
"Tranquilizer dart." Matt answers coldly, not tearing his eyes from Sam's. "I'm guessing your beloved wife doesn't know?"
Jules tenses. Sam does too.
"Sam?" Jules asks quietly.
Sam sighs and tears off his mask. "I can explain."
"But not right now," Matt interjects, "first I need the flash drive. So why don't you tell your wife to kindly give it to me?"
Sam narrows his eyes. "Go to hell."
Matt chuckles bitterly. "Been there, done that. Thanks to you may I add."
Sam closes his eyes as guilt and pain wash over him. "I had to Matt."
Matt's brown eyes burn red. "You had to what!? Kill your best friend!? You were supposed to have my back man! We were gonna bring them down together and you backstabbed me!"
Sam clenches his jaw and whispers softly. "They threatened my family."
Matt shakes his head. "I trusted you man..."
"They threatened to capture and torture my wife, Matt! My baby boy! What was I supposed to do? Williams had them in his claws, I.. I couldn't save them, unless..." Sam whispers fiercely, pleading with him to understand.
Matt's eyes sadden. "You could have told me man." He lowers his weapon as Jules simply stares dumbfounded, lowering her own weapon.
"So why's the flash drive important?" Jules asks finally, breaking the silence that enveloped the room.
Sam looks over at his wife and sighs. "Spike somehow put together the list of men that are responsible for all this. And I was tasked to destroy it," he shifts uncomfortably, "and Spike."
"Tasked?" Jules's eyes narrow. "I'm guessing you're not an average government agent."
Matt snorts.
Sam glares at him and tries his best to explain. "On my second year in JTF2, I was ambushed by the General and his men. They used you and Jake to force me to become part of an underground group of mercenaries. Sgt. Williams is one of them, so he had you close and I couldn't risk it. I received all the high-profile targets because of my skills. According to my file, I was just privately contracted."
"So you're basically a government issued assassin?"
Matt shrugs. "Well put."
Jules turns to Matt. "You too?"
Matt shakes his head. "At first. They had me tied by threatening my brother, who was serving in the army, but me and Sam made a plan to bring them down. But..."
"Sgt. Williams gave me an ultimatum - kill Matt or they kill you."
Matt sighs. "And he chose me. Luckily, Sam didn't opt for his trademark sniper shots, but instead threw an explosive into the building where I was staying. I got out alive but took the opportunity to fake my death. Now, I'm on my own mission to kill each and every one of those crooked bastards. I just need the top leaders, so I need that flash drive."
"Jules, give him the flash drive." Sam speaks up.
Jules looks confused but hands it over to Matt anyway. "Guess Spike gave me the wrong one."
Matt smiles tightly. "Thank you." He looks at Sam. "You still in their claws?"
"He won't be anymore."
Both men turn to Jules who spoke. She walks over to Sam and places her hand in his. "Go. Go with him and bring them down. So you can come back to me and we can be a family for longer than a year or two at a time."
Sam takes her face in his other hand. "Are you
sure?"
"Yes." She leans in and kisses him.
Matt clears his throat. "Okay then. But we need to leave you and your kids somewhere safe so they can't use you against us." He glances at Sam. "Can I trust you man? I understand what you did before, I would've done the same for my brother. But it's different now."
Sam walks over and gives Matt a bear hug. "Yeah, man. You can trust me. And I'm sorry, if I could go back..."
"No need. I'm here now and soon enough those power greedy bastards won't be."
Sam turns to his wife. "I'll get the kids in the car. You pack some bags."
Jules nods and runs up the stairs.
"She's amazing." Matt smiles. "You got lucky bro."
Sam smiles. "I know. She's my everything."
Both men jog upstairs, and Sam grabs Sadie while Matt takes Jake. Bundled up, they put the sleeping children in the car. Sam goes back to the basement and opens the ground compartment, placing everything in a duffel. He puts the duffel on one shoulder and puts Spike on his other one.
He heads out of the house and places Spike beside Jules and the children in the backseat. Matt is riding shotgun, so he gets in the driver's seat and steps on the accelerator.
"Where are you taking them?" Matt asks.
"SRU HQ."
Jules smiles. There she will be surrounded by family she trusts, not to mention they're highly trained officers. Although since it's like 2 in the morning, none of them will be there yet. Still, a police station is the safest place to be.
In no time, the car jerks to a stop and Sam gets out. He takes Spike over his shoulder as Jules and Matt get the kids and the bags.
They sneak into the building and make it to Team One's floor without being seen. Sam places Spike on the couch in the break room, and the kids are snuggled on the other one.
"I'll be waiting in the car." Matt says, giving the couple a moment alone.
Sam smiles gratefully and turns to his wife. "I promise as soon as this is all over, I'll come back and explain everything. I'm sorry for hiding this from you but it was for your and our children's safety." Sam grimaces. "I messed up once when I let Williams watch over you and I'm not making that mistake again."
"Hey, you didn't know. It's not your fault. Remember that we moved away from him thanks to you and I found a new family in Toronto, we're safe here."
Sam smiles. "You're awesome you know that?"
Jules smiles. "Not as awesome as you." She blinks rapidly. "Promise me you'll come back to us."
"I promise."
They kiss passionately, pulling away when air is necessary. Sam walks over and leans down to kiss Sadie's and Jake's foreheads. He whispers to the sleeping children, hoping they hear. "I love you both. Be good for Mommy. Daddy will be home soon."
He straightens and hugs his wife one last time. "I love you."
As he leaves he hears her whisper.
"I love you too. Be safe."
He turns at the door way and his blue eyes lock on her brown ones. "You too."