Plasters and promises

Ruth glared at the plaster cast now encasing her ankle. The pain had subsided but the the thought of spending Christmas and New Year in a plaster cast was not something that she relished. Harry smiled as he stepped behind the curtain.

"Can I go home now?" Ruth smiled slightly. Harry rolled his eyes.

"You were drugged. Assaulted and have a fractured dislocated ankle. What do you think?" He watched as she frowned.

"That Ros and Zaf set my ankle well. The doctor was happy, by some miracle I don't need surgery to set it and we have more work on than we can handle. We are already down in numbers and I as much as I don't like revenge I want the bastard that did this in prison before anyone else is hurt."

Harry nodded, knowing Ruth rarely sounded so determined. He knew she was deadly serious. He stepped towards her, taking her hand.

"You passed out in my arms."

"Not the first time that's happened." Ruth smirked as Harry blushed slightly.

"First time in public."

She tilted her head, conceding his point.

"It bloody hurt."

"I know." He touched her face as her eyes closed.

"Four days before Christmas, I just want to be with our family. Nico and Gracie."

"Are fine. I promise." He kissed her gently on the lips. Ruth sighed, knowing he was right.

"Lincoln, Parkinson and Cook are still out there." She paused. "Harry. It's only four days until Christmas Day. I'd bet my life."

"Don't say that." His voice lowered as he brushed a strand of hair away from her face. "Don't ever say that." Her eyes closed for a moment.

"I."

"I agree. Whatever they are planning it's more than likely focused on the festive period. Perfect way to blame a whole community. And the idiot extremists of both sides try to take the so called glory."

Ruth nodded. "Doesn't help when the most powerful man in the world is endorsing racism. Those tweets."

"As soon as Tariq is back to work I'll see if he can do something about the Twitter sphere." He watched as she widened her eyes.

"Tariq?"

"Is off life support and breathing unaided." Harry smiled as Ruth's face lit up. She threw herself into his arms, hugging him tightly. The pain in her back and chest ignored as Harry held her. He buried his head in her shoulder holding on to her as if it was the only thing that mattered. He had no idea how she had escaped but he thanked every God and patron saint that she was in his arms.

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"Erin?" The dark haired spook smiled as her boyfriend approached her. The cafe was small and crowded as Christmas shoppers vied for tables and chairs to rest.

"Hi." She nodded to the expresso she had already ordered. He smiled grateful for the caffeine. He sat opposite her.

"I heard about Tariq. Great to have some good news for once." He sipped his drink as Erin nodded. A child began screaming at the other side of the cafe.

"Yeah." Erin looked towards the young mother struggling with a child in the midst of a meltdown. Richard turned slightly to see what she was looking at.

"Ah, a meltdown. My nephew is autistic. Did I tell you that?" He slipped away to talk to the young boy who immediately began to calm as the young mother collected herself thanking him for calming her son. Erin smiled, wondering what she would find out about the quietly spoken American man next. Minutes later he returned to his seat. Erin smiled.

"No, you never told me."

"Aidan? He's twelve. It's sensory overload that causes the meltdown. Unless you've seen it you can be forgiven for thinking the child is just naughty. It's not. It's the only way of coping with the sights, sounds and smells all hitting them at once. Little Ben there, he's a good kid. I think I made a friend." Richard smiled as the child waved to him.

"So it seems." Erin smiled.

"Work?"

"Britain for Britain."

"Also known as Scum for Scumbags." Richard spoke as Erin nodded.

"Have you picked up any intel? We believe they are being used as a cover for a potential attack." She sipped her tea. He nodded.

"Our resources aren't perfect. You know the government are currently cutting back our budget. We rely on GCHQ liaison as much as you do." He looked at the hot dark liquid in the cup in his hand. "We know they are dangerous. A cab driver got killed. A prison guard."

"We know what they did. We are trying to work out what they are going to do next. Richard, if this is not stopped. If we can't." She left the words unsaid as Richard took her hand.

"Hey."

She threaded her fingers through his. "Christmas. I'm on call but. Well. Rosie would love it, Mum would too. If you. I mean." She hated how she babbled but knew this was uncharted territory for them. Richard smiled warmly.

"I'd love to." He looked at her. "These B4B aren't going away. I'll speak to my contacts, see what I can get."

"Thank you." Erin smiled as he kissed her cheek gently before leaving the cafe. She watched him go wondering if Calum had been right - Matthew would have been happy for her.

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"Good news. Now." Ros stood slightly behind Malcolm as he tapped his computer screen. The older technical officer sighed.

"London has more cctv than ever. I've tracked Ruth's assailant as much as possible. He managed not to be seen on some of the cameras, suggesting they know the black spots. Calum and Catherine are trawling mobile phone records." He explained as Lucas approached them.

"I have an asset. Lloyd. I've arranged a meet. Might shred some light on what's going on with Parkinson." He watched as his wife nodded, a slight smile creeping on her lips.

"Cmon then." Ros grabbed her jacket. "Let's see what Lloyd can tell us." She headed out of the Grid, leaving Lucas no option but to follow.

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A/N more before Xmas I hope. If you're reading please review